The Lazy RPG Podcast - D&D and RPG News and GM Prep from Sly Flourish

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents

• 00:00:00 Show Start
• 00:01:04 Sly Flourish News: Manage Rests
• 00:02:07 Sly Flourish News: Write Down Your Encounter Benchmark
• 00:03:42 Sly Flourish News: Into the Maelstrom
• 00:04:34 Sly Flourish News: Final Dragon Empire Game
• 00:05:12 Sly Flourish News: Starting Dolmenwood
• 00:05:25 Sly Flourish News: Nimble Blood of the Primordials
• 00:06:53 Sly Flourish News: World of Warcraft Book
• 00:07:58 Sly Flourish News: Rise of the Lazy Game Master Page Count
• 00:08:19 Sly Flourish News: Lightning D20
• 00:10:30 Kickstarter Spotlight: Dwarven Forge Perilous Frontiers
• 00:16:00 Kickstarter Spotlight: Dragonspine Chronicles Volumes 2 & 3
• 00:17:33 Kickstarter Spotlight: Rock and Roar Once Bitten Twice Shy
• 00:19:38 D&D & RPG News: Dan Ayoub Becomes WOTC President
• 00:24:01 D&D & RPG News: New D&D Beyond Search
• 00:31:55 Commentary: Sandboxes and Railroads
• 00:50:29 DM Tip: My Favorite Form of Initiative is Super Boring
• 00:56:16 Patreon Question: Running I6 Ravenloft in Shadowdark as a Novice GM
• 01:00:16 Patreon Question: Ravenloft Hit and Run Tactics with Strahd and His Brides
• 01:02:44 Patreon Question: Updating the Lazy Encounter Benchmark for D&D 2024 Characters

Links

• Visit Sly Flourish
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish RSS Feed
• Manage Rests
• Write Down Your Encounter Benchmark
• Into the Maelstrom
• Down Among the Dead map pack
• Dwarven Forge Perilous Frontiers Crowdfunding Campaign
• Dragonspine Chronicles - Volumes 2 & 3 for Shadowdark
• Rock and Roar! Once Bitten Twice Shy by Inkwell Ideas
• Dan Ayoub becomes the president of WOTC

Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.

• Visit the Sly Flourish Blogs
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Midgard Worldbook
• Tales of the Valiant
• Obsidian for TTRPGs

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents

• 00:00:00 Show Start
• 00:01:03 Sly Flourish News: No Show Last Week — Gamehole Con Panels
• 00:01:54 Sly Flourish News: Three Choices
• 00:03:22 Sly Flourish News: Scenes and Situations
• 00:04:31 Sly Flourish News: Managing Rests
• 00:05:58 Sly Flourish News: Gamehole Con Experiences
• 00:11:25 Sly Flourish News: PAGE 4 in January
• 00:11:50 Sly Flourish News: Rise of the Lazy Gamemaster in Layout
• 00:14:00 Sly Flourish News: Lightning 5e
• 00:21:16 Kickstarter Spotlight: Munchkin 5.5e RPG
• 00:24:09 D&D & RPG News: Call of Cthulhu Fanatical Bundle
• 00:25:22 D&D & RPG News: Monster of the Week Bundle of Holding
• 00:26:16 Kickstarter Spotlight: Dragonbane Accidental Heroes II
• 00:27:20 Kickstarter Spotlight: Forge Your BKGD
• 00:28:58 Kickstarter Spotlight: Into the Lair RPG
• 00:31:55 Commentary: Draw Steel Thoughts
• 00:51:31 DM Tip: Why GM?
• 00:58:46 Patreon Question: Hybrid Game Maps (Mr. Smith)
• 01:01:26 Patreon Question: Eight Steps Between Adventure Chunks (The PUKA)
• 01:06:27 Patreon Question: Random Tables for Spiral Campaigns (Jaren M)

Links

• Visit Sly Flourish
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish RSS Feed
• Three Choices
• Scenes and Situations
• Managing Rests
• PAGE 4 in January
• Munchkin 5.5e RPG Kickstarter
• Call of Cthulhu Fanatical Bundle
• Monster of the Week Bundle of Holding
• Dragonbane: Accidental Heroes II — Kickstarter
• FORGE Your BKGD: One role away from adventure
• Into the Lair RPG Backerkit
• Why GM Responses on YouTube

