Post-Apocalyptic Campaigns and Disaster Events in 5e Dungeons and Dragons & TTRPG - Web DM

[@WebDM]

Thanks for watching! Want more Web DM in your life? Check out our Patreon for an extra weekly video and podcast and more! Patreon.com/webdm Or our Twitch channel for live streamed ttrpgs every Tuesday and Thursday! Twitch.tv/webdm Or our live play archive on KZbin: KZbin.com/webdmplays

[@animusnocturnus7131]

Hey guys, since you've already prompted the Forgotten Realms and it's long history in there, maybe you want to inform people about the "Grand History of the Realms" book, that gives the extensive history of the Realms from -35000 DR to 1385 DR (over 36000 years of history) for anyone who wants to really dig in to this large span of time.

[@lindsaydessent9890]

Web DM here's one for you all to use I haven't used it yet but maybe you can also I change it a lot but would be good for an intro to a post apocalyptic scene for a RPG. The end times have past and the flames of the new world are born. So yeah the cycle renews itself but interesting way to look at it because the end isn't the end its just the means for a new beginning.

[@Heimal]

Will you guys be talking about the new edition of Vampire: The Masquerade? D&D is awesome, don't stop talkin' D&D, but I'd enjoy your take on the World of Darkness. And V5 seems like a good excuse!

[@WebDM]

We will certainly cover it on our podcast!

[@zorkwhouse8125]

Great topic - this is also one of my favorites. From certain movies/games to Philip K Dick stories. One campaign concept I always thought would be neat would be a game where the players start out in a post-apocalyptic world. It is full of small towns or communities that are struggling to hang on, all with very limited resources. And you've inevitably got warlords trying to rise up and consolidate people and resources. And travel is possible, but difficult b/c of limited resources and so no long-distance travel really takes place b/c no community can afford to spare the resources necessary. And so the characters spend maybe up to level 10 or 11 fighting in this world - maybe struggling against the warlords or trying to peacefully unify the remaining people alive in this world. But after they do that - they decide "we're powerful enough, we can survive - lets go see what happened to the other empires that existed pre-apocalypse. Is there anything left at all - are we the only ones that survived? And so they travel to the edge of the territory that they've accessed in the past - maybe there is a huge mountain range on the periphery, that has been insurmountable for anyone previously and just really not worth the risk and resources. So the players commit to crossing the mountain range. And they finally break through the terrible storms that gather at the top of the mountains b/c of how they affect air flow and the climate, to other side - and discover, to their complete disbelief perhaps, that the rest of the planet/world was actually unaffected by the "world-wide apocalypse," beyond no longer having contact with people who once lived in what they now call "the lost realm." The characters find out that everyone else in the world witnessed whatever triggered the apocalypse from afar (maybe it was a meteor that hit, or some magic war or struggle between gods) and in the aftermath they believed that no one could have possibly survived. And maybe they feared crossing into the area b/c of contamination or dangerous wild-magic remnants and so they just never attempted to re-contact the lost realm. Then players have to decide - do they go back to the "lost realm" and tell everyone and maybe try to rescue and bring them out - or maybe the characters spend some time in the non-apocalyptic realms and they discover that the empires are full of corrupt and greedy and decadent peoples, and suddenly they have to decide if maybe the people in the "lost realm" are actually better off there, the characters previously having peacefully unified the lands before they departed, and so bringing them out might be pulling the people out of this new "eden" that the characters have created. Or do the characters choose to give the lost people a choice by telling them the truth or maybe they return and say the rest of the planet was devastated and nothing survived. I think it would be an interesting one that could also go along with the theme of another of ya'lls videos I just watched on tough moral quandaries and such. This scenario poses all sorts of complicated questions for the characters to grapple with.

[@MrRhexx]

I could literally listen to Jim talk until the actual apocalypse. Good job guys! Great video.

[@finnianquail8881]

MrRhexx ayyyyyyyy

[@josephpeck7333]

Your talks on monsters and lore with Web DM's advice and ideas have given me inspiration for building my own world from scratch. You're up there with them Rhexx.

[@Toto-95]

do something with web DM !!!

[@MrSilvUr]

And now you have!

[@alexfrye8637]

Holly shit 2 of the best dnd KZbin's

[@jacobstruck3317]

Two things you always wait for the post credit scenes on... 1. Marvel Movies 2. WebDM

[@davidotoole2853]

Jacob Struck exactly

[@Toto-95]

it's the truth

[@BNRmatt]

"the dehumanizing aspect" of the plague "being afraid to touch people" Writing in 2020, man do I wish this one stayed in the past.

