Halflings of Sundara: Making Hobbits That I Actually Want To Play

Long-time readers have probably seen me mention a time or two that I didn't grow up with Tolkien's body of work the way a lot of RPG players and fantasy fans did. I was more of a pulp fiction kid, with Burroughs, Lovecraft, Howard, and others forming the body of what influenced me when it came to fantasy. I saw the animated Hobbit when I was little, sure, but it just sort of slid right off my brain. It wasn't until I was in high school and the Lord of The Rings films started dropping that I really came back into contact with the father of high fantasy.

And I remember, as the films went on, why it was I hadn't identified with them much when I was younger. Because while there's a badass ranger who's the long-lost heir of a great kingdom, a dwarven prince constantly trying to prove his worth, and an elven renegade with an unerring eye, the story absolutely insists that we follow around these three-and-a-half-foot-tall farm kids who are in over their heads and utterly unqualified for the task they've volunteered for.

You make some poor decisions when you smoke too much Longbottom leaf...

Now, as someone who understands literary analysis and who knows Tolkien's history during global conflicts, I understand the overarching message of the story. I get how the hobbits were meant to be the everyman characters, out-of-their-depth in something far larger than they were. However, while we had to change the name to halflings when we put them in our RPGs due to copyright reasons, there's still a lot of the same DNA passed down by Bilbo and Frodo in these characters. And while halflings have changed over the years and editions, they represented a particular challenge for me. So my goal was to create a version of these creatures that I actually liked, and which appealed to me as a player.

And that was not a small thing, pun very much intended.

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Reimagining Community and Creativity

At their core, halflings have remained a species that's most often about curiosity, heart, and community. There have been variations or extreme takes (I'm looking at you, Kender), but that's generally been the through line of most of what I've seen done with this species. So when I sat down to work on them for Sundara I asked how I could keep that core of what they've been (and what inspired them in the first place), while still making them an organic part of this setting overall?

For those who've gotten their copies of Species of Sundara: Halflings (available for Pathfinder as well as for Dungeons and Dragons 5E) I like to think I managed pretty well.

And if you don't have a copy yet, go get one!

The first thing I did was to reimagine the origin story of this species. While there's no true authority in Sundara saying explicitly where any particular species did or didn't come from, the most common myths told about halflings is they were created during the sculpting of the dwarves. The ancient giants were so focused on the dwarves that they didn't noticed the chips and pebbles that had come off during their carving... and those small chips were what became halflings.

However much truth their is to this tale, dwarves have historically treated halflings more like distant cousins than they have as mere neighbors. This has meant their communities often live and work side by side, and that halflings (as a whole) are often well-versed in many of the same techniques and skills of their dwarven neighbors.

This gave halflings an origin story and a broad history (though there's still some debate as to just how factual it might be). From there I moved out into different cultures and communities, attempting to add some variety to these creatures. From the Vale who lived among the hills shepherding huge herds of sheep and riding their shaggy gray hounds, to the Suff Folk with their green skin living in secret burrows in the deep forests, to Barreners in their ruined cities, Skycatchers atop their lonely mountains, or Tidelings who spend the majority (if not the whole) of their lives upon the sea, there's a wide variety of ways these clever creatures have changed and adapted to fit environments across Sundara.

In the end, I think that this book definitely achieved what I set out to achieve. It gave halflings an organic place in the setting, and it spiraled out showing how they've taken on new and different forms across the world as they made homes and interacted with other species, cultures, etc. And, in the end, made halflings that felt more varied and less stereotypical than what we tend to see in other settings where Tolkien's name might have been filed off but we can still see the impression it left behind.

Remember To Check Out The Other Species of Sundara!

If you enjoy my take on halflings, and you want to see what other changes I've made to the core species we're all so used to, make sure you take a moment to check out the rest of the Species of Sundara series that's been coming out the past few months! And if you like them, don't forget to check out the rest of my Sundara: Dawn of a New Age setting as well!

