I’ve mentioned numerous times that my usual method of planning for a game involves deciding what conflicts are going on in the world and then trying to figure out ways to get the characters involved in those conflicts. I haven’t really gone into the “get the players involved” part of the equation, so I’m going…
A recent post on a gaming blog I follow mentioned an online tool called inklewriter, which basically lets you write your own Endless Quest books. The author had started using the site to make a tool to help new players make their D&D character and announced a contest where people make a gaming tool using the…
Last week, I applied Timothy Leary’s definition of a “game” to role-playing and ended with a promise to discuss other passages in his presentation “How To Change Behavior” that, despite having nothing to do with role-playing, are strangely applicable to our hobby. Here’s the first passage I was talking about: “All behavior involves games. But…
I feel like I need to start with some disclosures. I first played Dungeons & Dragons in something like fourth grade and have been a gamer ever since. Hell, I even started a game company. I’ve also been fascinated by Jack Chick for at least 20 years. I have a binder full of Chick comics…
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“You are not your job. You’re not how much money you have in the bank. You’re not the car you drive. You’re not the contents of your wallet. You’re not your fucking khakis.”–Tyler Durden, Fight Club If Tyler Durden were a GM, he might add that you are not your Charisma, you’re not your Gimmick,…
As you’ve probably already heard, Warner Brothers has just picked up the rights to do a new Dungeons & Dragons movie. It’s being produced by the guy who directed the terrible Jeremy Irons D&D movie and the screenplay’s by the guy who’s penned such thoroughly…uh,…filmed and released?…movies as Wrath of the Titans and Red Riding…
Another script this week. This one’s the Random Qerth Name Generator, which lets you generate names based on your Qerth Job. If the basic names are too cliched for you (and trust me, they’re incredibly cliched), you have two options to spice them up. For a more exotic name, click the box to ad random…
Like Qerth, most fantasy game worlds are full of dungeons, crypts, tombs, caves, mines, and other big holes full of monsters and treasure. These tables will help you come up with catchy names for yours. Roll on Table 1 to get the format, then roll on Tables 2-6 as appropriate. In some cases, you may…
In less than a week, the Hex crew will be converging on Indianapolis for GenCon, the biggest gaming convention of them all. The first time I went to GenCon, I dreaded it–I was afraid it would be a perfect storm of all the things that annoyed me about Origins and Dragon*Con. These days, it’s my…
