Loaded Dice: a D&D webcomic - presented by the Red Dragon Inn

#80 Priorities

I continue to lag a bit in getting script put together in a timely fashion, and Brittany is still settling into her new job... but we do have an update. I also have a couple of guest strips by Roel to help us get through. :) So, the caravan guy died. I wonder if any useful information died with him? Also, please note that today marks the launch of a brand new webcomic here at the Inn - The Adventures of Floyd Hobart. Please do check out the weekly installments of Floyd, professional DM and gamemaster.

Filler: The Games We Don't Play

Once again, our good friend Roel Stalpers (from Rules of Rule) gives us a great guest strip. Look for more of these pieces in the future - Roel is doing a series looking into the lives of our "real" characters, as well as a short storyline devoted to the in-game characters. As for this one... there have been demands for Amy-related romance. Here you go! Sort of. For the record: this is 100% canon material.

#79 Comfort Zones

I'm back from Disney, and - hopefully - from the blues. Brittany (who is now gainfully employed, give the girl a hand!) really busted her butt to get this one out on time. Hope that you enjoy the story... I can't wait to get it on into the meat of this chapter.

Filler: Bored Faustus

Brittany drew this one as a lark several weeks ago, and the art is too good to just sit on my hard drive. Enjoy this view of a wistful, younger Faustus, and expect a full strip on Friday. And no, I don't know why there is a portrait of pink-haired red horse!

Filler: Fantasyland?

Hello, all. If you have read Loaded Dice for very long, you are acutely aware that I am a world class, bottom dwelling, good for nothing flake. The comic goes strong for a few months, then falls away for a while... even weeks (more?) at a time. My life has been insanely busy and stressful of late, and as I have done in the past, I have fallen into a pretty nice depression. When I'm like this, I just cannot seem to get anything done. I am very, very sorry for the inconsistency and delays. Today, I leave for Disney World. I'm feeling better, anyway, and I'm hoping that a visit to my favorite place on Earth will help get my head back where it belongs. When I get back, we will resume with regular strips. No, really! Feel free to begin flinging rotten tomatoes now. Also: thanks again for your support.

#78 Can't Please Some People

I am trying to reflect a little more of the in character lines and such this chapter, as opposed to always showing the players be the only ones who talk about in game situations... otherwise, the in game characters appear to be little more than puppets. It's a struggle, but I'm working on it! Poor Steve. He literally cannot please this group, can he? A note for the final panel, if you get confused on the flow of words - read the dialogue as you would a book. Start at the top left, read across, then drop down a line.

Filler: Why Is He so Surprised?

Another nifty filler comes to us, courtesy of Brittany. All hail the artist! Regular strips resume next week. Perhaps as early as this Friday.

Filler: She Does this Sometimes

Sorry for the stupidity, folks. First, I had the "comic refuses to paste... hah! It posted twice!" Issue on midnight when I was getting ready to to the beach the next morning. I gave up and went to bed, despairing of being able to schedule filler strips. And then, I missed yesterday's update. Yes, it was Tuesday, you ninny! Enjoy today's filler, courtesy of Brittany herself.

#77 Heroic Looting

Sorry for the crazy lateness, folks - been prepping for next week's beach vacation.

#76 Plans are for Chumps

First off, please let me say thanks to all of our regular Loaded Dice readers - we are back up above a thousand of you! While I fully realize that while the big webcomics - the Penny Arcades, XKCDs, and PVPs of the world - would hardly notice an addition or subtraction of a thousand readers, it's a huge deal to me. To think that there are that many actual people taking a chunk of their time to follow this story is humbling. Thank you! Today's strip gives us a pretty standard slice of "tactics" from Brad and Ray. After all, if the DM has introduced a monster, he wants you to kill it, right? And if you can just run up and smack it, all the better. Right?

#75 RTFM

This was a fun strip. Any DM who has put in serious homework to help put together a living, breathing game world knows this frustration - namely, most players really don't care all that much. A good D&D game is like a collaborative novel... but most of them often have stretches where they are more like plays where no one remembers their lines, the lead actors break character often, and the plot consists of a few nonsensical events connected by cliches and gratuitous violence.

#74 Enough is Enough

If you can't derail the DM's plans any other way, you can always resort to outright cowardice, I suppose. It never hurts to curry the DM's favor by smacking someone who deserves it.

#73 All Aboard, Redux

Chapter two is developing into a lot of fun for me - I hope that it's the same for you guys. Love the design than Brittany came up with for Tim's shirt. Also, it might be wiser for Ray to hold the insults until AFTER the adventure...

#72 Can We Just Get on With it?

If Steve lets them wander in circles, they complain. If he railroads them on an adventure, they complain. If he gives gentle suggestions and drops clues... they wander in circles. Then complain. Such is the lot of the DM.

#71 That Hollow Feeling

Ta-da! Please enjoy the first "real" script of chapter two. This one took me ages to write... I kept scrapping things and starting over, then finally decided that I *had* to finish a script. Oddly enough, I think that it turned out really well. Obviously, I am very pleased with Brittany's work. It will take a while for her to make the comic her own, I'm sure, but I think that she is off to a wonderful start.

