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	<title>At-The-Table &#8211; Campaign Mastery</title>
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	<link>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog</link>
	<description>Expert advice on creating and running exceptional campaigns. Winner,&#160;Silver&#160;Ennie 2016 for Best RPG Blog!</description>
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	<title>At-The-Table &#8211; Campaign Mastery</title>
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		<title>The Making Of Complex Newness</title>
		<link>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/the-making-of-complex-newness/</link>
					<comments>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/the-making-of-complex-newness/#comments</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mike Bourke]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sat, 28 Feb 2026 06:33:33 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[D&D / Pathfinder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Game Mastering]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Game Philosophy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mike]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Zenith-3 (Original system based on Hero System 4th Ed)]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/?p=54887</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[A process for designing &#038; constructing big or complex things, from spells to magic items, castles to space stations, industrial processes to political campaigns, new chemistries to better TVs and AC systems, using something every RPG already has. The real world caught up with me somewhat in the course of writing this article &#8211; I [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
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			<slash:comments>12</slash:comments>
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">54887</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Out Of The Blue: Thinking about Thinking</title>
		<link>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/out-of-the-blue-thinking-about-thinking/</link>
					<comments>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/out-of-the-blue-thinking-about-thinking/#comments</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mike Bourke]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 15 Sep 2025 14:00:25 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Campaign Management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[D&D / Pathfinder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Game Mastering]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mike]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NPCs & Villains & Monsters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PCs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Players]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The End Of The Rainbow]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tools & Techniques]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Metagaming & Metagame Theory]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[All Genres]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Advice/Tools]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Campaigns]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Play]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Player-Goals]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Running-Encounters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[D&D]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Metagaming]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/?p=54448</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Can thoughts pass from one dimension or reality to another? In the real world, no, so far as we know, but the realities our games create have no such limitations &#8211; so let&#8217;s examine the concept further. Certainly, it can seem that way when a radical concept floats into your head, seemingly from nowhere. In [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
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			<slash:comments>4</slash:comments>
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">54448</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>The Scope of Space</title>
		<link>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/the-scope-of-space/</link>
					<comments>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/the-scope-of-space/#comments</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mike Bourke]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 05 May 2025 14:22:00 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Game Mastering]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mike]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Superhero Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[SciFi & Space Opera Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PCs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rules & Mechanics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The End Of The Rainbow]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Vehicles]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[At-The-Table]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Campaign-Setting]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Campaigns]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Game-Mechanics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Plausibility]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NPCs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sci-Fi]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Superhero games]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/?p=54059</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Many authors have tried to explain how vast space, and the universe contained within it, really are, usually with less than total success, though with each attempt, some few are reached. This is both something that Sci-Fi GMs need to understand and yet, often hand-wave. I have thought of another approach, one that is strictly [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
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			<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">54059</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Order In The Sandbox</title>
		<link>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/order-in-the-sandbox/</link>
					<comments>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/order-in-the-sandbox/#comments</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mike Bourke]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 24 Jun 2024 14:00:28 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Campaign Creation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Campaign Management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[D&D / Pathfinder]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Mike]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[PCs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Planning & Preparation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Players]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The End Of The Rainbow]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tools & Techniques]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Writing & Authoring & The Games Industry]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[World Design]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fumanor/One Faith (D&D 3.5)]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fumanor/Seeds Of Empire (D&D 3.5)]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[All Genres]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Adventure-Prep]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[At-The-Table]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Campaigns]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Inspiration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[D&D]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NPCs]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/?p=51403</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Today, I get to focus on one of my favorite subjects, campaign structure! There are lots of choices out there, but today I&#8217;m going to focus on one that I don&#8217;t use all that often, the improv sandbox. This article was prompted by something I saw on the screenwriter&#8217;s blog that I linked to an [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
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			<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">51403</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Graffiti On The Tabula Rasa</title>
		<link>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/graffiti-on-the-tabula-rasa/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mike Bourke]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 13 Dec 2021 13:00:26 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[D&D / Pathfinder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Game Mastering]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mike]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NPCs & Villains & Monsters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Planning & Preparation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Players]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The End Of The Rainbow]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Adventure-Prep]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[At-The-Table]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Behind-The-Screen]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Campaigns]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DM-Advice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Inspiration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[D&D]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pathfinder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Adventure-Creation]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/?p=34820</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[It doesn&#8217;t happen to me very often that I have to create an encounter or an adventure on the spot out of whole cloth with no design prep. In fact, many of the processes, practices, and habits that I have formulated and inculcated over the years are explicitly designed to ensure (as much as humanly [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">34820</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>A Long Road &#8211; Zenith-3 Notes for all Pt 1</title>