- Elves of Sundara (Pathfinder and DND 5E): Elves are one of the most quintessential fantasy creatures... but if you want to see more than just high elves, wood elves, and elves of the sun and moon, then this supplement has you covered!

- Dwarves of Sundara (Pathfinder and DND 5E): The children of the primordial giants who were meant to fill in the details of the world they'd made (or so the myths say) there are as many kinds of dwarves as their are kinds of giants... and possibly more, depending on who is keeping count.

- Orcs of Sundara (Pathfinder and DND 5E): Supposedly a creation of the elves, none can say for certain exactly how or why orcs have been made. What most agree on is that these creatures are far more than most may think at first glance.

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my cat noir thriller Marked Territory, its sequel Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

Is This What It Feels Like To Be a Grognard? (Deja Vu and DND 5E)

Being an old hand at anything feels strange. Because on the one hand I always feel like I just became a member of a hobby (or even a profession) a few years ago. Then I take a step back, look at my timeline, and realize that no, I really have been here long enough for an entirely new generation or two to crop up and come into the hobby behind me.

Before we go much further, I'm going to try to follow my own advice in 5 Things You Can Do To Be a Better Ambassador For Your Hobby and not just grouse about things. However, I keep getting the strangest sense of deja vu, and I just felt compelled to talk about it this week.

Even in death, I still play.

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Wait, We're Having THIS Debate Again?!

For those not familiar with the term, a grognard refers to an older member of most hobbies (and of RPGs in particular) who has chosen their particular style or edition and opts not to move on with the changing flow of the hobby. Whether it's folks who are perfectly happy with the first edition of DND and have been playing it for decades, those who grew up on 2nd edition in the 80s and don't like what came after, or folks like me who came in during the 3.0/3.5 transfer and found their happy place there or with Pathfinder's first edition, we can sometimes feel strange and dated when our tastes are compared with what's popular in current gaming circles.

The term itself traces back to the French military, and when capitalized it refers to the imperial guard formed by Napoleon. Something I went into more detail on back in What is a Grognard? for those who didn't see it.

THaCO? Only a few of us left know that name...

While I definitely have my preferred styles of gaming and play (I like crunchy games with a lot of customization, and where the GM is more of a referee and less of an author, for those who are wondering), I also make my living designing supplements and additional content for roleplaying games. As such, while I may choose not to play certain games or editions for my own entertainment, I still have to read, understand, and keep up on all these changes to make certain I can handle any contracts that might come my way.

And though the 5th Edition of Dungeons and Dragons isn't new by any stretch of the imagination (I've moved twice since the playtest, and there's rumbles about the 6th edition already), it is responsible for bringing in one of the largest generations of players into the hobby. That's a good thing, and I won't knock any edition for acting as a solid recruitment tool to expand what it both my favorite pastime, and the primary way I pay my rent.

But without getting too critical, the 5th Edition feels like a greatest hits list of all the things Dungeons and Dragons has already done before. They gave us Ravenloft and the Forgotten Realms, the Warlock and the Artificer, and every time Wizards announced they were going to be putting out some shiny new content it turned out to be something that was just a re-tooling of a class, adventure, setting, or archetype that was already old when I joined the hobby nearly two decades ago.

Perhaps as a natural result of that, it feels like players are even having the same arguments that tables were having back when I still didn't know the difference between my skill synergies and my saving throws.

Atheist Clerics, Celibate Bards, and Emotionless Barbarians

If you've been a part of any RPG boards, social media groups, etc., chances are good you've come across the debate over the atheist cleric. In short, it's a cleric who draws their power from commitment to an idea or philosophy, rather than one who forms a bond with a god in a traditional sense. The arguments over this have been raging for weeks in my feed... and I have this weird feeling that people aren't aware this was settled forever and a day ago?

Seriously, ask the old timers. We have citations for these arguments.

Way back when Pathfinder first came out, there was text in the rulebook specifically addressing this. It was also handled back in the 3.5 edition with various prestige classes and expansions. Hell, just before the latest round of debates hit, I addressed the way this is often done poorly in Addressing The Fantasy Atheist. So I felt understandably baffled that there were so many people shouting about this when as far as I could tell there should have been at least a few grognards raising their voice to let these newer players know this wasn't a new conversation, and there was already a lot of established reading on the subject.