#70 Chapter Two Cover

Ladies and gentlement, I present to you the cover for Chapter Two of Loaded Dice! More importantly, I present the first full piece of art from our new artist, Brittany Connolly. I am of course very excited to once again see life breathed into the comic, and I hope that you will enjoy where the story goes.

#69 It's What Time?

Aaaand, that's a wrap! It took ages (and three artists) to get here, but finally, the opening chapter to Loaded Dice comes to an end. I'd like to take this space to thank those very three artists: Tiana Jackson, Lyra Logan, and Annick Huber. Also, thak you to the numerous people who contributed guest and filler strips. Thank you, one and all! Today's strip was colored by Brittanny Connolly, the new Loaded Dice artist. She brings a style all her own, and will be taking over the art (and color) duties starting with strip #70 (chapter two). Welcome! Finally, thanks to all of our readers for sticking with us through thick and thin. A lot of comics pay lip service to this, but please know that I geuinely appreciate each and every one of you. Hopefully, we will continue to produce a comic that you find worth your time.

#68 Closure for the Adventure

At long last, we resume the orignal plotline of Loaded Dice. I tried to personally color this strip, but my rudimentary skills just did not do justice to the art. A huge thanks goes out to Forest Rhodes, who graciously did such a wonderful job on it for us. So ends the adventure for chapter one. We'll have one final strip for the chapter... and before you know it, a new story will begin. Thanks to everyone for the continued suport!

Filler: The Guardian - Part Eight

And so, we come to an end of the Guardian mini arc. A million thanks to Roel Stalpers of Rules of Rule. Please be sure to check out his site and his comics! Tim may get smacked before this is over...

Filler: The Guardian - Part Seven

Thanks to Roel Stalpers of Rules of Rule for the latest installment of this awesome little arc. Obviously, this duel is about to end, one way or another.

Filler: The Guardian - Part Six

Roel Stalpers of Rules of Rule gives us the sixth episode of the Guardian arc. Sorry for the lateness of the post, folks. My son was born last Monday, and we of course spent the week in the hospital. Apparently, my auto post script decided that it didn't really feel like doing anything.

Filler: The Guardian - Part Five

Roel Stalpers of Rules of Rule brings us installment five of the Guardian. Is it just me, or is Steve really enjoying that evil monologue?

Filler: The Guardian - Part Four

Part four of the Guardian mini arc, brought to us by Roel Stalpers of rules of Rule. Really, no one actually thought it would be that easy, did they?

Filler: The Guardian - Part Three

Here we are, with part three of "The Guardian", a filler series presented by Roel Stalpers of Rules of Rule. Who needs to negotiate when you can just shoot someone between the eyes... amiright?

Filler: The Guardian - Part Two

We now present episode two of Role Stalpers' (of Rules of Rules) guest arc! As is pretty typical for this group, Faustus has made a rash decision. What will the upshot be? I have been asked if this is canon material for Loaded Dice. to be honest, I'm not entirely certain. As you'll see from the progression of the story, the characters appear to be more powerful than in the normal plotline. This story could take place in the future, or in some alternate timeline. Or something else entirely...

Filler: The Guardian - Part One

Today's update comes to us courtesy of Roel Stalpers (of Rules of Rule). Roel contacted me out of the blue to ask if I would like to help with Loaded Dice. As it turns out, he had an entire mini arc planned... and the story is quite good. Please enjoy Roel's story, and be sure to check out his comic! This is part one of eight.

Filler: The Guardian - Cover

Our good friend Roel Stalpers (of rules of Rule) has stepped up to provide a guest story arc. Enjoy the next few pages by him, and be sure to visit his comic!

#67 Let's Get Out of Here!

Ahh, the gentle caress of spiteful words flung from your players - these are the treasures that a DM truly seeks. Or something. Happy New Year, everyone! We're glad to be back - hopefully, you're glad to be reading this comic once more. Two more strips to go before the end of chapter one.

#66 Not so Fast...

Now that the climactiv battle is over, Steve will kindly hands out piles of treasure and lots of experience points, and everyone will ride off into the sunset, right? Bwahahahahaaa! The denizens of the dungeon may be defeated, but the dungeon itself may yet take their lives. Run, my pretties, run for your lives!

#65 The Final Battle (Part Five)

At long last, the mini arc of the final battle draws to a close. I hope that you have enjoyed reading it as much as I have enjoyed making it. I have decided that after this chapter, there will be no more fire in Loaded Dice for a while... it takes me too darned long to color! Before anyone decides to call BS on me for the resolution of this fight, know this - remember that this chapter is based on a real life gaming session that I once ran. The final battle worked out almost exactly this very same way, coming down to literally one final roll of the dice.

