As an experienced dungeon master you've run dozens, if not hundreds of games. You put a lot of work into making your games great. What if there's another way to look at how you prepare your game? What if it turned out you could spend less time, less energy, and have a better game as a result?It's time to unleash the Lazy Dungeon Master.Written in the style of Sly Flourish's Dungeon Master Tips and Running Epic Tier D&D Games, The Lazy Dungeon Master shows a new approach to game preparation, one that takes less time and gives your game the freedom to grow at the table. This book will help dungeon master prepare awesome games for any version of D&D.Based on the real-world experiences of hundreds of dungeon masters and dozens of professional game designers, the Lazy Dungeon Master includes interviews with veteran D&D DMs and a complete toolkit to help you improvise an entire game.Whether you play 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, Pathfinder, or the D&D Next playtest; The Lazy Dungeon Master has tips, techniques, and advice to make preparation easier and help you run a flexible and entertaining game.

    Five years after a tragic fire and spate of brutal murders, the people of Sandpoint eagerly anticipate the Swallowtail Festival to commemorate the consecration of the town's new temple. At the height of the ceremony, disaster strikes!In the days that follow, a sinister shadow settles over Sandpoint. Rumors of goblin armies and wrathful monsters in forgotten ruins have set the populace on edge. As Sandpoint's newest heroes, the PCs must deal with treachery, goblins, and the rising threat of a forgotten empire whose cruel and despotic rulers might not be as dead as history records.This volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path launches the Rise of the Runelords Adventure Path and includes:- "Burnt Offerings," and adventure for 1st-level characters by James Jacobs.- An exploration of your PCs' new hometown of Sandpoint, by James Jacobs.- A history of the ancient empire of Thassilon, by Wolfgang Baur.- The first installment of the Pathfinder's Journal, by Erik Mona.- Six new monsters by James Jacobs, Richard Pett, and F. Wesley Schneider.Cover art by Wayne Reynolds

    Many adventurers pick up swords or call upon strange powers in times of trouble, yet only a few are chosen by fate or the gods to change the course of history. These are mythic heroes—legendary figures whose every footstep shakes the heavens. With Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Mythic Adventures, it's your turn to change the world. Choose a mythic path and take on unbelievable powers by completing mythic trials tied to your character's story. Each mythic path works in parallel with your character class, allowing you to continue advancing in your chosen calling even as you seek a greater destiny. Best of all, you can start playing a mythic character at any point—even as early as 1st level!Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Mythic Adventures is a must-have companion volume to the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook. This imaginative tabletop game builds on more than 10 years of system development and open playtests featuring more than 50,000 gamers to create a cutting-edge RPG experience that brings the all-time best-selling set of fantasy rules into a new era.Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Mythic Adventures is a 256-page hardcover book that includes:- Complete rules for playing mythic characters of six different paths: archmage, champion, guardian, hierophant, marshal, and trickster.- New mythic feats for every class, such as Powerful Shape, which allows druids to transform into enormous animals, or Deadly Stroke, which lets a mythic character dispatch even a formidable enemy with a single blow.- A whole grimoire of new and supercharged spells. Bring down a castle with a mythic meteor swarm, transform the landscape with terraform, or make every memory and record of someone disappear with mythic modify memory!- Tons of monsters enhanced with mythic abilities and ready to challenge your heroes, from dragons to vampires!- A hoard of new mythic magic items and artifacts. Brandish the sword of inner fire, capable of burning even elemental creatures, or turn your enemies to stone with the medusa-headed shield aegis!- A complete mythic adventure for 7th-level characters.- Advice on running a mythic game and forging your own legends.... and much, much more!Cover art by Wayne Reynolds

    Those few Children of Caine dwelling in Asia whisper of the monstrous Cathayans--the shadowy vampires native to the East. For too long the Cathayans have lain like sleeping dragons, allowing the Kindred a facade of omnipotence. Now, the new Age is at hand; Yin-daggers tremble in the talons of the Resplendent Cranes, and the Devil-Tigers howl for souls in the dark.May You Live in Interesting TimesKindred of the East is a giant hardcover sourcebook describing the unique and deadly vampires of the East. This mammoth volume includes new character creation rules, new powers, descriptions of the Eastern spirit worlds (plus rules for traveling there), and two chapters full of setting and cultural information.