Recorded at Gamehole Con 2026

Panel included Shanna Germain, Tommy Gofton, Thurston Hillman, Mike Shea, and Ronin Wong

Visit the Sly Flourish Blog
https://slyflourish.com/
Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
https://slyflourish.com/subscribe/
Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Podcast
https://slyflourish.podbean.com/
Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/slyflourish
Buy Sly Flourish Books:
https://shop.slyflourish.com/

Recorded at Gamehole Con 2026

Panel included Mike Mearls, Mike Shea, and Ed Stark

Visit the Sly Flourish Blog
https://slyflourish.com/
Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
https://slyflourish.com/subscribe/
Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Podcast
https://slyflourish.podbean.com/
Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/slyflourish
Buy Sly Flourish Books:
https://shop.slyflourish.com/

Recorded at Gamehole Con 2026

Panel included Teos Abadia, Keith Ammann, Greg Marks, and Mike Shea

Visit the Sly Flourish Blog
https://slyflourish.com/
Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
https://slyflourish.com/subscribe/
Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Podcast
https://slyflourish.podbean.com/
Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/slyflourish
Buy Sly Flourish Books:
https://shop.slyflourish.com/

Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.

• Visit the Sly Flourish Blogs
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Midgard Worldbook
• Tales of the Valiant
• Obsidian for TTRPGs

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents

• 00:00:00 Show Start
• 00:01:07 Sly Flourish News: No Show Next Week – Gamehole Con
• 00:01:40 Sly Flourish News: Two Minute Session Zeros
• 00:02:05 Sly Flourish News: Three Choices
• 00:03:29 Sly Flourish News: Rise of the Lazy Game Master to Layout
• 00:06:05 Patreon Spotlight: Grotto of the Grandfather
• 00:10:41 Commentary: Into the Maelstrom Halloween Game
• 00:12:19 Kickstarter Spotlight: Dragon Kings (Dark Sun Successor)
• 00:20:44 D&D & RPG News: One Ring on Free League Unbound
• 00:21:48 D&D & RPG News: Dark Halls for Shadowdark
• 00:23:07 Product Spotlight: Disability Pride Dice
• 00:27:53 Commentary: Is the WOTC Union a Little Candle?
• 00:47:29 DM Tip: Why Improvise Monsters
• 00:56:28 Patreon Question: Circumstances Over Mysteries (Phil A)
• 01:08:27 Patreon Question: Level 20 Dungeon (HP Lexicon)

Links

• Visit Sly Flourish
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish RSS Feed
• Two Minute Session Zeros for Single Session Adventures
• Three Choices
• Down Among the Dead for Pirate Borg
• Dragon Kings Kickstarter
• One Ring Character Building on on Free League Unbound
• Dark Halls for Shadowdark by Kobold Press
• Disability Pride Dice
• American Association of People with Disabilities
• Dungeons & Dragons and Studio X Join United Wizards of the Coast - CWA
• Sign For Your Support for the D&D / MTG Union

Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.

• Visit the Sly Flourish Blogs
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Midgard Worldbook
• Tales of the Valiant
• Obsidian for TTRPGs

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents

• 00:00:00 Show Start
• 00:01:31 Sly Flourish News: Just Use Bears
• 00:02:00 Sly Flourish News: Two Minute Session Zeros
• 00:03:42 Patreon Spotlight: Shadowdark Ravenloft Lazy GM Kit
• 00:05:40 Sly Flourish News: Rise of the Lazy Game Master Editing
• 00:08:29 D&D & RPG News: LaTia Jaquois Let Go From WOTC
• 00:10:12 D&D & RPG News: Celeste Conowich Joins WOTC
• 00:10:47 D&D & RPG News: The Four-Year WOTC Hiring and Firing List
• 00:12:01 Commentary: Rebuilding Trust in WOTC – Wait a Year
• 00:15:45 D&D & RPG News: Knock Magazine Bundle of Holding
• 00:17:33 D&D & RPG News: Atlas VTT for Obsidian
• 00:21:19 D&D & RPG News: Ten Ways to Be a Better TTRPG Player
• 00:22:43 D&D & RPG News: EN World 50% PDF Sale
• 00:24:41 Kickstarter Spotlight: The Red Death Party for Daggerheart
• 00:25:56 Product Spotlight: Disability Pride Dice
• 00:30:01 Commentary: Make the Effort
• 00:41:28 DM Tip: Council of Allies
• 00:47:11 Patreon Question: Scaling Prep to Lore-Heavy Settings (Jaron M)

