Mastering Dungeons

Latest Episodes:

The Monster Overhaul! (MD 224) Jan 15, 2025

Show notes

Episode 224 of Mastering Dungeons!

Main topic: The Monster Overhaul!

Shawn and Teos review the Monster Overhaul, a book that irreverently aims to become an indispensable tool at your table, providing tons of ideas for fun monsters.

News: Critical Role Publishing Deal, Chaosium $500 Convention Pack, Morale Rules, and more!

Contents
00:00 Back to Normal
01:57 Desert Island RPG?
06:26 Is 2024 5E Deadlier?
14:58 2024 Distrusts DMs?
31:33 Chaosium $500 Support Pack
33:08 Mearls on Morale
51:46 McMillan Carries CR
53:25 Monster Word Play
55:33 Public Domain Image Archive
56:39 Cairn 2E in Spanish
57:29 Shout Out to Luz_Tak
58:11 The Monster Overhaul
59:02 How Our Brains Work
01:01:06 Book Introduction
01:02:58 Do You Love Tables?
01:09:23 Random Encounter Tables
01:18:38 People
01:19:23 Dungeon and Goblins
01:23:58 Dragons
01:25:10 Harpy and Will-o-Wisp
01:27:10 Froghemoth
01:27:43 Vampires and Biscuit Golem
01:28:54 Eye Tyrants
01:30:42 Overall Thoughts
01:32:15 Shout-Outs
Thank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.

Show Search Engine: https://mdsearch.alphastream.org/

Our intro and outro music is Metropolis Fanfare, provided royalty-free by Tabletop Audio (https://tabletopaudio.com) under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

Monster Manual Previews! (MD 223) Jan 08, 2025

Show notes

Episode 223 of Mastering Dungeons!

Main topic: Monster Manual Previews!

Previews have begun for the 2025 MM! Shawn and Teos discuss the preview and just how hard it is to create monster books.

News: Pinball Wizards, Most Anticipated RPGs, Singapore GMing, and more!

Contents
00:00 Rip Off the 2025 Band-Aid
02:50 New Crafting Rules?
11:29 Games for Campaigns vs One Shots?
27:08 Pinball Wizards
30:28 2025 Most Anticipated RPGs
32:19 Appelcline's Year in Review
39:45 Singapore Professional GMing
42:40 Universal Fan Fest D&D Details
43:58 Will Doyle on Directive 8020
45:53 Kobold Press Monster Vault 2
46:16 Shawn Merwin's Design Tips!
46:59 Monster Manual Previews
49:14 The Challenge of Monster Books
51:26 Describing Monsters in the World
57:38 New Art to Represent D&D
01:00:52 All Paths Lead to CR
01:09:35 What Changed and Monster Families
01:11:45 Monster Type Changes
01:16:46 Bloodied and Exhaustion
01:18:29 Biggest MM Ever?
01:19:49 The 2014 DMG is Bigger than 2024
01:21:07 Shout-Outs
Thank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.

Show Search Engine: https://mdsearch.alphastream.org/

MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

Looking Back on 2024, Forward to 2025! (MD 222) Jan 01, 2025

Show notes

Episode 222 of Mastering Dungeons!

Main topic: Looking Back on 2024, Forward to 2025!

Shawn and Teos revisit the year’s biggest stories, the show’s main topics and guests, and look forward to what will impact our hobby in 2025.

News: Bigger Monster Manual, CNBC on D&D’s Financial Success, Beyond Ranked Skills, and more!

Contents
00:00 Happy New Year!
02:37 Vancian Magic Limits Narratives?
12:03 Adjust DCs Based on PC?
23:41 Bigger Monster Manual
25:33 CNBC on D&D Financial Success
30:09 Using Third Places
32:32 How to Do a Character Voice
34:42 Weapons of Lore
36:13 Beyond Ranked Skills
40:00 Clank Acq Inc 2
41:00 Looking Back, Looking Forward
41:16 2024 Highlights
57:25 Our Guests in 2024
59:17 Our Main Topics
01:02:25 Our Fans
01:03:14 Our 2024 Favorites
01:07:58 Our Questions for 2025
01:26:14 Shout-Outs
Thank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.

Show Search Engine: https://mdsearch.alphastream.org/

MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

The Psychology of D&D with Dr. Jamie Madigan (MD 221) Dec 25, 2024

Show notes

Episode 221 of Mastering Dungeons!

