Handling luck

Luck rolls represent the GM choosing to be surprised rather than just deciding what happens. I look at how a few different games do this and talk about my currently preferred approach.

Rolling Dice in Call of Cthulhu

Call of Cthulhu has some surprisingly (to me) narrative-focused rules for rolling dice.

Those Who Came Before published!

TL;DR: My science fantasy supplement "Those Who Came Before" (written for Into the Odd Remastered and games derived from it) is published and available on Itch.io!

Thoughts on Blades in the Dark

I just concluded another Blades in the Dark campaign that ran from February 2021 to now, covering 18 sessions, and I think I'm done with Forged in the Dark for a while even though I have really loved it.

Luck in Electric Bastionland

I had an idea to use the Luck Roll in Electric Bastionland together with other mechanics to add a little spice and reward players who avoid damage.

First draft of World of Ultraviolet

I put together my first playtest document for World of Ultraviolet this weekend; we'll give it a shot this coming Saturday. Here are the principles behind it and a quick summary of how it works.

Dangers and complications for Blades in the Dark

As I’ve previously noted, my Blades in the Dark games require low amounts of preparation. One of the reasons that can work is that I try to have reusable prep. When a score comes up, or when free play gets dangerous, I need to have a list of dangers (complications, consequences, etc.) already handy. These … Continue reading Dangers and complications for Blades in the Dark →

Lessons Learned in the Dark

As my first full season of Blades in the Dark comes to a close, I took some time to write down my thoughts on John Harper's fantastic game. For clarity, this represents only my personal opinion, and on balance this remains one of my very favorite role-playing games in both mechanics & setting. I will … Continue reading Lessons Learned in the Dark →

Ritual: Ghost Ward

This is a ritual I created together with my friend Jessie, a player in my Blades in the Dark campaign, for her Whisper character "Aleizabel" ("Eyes"). "White Ghosts Walk in a Row" by Florence Harrison 1. What does the ritual do and how is it weird? The ritual wards the caster and someone else from … Continue reading Ritual: Ghost Ward →

Thinking about active invitations

At one of the PAX Unplugged panels on racism in TTRPGs this weekend, something was said that sort of crystallized some thoughts I've had floating around in my head about making sure my games aren't all white folks. it's not enough to do an "open call" - I need to reach out specifically to folks … Continue reading Thinking about active invitations →