Links

• Visit Sly Flourish
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish RSS Feed
• Just Use Bears
• Two Minute Session Zeros for Single Session Adventures
• Running I6 Ravenloft with Shadowdark RPG
• LaTia Jaquois let go from WOTC
• Celeste Conowich, lead designer of Tales of the Valiant at Kobold Press joins WOTC
• Big list of hirings and firings at WOTC
• Knock Bundle of Holding
• Atlas VTT for Obsidian
• Atlast VTT YouTube Video
• 10 Ways To Be A Better TTRPG Player
• Big EN World Publishing sale — %50 off
• Red Death Party: A Horror One-Shot Adventure For Daggerheart
• Dungeons & Dragons: Disability Pride Dice Set
• DDB Article about the Disability Pride Dice
• People getting together less

Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.

• Visit the Sly Flourish Blogs
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Midgard Worldbook
• Tales of the Valiant
• Obsidian for TTRPGs

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents

• 00:00:00 Show Start
• 00:01:33 Sly Flourish News: Elective Action Order
• 00:02:44 Sly Flourish News: Just Use Bears
• 00:04:31 Patreon Spotlight: Regnum Rattus – the Rats in the Cellar
• 00:07:52 Sly Flourish News: Gamehole Con
• 00:09:04 Sly Flourish News: Editing Rise of the Lazy Game Master
• 00:10:34 Kickstarter Spotlight: The One Ring and LOTR 5E Revised
• 00:21:24 D&D & RPG News: Modiphius Warehouse Clearance Sale
• 00:22:47 D&D & RPG News: DMs Guild Humble Bundle
• 00:23:51 D&D & RPG News: Dragonlance Design Team Photos
• 00:30:07 D&D & RPG News: Wes Schneider and James Wyatt on Campaign Themes
• 00:31:49 Commentary: Mid-Campaign Thoughts on Nimble
• 01:00:52 DM Tip: Reasons to Engage in Travel Encounters
• 01:07:14 Patreon Question: Running a Jaws-Inspired Adventure (Ryan S)

Links

• Visit Sly Flourish
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish RSS Feed
• Elective Action Order – An Initiative Variant for your Toolbox
• Just Use Bears
• Gamehole Con coming up
• One Ring / LOTR 5.5 Backerkit
• Huge Modiphius sale
• Humble Bundle DMs Guild Bundle
• Dragonlance group and project photos at WOTC
• Wes Schneider and James Wyatt on Campaign Themes
• Nimblenomicon
• Nimble RPG

Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.

• Visit the Sly Flourish Blogs
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Midgard Worldbook
• Tales of the Valiant
• Obsidian for TTRPGs

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents

• 00:00:00 Show Start
• 00:00:56 Sly Flourish News: What Excites You
• 00:02:19 Sly Flourish News: Elective Action Order
• 00:03:43 Sly Flourish News: Editing Rise of the Lazy Game Master
• 00:07:50 Kickstarter Spotlight: The Forgotten God
• 00:12:11 D&D & RPG News: Wargamer Interview with Dan Ayoub
• 00:15:37 D&D & RPG News: Bob World Builder Survey Results
• 00:30:18 Commentary: More on Trust with Wizards of the Coast
• 00:43:41 WOTC Product Spotlight: Arcana Unleashed
• 00:56:50 Patreon Question: Homebrew vs Published Adventures (Sam T)
• 01:03:00 Patreon Question: Running Multiple Systems (Lisa B)

Links

• Visit Sly Flourish
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish RSS Feed
• What Excites You?
• Elective Action Order – An Initiative Variant for your Toolbox
• The Forgotten God Kickstarter
• Wargamer Interview with Dan Ayoub
• Bob World Builder on Survey Results
• Grab the survey results

Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.

