Hard to believe it was three years ago in March, that the little ol’ Pile took to the web. Well, 157 posts later, we’re thrilled to still have all our hit points. But most importantly, Ben believes…

Ben believes in the soul. He believes role playing is on the game group and not the game edition. He believes in lots of combat. He believes in minis that aren’t made of cardboard. He believes in the sanctimony of GenCon. He believes in never having enough dice. He believes in more closet space to store his stuff. He believes in the return of the Hobbit. And he believes in contributing to this great D&D community.

Ben and the rest of the Pile gang extends its heartfelt thanks to all the readers. And we promise to continue to believe in the game we love.

The latest cavernous creation from Dwarven Forge is sure to send chills down your RPG arm with its amazing Ice Cavern set. The cold passage ways mix seamlessly with their traditional sets while giving the DM a slew of flexibility on the terrain board. Grab a winter coat and follow Ben for an inside look.

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What a glorious digital age us gamers live in these days! We can play actual D&D games in real-time with friends all over the country, build our D&D characters online (be gone errata supplements) in minutes, and download RPG eBooks in a seconds. But most of all – we have YouTube. An ever-growing video library filled with terrain inspiration and game enhancing ideas.

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Great Mordenkainen’s ghost – the letter “x” is no easy RPG word! Let’s put a playful spin on this week’s entry and go with “extra” but lose the “e” so we can stay classy. This way we can answer the question, “What xtra stuff does Ben have on the Pile that he can share with y’all?”

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Truth be told certain monstrosities in one’s D&D game often come down to a single descriptive term…vile. And it’s fair to say many a gamer could point to some clear commonalities. Read along as Ben pulls a few examples off the Pile to illustrate the point.

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Let’s take this letter marathon to another level with a deep, dark look at the underworld. Stay close to Ben and see what happens when you go down under…into the earth that is (ya dirty birdie).

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Ah yes…statues – mythologies’ imperfect storyteller. Is it any wonder why RPGers are so quick to form bond with these hard, cold wonders? Join Ben as he grabs a chisel and carves out their rightful place in his Pile.

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This week’s alphabet entry just so happens to fit perfectly with the rest of his ongoing RPG series. But which definition of puzzle is Ben picking?

No, it’s not puzzle in the traditional sense of perplexing challenges that rake one’s D&D brain. Rather, Ben has gone literal this week with actual, physical puzzles. Here’s how.

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This week “N” stands for Non Player Characters. That’s right – it’s time to finally step up and recognize the little guys! Your NPCs really do have names, ya know. They have feelings. But yeah, they can die too. Let’s see how Ben invites them into his game.

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Ben’s back from vacation so let’s get to it: Land ho! That’s right, RPGers – there’s an earthy foam mass dead ahead in this week’s D&D A to Z installment. What can one do with this relatively inexpensive resource to make one’s game table come alive?

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