Ravenous Role Playing

I read quite a few blog posts this week, as I usually do, but only four really caught my eye. Some were about upcoming conferences, some were specifically about D&D 4e and some were just not my cup of tea. Here are the four that I saved links to:

Alternate Spell Names

I fully agree with James on his post in that most spell names are “bland and clinical.” In my own RPG, I’ve committed this sin, but it was more for the sake of ease of use by new players than an attempt to add flavor. Yes, I have spells that are named after the wizards that created the spells, just like in past editions of D&D. That’s as much “flavor” as I wanted to add to the spell names. I feel that it should be up to the players and GM to collude on creating new spells, or simply renaming spells to give the game more flavor. This way no one is left in the dark.

Normal Distribution Resolution

Ahh… The mathematics of role playing games. I love ‘em. I eat ‘em up with a passion. I’ve done many math problems by hand and even gone so far as to write small bits of software to do some very complex mathematical functions for me. I wish everyone had as great of a grasp of the numbers that run “behind the scenes” to die rolls as I do. It would make most gaming sessions run easier as people would stop asking, “What are my chances of pulling this off?” They could number crunch in their head very quickly (like I do) and then know the general odds, which is very close to how things happen in real life.

World Building 101 – Creating Cultures

I’ve been guilty of drawing a map or three, randomizing some cities with store names and such and calling it good. Of course, most of my “guilt” comes from a severe lack of time. I tend to gloss over the cultural details in my head as I design nations, and then flesh them out as players enter the areas and start asking questions about their surroundings. I’m familiar enough with history from all sorts of ages and cultures that I can easily make up the details on the fly and do a pretty good job of it.

The Great Next Campaign Debate

What to run next? Great question that comes up quite often in my present and past gaming groups. I only wish I were this organized when it comes to it. I also wish my gaming groups (past and present) had more decisive people in them when it came to new gaming systems. I’m definitely bookmarking this page and using it as a template moving forward for trying to help me decide which game system to run next.

Laptops At The Gaming Table

Technology has become so invasive in our lives that even a “pencil and paper” game has become touched by laptops, PDAs and smart phones. I gamed with a group for a while that used a laptop, custom software and a projector to track all basic combat stats for the party. It was really slick and I liked it quite a bit. I was using Wizard’s D&D character creator at the time and found a mistake on my character right as the game started. I fired up my laptop and fixed the character, dropped it to a PDF and used the PDF on my screen for the rest of the night. It was pretty slick. However, as a player, I prefer to lose all of the distractions that a laptop provides and concentrate on the game. As a GM, I have so many notes, maps, wikis and digital references on my laptop that I can scarcely live without it. I try not to let it become my main focus, though.

Book of Dead Characters to Celebrate Your Gaming

I wish I had thought of this back when I was 10 years old and my first character death occurred. I would love to have a binder with all of my dead in it. Damn good idea. Too bad I didn’t do it. I’m sure there are lots of memories that I have lost from my head that I would recall just by glancing at my roll of the dead. Ah well…

Why Everyone Should Have 3d6 For Stats

When a player meets a keystone NPC, I usually have them prepped before hand and know all of their vital details. If they meet a transient and unimportant NPC that suddenly becomes important somehow, I roll a few dice to determine their basics and run with what the dice tell me unless the dice go against what I’ve already determined in my head the character is. If I know the innkeeper is slow-witted, and I roll high for his intelligence, then I’ll ignore the roll and go with a lower amount. By knowing (and recording for later use) the basic stats of people that are encountered, it makes for a richer gaming experience.

GM’s Guide To Adventure Writing

Every GM, at some point, should step away from the pre-built modules that are published for use and run with their own module. It really heightens the attachment to the world and the sense of adventure for the players and the GM alike. Not sure where to start or how to do it? Follow the link and read some more at Role Playing Tips.

First Time GM: Job Description

Along the same lines of the previous link, if a person has never run a game before (and I still assert that all true gamers should run at least one campaign) then Gnome Stew has some hints and tips for a first-timer in the guise of a job description for GMs. If you’re an experienced GM, head on over to Gnome Stew and see what you agree with and what you don’t.

Fire Burn and Cauldron Bubble – Poisons

Poisons are a fantastic tool of any good GM. Instead of upping a monster’s combat stats to make it a nasty fight, just give it a poison (or disease) that it imparts upon anyone it hits. It’s a great leveler of the fighting grounds, and if the players know about the poisonous capabilities of your nasty critter, they will be hesitate to charge forth like a fool. Fore more details on poisons and how they can be used, check out Krystal’s words.

When Players Kill the Campaign

In most games I’ve been it it’s been a GM goof (or purposeful action) that kills the campaign. However, players can kill a campaign all on their own as well. This usually occurs in sandbox-style games, but can happen in a localized world of playstyle as well. Go see what Ameron has to say about the players derailing the GM’s carefully laid plans.

