We had a rousing game on Friday night after the ol’ work whistle sounded. The office crew was pretty stoked as they were starting a new chapter and story arc that included placing our first Hovertrain on the game board. So much fun, you guys! And as usual, the group threw DM Ben a curveball, so let’s see how he’s going to adapt for future NPC scenarios.

Per DM Ben’s last game day prep list, our adventurers returned rescued child Delilah to her creepy, rich Uncle Lord Galobax Dugalle, who resides in the fanciest suburb of Waterdeep. The players stopped at the Charlotte’s Web Inn to get cleaned up and hang their hats after a long travel through The High Forest.

The group knew they couldn’t just waltz right into the fanciest part of the city without some new, clean threads, so in a wise game move that honestly surprised DM Ben, they asked for the nearest tailor shop to get some new duds! The Paliden even utilized his disguise kit to look like a fancy Noble.

Just one small problem, DM Ben didn’t anticipate them coming up with a solid plan and had zilch prepared for this sudden wardrobe-change encounter. The office crew is all about grab-and-smash. Roleplaying is, frankly, quite rare with this group. Nothing wrong with that desired play style, but when they change gears so abruptly, it’s a shock.

Hence, DM Ben likes to turn the creativity tables back on the group, so he simply asked the gang what the name of the closest tailor shop was. Someone blurted out a “Stitch in Time,” and then another guy said, “Stephen Tailor is the owner” (a clear homage to Aerosmith’s Stephen Tyler, of course).

It was all theater of the mind in that encounter, but DM Ben wants to reward the group’s unexpected strategy and creativity and give them a full shop experience the next time around. He’ll also come up with a nifty quest to better immerse this new NPC.

So, let’s start with our miniature! No problemo, as good ol’ STL Miniatures had just the man we needed, thanks to their cool Fabric Seller Set.

Resident painter Kimmy Utah was our brush artist for our boisterous Waterdeep tailor, and she hit the needle on the thread, baby! We loved how our latest DnD NPC miniature came out. We actually sliced this cloth carrier a bit larger because we really frown upon smaller minis for a myriad of reasons. Due to his stride and heavy load, he ended up taking up 1×2 D20 squares. No big whoop.

Now, let’s get into setting the mood inside Stitch in Time – the best tailor shop in all of Waterdeep. DM Ben adores NPCs and all the fun interactions these creative masterpieces have with our adventuring party. Hence, he always prefers to have (1) a memorable NPC name, (2) a dazzling miniature, (3) a couple of interior store scatter pieces, and (4) a location card.

Cast n Play is picking up what we’re putting down, and they released a fab Terrain Essentials Vol II Interiors Kickstarter many moons back; it’s still one of our absolute favorites. Our two perfectly selected scatter pieces are from their wicked good Stores set.

We’ll start with these Mannequin Bits, which instantly insert the interior store vibe. Kimmy Utah colored this one, too. With our zoomed-in image, you can tell we did this one on our Prusa Mini FDM printer. In our biz, timing is everything. Often, we publish daily STL spotlights based on the needs of our own DnD campaigns, both the office game and the Fam game. However, in the early days of our 3D printing, we had only a single FDM printer, and we were running all these off like men on a mission.

The other scatter piece we picked was this fun Dress Shelf, also by Cast n Play and from that very same epic Kickstarter.  We loved the detail here and felt it was just the right size to drop into Stitch in Time!

A clean paintbrush sweep for Miss Utah today, and this was also done in FDM. Cast n Play STL files are very friendly for both FDM and Resin 3D printers. We’re always so impressed with their final files. Again, this final print was absolutely charming.

And just like that, Stitch in Time, run by the world-renowned Stephen Taylor, is open for business! DM Ben keeps an entire case just for his NPCs, so breaking them out in the game is a snap. Sometimes, though, a TTRPG dungeon master has to adapt post-sesh, bring the players’ surprise creativity to life after the fact, and simply be ready for the next encounter.

Even better, the group went to a city library to look up details on both Lord Galobax and the Night Hag, so now DM Ben needs to prep that location too! Another role-playing shock. Hence, we have to get busy creating that NPC and environment.