• Visit the Sly Flourish Blogs
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Midgard Worldbook
• Tales of the Valiant
• Obsidian for TTRPGs

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents

• 00:00:00 Show Start
• 00:00:57 Sly Flourish News: Procedures and What Excites You
• 00:04:19 Patreon Spotlight: Tomb of the Red Headsman
• 00:06:26 Kickstarter Spotlight: Good Society Second Edition
• 00:09:35 Kickstarter Spotlight: Underworld by Kobold Press
• 00:12:36 Kickstarter Spotlight: Rollacrit Con Bag of Holding
• 00:16:58 D&D & RPG News: Let's Quest After School Programs
• 00:20:30 WOTC Product Spotlight: Arcana Unleashed Deadfall
• 00:42:29 DM Tip: Running High Level 5e Games
• 01:00:22 Patreon Question: When to Prep for a Session (Robert T.)
• 01:04:14 Patreon Question: Getting Through Campaign Story (Eric F.)

Links

• Visit Sly Flourish
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish RSS Feed
• Procedures
• What Excites You?
• Good Society Kickstarter
• Underworld by Kobold Press
• Con Bag of Holding by Rollacrit
• Crit Hit the Giant's Video
• Lets Quest
• Sly Flourish After School Resource page

Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.

• Visit the Sly Flourish Blogs
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Midgard Worldbook
• Tales of the Valiant
• Obsidian for TTRPGs

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com

Contents

• 00:00:00 Show Start
• 00:00:55 Sly Flourish News: Lazy Improvised Monsters for Daggerheart, Procedurs for RPGs
• 00:04:30 Sly Flourish News: Rise of the Lazy Gamemaster Backerkit Survey and Preorder
• 00:10:25 Sly Flourish News: New Update to Blood of the Primordials
• 00:16:11 D&D & RPG News: Kobold Press Black Flag SRD Extended with Four New Classes
• 00:19:39 D&D & RPG News: Keith Amman's Another Stab at Making Monsters for Daggerheart
• 00:20:54 D&D & RPG News: Goodman Games Caverns of Thracia Humble Bundle
• 00:23:02 DM Tip: Three House Rules Your Players Will Hate
• 00:39:09 DM Tip: Advanced Action Economy
• 00:58:55 Patreon Question: Projecting Danger
• 01:02:16 Patreon Question: Tracking Lots of Monsters

Links

• Visit Sly Flourish
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish RSS Feed
• Lazy Improvised Monsters for Daggerheart
• Procedures
• Rise of the Lazy Gamemaster Preorder
• Rise of the Lazy Gamemaster Backerkit Survey
• New Black Flag SRD with new classes
• Keith Amman's Another Stab at Making Enemies for Daggerheart
• Caverns of Thracia DCC Bundle
• Lazy GM's Resource Document

Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.

• Visit the Sly Flourish Blogs
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Midgard Worldbook
• Tales of the Valiant
• Obsidian for TTRPGs

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com

Contents

• 00:00:00 Show Start
• 00:01:15 Sly Flourish News: Moving Steps Forward, Improvising Daggerheart Monsters and Encounters
• 00:04:43 Sly Flourish News: Pre-Orders for Rise of the Lazy Gamemaster
• 00:07:09 Sly Flourish News: Attendance at PAGE4 and Gamehole Con
• 00:08:17 Patreon Spotlight: Talk Show and Patreon Q&A Database
• 00:11:28 Kickstarter Spotlight: Hellbinder's Guide to Harvesting and Crafting for Shadowdark
• 00:14:51 D&D & RPG News: Interview with Free League's CEO on Mastering Dungeons
• 00:17:20 Commentary: Elmcat on the larger RPG Punditry getting In the way of our games
• 00:27:09 Commentary: Blorb, RPGs, and You
• 00:48:11 DM Tip: Getting Ideas
• 00:59:38 Patreon Question: Managing Mid- and High-Level D&D Challenge

Links

• Visit Sly Flourish
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
• Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
• Buy Sly Flourish Books
• Subscribe to the Sly Flourish RSS Feed
• Move Steps Forward
• Lazy Improvised Monsters for Daggerheart
• Preorders for Rise Open
• Philadelphia Area Game Expo 4
• Gamehole Con
• Hellbinder's Guide to Harvesting & Crafting for ShadowDark by Jeff Stevens
• Tomas Härenstam of Free League on Mastering Dungeons
• Elmcat on RPG Punditry and the Games We Play
• Blorb Principles by by Sandra Snan
• It ain't blorb by elmcat