OGs you say? Is nothic there?? Havent seen him around in ages
I wouldn't know, I don't have discord. But I think Nothic is overall just busy with college
He's a college boi now?
Good for him. (Honestly thought he was a little younger so still high school.)
Flattered, but I'm still a lowly high school junior. It's not that I'm busy with life isomuch as I'm less interested in D&D, and therefore writing in general. I think about it often and get sad, because I used to love writing and improved so rapidly at it. Today ideas no longer flow smoothly, unless it's something easy like an opinion piece or Forum Games post. I barely remember how to use a semicolon.
This may be silly, but I blame high school for it. I have no desire to do non-school writing because essays and whatnot have killed my passion. I was never a great student, so it feels impractical to waste time writing when I could be doing missing assignments or going on a real-life adventure.
The other piece of it is D&D itself. The game just isn't fun for me anymore. Pessimistic as it may be, I struggle to see the new edition as anything other than a cash grab. Additionally, much like 6e, my old circle of real-life players have changed so much they've become practically unrecognizable. It feels as though the worldbuilding aspect (my all-time favorite) is all I have left.
All of this brings me back to ask you all a two-part question. Firstly, what are some challenging books I can read over break to build back my syntax? And does anyone have suggestions for writing exercises I can practice with? Something political or satirical would be nice, but I'll take any genre. The last two books I read for fun were Rivethead by Ben Hamper and Malcolm X's autobiography.
For me when it comes to 5.5e I figure nothing there is going to mess with the 5.0e fun I've had. And gotten some good memories made.
Just the other night got to hear the joy in a friend's voice when the dice came his way for example. And that's priceless for me.
As for high school writing assignments killing enthusiasm, I hear you. I will say one of my favorite writing assignments was when I got into just the right mental headspace to write half a page or so overanalyzing a political cartoon on every microscopic detail. (ie: trolling to teacher) And I know my mother remarked about how having to analyze books for school killed her love of reading for a long time.
When it comes to books to recommend I know Steven Erikson's Malazan Book of the Fallen is a nice read. (fantasy genre) In the first book, Gardens of the Moon, there's a chapter that just drummed with rhythm for me and was pretty wowing in that sense. Plus there's various other epic moments throughout. I've also heard it was based on some D&D worldbuilding he did. As a content note I will say there are some heavy subjects like CSA that come up. And also some cases where it's like "Why... why did you [the author] need to mention that?" But the former is relevant and not gratuitous and the latter is sparse and not exactly over-the-top. So it's within age-appropriateness for a high schooler IMHO.
With satire there's also the classic A Modest Proposal for a quick short read. And then of course Terry Pratchett's Discworld series has a delight of satire in it too.
Or you could read Aquinas' Summa Theologica. :P (Very dense with philosophy and theology. Known both for being a treasure trove of insights but also a very tough read.)
Also last night had a pretty fun one-shot with the bois.
I took Uni and the Hunt for the Lost Horn and reflavored it.
Uni the Unicorn became Blitzen the Reindeer whose antlers were stolen.
The bullywugs became South Pole Elves with icicle rapiers (so additional cold damage instead of poison) and the bugbear warriors each become EVIL PENGUINS.
Party gets to the woodland pool where Uni Blitzen is and one of the partymembers, an aarakocra cleric, is like, "A penguin? I fly over to him." And once he offered to buy Blitzen, which fits perfectly with the as-written motives, that led things in a direction I wasn't expecting but that made perfect sense. One hitch of course is that he didn't have enough gold to pay the asking price but that was no problem because the whole plan was actually to scam the penguin! (A plan which did not go over easy with the rest of the party. :P )
After a minor fight, tying up the evil penguin, and freeing Blitzen conversation with the magical reindeer began. Cleric asks about Rudolph. Blitzen is like "overrated." Cleric is like, "But the song! He saved Christmas that one evening even though you guys bullied him." Blitzen is like, "Yeah he saved Christmas that one time and NOW WON'T SHUT UP ABOUT IT!" (Good fun; loved that chat. Blitzen had to admit to getting coal in his stockings while the cleric threatened to write to Santa about Blitzen's behavior. ;p )
Party goes through a portal where Blitzen's antlers were taken through. Finds a Bling Dog Husky to which the druid immediately fell in love and wanted to tame him. They start exploring the crystal ball snowglobe demiplane and soon a fight breaks out. South Pole Elves are trying to recapture the blink husky. The cleric finds a tent and is taking up stakes to collapse it on the occupants. Madness. Excitement. Adventure! Since the cleric brought the tied up evil penguin through I had to quickly rename another penguin to "Even Eviler Penguin" which garnered quite a few delighted chuckles when it came on to the scene. And as that fight winds up Cnuto, the party's goblin companion is chasing down the last remaining South Pole Elf through the globe like a Scooby Doo cartoon.
