GAME MASTER TIPS
Should Character Death Stick in D&D?
Character death in D&D should matter, but it doesn’t have to end the story. Learn how to handle death saves, resurrection, and the fallout after the last breath.
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The Portal Log
RPG guides, dark fantasy lore, creator notes, free resources, and behind-the-scenes stories from My Cat Portal Studio.
Step through the portal. Find strange worlds, useful tools, and stories worth bringing to the table.
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Guides, lore, free resources, studio notes, and strange things worth bringing to the table.
GAME MASTER TIPS
Should Character Death Stick in D&D?
Character death in D&D should matter, but it doesn’t have to end the story. Learn how to handle death saves, resurrection, and the fallout after the last breath.
Read more
LORE
Lamp Debt: The Rotten Few, Episode 02
In the Ward of Lanterns, heat is measured, lamps keep debt, and Mara Vey steals warmth one strip at a time. The Rotten Few continues in La Notte Eterna.
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GAME MASTER TIPS
How to Use Possession, Curses, and Mind Control Without Taking Away Player Choice
Possession, curses, blood hunger, and forced transformation can make dark fantasy sing. Here’s how Game Masters can threaten characters without turning players into spectators.
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LORE
The Death-Gift
Read The Death-Gift, the first episode of The Rotten Few, a serialized dark fantasy story set in La Notte Eterna.
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GAME MASTER TIPS
How to Make Gods Active in a D&D Campaign Without Turning Players into Spectators
Gods can push a D&D campaign without stealing the spotlight. Use wants, omens, mortal agents, limits, and messy faith to make divine power playable.
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GAME MASTER TIPS
Drop a Meteor on Them: Falling Stars in La Notte Eterna for 5e
Meteors in La Notte Eterna for 5e turn falling stars into dark fantasy adventure hooks, with divine relics, sentient weapons, faction trouble, and rewards that bite back.
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GAME MASTER TIPS
How to Use Portals in D&D Without Breaking Your Campaign
Portals can make a D&D campaign feel huge, dangerous, and strange. Use them with costs, limits, owners, and failure states so they create adventure instead of skipping it.
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GAME MASTER TIPS
Playing a Vampire in D&D: Power, Hunger, and the Problems Nobody Mentions
Vampire player characters can be unforgettable in D&D when hunger, sunlight, party trust, and consequences matter at the table.
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BEHIND THE SCENES
La Notte Eterna at the Table: Old Friends, New Players, and the Long Road Back to the Dark
La Notte Eterna began as a small dark fantasy tabletop RPG with a tiny print run. Years later, old copies still surface at convention tables, worn, loved, and alive.
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GAME MASTER TIPS
Dark Fantasy vs Grimdark: 3 Mistakes That Break Campaign Tone
Dark fantasy works when players still have something worth saving. Learn the three GM mistakes that turn dark fantasy into grimdark and how to keep campaign tone sharp, brutal, and playable.
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GAME MASTER TIPS
Turning Darkness into Dread in D&D
A torch can solve darkness. It cannot solve dread. Here’s how to make darkness in D&D feel strange, dangerous, and unforgettable at the table.
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