[@Bloodthirstier]

Jim blowing me a kiss was exactly what I needed today

[@kennethjor]

I felt violated ... :)

[@ruairiblake]

A setting I've always been fascinated with is the one implied at the end of the Tyranny of Dragons storyline if the players lose: Tiamat walks the material plane, "the age of man has ended, the age of dragons has begun" Especially if you ask "how do the other gods react?"

[@KyPenney]

You could play it from two different approaches. You are either the mortal races trying to survive/escape I'm a hostile land, or even trying to manage as slaves. Or... Play it out as half dragons trying to claim artifact and further the domain of tiamat. Maybe they find out what happened to the old races and might have sympathy and try to help?

[@ethanm.9433]

Best D&D channel ever. That’s all I’ve got to say.

[@MRTexas88]

Truth

[@Lilith_TheDireGay]

Tie with Colville

[@TheNerdySimulation]

You guys should definitely do a follow up on this topic, because I feel as though you barely scratched the surface of Post-Apocalyptic and I could feel as though you had more to talk about (but didn't want to make the episode too long). I'd love to see you guys talk about Gamma World, Mutant Future, or Mutant Crawl Classics, and because I love it so much, I'd love a talk about the Gonzo Post-Apocalyptic stuffs (if that interests you guys)! :D Also you talk about Post-Apocalyptic + D&D and you *don't* mention Adventure Time? D:

[@luketfer]

ah the craziness that is After the bomb/Teenage mutant ninja turtles and other strangeness is definitely something worth looking into as well as the GURPS setting Reign of Steel.

[@LainK1978]

Also didn't mention the post apocalyptic world that is a mix of modern tech, fantasy tech, and magic. That kind of thing is always entertaining to me.

[@sebaseba6710]

Yes please!

[@rileymitchell3510]

I am absolutely behind this, so much to explore in this topic

[@freeofkings]

Adventure time isn't post apocalyptic. It's a recurring apocalypse.

[@davlew6]

Trying to make a revelations style campaign at 11 years old, damn that's either sacrilegious or really metal

[@insomnifaxxwmaxx7244]

I would legit enjoy playing in such a campaign.

[@iv0rysh0es39]

An episode just on planning out, editing, and executing the thumbnails, would still be terrific.

[@Rankerquat]

"Attack of the 50-foot Something" Will always be my favorite apocalypse scenario.

[@Rankerquat]

50-foot Bear, Crab, Kobold, Barmaiden, etc.

[@WebDM]

Attack of the 50 foot Gnome!

[@merlinmeurer5339]

Attack of the 50-foot foot.

[@LordSplendid]

Attack of the 50 50-foot feet.

[@JohnWhitehead-f6z]

@@merlinmeurer5339 Cue Liberty Bell March.

[@McCainenl]

As an economic historian by academic training, very impressed with Jim Davis' comments here on social transitions and the late classical period! Spot on.

[@twilight5625]

When they mentioned the black death I swear I heard the blind death. I was confused about what they were talking about for about a minute before I realized what they actually said. But, it got me thinking that a blind death disease could be interesting in concept.

[@ThePizzaGoblin]

I swore I heard blind death too.

[@DAEDRICDUKE1]

That would legitimately be depressing, not even horrifying.

[@tylerhilpisch7850]

@@DAEDRICDUKE1 I mean a plague that takes away your senses one by one is terrifying

[@rogerswab2131]

I know this isn't really the place to say it, but I wanted to thank you guys for constantly talking about The Dresden Files novels. I had never heard of them before you, but I picked them up this weekend and have read the first four in the last four days. I'm 100% completely in love. Thank you.

[@AGrumpyPanda]

Commenting because of a recent musing; Part of the reason that so many D&D settings have an ancient, collapsed but more advanced civilisation is it scratches two important itches: discovering the unknown, and finding shiny stuff. On the exploration front, a forgotten civilisation is prime ground for both getting to explore an unmapped location and to piece together the weird disconnected stuff they keep finding to get some understanding of what the place was and how people lived there. On the shiny stuff front, this is a game as much as it is roleplaying, and while it's nice to find shiny rare golden idols, it's even better to find a shiny rare magic sword that's better than modern magic items.

[@TheBlazingSilver]

One of my preferred fast apocalypses is the fall of Xerxes from Fullmetal Alchemest. Magic wipes out an entire populace in an instant.

[@xeltanni8999]

"As a Pentecostal, The Apocalypse was the only thing on our minds. Except for like-" Video skips. Illuminati confirmed.

