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[Carrion Crown] Character Creation Comes the Inquisitor from Held Action » Role-Playing Games

Held Action — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:16:18 +0000

After a suitable period of mourning for the prolapsed Masks of Nyarlathotep campaign, the group is embarking on a Pathfinder adventure path called Carrion Crown. Set in the region of Ustalav, I gather it’s fraught with undead and squicky things, ...

A Twist in Time: Alternate Histories in RPGs from Campaign Mastery

Campaign Mastery — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 14:08:31 +0000

The latest iteration of my superhero campaign has just gotten underway. Being set (mostly) on an alternate-history Earth, it holds a number of elements that may be of interest to readers, especially if I explain the thinking that led to the various choices that were made and my approach to the construction of a detailed [...]

Dungeons of Adel: The Hellmouth from The Spirits of Eden » RPG

The Spirits of Eden — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:28:39 +0000

One of the Arch-Dungeons of Adel, the Hellmouth is a member of a family of massive, seemingly living spaces that exist beneath each Nation of Adel (and the Abyss Isle and Noshiki), their exact positions shifting, shrinking and growing as they are sealed or “destroyed” and thereby forced dormant, until such a time as their [...]

Introducing: Blazing Spear from Dagda's Workroom

Dagda's Workroom — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 18:19:00 +0000

High time to pull back the curtain, I think.Blazing Spear is the tentative name for an original bronze age weird fantasy setting I and two others have been working on since early 2011. There are numerous influences (from 300 to Fringe), but a particula...

Game-time expectations from JP on Gaming

JP on Gaming — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:21:00 +0000

My previous post about expectation on a game has generated a couple of great comments and got me thinking some more about when joining a posted game, how realistic can I set my expectations? Here are two comments (edited slightly, for the full thing, c...

What Movies / TV Shows Illustrate Your Game from Troll and Flame

Troll and Flame — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 23:44:00 +0000

While writing up blurb to announce afterwork game for coworkers I started a list of movies / shows to give folks a feel for the game. I kept list a bit old school, cause that's how I roll (haha!). Also see my past RPG Movie Posts.This h...

Getting The Party Started from RPG MUSINGS

DM Samuels RPG Musings — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 16:30:18 +0000

As a GM, there are few things I hate more upon starting a new game than the mess that inevitably arises from getting a load of PCs, who may not have anything at all to do with one another, into a vague semblance of a coherent group. Most of the time, i...

Wilderness Mini-Regions from Superhero Necromancer

Superhero Necromancer — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 22:10:00 +0000

Campaign prep continues. We've broadened our horizons a bit, giving us a world with a lot of wilderness organized into small-ish (7x7 hex) regions that are basically wilderness geomorphs. The world is an eclectically magical one, so it's not a problem ...

The Echo Of Events To Come: foreshadowing in a campaign structure from Campaign Mastery

Campaign Mastery — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 11:23:48 +0000

The Campain Structure series: Back To Basics Part 1: Adventure Structures Back To Basics Part 2: Campaign Structures Back To Basics Part 3: Example: The White Tower Back To Basics Part 4: Example: The Belt Of Terra In my recent posts on campaign structure (refer the panel above), I made a big point of the [...]

Ancient Scroll’s Secret Room: The Dwarf, The Elf, and The Onion from Game Knight Reviews

Game Knight Reviews — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 11:00:03 +0000

Welcome to the New Year dear readers! I hope 2012 will bring you more great game sessions and plenty of inspiration for new campaigns. Along those lines, hold on tight as we head into a new adventure…

This time I want to share some of my ideas about building a party of PCs. One . . . → Read More: Ancient Scroll’s Secret Room: The Dwarf, The Elf, and The Onion

The Foundation Of Averages: Psychohistory and RPG Rules from Campaign Mastery

Campaign Mastery — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 16:05:55 +0000

Confession Time: This is not the article I intended to post today. I simply ran out of time – after my sense of the day-of-the-week was thrown off by the Holiday Season, leading me to start late. Normal service will be resumed as soon as possible! Over the last few weeks, I’ve re-read the Foundation [...]

The war in the north — elves, dwarves, orcs, and men from Superhero Necromancer

Superhero Necromancer — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 18:29:00 +0000

There is a war in the north. No sudden, shocking invasion, nor great decisive battle that won a great empires. Not glorious war with renown to be gained. No, the slow grim march of decades of lost territories. Border skirmishes. Siege. Fallen fort...

Death Is Only The Beginning from RPG MUSINGS

DM Samuels RPG Musings — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 17:58:43 +0000

Death is the threat that hangs over every character, PC and NPC alike, at the table. For the longest time, death was the ultimate punishment. The consequence that couldn’t be topped. The fate that every character faced and every player hoped to help ...

Things to get lost in from Superhero Necromancer

Superhero Necromancer — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 23:31:00 +0000

Happy New Year.Like many other folks in my gaming circle, I've been swallowed whole by Skyrim. I only just got it a week ago, but it is... compelling. I agree with those who praise it for its ambition, which is impressive. I enjoy just walking the worl...

The Gassy Gnoll: The Circle of Trust (or The Power of Odd Jobs and Beginnings) from Game Knight Reviews

Game Knight Reviews — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 11:00:55 +0000

Have you ever noticed how adventurers always seem to get the glamorous jobs and only rarely get the dirty jobs nobody really wants to do?