    Even if you’ve never played Dungeons & Dragons, you probably know someone who has: The game has had a profound influence on our culture. Released in 1974—decades before the Internet and social media—Dungeons & Dragons is one of the original ultimate nerd subcultures, and is still revered by more than thirty million fans. Now, the authoritative history and magic of the game is revealed by an award-winning journalist and life-long dungeon master.From its origins on the battlefields of ancient Europe, through the hysteria that linked it to satanic rituals and teen suicides, and to its apotheosis as father of the modern video game industry, Of Dice and Men recounts the development of a game played by some of the most fascinating people in the world. Chronicling the surprising history of D&D’s origins (one largely unknown even to hardcore players) while examining the game’s profound impact, Ewalt weaves laser-sharp subculture analysis with his own present-day gaming experiences. An enticing blend of history, journalism, narrative, and memoir, Of Dice and Men sheds light on America’s most popular (and widely misunderstood) form of collaborative entertainment.

    

    The natural history we know is a lie, a falsehood sold to us by wicked old men who would make the world a dull gray prison and protect us from the dangers inherent to freedom. They would have you believe our planet to be a lonely starship, hurtling through the void of space, barren of magic and in need of a stern hand upon the rudder. Close your mind to their deception. The time before our time was not a time of senseless natural struggle and reptilian rage, but a time of myth and sorcery. It was a time of legend, when heroes walked Creation and wielded the very power of the gods. It was a time before the world was bent, a time before the magic of Creation lessened, a time before the souls of men became the stunted, withered things they are today. This is the story of that time. THIS IS THE STORY OF THE EXALTED.

    The game uses the Legend of the Five Rings setting, and primarily the nation of Rokugan which is based on feudal Japan with influences from other East Asian cultures.Like most role-playing games, Legend of the Five Rings is played by one or more players and a game master, who controls the events that happen during the game as well as thenon-player characters (also called "NPCs"). An aspect that sets Legend of the Five Rings apart from other games is the inclusion of courtiers and other non-combatant character types as valid player character types. Most role-playing games focus heavily on combat and non-combatants are generally only given as non-player characters, whereas in Legend of the Five Rings it is possible (although unlikely) to play an entire game with no scenes of combat at all.In 1998, Legend of the Five Rings won the Origins Award for Best Roleplaying Game of 1997.

    Yet all is not lost, for these dark times provide ample opportunity for adventure and heroism.Inside this exciting and informative 320-page tome you will find:- Detailed summaries of the player character races native to Golarion, including more than a dozen distinct human ethnicities- Elaborate gazetteers of more than 40 crumbling empires, expansionist kingdoms, independent city-states, and monster-haunted wildlands of Golarion’s adventure-filled Inner Sea region, with locations perfect for nearly any type of fantasy campaign- Cultural information and Pathfinder RPG rules covering the 20 core deities of the Inner Sea, plus entries on other gods, demigods, forgotten deities, weird cults, strange philosophies, and more!- An overview of the Inner Sea’s history, a look at time and space, a discussion of magical artifacts and technological wonders, discussions of important factions and organizations, and hundreds of locations ripe for adventure!- Tons of new options for player characters, including Inner Sea-themed prestige classes, feats, spells, adventuring gear, and magic items!- Nine new monsters, including exotic humanoids of the skies and seas, undead and dragons, and an angry demon lord in exile!- A giant 21.75"x33" poster map that reveals the sweeping landscape of the Inner Sea in all its treacherous glory!Cover art by Wayne Reynolds

    Within this book you’ll find demiliches and demodands, grave knights and goblin snakes, norns and nephilim, imperial dragons and unfettered eidolons, and so much more! Yet not every creature needs to be an enemy, as winged garudas, crafty tanukis, and leonine lammasus all wait to join your party and answer the call of glory.The Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 3 is the third indispensable volume of monsters for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and serves as a companion to the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook and Pathfinder RPG Bestiary. This imaginative tabletop game builds upon more than 10 years of system development and an Open Playtest featuring more than 50,000 gamers to create a cutting-edge RPG experience that brings the all-time bestselling set of fantasy rules into the new millennium.The Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 3 includes:- More than 300 different monsters.- Classic terrors from myth and literature, from the frumious bandersnatch and the righteous valkyrie to the cunning dybbuk and elusive kappa.- Hordes of new creatures you can construct, grow, or summon to aid your party in its adventures.- New player-friendly races to let you adventure as canny ratfolk, genie-blooded sulis, and more.- New familiars, animal companions, and other allies.- Challenges for any adventure and every level of play.- Some of the strangest and most beloved creatures from fantasy roleplaying history and the Pathfinder campaign setting.- Hosts of new templates and variants.- Appendices to aid in monster navigation, including lists by Challenge Rating, monster type, and habitat.- Expanded universal monster rules to simplify special attacks, defenses, and qualities.... and much, much more!Cover art by Wayne Reynolds

    Replacing the original Outer Planes Appendix, this new and enlarged compendium includes full-color illustrations, reintroducing many of the best mulitplanar monsters from a wide variety of out-of-print sources.

