Evil Machinations

No scenario survives contact with the PCs … No system survives contact with the GM

An A-to-Z List of Lesser-Known Roleplaying Games: Part 1

Jade | July 31, 2009

Here’s the first part of a list of 26 lesser-known roleplaying games, one for each letter of the alphabet. Some of these you’ve probably heard of, others  you may not. Many of these are out of print, but can frequently be found from used game outlets or on PDF reprint sites like Drive-Thru RPG. Maybe [...]

“I hit him with a BoAF*… I mean Fireball!”

Jade | July 29, 2009

*Ball of Abysmal Flame
One of my all-time favorite RPGs is Ars Magica. I love the fact that it doesn’t try to impose game balance limitations on mages. I also love the troupe-style play where everyone gets to play a magus/maga and something else. As a Storyguide, I love the fact that the group as a [...]

D&D: the Future

Jade | July 27, 2009

Predicting is always a tricky prospect. Where will D&D be in five years? 10 years? 20?
While I would love to sing D&D’s praises to the highest, I’m afraid that five years down the road, I won’t be playing it. What I mean is, that it’s unlikely I’ll be playing whatever the current edition of that [...]

“Where are we again?”: Creating Unique Fantasy Cities and Towns

Jade | July 24, 2009

Sometimes creating a believable city or town is one of the hardest parts of building an adventure or campaign. You don’t want all your towns to look the same and you definitely don’t want to get stuck in the generic “fantasy town”, consisting of a tavern/bar, inn or other lodgings, magic shoppe, etc.
Below I’ve gathered [...]

“You Want to Do What?”

Jade | July 23, 2009

As a D&D player, I’ve developed a reputation for making combat use of non-combat spells. Sure, dealing out massive amounts of damage with Fireball or Lightening Strike is a lot of fun — there’s no denying that — but I get even more enjoyment out of find ways to use other spells in a fight. [...]

Wormy’s Back!!!

Jade | July 21, 2009

Old news to many of you, perhaps, but if you’re old enough to remember the old Dragon comic Wormy, Gaming Brouhaha is reposting the old strips, starting with #1. Check out his archives.
For those of you who joined the hobby later, check this out! It’s an absolutely hilarious comic. I loved this strip and it [...]

Edition Wars

Jade | July 15, 2009

Edition wars. Where would D&D be without them? Even when I first started playing D&D back in 1980, there were already edition wars. Members of my first gaming group would argue the merits of Basic D&D vs. Advanced D&D vs. “the little brown books” (the boxed set of Men & Magic, Monsters & Treasure, and [...]

Gaming with Ghosts: When Good Players Can’t Be There

Jade | July 13, 2009

I’ve said it before — everyone has situations that come up where they have to miss a session or two, sometimes at the last minute. After all, real-life issues have to take precidence over game ones. But as a GM, what do you do when Liza the Ranger gets called into work at the last [...]

Everything I Know I Learnt from D&D: 20 Life Lessons Gaming’s Taught Me

Jade | July 10, 2009

Be nice to the people who have your back.
When you leave home, always make sure you’ve got a bedding, food, water, a knife, and a light source, even if you’re just going to be gone “a few hours”. You never know when a freak storm may hit.
Babysitting missions are always more trouble than their pay [...]

Fred’s Missing *Again*?

Jade | July 10, 2009

Every player has days they can’t make a game. Sometimes, a great conjunction of events happens and a player has to miss a session at the very last minute. It happens to all of us.
These aren’t the players I’m referring to.
It can be one of the most frustrating things about a running a game: having [...]

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