I don't think any sane individual could write something like BIND without automation tools. Games with a similar scope require a team. (BIND also requires a team - everyone who's joined to comment, edit, or draw, has improved the game immensely, but that's not today's topic) Step Five A lot of people imagine they could …

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One Reddit comment described the problem of using Mana Points in an RPG (as opposed to spell slots): If it's a game with more-or-less d20 fantasy or JRPG video game progression, then it's very difficult to find a cost for an ability early in the game that feels worth the price when you have max 8 mp that doesn't seem …

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One beef I've had in games is a chonky source book which says 'changelings do this', and 'always describe the traps, don't just say 1D6 trap-damage', and then expecting the reader to create the world in adherence to these principles. "How about you do your job and write this into the adventure modules?", I find myself …

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The Problem I just wanted to rock up to the table and start the game, but the DM had other ideas. He wanted all of us to write a character back-story. Having three jobs at the time, I didn't feel enamoured with my homework. The little story meant a hurdle to jump over to get to the actual game. But let me back-up and …

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The old A,D&D Ravenloft modules were some cheesy shite. Even the most sullen and macabre Goth in Gotham couldn't extract a nugget of honest fear from the campy Hammer Horror rip-offs. But we loved them. Why? Ravenloft began with Dracula-but-with-hitpoints, then added wagons of gypsies carrying plot, Frankenstein's …

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My third BIND campaign ended in glorious disaster and nonsense which forced me to reforge magic. Lax Theory I had a magic system with a bit of metamagic 'bend', where people could do basic spells (fwoosh, fire!) then add a little metamagic to boost literally any spell (fwshhHHH FIREBALL!). No more 'control person', …

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My RPG games follow a format which avoids railroading, without any need for elaborate settings or difficult NPC relations. I call it 'story weaving', because it lets me stretch the metaphor. Railroads are Inevitable For all the complaints about railroading, computer games suffer from railroads far more than RPG …

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Here is a silver piece, old woman. Now tell me my fortune! What will I see on the road? An ogre awaits you on the road. Keep your eyes open, and your bow strung! No need! We planned to take the South road to town, but we can switch to the West instead, and avoid the ogre entirely. Foolish man! The ogre lies in your …

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A,D&D gave monsters random treasures like this: Type Gold Silver Copper Scroll Potion Magical Item S 100-600 1-10 - - - - P 100-800 100-400 - 20% 15% - The system goes like this: The players randomly encountered an Owlbear. It has 'Treasure type P'. The DM then rolls 1D8 x 100, and determined that it has 200 cp in its …

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People who want to work with others on an RPG naturally tend towards Google docs. It seems so easy. They send the link out, people make edit suggestions, and you click 'approve' or 'deny'. Everyone's generating spells, and spelling corrections at 100 kph, and it all looks great. Git, meanwhile, looks like a …

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