by aramis

*I* wouldn't write one.
In general, most worked examples are wrong in some way in published games. I've found them usually a waste of space. I don't think I'm enough better than the big names to succeed at what so many of them fail miserably at.

by aramis

I prefer action to talk. Learned that in 1987 at a minicon.

by Rafamir

Related Item: Hands of the White Wizard

This looks to be the Catalan cover, not French.

by homunGOlus

Wow, thank you so much to the anonymous benefactor for my fourth star.
It was unexpected, which makes it twice as nice.
I feel very honored and deeply grateful.
It makes a very so-so day so much better.
This is one of the best communities on the entire internet, and I'm proud to be a part of it.
Thanks again.

by troacctid

An item GeekList: 2026 RPG Challenge: Run 5 RPGs New to You in 2026 has been added to the geeklist 2026 RPG Challenge: Run 5 RPGs New to You in 2026

by twenty9oh7

Took me a minute to figure one out, but November star laaaaaaaaaaaaaunched!

A new episode has been added to the database: QK412: Pinch Hitter

A new episode has been added to the database: Episode 85: It All Comes Down to the Dice

A new episode has been added to the database: 31. The Long-Legged Journey

A new episode has been added to the database: DM-Nastics: Mycelial Behemoth (Actual Play)

by Moonlight_Fox

Hm.

Examples and walkthroughs can definitely help, but for stuff that I want to provide that rather than just advice I generally prefer to walk people through what they're struggling with (e.g. if someone wants help communicating with a problem player instead of advice or "I did this" but a "In your situation I might say something like...") than a generic advice or an example, because they tend to be hugely variable. "I'd probably address that with something along these lines..."

Saying that. Last time I was asked if I had any advice for prep I copy/pasted some notes I made for a smattering of adventures across multiple campaigns just to try and illustrate "You're notes don't need to look like a published adventure, those are an attempt to communicate everything to everyone." and "Just write things down that make sense to you" and also "Different adventures are going to need prep that looks different" (I don't think I did a great job of communicating that last part with the examples since they were all from a single system), so... I kind of have something for that right now.

(...No, I do not know why I felt the need to look up historical sunrise, sunset, temperature and moon phases for this campaign either. I realised part way through that my looking these up was adding nothing and - weather especially - the most time consuming part of my prep but I wasn't able to let myself stop until they'd left historical real world)

The first set of examples are all from my first Animon Story campaign, minus the formatting. Paranthesis are things I'm adding now.

(A very early adventure, I was still feeling out what I needed to prep at this point, and trying to introduce the various adventure types I'd be throwing at them)

Friday, 2nd September 1994
• Sunrise – 6:21am
• Sunset – 7:58pm
• Sunny throughout, 19C (7C night)
• Waning crescent moon

Warm (For Manchester), sunny morning.

Inkander cowering – Lost and scared, trying to hide – in park between home and school, If PCs can catch up to it, will tell them they’re looking for somewhere called Lost Haven, having followed Faebit into the human world a few days ago. No roll required to see it but will require some rolls and a plan (and possibly skipping class) to catch up with.

Faebit has found Lost Haven but keeps wandering out of it to interact with a few human children (6-8 year olds) who it has made friends with – Inkander got lost and went to the wrong park. Their parents currently think it’s an imaginary friend. A sibling of one of the kids Faebit has made friends with will let on to one of the PCs at lunch.

Yasmin Patel & Justin Falkner will be talking to each other about how their little siblings (Kiran Patel are Jane Falkner) are acting weird, suddenly having acquired an imaginary friend but seemingly only available in another park (about a 20 minute walk from your apartment) at certain times – In earshot of the PCs if PCs decide to eat together.

If PCs eat separately, give Yasmin Patel & Justin Falkner to Jackie

Ryan Parks and Gareth Jones will approach Harper, trying to get a vibe check on if he’s willing to join/lead them seeing that he hospitalized Rex last year.

Give a social encounter with Alison Pearson to Aurbry. If PCs haven’t gone out of their way to talk to him, Richard will be sitting with her talking quietly – Neither are particularly outgoing so they sometimes find themselves talking to each other.

