My oh my how that ticking clock of father time goes by…

A year to the day the Internet gave birth to a bouncing baby Ben’sRPGPile.com – a collection of misfit gaming addicts who were hell bent on bringing a better gaming experience to their global D&D RPG brethren.

And what a year it’s been. We’ve been inspired and driven to create a slew of handy home brewed accessories (including our beloved Condition Flags and Hit Dice). We’ve uncovered a clump of handy downloads from fellow skillful inventors (such as the helpful Anatomy of a Combat Turn and Magic Item Cards). And we’ve reviewed a flock of must-have gaming products (including industry legends’ Hirst Arts and Dwarven Forge)

We’ve even blessed the airways with our silly banter and endless laughter with twenty-seven (and counting) weekly video podcasts.

And best of all – we continue to meet a plethora of talented and enthusiastic gamers who simply want to roll for initiative.

Here’s to another year of the ever-growing Pile. Thanks everybody.

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Your party’s trips back to town can be real snoozers. Thank goodness there’s lot of ways to fix this common game-drag problem. As a DM, Ben drops in a couple buildings and simple accessories to give these otherwise humdrum affairs a real boost.

When you build street scenes, a whole new world of intrigue opens up. You can add new side quests. Run a skill challenge (courtesy of This is my Game). Or, drop in a little more story dialogue interaction. Any or all of these module ideas brightens up game play and enhances the main plot.

And anyways, BensRPGPile.com was long overdue for another building review. This time Ben thought a simple, yet effective multi-use structure would do the trick. Ben snagged this cottage from Miniature Building Authority at an earlier Gen Con. He’s used this pre-painted, out-of-the-box piece to represent an out-of-the-way outpost and a general store.

MBA’s superior quality and attention to detail once again shine through. A few of these buildings are a must for any Dungeon Master’s arsenal. Pop open a box, place it on a Battlemat and let your imagination take you the rest of the RPG way.

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Ben’s feverish room building exploits continue with his interpretation of Thunderspire Labyrinth’s Duergar Workshop (which lies deep within the Northern Fortress of the Horned Hold).

The game group couldn’t conquer the first tower without eliminating Urwol, the Master Smith. Thus, the guys needed a whiz bang encounter with some terrain that would leave a lasting impression. Ben felt this blacksmith chamber was the perfect location.

Key detail pieces and building notes include:

• Two blacksmith kilns ( large & small) for Urwol to start the process
• Anvil-like stone tables to pound the metal in place
• Dry-brushed flock from Skullcrafts to show metal shavings remnants
• Lots of snapped off weapons to demonstrate a fevered production pace
• Crystaline Counters to act as the burning fire
• Trinkets to show a little smithing variety
• Hirst Arts molds (#203, 701, 76, 75, 71, & 70) to put it all together

The 3-D terrain really made this Duergar showdown sing but in the end, the good guys won. Do you have some cool rooms coming up in your dungeon crawls (such as a spider’s lair, excavation pit, etc)?

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Sometimes a guy takes a step back to assess his RPG collection and simply wonders how he got all those…dwarves. No complaints cause who doesn’t love a good ale-drinkin’ dwarf?

One particular hand-painted set, the cannon crew, was a no-brainer. No gamer could resist that army behind a glass display case. Ben’s not sure what 4E role they will play but maybe some sort of town siege (for impeding upon their mountain resources). What plot hook would you use?

Ben has lots of nice main characters to choose from including a fearless sergeant, a storied general and a maniac warrior. This one even looks like the Viking dad from the upcoming “ How to Train Your Dragon” animated movie. These all also fit well into your own character mini or campaign NPCs.

Ben’s got ‘em in metal or plastic (bet you can’t tell which is which). Lots of soldiers to choose from too – even a winter brigade (with a fancy “ desktop for download). And we haven’t even talked about all those WotC pre-painted ones either.

So can you ever really have too many dwarves? Well, no…no you can’t.

Side Note: These might be the product of Games Workshop but Ben honestly doesn’t know. Post a comment here if you know the answer and we’ll update the links.

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The Internet is an RPG game aid paradise for the simple fact that it lets you build upon others’ awesome ideas – case in point with our version of NPC Tracker Cards. Ben first caught wind of an NPC Photoshop template on Newbie DM’s site. He then found a spinoff of those cards on The Free RPG Blog site. Creative juices began to overflow-eth.

Operation Iraqi Freedom and the infamous deck of cards used by the military was the main inspiration for yet another Dungeons and Dragons homebrew project. Who could ever forget the four aces?

With all this knowledge in-hand, Ben set off to create his own set for his monthly Thunderspire campaign. Remembering those story plotlines is a difficult task for many of the players, especially if you only play every 3 or 4 weeks.

So Ben wanted to create some eye-popping NPC cards that would help his group better identify with the villains and their role in the story. He used the front for a fancy image and then utilized the back for key stats/hints. You can even use the WotC Character Builder for your item stats on the card backs.

Google images provides a wealth of photo options. It’s kinda fun picking older D&D art for nostalgia-sake. Besides characters and magic items, Ben is looking to do some key places as well.

You can download the Photoshop templates here or peruse the first three PDFs here, here and here. A special thanks to all for paving the way. We’ll be sure to update the NPC cards as we add more.