Until next time!

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Sorry, no tickets, no ride. The Forgotten Rails is in the business of making gold, so no one gets to ride for free (not even those cute babies). Pay the one gold piece ticket price or get to steppin’, pal! Revolutionizing transportation in and around Waterdeep is an insanely expensive endeavor. Omin Dran wants simple ticket stations in far-out urban areas to improve brand exposure and grant easier access for “the commonfolk.”

3DRPGers might recall that The Forgotten Rails already has an automated Construct ticket booth, but it’s costly, quite complex, and time-consuming to produce. These booths are typically found at major transport hubs, where they are continuously monitored and are getting all the kinks worked out by The Fixers. Besides, Waterdeep’s youth loves to mess with them.

In the meantime, Omin Dran decided to make some quaint, low-cost kiosks where he could pay a mere 3 sp a day to a living ticket taker. And for that newly needed DnD scatter terrain, we looked to good ol’, reliable Terrain Essentials from Cast n Play. We adore this marvelous monthly terrain series, and it just makes our day when a new set is announced.

Their talented group of sculptors created this charming Ticket Office as part of their quaint Red Magic Spa Set. This STL contains elements that DM Ben is rather comfortable painting, so he tackled this TTRPG scatter over the weekend.

This DnD piece fits like a glove on a Dwarven Forge Battle Board, surrounded by some of their slick Wilderness terrain. Besides, painting mushrooms is always darn fun. Here are the steps and paints we used:

• Prime Flat Black | Slapchop Base.
• Sign P1: GSW Skeleton Brown + FAN Dark Wash.
• Sign P2: FAN Imperial Navy + WAR Electric Blue edging.
• Tree: ASP Dark Wood + Vallejo Ochre Brown drybrush.
• Mushrooms P1: ASP Blood Red + FAN Red Wash.
• Mushrooms P2: FAN Pure Red edging & FAN Matt White
• Plants: ASP Forest Sprite + FAN Emerald Forest edging.
• Ground: ASP Desolate Brown.
• Rocks: ASP Gravelord Grey + white drybrush.

Nothing to it, right?! We just had to go over those mushroom dimples with white numerous times to get them to ultimately pop.

As always, Terrain Essentials always keeps a 3D print’s playability top of mind, and this new-found DnD scatter is no different. The adorbs mushroom roof is removable, and there’s just enough room inside to hold a ticket master miniature. And now we need to find a fun mini to fill that role!

For our other featured 3D print, we’re showing off something that, at first glance, may prompt the reaction, “What’s the big deal?” We’re talking about these huge chains by Custom Miniature Maker. These are from their Chain Barricades and Tank Traps set. Once again, it pays to be on their weekly e-newsletter, as this was a free download.

DM Ben wants to use these oversized trains as a Hovertrain security and safety measure. These mighty machines are by no means a perfected technology, and they’re known to drift a bit when stationary for extended periods. Plus, these chains look frickin’ epic when placed on one of Aether Studios’ mighty engines.

We just love how these STLs turned out here. Nothing crazy on the paint steps, either.

• Prime Flat Black | Slapchop Base.
• Layer FAN Gun Metal.
• FAN Grimdark Shadow Wash.
• Drybrush FAN Heavy Metal.
• Dab FAN Grim Rust.

The Armypainter metallics from their wicked good Warpaints Fanatic Wargamers Paint Set are some of our absolute favorites.

You can also use these chains to hold large monsters in place, secure a legendary treasure item in place, or even secure a particular part of a castle or dungeon. You have so many use-case possibilities for this slick scatter terrain.

Until next time!

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Today, we’re introducing our next campaign villain’s right-hand man, or platypus, as it were. It turns out DM Ben might also be a little obsessed with this tycoon’s parlor room, but the fascination probably has more to do with the fact that he doesn’t get to use these fancier scatter terrain pieces very often.