GMing Gods, Demons And Immortals

As a mortal creature, I can’t fathom having great powers or near-infinite time to plan out plots and ruses. I usually have to get my stuff together and get a project done in hours or days, not even weeks, months or years. I couldn’t imagine having decades, centuries or millennium to finish a task. Perhaps that tips over at roleplayingtips.com will help you out where I can’t.

Getting Out Of The Ditch

Even the best laid mysteries with all of the hints and clues placed before the PCs can stall out. It could be some thick-headedness on the players’ parts, or just some bad dice rolls. Whatever throws you in that ditch, there are ways out of it. Go see what DNAPhil has to say on the matter. It’s good stuff.

Ask The GMs: How to GM solo PCs (especially in combat)

I’ve ran a very few solo RPGs in the past because I’ve usually been blessed with good groups to game with. However, there are times when I’ve done it and it can be tricky. There just one character there to do everything necessary to move the plot forward and not to die against the Bad Things you throw at them. Johnn and Mike have some great advice on how to go about running a solo campaign. Go check them out.

Sorry for the lack of posting during the week. Things have changed in life, and this blog has fallen to the bottom of the barrel on my priority list. That might change in the future, but don’t hold your breath. I still have time for a Friday Five, though!

Former PCs as NPCs

I love this concept! I’ve used it quite a bit in the past, and I’m about to do it again in a campaign that starts this weekend. I’m taking PCs from a past campaign, turning them into NPCs for this game and running with them. I can’t wait to do it to see how it goes. The PCs were from a very long running campaign, so I know them well. This should help add more life to the game.

Death and Resurrection

How does the possibility of resurrection change death? Quite a bit, it turns out. If new life can be gained with a large diamond and a simple spell, then what’s to stop people from being horribly stupid in the face of vast dangers? Not much, really. For a full dissertation on the matter, follow the link and see what Bauxtehude has to say on the matter.

Bring Out Your Dead

If you can’t resurrect your dead, how do you bury them? Different cultures have different means of disposing of corpses in an honorable way. Adding these details about death to your game can really bring out its life!

World Building 101 – Avoiding “Filler”

Speaking of adding details to a campaign, there’s a right way and a wrong way. It’s great for a GM to know every last minutiae about his or her world, but it’s another thing to cram it down the players’ throats. Avoid useless filler and life will go better for your campaign.

With An Evil Gleam: Giving Treasure a Personality

Speaking of my new game that I’ll be starting this weekend, I feel very close to this post. Treasure should be more than a count of gold and a list of magic items. It should be tailored to the creature(s) slain and to the group. I’m not talking about fulfilling wish list items the players have put together, but more along the lines of making the treasure important to the campaign as a whole. Mike over at Campaign Mastery has a whole long list of items that can be included in treasure to give it that special something.

I must apologize for the blog going dark over the past couple of weeks. School, life, my novel and general other things caught up to me and I rarely had a chance to watch my RSS feeds for good stuff, let alone write about them. I’m throwing in a bonus link today as a minor apology for my lack of posting.

A Question of Character

Ahh… Character backgrounds. I love writing them, most players don’t. I guess it’s just the writer in me that loves creating a beautifully crafted piece of prose to illustrate who my character is, what his goals are, and why he ticks the way he does. Need a springboard to launch your next character background? Go check out what NewbieDM has to say on the matter.

Who Owned Your Magic Sword Before You Did?

This post is a great one! In my own RPG that I’ve created there is no such thing as a “long sword +1.” Yes, there are magical weapons, but they are all unique unto themselves and act almost like characters do, even if they’re not intelligent, per se. This post really brought home to me the fact that someone else most likely owned/used/cherished the item before the player’s came along, slaughtered the monster and took the loot. This is a great chance for some excellent role playing.

3 Ways Game Masters Show, Don’t Tell

Show. Don’t Tell. I hate those three words. I hear them rarely from my critique group, but I get it often enough that it rankles my nerves. I have being told that I’ve missed the mark… even when I have. This is a great article on how GM’s can really spice up the environment the players are in.

Reality Shift – Part 1

As a creator of an RPG that has gone through many iterations over the past decade, I hope that I’ve finally hit the nail on the head with a balance between realism and game play. It’s a tough rope to walk, and Bill over at Dungeon Mastering has a great post on the topic.

The Plot Kill

TPK usually stands for “total party kill,” but in this case a single character must die to move the plot forward. It’s a rough thing to do, and I’ve seen it happen a few times. As a player, I love being the one that dies because my death has meaning and purpose other than falling to that random encounter that was tougher than the GM thought it was going to be. If a character must die for the plot to move forward, I can totally handle it. I think it’s a great idea, but it has to be done just right or the whole thing falls flat and turns into the loss of yet another character… and possibly another player.

How To Introduce A New PC

Last night at the Pathfinder table, we lost 3 of the 5 party members in a nasty fight with some demon dogs. Damn. It happens, though and we move on with new characters. How do these new characters get integrated into an existing plot and party structure? It’s kind of rough at times. Fortunately the survivors made it back to town where they’ll have a chance to meet the new characters in a neutral or friendly setting. Go see what Wimwick has to say on the matter. It’s a great post!