But then I started noticing other echoes that gave me the same, weird feeling.

There were people arguing about how barbarian rage worked, and what forms it could take. An argument I first had about 17 years ago (and it was considered a dead horse then, too), and one which I expanded on two years back when I wrote 50 Shades of Rage: Reflavoring The Barbarian's Signature Ability. There's been arguments about bards that don't play music, and who use dance, poetry, or rhetoric are somehow invalid even though there have been archetypes and suggestions for doing these very things for several editions, and none of these extra limitations are backed up by text in the book.

Pick a class, a species, or nearly any concept, and people are still having the exact same debates they've been having for years now. But, more importantly, it feels from reading the comments and interacting with some of the more vocal individuals that a majority of folks are convinced they're the first individuals to have these ideas, or to raise these points.

Though I'm not old enough to be a grandpa grognard, I've been at this long enough that I think I could be considered a wise and world-weary uncle. So I'd like to offer some uncle-y advice to folks out there with regards to gaming; before you get really revved up about an idea, direction, or debate, ask someone who's been in the hobby for a while. I guarantee you that we've got stories to share, and we'll save you a lot of time, energy, and community outrage.

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my cat noir thriller Marked Territory, its sequel Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

Who Cares If Your Character is Cringey, Silly, or Basic? Play It Anyway!

For people who have never met me in person, I have a very particular look I tend to go for. From my combat boots, to my army surplus field jacket, to my beret and belt pouches, to the patches, pins, and innumerable numbers of skulls, I've often been mistaken for someone in cosplay at conventions. I have since been informed that this fashion choice is referred to as Warcore, and it is something I've embraced wholeheartedly. While it sometimes causes me minor issues (see my article I Was Never In The Military. Please Stop Thanking Me For My Service), it's both practical and aesthetically pleasing to me.

I also got sexy new masks for con season!

When I was younger I occasionally had people ask me why I chose to wear BDUs, or why I bloused my pants into my boots, or why I had a purse on my belt. Those questions became fewer and fewer as I got older, and the opinions of random strangers mattered to me less and less. Now during the time of Covid I've become the strange, wasteland wanderer that I always read about in comic books and saw in post-apocalyptic films.

What does that have to do with RPGs, though?

In short, a lot of us get self-conscious about the characters we bring to a table. We worry about whether a concept is too derivative, or too edgy, or too dark, or too silly, or too whatever. So we play something acceptable, or which has an element or two of what we want, but is really a watered-down imitation of what we would like to do. Like how a lot of us will wear something fun underneath our business casual when we go to the office, but we lack the confidence to show up with a cloak over our shoulders.

This week I wanted to deliver a clear message. RPGs are the playground of your imagination... go wild on that shit!

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Seriously... Why Are You Trying To Be Normal?

I want to start this with a caveat; I am not suggesting that people reading this go and play a monkey wrench (a character who deliberately does not fit into the game everyone else is trying to play). Your character has to follow all the agreed-upon rules of the game, and they should still fit the agreed-upon tone and theme of the campaign you're playing. Don't bring a thunderously grim concept to a light-hearted game, and don't try to shoehorn in a happy-go-lucky concept into a game that's meant to be dark and serious. Don't try to bring in themes and topics that will make the table uncomfortable, or that people don't want to be part of. Don't bring characters who weigh down the party while making everyone else work harder.

With that out of the way... you should go absolutely nuts when it comes to what you want to bring to the table!

Seriously... sky's the limit!

RPGs are meant to tell stories, but more importantly they're meant to tell our stories. If you want to play an old-fashioned knight in shining armor as a paladin who is Disney hero levels of uncomplicated, that doesn't make you a bad gamer. If you want to play a dull-witted bruiser barbarian complete with Hulk-speak (or who is actually the Hulk if you follow my conversion guide), you shouldn't feel that you're being lazy if you're having fun. If you want a ranger with murdered parents and a vengeance-flavored chip on their shoulder, have a blast with it! A good-hearted member of a traditionally monstrous species who's out looking to prove themselves? Go for it!