Cobramode takes center stage today with this magnificent sculpt – the prim and proper Namerin Boondaburrer Valet. This legit DnD creator knows subtle details and truly releases some of the most unique models. This gem is from their fun Boondaburra Navy set. This is a slam-dunk collection if we’ve ever had one, as our resin printer has churned out nearly every piece in this set.

We thought for sure resident painter Kimmy Utah was going to meet her match in coloring up this one, but once again, she crushed the colors here. DM Ben had been hemming and hawing for a classic, 3D-printed butler for ages, and he promptly clammed up when this one came to our DnD doorstep.

Yes, yes, the sword broke off in shipping, but now it just looks like he’s holding a fancy object, is all. The US Postal Service is going to inadvertently inflict a few bumps and bruises from AZ to UT and back…that’s just shipping life. We’re over the moon with the blue coat, the hair quaff, the tea tray, and on and on.

In the very same row of one of our office display cases, sat this charming Big Globe by scatter terrain extraordinaire, Cast n Play’s Terrain Essentials. We’ve said countless times that their Interiors Volume II Kickstarter is an absolute gameboard treasure trove, so we’re unsure how to convince y’all to pick it up. This particular worldly STL is from their Library subset.

We ran this one on our Prusa printer so long ago that we had forgotten it was done in FDM. In 3DRPG’s infancy, that’s the only 3D printer we had. These days we’re nearly resin all the time and save FDM for the bigger, bulkier stuff while everything else slides to our AnyCubic.

Kimmy Utah also colored this TTRPG piece, as DM Ben could never imagine getting everything within the lines like that. She crushed it. We loved it. And all is right in our DnD universe.

Here’s a revised take on our new and improved grand sitting room for Waterdeep’s most successful Importer/Exporter, Lord Galobax DuGalle. There certainly wasn’t anything wrong with our first cutscene pass, but we think we’ve taken it up a notch with two more lovely TTRPG 3D prints.

Now, let’s give our newest NPC some details:

• Colorful Name: Pomelroy
• Character Race: Platypus
• Key Role: Head Butler for the DuGalle Estate
• Painted Miniature: Cobramode
• Weapon of Choice: A tea tray throw can take your head clean off

So good, right?! Until next time!

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If someone said, “Hey, the only 3D Prints you can ever do again are townsfolk,” we would nod and ask for all their STLs. We love our everyday, ordinary “Average Joes” that much. Today, we’ve got three new fun sculpts from three great creators. Let’s get to it!

First up is this honorable Monk by Fat Dragon Games. He’s from their fab Villager series – Set 2 to be exact. Honestly, it’s a low-down, dirty shame that Fat Dragon Games doesn’t do more miniatures as their STLs are stuffed with detail, while 3D printing is great in FDM or resin. Definitely check out their Miniatures website page and see if any tickles your fancy.

One of our old work pals painted our misunderstood Monk, and we’re always in awe of his shading effects. Sadly, he moved on to greener pastures (and also had a kiddo), so we’re not expecting his brush to hit a TTRPG 3D print anytime soon, but boy howdy, he did amazing work. We love this one!

Next, we tap into one of our favorite sets by Cast n Play – Viking Folk. You’re crazy not to own every last one of these hardworkin’ settlers! They 3D print like a dream, with so many great poses. We loved this one because we tend to do a lot of farming encounters, and adding this little lady is a perfect fit.

Resident painter Kimmy grabbed a paintbrush and delivered a charming townsfolk miniature for our game table. We love her choice of blue for the dress and the gold edging that ties it all together. Make no mistake, though, this young farmer won’t take any guff and has a right hook waiting for ya if you mess with her pristine fields.

Lastly, we look to an NPC juggernaut, EC3D Designs, and an annebriated Dwarf who might have had one too many. Creator Evan has done two Kickstarters here, and this gem is from Everyday Folk II. Clearly, his clan was partying hard in the local tavern, as this particular set has plenty of rousing Dwarves for you to add to your local pub.

Kimmy Utah painted this tankard Dwarf who is just leaning for comfort’s sake. She kept the color choices simple, as that’s just the kinda life this off-the-clock adventurer likes to lead. No need to rush anything except for that next glass of ale, right?!

