Author: Walt Ciechanowski

Last night I did something that was very difficult as a Game Master; I ended a short campaign while the excitement was still high. There were some logistical reasons for this, but the main reason was that I’d pitched it as a mini-campaign and, in spite of a desire to continue, I stuck to my guns and ended it on a high note. Everyone involved knows we’ll be picking the game up in another month or two. My inspiration for the ‘recurring series’ came from…

Many moons ago, when an old Hollywood actor was serving his first term in the White House and Han Solo was frozen in carbonite, I learned how to play Dungeons & Dragons (Moldvay) with an older friend. He ended up being Dungeon Master most of the time; I only filled in when he was unavailable or I wanted to run a new published adventure that I’d just purchased. Martin’s recent article caused me to reflect that it was my first GM, rather than any setting,…

When left to my own devices, I generally run “character-based” campaigns that follow a drama television series model. They tend to focus on a single location such as a seaside town, a city, a feudal manor, or a starship, and involve numerous interactions between player characters and a supporting cast. It’s little wonder, then, that I’d eventually find my way to the Smallville roleplaying game. The details of my particular campaign don’t matter (it centers on Gotham City for those of you that are curious),…

It’s time for the next (and, depending on some interpretations of the Mayan calendar, last) Gen Con update! This year was spectacular for the Gnomies, as we took gold ENnies for Best Blog and Masks! It’s truly a humbling experience to meet many great GMs that enjoy our website. It was great to see my fellow Gnomies again, albeit only briefly, and I always leave Gen Con wishing I’d had more time. I was Cubicle 7′s event organizer this time around, so I was pretty…

One of the problems, especially with larger groups, in playing in certain genres is that you can’t run the kinds of stories that really only work with a single Alpha player character. It’s hard, for example, to run a battle of wits between Batman and the Joker when Batman always has to bring along Superman, Wonder Woman, the Flash, and Green Lantern. Similarly, it’s difficult to run standard Doctor Who adventures with the equivalent of ‘the Five Doctors’ appearing each episode. Even in games where…

John’s article on running campaigns with no experience point (XP) advancement presents an interesting issue for those of us that model campaigns like television series. In many series, there’s little actual development; the PCs are capable out of the gate, and advancement is generally limited to story arcs or romantic or professional subplots. When a PC “upgrade” does occur, it usually happens once a season. Players, however, have an expectation of growth, even if it means that the PCs outgrow the adventures you’ve been running.…

How are your Gnew Year Resolutions coming? It’s been 3 months since the last update, so it’s time to see how some of the Gnomies have progressed: John: My resolution was to be more mindful of prep this year. The one big game I ran, and a few smaller games at conventions, all saw me prepping a lot more than I usually do. I still had to improvise in the games when things went off the path I’d prepped for, but I had a much…