Main topic: The Psychology of D&D!

Dr. Jamie Madigan joins Teos and Shawn to explain that their dice aren’t cursed, the benefits of online vs in-person gaming, hot hand fallacy, and much more! Check out Jamie’s new book: https://www.psychologyofdnd.com/

News: Kobold Press Finances, Artificer on Unearthed Arcana, Goodbye Dark Alliance, and more!

Contents
00:00 We Got You a Jamie Gift
03:18 Build World With Players?
08:32 Death Saves Proposal?
23:43 Unearthed Arcana Artificer
35:19 D&D Secret Level Review
40:47 Cyberpunk VG Adds RPG
41:56 Kobold Press 2024 Finances
45:14 Draw Steel Core Rules to Patrons
45:54 Goodbye Dark Alliance
47:17 Vote for Most Anticipated RPG
49:45 Psychology of D&D
50:19 Dr. Jamie Madigan
52:06 Writing and Publishing Process
55:22 Book Approach
58:10 Psychology of Dice Randomness
01:00:28 Gambler's Fallacy
01:02:28 Hot Hand Fallacy
01:04:45 Psychology of Game Choices
01:08:37 Fewer Compensatory Options
01:10:02 Satisficers vs Maximizers
01:13:49 Benefits of Play
01:16:25 Online vs In-Person Benefits
01:24:59 Shout-Outs
01:27:34 Find Dr. Jamie Madigan

Thank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.

Show Search Engine: https://mdsearch.alphastream.org/

MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

Listener Question Mega-Show (MD 220) Dec 18, 2024

Show notes

Episode 220 of Mastering Dungeons!

Main topic: Listener Question Mega-Show!

What do we do when we have tons of listener questions? Shawn and Teos dedicate the main segment to answering some truly awesome questions. Find out why this was the most fun we’ve had in months!

News: Moonbeam Launches Alpha, New Maps Features, D&D Immersive Quest, and more!

Contents
00:00 Bad Movie Season
02:14 Maps Adds Monster Stats
10:18 D&D Immersive Quest
14:11 D&D Adventurer Magazine
15:53 Licensing and WotC
18:05 Mearls on Death Saves
39:02 Jail-Compliant RPGs
40:54 One Foot in Fairy Land
42:47 Moonbeam Launches Alpha
44:34 Listener Questions
45:29 Improv Anxiety?
49:39 Player vs Character Skill?
01:02:12 Find Playtesters?
01:07:36 Easy RPG Entry Point?
01:18:46 Tricks for Creativity?
01:25:14 Shout-Outs

Thank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.

Show Search Engine: https://mdsearch.alphastream.org/

MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

Recent Game Design Lessons (MD 219) Dec 11, 2024

Show notes

Episode 219 of Mastering Dungeons!

Main topic: Recent Game Design Lessons!

Shawn and Teos share what they learned from recent projects, from late 3E, 4E, and beyond.

News: New Greyhawk OP Campaign, AI Takes Down Itch.io, Talking Exploration, and more!

Contents
00:00:00 We're 93!
00:01:38 Redesign Gnomes?
00:10:08 Encourage in Character?
00:17:10 Adventure Opening?
00:22:14 Legends of Greyhawk and MagicCon
00:25:28 AI Takes Down Itch.io
00:26:57 12 Days of Beyond
00:29:06 Everyone's Talking Exploration
00:31:49 2024 Magic Item Changes
00:33:39 Kickstarter Project Finances
00:37:19 Recent Game Design Lessons
00:39:16 Form and Function
00:44:05 Know the Medium
00:46:08 The Audience
00:50:58 Xendrik Expeditions
00:55:09 Living Forgotten Realms
00:59:19 Ashes of Athas
01:03:01 Getting Noticed
01:04:34 Playtesting and New Editions
01:05:56 Understanding Companies
01:09:19 D&D Encounters
01:12:09 Full-Time Work
01:13:09 Balancing Freelance and Self
01:16:02 Other Paths
01:17:25 Shout-Outs

Thank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.

Show Search Engine: https://mdsearch.alphastream.org/

MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

Lessons Learned from Our Early Projects (MD 218) Dec 04, 2024

Show notes

Episode 218 of Mastering Dungeons!

Main topic: Lessons Learned from Our Early Projects!

Shawn and Teos share what they learned from the days when they started as designers, back in the 2000s and the 3E era.