#64 The Final Battle (Part Four)

Every single Loaded Dice strip up until now has led up to this final moment... so naturally, I'm prolonging things with a bit more of a cliffhanger. For the record: this chapter was based very heavily on a real life tabletop session. Like this comic, that session literally came down to one single roll of the dice. At this point, the tension in the air was pretty palpable. Tune in next time to see the exciting conclusion to this fight! Same bat time, same bat channel!

Filler: Fan Art: Steve and Amy

As stated on our facebook page, we do not have a regular comic for today's update; Annick has been buried in school finals. However, she did get the completed line art to me last night, so we should have no issue in posting a normal strip on Tuesday. Her schedule looks fine going forward, so we should be back to two strips per week. In the meantime, please enjoy this piece of fan art sent to us by Pudding. I think that she did a good job capturing the characters - especially Steve. It boggles my mind to think that we have enough dedicated readers out there to have people actually take the time to draw things like this. Thanks again, Pudding!

#63 The Final Battle (Part Three)

...and the final battle rages on. If you're looking for the usual barrage of puns, bear with us - the climax of this chapter is kind of a big deal, I think. Don't be fooled by Tim - this might look selfless and noble, but as he points out, there's no point in living through this fight only to die from the cold (or to be overrun by undead minions).

#62 The Final Battle (Part Two)

Check us out, folks - two updates, in the same week, ON TIME! How about that? Annick is experimenting some with the art style. In this strip (as well as in #63), she uses some thicker, bolder lines in an effort to help me with the coloring process. I have learned a new technique which makes this unnecessary, so she'll probably go back to a finer line in the future (this gives her more flexibility to finesse things). As for the story - well, you knew that this would happen. Steve has pitted the party against an opponent that clearly outclasses them. What will happen?

#61 The Final Battle (Part One)

Here we are, on the cusp of the moment we've all been waiting for. No, not a new comic, smarty pants - clearly, we have one of those. I mean, here we are, at the final fight between the party and the big bad guy. Speaking of lateness - I once again apologize for my total suck. We moved office locations at work last week, and as the I.T. guy, I got to handle everything that uses electricity in any way; this resulted in some long hours for me. On the "good news" front, Annick has already completed the line art for the next two strips, so we should be able to start hitting deadlines. Really! Quit laughing. Jerks. **sniffle** Remember that we do have a facebook page and a twitter account - come check us out there!

#60 How Many Times do I Have to Tell You?

Here we are, folks - the very first strip from our new artist, Annick Huber. I think thast she's doing a great job, but please do let us know what you think. Except a few transition pains, expect to see some simpler backgrounds - and also, expect to see new comics on a much more frequent (and regular) basis. As for the comic itself - is anyone surprised that Brad would try one more time? And yes, you guessed it - chapter one is very close to the story's climax.

#59 Getting his Just Desserts

The players grow frustrated with Steve; they're ready to get this climactic battle over with, already. What kind of DM would he be if he didn't throw annoying obstacles in their way? This will be our final strip with Lyra's art, so let me take the opportunity to thank her for the wonderful contributions that she has made to Loaded Dice. Best of luck to you in all your endeavors, Lyra! Annick Huber takes over next week as the new artist for Loaded Dice.

Filler: RPG Myth Breakers #5 - 2e or not 2e

After what seems like ages since their last strip, Alacrity and Bromern swoop in just in the nick of time to deliver the latest RPG Myth Breakers! Thanks so much, guys! Alacrity makes quite the dashing swordsman, wouldn't you agree?

Filler: Rich: Pungeon Master

Lyra wasn't quite able to get the art done for the second full strip this week, but she did kindly whip up this little piece of filler art for us. Tvtropes sends us some residual traffic just for people who want to see Rich in action, so I think that it's appropriate for us to give him his punny title.

#58 Here I Come to Save the Day!

After much adieu, here is the first full strip colored by me. IT certainly lacks the finesse that Lyra brings to the table, but I think that it gets the job done - and I promise to keep working to improve my skills. The huge plus side, of course, is that having me color the strips should save enough time that Lyra can get back to two strips per week. I think that we can all deal with some inferior shading if we get more Loaded Dice, right? Anyway... Aranion is saved by an arbitrary entry on the monster's stat block (he flees if dealt X damage)... well, that, and a rare flash of generosity by Steve. Don't expect that to happen often. Also, don't forget that you can keep up with Loaded Dice by becoming a fan on facebook or by following us on twitter.

Filler: Loaded Dice go LARPing

Today's guest strip is brought to us courtsey of Stickman, creator of Sticknia Comics. Sticknia is a friend of Loaded Dice, and pretty much has been from the beginning - both comics started at almost the same time, we have similar sized audiences, etc. If you haven't read Sticknia's "Path of the Necromancer", you are missing out on a really cool D&D comic - be sure to check it out.

Filler: Get the Point?

Here we are, with a strip conceived of, and drawn by, Lyra. In an experiment to see if we can shorten production time, I have assumed colorizing duties for this strip. Please be gentle; this is my first "real" attempt to do so. The gag is groan-worthy... which places it nicely in line with the rest of this comic's humor.

