As a DM that runs a tabletop RPG, it is your right and privilege to strike towns, lands, and whole continents with whatever form of catastrophe or disaster that strikes your fancy. Whether it is a terrible plague, massive tidal wave, or vicious invading army that sweeps through the area and all but wipes out the native inhabitants it is up to you to determine what happens with that location once the initial catastrophe has passed. These events could have happened hundreds of years before the characters were born or they could be the climatic event that finishes off a chapter of your game and opens up a new one. No matter when it happens, it is up to you as the DM to figure out how these events will effect your game world and how the players will experience the event and the aftermath.
On Writing
More than a few folks have asked me for advice on writing. I don’t know why. I have edited and written, with mixed success at both, for publication and pleasure. Like I said, that doesn’t prove anything. What I can say is that writing isn’t easy. It takes courage and skill and patience, and a good editor always helps.
The Architect DM: World Building By Process
If you think about the world around us and how it came to be the way it is, most things you’ll look at are the result of a process. Villages were created out of a need for shelter and then grew into towns and some eventually grew into cities, while natural formations like mountain ranges rise and fall due to the workings of plate tectonics. When we set out to create a world for an RPG, or even for videogames and fiction, we are attempting to create a world that is the result of a process that has never actually happened. Some worlds can certainly have mountains that don’t line up along a range and aren’t even created by plates of earth shifting and colliding, but my personal belief is that if you are creating a world the best foundation you can use is that of the real world that we see all around us.
The Architect DM: World Building Basics
So far the Architect DM series has focused primarily on locations and building design, but today and over the next few weeks I’m going to take a look at the larger scale idea of world building and some factors that play into designing a realistic and believable world to play your games in. As with many of the design aspects I’ve talked about previously, designing a realistic world can feel like one of the most intimidating and daunting tasks to undertake but in reality if you apply principles correctly it can make your efforts easier and better at the same time.
Gamma World: You Can’t Handle All This Junk
The Grand Unified Junk table has terrible things from all editions….that had Junk tables. Sure, they might have been called Loot or Treasure, but anyone who played knew they mostly contained something that you’d be embarrassed to have…or ashamed to be excited to have. The White Wolf & Alternity editions, being serious expeditions into Gamma Terra, had nothing to stuff inside my trunk. The others? Oh my. Here’s a brief rundown, followed by some of my personal favorites that just might convince you that the Grand Unified Junk Table needs to be let into your heart (or hearts, if you have more than one).
What I Learned Running a 1 to 30 D&D Campaign
As I write this I sit less than 12 hours away from the last adventure of a level 1 to 30 D&D 4e campaign and I’m feeling strangely emotional about it. I’m extremely lucky to have players willing and able to play nearly every week for two and a half years. I’ve had to come up with an interesting adventure for over 100 sessions that tied together a story spanning the entire level range of 4e D&D.
Review: “Leverage” RPG
The Leverage RPG has just been released from Margaret Weis Productions to bring the same sort of stories to your RPG table. You assemble your crew of a grifter, hacker, hitter, mastermind, and thief and pull off one job in an evening to help the helpless and provide… leverage.
Review: “Legend of the 5 Rings” 4th Edition RPG
I discovered Legend of the Five Rings several years ago, but in the past I have never had a chance to play the RPG system itself and instead have ended up playing Oriental Adventure version of D&D or other systems with strong Asian influences. That’s why I’m very thankful that Alderac Entertainment Group has provided us with the 4th Edition of the Legend of the Five Rings Roleplaying Game core book, which is right off the bat one of the most beautiful RPG books I’ve ever seen. Plus a contest to win a copy of the L5R core book!
Preview: Dungeons & Dragons Virtual Table
What they’ve come up with is a pretty solid product with some extra specific to D&D touches that I haven’t seen so smoothly integrated elsewhere, which gives me hope for this product. There’s still a few key features I would love to see (which I’ll get into) but it’s a great start, and totally useable right out of the gate.
How Do You Turn a GM Off the Tracks Onto a Dirt Road?
As part of running Roleplaying Tips, I often receive questions about common gaming problems. One reader sent me this question recently, which might have come up in your gaming group: “How do you wean a GM off of a cinematic/railroad style?”
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