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"Expectations" for a particular product should have nothing to do with reviews. Far too many people start with unreasonable expectations. Your expectations of what such a product should be, do matter. As long as you're explicit. My take on reviewing is an ordinary post, but I confess I'm not...

It’s one thing to write for RPGs and another to write RPG rules. And one of those differences is playtesting. Picture courtesy of Pixabay. That’s Fast! There are role-playing game writers who can churn out over 2,000 words a day. That’s three “Worlds of Design” columns a day, including...

How can we provide non-violent means of resolving conflicts with monsters and NPCs in RPGs? Picture courtesy of Pixabay. Recently I noticed a discussion online about the percentage of time spent in combat in RPGs. Many felt that in D&D, most of playing time is spent in combat. With war...

Leveling is an integral part of fantasy role-playing games in all its forms RPGs, but it wasn't always that way. How did we get here? Picture courtesy of Pixabay. Video Game Levels Computer role-playing games (CRPGs) have their roots in tabletop games, as established by the original Dungeons...

Plot twists in a story can surprise the reader, but they need to be believable, to derive from what came before. Deux Ex Machina, on the other hand, is poison, breaking immersion and possible annoying the players. Picture courtesy of Pixabay. When I GM I don’t plot stories for players to...

In RPG campaigns the characters often move through several stages of life as they increase their capabilities (and responsibilities). We don’t see this in one-shot adventures, yet distinct stages generally improve game designs. Picture courtesy of Pixabay. One-Shot vs. Campaign Many RPG...

Where do heroes come? Some are destined from birth to be heroes, while others rise to the occasion. Your RPG system of choice likely determines which you get to play. Picture courtesy of Pixabay. Fantasy stories range from nearly-idealistic high fantasy to gritty realism (such as Glenn Cook’s...

Tabletop game publishing is a big step to take, but the reality is it's very difficult for an unknown designer to get a game accepted by an established publisher. So what’s a designer to do? The accompanying diagram is a graphical reflection of a tweet from Owen K. C. Stephens. You can read...

This is a continuation of a discussion from last time. Remember, strategy is what you do long before a battle takes place, and tactics is what you do in and during a battle. But I'm not going to differentiate between those two as we talk about the various gameplay tips because it's not necessary...

Want to survive in the very hostile world of tabletop role-playing games? These tips drawn from military strategy can help. Picture courtesy of Pixabay. These Tips Are Not for Everyone If your game is about storytelling, it’s possible these tips won’t apply. Furthermore, many RPG sessions are...

What are we looking for when playtesting a (tabletop) game we have designed? That is, what tells us it might be worth pursuing further? I am going to generalize here to most tabletop games, since RPGs are a category of tabletop. Picture courtesy of Pixabay. Interesting Game Decisions I was...

Internal self-consistency, creating stories that fit together and make sense, is critical if you want your players to be immersed in your game. Picture courtesy of Pixabay. Please Note: This article contains spoilers for John Carter. “A Miracle Occurs” Today my topic is internal...

Do overs are common in video games. But can they work in role-playing games? Do Overs in TV & Film I recently watched a featurette on the excellent TV show “Elementary” (Sherlock Holmes in modern day, Dr. Watson a woman). They mentioned that inexperienced directors sometimes shoot too many...

I recently saw a musical analogy for my board game Britannia that made me think about a related analogy to explain opposed games versus puzzles, and further, RPGs. Let’s have a go. Picture courtesy of Pixabay. A “Competitive Jazz Quartet” On Boardgamegeek.com Nicholas Bamber said: I thought...

In the first article we discussed the definition of a barbarian. In the second, we discuss ways that barbarians might factor into a setting or campaign. Picture courtesy of Pixabay. Barbarian Attitudes To continue our discussion of barbarians, we can ask about attitudes of our three types of...

Let me remind readers that I do not equate the class Barbarian with barbarians in general. Many RPGs do not have Barbarian class characters, of course. So saying there's conflation between the class and the general consideration of barbarians is making a false assumption. And I remind Tonguez...

It's a rare fictional universe that doesn't have barbarian lands; even in science fiction. But who decides who is a barbarian? Picture courtesy of Pixabay. What’s a Barbarian, Anyway? It's a rare fantasy world that doesn't have barbarian lands, and even in science fiction we have barbarians in...

Hard magic systems have clear rules about how they work; they are predictable. Soft magic has no clear “system” and tends to lack any kind of connection between one spell and another—more or less random, certainly chaotic. Picture courtesy of Pixabay. Types of Magic I only learned a few years...

My title for this was "Monumental Walls", so I wasn't addressing all walls such as city walls, castles, and so forth. But I will at some point. Thanks for the interesting comments.

While the typical monumental defensive wall is much less impressive than the Great Wall we see in photographs, they did serve a purpose, and many were built. How might they fit into a fantasy world? Picture courtesy of Pixabay. The Great Wall You may have seen the movie “Great Wall” (Matt...