News: Exodus is Hasbro’s Newest RPG, Lord of the Rings and Illrigger on Beyond, PAX Unplugged, and more!

Contents
00:00 Snow Job
02:24 DM Types?
08:57 Exciting Sandbox Pace?
18:55 Exodus Video Game Gets RPG
30:45 Lord of the Rings on DDB
34:57 MCDM's Illrigger on DDB
38:19 D&D at PAX Unplugged
39:20 Combo Encounters
40:59 Mearls Teaching at UW
41:29 Monstrous Menagerie II
43:21 Lessons Learned from Early Projects
44:31 Build a Community?
49:47 Starting in 2000 and the LG Era
52:54 Organized Play Lessons
56:57 Learning is Investment
01:00:02 Changing Social Media
01:02:59 Clear and Concise Language
01:04:01 Understanding Industry Pay
01:05:27 Great Success is Rare
01:07:30 There is No Perfection
01:13:58 The Product that Isn't
01:16:31 Edition Change Challenges
01:18:31 Shout-Outs

Thank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.

Show Search Engine: https://mdsearch.alphastream.org/

MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

Qualities RPG Companies Look for in an RPG Designer (MD 217) Nov 27, 2024

Show notes

Episode 217 of Mastering Dungeons!

Main topic: Qualities RPG Companies Look for in an RPG Designer!

Shawn and Teos review the qualities companies say they look for in an RPG designer.

News: Investors Sue Hasbro, Hasbro Abandons Movies, Juggling Teenagers, and more!

Contents
00:00 Hello World
02:11 Adopt Rules More Quickly?
13:22 Juggling Teenagers?
21:01 Hasbro Shifts from Movies
24:43 Investors Sue Hasbro
27:10 Social Media Changes
32:31 Post Office D&D Flyer
33:30 Winter Fantasy
34:13 Goodman Games Con
35:10 Roll20 Bastion Contest
35:58 DM David's D&D Wish List
39:39 Cupcake Dragon Card Game
40:56 Iskandar Explorer's Journal
41:50 What Publishers Look For
42:51 Standardized Job Descriptions?
45:25 Wide Skill Range
49:53 Reliability and Communication
58:32 Curiosity
01:01:23 Style Guides
01:04:06 Excitement
01:05:45 Mindfulness and Compassion
01:09:11 Big Bold Ideas
01:11:28 Courage
01:17:30 2 Designers
01:23:37 Praise
01:24:48 Shout-Outs

Thank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.

Show Search Engine: https://mdsearch.alphastream.org/

MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

Embracing Dark Fantasy (MD 216) Nov 20, 2024

Show notes

Episode 216 of Mastering Dungeons!

Main topic: Embracing Dark Fantasy!

Ben Bryne joins Shawn to discuss what makes dark fantasy such a compelling genre and how to create for dark games. Teos meanwhile hopes to recover from his technical horror as his desktop bites the dust.

News: AL Update, Kobolds Make Mistakes, and more!

Contents
00:00 Introduction
40:54 Dark Fantasy Campaigns
59:00 Find Ben Byrne

Thank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.

Show Search Engine: https://mdsearch.alphastream.org/

MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

What Publishers Want in a D&D Designer (MD 215) Nov 13, 2024

Show notes

Episode 215 of Mastering Dungeons!

Main topic:

What Publishers Want in a D&D Designer!

Shawn and Teos review two D&D job postings and break down the skills and job functions a publisher looks for in a D&D Designer and Product Architect.

News: DMG Preorder Debacles, Weapon Masteries 101, PAGE Convention, and more!

Contents
00:00 Surviving
00:53 Writing Same Old Stuff?
08:02 Teaching Like Lazy DM?
14:41 D&D Beyond on Campaigns and Adventures
18:11 Critical Role Minis Canceled
20:23 DMG Preorder Debacles
23:13 Weapon Masteries 101
30:49 PAGE Convention Near Philly
33:05 State of the Mongoose
35:20 Lessons from Meetup
37:43 Jeff Stevens Steals Christmas
38:40 What Publishers Want in a D&D Designer
40:27 Growing Into a Position
42:13 D&D Designer - What You Do
56:08 Representing the Company
58:55 What You Bring
01:02:47 D&D Product Architect
01:11:22 Shout-Outs
Thank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.

Show Search Engine: https://mdsearch.alphastream.org/

MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

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