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
It’s safe to say that I’m a bit of an easy sell when it comes to miniatures. Every time I go into a game store, I buy dice or miniatures from their bargain bin. The fantasy games I generally play call for odd or unique minis, so your standard knight in armor rarely works, especially when I need minis to represent the vast array of unique enemy personalities. ...
What’s the Crock Pot? Just a simmering bowl of lentils and herbs, with a dash of GMing observations. Don’t be afraid to dip in your ladle and stir, or throw in something from your own spice rack.
We've had so many fine suggestions in the Stew lately about how to apply templates to your game prep. DNA Phil wrote about his goals in this regard ...
On my last post about running an Improv game, Toldain asked if I could share my setup for Improv games. Since I run a lot of convention games, I thought the best way to share the setup would be to do a photo filled post showing exactly what is in my setup.
It all starts with a box . . .
THE BOX
I usually carry a courier bag to conventions, ...
Seasons greetings and happy holidays to all this fine Christmas Day! To show our appreciation to you, our dear readers, we Gnomes are giving you a gift for being such dedicated devourers of the stew!
Here is our gift to you. Enjoy!
What did I get? What did I get?
Your gift is a zip file with the files needed for you to create your own tokens (or pogs) to use ...
If you've been carefully combing over our website every hour or so like a loyal gnome, and for shame if you haven't, you noticed that yesterday we had a new download available.
Gnome Stew is proud to present our Print and Fold Gnome Miniatures!
We received an e-mail late September from one of our servicemen. One of the things we discussed with him was good sources for inexpensive minis. Never ...
My group is currently playing a D&D 4th Edition campaign, and I love having lots of accessories in front of me when I play. I have a couple hundred D&D Miniatures from past sets, and they rock -- for the price, they simply can't be beat. And I've been using fan-made power cards, printed out on cardstock, ever since we started our campaign.
As a GM, I like any ...
Chances are good that as a GM, you've heard about Tact-Tiles (often mis-identified as Tac-Tiles): modular, interlocking dry-erase boards with built-in 1" grids suitable for use with miniatures. And if you're lucky enough to have bought a set while they were still being produced, you guard them with your life.
I've used my set more or less constantly for over three years, and every single person I've gamed with ...
He's a regular Becky HomeEc-y
I like doing crafts. You're more likely to see me in a Michael's, a Hobby Lobby or even the paint section at Wal-Mart as you are at a game store. I guess I'm always looking for creative outlets. And painting the 25mm metal miniatures used in roleplaying games is just one way I express myself.
Land of the Lilliputians
In fact, the most interesting aspect of ...
With D&D 4e out (and looking awesome so far), I wanted to start building a collection of prepainted fantasy minis for future use. While I plan to buy some boosters as well, I figured I'd kick things off by ordering a host of cheap minis for representing PCs. Even if creatures get counters instead, it's always cool when the PCs have their own minis.
Back when I was collecting ...
