How To Use Plotto For Plot Conflicts

I like it when you let me know about cool tools that aren’t in the typical RPG section.

How To Make Campaigns Interesting While Avoiding GM Burnout

I just read your response to RPT GM Sam and thought about how I keep campaigns interesting.

Help The Characters Get Into Trouble

Want to make life even more interesting for your players? Follow these three simple steps.Step 1: Pick Your HookGrab a hook from your Loopy Plans. I don’t know your plot, so let’s use five random plot hooks quickly generated from Campaign Logger’s Town Rumours generator: Recently a scarred traveler came to visit the clothier, who has been […]

How To Use Plotto For Plot Conflicts

The core of Plotto, as far as I’m concerned, is the list of 1,462 plot conflicts. However, I don’t use Plotto as it was originally intended for constructing a plot. Instead, I use a stripped-down approach that I find easier to adapt for RPG adventure creation.

What If?… Plot Seeds Generator

What are seeds? In my lingo, a seed is an idea not fleshed out yet. For example, good drow running from evil kin. It’s an idea but not a plan. And here’s how to…

What Are Seeds And Hooks?

Anon GM wrote in with this request about seeds and hooks: I need your help with something embarrassing. I have been DMing for years now and realized there is something that seems to be foundational to game play and I kind of don’t know anything about it.

I have read your tips and have read in multiple places about seeds and hooks. What are they and how do I use them?

Plot Factories Part II – Spinning Up The Idea Machine

Take any idea you have and brainstorm 10 ways you can make an encounter or situation out of it. Think of it as an Idea Machine. Here’s how to do this.

Use Plot Factories For Unlimited Hook Inspiration

So what do I do with new adventure ideas? I ask a simple question and brainstorm answers for a couple minutes. If I like the answers, then I incorporate the idea into my campaign.

How To Create Your Own Combat Missions

Want to design your own combat missions, fully tailored to the people, places, and things of your campaign? Today you’ll learn how to do this, including what design questions to ask and answer along the way. Let total annihilation scenarios take a back seat while you light a fire under your combat creativity.

Lessons From The Movies – Alien and Aliens

From Matthew Ipock Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0624 Lessons From The Movies – Alien and Aliens Two of the best horror-sci-fi movies ever made have to be Alien and Aliens. You know, the ones about the space creature that latches onto your head, shoves an egg down your throat that eventually claws out through your chest […]

Focusing the Spotlight, Story Overlays, Magic Flags

From John Lewis Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0649 Focusing the Spotlight, Story Overlays, Magic Flags We RPG players live for those times when all eyes are on our character. Suddenly we are completely in the moment, feeling a rush of adrenalin and a powerful surge of excitement. We sense the other players’ concentrated attention on what’s […]

Lessons From The Movies: The Princess Bride

From Matthew Ipock Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0625 Lessons From The Movies: The Princess Bride The Princess Bride has become a great romantic-comedy cult classic. This is because the film has all the necessary ingredients of a great movie: action, comedy, memorable characters and dialogue, and “true love”. Because the movie has these needed ingredients, The […]

Core Stories In D&D

From Mike Mearls Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0269 A Brief Word From Johnn The Expeditious Retreat Press Monster Tips Contest It’s contest time again and Expeditious Retreat Press has kindly agreed to sponsor it! Entry is easy; just send in a monster, alien, or critter-related tip: how to build, how to roleplay, tweak tips. combat tips, […]

Mission-Style Roleplaying – Part II

From Johnn Four Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0224 A Brief Word From Johnn Vin Diesel Plays D&D Here’s an interview with Vin Diesel where he mentions his D&D hobby. As one of my esteemed co-workers, Colin, said, “Bet no one laughs at him when he says it’s nerd night.” http://www.darkhorizons.com/news04/riddick1.php I saw Chronicles of Riddick on […]

Mission-Style Roleplaying – Part I

Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0223 Mission-Style Roleplaying Combat in RPGs is a physical, tangible, visceral thing. In many games, combat stuff takes up 75% or more of a character sheet. When the fighting breaks out, you have concrete numbers, specific skills, exciting attacks, and pages and pages of rules. Damage lets everyone know how much they’ve […]

4 Tips For Whipping Up Scenarios For Conventions

From Nik Palmer Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0222 A Brief Word From Johnn Seeking Volunteer Excel Afficionado If you’re a whiz with Excel and have some free time, I’d like to chat with you about whipping up a campaign calender tool. Thanks! Yahoo! Mail Delivery Problems Yahoo! is pretty consistent about _not_ delivering the ezine to […]

8 Campaign Starter Tips

From Brian W. M. Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0186 A Brief Word From Johnn Reader’s Tips Contest Winners Here are the randomly selected winners of the Reader’s Tips contest. Congrats and thanks again for the great entries– they’re already starting to appear in ezine issues. Bob W [Bob_W…@irco.com] Staves of AscendanceCharlie B [charlieb…@charter.net] Roleplaying Tips CDD […]

3 Tips For Writing And Running Adventures

From Dariel R. A. Quiogue Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0175 A Brief Word From Johnn Wilderness Encounters Status Report A quick update on the publication of wilderness encounters content entries. The editing work is coming along nicely, but I didn’t hit the deadline for this week’s issue, so it will be at least one more issue […]

11 Tips For Creating Character-Centered Subplots

From Mark L. Chance Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0151 A Brief Word From Johnn A Good Fantasy Novel Even though overtime at work has put a serious cramp on my recreational activities these days, I still had time to finish an excellent book that I’d like to recommend to you. It’s called “The Curse Of Chalion” […]

135 NPC Side-Plots

Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0148 A Brief Word From Johnn Supplemental Issues Available By Autoresponder I had a few subscribers write in and ask how to get the various Supplemental Issues that have been released to date. Please find a complete list below. These issues are available by autoresponder, which means you just send a blank […]

Exit Stage Left: How To Plot Your Villain’s Demise

Roleplaying Tips Newsletter #0028 A Brief Word From Johnn I would like to personally welcome all of the new subscribers to Roleplaying Tips Weekly over the past few days – we’re glad to have you as part of the newsletter. Please feel free to share your tips and tricks with us. Send your favourite villain […]