    The Dwendalian Empire and the Kryn Dynasty are carving up the lands around them, and only the greatest heroes would dare stand between them. Somewhere in the far corners of this war-torn landscape are secrets that could end this conflict and usher in a new age of peace--or burn the world to a cinder.Create a band of heroes and embark on a journey across the continent of Wildemount, the setting for Campaign 2 of the hit Dungeons & Dragons series Critical Role. Within this book, you'll find new character options, a heroic chronicle to help you craft your character's backstory, four different starting adventures, and everything a Dungeon Master needs to breathe life into a Wildemount-based D&D campaign...- Delve through the first Dungeons & Dragons book to let players experience the game as played within the world of Critical Role, the world's most popular livestreaming D&D show.- Uncover a trove of options usable in any D&D game, featuring subclasses, spells, magic items, monsters, and more, rooted in the adventures of Exandria--such as Vestiges of Divergence and the possibility manipulating magic of Dunamancy.- Start a Dungeons & Dragons campaign in any of Wildemount's regions using a variety of introductory adventures, dozens of regional plot seeds, and the heroic chronicle system--a way to create character backstories rooted in Wildemount.Explore every corner of Wildemount and discover mysteries revealed for the first time by Critical Role Dungeon Master, Matthew Mercer.

    Only rarely do our experiences draw back the veil of shadows and reveal the horror in our midst. These glimpses into the supernatural can cause us to retreat into comforting lies - 'There are no such things as monsters' - or stir our morbid curiosity. Only a few, however, can overcome their fear and dare to look deeper.The World of Darkness Rulebook introduces a version of our contemporary world where the supernatural is real. Players join to tell tales of mystery and horror, where theme, mood and plot are more important to a character s experiences than his weapons or equipment. Inside are rules for character creation, task resolution, combat and any activity your character attempts as he delves into the shadows.

    Bushido’s staunch and unyielding code of conduct binds samurai to duty, strengthening their character and defining their choices. While some samurai serve the greater good, others use the strictures of Bushido to manipulate the lower ranks and advance their own power.Eight Great Clans form the heart of Rokugan’s culture. Each is defined by its own principles, values, and agendas. Each sees the Code of Bushido in its own way. Each seeks to serve the Emperor with its own unique talents. Take up the soul of your ancestors — the samurai’s daisho — and fight for the glory and honor of your family and Clan. Now is the time for heroes, in a world where Honor is a force more powerful than Steel.The Fourth Edition of L5R is the ultimate edition of the award-winning role-playing game. Inside this tome, you will find:• A game unlike any you’ve played elsewhere. Honor and service are valued more than magic swords taken from wandering ogres. Prepare for the glorious life of the samurai!• A unique Character Sheet. Legend of the Five Rings rules have never been more easy to learn and to play. No more need to flip through pages of rules while fighting your enemies!• A toolbox approach to role-playing in Rokugan. Fourth Edition encourages gamemasters of Legend of the Five Rings to customize their game, adding or removing from their campaigns as they see fit, customizing the game to fit their story lines and players.• A broad history of the Emerald Empire and the beliefs of all the Great Clans, with play options not only the major clans but also for outlying groups such as Imperials, Minor Clans, and the infamous Spider Clan.Draw your blade and join the fight for Rokugan.

    In The Monsters Know What They’re Doing, Keith Ammann lightens the DM’s burden by helping you understand your monsters’ abilities and develop battle plans before your fifth edition D&D game session begins. Just as soldiers don’t whip out their field manuals for the first time when they’re already under fire, a DM shouldn’t wait until the PCs have just encountered a dozen bullywugs to figure out how they advance, fight, and retreat. Easy to read and apply, The Monsters Know What They're Doing is essential reading for every DM.