[@And-c7n]

Web DM has hit it's next stage of KZbin evolution - Producer Travis no longer bleeps the swear words "Evil as F.....!"

[@jimwolford7294]

If civilization collapsed, but some people could cast Create Food and Water, I imagine those casters to be very valuable. Some kingdoms may imprison casters in a Matrix style dream realm. Other kingdoms ruled by high level Clerics who could feed the people.

[@iX1NS0MN14CXi]

Right in time, as my last session for my 2 year campaign happens today with my level 17 characters. Othea (mother of the Giants) has now awakened from the mountainous range that grew over her. She's claiming her heart, and is going after her slumbering lover, Utuliu, the elemental deity, who sank into the ocean and created the Great Glacier. The heroes must go into the chest cavity, and solve my puzzle dungeon to stop her from the inside. If they fail, Othea and Utuliu will take arms against Othea's husband, Annam the All-Father of the giants

[@reubenfromow4854]

TELL US HOW IT GOES!!!

[@ramzabeoulve5825]

In the tag Jim talked about wanting to watch documentaries about the setting of post-apocalyptic movies, that is basically what I watch WebDM for. I'm a Critical Role fan that has never played any tabletop RPGs. I didnt realize how much lore there was around DnD, I thought it was just the mechanics and all the fluff was on the players. I think the friends in jr high that described it to me were probably heavily into min/maxing and dungeon crawling. I love learning more about the lore and the mechanics too. I'm also a sucker for bad puns. I look forward to your videos every Wed.

[@craigbainton4173]

Oh my god. Mad max d&d. That’s my next campaign sorted

[@goyasolidar]

It's called Dark Sun.

[@doeliewaaje1761]

In my campaign, there is always AN aspect of mass magic that has effected the word in an apocalyptic way, it's like a sign of a long forgotten war that the players have to discover piece by piece, it took a long time to prepare for. BUT IT"S WORTH IT

[@demonprincess5714]

web dm talking about plagues: "...scared to touch anyone" me, in 2021: *sips tea*

[@dirkmacdorn2478]

I immediately thought of Thundarr the Barbarian. I wish I still had my notes for that world, though it wouldn’t be difficult to recreate, just time consuming.

[@FableCircus]

Great advice! I want to do a one-shot with the PCs looking for a rumored treasure in the desert; perhaps it is an oasis. They'd fight off other adventurers, bandits, desert creatures, maybe a dragon. They'll end up finding a well-preserved library in a cave - that's the treasure. However, none of them will know how to read, and the next aspect will be to find someone who can, while keeping their find a secret.

[@BuZzMassacare]

I've been in a real Fallout mood recently and started to think and plan out a Fallout-esqe one shot and this turns up! Good stuff as always guys

[@davidlewis5312]

I have always thought of Faerun as a post post apocalypse where the cycle has begun again

[@ryanduddleson1806]

The best post apocalyptic story candidate for a “Ken Burns” style treatment - hands down World War Z the book. It’s almost there already. Just imagine PBS putting on an Orson Wells/War of the Worlds style treatment of World War Z as if it’s an actual documentary with the survivor interviews. Amazing.

[@kirkcannon8079]

Ryan Duddleson CoronavirusZ lol

[@AnonAmbientLight]

Just want to pop in and say you guys have a great web show. High production value. Great commentary. The "interview" style that you guys do is great for this format and fits your personalities and style very well. Keep it up!

[@WebDM]

Thanks!

[@jgr7487]

"it's year 100 a.A.*: cattle are half the size they used to be!" *after the Apocalypse

[@robertlombardo8437]

I can't believe it! I never, ever thought to picture the apocalypse as similar to the Fall of Rome. Let alone something that's happened before in human history. This video has been eye opening for me, thank you! I've learned a lot.

[@Jawn15]

The postman. Perfect example of a charismatic villain.

[@Rautakello]

The Broken empire trilogy is one of my favorites when it comes to the post-apocalypse. The way the first book strings you along with your usual fantasy themes make it a massive shock when you realize what the places and items being described as these mystical artifacts ACTUALLY are. Theres this one castle in one of the books that is just a goddamn parking carage. I love that sort of fantasy. It reminds me of the type of sci-fi stories where technology is so advanced that it is close enough to be called magic. Flipping that around and having civilization be so far gone that humanity regresses to the middle ages, or beyond is so interesting to me. If you want to know my absolute favorite of that concept, go no further than Thundarr the Barbarian. Oh my god. I love that series so much.

