setting element Archives - Page 6 of 7

November 4, 2007

Cyberpunk PCs

What sort of PCs should be playable in a cyberpunk game? I plan on doing a survey of the cyberpunk-type RPGs that I have around, but I want to ask the question before I really look into what other games have done. One place to find an answer is to look at Cyberpunk literature and stories. You should be able...

October 18, 2007

This one’s for Jeff…

I was going through some of my old AD&D stuff and I came across an old map that I must have drawn sometime in the 1980s. I figured I’d post it. I’m particularly amused by The Waterbreach, which is clearly artificial. .. and by the fact that this was drawn on continuous-feed paper.

October 15, 2007

Lessons from history

My last post got me thinking about using sites of real-life coolness as gaming inspiration. I’ve done this in the past (a few times, but I am just going to write about one today). Once upon a time, I lived in Washington, D.C. (in the Dupont Circle area, for those of you who know D.C.). I ran a large and...

October 5, 2007

Food in RPGs, Part II

Food can help define cultures, continued…. Once you associate different foods with specific cultures, you have another tool in your GMing palette. If your PCs walk into an area, they can be assaulted by familiar smells that might give them a clue about what they are dealing with. Once you establish, for instance, that kobolds like to soak their meat...

October 5, 2007

Food in RPGs, Part I

I like food. I enjoy cooking, and I am not too shabby at it, either. Last weekend I made borscht. I also broke out the ice cream maker for the first time and made some donut-flavored ice cream. (My housemate had been craving donuts, and it was her birthday on Monday.) I belong to a CSA. I read some food...

May 2, 2007

NPC tactical guides

So, this morning, Jeff posted some stupid Dracula tricks. I should probably just post this as a comment in his blog, but… ummm… I didn’t. So there. Unless you’ve already read it, that won’t make sense, so let me explain. This past Sunday, Jeff ran Lords of Creation for the C-U Run Club. If you are curious to know what...

April 26, 2007

d20 Monster of the Week: Underhill Devourer

As promised, here is the Underhill Devourer. This is a fey that adapted (degenerated?) to life underground. It has come to play a significant role in supporting the underground ecosystem by producing green plants where they are not otherwise able to grow. The material enclosed in the box below is released via the Open Game License. Underhill Devourer Size/Type: Medium...

April 23, 2007

d20 Monster of the Week

In honor of Earth Day this week, I’m going to give you a double-fey-feature. Unfortunately, work is crazy and I haven’t written them yet. I do, however, know what they’ll be. First, we have the Underhill Lurker. This is your typical boogeyman who lives under a hill. I’m thinking it will be an incorporeal fey who lures victims to its...

April 23, 2007

Gourm Sneak Preview

Enough panic this morning. Here is some content. I’ve alluded to a project that I’ve been working on that involves an adventure. The adventure? The Goblins of Gourm. The project? A goblin-based city-book, The City of Gourm. These aren’t your standard goblins. These goblins: live in a rotating city made of brass and bamboo worship a mechanical god-king pursue an...

February 22, 2007

Cool Tool: Town Generator

I haven’t looked at the other generators on the site yet, but Justin “Quirk” Dunmyre’s Town Generator is impressive. It comes up with tons of NPCs, each with a names, race/class/level, gender, and distinguishing characteristic. It also generates taverns, stores, and shops of various sorts, each with staff and notes about the shop’s peculiarities. Obviously, it doesn’t go into depth,...

Neitherworld Stories

Tag: setting element