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Award-Winning GMing Advice

Gnome Stew won the silver ENnie Award for Best Blog in 2011 and 2010 -- thank you for your support! Online since 2008, we've published 1,109 articles packed with GMing tips and advice, as well as two books for GMs. Our top 30 articles make a great starting point for new readers.

"I check Gnome Stew every day." -- Monte Cook
"fantastic blog for game masters, dungeon masters, and rpg fans" -- Wil Wheaton
"If you aren’t reading Gnome Stew, you’re missing out." -- Wolfgang Baur

May 26, 2011 by 5

Seeds and Kernels

Game ideas come from the strangest places. I'm currently working out details for a new campaign--and I think I've stumbled on a few interesting elements that apply more generally. One big element that I'm considering is how much I want to work out before the players come to the table--do I create a detailed world with 80 pages of history, detailed maps, and several detailed alphabets? Do I ...
Jul 29, 2009 by 13

Challenge Em – Get Your Players To Feel The Challenge In Your Game

Scarecrow dropped this little nugget into the Gnome Stew Suggestion Pot, and it’s a great topic. Someplace I think we’ve all been as GMs. "Last night I finally ran my first game of Star Wars Saga. Everything was in place. I knew the rules, I knew the scenario. I was ready for them to fail as well as succeed. I was prepared to ...
Jun 10, 2008 by 16

GMs Should be Raging Kleptomaniacs

When it comes to your campaign, if you come across something you like -- an idea, a character from a novel you're reading, a cool scene from a movie -- steal it and use it in your game. Period. There is absolutely no reason to be bashful about shamelessly borrowing and stealing elements from any source under the sun. If you like it and you think your players will ...

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Metagaming, Noooo

It's why you always kill the grand vizier.