[@Thirtyleven]

The thing about travelling back to the past to prevent the apocalypse just gave me an idea for how my current campaign could end! You guys are the best!

[@GrandOldDwarf]

I'm currently building an alternate history world for 5E, and the Black Death is not a "plague" but an infestation of shadows. Got the idea from you guys!

[@jacobkristos1214]

I would love to play a campaign based off of the Bronze Age collapse, there is so much unknown about that period that I feel like you could really fantasy that event up in a campaign.

[@peterhellman4271]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/rp2cg5R-ep6Npqs

[@noobule]

So many bizarre and unexpected things turn out to stir my waters but I still didn't expect it to be Jim Davis blowing a kiss at me.

[@maverick7730]

26:14 Is that a Mythic Legions: Coliseum Brontus The Arena Troll I spy in the background? And a Stone Troll? That just made my day, and this was an awesome video

[@AdorkableDaughterofNyx]

most Post Apocalyptic Games i have encountered strongly focus on either the murderhobo playstyle or the community building simulation playstyle.

[@kid14346]

Listening to this in 2020 is fun...

[@astrobalmer]

13:10 "God we're fucked" had me rolling on the ground Pruitt

[@InfSoldier365]

Great video guys. Came up with my game's answer to "Create Food/Water" thanks to you guys. It creates a bare minimum of food, but is all bland, tasteless fare that only just satisfies the body's needs to survive. What it truly lacks is the necessity to nourish the spirit/soul.

[@comradeshmoo]

Rewatching this video because I'm about to run a hex crawl through the Mournland in Eberron - which is an interesting case because canon Eberron games start two years after the end of a century-long war that reshaped the face of the continent of Khorvaire (slow, recent apocalypse) and four years after the Day of Mourning (fast, recent apocalypse). As usual, your videos just keep on giving!

[@flashcardz3150]

One of the post-apocalyse campaign settings I've been thinking of is 2300 from Chrono Trigger. I think there might be room for a campaign there, but it'd require work and a lot of whole-cloth making stuff up. Maybe it could be one where the protagonists of the video game visited and introduced the seeds, but failed to beat lavos, and the ultimate goal of the campaign would be to break the storm covering the planet or devise some technology that would allow people to live easier.

[@Momplestiltskin]

I've been watching this channel like it's my job since I discovered it a few weeks ago! I live in Austin, and I didn't even realize you were over at Tribes comics until I'd already been watching for a week. Awesome work guys

[@PlaneWalker18]

My friends and i once did a “survival” campaign. Middle of a slaad apocalypse aka Aliens. Only goal was to keep the last city running, going on supply runs, dealing with rebel insurrection and power plays. No way to win just how many days or weeks do we live. My bard ruled in this as i brought hope in song to calm the masses.

[@jamesrands]

If you want to run a post-Apocalypse campaign the TV series Jericho is a really good source of inspiration. Skeet Ulrich comes home. He's the prodigal son of the mayor of the town and he tells everyone a different story about where he's been. Lennie James drives into town briefing his wife and children on what they have all been doing for the last three years. And then there's a flash and a mushroom cloud on the horizon. For the next few episodes the residents of Jericho have no idea what has happened and may or may not be the only people left alive. And in every episode they play out a specific issue from mercenaries scavenging with extreme violence, to flu, to trying to conduct trade when they do find survivors and the ever present issue of what the strangers are actually doing here. It's particularly good for role-playing because there's lots of actions by small bands of determined men, exploration and seeking information.

[@robertlombardo8437]

Man I wish Jericho had gone on longer than it did. It was like Walking Dead but far more grounded and believable in my opinion.

[@NotReallyChefGregggo]

This episode hits different in 2020...

[@eendenmannetje]

This is possibly my favourite video from you guys. Thanks a lot for all the effort you put in!

[@valasafantastic1055]

Great video. I think the part I love about a post apocalyptic is the stabilizing and rebuilding. A great campaign is for the hero’s to actually help rebuild and stabilize the world (or at least a region) my favourite post apocalyptic story I have written is more about this but I have different sub stories and lots of characters. It can also do some time skips to allow progress in rebuilding. I think I could run a D&D campaign in that world/story actually! Create food and water being available would allow a player to be a real hero and really help. Same with spells that help grow plants and food and make the soil fertile; druids are the real hero’s here. But yes limiting these kinds of spells or making a ranger not absolutely succeed on survival would improve the game. I also would watch documentaries on post apocalyptic worlds! And great video really enjoyed this one. I may even research it again later! Keep up the great stuff!

