A few years ago, I played in a game of Vampire the Dark Ages that ran from 793 to about 1463. It was my first real introduction to the World of Darkness, and was a great way to...

Hit points and damage, it is often observed, don't "make sense." They're wonderful game abstractions that persist because they are fun and work well, even if you sort of have...

 A submission for this month's big blog hootenanny. I don't normally write for these things but I guess I came to a turning point and found my inspiration.Art by Jon DunhamIf...

I was never really satisfied with mechanics for fighting really big guys. Vaulting up to a cyclops's eye or clambering along a dragon's scales to stab at its heart should...

Whenever I heard people talk about Holy Mountain Shaker, they seemed to converge on the same conclusion-- that it's a beautifully illustrated, well-written, and competent...

 Preliminary matter one- Recently I've felt a little pressed by my current schedule. Not stressed out really, and actually getting to do a lot of enjoyable and enriching...

 After reading Seed of Worlds's review of the book Fief, I knew I had to take a look. I've been on a British and French medieval history kick after starting Tuchman's A Distant...

 Whether your game is set in the distant future of the year 200X or the hundredth year of the Sword Age, sprinkling scenes with stupid made-up words is a fun way to create a...

 I was lucky enough to spend a few hours trading questions and answers with long-time colleague and absolute GLoG luminary G.R. Michael on Best Case Scenario, the skirmish RPG...

I got the chance to speak with friend of the blog Hilander the other day about the Cairn adventure he's kickstarting, the Valley of Lune. Fair warning, I like this guy and his...

MountsHorses are found wild and domesticated in Yarfu. A horse has 3 HD, but through careful breeding may have a sizeable bonus to its HP. A mounted party can travel for longer...

 Grace of Choir of Fire described a few different ways of running games on a very literal level of personal habit, which inspired Louis of Garamondia to describe his own...

 art by Rebecca Storm    Casting a spell requires a free hand and a strong voice. The aspects in the soul (housed in the organs) can't be entrapped in armor, but may be...

 Armor  Armor is simple. You have an AC (pronounced "Ahs"), which is 10 if unarmored, 12 if wearing a helm, 14 if wearing a cuirass or other armored shirt and a helm, and 16 if...

HP and SavesHP is a measure of your vital spirit (pronounced "hep"). Level 1 PCs start with 6 HP, which is reduced by harms and regained at a rate of 1d6 HP every sunrise. At 0...

 A prison larger than any cityBuilt on the first prison ever builtBuild to restrain the god that wants to eat the worldBuilt with seven seals (no fewer would do)Each seal built...

 This character generator sketches out a PC, except that it doesn't list out the standard starting skills and equipment, and it doesn't spend your 500 starting XP. I figured if...

This hive dungeon serves to introduce some of the marquis monsters of the setting, created by random generation. While a little bizarre on their own, I believe confidently...

 I've stumbled in the last steps of my sprint to complete my 52nd blogpost of the year. A moderate sickness of aches and headaches is making long stretches looking at the...

It is an oversized owl charm, silver on a silver chain. The eyes are set with flints, and a fil de fer runs through the silver links of the chain, forming a silken iron...

 Inspired by interesting setting details for Meg's River Kingdom and Matthias's Vrivmiya, here is a proof of concept for a perfectly normal way of slicing the classic RPG pie,...

If I post this and three other articles, I'll have posted an average of one blogpost a week, which would hearten me a bit. When Disco Elysium came out in 2019, it was broadly...

 At Hilander's suggestion, here are examples of a great cheap trick to make normal D&D events feel more connected to the characters while still being very play-focused. "You...

Generators for my own purposes. Glory as ever to Spwack.Name Hive Name Encounter Treasure

 Where other culture groups build towns and cities as a collection of dozens or hundreds of free-standing structures, Vo cultures usually construct hives, labyrinthine...

 This year, the Gloggies follow a democratic process, in which members of the community are called upon to nominate the posts that stuck with them and inspired them, for later...

 Merry Glogmas to Mr Ampora! Very happy for your new blog, and hoping many good things for you in the new year.1st LevelCure Light Wounds (also called "Cup of Cheer")Detect...

 Four years ago today, I made a generator for Vampire the Masquerade to represent the vampiric population of the United states. It was a neat toy and fun to make, and it was...

  This is part of a series of blogpostsCampaign framing, timeline, and general detailsMinor tweaks to hex descriptionsThe Lost Wing,The Dawnward Path, and coda. (this post)In...