Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0023 A Brief Word From Johnn Ever since I bought my Commodore 64 home computer, way back when, I have wanted to enhance my roleplaying sessions with technology. Over the past few years I’ve been fortunate enough to have a group of players who understand, support and often drive that desire for […]
Continue readingFrom Guardian Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0022 A Brief Word From Johnn I found a great web site a little while ago with several pages of super roleplaying tips. Guardian, the site’s creator and tips’ writer, has kindly agreed to let me reprint a few here for you. I’ll be quoting Guardian again in future issues, […]
Continue readingRoleplaying Tips Newsletter #0021 A Brief Word From Johnn I’m sending this issue out early as I’ll be away Easter weekend. I’m not sure what your background is, but Easter always meant “treasure hunt” to me. In nooks and crannies I’d be surprised with chocolate eggs and rabbits. Surprises are fun. So, in the spirit […]
Continue readingFrom Kevin Davies Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0020 Like many gamers, when I first entered the hobby, I thought that it was desirable and even necessary to have rules to account for the outcome of every possible character action or environmental condition. Thick rulebooks were the norm, although roleplay games were typically thin on descriptive and […]
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Here’s what to put in your portable game master kit so you never forget to bring anything to a session again. Start with…
Continue readingFrom JohnnFour Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0018 A Brief Word From Johnn This week we discuss making those dumb old ogres something a little more, something to talk about after the session. It was fun doing the research and thinking up these tips. But one thing kept bugging me. Many of the sources I looked at […]
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Although journals are their own reward in the long run, an immediate incentive from the game master can help a player get over the short term hump for keeping a campaign journal until it becomes a habit.
Continue readingFrom Peter Maranci Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0016 This is the second in a two-part series on campaign structure. Read Campaign Structure Part I. The Meta-Cycle Also known as an “arc”, the meta-cycle is a long-duration story form that has a beginning, middle, and end. This type can be divided into two sub-forms: “Padded” and “Expanded”. […]
Continue readingFrom Peter Maranci Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0015 Fundamental to any roleplaying campaign is the conceptual structure which controls it. That structure is the basic frame upon which the gamemaster creates the framework of the campaign, like a tapestry on a loom; as the initial pattern is set, so the goes the game. And yet the […]
Continue readingFrom JohnnFour Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0014 Numerous, Non-Lethal Attacks My new villain does not have the resources to completely wipe out the character party and still keep her other plots and plans going. So, like the mosquito, she is going to use many non-lethal attacks upon exposed areas to drive the characters as far away […]
Continue readingFrom JohnnFour Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0013 One of my biggest challenges as a game master today is time management. There’s just too much to do in my professional and personal life to devote as much time as I really want towards my #1 hobby: Roleplaying. Wizards Of The Coast just released the following information*, as […]
Continue readingFrom JohnnFour Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0012 Encounters are like pieces of a grand jigsaw puzzle that you build with your players over time into a story. Imagine then, if some of the pieces didn’t fit? What if some of the pieces were missing entirely? How would your puzzle turn out if all the pieces were […]
Continue readingFrom Da’Vane Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0011 I believe encounters (some roleplayers also call them “scenes”) are the workhorses of roleplaying. Campaigns are simply the sum total of all the individual encounters that you plan for and play out. So, the theory is, if you make every encounter an exciting, memorable event, you will have a […]
Continue readingFrom JohnnFour Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0010 I had the opportunity to have a very enjoyable roleplaying discussion with a few Roleplaying Tips Weekly subscribers this past weekend. And the topic of character romance in games came up. I put in my 2 cents worth and absorbed all I could. Here is a brief review of […]
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From Dr. June Johnson Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0009 The voice is your most powerful means of communication. How you hear yourself is not necessarily how others hear you. Successful professionals have voices that command attention and move people to action. The following tips will help you to develop the voice of authority. Breathe From The […]
Continue readingRoleplaying Tips Newsletter #0008 I remember the first time I played using the “local tongue” of my gaming group. What a great experience. Using foreign and fictional words made me feel like a real native from the game world I was playing in. It added a depth and style to the campaign which I’ll never […]
Continue readingRoleplaying Tips Newsletter #0007 I don’t know how I lived without my roleplaying campaign newsletter, “The Redblade Crier”. A newsletter is such a fast and easy way to keep your players motivated and interested, plan out your campaign, organize your next session and add depth to your game world that I heartily recommend every game […]
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Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0006 Thanks to the intense Politically Correct environment in this city I’ve taken more conflict resolution, active listening, customer service and employee communications courses than you can shake a stick at. There’s one skill I’ve picked up from all this, though, that has truly made a huge difference in the quality of […]
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Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0005 Puzzles are an essential part of roleplaying. Even in groups where puzzle solving is not preferred, the occasional rousing stumper creates some excellent variety. And variety is essential for keeping player interest in your game high. While classic, dungeon-style puzzles are entertaining, my favorites are the ones that: Encourage roleplaying Allow […]
Continue readingFrom Johnn Four Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0004 In opinion polls, people fear speaking in public more than they do dying. Even though game mastering is not quite the same as public speaking, I admit I still felt a twinge of nervousness this past September when I set-up my GM screen after a year-long hiatus and […]
Continue readingFrom Johnn Four Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0003 How To Develop A Compelling Voice I learned a new habit recently that has had a surprising and positive impact in my life: speaking from the diaphragm. Breathing and speaking from the diaphragm will give you a more compelling and powerful voice–a definite plus when roleplaying–and it also […]
Continue readingFrom Johnn Four Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0002 One of the most destructive events that happens every few game sessions in my campaign is the Time Bomb. A missed or incorrectly interpreted rule, a forgotten fact or just a bad play and everybody realizes a little later that a mistake has occurred. And the mistake has […]
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From Johnn Four Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0001 I hate to admit it, but because of bad RPG mapping habits I game mastered a “yawner” last night. My number one goal for each and every session is to entertain, and players yawning is a sure sign I’ve missed my mark. While every game master has their […]
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