[@JavierSanchez-mo2ef]

Jeez, I JUST confirmed last night that Im starting a post apocalyptic campaign with my friends, next weekend and Im DMing. The point about the spells and class features that are problematic with survival campaigns was pretty helpful!

[@matthewparenti1054]

Has Jim ever talked more in depth about his “Land Between Two Rivers” setting. Sounds cool

[@JakeB7734]

Look for the "Web DM Plays" channel, there are 13 episodes of live plays in that setting with new sessions weekly: kzbin.info/aero/PL05z3cP6JN3Kf8cvjXikSpsoWo_d7HZBq

[@magnaquam]

Oh my God the post credits conversation needs it own show!

[@Bluecho4]

A couple ideas: 1) I like the concept of monsters in a fantasy setting that are directly the result of earlier civilizations and their activities. Slimes could be formed from alchemical runoff. Giant versions of animals might come from the homeland of Giants (the cloud kingdoms or isolated Brobdingnag) that got loose among the "little folk". Elemental, Fiendish, Fey, and Aberrations being summoned from other realms and then took root in the ecosystem. Ancient people who were turned into monsters by divine mandate or from a curse. If fantasy settings had earlier empires, they ought to show signs of their greatness even in the fabric of their ecology. 2) In a fantasy setting, dead people not properly disposed of - or who met terrible ends - can rise as undead (corporeal or incorporeal). So any time you have an event of mass death, it may not be possible for those who survive to properly deal with the ones who died. Apocalyptic or near-apocalyptic events could lead to entire areas being overrun by zombies, skeletons, wights, ghosts, ghouls, etc. Bloody battlefields where the dead wander, fully clad in rusted mail and tattered leather. Ruined forts where Sword Wraiths dwell, because the collapse of their empire cut off supply lines and made them starve to death. Empty villages where buildings are boarded up, because they are filled to the brim with the unquiet victims of a plague. Moldering capitols overseen by undying nobility, who turned to undeath in a desperate attempt to hold onto a crumbling way of life. Sunken cities where ghosts of the drowned inhabitants wander the streets for centuries. To go off from that, a minor "apocalypse" might be aggravated by undead, who may be a nuisance, or may get organized. The bandits that trouble an area might be taking orders from those aforementioned undead nobles; the bandits may even be the remnants of the nobility's royal guards. Or a land reeling from war and plague might have the masses of undead come under the sway of a smarter undead; this "No-Life King" terrorizing the land, and becomes a kind of aspirational figure for undead who come after. Every Wight or Wraith or Vampire dreams of becoming the next No-Life King, and dominating the countryside.

[@AGrumpyPanda]

I'm so stealing the sunken city of the drowned. It's totally going to be made of shipwrecks and such, serving as a locus where all who drown at sea are inexorably drawn.

[@aaroncochran1515]

Your channel has always inspired me to step up my DMing for my party. Thanks for all the great advice.

[@eamonntee]

The best post apocalypse fantasy setting I've seen so far is Hieron from the friends at the table podcast

[@travisc2127]

Watching this 3 years later, after covid. Gives us a whole new insight on the subject. I'm sure people will want to run post apocalypse campaigns to get a sense of catharsis after living through one where many of us felt powerless.

[@JD-wu5pf]

I really hope you aren't trying to imply that COVID was an apocalypse.

[@robertlombardo8437]

​@@JD-wu5pf Not an apocalypse, but they sure tried to f**king SELL it to us as one! And it's about to come back, just in time for another election.

[@merlinmeurer5339]

I love to think of fearun as our world with a giant apocalypse that then changed it into ours. A magical rift that changes everything and eliminates magic. And destroys all signs of previous life, then new life developes and the ghosts of people inspire fantasy authors and folk stories.

[@mr.incorporeal7642]

One question that comes to mind: In fantasy settings, you often have lots of different races/species with wildly different lifespans. It kind of changes things a bit when the big apocalyptic event that was generations ago for humans and long forgotten or mythologized... but was in living memory for, say, elves. It could make for an interesting element to build around when people can just go down the street and ask one of their elf neighbors where they were when the World Storm (or whatever) hit.

[@jasonclark4928]

It’s a small thing, but I am still really happy that Jim made a Remain Indoors from That Mitchell and Webb Look instead of countless easier references.

[@theepicarcher4580]

A video on the post apocalypse in D&D hell yes. Awesome video as always guys keep it up.

[@declan0123456789]

This episode was wonderfully timed. I am right now working on making a campaign where about 1/4 of the population of the whole world dies from a mind flayer experiment gone wrong.

