Create Your Memory Dungeon
I recently read about a memorization technique called Memory Palace, also called Method of loci. It helps you memorize lists and facts. Dungeons are more my style than fancy palaces. So today let’s look at how this quick memory hack can help you prep faster and run adventures better. We Think Story Our brains are […]
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Drama People Versus Object People
Did you know I collect world views? Weird, I know. A world view is the lens through which a person sees. It’s how they interpret what they experience. For example, I found an article with accompanying infographic on how the wealthy view the world differently than people in poverty. One world view difference is food. […]
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The Problem With Realism Is…
Imagination. I remember a monster I built to guard a 5 Room Dungeon. It was a bit of a platypus. It spun webs and spit poison. It could climb. It could magically blink. It turned out quite effective and my players got snarky about it. They thought the monster was from a book and they […]
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Play the Infinite Game
A small book that has made a big impression on my gaming is Finite and Infinite Games by James P. Carse. It’s a philosophy that analyses two types of games. Finite games, like Monopoly and Risk, have a clear start and end. Infinite games, like some campaign-style RPGs, do not have a definite ending. The […]
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Don’t Beat Yourself Up
RPT Patron A. asked me this question last week: Tell me more about how you rate yourself fairly without demotivating yourself, I could use that. The context of this request is a Musing I published that talks about doing post-session assessments of your GMing. And A. wants to know how to do this without being […]
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Who’s Fault Is It? Yours?
RPT GM Duane V. asked me this interesting question about the responsibility of the GM: Hi Johnn. I was reading your latest DM Tips and a question that has bugged me for a while popped into my mind. In politics, we blame the leader if things go badly; in sport, we blame the coach; in […]
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Three Dumb GM Habits I Need To Break
I have three dumb GMing habits I have to break. I’ve even written about these before. But it’s good to have a reminder because they creep back into my games over time. Maybe you have these habits too? My Precious I hold too much information back. Imagine trekking across dangerous lands, delving into dark depths, […]
Continue readingThe GM’s Ten Commandments: GM vs. Players
RPT GM Krys sent me this article on The GM’s Ten Commandments. While an old article from 1987, it still has some good advice. The first of Volny’s commandments made me stop and reflect: Do not consider the players as adversaries “If the players quickly neutralize or bypass these clever entrapments, the GM often has […]
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The Haunted Mansion Savage Experience – Intriguing GMing Tips Gleaned From A Con, Part 3
The third game I played at the recent IntrigueCon was the scariest.Haunted Mansion was a homebrew one-shot using the Savage Worlds (aff.) rules.
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The Box You Put Them In Is A Trap
I had an interesting email chat with a Roleplaying Tips GM about a cheating player.
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Tap Into This For Deeper Gameplay
RPT GM Robert Creedon sent me an email in response to my Three Part Quest Template. In it he had a great tip that got my wheels turning.
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Feed Off Your School of Magic
I did something weird a couple weekends ago.I relaxed.I normally get up early to write or work on something Roleplaying Tips related. Then I do the day job. Then I work on emails for a bit in the evening.
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Your First Idea Sucks
Why do we fear improv?In my experience, GMing by the seat of your pants means facing embarrassment and frustration because of?
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