RPGaDay 2020 prompt 25 – Lever

I guess I could talk about the Leverage RPG? I picked it up for free of DrivethruRPG a few years ago I think. Maybe it was a Halloween freebie? (It seems to be gone from DrivethruRPG, so have a nice article about it instead)I heard recently they're bringing it back to TV after eight years … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 25 – Lever

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 24 – Humour

I'm a big fan of humorous asides in games, or playing gonzo-style. And I've played a good bit of Paranoia, so gonzo is easy. I'm debating a gonzo game to be added to my work-in-progress campaign settings. Most of the ones I write are serious. But so far, I haven't come up with an idea … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 24 – Humour

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 23 – Edge

There's a weird idea of edginess being cool in some games I've played in. I think we all agree why it's bad.Edginess for edginess' sake is boring, ham-fisted, idiotic, painful. There, that's done. Let's talk about keen weapons. For those that don't know, in older editions of D&D, the keen enchantment improved the critical range … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 23 – Edge

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 22 – Rare

I've been trying for days to come up with a better topic than some of my favourite rare magic items from D&D 5e, but I think that will have to do! So, I'm not going to focus too much on the 'obvious' items - the Handy Haversack, Portable Hole and Ring of Spell Storing are … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 22 – Rare

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 21 – Push

I'm debating adding some push and pull roleplaying mechanics into D&D. I've talked a bit about this kind of thing before, but I think I can actually make it work this time. Pretty easy really - I want to give players the option of an Inspiration system that takes a cue from FATE points, so … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 21 – Push

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 20 – Investigate

I think I've talked pretty recently about how I handle mysteries and investigation, so I think I'll talk about the recent Web DM video about alternate skill checks and how they might play out for an investigation. Basically, that video centred on the use of alternate ability modifiers for various skills. Investigation is an Intelligence … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 20 – Investigate

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 19 – Tower

One of the things that I've rarely used in a game is a stereotypical Wizard's Tower. I think I'll have to add one to a game I run in the near future - a small dungeon that goes upwards (as well as probably downwards), with some minor encounters on each level. It would be very … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 19 – Tower

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 18 – Meet

You all meet in the inn.It's clichéd, but it works. But how else do you bring your players together? In the last long-running game I played in, I met the party in an inn - but it was Planescape, so they were all sat around having a drink when a portal opened above them, and … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 18 – Meet

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 17 – Comfort

I've seen a good few people part ways with D&D recently, and I completely get it. There's some real issues with the way it's being run and how things are being handled by the company that own it, but I haven;t managed to walk away yet. I've tried out a good few other games over … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 17 – Comfort

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 16 – Dramatic

I don't have much of what I would call 'a flare for the dramatic'. I'm not amazing at the dramatic reveal, and I prefer foreshadowing events over surprise twists. I don't know if that's something to do with me or how I read plots or anything. The first M. Night Shyamalan film I saw, The … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 16 – Dramatic

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 15 – Frame

OK, I'm going to take a moment to give you a quick rundown of my current Saurial/Planescape idea. It's only been a short while, but it's changed some. I may have added in some Spelljamming... Whoops! So, the current framing idea/elevator pitch looks like this: The PCs are wandering the Great Bazaar in Sigil. They … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 15 – Frame

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 14 – Banner

As part of the session zero for the Song of Ice and Fire RPG, the players are tasked with building a noble family to be the centre of the game - they can be attendants, young nobles, venerable maesters, and so on.The catch is, they are any of the big noble families we pay much … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 14 – Banner

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 13 – Rest

So, do we talk about the D&D rest mechanics, or taking a break from tabletop gaming? Or how other games handle rests? I guess I'll talk a bit about how I handle rests.I've been mostly inspired by various homebrews that change how things work, add in extra levels and things.Here's what I do currently: - … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 13 – Rest

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 12 – Message

I'm always conflicted about how to handle messages between players in a game. At a table, great, pass a slip of paper. If you're OK with phones, send something by text.If you want to cobble together a group message thing for between sessions, cool. Can throw two groups together to include the GM in one, … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 12 – Message

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 11 – Stack

I present to you a stack of various RPGs from my shelves! And some dice too! I tried to grab a mixed bag, pulling from various places. So, we have: Hillfolk - sadly unplayed but backed immediately in Kickstarter. I loved the idea, and especially the ideas for the alternate settings presented at the end … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 11 – Stack

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 10 – Want

Ah yes, the want list. So, in an ideal world, where money and storage are no issue, here's a short list of some of the products I'd love to have on my shelves but sadly don't: - D&D Planescape boxed set (or all of them really)D&D Al Qadim boxed setD&D Lankmar boxed setD&D 2e all … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 10 – Want

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 9 – Light

I'd love to talk a bit about rule-light rules systems today, but I realised that I really haven't played that many. The closest I could say I've come to is FATE, but even then I've played very crunchy versions (Dresden Files and my Sands of FATE games included). So instead, I'm going to talk about … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 9 – Light

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 7 – Couple

I wasn't sure what to talk about for this prompt, but I had a couple of ideas!(I'll wait for your delighted guffawing to subside...) I'm currently working on a couple of new things. First, I'm trying to pull together some ideas for a Planescape adventure involving Saurials.Saurials are basically Dino-people who had been used as … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 7 – Couple

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 6 – Forest

A lot of my homebrew settings feature forests in a prominent role. I'm not entirely sure why that is - maybe it's a western fantasy trope that's stuck in my head? (Murkwood?) Cambria is similar in some ways to Dark Sun, but very different in others. It's a planet-wide (ish) cityscape that's fallen into disrepair … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 6 – Forest

RPGaDay 2020 prompt 5 – Tribute

Sometimes I feel like I try too hard to pay tribute to the 'big' campaign worlds with what I'm writing. Faerûn or Eberron or Greyhawk. It shouldn't bee too difficult to write out an entire world with all kinds of stuff going on right? Other people have done it before, right?! Yeah, silly really.I rarely … Continue reading RPGaDay 2020 prompt 5 – Tribute