Tables and Tech Levels: More Gamma World Thoughts And Changes (Post: Apocalypse Part 2)

 

It's not game prep if you're not spending late nights staring at tables and making minor changes. Surely, you didn't think that I was done?

Post: Apocalypse - A Gamma World Analysis & Sandbox Prep Megapost

 

A few years ago I made a huge, ambitious, and successful sandbox campaign - a true once-in-a-lifetime endeavor! So why not do it again?

Forebodings and Fancies: Dungeon Feelings for Dungeon Crawls

No, this isn't a post about introducing dating rules to your game. Let's talk about the most important feelings: the ones in your gut. 

Small Gods and Stone Soup: Deities made for Dungeon Crawling

Players see god in one of two ways: Vague source of magic, or high-level XP piñata. I propose a third: gameplay feature. Profane, no?  

The 18-Slot Inventory

Tired of untidy inventories? Coins weighing you down? Annoyed at your players casually bringing ladders to the dungeon? This post might be just what you need.

The inventory lies at the heart of "old school" play, and especially games that like to focus on the minutae of dungeon crawling and problem solving. "What do you have?" and "what can you bring?" are some of the most basic building blocks of interesting decisions in that space.

For the type of game I run, I think that the party's pockets deserve to actually be fun and interactive, and add to play rather than impede it. With that goal in mind, come see if you agree with my solution.  

Replay's Value: A Case for Replaying Adventures

Take a calm, pleasant moment to think about your most cherished piece of media: The magical movie, bewitching book, scary song, terrifying theater performance or vaguely spooky video game that has touched your soul in a way that nothing else really has. I bet that, like all people enamored by non-transient forms of entertainment, you've enjoyed that piece of media more than once. 

There's nothing unusual about wanting to revisit familiar favorites; it's fun to relive the adventure, to meet the characters again, to notice things you haven't before while looking forward to the parts you loved most. In a world already filled with more media than you could possibly enjoy in your humble human lifetime, and with a ceaseless discharge of ever more content barraging us from every possible outlet, it can be comforting - even therapeutic - to return to an old darling. 

So, how come we don't feel the same way about TTRPG adventures? 

RELEASE: The Delver's Expedition Handbook

In a stunning and uncharacteristic display of Project Finishing, I have released a book(let)! 

 It is a humble sub-40 page volume that discusses, at length, Expeditions; adventures for mid-level parties that entail long-term planning and preparation, hiring a large amount of experts and henchmen to bring along with you to an extremely remote location, and setting up a small base of operations in hostile lands as you try to dungeon crawl your way into great massive rewards. 

It's out now and it's free, so go check it out!

Pink Mirrorcoat: A Sliding Scale of Shadowrun

Three Shadowrunners walk into a bar.

The first Shadowrunner finds their target at the bar, sits down next to him, and buys him a drink, before informing him - through gritted teeth and with a voice that announces the culmination of a chilling vendetta - that Oracle sends her regards. The second Shadowrunner casually snaps their fingers to set the exit behind them ablaze, and after taking a second to adjust their wide neon-trimmed collar, dropkicks the big troll bouncer who was reaching for his gun. The third Shadowrunner has already scanned everyone else in the bar and begins eliminating them in descending order of threat level, cutting edge military cybernetics combined with top-of-the-line firearms dropping four goons before they even realize they're being fired at.  

While the above is a frankly terrible joke, it does vaguely imply the three common "Flavors" of Shadowrun. They're usually used as an either-or descriptor; however, I believe they're better suited to a three-way sliding scale, and I would like to tell you all about how that could help you describe your own game's vibe to your chummers. Let's jack in, shall we?

Orbital Crypt Halloween Special: Tarot Spreads for Fun and Writing

 

A wolf, a dog and a lobster walk into a bar...

Happy horror month, candy-corn readers! It's very festive up here at the apogee of sanity, and consequently I thought I'd get in the holiday spirit by sharing one of my favorite tools for on-the-spot narrative generation. Let's take a scry, shall we? 

Make War, Not Lore: Creating a War and Factions for your Adventures

It is only one who is thoroughly acquainted with the evils of war that can thoroughly understand the profitable way of blogging about it.  -Sun Tzu, almost

In a recent world-famous blogpost, we concluded that mass bloodshed and strife is a lighthearted, pleasant pastime for all involved. And while any power metal album artist or teacher-cum-author can invent a cool battle, it takes a bit more work to create the whole war. Luckily for you, I happen to be an authority on seeming like an authority.