Rogue also got to combine the Lucky feat with advantage to roll 3d20 choose highest and combine it with sharpshooter. Led to some awesome damage. (And considering how high sneak attack can be there were a few moments where I was like "Yeah. You hit the guy and they basically explode." So his character was standing shocked at what just happened a few times.
After a little rest they then went to stop the evil wizard using Blitzen's antlers and saved the day.
Man I wanna play dnd again (NOT forever dming, I wanna PLAY)
I have a character concept I'm workshopping rn, hes a mime who flunked out of mime school much to the disappointment of his family, who have been in the miming business for ages. He does magic by miming, like making finger guns for magic missile, or miming a box around him for shield, etc
I'm thinking bard (of course), idk what subclass would be best for it though, any suggestions?
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Idk I'm just a guy ig
I like Warlocks
I like guitars (coming up on my fifth year of playing!)
I want to be a musician/stay-at-home dad when I grow up
Recently obsessing over Warhammer 40k, specifically the T’au empire
Man I wanna play dnd again (NOT forever dming, I wanna PLAY)
I have a character concept I'm workshopping rn, hes a mime who flunked out of mime school much to the disappointment of his family, who have been in the miming business for ages. He does magic by miming, like making finger guns for magic missile, or miming a box around him for shield, etc
I'm thinking bard (of course), idk what subclass would be best for it though, any suggestions?
College of creation obviously
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Yo, I’m Himy, He/Him. I enjoy reading books, understanding why and how things work, anime/manga, video games and obviously, TTRPGS. I’m not the sharpest tool in the shed, but I like to think Im close. I’m good at trivia, history and science
I struggle with empathy. If you’re not sure what I mean by that, it basically means it’s hard for me to understand the mental state of others and respond with the right emotions
Man I wanna play dnd again (NOT forever dming, I wanna PLAY)
I have a character concept I'm workshopping rn, hes a mime who flunked out of mime school much to the disappointment of his family, who have been in the miming business for ages. He does magic by miming, like making finger guns for magic missile, or miming a box around him for shield, etc
I'm thinking bard (of course), idk what subclass would be best for it though, any suggestions?
College of creation obviously
Omg of course, it's so perfect, how didnt I think of that!
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Idk I'm just a guy ig
I like Warlocks
I like guitars (coming up on my fifth year of playing!)
I want to be a musician/stay-at-home dad when I grow up
Recently obsessing over Warhammer 40k, specifically the T’au empire
Hello! Call meTana. My pronouns are She/Her. I am a teenager. I have Autism and ADHD. And, you would probably call me trans femme, Pansexual pancake, and ace I will mother you if you are being stupid. ALL HAIL MERLIN! [roll]1d4[/roll] + [roll]1d4[/roll] + [roll]1d4[/roll] + [roll]1d4[/roll] + [roll]1d4[/roll] + [roll]1d4[/roll] = [roll][roll:-6]+[roll:-5]+[roll:-4]+[roll:-3]+[roll:-2]+[roll:-1][/roll] I have adopted Golden, Salem, Wes, Aspen, and Foalin.
Anybody know what weird obscure national [insert thing] day it is today
Idk I'm just a guy ig
I like Warlocks
I like guitars (coming up on my fifth year of playing!)
I want to be a musician/stay-at-home dad when I grow up
Recently obsessing over Warhammer 40k, specifically the T’au empire
Hi, I’m DrakenBrine, here’s my Sig and characters
I am The Grand Envisioner!
For me when it comes to 5.5e I figure nothing there is going to mess with the 5.0e fun I've had. And gotten some good memories made.
Just the other night got to hear the joy in a friend's voice when the dice came his way for example. And that's priceless for me.
As for high school writing assignments killing enthusiasm, I hear you. I will say one of my favorite writing assignments was when I got into just the right mental headspace to write half a page or so overanalyzing a political cartoon on every microscopic detail. (ie: trolling to teacher) And I know my mother remarked about how having to analyze books for school killed her love of reading for a long time.
