(un)reason
Legend
Polyhedron Issue 25: Jul/Aug 1985
part 4/6
Rampage: Our Marvel cover article is quite a fun one, as it involves two different conflicts that just happen to be taking place at the same place at the same time. Abomination breaks free and comes to smash Hulk, and meanwhile Titania gets pissed off at Hercules and sets out to take him down a peg or two. In theory, the good guys should team up to take the bad guys down and restore public order, but y'know, Hulk has anger management issues and doesn't play well with others. A certain amount of trickery may be needed on Herc's part to redirect Hulk's anger in a productive fashion. Or it could just degenerate into a 4-way free-for-all, and let the dice determine who the last person standing is. In other words, this could turn out all sorts of ways, depending on who's playing the characters and the choices they make. Which is exactly what i want to see. Let the crossover be chaotic and the players have plenty of choice to determine the outcome, and it'll lead to interesting consequences down the line.
How to Succeed at Judging an RPGA Network Event: Since last issue had an article on what makes a good player in a tournament game, it's no surprise we have an identical one on the GM's perspective here. This is also pretty different from running your own game because unlike there, you are not a supreme arbiter of the rules, and you can't change anything in the scenario. Plus you're on a strict time limit and it's up to you to enforce that, not keep going 10 minutes longer and winding up doing the assessment paperwork in your own time. So make sure you've learned the module you'll be running, describe everything clearly, and keep things moving, because you want your group to do well so you get good grades too. You're a moderator, not an adversary to them, and don't forget it. Like it's counterpart, this is pretty solid, albeit slightly less entertaining as a read, because being a GM is harder work than being a player, so they have more to get through. That's the kind of thing you've got to do to keep everyone on the same page.
part 4/6
Rampage: Our Marvel cover article is quite a fun one, as it involves two different conflicts that just happen to be taking place at the same place at the same time. Abomination breaks free and comes to smash Hulk, and meanwhile Titania gets pissed off at Hercules and sets out to take him down a peg or two. In theory, the good guys should team up to take the bad guys down and restore public order, but y'know, Hulk has anger management issues and doesn't play well with others. A certain amount of trickery may be needed on Herc's part to redirect Hulk's anger in a productive fashion. Or it could just degenerate into a 4-way free-for-all, and let the dice determine who the last person standing is. In other words, this could turn out all sorts of ways, depending on who's playing the characters and the choices they make. Which is exactly what i want to see. Let the crossover be chaotic and the players have plenty of choice to determine the outcome, and it'll lead to interesting consequences down the line.
How to Succeed at Judging an RPGA Network Event: Since last issue had an article on what makes a good player in a tournament game, it's no surprise we have an identical one on the GM's perspective here. This is also pretty different from running your own game because unlike there, you are not a supreme arbiter of the rules, and you can't change anything in the scenario. Plus you're on a strict time limit and it's up to you to enforce that, not keep going 10 minutes longer and winding up doing the assessment paperwork in your own time. So make sure you've learned the module you'll be running, describe everything clearly, and keep things moving, because you want your group to do well so you get good grades too. You're a moderator, not an adversary to them, and don't forget it. Like it's counterpart, this is pretty solid, albeit slightly less entertaining as a read, because being a GM is harder work than being a player, so they have more to get through. That's the kind of thing you've got to do to keep everyone on the same page.