[@roundtuit2587]

Thanks so much for this! I have a lot of new resources to look up. The campaign I'm running is high fantasy built on the ashes of a modern comic book super hero setting. If super heroes got their powers from magic and planar entities, as well as mutations and experiments. Our techno-magical arms race got way out of hand, wiping entire countries off the map, breaking reality and threatening the larger planar system, so the other planes severed all ties and sealed Earth in a pocket reality. The true history still exists, secreted away in fubar spelljammers and in the minds of a few long-lived individuals.

[@iceassassin7743]

that ending is so true, would love to see at Nat. Geo. on fansty worlds settings and post-apocalyptic settings "here is the Lead scavenger going about their daily ritual, as you can see, this fascinating individual goes about puffing themselves up when communicating with the rest of their pack, to ensure the continued mutual continued survival."

[@mikethewizard7378]

To all my fellow DMs who like having monsters your players can kill without moral scruples, please keep in mind that zombies are tougher than skeletons. If you want a mob of undead grunts have a number of them with 1 hit point each. Area of effect attacks become more potent. Action economy-wise, have them roll 2.5 times as many times as the players have rolls for attacks if their chance to hit is average. Average damage (say 1/8 the highest hit point players character for damage) don't roll for damage every time. Just my tips.

[@melaniefelanie6423]

Sees notification while a Fallout PnP PDF is open "it's a sign".

[@loganreads90]

BigTasty I'd love to join you!

[@SPTX.]

Note that you can also host your own fallout multiplayer video game. www.fonline-reloaded.net/wiki/index.php?title=A_Development_Tutorial:_Chapter_00

[@mochristie5419]

my fave apocalyptic event in a campaign- I ran one in a world I called Perrun- it had just begun a great war, this was because the primary trading civilisation was located in a continent named Wallthace- unfortunately for the world what had really happened was that the continent had been exposed to a burst of magic and had been quarantined to stop the damage. So at the end of a year long campaign when my characters watched the shimmering barrier obscuring the continent go up they saw something terrible. A hole in the worlds crust the size of the continent- completely hollow, the moment the barrier lifted the seas started to flow inside- long story short, that is how the underdark came into my game. It also meant a quickly expanding hole in the world was swallowing towns and cities was cool

[@thehulkster9434]

I think there is a pretty simple work around for some of those absolutes. For the outlander, yes, you can always find food, but in order to find enough food in the wilderness, you're probably going to face a few dangers. You don't need to roll to forage or track, but you are going to need to work to survive doing so. For the ranger, you aren't lost, but that doesn't mean you know where you're going. You could get back to the town you set out from, but no one actually knows the path to this place anymore, so you're still going to need to work to find it. (plus that feature only works on your favored terrain, so you could still contrive an excuse to get the party lost if you really wanted them stranded somewhere). Magic is a bit trickier with the spells that allow you to create food and/or water, or the tiny hut. You'd be better off saying that these spells don't exist if you want to have the game be a resource scarce survival game. However, I would argue that higher level spells should more or less be left alone. If the party wants to save a 7th level spell every day to cast Mordenkainen's Magnificent Mansion, it seems fair that they get their needs met for the night, and it kind of makes sense that high level casters would have ways around some of these problems. It's more of a problem when a 1st level spell lets you bypass survival aspects altogether, I think it's perfectly reasonable for mid to high level parties to be above such concerns.

[@JakeB7734]

Great discussion -- So much of D&D was based on Jack Vance's Dying Earth setting, long after multiple civilizations rose and fell. Resource scarcity was (sort of) built into the economy of D&D with the use of gold pieces to purchase mundane items. Gygax used to say the gold piece prices of goods reflected extreme inflation on the frontier of civilization. In our medieval world large gold pieces might rarely be seen outside of a literal king's ransom. Instead of taking away Cure Disease, I would make one apocalyptic disease resistant to the spell. Maybe the spell temporarily relieves symptoms, and thus can prolong life with daily treatment, but it cannot completely eliminate the disease by itself. Perhaps with research and experience the caster learns to fully cure the apocalypse disease, but must roll a skill check for the spell to fully cleanse the patient. The spell caster is still powerful, but the challenge has been raised. (See ToA's death curse for parallels) Tekumel, the first fantasy setting published by TSR even before Greyhawk, had high-tech artifacts like the mysterious metal towers that legends said once flew the ancestors to that world as colonizers.

[@retwerd]

It’s funny that this is the topic for this week’s video since I had an idea for a game on Sunday about a society recovering from a catastrophic Tarasque attack.