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Ben loves a good what-the-frack-accessory now and then. And the twisted crew over at Harcos Laboratories obliges with their simply red invention of the Blood Energy Potion line.

This stuff is frightening real in its appearance. The color and texture are remarkable. The picture hilarity is endless (as we expect the Larper crowd to come loose at the seams).

The product packaging is also worth a hearty chuckle: “not for use with transfusions,” and “garlic free.” Ben especially likes the bloodied thumbprint and smiley vampire face on the back of the label.

Ben’s group used it for a recent DM fumble penalty. You heat it up in the microwave for 14 seconds-ish so you get the blood consistency. It tastes like a wacky and warm fruit punch but includes a bonus four-hour energy surge.

Go ahead and mix things up a little by tossing a bag of blood energy potion on your game table…who knows what will happen next

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Experts say once you build one custom terrain game piece, you’re hooked. Well, those guys sure are right. Ben’s got the fever now and there’s no sane end in sight.

As the group plays Thunderspire Labyrinth, Ben wanted to introduce a more credible connecting plot line to the Pyramid of Shadows D&D module. Thus, a prison block was placed within the Horned Hold to introduce the hook.

The key jail cell components included:

▪ A custom hand-painted miniature to play the main character
▪ A new NPC card for identity and key data points
▪ Floor Terrain and Accessories: Hirst Arts molds (#701, #282, #203, #75, #76, #70)
▪ Chain: Michaels Craft Store
▪ Paints: (Graveyard Earth, Silver, Blood Red, & Chaos Black)
▪ Flock: Dirt from Skullcrafts and dead grass from Citadel

Ben focused on more ornate touches for this piece. It’s the little things like the torches/sconces, tiny buckets, bit box minis, and steel cell doors that really makes this unique build work.

You can learn more about this build by watching the video flyover on our YouTube channel.

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Stop Ben if you’ve ever heard these joyous questions around your table:

• “What? Where’s my sunrod radius again? Can I see that square?”
• “Sorry, still confused – which area on the map is on fire?”
• “I don’t get it…what mysterious rock is protruding out of that wall?”

Son of a B@tch! Yes, these are all valid questions but they often deflate a DM’s initial storytelling rhythm. Ben always wants a game accessory that pops and better translates his module vision.

Three Sage Games has answered Ben’s cry for help with some crafty Crystalline Counters. They come in all different shapes, sizes, and colors to help you better organize your game map and story components. Of course, Ben recommends the combo pack for starters as you get a nice trial mix.

And there are plenty of color applications including:

• Black: Call it a special mineral, coal or mining material.
• Red: Place it on a base to denote a bloodied creature.
• Orange: Rejoice as you now have the perfect fire source.
• Blue/green: Use ‘em to mark a gem stash on the map.
• Purple: Search for the magic stone.
• Clear: Uncover a great raw diamond find.

Ben got fixated on the very affordable orange as the practical in-game fire uses are abundant (so consider picking up a dedicated pack of that color). Remember – the best game accessories occasionally spark great encounter ideas. So why not pick up some Crystalline Counter packs for your Battlemat and see what new plotlines unfold?

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Dungeons and Dragons teamed up with Jones Soda this holiday season for a little beverage hilarity.

There’s lots to belch about here. The artwork is top-notch and fitting of WotC’s 4E book cover art. Tasters will also dig the cool label descriptions such as Dwarven Draught’s “It’s good for what ales you” and Bigby’s “You gain thirst immunity for 2d10 minutes.”

Cream Soda was Ben’s top pick (went down like liquid candy) and Pure Cane Cola was the wackiest (just didn’t taste right). Enjoy six fun flavors and labels in all including:

• Sneak Attack (Cream Soda)
• Potion of Healing (Black Cherry, Sugar Free)
• Bigby’s Crushing Thirst Destroyer (Pure Cane Cola)
• Illithid Brain Juice (Grape)
• Dwarven Draught (Root Beer)
• Eldritch Blast (Green Apple)

Approaching our first anniversary, Ben felt a Pile soda was appropriate (and they make great gifts). If you’re feeling especially adventurous, try crafting your own label. Sadly, you can’t mix and match flavors in a single case and that text input box can screw ya on line breaks…but all and all, Jones D&D Soda was the toast of the year.

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Does a DM ever really have enough beds for his room set-ups? They have many uses ya know including a typical barracks’ setting, a comfy room at the local Inn or an item of stature in the Captain’s quarters.

With so many possibilities, we manned up and took a daring stab at creating our own cot mold. Of course our home brew beds will never measure up to Dwarven Forge (our favs). Still, we feel our option is a respectable item in the perennial do-it-yourself bargain bin.

The paint job was a bit of a head scratcher – particularly the blanket. Ben tried several colors but the green had a nice army-issue-kinda feel to it (for the average minion).

The bed surplus has already come in handy several times. Most notably during our Friday Night Strike game when we played the Bloodtower on the Moorland delve from the Open Grave book.

Keep looking for ways to take chances in your own Dungeons and Dragons projects. Don’t let the usual creative hesitations and doubt hold you back. You will be surprised at the results.

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