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Roly poly? Barreling down the corridor like an Indiana Jones boulder trap?

One of the things that really impressed me with the Binder is that most of the vestiges avoided common stereotypes and archtypes

I also loved the Binder--my favorite chapter from the Tome of Magic. I think in 5e the Binder is functionally closest to a warlock (no duh!). The main difference being that instead of having a single, consistent patron, the PC could switch between patrons with a long rest, and eventually have...

In one of my campaigns I added a 7th ability score "Luck" that could be used like a d20 proficiency check to resolve whether a random event turned out favorable to the PC, as you would expect, but that PCs could also burn a point from to influence their PC's evolution and destiny by...

In a science fiction setting size might be needed to build ships with frontier capabilities such as warp drive or terraforming.

I think 3e hit the sweet spot for Vancian casting: you don't memorize spells but prepare them ahead of time, so you can cast them quickly in combat, but swapping spells after preparation is relatively rare (e.g. clerics could burn any prepared spell for healing). If I remember right PCs had the...

I have to say the DMG for 2 reasons: 1, it is a smidge closer to being a complete game than the PH; and 2 because it is the book where Gygax truly lets his freak flag fly. It has plenty of problems but it is magical.

Haunting cover!

That was not my intent. I would personally give each race some options to spend feats and/or levels to enhance their racial traits, as a new rules module. But these new abilities need not be entirely unique. One dwarf PC engages with the new rules, the other does not.

In a class-based RPG, you can't fully separate the available classes from the world-building. There simply aren't enough archetypes that are truly generic--any magic-using class immediately adds enormous specificity if only through its spell list. And I believe this is why we have an...

I think you've already earned enough XP from this exercise to go up a level!

If I'm playing D&D as a GAME, then I prefer XP to come mainly from treasure. This is the method that most closely aligns player incentives with their character's incentives, and it specifically de-incentivizes combat as a sport. If I'm playing D&D as a collaborative STORY then I prefer to do...

I liked the 3e paragon classes and iterations around this idea, permitting a player to spend a level on improving their racial abilities. This was a good innovation but it didn't mesh well with 3e-style multiclassing. Something similar could work in 5e, if taking the racial level doesn't cripple...

I would calculate the XP of the party by reverse-engineering from the intended outcome, not from the flawed foundation of the rules and examples in the DMG. Let me explain: What is the intended reward for the PCs to defeat this formidable group? They are likely the lieutenants of the big...

I think Donaldson is a good writer, and the series under discussion was innovative in a lot of ways. But Thomas Covenant himself is a bitter pill that keeps me from wanting to re-read it. Excellent world-building though. The series was one of the inspirations behind Monte Cook's "Diamond Throne"...

One of the things I'm enjoying about this series is the reminder of certain vintage games and SF that I should be looking to add to my shelves. There was a lot of great stuff in the 80's from less prolific writers.

@Willie the Duck is correct!

I loved Piers Anthony in my teens and I've been picking up a few of his earlier works when I come across them in used bookstores. The quality is irregular but a few are worth rereading as creative pulp. I think even teenage me got sick of Xanth after book number 6 or 7. Fun fact, Anthony would...

All four are great. I especially love the monk's dynamism but I think the dragon rider is my favorite for the striking pose and deep background!