[@imaginepigeons792]

World War Z, the book! A documentary on the zombie apocalypse

[@goyasolidar]

Earthdawn bears mentioning here. It's a post apocalyptic setting where levels of magic reached a point centuries ago that allowed extradimensional Horrors to enter the world. To survive, the world's forewarned inhabitants built underground sanctuaries called kaers, and tried to ride out the storm. The survivors that emerged would later go on to rebuild the world and explore the lost kaers, many of which were overtaken by the Horrors. What's brilliant about this setting is the case is already made for adventurers to be doing what they normally do -- unearthing and exploring forgotten places, battling strange monsters, and discovering lost treasures. If I had the patience to do so, I'd rework this setting for 5E.

[@dixbyfloppin6979]

In my game 3 major beasts representing earth, air, and sea emerged and formed together creating a Tarrasque which stormed around destroying everything and corrupting the land entirely. Within a year all water had been destroyed as well as plants. My campaign started nearly 2000 years later and there is essentially 2 worlds that exist. The world in the sky with cities and buildings held up by steam power, balloons, or even magic. It is a very steampunk heavy setting. There is basically a second atmosphere that can cause massive damage if struck by the lightning within and below that is what everyone calls "The Dunder". It is very Mad Max-like and full of dangerous enemies that can be from anything. There were also people who were stuck below or chose to stay in the Dunder and began interspecies breeding and inbreeding creating monstrous enemies who are just amalgamations of creatures. Soon, my party will travel back in time and attempt to stop the cataclysm. If they succeed they will return to the time they came from and see what the world would have been like without the massive setback in the world and it's technology creating a cyberpunk game, or they will all die.

[@emccoy]

Now all I can think about is David Attenborough talking about the echo systems of Mad Max or Waterworld. Walking twards the camera explaining how mans destruction has left the world empty, but still animals have found a way to survive.

[@mikegould6590]

Ken Burns Waterworld: “Dearest Ophelia, The sea is endless. Buford’s Second Navy encroaches, but in this endless horizon of waves, none can say. Reginald Hollingsworth II.”

[@pockett2812]

Finally! I've been waiting for you guys all week!

[@Saylorspizza]

I once made a Post-Apocalyptic campaign that was essentially Fallout but with modern day aesthetics and with that twist of magic, so the bombs were an unholy creation of science and magic. Also the 'vaults' were these huge underground cities that were built in an actual attempt to save as much of humanity as they could and there were no experiments that took place, at least not based on the vault itself. The surface was scarred from the effects, radiation permeating the earth while sections of the land now these "Dead Magic Zones" where spells just did not work as the Weave itself had been torn asunder. Trying to cast a spell in this area would cause the magic to backfire and deal damage to the caster based on the spell' level, also magic items wouldn't work in these zones either. A friend gave me the idea to make it so that anyone who was living in a vault and stepped out onto the surface for the first time would be hit by the radiation as it changed them, giving them weird abilities. Essentially they were quirks, but they had a requirement to activate(Which I stole from another anime that I cannot remember the name of). So like one of my players could turn invisible once a day, but it would only activate if he got embarrassed. I also decided to convert the copper, silver, and gold currencies into portions of salt as salt. It was fun coming up with stuff for it, though we didn't play many sessions of that. Scheduling issues and all.

[@madisonnoll7599]

Have you guys ever thought about doing a video to showcase all the cool books, games and collectibles on your set? You guys just have so much cool stuff!

[@LordSplendid]

I feel inspired to pair the 'gods competing for worshippers' idea with the 'post-zombieapocalypse' idea... the word used to be more civilized, but the newer gods joined together to defeat older ("wicked") gods. Anyone who dies without being baptist into the faith of one the new gods turns into a zombie, which obviously helps to get converts. Of course, the older gods fight back and world is soon in ruins... There is tons of interesting religious character concepts that makes sense with such a history.

[@Qbertqueso]

Great insight! I'm planning a few Degenesis campaigns and this put me in the right mindset

[@ncamon]

My ideas for altering spells that create food or sustenance: -Goodberries spell would require the druid focus of a large spring of mistletoe, and would then use the mistletoe as a material component that get used up. -Create Water would not be instant, but instead create condensation in a very small cloud that drizzles the amount of the spell of a few hours. -Food creation spells become a food upgrade spell; such as you transform up a quality levels like poor meals into modest meals, and modest to comfortable.