		<link>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/a-long-road-1/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mike Bourke]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 25 Oct 2021 13:23:25 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Campaign Management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[D&D / Pathfinder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Game Mastering]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mike]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Zenith-3 (Original system based on Hero System 4th Ed)]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Superhero Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NPCs & Villains & Monsters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PCs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Planning & Preparation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Players]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The End Of The Rainbow]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Writing & Authoring & The Games Industry]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[World Design]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Metagaming & Metagame Theory]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Spy & Secret Agent Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Adventure-Prep]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[At-The-Table]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Campaign-Background]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Campaigns]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DM-Advice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Game-Administration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Inspiration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Plausibility]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Player-Goals]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Campaign-Admin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[D&D]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cultures-&-Societies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tools & Techniques]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NPCs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pathfinder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sci-Fi]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Adventure-Creation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Resources]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/?p=34018</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[This article started out as a way to save time and at the same time present some tips and tricks that often get overlooked in my scramble to get material ready for publication here. It was also intended (originally) to be part of last week&#8217;s 1000th-post celebration &#8211; so there are certain themes that will [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
		
		<series:name><![CDATA[Zenith-3 synopsis &amp; notes]]></series:name>
<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">34018</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>The Integration Of Action</title>
		<link>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/the-integration-of-action/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mike Bourke]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 05 Apr 2021 14:00:30 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Campaign Management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[D&D / Pathfinder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Game Mastering]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mike]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NPCs & Villains & Monsters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PCs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Planning & Preparation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tools & Techniques]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Metagaming & Metagame Theory]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Adventure-Prep]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[At-The-Table]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Behind-The-Screen]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Campaign-Background]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Campaigns]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DM-Advice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Encounter-Design]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Players]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Running-Encounters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[D&D]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NPCs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pathfinder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sci-Fi]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Adventure-Creation]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/?p=30425</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Integration. What does that mean, exactly? Well, in mathematical terms, it means &#8211; essentially &#8211; accumulation of results from designated start point to designated end-point. In social terms, it roughly translates to incorporating or mixing one thing with another so well that the results appear completely uniform and consistent. Both are on speaking terms with [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">30425</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>RPGs In Technicolor, Part 2a: Supplemental Afterthoughts</title>
		<link>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/rpgs-in-technicolor-part-2a-afterthoughts/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mike Bourke]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 26 Nov 2020 06:03:07 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[D&D / Pathfinder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Game Mastering]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mike]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NPCs & Villains & Monsters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Planning & Preparation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tools & Techniques]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Writing & Authoring & The Games Industry]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Adventure-Prep]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Advice/Tools]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[At-The-Table]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Campaign-Setting]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Game-Mastery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Players]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[D&D]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NPCs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pathfinder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Writing]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/?p=29107</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[I was really pressed for time when I wrote Part 2 of this 1-2 treatment of the subject, and as a result a couple of things that I wanted to write about got kind of lost in the shuffle. They aren&#8217;t enough to really stand as a full post on their own, so I&#8217;m sneaking [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
		
		<series:name><![CDATA[RPGs In Technicolor]]></series:name>
<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">29107</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>The Inversion Substitution: Quick Characterization</title>
		<link>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/the-inversion-substitution/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mike Bourke]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 01 Jun 2020 13:59:46 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[D&D / Pathfinder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Game Mastering]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mike]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fantasy Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Horror Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pulp Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Superhero Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[SciFi & Space Opera Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Western Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NPCs & Villains & Monsters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The End Of The Rainbow]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tools & Techniques]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Writing & Authoring & The Games Industry]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cyberpunk]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mystery & Detective Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pirate/Swashbuckling Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Spy & Secret Agent Games]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Steampunk]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[At-The-Table]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Behind-The-Screen]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DM-Advice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Game-Mastery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Inspiration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Running-Encounters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[D&D]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NPCs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pathfinder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Writing]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/?p=28078</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[It&#8217;s happened to us all at some point: the adventure has sidetracked down an unexpected alleyway and brought the PCs face-to-face with a character that you&#8217;ve made up on the spot. When this happens, you&#8217;re generally thinking only in physical terms, at least in the immediate term; that is because the first interaction that the [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">28078</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>A Matter Of Trust: 14 ways to prevent inter-party conflict</title>
		<link>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/a-matter-of-trust-14-ways/</link>
					<comments>https://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/a-matter-of-trust-14-ways/#comments</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mike Bourke]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 18 Nov 2019 13:01:27 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Beginners]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Campaign Management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[D&D / Pathfinder]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Mike]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Rewards]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[House-Rules]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Campaign-Background]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Campaigns]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DM-Advice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Game-Mechanics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Play]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Races]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Cultures-&-Societies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pathfinder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[XP]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.campaignmastery.com/blog/?p=25917</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Rite Of Passage There&#8217;s one experience that used to be common to almost every GM out there &#8211; the party being betrayed by one of its members and the GM expected to make sense out of the situation before it killed the campaign. It often started, in the AD&#038;D days, with the Thief in the [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
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			<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">25917</post-id>	</item>
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