Campaign Mastery

William Wiese asks the GMs, “I’ve been trying to think of different ways to implement puzzles into the game and to find some that are not riddles.”

Johnn’s answer:
Puzzles are tricky beasts, William. And thanks for the question; it’s a good one.
Tricky bit #1
My tips below will assume your group is ok with using players’ intelligence [...]

I took the picture to the right last night just before we ate them. They came from the first garden I’ve had in about a decade, and the first garden veggies we’ve grown since moving to Edmonton. A minor theme in my Riddleport campaign is handling most of the creation ourselves, as a group. The [...]

Q-Workshop sent me some lovely Pathfinder Curse of the Crimson Throne dice. These dice are beautiful and they made me think of politics, which then made me think about plots where an NPC or PC has been framed for a serious crime they did not commit along with clever use of spells as the punishment.
What [...]

Wise words for game masters. Authors are advised to always show, never tell. So too it is with gameplay, where more fun comes from playing things out than listening to a GM drone on.
Next time you are about to start a monologue, stop and put the game back in player hands. Do this by setting [...]

In my article about how to be a confident game master, I mentioned I have encounter seeds ready during games that I categorise as break down the door. Campaign Mastery reader Will asked to see what these were, so here they are. Thanks for the request, Will!
If gameplay slows, or if I get stuck for [...]

How to tell compelling stories about your campaign to non-gamers.
This month’s RPG carnival, held at Mad Brew Labs, covers the topic of growing the hobby.
Topics of new player recruitment and teaching come to mind. We might also consider the industry’s image, how game companies market their products, which companies get shelf space in book stores [...]

Why have different languages in an RPG? How can they be used to enhance a story? And what’s wrong with Universal Translators, anyway?

I have a question about using languages in fantasy RPGs. There are numerous articles and advice out there on how to create fictitious languages and make them sound realistic or add verisimilitude to [...]

I love the idea of Dungeonaday.com. I use a laptop at the game table, Personal Brain software to organize my campaign, email to organize my group, and an iPad to generate content. I’m all about digital. Yet, I still have book cases filled with beloved RPG books, box sets, modules and maps. I have a [...]

Thanks to all the bloggers and commentators who participated in June’s carnival about what non-game media have most inspired your games and how. I was surprised by the variety of answers. I think there’s an idea or three here for any GM’s tastes. Good job everyone!
Lizard Games was inspired by the clone wars, which were [...]

To celebrate upcoming Issue #500 for Roleplaying Tips we’re holding a contest.
RPT reader Daniel at www.steamcrow.com said we should do 500 of something, such as 500 random city encounters. That’s pretty ambitious, but it sounds like a great idea. Let’s do it.
I’ve got some prizes lined up, as well, to further celebrate.
How We’ll Get [...]