Too often we look at the characters we want to play (thematically, at least), and we tone them down or change them because we think this or that concept is too immature. Or it's been done too many times. Or it's too similar to something that already exists in a different game, or a piece of pop culture, or whatever. Whether it's skull-painted vigilante with a full-auto crossbow, or a literal magical princess with animal friends and an enchanted voice, we tell ourselves that we shouldn't play these characters.

As someone who has had a lifelong love of grimdark characters, bleak settings, and harsh storylines, which are all things that get me the side-eye from people who consider those the ear-marks of an underdeveloped gamer, I'm here to tell you to free yourself from this judgment. Don't ask whether something is too immature, or has been played too many times, or is too silly or edgy for you to be allowed to have fun with. Instead, talk with your GM (and your fellow players if necessary), strap on that brace of daggers, and play that "ridiculous" character that would make you happiest to put on the tabletop!

And if you need character conversions for folks from John Wick, to Iron Man, to Ghost Rider and more, don't forget to check out my Character Conversions page before you go!

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Fluff post!

For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my alley cat thriller Marked Territory, it's sequel Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my recent short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

Should I Tell More Tales? (Expanding Back Into Tie-In Fiction)

Folks who know me primarily for my gaming articles and RPG supplements may not be aware that when I decided I was going to be an author my original goal was to write novels and short stories; working on RPGs is something I just sort of fell into. While regular readers have no doubt noticed it peeking out in scenes like the dragon race in the beginning and end of Hoardreach: City of Wyrms, or in the introduction to character concept articles like The Anti-Party, I don't mention those projects as often as I might on this particular blog.

The closing section doesn't count. Practically no one actually reads that, much less follows the links in it.

I wish it were otherwise, but it is what it is.

With that said, I'm contemplating combining my writing about RPGs and my desire to put out more fiction. I've even been putting out some small feelers to see how feasible it is, and I wanted to take this Monday's post to draw folks' attention to them, and to lay out some of the ideas I had going forward along with the challenges inherent in these projects.

For folks who want to stay on top of all my latest content, subscribe to my weekly newsletter! Also, if you want to help me keep the wheels turning then you can also become a Patreon patron... even small donations make a big difference.

Trying Something Different (If Not, Exactly, New)

For folks who haven't checked it out (since my analytics tells me that Table Talk is one of my least read features on this blog) you may not have come across one of my latest projects. The Silver Raven Chronicles is my re-telling of my group's run through the Hell's Rebels adventure path... but rather than just writing the roll-by-roll recounting as I have in previous installments, I thought I'd do something different. So instead of following my old formula, I'm putting together a series of pulpy short stories that each focus on a notable event throughout the campaign as it unfolds.

And at time of writing, we're two tales in with a third on the way! We started off with a bit of a prequel in Devil's Night, told from the perspective of one of Kintargo's dottari who finds out that the rumors of a so-called ghost that's been leaving a trail of splintered bones and broken patrols is far more than an urban legend. From there we move onto From The Ashes, which details the riot in Aria Park instigated by Barzillai Thrune as he tries to teach the common folk a lesson... a lesson which sows the seeds of much more widespread rebellion!

Of course, folks who regularly check out what's new in my Vocal archive will note these aren't the first short tales I've published this year. I also penned Waking Dogs- A World Eaters Tale which takes place in the Warhammer 40K setting. If you ever wanted to see what happens when one of the berserkers of the World Eaters calmed down long enough to realize how thoroughly and completely they'd been screwed by their father, and their so-called allies, then you are definitely going to want to check out what happens when Crixus and the Butcher's Nails in his skull decide to be mad at the same people for a little while.

There's even a lovely audio rendition of it from A Vox in The Void if you haven't checked it out yet!