#57 Mano a Mano

Here we are, with Aranion charging ahead to attack the Ice Haunt with no support from the rest of the party. Is anyone (aside form Brad) shocked at how this ended up? We're trying something a bit out of the ordinary, here - forgoing Olan's typical walls 'o text in favor of simply letting the art tell the story. What do you think?

Filler: A Quick RPG Survival Guide

Today's guest strip is brought to us by Nina Anima of Cat's Eyes. Thanks very much, Nina! It's pretty awesome when someone that you don't really know, and that you have never spoken to about doing any sort of guest material for your comic, decides that they enjoy what you do enough to motivate them to do a guest comic anyway. That's exactly what happened here. I am extremely flattered! Be sure to check out Cat's Eyes.

Filler: Deranged Mind

I may have mentioned to Lyra that I thought a tentacle monster would make a great filler. I may have even mentioned it twice without realize that I had done so. Psh, it is a good filler, though, so I was correct. I will say that this was nothing like what I expected... which is cool. It's always great to see an artist's take on something. It is well documented that I am no artist, and thus lack a lot of creativity.

#56 Of Bravado and Stupidity...

Here we are, creeping ever closer to the finale of the current story arc. Will the party survive? Will they vanquish Steve's big bad guy? Will they all get picked off, one by one, in a slow, excruciating TPK? If they keep making these sorts of decisions, option #3 seems like a likely outcome. Regardless, stay tuned! You're at least guaranteed to be treated to some great art. In other news, we've passed the 1k regular reader mark and are continuing to climb. Thanks for the support! Don't forget to check out Loaded Dice on twitter and facebook.

Filler: The New Adventure

While this may not be a regular installment, it's only incrementally less satisfying, in my book. I love the way that Lyra "set the mood" in the bottom panel! Also, I can't believe that so few of our regular readers use Twitter. Come follow Loaded Dice so that you can listen to me spout minutia! And of course, please do check out our pretty active facebook fan page.

#55 A Burning Desire

So, Lyra has reappeared among the living - and brought a fantastic new strip with her. Your attention, please: as of this posting, Loaded Dice is celebrating a milestone - a couple of days before this update, we broke the half a million total page view mark for the comic! While this is small potatoes for some of the big webcomics, it's a big deal for us. Thanks to all of you who read the comic! Don't forget that you can keep up with all of the latest chatter by following Loaded Dice on Tiwtter, or by becoming a fan of our Facebook page. I try to keep both of them very much up to date.

Filler: Roll for Save...

If you don't get the joke, I'll explain it. This is a pun relating back to 2nd edition D&D (also known as Advanced Dungeons and Dragons). Back then, we didn't have fortitude, reflex, and will saves - we had a whole slew of saving throws versus various things (poison, death magic, generic spells, etc). One of them was a save versus breath weapons, such as those employed whena dragon breathes fire. Breath weapon... breast weapon. Get the pun? Or just hush and enjoy the eye candy.

#54 Twisted Mind of the DM

Check it out - new strip is up! I think that the tentacle monster in the bottom right is my new hero. Lyra tried some new things with the art this time; she's not totally happy with all of it (she was hoping there would be more of a dread "feel" from the grey and white panel), but from where I stand, the art is top notch, as usual. We've had a lot of discussions about getting to a regular schedule, and I think that, for the time being, we're going to set our sights on one regular strip plus one short/filler per week. I wish that we could do two, but it's not realistic at this time. If we sneak out two in a given week, feel lucky. :) In the meantime, make sure to "like" the Loaded Dice facebook page, if you haven't already, and for some stream of consciousness nonsense from me, follow Loaded Dice on twitter.

Filler: RPG Myth Breakers #4: The Pen and the Sword

We've had a little art problem with our regular strip, but fortunately for us, RPG Myth Breakers is here with a new episode! Next time, the DM should possibly consider index cards to help keep his monsters organized. See what happens when you overlook details!

Filler: My Little Pony...

So, a week or two ago, when we were in the midst of our comic desert, I appealed to pretty much anyone who would listen to pretty please do a guest comic for Loaded Dice. This is the first such completed work, from Roel Stalpers of Rules of Rule. It's pretty cool to see another established webcomic artist reimagine your characters. My first impression upon seeing this was "Wow, sparkly!" I am dense, it took me two reads to fully get the joke... my wife read it the first time and enjoyed it more than our typical fare (she felt that she didn't need to be a roleplayer to "get" it). Every time I read it again, however, I like it more. A huge thanks goes out to Roel - be sure to check out his (trippy? is it insulting if I offer up my opinion that his comic is trippy? I certainly don't mean it as a bad thing!) own cool webcomic.

#53 Do I Have to Say It?

The wait is over - enjoy the new strip! First off, let me share some news - Loaded Dice is now on twitter (follow us @ldcomic. Tune in there to keep up with random musings from me, as well as comic-related updated. Doesn't that sound like fun? Or something? Don't forget that we have a fan page on Facebook. Keep up with us there, share your thoughts, etc. Now, as for this week's update... It's always fun to serve the DM a slice of humble pie when his schemes don't work out. Of course, you have to be careful to do it in such a way as to not provoke further wrath. I believe that the other gamers may fine Rich if he keeps this up. We are getting very close to the end of the current story arc; stay tuned to find out what lies in store for the party beyond the frozen monastery. Also, we have several guest pieces that will be running over the coming weeks.

