1 Like = 1 Answer – D&D Edition

One of those “1 like = 1 answer” things made the rounds on social media lately, and so I jumped in on Twitter. But I thought I’d repost here, with my answers slightly expanded in some cases.

1. If you were a D&D character, what race and class would you be? Dwarf Wizard, probably. Sometimes I think Gnome Artificer, but honestly I’m much more about theory than about tinkering. This theme will repeat itself throughout the rest of my answers.
2. When and how did you first discover D&D? When did you start playing? I was in junior high around 1989-ish when my best friend brought this game home from visiting his mom in the summer. Our dads made us burn the books, though, because it reeked of “spiritism.” (As you can guess, I came from a very religious Christian evangelical family.) So I played other RPGs from then on (mostly science fiction or GURPS) until Fifth Edition. At that point, I’d become a grown man who didn’t need permission from parents to do anything.
3. What is your favorite race/class/subclass to play? I love playing Wizards: spellcasters with Intelligence as the core stat (which 5e tends to undervalue). And I love Gnomes, especially deep gnomes (grumpy but basically good). So, like, maybe a deep gnome divination wizard to indulge my eternal love for arcane mathematics with occasional practical uses.
4. If you could improve any stat IRL (or two stats half as much), which would you choose and why? Constitution. I’m not that healthy, to be honest. Maybe split with Wisdom, because I’ve been working on that but it’s hard to increase without significant life problems. Like experience, it’s what you get after you needed it.
5. In three sentences or less, what’s your most epic moment from a game? This happened towards the end of Tomb of Annihilation. As a “Forever DM,” I’m playing Acererak. The Wizard player counterspells power word kill against the Fighter, then uses Bigby’s Arcane Bitch Slap to knock the lich right into lava.
6. Have any of your characters died in a game? If so, how? Many! Most recently a level 2 Kalashtar Divine Soul Sorcerer in Eberron exited the dungeon first – only to take a critical hit from an ambusher’s crossbow. My replacement Valenar Paladin (Oath of the Ancients) is more fun anyway!
7. If you could learn any one cantrip IRL, which would you choose and why? Folks always act like spare the dying is the right answer, and I understand their reasoning. I’ve rarely been in a position where it would matter, however. So, either toll the dead (you know why) or minor illusion.
8. Are there any particular stats you usually take a high or low score in? Why? At least one of Dexterity or Wisdom, because they are overweighted in Fifth Edition, and Intelligence (even though it’s the opposite) because I like playing adventurers who know stuff. I don’t have a favored dump stat as it depends on the kind of character in question.
9. Do you have a favorite dice set, or a particular favorite die? Post a photo! I can’t choose just one favorite set, as I love them in different ways. My newest and nicest set from Die Hard Dice has been getting lots of use lately. But I also love my Diablo dice from the Blizzcon goodie bag a few years ago!
10. How would you explain D&D to someone who knows nothing about it? D&D and similar games are basically structured make-believe where we roll dice to find out what actually happens. In D&D and particular, this usually takes place in a bad rip-off of Middle Earth or Lord of the Rings, but it doesn’t have to be. Personally I prefer other settings myself.
11. Do you watch / read / listen to any D&D content online? Anything you want to recommend to others? Beyond the biggies you already know, “Guildgates & Goblins” by @GnGCraig on Merchant’s channel is FANTASTIC. I also wrote a whole post on D&D YouTubers you might like.
12. If you could take any one feat IRL, which would you choose and why? Magic Initiate (Wizard: minor illusion, toll the dead, and maybe silent image). A good second choice would be Ritual Caster (Wizard: find familiar and floating disk).
13. If you could choose any one spell to be able to cast once per day IRL, which would you choose and why? The objectively correct answer is wish. “The basic use of this spell is to duplicate any other spell of 8th level or lower.” Know your spells, friends!
14. In three sentences or less, what’s your most epic fail from a game? I can’t think of time I’d consider an epic fail. As a DM, the only way I fail is if we don’t have fun!
15. Have you ever played with or used any homebrew content? As a DM, of course I use “homebrew content,” since I frequently insert my own monsters or NPCs or dungeons or whatever. This question seems to lend itself more to folks playing PCs, I guess.
16. Do you usually prefer to take ASIs or feats as you level up? Usually ability score increases (ASIs). Feats are fun, but I like maximum flexibility.
17. If you could cast Wish once IRL, what would you wish for? I’d use wish to duplicate the clone spell on myself, choosing to create an 18-year-old version. Hopefully I’d still remember all the lessons I’ve learned, or at least up until the point of casting clone.
18. What is your favorite legendary/artifact item? I’m torn on this. Objectively, the right answer is probably the Ring of Three Wishes (which does what it sounds like), but at the same time the Mabaran Resonator sounds so cool.
    Everybody that dies within two miles comes back as a zombie under my control? I’m down for that!
19. If you could play a one-shot with any people in the world, who would you play with? Who would DM? In an ideal universe, I’d love to play in a D&D game with Jeremy Crawford as DM, and the rest of the group consisting of Matt Mercer, Jordan Peele, Helena Bonham Carter, and Guillermo del Toro.
20. If you were a god in a D&D universe, what would your domain be? Knowledge domain, for sure. Final answer.