Folks who are more familiar with my older work might be asking why I'm posting stories on a free site like Vocal when I could sell stories on the various community use platforms out there? After all, a lot of folks read and enjoyed my Pathfinder Tale The Irregulars about a team of saboteurs sent out by Andoran to douse the fires of war before they ever really get going across the Inner Sea, so why not build on that with some sequels? Or tell some entirely fresh tales now that Pathfinder Infinite is a thing, along with the World of Darkness, Pugmire, the Shattered Lands, the various worlds and properties available on DM's Guild, and so on, and so forth?

Trying To Gauge What My Readers Want

The main reason I opted to use Vocal as a kind of test platform was to try to get some hard numbers for readership. I know there's a dedicated reader base out there who enjoys tie-in fiction, and it's a product that can also appeal to those who don't play certain RPGs, but who still enjoy getting lost in stories about the world. It's also a lot easier to write stories in a pre-made setting where I don't have to do any ground-up construction or world building, which can be very freeing (especially after spending the past few years cranking out novels of my own).

The issue I run into with this project is, of course, the same issue most creators run into... walking that line between something we want to create, and something you want to read as our audience.

Seriously, gauging the market is like throwing runes or talking to demons at the best of times.

So that's what I wanted to ask this week... what would you be interested in as a reader? Current ideas include:

- Writing More Pathfinder Stories: I'd either put these on Vocal as with my Hell's Rebels breakdown, or doing fresh tales like sequels to the Irregulars, as well as some of the pitches for the Pathfinder Tales I never got a chance to write to be published on Pathfinder Infinite.

- Writing Stories Set in the World of Darkness: There is a collection coming out soon called Tales From The Moot with Werewolf: The Apocalypse stories which I'll be talking about when it drops since it has some of my work in it, but I'd like to write stories for Changeling, and possibly even for Vampire if there's an audience for it. For folks interested in a sample check out A Garou Thing by Justin Duncan, a good friend of mine who was quite eager to get in on the project.

- Writing Stories Set in Sundara: Since I already put the time and effort into creating places like Ironfire: City of Steel, Moüd: City of Bones, and Archbliss: City of The Sorcerers, it seems a shame not to build off of them as a foundation. Stories of Sundara would likely be short novellas detailing some of the adventures one could have in the setting, along with some gaming goodies at the end like write-ups on NPCs, or unique spells or magic items seen in the adventure itself.

Each of these strategies has their benefits and drawbacks. For example, both Pathfinder Infinite and Storyteller's Vault would tap into an existing audience, allow me to use premade settings, and I could get some of the stories I've had clogging up my brain out into the world. But a cut of all my earnings would go to Paizo or Onyx Path/White Wolf, too. Writing free stories means more people could read them (at least in theory), but the amount of traffic they'd need to get to be a return on investment is rather large. Sundara has the advantage of being my own setting, but it's less well known, and would generally be a harder sell to people not already familiar with it. Then you have the question of whether to write disparate short stories, novellas, or to go all-out and try to write a novel or two.

There's a lot of guesswork in here... which is why I wanted to ask folks reading this what they want to see!

Do you want to see me put out more free stories that you can just eyeball and share around without having to crack your wallet? Would you be more interested in stories in an established setting, or would you like to see how I'd expand Sundara going forward? And would you want something short, something mid-range, or a full-on novel?

Let me know... I'm listening.

And If You Can't Wait Till Then...

If you're in the market for fresh fiction, and you don't want to wait until I've finished spinning fresh yarns, well, I do have a library of novels you can check out if you haven't seen them yet!

Every copy you get means more treats and toys for me!

If you're the sort of person who loves cats and noir-style mysteries, then I'd recommend checking out my Hard-Boiled Cats series, starring Leo. Our Maine Coon heavy is always trying to keep his whiskers out of other people's business, but trouble keeps winding up in his back alley in the Big Apple. In Marked Territory he gets roped into a territorial dispute in the South Bronx that's more than it appears to be, and in Painted Cats he goes looking for a missing cat as a favor to an old flame. When bruisers start coming out of the woodwork to wave him off, Leo can't help but wonder what, exactly, happened to Mischief to bring all this heat his way?

