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And what if the GM is a newbie, too?

Which, initially, is an argument against D20 System. That is, at some point, every RPer is familiar with zero RPG systems, so the simpler a ruleset is, presumably the quicker it can be learned, and then mastered. Obviously, the ruleset you already know is the one you know the best. But that's a...

Alternate [n.b.: not necessarily "better"] solution: play a system that is lite enough that you don't have to scramble to look up a rule. Ever. 'Cause they're not there. Huh. My only real frustration with Arcana Unearthed (which fixes many of my problems with D&D3E) is precisely that it seems...

Oh, about as often as you see druids, bards, and shaolin monks in the same setting as knights in heavy armor. No, they don't all go together. Neither do the classes they did give us. But they're fairly general fantasy archetypes, certainly as common as street thugs and warrior priests. It's...

My roommate is getting married and moving far, far away. As a sort of parting gift, i'd like to give her and her husband a chance to game, and maybe the beginnings of a social network, so they're less on their own. They will be living in Oceanside, CA, and he will be stationed at Camp Pendleton...

You missed my point: WotC doesn't have a take on those archetypes (at least in the core rulebooks). My point is that they're so common and central to fantasy that it is appalling that you have to kludge or turn to other sources to fulfill them. And, therefore, describing them as superfluous or...

As a GM, i agree wholeheartedly. But why should i pay for that? I want something either better-researched, or more-original, than "sort of like <insert real-world culture here>". You want to draw on real-world cultures? Do it at least to the depth of Ars Magica or HarnWorld. Otherwise, be...

Not showing for a game you're signed up for is just plain rude. Every year, we are unable to run a couple games because not enough people show up--and they're inevitably the "full" games [that is, all tickets sold]. If you're not planning to show up, don't sign up, so that someone else can sign...

First i ever heard of beardless female dwarves was D&D3E. I don't think AD&D2 said one way or the other (at least in the PH), so we just assumed it was the same as AD&D1 (i.e., bearded).

Well, your later post sort of elaborated why it's not a sensible business move. But, from a content standpoint, let me just say this: the further your stuff strays from D&D3E, the better i think it is. And Monte Cook mentioned [Design Diary, or online interview--i forget] that the one thing he...

I hardly consider support for common fantasy archetypes like swashbuckler, shaman, totem warrior, con artist, or barbarian (not berserker) to be "thinking outside the box" in fantasy game design.

Well, you just perked up my ears. I've bought stuff by Robin Laws for games i don't like, and been pleased. As far as i'm concerned, he can do no wrong. This might just be the first thing from WotC to be worth my money since...Ars Magica.

Well, that much i sorta figured. But one system the whole time? What system? Constant genre/setting? Any plot outline at all, or just the initial set-up? Crunchy with a bunch of notes and villains and such to pass to the next GM, or pretty much winging it? Any rules for switching GMs?

Also check into what they used to call "open jaw" flights: A-->B, B-->C (or A-->B, C-->A). Used to be that you could book such a thing for roughly the same price as a roundtrip (A-->B, B-->A), which is to say considerably cheaper than two one-ways. I believe most of the travel websites refer to...

What do you mean by "round-robin GM"? What sort of game is it? Sounds intriguing.

Robin Laws does the main framework and the bulk of the work; John Snead is called in for the magic system and other auxiliary work. AFAIK, neither of them has ever done anything RPG that didn't totally rock.

Or, it's like living in Southern Florida and building a house that's designed to withstand the hurricanes of the last 5 years, and then the mother of all hurricanes comes along and wipes out your house anyway. Unless someone actually knows otherwise, i think it's just as reasonable to assume...

Yeah, it's called lottery. Everybody who registers is randomly assigned a number, which is translated to a date/time within the registration period. You can't register before that date/time. Distributes the load quite effectively, and fairly. The distribution could be skewed by seniority, or...

I've been going to GenCon every year since...'92? '91?, and i've never once registered for a single event ahead of time. I've never lacked for things to do, have usually had the problem of too many choices at any given time, and have been able to get into the events i wanted with generics at...

Your responses are: "You were assigned to guard the ______" or "You were on your way to ______" or whatever Well, your sentries must've been overwhelmed, since they clearly didn't give an alarm" or "It was your sentries' alarms that gave you enough warning to gather yourselves before the...