If the PCs do nothing, the parents of the children will find out about Faebit, increasing the waeriness of the community about Animon’s presence by the end of the weekend, while Inkander will be discovered increasing government awareness of Animon in Manchester. (The ideal result is that the PCs convince Faebit that it’s a bad idea to be out of Lost Haven while reuniting Inkander with Faebit so Faebit can guide them to Lost Haven. If things go… Reasonably well… PC’s reputation with Lost Haven will increase)

Saturday 3rd September 1994
• Sunrise – 6:23am
• Sunset – 7:54pm
• Weather – Wet, drying off into the night; 19C (10C night)
• Moon – Last slither of the moon before the new moon

If the kids have done nothing, Faebit will attend a playdate with its friends in the afternoon, and in the evening a dog investigates Inkander’s scent, who leaves an inky residue when trying to get away. Initially assumed to be kids messing around, but something feels off about it for that.

Antlerean lets the kids know that Lost Haven is for who want to live outside of the Animon World without causing trouble or drawing attention to themselves, and expresses concern that Faebit is drawing too much attention with its playdates with the younger children, but has so far been unable to convince them to stop doing it and doesn’t think the PC’s reuniting them with Inkander is going to help.

While they do regular supply runs for food and the like - human society is wasteful enough that their stealthier numbers can usually secure from what stores are throwing out at night - their getting low enough on general supplies that they're going to need to do a Supply Run soon, and asks for help securing non perishable supplies.

If pushed, will let on that they're planning on doing a 2am robbery from Morrisons supermarket on Wednesday into Thursday, which lacks security cameras, if they aren't able to secure enough supplies, specifically looking for bandages and house goods, but also food that isn't past the sell by date would be appreciated in the run.

If kids ask will let on info in The Great Dying.

Sunday 4th September 1994
• Sunrise – 6:22am
• Sunset – 7:52pm
• Weather – Thick clouds in morning, wet by afternoon (but with some sun spots); 17C (9C night)
• Moon – Last slither of the moon before the new moon

Faebit has a playdate with its friends in the afternoon, one of the children’s parents see it at around 4pm (triggering community awareness clock to rise by 1)

(A much simpler adventure)

Thursday 8th September 1994
• Sunrisse – 6:29am
• Sunset – 7:42pm
• Weather – Foggy morning, clear afternoon, heavy downpoors with sunny spells at night. 16C day. 8 C at night.
• Moon – Starting to fill after the new moon

One of scouts – A fog based animon who influenced the current weather just enough to make the fog thicker around it (Mis) – is in the Secret Base with a Sandito in the morning, and tells the kids that their help is needed to escort back to a Twixt due to it wanting to go home, having fallen into the human world by accident. There’s a weak point between the Aniworld near to where Sandito will want to go back to and a building site around 30 minutes walk, but will need the Anitools to turn that weak point into a Twixt.

Building site work at 8am, ends 6pm. There are adults who will be around the site until 7pm, Kids can use anitools to open Twixt there, but will need to sneak onto the site to do so. If kids follow into it, it will be a largely empty desert under the same pink and green sky and candyfloss scent. Exhaustion will happen fast. Kids will be able to leave at any time using their anitool. (Reflex rolls to spend time here; Boost for those without an Infernal animon or otherwise have animon that would feel at home in a desert)

(This one sentence generated half a session worth of play)

Movie night at Harper’s (If watching adult horror films, difficulty 2 test to avoid nightmares – counts as defying authority).

(This is the prep I regret most - And I don't mean including a Welsh Ll in a monster name. It left me completely unprepared for what my players did. And while I did handle it, it's what taught me 'always prep to the end of the villain's timeline because sometimes players will use the NPC the villain is trying to kidnap as bait leaving you needing to know where they're taking the NPC rather than leaving that part of the plan vague')

Wednesday 14th September 1994
• Sunrisse – 6:40
• Sunset – 19:27
• Weather – Overcast. Skies and wind open up at night. 14C day. 8C Night.
• Moon – Approaching full

Richard will be waiting for group in the lobby.
Despite not being cold enough yet, park grass is covered in frost on way to school. If Animon, they have a chance (Difficulty 3) to have spotted Llyndle

Richard offers to walk back with the group, but will head straight home rather than hanging out in the secret base. Allow a roll to notice Llyndle watching Richard while with the group (Difficulty 4 to spot; difficulty 3 to notice being followed, difficulty 2 to notice being watched) – If succeeded. If attempting to investigate, after Richard heads home, difficulty goes up to 5 to spot since it will have the information it needs.

