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
As part of our holiday-themed entry during the Gnome Stew break, here’s a rundown of building your own Excelsior-class (refit) starship as a Christmas gift and prop for your Star Trek game. What? Doesn’t everyone do this?
The building of a 50 year old starship from a 15 year old model in pictures.
I will confess to two great passions — among many — that include Star Trek and gaming. ...
Previously we've spent time discussing the potential for the use of the iPad as a GM's tool, the applications, accessories, and potential workflow. Now, bringing it all together, we're happy to demonstrate the iPad in action and give you a glimpse of what's possible.
It's important to also keep in mind that as of this writing, the iPad has only been out for six days. Not to provide excuses ...
In this second installment of the features and utility of the iPad in tabletop gaming, we’ll spend some time on accessories, the true “killer app” for the device, and what your typical in-game workflow could look like. Read on!
In case you hadn’t heard, Apple released another life-changing device this weekend, the near-mythical iPad. There exist any number of reviews that can answer your general questions as to whether the iPad has a place in your life, but fortunately for you our crack team of gnome engineers have been putting the device through its paces and show how the iPad might change the way you run your ...
This past weekend I just finished running a medium length campaign for my group. The game had been a play test and world-building project. The group travelled far and wide across the world and grew to great heights of notoriousness . . . uh, I meant fame. A couple of sessions before the projected finish of the campaign, a few members of the group told me how much ...
When you're watching an episodic TV show (think Lost), who does everything happen to? The main cast.
And who drives the action when things aren't happening to them? The main cast.
The same should be true in your campaign (which, in a lot of cases, resembles an episodic TV show more than most other types of media): Whenever something worth playing out at the table happens, it should happen to ...
There are awesome moments in the game: A critical that drops the rampaging dragon, dodging the sorcerer's lightning bolt, or seducing the noble woman so your companions can make their escape unnoticed. There are moments in the game when the character fails in a way that isn't fun, or even breaks the table's suspension of belief-- like the ranger who can't shoot anything with his bow tonight, the ...