So there you have it – three more simple townsfolk with plenty of unique stories to tell. Maybe one is a mole. Maybe another has some concrete intel on where your next villain is hiding. And maybe yet another is a treasure trove of information once you get a few pints of ale in him. The DnD encounter possibilities are endless.

Until next time.

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We’ve had a few notable villains in our long-standing DnD campaign so far, including: The Six (rival franchise), Merv the Swerve (vengeful bandit), the Night Hag (on the run), Deke Rivers (traitorous party Bard), and now Lord Galobax DuGalle (the Crosstown Cutter)! DM Ben loves having lots of ongoing adversaries in his games so that the party is always guessing who might be screwing them over next.

Today’s TTRPG post is all about Lord Galobax DuGalle. He’s an extremely wealthy businessman who runs a thriving importer-exporter business. Unbeknownst to everyone in Waterdeep, he’s the wackjob responsible for all the brutal city murders where victims’ feet are literally sawed off and taken as a sacrifice to his god. Really creepy stuff that has the entire city on edge.

The players have no idea they’re about to meet this serial murderer on his home turf and instead are simply showing up at DuGalle’s fancy estate to deliver his rescued niece, Delliah, who was rescued from the Night Hag (along with Shamus and Adrik) by our adventurers. The snooty butler will answer the door and ultimately let the ruffians enter, but no farther than the parlor room.

With our party finally back in Waterdeep, the players are cashing in on all their recently completed quests, and returning all these spooked kiddos to their families is high on the list. DM Ben wants to really impress upon the group just what a bigwig ol’ Lord Galobax is in the community. As we’ve shared in previous posts, he likes to set an immersive scene for new NPCs, and that’s just what we’re going to focus on today. All you need are a few memorable scatter terrain items.

We’ll start with a few posh pieces by Cast n Play! This couch and sofa are from their fun Pirate’s Ship Set (of all places). Again, you don’t have to go crazy setting up a dialogue-heavy encounter. Just make it memorable so the group remembers how rich a snob this guy is.

Resident painter Kimmy Utah colored the room fantastic here with these excellent deep reds and golds. Perfect right?! This is exactly the furniture vibe we want to convey from someone who has more money than he knows what to do with! Just remember no salsa on the leather!

Next up, we’ve got this rad lion’s rug by STL Miniatures. This former king of the forest is from their wicked Fantasy NPCs 2 Trophy Hunter Set! Again, DM Ben is setting a little bit of an intimidating tone here – very similiar to Dudley Moore’s intimidating Father-in-law in the movie Arthur.

Kimmy Utah took care of the paint palette on our flattened friend here, and we just love it! She does such an amazing job blending colors together. We’ve had this particular 3D print in our display cases for a while, so it’s nice to finally get it into our DnD game!

DM Ben grabbed a couple of simple wood floor tiles to rest everything on, and just like that, we’ve got ourselves a fancy parlor scene! Now, the furniture or rug on their own don’t do much, but when combined with a cool mini (sorry, that’s not Lord Galobax DuGalle but we wanted to show scale here), you have framed the vibe perfectly. Now it feels like the players are in a rich man’s mansion, about to interact with high society! Let the new villain shenanigans begin.

Until next time!

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Let’s get real here, gang. Dungeons and Dragons is filled with bad folks doing bad things. Our campaigns must be stuffed with various dastardly villains so that Bards everywhere can later sing our triumphs. So, that means there are going to be tortured prisoners and torture chambers. Sorry, but this is the actual TTRPG fantasy world we all thrive in, and we can’t ignore this type of scatter terrain. Sure, we could say that a wrongdoer ties a prisoner down and has an irresistible kitten lick his toes til he talks, but that’s not exactly Oscar-worthy cinema, now is it?

This leads us right into today’s feature DnD 3D print by Cast n Play. This Chair of Torture is from their wildly successful Terrain Essentials – Interiors Volume II Kickstarter. It had four distinct sections: House, Tavern, Temple, and Dungeon (along with a ton of salivating stretch goals). This spooky TTRPG scatter terrain piece is from the Dungeon portion. Seriously, every DnD player should have this All-in Pledge.

