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Frodo: So, I understand you like to spend hours in other realms in which you are not quite yourself. Do you recall when, where, or even why these delusionary sessions started? Judy: I was about 9 or 10 when my older sister read The Hobbit to my brother and me, that created a lifelong passion for fantasy and science fiction. D&D came out in the ‘70s and I thought it would be soooo much fun to pretend to be a character straight out of Middle Earth. But it took years to find people who wanted to play too, so I didn’t start seriously playing until V3.5. Pad Thai: I hear trying to maintain these fantastical adventures can be exhausting. And get party members to partake like herding cats. I don’t like cats, always scurrying and fussing about at night while normal beings are tying to sleep, such awful creatures they are. What would you say is the hardest part? Judy: Keeping players engaged and focused, hands down! Putting together a gaming group of serious, focused players is every DM’s holy grail. Pad Thai: Having been involved in several campaigns. If you could have a magical artifact from any of those adventures appear in the real world, what would it be and why? Judy: It may not be an artifact, but a Bag of Holding would be amazing. Especially on grocery shopping days! Frodo: If you were to design a campaign around the quirkiest gaming session you've ever run, what would be called, its highlights, and the most bizarre feature? Judy: I’ve been involved in some quirky sessions as a player for sure, but of those I’ve DM’ed, one stands out as being a lot of fun, though not necessarily quirky. The party was faced with trying to rescue some hostages being held in a heavily guarded pirate camp on a small tropical island. Maybe call it “High Seas Hijinx”? Anyway, the party was clearly outmanned, so one of the clerics decided to try bluffing his way through things. He managed a ridiculously high Charisma roll, aided by a nat 20 and magic hat giving a +5 CHA bonus, and walked straight into the middle of the pirate camp, convinced them he was an emissary of the pirate lord, and commanded them to turn over the prisoners, which they did. As the party was making their way through the jungle back to their boat, the pirates suddenly realized there was no pirate lord and they’d been bamboozled. They chased the party down the beach ala Pirates of the Caribbean when the paladin started hurling knives. Thanks to a couple of nat 20s coupled with the cleric’s magic hat +2 attack bonus, she managed to dispatch several pirates with throwing knives better than any trained rogue! They made it back to the boat and frantically rowed away as arrows and curses sailed past. Lots of fast-paced action, role-playing, and crazy rolls. Did not go the way I thought it would at all, but was a blast! Frodo: If a spell was created exemplifying your gaming persona what would it be called and what would it do? (In unison) Ours would be Barkfest, and it would make mounds of mounds of delectable biscuits that create a toxic cloud of explosive poop gas. Pad Thai: Oh I like that spell, that’s good. You’re going to need to roll high to beat that biscuit Judy. What magic are you weaving? Judy: Having played a lot of classes and races over the years, that’s hard to say. However, if I were to create a spell exemplifying me as a DM it might be: Compulsive PlanningLevel: 20th Casting Time: 1 Lifetime Target: Self Components: V, S, M Duration: Indefinite School: Enchantment Saving Throw: None Damage/Effect: Exhaustion The spell causes the target to feel compelled to spend its free time planning, agonizing over, and obsessing about creating a challenging and entertaining experience for the creatures at its table. The target must ensure no TPKs, there is enough combat to satisfy the murder hobos, and there are sufficient magic items and treasure to satisfy the party. Any creature who sits at the target’s table must make a Wisdom saving throw. On a successful save, the creature becomes charmed and engaged until the end of the gaming session. On a failed save, the creature becomes distracted and loses focus causing 4d12 psychic damage to the target. In addition, a creature affected by the spell must make another Wisdom saving throw at the beginning of each gaming session while the spell persists. Frodo and Pad Thai: That’s a lot of work right there. Let’s hope your party knows how lucky they are you were crazy enough to cast that spell. It’s certainly time for some treats now, would you prefer chicken, beef, or a peanut butter Milk-Bone?
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