If that series isn't your cup of tea, I have other options. My most recent release is a sci-fi dystopia where our protagonist is a de-commissioned bioweapon just trying to live among the civilian populace. When a conspiracy shows its hand, though, Pollux re-activates what's left of his old unit to go hunting in Old Soldiers. For the sword and sorcery fans, Crier's Knife may be more your speed. When his cousin goes missing, Dirk is tasked with bringing the boy back home to the mountain. Dark times lie ahead, according to his Sighted mother, so he brings his good dagger with him. As the foothill folk say, only a dead man crosses a Crier.

And for those looking for a variety plate, I'd recommend my short story collection The Rejects. The best of my stories over the past 10 years that just couldn't find a home this one has monsters and wizards, demons and mysteries... 13 tales in all!

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my cat noir thriller Marked Territory, its sequel Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

5 Overlooked Buff Spells (in Pathfinder)

People often say that Pathfinder characters are overpowered. That they're running on superhero levels of skills, power, and sheer wooge. That's not inherently wrong, but the problem is that when the monsters are just as extra as you are, you're still going to be the underdog when it comes time to roll initiative and throw down. Which is why it pays to have a few extra tricks up your sleeve the next time you get ready for battle.

For my money, these buff spells are far more useful than a lot of folks give them credit for.

How many hits of this am I supposed to take?

As always, if you want to get all my updates sent right to your email, sign up for my weekly newsletter. And if you want to do your part to help me keep the wheels turning and fresh content coming your way, then become a Patreon patron today! Even a small pledge makes a big difference.

Spell #1: Expeditious Retreat

I am speed!

The name of this spell always makes people think it's used solely for running away from something, but it just adds a 30-foot enhancement to your land speed for 1 minute per level. So while you could put that on your wizard in order to play ranged games with the slow-moving undead, you could also have a gnome fighter read off a scroll, or the halfling alchemist slam down an extract, so they can suddenly close with all kinds of enemies on the battlefield.

The major downside of this spell is that it's self only, so you can't have a caster beef up the party tank and then send them rocketing off into battle. But it can be quite useful all the same for those who find they're constantly a few squares short of being able to get where they need to go when battle is joined.

Spell #2: Feather Step

Difficult terrain? What's that?

Difficult terrain is one of those things that's never really an issue, until it is. Whether you're fighting in mountains, you need to rush up the stairs to get to a villain atop a dais, or there's just bones strewn all across the floor of a pit, having your movement suddenly and unexpectedly hampered can majorly tie your hands behind your back. Especially if your party already had limited movement due to heavy armor, small size, etc. Feather step is an ideal way to just ignore this problem.

While used fairly rarely, feather step can be a lifesaver in fights where difficult terrain is part of the challenge of the arena. Or if you have casters who are creating difficult terrain as part of area of effect spells, and you don't want your allies to get caught in the slog. In fact, that one-two punch can be particularly nasty for land-based foes, especially if you're high enough level to get mass feather step so the whole party can run around unhampered with a single casting.

Spell #3: Moment of Greatness

Now is the moment!

This is another of those spells that often gets overlooked because you really need to have the right components in place to get the most out of it. The most common situation is when you have a bard in the party who can use this to effectively double the bonus from many of their bardic music effects at a single go. However, it also applies to morale bonuses from things like barbarian rage, which can be quite useful when said barbarian is getting up to the point where they're adding +6 or more to their Strength and Constitution, and for a single moment they can double that.

Of all the spells on this list, moment of greatness is one that starts all right, but only gets better as long as the party has a reliable way to get serious morale bonuses slapped on them. And the more folks who get the bonus, the more useful this spell is.

Spell #4: Tactical Acumen

We've got the high ground!

Tactical positioning is always your friend when it comes to winning a battle, but tactical acumen can be a real bastard when it comes to boosting your party's effectiveness. The spell lasts 1 round per level, and goes off in a burst from the caster, hitting all allies in 30 feet. What it does, in short, is give you a +1 to attacks or AC anytime you'd receive a bonus due to positioning. So cover, flanking, higher ground, etc. are all worth an additional +1. What's even better is that it's an insight bonus, which isn't that common, so you don't have to worry about not stacking with luck bonuses, morale bonuses, enhancement bonuses, etc.

