Most game systems allow players to choose from all powers and spells without restriction. If it’s in the book, any player character can have it so long as they meet the listed requirements. That doesn’t mean that you, the gamemaster, have to allow it. Anything that doesn’t fit with the mood and cosmology of the … Continue reading
The flavor of any setting can be baked right in to nearly any game system through a careful tweaking of the skill system. As a gamemaster or designer, you can impress upon players not only what sorts of abilities might be important within the campaign, but what is deemed to be of value by the … Continue reading
Reading Robert E. Howard’s Savage Tales of Solomon Kane for the third time this year, because it speaks to me and the language and meter of it is enchanting. It’s all mood, the writing is brilliant, it’s so easily Howard’s best work. I will be poetry if it’s written by Robert E. Howard. Reading Mind … Continue reading
Everyone who’s been in the roleplaying hobby for any length of time can probably name as least one setting that’s jumped the shark. The publisher did something that fundamentally changed the nature of the world, something that a significant portion of the games players and fans did not like and drove them away. When I … Continue reading
My head is full of ideas for interesting settings, including adventure hooks and metaplots. I’m slowly putting all of these settings together into documents that I plan to sell via Lulu. It’s all fluff, mostly because I have no desire to engage in Edition Wars, futz with the OGL or GSL, make decisions about which … Continue reading
The following is a system-independent method for creating a setting. It was developed with tabletop roleplaying in mind, but can be used for fiction writing projects and similar endeavors. The object is to keep it simple and fill in detail as needed. Note that every step is entirely optional, and the process should be modified … Continue reading
Before any debates erupt regarding the definition of “Old School” allow me to state that for the purposes of this article I am using the Quick Primer for Old School Gaming by Matthew Finch. As some folks have declared 4th Edition Dungeons & Dragons to be “New Old School”, I have decided to compare it … Continue reading
Before any debates erupt regarding the definition of “Old School” allow me to state that for the purposes of this article I am using the Quick Primer for Old School Gaming by Matthew Finch. As some folks have declared 4th Edition Dungeons & Dragons to be “New Old School”, I have decided to compare it … Continue reading
Yesterday I wrote about how, in my opinion, 4th edition Dungeons & Dragons encourages a certain style of play. I stated that I like 4th edition for what it is, but it’s more of a tactical miniatures game than a roleplaying game. It can be used for the style of play that I enjoy, but … Continue reading
On Saturday I was scheduled to run my first 4th Edition Dungeons & Dragons game. This had been causing my a considerable amount of agita, as I still hadn’t had the opportunity to even experience the game as a player. Still, I wrote an adventure, learned the rules I felt I needed to learn, and … Continue reading
