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I think the real problem comes from when a trope is adopted into a story or campaign without realizing its context or origins. Using the OP's example of the haunted graveyard, I think the trope is being seen in the wrong way. The graveyard is a fixture of life, nearly universal if different in...

To me, this sounds like that the DM hasn't thrown down a plot hook that the players found interesting, which is money, murder, and kidnapping Dragonborn. Out of the three, "kidnapping Dragonborn" is the most direct adventure seed available. Murder is simply a method, and money is the reward...

This might not prevent a ghost from rising from the dead, so an additional consecration might be in practice. I can also imagine that burial rituals would be more elaborate in areas of constant undead attack and more simple away from that. People, rituals, and culture change according to the...

I would posit an inverse supposition that since D&D has tech levels all over the place, then not having them in a setting is as equally valid and arbitrary as having them.

I'm not too interested in playing Twilight Imperium anymore. I've played it five-ish times, and it's not just that it's too long, but after Turn 2 (which takes an hour), I've already realized that I've screwed up, meaning I will be a point behind everyone else for the rest of the game (the other...

In mattcolville's defense, not that anyone is criticizing him, but I think in this context, his questions make sense, because he's trying to establish the context, both in-game and meta-game. Merric's initial post is so vague, it might be hard for anyone to figure out what they want to happen...

You need at least one out of the following three elements for this to work, and it's best if you have two, and excellent if you have three: 1) The plotty reason: if the players know that this town, for whatever reason, has to be united and saved for evil to be defeated, then there is incentive...

I think it is reason that a lot of wizard players treat the magic system like a science on a meta-level, and start to apply real-world physics to their spells and the application of that magic. I think it is also telling that in the current system, if I want my fighter or thief to do a...

Personally, I'm more interested in the mechanics-of-play and game design side of things: 1) If a firearm is better than a bow or crossbow, then players (and I assume smart NPCs) will prefer them over other weapons, so a GM should be prepared for his/her campaign becoming firearm-centric. 2) If...

Is it trolling if I say I prefer burritos? I mean, a taco is like putting your food on a plate, and being required to break your plate each time you take a bite, spilling your food all over the table, floor, and yourself. And I already have a grease stain on my gaming shirt! I don't need...

Paizo's Dungeon magazine #146 has "Serpents of Scuttlecove", part of the Savage Tide Adventure Path, where Scuttlecove was a city made of the wrecks of ships. And the Sargasso Superking mentioned is in Dungeon 141, "Sea Wyvern's Wake" which is also part of the Savage Tide Adventure Path.

I would suggest these rules-light systems: Fiasco, by Jason Morningstar The Shab-al-Hiri Roach, by Jason Morningstar Dread, by The Impossible Dream Fiasco and Roach, however, are GM-less systems, which are the opposite of what the OP is looking for, but I offer them as an alternative. They are...

I think this is why I've been gravitating toward cinematic physics rather than realistic physics. I feel too often that when a DM says that an action isn't realistic, the DM is preventing a player from doing something interesting or cool. Whereas when a DM says that an action is cinematic, the...

And oldie (by internet standards) but a goodie is to start the session relatively normal, have a simple encounter, and quickly have a strange, unexplained event. After the PCs react to this, have them make some for of save. Regardless of the outcome, hand each of them a handout. The handout...

This sums up my feelings about Mythbusters: xkcd: Unscientific In a culture that appears to be increasingly distrustful of science, scientists, and the scientific method, I feel that Mythbusters at least instills the idea that 1) not everything should be taken a face value, and 2) if you have...

temporalhiccup, If I understand the rules correctly, in a two team vs. one team conflict, if both teams declare actions that require a different kind of roll, you resolve those actions separately. For example, Team 1 flips up Attack. Team 2 flips up Defend. Team Enemy flips up Defend...

Most game tester jobs requires you to be able to show up on time every day, put in your 8 hours (maybe more for overtime during crunch periods), and be willing to get paid minimum wage. I've seen a push for testers to become more professional by learning methodologies and for planning a career...

Besides, that's the Game Science guy's sales pitch. I certainly won't deny a guy's right to sell a product and pitch it as superior. And anyone can say we don't need uber-precise highly-crafted dice, just like I don't need dice made of meteorite. But I wants it... my precious... Maybe I just...

I'm really interested to know how a metaplot ruined a game. I don't mean this in a confrontational manner, but in an informative way. Was it something akin to a GM running a campaign, and the players getting wind of the metaplot and thinking it canon, thus forcing a GM to push upwind against...

I like metaplots. I ran part of the Faction War adventure in my Planescape 3.0 campaign. I utilized the Paradox Storm of Mage: The Ascension revised in my oWoD Mage game. To tell the truth, my players had more potential to "ruin" any sort of plotting than anything a gaming company could produce.