When it comes to books to recommend I know Steven Erikson's Malazan Book of the Fallen is a nice read. (fantasy genre) In the first book, Gardens of the Moon, there's a chapter that just drummed with rhythm for me and was pretty wowing in that sense. Plus there's various other epic moments throughout. I've also heard it was based on some D&D worldbuilding he did. As a content note I will say there are some heavy subjects like CSA that come up. And also some cases where it's like "Why... why did you [the author] need to mention that?" But the former is relevant and not gratuitous and the latter is sparse and not exactly over-the-top. So it's within age-appropriateness for a high schooler IMHO.
With satire there's also the classic A Modest Proposal for a quick short read. And then of course Terry Pratchett's Discworld series has a delight of satire in it too.
Or you could read Aquinas' Summa Theologica. :P
(Very dense with philosophy and theology. Known both for being a treasure trove of insights but also a very tough read.)
This is a signature. It was a simple signature. But it has been upgraded.
Belolonandalogalo, Sunny
Eggo Lass, Bone and Oblivion | Tendilius Mondhaven Paxaramus, Drakkenheim
Karl Erikson, No Guts No Glory | Chipper, Curse of Strahd
Silverwood Group 1 | Silverwood Group 2
Get rickrolled here. Awesome music here. Track 52, 12/23/25, O Holy Night
Also last night had a pretty fun one-shot with the bois.
I took Uni and the Hunt for the Lost Horn and reflavored it.
Uni the Unicorn became Blitzen the Reindeer whose antlers were stolen.
The bullywugs became South Pole Elves with icicle rapiers (so additional cold damage instead of poison) and the bugbear warriors each become EVIL PENGUINS.
Party gets to the woodland pool where
UniBlitzen is and one of the partymembers, an aarakocra cleric, is like, "A penguin? I fly over to him." And once he offered to buy Blitzen, which fits perfectly with the as-written motives, that led things in a direction I wasn't expecting but that made perfect sense. One hitch of course is that he didn't have enough gold to pay the asking price but that was no problem because the whole plan was actually to scam the penguin! (A plan which did not go over easy with the rest of the party. :P )After a minor fight, tying up the evil penguin, and freeing Blitzen conversation with the magical reindeer began. Cleric asks about Rudolph. Blitzen is like "overrated." Cleric is like, "But the song! He saved Christmas that one evening even though you guys bullied him." Blitzen is like, "Yeah he saved Christmas that one time and NOW WON'T SHUT UP ABOUT IT!" (Good fun; loved that chat. Blitzen had to admit to getting coal in his stockings while the cleric threatened to write to Santa about Blitzen's behavior. ;p )
Party goes through a portal where Blitzen's antlers were taken through. Finds a Bling
DogHusky to which the druid immediately fell in love and wanted to tame him. They start exploring thecrystal ballsnowglobe demiplane and soon a fight breaks out. South Pole Elves are trying to recapture the blink husky. The cleric finds a tent and is taking up stakes to collapse it on the occupants. Madness. Excitement. Adventure! Since the cleric brought the tied up evil penguin through I had to quickly rename another penguin to "Even Eviler Penguin" which garnered quite a few delighted chuckles when it came on to the scene. And as that fight winds up Cnuto, the party's goblin companion is chasing down the last remaining South Pole Elf through the globe like a Scooby Doo cartoon.Rogue also got to combine the Lucky feat with advantage to roll 3d20 choose highest and combine it with sharpshooter. Led to some awesome damage. (And considering how high sneak attack can be there were a few moments where I was like "Yeah. You hit the guy and they basically explode." So his character was standing shocked at what just happened a few times.
After a little rest they then went to stop the evil wizard using Blitzen's antlers and saved the day.
I loved it. And I'm pretty sure they did too.
This is a signature. It was a simple signature. But it has been upgraded.
Belolonandalogalo, Sunny
Eggo Lass, Bone and Oblivion | Tendilius Mondhaven Paxaramus, Drakkenheim
Karl Erikson, No Guts No Glory | Chipper, Curse of Strahd
Silverwood Group 1 | Silverwood Group 2
Get rickrolled here. Awesome music here. Track 52, 12/23/25, O Holy Night
merry day
I am also here.
Am snek.
Merry Christmas [or Hanukkah] Zombles
Hi, I’m DrakenBrine, here’s my Sig and characters
I am The Grand Envisioner!
Man I wanna play dnd again (NOT forever dming, I wanna PLAY)
I have a character concept I'm workshopping rn, hes a mime who flunked out of mime school much to the disappointment of his family, who have been in the miming business for ages. He does magic by miming, like making finger guns for magic missile, or miming a box around him for shield, etc
I'm thinking bard (of course), idk what subclass would be best for it though, any suggestions?