Resident painter Kimmy Utah was the lead colorist here, and boy howdy, do her painting skills shine. This STL is stuffed with all sorts of disturbing details, and this one was way out of novice painter DM Ben’s skill range. A smart man knows when to yield to a talented professional like good ol’ Kimmy. And thank goodness we did because we love this final TTRPG scatter piece!

Ok, so the next obvious question is, where does this one uncomfy chair go specifically? Well, we’re dropping this into our newly completed DnD Acquisition’s Incorporated 5e module and the mini Dungeon Delve, Tresendar Manor. Over the last few months, we’ve built out every encounter, and now we’re fine-tuning everything because our game group hasn’t quite started this dungeon crawl yet. DM Ben always like to get an initial MVP (most valuable product) gameboard and then circle back with fine touches as time allows.

Let’s give you a quick list of every room so you can catch up on any you missed:

• Entrance: Outdoor opening Ruins
• Survivor NPC
• Area 1: The Cellar
• Area 2: Storage
• Area 3: Hall with Pit
• Area 4: The Crypt P1 | P2 | P3
• Area 5: Cells
• Area 6: Empty Room (Blacksmith)
• Area 7: Failed Ritual
• Area 8: Chasm P1 | P2
• Area 9: Cockatrice
• Area 10: Far Realm Rift
• Area 11: Workshop P1 | P2
• Area 12: Office
• Post Encounter Cleaning Crew
• Post Encounter Tavern

You’ll notice that sometimes we revise a previously completed room, and that’s very intentional. We can easily forget about a previously made piece or even discover a better STL that we haven’t even 3D printed yet. So, if we have the time, we’re always striving to improve.

That handy, clickable encounter summary from above leads us directly to where we’ll be placing our new torture chair. The story of this mini dungeon crawl centers around a competing franchise (The Six) ransacking another franchise here (The Golden Mongoose). Hence, it would only make sense that The Six would put the captured leader of The Golden Mongoose company in irons to extract all the intel their evil agents needed.

Again, we initially pondered making a new room, but an empty torture room is a bit of a story thud. What made more sense is that this brutal device was added to either the Office area or, even better, the Ritual Area. Anyone who didn’t comply with the ritual would have some “sense” knocked into them, making them follow their orders.

Let’s conclude with a big wide shot of the full Tresendar Manor dungeon crawl, as we were able to assemble all the rooms on our office conference room table these last couple of weeks. Let’s start with an overhead wide shot so you can get a nice idea of the scope. Our game table at work is long in nature, but a little skinnier than traditional tables (like, say, a Wyrmwood one). Those quirky dimensions can make things more linear, but DM Ben might just describe the hallways and then place the players in the appropriate room (and we’re leaning toward this game flow option).

Also, you’re probably wondering what the forest section is on the bottom left. Dungeon Masters rarely predict how far their game group will get in any given session. And if they do, they’re usually wrong. Sometimes the players fly through scenarios; other times, a single battle can take up nearly the entire session. Hence, DM Ben needed to build out all of Tresendar Manor just in case, but the group still had to travel back to Waterdeep first to cash in on some recently completed missions and do some additional NPC interactions.

So, he used some Dwarven Forge Magnetic Stilts and Terrain Trays to create a separate section where he could do a few more forest encounters and swap those out for some small city settings once they were back in Waterdeep. This system worked perfectly. For example, the players completed their travel back to the capital city last sesh, so now DM Ben will just swap the forest trays with some city cobblestone trays for those upcoming themed encounters.

That leads us to a second high-level gameboard pic, with all our rooms now labeled so you can make a little more sense of where an encounter is in this wideshot overview image. We initially set it up as a linear layout due to our game table space constraints. However, this mini dungeon crawl is loaded with secret doors and all sorts of connecting points, so DM Ben plans to describe the hallways and then reveal the corresponding room as they enter each one.

Pretty cool though, right? We love it when a final gameboard comes together…until next time!

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