#52 Props to William Shatner

First of all, check out the new logo! I was never really in love with the old one... this one speaks to me much more than the old one did. Is that a sign that it's good, or a sign of possible mental illness on my part? Now, as for this installment of Loaded Dice... I am stupidly exicted to post it. I know that you've read similar comments by me before, but I think that this may be my absolute favorite strip to date thus far. Lyra really nailed the varioius expressions throughout this strip - I especially love what she did with Steve and Ray. Also, I will admit, I happen to think the punchline to this strip is hilarious - all the while realizing that it is, in fact, terribly corny, as well. Which makes it better in my warped little book. Enjoy.

Filler: RPG Myth Breakers #3 - Stealth in Armor

It's been long enough - enjoy the latest installment of RPG Myth Breakers! Today's episode deals with one of those items that make every DM cringe - the player who (attempts to) uses stealth while in armor, and doesn't seem to understand why this is an issue.

Filler: Life Through the Eyes...

C'mon, you didn't think that we'd be able to complete that battle yet, did you? Seriously, the issue with the delay is all on me and starting the new job. Fortunately, Lyra took one of my filler ideas and awesomeized it. We could probably make this into a wallpaper, if there was demand for it.

#51 Wow, How Dramatic!

Check it out, a new strip, up (pretty much) on schedule! Love the awesome art here - particularly Ray in his condescending pose. Oh, and BTW - I finally have a job!

#50 Didn't See That One Coming

Once again, Lyra has put together a superb piece of art. Once again, I sucked in trying to get it lettered and up on time. Once again, my auto post script failed, and I was away and did not realize it. I promise that we'll get better! Also, congratulations to us - this would be regular strip #50, which represents a nice little milestone for us.

#49 Speak for Yourself!

Finally, we have a new strip up and live. Good news: Lyra's tablet situation looks to be resolved. We may actually be back to a normal schedule! Can't blame her for the stupid lateness of today's update - things got crazy for me at the end of last week, and I didn't get the comic lettered and posted. Then, my auto post script failed yesterday, so bleh. Anyway, hope you enjoy this installment - and don't forget to check out the bonus art at the end (the dragon). What I'd give for the sort of talent to just throw and awesome dragon in with the rest of this great art...

#48 Is Chivalry Dead?

Here we are - another new strip (finally)! Lyra has been very under the weather of late, so we're behind. Furthermore, with her regular tablet in for repairs, it looks like it is going to be tough for her to continue producing two strips per week, so until she gets it back, we'll be dropping to one installment per week. Boo! Hiss! If you know someone who'd like to submit a guest strip for Loaded Dice, now is the time! Please have them email me at olansuddeth@gmail.com. And now, a behind the curtain moment. Lyra sent the following to me along with this week's strip. This comic - I kinda went insane. So while the drawings are lower quality, I spent way too much time with the little details this time around. 1) Every one of them in a 3d rendered chair, posed at their exact angle based on the drawing. 2) The study and chest scenes are pretty fleshed out, as your description stated. A few extra things (candles, broom) added. 3) They all have character sheets (RDINN ones) 4) They have pencils! 5) They each have a full set of dice, DM has 2+ extras 6) DM screen is an actual screen from 2nd edition 7) A grid map in the center of the table- random map, can change it if you have a real grid for this dungeon 8) Couldn't get a good pic of an open D&D book, so it's an accounting book blurred out. =P Lol- I was having too much fun adding these things. Wow. A geek after my own heart!

Filler: Fan Art - Amy Cosplaying Dalana

Today's comic is our third filler in a row. What the heck is going on? Well, hadn't been in contact with our artist, Lyra, in about a week. This is very unusual, as she has been awesome about communicating just about every day, and has never left one of my messages unanswered. I finally heard from her last night - turns out that she's in the hospital with a ruptured appendix. I guess that I can't complain, can I? She should be out soon, and from I understand, we'll be back to regular comics before you know it. Until then, enjoy a little fan art for today - Emily Suddeth (PrincessAli) gives us Amy cosplaying Dalana. You can check out Emily's Deviant Art page here.

Filler: RPG Myth Breakers #2 - Chain Mail Bikini

So today, we proudly bring you Myth Breakers #2, where Alacrity and Bromern test the relative merits of the chain mail bikini on a female warrior. Ah, such a classic staple of fantasy art... no, not THAT kind of fantasy! Wait, come to think of it... Nevermind. Enjoy the strip.

Filler: And it's a Filler...

Well, rats. Doesn't look like we are quite back on schedule yet, but we're not far off. At any rate, Lyra did whip up a very cool little filler strip, here... classic Michael Jackson meets D&D. Keep your fingers crossed, folks - I'm going on a job interview this morning.

