In this article, I am going to look at what defines fantasy as a genre, the long history of science fantasy, and how you can inject a bit of science fiction into your game without losing what makes it fantastical.
Sooner or later, you are going to want to tinker with something in your game. The thing is, should you? What’s worth tinkering with, and what is better left ‘as is’?
I’m probably the wrong person to write this because – whisper it – I don’t really like Marvel films. But you don’t have to love Marvel to appreciate how wildly popular they are. Since 2007, Marvel Studios have produced more than 30 films, and the MCU is now the highest-grossing film franchise of all time … Continue reading Learning from the MCU to make your game epic
Have you ever made a new bard character and wondered which musical instrument was a good fit? Have you ever looked at the equipment list in the Player’s Handbook and thought, hey, what even is a dulcimer? Do you want to use musical instruments to add depth and colour to your worldbuilding? If so, this post might be for you!
I love having music on in the background when I’m playing tabletop RPGs. I now notice if it’s not there! In today’s article, I thought I would share some of my favourite tracks in the hope that you might suggest a few more in the comments. A few things I look for in backing music: … Continue reading Epic background music to make your sessions memorable
My real-life job is an English teacher on a secondary school. In the last few years, something we’ve been talking about a bit as a profession is the idea of Tier 2 vocabulary, and in this article I want to explain how it is relevant to your tabletop RPGs. According to this model, there are … Continue reading Enhanced Description: Unlocking the Power of Tier 2 Vocabulary
Do you need a character backstory? Here are the questions that are worth answering.
One of the most popular articles I wrote last year was a bit of a surprise. Inspired by Legend of the Five Rings, I came up with 20 questions for deeper character creation. A year later, it is the most-read page on my site! The first question in the article is ‘What do you look … Continue reading What does your favourite character look like?
It's 2023, and many people in the tabletop RPG space have decided to do 'Dungeon 23'. The principle is simple: a 365-room megadungeon, with one room for every day of the year. What a great idea!
How much treasure should your players receive in D&D? Gems, coins, art objects, magic items? The answer might surprise you.