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I've spent a lot of time thinking about complexity but I think I take it in a different direction than the OP. In my mind, I sort of divide this idea of dials of complexity into two camps. The first camp is presenting the game in a simple enough manner that people can easily turn various rules...

In addition to talking to the disgruntled player in private, you should ask the other players in private as well. People are often reticent to reveal their true feelings when you ask by a show of hands "Who isn't liking the campaign?" Maybe they want to protect your feelings, maybe they don't...

I actually decided to try a little experiment with that post. I wanted to see if I didn't chime in if it would foster more discussion. It sort of worked, I guess. I find it hard to not respond, so I intentionally haven't read them yet. I plan to respond in a couple days when I get back to...

I have argued against 4e's skill system and the DCs a number of times, but this is a more robust argument on why I dislike the system. I really think it has the wrong basic spirit towards skills and that this sets it off in the wrong direction.

When I hear "verisimilitude" with regards to role playing games I hear someone saying that the rules should nod towards reality even if that is hard or the game would be about as fun without the addition. I don't think it is a pretentious word and I also don't think its pursuit is always...

As a potential variant game, we used to have a standing casino game where the PC could pick any die and the house got one die type larger. Whoever rolled higher won; a push carried the bet. The best strategy is for the PC to pick a d10 so that the house has a d12, but for whatever reason people...

The DMG 2 was always one of my favorite 3e books. It had some great ideas that always jump started something fun and summarized a lot of the early lessons of 3e into some decent rules.

I can see the draw. It has a certain image to it that I can imagine lots of folks appreciating. I also imagine it is damn rare in real life. A big shield was heavy and wasn't maneuvered with any where near the precision, speed, or extent of a sword. You'd be exhausted.

This is pretty neat. It opens up a whole new design space for powers and effects to build off of each other and impact that game in subtle ways. I'm still reticent because I think this approach has a very distinct style that is sort of gritty and realistic. I think using zones is not in...

In my homebrew I am looking to bring back armor vulnerabilities to different weapon types as a potential option for distinguishing armors within a given category (i.e. light armor). The problem is that I don't have my old books with me and I don't personally have that knowledge stored away in my...

In addition to the abstraction of combat is the abstraction of hit points. Not every blow from a dagger is 1d4 damage piercing the rib cage and into the vital organs. A lot of the attack's "damage" comes from the effort to dodge, wheel, deflect the momentum into a bruise, or whatever. A...

A post about my process for writing riddles.

I'm definitely interested in the discussion on Initiative because I am getting to the point where I need to think about the ancillary systems of combat that class powers might interact with. So please, keep going if you're so inclined. An update on "the math" that helps try and explain why I...

Posted "the math." These are the numbers that I hope will drive the game. Embedded into it (and explained below in words!) are a lot of the design theories and goals and how I think they will interact to make a solid game.

Great read so far. One of those things I wish I hadn't discovered until he told the whole story. I hate waiting. :)

See, this I agree with. But the "daily" aspect of it just doesn't work because it implies something about the nature of the adventure, not the adventurer. So if you wanted to say that a character made 5 attack per combat, leveled once every ten combats, and therefore a +1 bonus to all attacks is...

I think this is the first article that I've actually disagreed with. I am big fan of simplicity, but it doesn't feel like he is driving at "simple" as much as "pre-fab." If something is simple, even a new player can run through, understand the tradeoffs, and quickly make an informed decision...

That's pretty interesting and it opens up some neat options with regards to timing. For instance, you could resolve all moves by initiative and then resolve all attacks. That would enable a situation where someone with Initiative 10 moves into a zone and is attacked by Initiative 14 (who didn't...

Double post

I think the design goal was to ensure future artists could draw that tarrasque with t-rex arms.