#47 I Hate When He Does That

A little late in posting today, but hey, we have a new strip on the correct day! Once again, lots of awesome details - Red Dragon Inn members might recognize the layout of Ray's character sheet. Question for the day - is Steve an awesome DM, or just a jerk? Incidentally - if any of you out there know of a company that needs an experienced network administrator, web developer, or IT manager... my job search and I would really love it if you'd put them in contact with me.

#46 Told Ya So

Is it wrong of me to gush ridiculously about the new art? Check out all of the little touches - the different expressions, the character sheets on the table, the varied camera angles. I think this may be my single favorite strip so far. Ahem. I will try to limit my comments to the plot, but I will probably fail at that. Um... how 'bout that wacky Brad?

Filler: RPG Myth Breakers #1 - Pilot

Today's comic is a guest strip brought to us by the Red Dragon Inn's own Roger Briant and Lance Card (aka Alacrity and Bromern Sal). RPG Myth Breakers will be an ongoing series of its own, to be posted at those times when Loaded Dice is off schedule for some strange reason or another (the current wacom tablet issues being a perfect example), or just for a nice change of pace every now and then. Goofy costumes, kidnapping, catapults... what's not to like?

#45 He Has my Vote!

After much fanfare, Loaded Dice proudly presents the first strip with our new artist, Lyra Logan! We had some bumps in the road (mostly due to wacom tablet issues), but we are back, and if all goes according to schedule, we'll be producing two strips per week again. I can't tell you how excited I am - I LOVE the new character art.... and check out the backgrounds! As for the comic itself, you can see that we are picking up right where the plot left off. It's always immensely satisfying when, as a player, some crazy scheme that you cook up actually works. A good DM knows this, and will allow the "rule of cool" to carry the day (or at least work to some extent) if the plan is reasonable, well thought out, or entertaining enough. There's way more to a good game than endless opposing die rolls, don't you agree?

#44 The End of Loaded Dice?

Ladies and gentlemen, Loaded Dice is NOT going away. After life got in my way and threw me off for a long time, Tiana has taken up other interests and will not be returning to the comic. I wish her nothing but the best. In the meantime, please welcome new artist Lyra Logan to Loaded Dice! We will be back to regular production right away.

#43 Of Plans and Bait...

Once again, a D&D party comes up with a convoluted plan to counteract the DM's schemes. Like any "good" plan, it will require precise timing, multiple dice rolls, and a huge helping of luck. I'm thinking that we need a comment section here to allow readers to share their own wacky schemes that worked (or should have worked, had the DM not been such a jerk!).

#42 Rock Solid Humor

Now hear this! Effective immediately, Loaded Dice will now update on a Tuesday/Friday schedule. This is to accomodate Tiana's new work schedule. Ah... back to the real story. About time! It's always fun to throw encounters at the party that force them to act out of their normal comfort zone (in other words, they can't just waltz in and hack the opponent to bits). some of the best gaming moments come out of the zany schemes hatched by your players. For the record, it's also fun to make them retreat.

#41 Happy New Year 2010

Yay for more filler posters! As we wrap up 2009, please allow me a quick moment of mushiness. I'd like to give a special thanks to our wonderful artist, Tiana Jackson, who has brought this silly project to life with her outstanding work. Also, I'd like to thank all of you who read the comic so faithfully. It's flattering to know that you are finding entertainment value here. It took me along time to finally start Loaded Dice, and the response has been very gratifying. Here's to a wonderful new year!

#40 The Wisdom of Han Solo

I have to give props where they are due. The main idea for this script came from my wife, who by her own admission, does not "get" the comic. Still, I thought the dirty Santa plot was a great idea. Originally, I had intended to put a gamer twist on Steve's gift, and have the fuzzy dice be D10s, but apparently, my communication skills are lacking (I know that must really shock some of you). Anyway, enjoy our Christmas strip, and please forgive the lateness of the update... the holidays are kicking my butt in a big way. A belated Merry Christmas to you all!

#39 Aw, Don't be so Paranoid!

This seems almost too obvious. Can Steve resist the lure of using the statues to make the PCs wish they were never born? Probably not.

#38 So Much for that Romance...

So much for those romantic notions. So one of two things happen now, right? Either Steve avenges his broken heart on Amy's hapless character, or he grabs on to fantasies of unrequited love, and acts like a total sap. Right? Or maybe, we simply get back to the game. I think everyone would appreciate that.

#37 Promo Poster: Reservoir Dogs

From time to time, we will place up one of these promo posters as filler. Tiana will be doing them as parodies of real films. If you ask me, she nailed this... oh, to be able to bottle such creativity! And yes, the fact that we have filler is an indictment of me. 'Tis the season to watch Olan flake.

#36 What Took You So Long?

I have been asked why Rich/Ladan had not been turning the undead already - I think that Rich sums it up well. What's the point in turning a lone zombie or two skeletons? Also, for the uninitiated, "T.P.K." stands for "Total Party Kill", aka, "Party Wipe" - everyone in the group dies, the players throw dice at the GM, and a new adventure is forceably started.