Best of all, this one goes up with you as you level, to a +2 at a 10th level caster, +3 at 15th level, and +4 at 20th. It won't make or break a fight all on its own, but if you've got allies who are already using enhanced mobility to get into advantageous positions, using mounts to attack ground-based allies, or who are flying to get above their foes (or who are using cover to defend themselves), this can add some more oomph to their efforts.

Spell #5: Visualization of The Body/Mind

If given a knife and a hand in which to hold it...

Slot #5 is a shared one, because these two spells just have a lot of potential. Whichever visualization version you use, the spell lasts 24 hours, or until discharged. It costs 200 GP in various items, so it's not one to just blow willy nilly, but the bonus is not to be sniffed at.

Firstly, it offers you an untyped +5 bonus to all skill and ability checks associated with one of your attributes for either the next 24 hours, or until it's discharged. That's not nothing, especially if you actively use, say, Bluff to feint in combat, or Intimidate to demoralize enemies, or you want to be sure that ALL your Knowledge checks have a nice, fat boost. Or course, each attribute also has a handy, immediate effect you can discharge the spell for to get.

This is one of those spell choices that works best in a scroll form, or something similar. Because you can't have the other members of the party slap it on you, but it does have a flat duration and a flat bonus regardless of how powerful the caster level is... and that makes a big difference. It will get expensive if you apply it every day, but it's a good thing to slap on before you start the heist, delve into the dungeon, etc.

Looking For Some Additional Reading?

If you're looking for new places to use some of these spells, making sure you check out my growing Sundara: Dawn of a New Age setting. It's available both in Pathfinder Classic, as well as for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition if that's more your jam!

And if you want to see at least some of these spells in use, don't forget to check out the ongoing series of pulpy short stories that tell the tale of my group's run through the Hell's Rebels adventure path! Devil's Night is a bit of a prologue, setting the stage with whispers of an urban legend in Kintargo that's slowly making its presence known in the night terrors of the dottari. And the more recent installment, From The Ashes, tells about the riot at the opera house, and how Thrune has planted the seeds of their own undoing with the resurrection of the Silver Ravens!

Like, Share, and Follow For More!

That's all for this week's Crunch topic! For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio! Or if you'd like to read some of my books, like my alley cat noir novel Marked Territory, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now on Pinterest as well! And if you'd like to help support me and my work, consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron! Even a little bit of help can go a long way, trust me on that one.

Game Masters, Stop Trying to Hide Things From Your Players

Chances are good this is one of those entries that people are going to see the title of, and just start commenting before they actually read the entry. As such, I thought I'd provide my clarification right here, at the top of the page.

What I'm not suggesting is that Game Masters stop putting plot twists in their games. I'm not saying to never use shape changers or disguised villains, or suggesting that we never have the face-heel turn where the party's benefactor turns out to have been using them for their own ends. All of those things are good, and when done right, they can make a campaign extremely fun and memorable!

What I am saying is that, as Game Masters, we need to stop trying to keep our players in the dark about things, or deluding ourselves that our settings, our stories, and our plots are so unique, so original, and so mind-blowing, that we need to ensure our players go in knowing as little as possible in order to properly experience things. Because nine times out of ten that we pull this it's going to blow up in our faces.

Trust me, going in blank is doing no one any favors.

As always, if you want to get all of my updates sent to your email just subscribe to my weekly newsletter. And if you want to help me keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Even small donations make a big difference.

No Spoilers!

As a Game Master you have to walk a fine line. On the one hand, you want to get your players psyched up for the game you're running, and invested in the campaign. On the other hand, though, you want to allow them to organically explore the setting, and to experience the plots you have prepared. It is, in a lot of ways, akin to getting your friends together for a movie night. You want to make sure your selection for the evening is something everyone is into, but you also don't want to give too much away regarding what's going to happen.

