Game-Changers – GGG Looks at Alternate Ways to End Combat in an RPG

Battle

Combat is an integral part of many RPGs. In some, it’s a necessary evil. In others, like D&D, it’s an exciting part of the game. Sometimes, the PCs are facing truly evil and villainous foes that need to be wiped from the face of your campaign world. Sometimes, however, you want to have a battle end in something other than a complete massacre of one side or another. What if the PCs are facing honorable foes who’ve been duped into fighting them? Or what if they’re facing foes who … [Read more...]

She Kills Monsters – GGG Reviews a New Piece of Geek Theater

ENTB_SheKillsreview_0418

I had a completely different article I intended to share, but then, yesterday (April 26), I saw a performance that made me stop what I was doing and write this article. The performance was of She Kills Monsters, a play by New York playwright Qui Nguyen. This was a great play and a fantastic performance. It’s been a long time since I laughed out loud so hard at a play, and I also found myself choked up a couple of times. The play had some twists and turns that were predictable, and others … [Read more...]

School Daze Class Project: The West Side Story Fiasco

schooldaze

I had the pleasure of running the School Daze RPG for a table of wonderful gamers at Labyrinth Games in Washington, DC this past weekend. Labyrinth is our FLGS... even though they're way less "L" than other gaming stores, we make the drive for their extreme "F"ness! <3 Since I'm still a relatively green GM and this was my first time running School Daze, I opted to make partial pre-gen characters. Should you be wanting to run your own School Daze one-shot, feel free to steal my … [Read more...]

Professional Geek Girl: Are You Making These Money Mistakes?

So you want to get rich through gaming, huh? Yeah, good luck with that. The fact is, the RPG business is no place for people who are in it for the money. Sure, the occasional Kickstarter blows up, or a book sells far more than anyone dreamed, but most of that Kickstarter money is going to everything from production to logistics, and the chances of your project becoming the next Fate or Savage Worlds aren't great. Relatively few people are lucky enough to make the gaming industry their … [Read more...]

Professional Geek Girl: Breaking In as a Graphic Designer

dice

Editor's Note: Welcome to Tiara Lynn Agresta, our industry geek girl for 2013! She's our third guest columnist, following Jennifer Brozek and Monica Valentinelli. And we've switched from writers to graphic design! Enjoy, all you designerds! One of the first things I learned when I first dipped my toe in the pool that is the hobby gaming industry is that I am not an RPG designer. This was news to me. I've worked as a designer in ad agencies, the corporate world and as a freelancer … [Read more...]

Big World Same as Small World – Four Life-Learnings from LARPing

UntitledLARP

Hullo, gentle readers. I hope you’re all enjoying your holiday season as much as I am. As I mentioned before, the main reason for my hiatus was because I was deeply involved in running my Lovecraft Legacies LARP. At various times during the running of this LARP, I reflecting on how my LARPing style has been affected by my real life work, and how my real life has been affected by things I’ve learned during my LARPing. Here, then, are five things that have grown from my LARPing to inform my … [Read more...]

Tech Support – GGG Ponders on the Role Technology Has Taken in Running RPGs

ComputerRPG

Hullo, gentle readers! Your GGG is back! I’ve been absolutely consumed with working on a Lovecraftian Horror LARP, so I took a month long leave of absence. I’m very pleased to be back, though, and the experience made me think a lot about potential articles to share with you all. One of the nice things about this event was that I got to see two friends that I hadn’t seen in years. He hasn’t LARPed in years, and after the game, he told me that, in response to one of our effects, he’d … [Read more...]

D&D The Next Generation – GGG Gives Tips for Gaming with Kids

Kids

Hullo, Gentle Readers. Something you may not know about me is that, although I have no kids of my own, I have a long history of running D&D games for kids. I’ve run for my nephew, for Steve’s 14 year old cousin, for my high school friend’s son and his friends, for a group of kids at a local gaming store, and so on. Although many of those games have been one-shots, I’ve also gamemastered some campaigns that ran for a few years. It was fascinating to watch those kids grow up as the … [Read more...]

Most Rewarding – GGG Looks at the Concept of Alternative Treasures in RPGs

coin

There’s definitely something to be said for the classic moment of the heroes receiving their reward in heroic fiction. When Bilbo and the Thirteen Dwarves find the troll treasure hoard in The Hobbit, it’s an iconic scene. There’s no detailed description of the treasure, but we find out there are all kinds of treasures, “from brass buttons to pots full of gold coins” and that there were “several swords of various makes, shapes, and sizes.” The Dwarves, who’re after their … [Read more...]

Freelancing and Marketing: Adventure to Dice Castle

A friend of mine once told me he felt calling himself a freelancer was akin to being unemployed. I disagree! Often, when you work on contract it’s not unusual to have gaps in assignments. During the time you’re not writing or designing, however, you’ll spend your hours searching for new contracts, getting caught up on administrivia, and reconnecting with your contacts. As anybody who’s ever experienced job turmoil knows, looking for work is a job in and of itself. However, there is a … [Read more...]