#35 A Dead End...

Never underestimate the power of mooks - especially if they come back again and again. Individually, they might be a breeze, but in a horde that you cannot run from...

#34 Extra #1: "Funny" D&D Jokes, Courtesy of Rich

My latest script included too much art for Tiana to fit into the normal deadline. Rather than leave us high and dry, however, she took it upon herself to produce this filler strip. Yay for multiple awful jokes! Bonus points for the chewy D&D flavor.

#33 He Just Never Quits...

Well, we all knew that this was coming. Eventually, those missing corpses were going to turn up somewhere. Too bad it had to be at a really inopportune moment. I mean, what are the chances, right?

#32 O Steve, Live Forever

Mocking the DM is one thing, but don't take it too far - and be sure to at least pretend to listen to the descriptive text he's come up with for your adventure. It warms his heart to feel like you care... and it keeps him from taking out his irritation on you with monsters you cannot hurt, or with traps you cannot detect.

#31 Funny is in the Eye of the Beholder

They key to making players paranoid is to expose them to familiar situations, while making sure that the results of those encounters are never quite certain. For instance, you can be sure that Brad will probably never again be 100% certain that a dead body is truly dead.

#30 Ask a Stupid Question...

If the DM isn't careful, players come to expect goodies at every step of the adventure. To keep the game realistic, you have to be sure that any treasure found makes sense in the context of the adventure. Plus, it really annoys the players.

#29 Only the Wind...

Another wonderful example of messing with your players' minds. They know that you're going to spring nasty traps on them - they simply don't know when. Often, the suspense is better than the actual trap itself (if you are sitting on the correct side of the DM screen, of course). Bonus points if you do manage to lull them into a false sense of security, thus making your actual trap all that much worse!

#28 Dear Diary...

Ah, yes - the joy of finding a clue. One should always give credit to the words of a dead man, right? Of course, that is assuming that the dead man had some idea of what he was talking about...

#27 Happy Halloween 2009

I don't think that it's fair to call this "filler". I prefer to refer to it as a "holiday special" - after all, we planned in advance to do this. I had presented a concept, but Tiana came back with this one - which just blew my own idea away. Happy Halloween, folks!

#26 Religious Tolerence

Who knew that religion could be such an inconvenience? It would be so much simpler to just have a faceless force give you magical band aids whenever you needed them. Also, I think that they should split up. They can cover more ground that way. Yeah, that's the ticket!

#25 Morality and Prisoners

Ahh, the eternal question of what to do with that evil prisoner. It's not like there is a convenient police station to take him to. It's not like you have the manpower to allow for you to handle normal guard duty. And then the GM starts bringing in some silly set of moral codes if you want to kill him! Isn't being a hero supposed to be cut and dried?

#24 Not if I Can Help it...

As embarassing as it may be to have your comrades save you from self-inflicted terminal stupidity, it's preferable to having to roll up a new character this early in the game. Besides, who wants to give the GM kind of satisfaction? Also, does Dalana look awesome or what?

#23 With Friends Like These...

This is another strip based off of an actual gaming session. I truly could not believe it when the mage's player stated that he would actually slap the barbarian for his cowardice. But then, he turned his back... As I recall, he was rather surprised at the result, though it seemed like the only logical outcome to me.

#22 Gentle Persuasion

What's the best way to keep an eye on a suspicious NPC? Why, send him to the forefront of the hottest battle, of course! If he's honest, he'll help you out. If he's not, the monsters will kill him. It's a win-win, right? I'm once again loving the spellcasting effects that Tiana draws. Also, the floor of the meditation room (panel 7) was totally her idea - and it's just perfect!

#21 Friendly Faces

Technically, I guess that they could just say, "Hi, we're here to kill you." But if they have some sort of subtle plan, that would probably wreck it. The summoned monster art is awesome. He kinda seems to be just chillin' a bit, no problems here... but if you make a false move, he might fly over and chomp off your face.

#20 Things Get Worse

Aw, c'mon. Give the DM ideas. It's more fun when he uses your own fears against you! Also, yay for Rich for recycling the tried and true "outrun the dwarf" joke.

#19 Here Comes the Cavalry

Steve is not about to look a gift horse in the mouth - if Brad's roleplay is good, he'll gladly take it (even if it is accidental). Sure, Brad was probably ready to charge after the bad guy just to see if he could get a piece of him, but we'll let the poor guy pretend that he was only using in-character knowledge. Why not?

#18 Chill Out!

Faustus learns a lesson the hard way - just because you *can* stab something doesn't always mean that you should. Sometimes, it is better to run away tactically retreat. As I frequently do, I will take this opportunity to gush about the art in this comic. I thought that the artist did a wonderful job of capturing the effect as Faustus was hit by the freezing touch. The cold radiating out over the furnace was a nice touch, as well.

#17 Enter the B.B.G.

Any fan of horror movies knows full well that when the protagonists split up, something bad is going to befall one or more of them. So naturally, a sadistic DM like Steve (or myself) gets great pleasure when the adventuring party decides to do just that. I mean, really... they are simply *asking* for it! Side note: the art of this strip is my new favorite to date.