I've run my share of games, and chosen my share of movies. I can safely say that you should always err on the side of telling someone too much, rather than playing things mysterious and just telling them, "Guess you'll have to wait and find out!"

I guarantee you're not as clever as you think you are.

There's two major reasons that I say this.

The first reason is that when you clam up about stuff, it illustrates where the limits are going to be between you and the players as a storyteller. So if your player asks you questions about the genre, the setting, what sorts of general plots to expect, and you turn getting those answers into pulling teeth, it sets the expectation that there's not going to be a lot of communication going forward. You can negate this somewhat by being as open as possible about other aspects of the game, giving out details that players are going to run into anyway in order to get them invested, but it's generally better to be as honest and open as possible when your players ask you questions.

The second reason is that if your table is genre savvy in the slightest there is no trick you can pull from behind the screen that's going to shock or surprise them in a good way. However, something that a lot of Game Masters forget is that most players aren't actually interested in being shocked or surprised... most of the time they're playing games in a particular setting or genre precisely because they know it well, and they like engaging with it.

The second reason is what's responsible for most of the table blow ups, in my experience.

I Was Told This Was a Fantasy Game?

Yes, well, ah, about that...

A while back I warned Game Masters not to pull what I call a total-genre-shift in their games. This is, more or less, where you sold the table one genre of game, then after giving them enough time to get really invested and having fun you pull a lever and reveal it's been a completely different genre the whole time! The fantasy game is actually a sci-fi dystopia, the space opera sci-fi turns out to be a video game and now we're logged-off in a modern investigation game, and so on, and so forth.

This is the most blatant example of a GM hiding something that should be mentioned up-front, and which all players need to sign on for. Because this shift could work if you have player buy-in. It might actually get some players more excited about the game. But out of the blue it feels like you all agreed to get pizza, but when it came time to open the pizza box inside there was lasagna. It might still be good lasagna, but that isn't what the players were told to expect.

Think of player questions in that light. Because you might think getting onions on the pizza really brings things together, but if one player is allergic to them, and another just doesn't like the taste, then you shouldn't put them on. Same thing with game content, and player questions. Because some players can roll with anything, and they'll be happy as long as there's a good game. Other players have certain genres they really don't like, or they have strong feelings on story content, or house rules versus rules as written. And if you're worried that answering too many questions or giving your players too much information is going to ruin the game and make things less enjoyable, consider the alternative; you held something back that your players wanted to know, and then when you present it they excuse themselves from the table and go home.

You shouldn't be telling your players who the hidden villain of the game is. Don't lay out the duke's double cross around level 5, and don't tell them how many trolls they're going to be fighting in the Frost Moors. They don't need to know the hidden weakness of the vampire queen. But if your players ask you questions about the world, about the premise, or about what they should expect, it's better to risk giving them minor spoilers to make them feel you're going to be open, honest, and up-front than to play things cloak-and-dagger and misjudge exactly whether a surprise is going to stick the landing.

Also, if you're looking for more advice on running your games, make sure you check out 100 Tips and Tricks For Being a Better Game Master!

Have You Checked Out The Silver Raven Chronicles Yet?

I talked about this a month or so ago, but I'm doing something a little different over on my Table Talk page. I'm currently doing the write-up for my group's run through the Hell's Rebels adventure path, but instead of the roll-by-roll break down I provided for past games I wanted to go in another direction. This time around I'm writing a series of pulp-style short stories about particular moments throughout the campaign which tell the tale of how Kintargo's resistance was built, and the challenges it's faced.

Seriously, come check it out!

Table Talk is my least-read feature, and hosting these stories on Vocal has made them hard to get eyes on (particularly since Reddit blacklisted the site and made it nearly impossible to share content from). So I wanted to ask my readers to check it out, and if you want to see me keep it going (perhaps extending this format to future write-ups) to share it on your social media pages, and leave a tip if you feel so inclined!

- Part One: Devil's Night

- Part Two: From The Ashes

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my cat noir thriller Marked Territory, its sequel Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!