Archive - Arcane Mutterings

Fourth Player Theory of TTRPG Design

Who are you actually designing for?

Jan 17 • Mike Mearls

Reaction Design in 5e

Making annoying interruptions tolerable. Hopefully.

Jan 12 • Mike Mearls

September 2025

The Gap in TTRPG Culture

TTRPG Design has a Broken Feedback Loop, But You Can Fix It

Sep 24, 2025 • Mike Mearls

August 2025

Why D&D Combat is Complex

And why aren't the rules for social interaction as dense?

Aug 25, 2025 • Mike Mearls

July 2025

In Praise of the Iron Spike

Narrative Power Gaming and Trad TTRPGs

Jul 21, 2025 • Mike Mearls

I Reject Your Reality!

And substitute my own. At least, in this TTRPG we're playing.

Jul 16, 2025 • Mike Mearls

TTRPGs: The Next Generation

Generational shifts sneak up on us, until they don't

Jul 11, 2025 • Mike Mearls

November 2024

D&D '24 Review: Barbarian

Raging in (almost) all the right ways

Nov 11, 2024 • Mike Mearls

Barbaric Weapons

So what happens if I swing two longswords?

Nov 4, 2024 • Mike Mearls

October 2024

D&D 2024: A Review

We have (eventually) over a 1,000 rules of text and infinite electrons to burn. Let's do this.

Oct 28, 2024 • Mike Mearls

September 2024

Time to party like it's 1999!

Sep 16, 2024 • Mike Mearls

How do we design games you can't win?

Sep 11, 2024 • Mike Mearls

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