Idk I'm just a guy ig
I like Warlocks
I like guitars (coming up on my fifth year of playing!)
I want to be a musician/stay-at-home dad when I grow up
Recently obsessing over Warhammer 40k, specifically the T’au empire
College of creation obviously
Yo, I’m Himy, He/Him. I enjoy reading books, understanding why and how things work, anime/manga, video games and obviously, TTRPGS. I’m not the sharpest tool in the shed, but I like to think Im close. I’m good at trivia, history and science
I struggle with empathy. If you’re not sure what I mean by that, it basically means it’s hard for me to understand the mental state of others and respond with the right emotions
Should be all the important bits. Sweet
Omg of course, it's so perfect, how didnt I think of that!
Idk I'm just a guy ig
I like Warlocks
I like guitars (coming up on my fifth year of playing!)
I want to be a musician/stay-at-home dad when I grow up
Recently obsessing over Warhammer 40k, specifically the T’au empire
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL!!!
Idk I'm just a guy ig
I like Warlocks
I like guitars (coming up on my fifth year of playing!)
I want to be a musician/stay-at-home dad when I grow up
Recently obsessing over Warhammer 40k, specifically the T’au empire
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!
Hello! I am a perfectly sane gibberer. Hi! :D
Locations are dead, the Temple of Potassium has fallen but its ideals live on
A mysterious link of chain... (Extended signature). PRAISE JEFF THE EVIL ROOMBA! REALLY cool video.
One of the Warlock Patrons on the forums. Low, low price of your soul, firstborn child and liver!
Titles: The Echoing Story Spewer (Drummer), the Endless Maws (Isis), the Mad Murderer (PJ), more on my extended sig
Merry Christmas
Merlin the wise
Yeah, Merry Christmas, y’all. Have the greatest of times, remember the season’s never over, and…you don’t have to frequent the forums today. Have fun.
Build us a door
And rest here with me
Lights are on
But nobody's home...
extended sig
Well happy boxing day yall
How was your christmas?
Idk I'm just a guy ig
I like Warlocks
I like guitars (coming up on my fifth year of playing!)
I want to be a musician/stay-at-home dad when I grow up
Recently obsessing over Warhammer 40k, specifically the T’au empire
Good. I got Silksong and DCC 5: Eye of the Bedlam Bride, amongst other things. Pretty happy.
Hi, I’m DrakenBrine, here’s my Sig and characters
I am The Grand Envisioner!
SILKSONG!!!
I rather enjoy silksong
Idk I'm just a guy ig
I like Warlocks
I like guitars (coming up on my fifth year of playing!)
I want to be a musician/stay-at-home dad when I grow up
Recently obsessing over Warhammer 40k, specifically the T’au empire
Boo!
Hello! Call me Tana.
My pronouns are She/Her.
I am a teenager. I have Autism and ADHD. And, you would probably call me trans femme, Pansexual pancake, and ace
I will mother you if you are being stupid.
ALL HAIL MERLIN! [roll]1d4[/roll] + [roll]1d4[/roll] + [roll]1d4[/roll] + [roll]1d4[/roll] + [roll]1d4[/roll] + [roll]1d4[/roll] = [roll][roll:-6]+[roll:-5]+[roll:-4]+[roll:-3]+[roll:-2]+[roll:-1][/roll]
I have adopted Golden, Salem, Wes, Aspen, and Foalin.
AGHH
Scary D:
Idk I'm just a guy ig
I like Warlocks
I like guitars (coming up on my fifth year of playing!)
I want to be a musician/stay-at-home dad when I grow up
Recently obsessing over Warhammer 40k, specifically the T’au empire
Silksong was amazing but I’ve 100%ed it so I’m playing through nine sols until the DLC releases.
Hiii :3
14yo cancer, bisexual(maybe Pan?), Genderfluid femboy, prefer She/They but don’t mind what pronouns you call me
Love all soulsbourne and soulslike games + metroidvanias.
Changed from the Christmas PFP, maybe my New Year's one should be just devouring the space time continuum.(Or a clock or something idk)
Hello! I am a perfectly sane gibberer. Hi! :D
Locations are dead, the Temple of Potassium has fallen but its ideals live on
A mysterious link of chain... (Extended signature). PRAISE JEFF THE EVIL ROOMBA! REALLY cool video.
One of the Warlock Patrons on the forums. Low, low price of your soul, firstborn child and liver!
Titles: The Echoing Story Spewer (Drummer), the Endless Maws (Isis), the Mad Murderer (PJ), more on my extended sig