25.png
 

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 1,110 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

Jul 28, 2010 by 12

Sticking to the Core

One problem that usually comes with GMing any successful RPG line  is rules bloat. Unless you're running Call of Cthulhu (and I'm certain there are others), your successful RPG probably has several splatbooks that increase player character options. While many of these options are inspiring and help flesh out characters, they also tend to create headaches in terms of game balance, especially when you forget that Encounter #17 ...
Dec 1, 2008 by 28

GameWars

WOPR: "Would you like to play a game?"It is the beginning of a new millennium.  The anointed champions of the two greatest empires in existence square off for what may be the decisive battle for superiority. Rumors fly as the two champions and their massive armies prepare to take the field.  In the supersaturated environment, conjecture morphs into assumption nearly overnight, and the fans quickly divide into two camps, ...

,

What's Gnome Stew?

Written by a team of veteran GMs, Gnome Stew is the most widely read game mastering blog on the planet.

Subscribe

3,945 subscribers strong. Let us send Gnome Stew articles your way via RSS feed or email.

Our Books for GMs

Written by the authors of Gnome Stew, Eureka offers 501 system-neutral adventure plots and Masks provides 1,000 system-neutral NPCs.

Support

Click one of these links, shop normally, and we earn a small percentage (at no cost to you).

Connect

Tell us how we can make your time behind the GM's screen easier and more fun.

More Delicious Stew

The only good gnome is a stewed gnome.

Gnomish Stuff

Other things you'll find in the Stew.

Metagaming, Noooo

It's why you always kill the grand vizier.