#16 Just Playing my Character (part two)

I wish that I could make this stuff up. These events actually happened in a game that I DMed. Of course, the mage's player had a good point - if his charm could cut down on the number of enemies they had to fight, it would have helped a lot more than a single low-level offensive spell. Not that the cleric's player found any comfort in that. As an aside, everyone else found a lot of amusement in it, however. Also: I love the way that Jhim looks as he casts the spell.

#15 Just Playing my Character (part one)

Ah, the lengths that a player will go to justify something in the name of "playing my character". Of course, it's most entertaining for the DM when a player really *is* playing their character, and doing so is causing negative consequences for the party. Incidentally, I love the combat art.

#14 Combat ADD

Now that the immediate threat of freezing to death has been removed, the party can get back to doing the important stuff: killing monsters. Sure, Brad may have it worse than most, but experience says that with the exception of the odd hardcore roleplayers out there, most D&D gamers are just looking for their next enemy to kill. Not saying that this is bad, of course.

#13 I See a Trend

An adventure where you *don't* have to worry about something jumping out and grabbing you? Where is the fun in that? Also, Dalana looks way cool in panel ten.

#12 Something Stinks...

Is this seriously a dangerous situation, or is the DM messing with my head? That is the question that a player must ask. A good DM threatens the players so often that he is able to savor their paranoia like a fine wine. Yep, you can tell which side of the DM screen *I* prefer to sit on.

#11 Final Rites?

Yes, we have our first actual battle! Panel four is one of my favorites of the strip to date - the artist did a great job capturing the fight between Aranion and one of the skeletons. Also, more fun with Brad's temper and the rest of the group hassling him. Brad is an angry fellow.

#10 Things Get Tight

DM's dearly love these sorts of encounters. No matter what the party does, someone is going to get hurt - providing the DM with some serious comic entertainment. Of course, any good player worth his salt relishes in the chance to smack his annoying party members without fear of any sort of retribution. It's a win-win,right? Well, except perhaps for the poor sap getting smacked around.

#9 The Gate

Apparently, it's going to take Brad a little while to adjust to a different way of doing things. If you're not playing an uber-strong hulk, not every problem can be solved with a hard blow. On an unrelated note, this group - like so many - is fairly adept at picking out which of the DM's details are important, and which are just window dressing. Not that they could do a whole lot about anything frozen in the pond, but still... I'm sure Steve would appreciate it if they at least looked.

#8 All Aboard the Adventure Railroad!

It never fails. The DM has put in hours of time planning for the adventure, he\'s taken into account what sorts of players he has and what they are looking for in an adventure... and they then decide to skip the evil wizard\'s tower and go swimming or some such nonsense. Luckily for Steve, he had their consent to basically force them into his dungeon - nobody wanted to discuss how the characters met, and they were anxious enough to get going that he was able to drop them in the middle of a blizzard. Simple choice: adventure or die. All aboard!

#7 EVIL!

I love Ladan's look of righteous fury. Great job by Tiana of making something silly look so cool. For the record, I'm not 100% happy with the "whisper bubbles", but it seems that Photoshop is conspiring against me for this. You'd think that you could just select a dashed border, but no. I ended up creating a pattern and using it as a background for the border... how moronic! If anyone knows of a better way to do this, please edumacate me.

#6 Character Introductions

The first time I saw the art for the in game characters, I knew that I had made the correct choice of an artist. Tiana has done a great job of capturing what I had envisioned here - the art looks great! Sorry about the huge speech bubbles, but I didn't see any real alternative if we were going to let the reader know anything about the characters (other than the fact that they look cool).

#5 The Ladies' Man

I personally despise the "you all meet in a tavern" bit. It's pretty much standard operating proceedure for me in games that I DM to force past character introductions and just have everyone assume that their characters already know one another. In tabletop games, the "meet and greet" stage tends to be awkward, and in play by post games, it eats up precious days (or even weeks) of posting time.

#4 Different Strokes

Ahh, the joys of character creation. Gamers pore over rulebooks - some look for inspiration, more look for loopholes to help them "win". I've personally considered handing out prebuilt characters many times, but have never had the guts to pull that off.

#3 We are the Knights who Say...

Has there ever been a D&D group that didn't do this from time to time? Someone makes a Monty Python & the Holy Grail reference, and it all goes downhill from there. As it turns out, strangling your players is frowned on by most municipalities.

#2 What I Want to Be

Ahh, the first actual joke for this comic strip. With solid gold material like this, you'll be awaiting every single post with bated breath, right?

#1 Introductions

The long awaited moment has come - we have a live comic! Is this strip particularly groundbreaking? Nope. Does it do much besides introduce you to the characters? Nope. What exactly did you expect from episode #1? Ah, here is a tidbit. The actual adventure itself is adapted from the module located at RPG Archive. Don't read it if you hate spoilers, but I really wanted to make sure to credit the author of the adventure.