[@rufflesandfalcor199]

Jim blowing me a kiss is blowing my mind.🤣

[@BhuddaguyCosmo]

Apocalypses were hitting the forgotten realms since roughly 1990 (DR) which prompted me to retcon these into more "insulated" events; one example was the Bhaalspawn events that came from the Baldurs gate video game. After that the 3.0 and 3.5 events in Faerun (which tore the world into two worlds) were also ignored since we never played these editions of D&D in the Forgotten Realms, now that we returned to Faerun in 5e, I've dug up my second edition forgotten realms and have been creating an "apocalyptic event" using the tyranny of dragons and storm kings thunder (saving out of the abyss and tomb of annihilation for post-apocalypse.) I did keep the spellplague to thin out all the major npc wizards in the world.

[@reubenfromow4854]

Bhuddaguy Cosmo isn’t 1990 DR 500 years in the future?

[@WeasleyDodds]

Jim you are a thief! you stole my heart

[@ryanduddleson1806]

The Dark Tower novels present a great post-apocalyptic setting where technology left behind from a previous civilization is so advanced to be indistinguishable from the actual magic that also exists. Plus - tell me Wolves of the Calla isn’t a perfect campaign scenario.

[@DareMurdok]

i would love to play in the Land Between Two Rivers setting DM'd by Jim :D i love post-apocalypse settings

[@thenoremac2685]

For the issue with certain spells negating a lot of the conflicts associated with an apocalyptic or post-apocalyptic scenario, you could say that such knowledge was lost during whatever cataclysm happened. For example... Let's say that the known world was ruled by an empire of high elves - a magocracy - that collapsed in a similar fashion as the Roman Empire. Orc barbarians, magic-resistant plague, old fashioned hubris, etc. Now most surviving magical knowledge is localized in remote monasteries and legends are told about the amazing advancements the world had before "The Fall".

[@jacobstaten2366]

This is actually a really great topic.

[@samgardner8456]

If DM's want to stress scarcity and exploration, one nice caveat to the Ranger's ability to not get lost is that it does not mean they know how to find the place they're trying to get to. As well, foraging is discussed as not just an absolute solution in the DMG pg111. If the players are foraging in an area where food an water is scare if at all there, the Survival check is a DC20!. On the same page it goes into the food and water needs, which are more than most expect.

[@kadegainey5123]

I am currently playing two games in the same world pre and post apocalypse. The first is a 2e game the second is gamma world but it is all on the same planet but 10,000 years apart.

[@nikkiprodanovic7927]

This is so wierd im running a post apocalyptic game tonight and you guys happen to post this.

[@whensomethingcriesagain]

For my money the gold standard of post-apocalypses is Metro, and it's the foremost source of inspiration in my own post apocalyptic game. Not only did it nail the environment, humanity forced to flee into a hostile underground as the surface is a frozen wasteland choking on the radioactive dust that's blotted out the sun for decades, but also it nails how the people react. Some just try to survive, some work together to try and make each other's lives just that little bit better, and a whole lot of them turn to political extremism. Hard times will very often breed extreme attitudes in people as it's clear the old system is inadequate to handle the situation, and I think that's a huge untapped source of potential. So with this kind of setup you not only have a world where the closest thing to a safe haven is just as dangerous as the surface, much like the Underdark in that regard, but you also have room for a unique kind of political intrigue, having to decide who's worth working with, and who's too far gone and can only be put down like rabid dogs.

[@genericbandit6333]

When you forget its wednesday and nearly drop your phone when web dm uploads☺

[@christianrivera1708]

Got to learn about DnD AND get a history lesson...thanks Web DM 😃👍

[@ChrissieBear]

That's not why the Forgotten Realms are called that, they're called that because they've been forgotten *by us, by Earth.*

[@Honeycutt97]

I'm just about to start a post-apocalyptic game. Players start with 1d8 HP and no idea what the hell is going on. This was great timing!

[@Matt-md5yt]

been thinking about this topic for along time thank you for covering it

[@andrewwestfall65]

Not really related, but Pruitt's story of his grandfathers Christmas reminded me of my grandpa's story. Some kids stole his hat and started playing monkey in the middle with it, taunting him and refusing to give it back. He went home and his mom told him that that was the only hat he was going to get. He went back and the kids started tossing the hat back and forth again, so Grandpa tackled one of them and started punching him in the face until the other kid gave him his hat back

[@devildham]

This is so cool...one thing to consider, the longer lived races (dwarves, elves, firbolgs) would have to either have died or have left. Having people that have been alive for hundreds of years and will live for hundreds more would negate alot of the problems that come with the "standard apocalypse". Goliaths and Orcs would probably be FAR more prominent.