Let’s take a simple example. A new group of PCs gets hired to kill some rats or bugs in a cellar somewhere. Usually the NPC hiring them fails to . . . → Read More: The Gassy Gnoll: The Circle of Trust (or The Power of Odd Jobs and Beginnings)

Tales of Brittanis on Obsidian Portal from The Action Point

The Action Point — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 20:53:11 +0000

Well, I finally did it. After years of watching Obsidian Portal and drooling over the campaigns that other folks have made, I finally buckled down and started putting all my campaign information into one place and making it all … Continue ...

Fantastic Locations: The Voyaging Liberator from The Spirits of Eden » RPG

The Spirits of Eden — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:55:14 +0000

Though the aerial forces of the Adelian nations are still burgeoning, with perhaps a two or three new ships accepted and incorporated every few years, Airships are still an important part of the military force, if not yet civilian life. For most folk, a ride in an airship is a novelty of a few hour’s [...]

Factions In Adel III: The Humanist Societies from The Spirits of Eden » RPG

The Spirits of Eden — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 17:44:55 +0000

While it is difficult to say that there are many groups in Adel outright dedicated to evil, there are quite a few who run counter to the best interests of those around them, or who engage in dangerous activities with only their own position in mind. These groups are often a source of conflict or [...]

“Why” and How It Can Improve Your Game from RPG MUSINGS

DM Samuels RPG Musings — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 16:00:20 +0000

Willful suspension of disbelief is a concept that comes up a lot when talking about fiction. For those of you unfamiliar with it, it’s the idea that you sometimes have to stop your mind from saying “That’s ridiculous”, “That could never happe...

Back To Basics: Example: The Belt Of Terra from Campaign Mastery

Campaign Mastery — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 15:20:08 +0000

This is part four from two (yes, you read that right) in a discussion of the basic principles of creating adventures and hooking them together to form a campaign; I wasn’t originally going to include these examples, feeling that the principles would be clearer to the reader if they weren’t distracted by another narrative threat [...]

Pieces Of Creation: The Hidden Truth Of Dopplegangers from Campaign Mastery

Campaign Mastery — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 15:07:33 +0000

Pieces Of Creation is an occasional recurring column at Campaign Mastery in which Mike offers game reference and other materials that he has created for his own campaigns. A somewhat unusual example to get this first “Pieces Of Creation” off to a flying start. Normally, I would present the game materials within the column text, [...]

Back To Basics: Example: The White Tower from Campaign Mastery

Campaign Mastery — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 17:14:26 +0000

This is part three from two (!) in a discussion of the basic principles of creating adventures and hooking them together to form a campaign; I wasn’t originally going to include these examples, feeling that the principles would be clearer to the reader if they weren’t distracted by another narrative threat running concurrently – and [...]

The Way of Worth: Adelian Ethics from The Spirits of Eden » RPG

The Spirits of Eden — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 20:13:26 +0000

No doubt most universes have some or several codes of ethics that are followed by different organizations and peoples. While there are many such in Adel, there is one overarching ethical code which is taught even to children and is pervasive in the culture and its stories. Depictions of heroes and of people that should [...]

Back To Basics: Campaign Structures from Campaign Mastery

Campaign Mastery — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 21:17:00 +0000

A short time ago, we received an ATGMs question that made me stop and think for a minute. The question was straightforward; Angeline wrote, “I need some help, I’m a starting DM and I just have so much trouble coming up with Campaigns or good plot lines. Please help!!” Last week, in Part One of [...]

Expedition: A Few New Paradigms from The Spirits of Eden » RPG

The Spirits of Eden — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 17:45:20 +0000

I think for a long time, the project of Expedition has been sort of “hijacked” by the idea of a universal appeal – an idea which is sort of impossible. I found myself more and more trying to think with other people’s brains rather than my own when it comes to game mechanics. I stepped [...]

Introduction To The Armies of Adel from The Spirits of Eden » RPG

The Spirits of Eden — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 18:00:53 +0000

For most people in Adel, a stay in the military is a respectable, character-building experience – mostly because no large conflicts are currently ongoing. Most military groups allow a person to serve two years and then decide whether to retire from service, or make a career of it. As such, almost every village and every [...]

Back To Basics Part 1: Adventure Structures from Campaign Mastery

Campaign Mastery — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 17:39:34 +0000

Worldbuilding Diary: Layers from The Spirits of Eden » RPG

The Spirits of Eden — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 17:47:31 +0000

I have talked about “Layers” before, in brief, and probably in other web sites and not this one. There is a price to pay in memory when you make disparate comments about your projects on other people’s blogs. Anyway. I write The World of Adel using a three-tiered system of Layers, dividing topics of interest [...]

Career Day from Legends In Their Own Minds

Legends In Their Own Minds — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 03:04:38 +0000

An Argh! holiday special summary. Present: Scott, cursed ex-jock; Luanne, cub reporter; Ron Slater, groovy guy; Vanessa, goth witch; Iggy, demonic janitor; Jade, vampire gang soldier; Britani, mean cheerleader. The principal has become a fan of self-help guru Bob Germaine. He assigns everyone in the school a project: write your dream resume for 10 years [...]

Starting a New Campaign from Troll in the Corner » Role Playing Games

Troll In The Corner — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 15:59:32 +0000

As all of you can see I’m a new contributor to TitC. So to start my posting time here I thought I’d write about my thoughts on starting a new campaign.Some of the things I have done and others I’ve yet to get to try.I’ve played in several D&#38...