If they don’t confront it in the park, Jackie will get an urgeant call from Richard at midnight via the Anitool, asking for help – A biblically accurate angel broke into his room and is trying to drag him to the Animon World.

Llyndle has been waiting for someone to become Ready to Help in Manchester, and since Richard was the first of the kids to get a Super Animon, it has locked onto his animon and recognizes that said animon gets its strength from its bond with Richard. It didn’t deliberately pass into the human world, but when it did pass into it, upon noticing other Animon outside of Lost Haven as well, it decided to Wait to recruit an ally for the War.

Llyndle is an approximately spherical animon, lowering the temperature of wherever it is. It’s core is a blue flame, and surrounding that are three silver rings that rotate around it rapidly, never sticking with the same direction. Each of the rings are covered in eyes.

(This, meanwhile, is the best prep I've ever done. I got... I think 2 sessions, maybe 3... out of this specifically, and not because it felt like the group was going particularly slow. More out of the overall settlement, a carnival in the Animon World in a haunted forest being run by Nightmare Animon. It's also the thing that taught me that pranks in a TTRPG are heists in disguise - Which is how this little prep turned into three sessions. There were a couple of points that the Players had a planning session for what they were going to do, once before talking to Pumpking and once after. I've italicised the bits I added mid session when my players were brainstorming, based on things they were planning on trying to find out. "Does he have any pets" and "What is he afraid of" specifically which I hadn't thought of before hand.)

Tent

A tent that used to be occupied by working animatronics – These are the only thing that show any sign that being rundown is hurting their functioning, and some of them are half rotted through. The Animatronics are still there, and sometimes jerk with slight bits of life. It has become the clubhouse of a group of Phantasy, who are welcome to let anyone join them. The inside of the tent eminates a feeling of fear – They have the dream gem of Nightmares, which comforts them greatly, and when touched will convey a dream of being attacked by a giant monster. They use it essentially as a nightlight. They might be willing to part with it, if the PC’s do something cool – They mean a prank that terrifies someone else – Ideally Pumpking – though would be reluctant to suggest it without prompting.

Pumpking Castle

A structure that doesn’t quite fit the carnival’s aesthetic exists on the outskirts away from the main entrance. It was grown rather than built, and resembles a giant pumpkin. This is the residence of Pumpking and his attendants, the ruler of Carith. He took over the carnival when the Deadlands spread over it, although it was already partially rundown when it. He will invite the party to stay as long as they like – Forever if they prefer, although he will offer no coersion to force their hand. He doesn’t know what’s going on with the spread of the Deadwood, but considers it ‘wonderful’. While he recognizes the spread of the Fog as a threat, he doesn’t realize the two are connected. His goal with Carith is simply to reinvigorate the town and spread the spirit of fun. He doesn’t really have anything of use for the PCs, and will not help them acquire the Dream Gem from the Phantasy – They’re enjoying it, afterall.

Pumpking is scared of plant rot, specifically from white mold.
Pumpking has a black cat, from the human world, they keep in a pumpkin shaped cat bed and feed real meat he trades with New Mettith for.

(And, for sake of completeness, a rare attempt by me of designing a simple tutorial dungeon, from my current Animon Story campaign):

Data Core of Introductory Temple Tunnel Echo Zone
Nightmare – Ground
Glitchy tunnel and caverns, some covered in graffiti. Occasionally what should be random characters in the same wall as the cave/tunnel appear on a pure black background. Some of the graffiti cuts off abruptly, as if a computer only rendered part of it. Unlike the Echo Zone, the lighting is flat. A constant smell of ozone is within the cave, and a faint humming sound, like that of an old CRT monitor.

1. A cave in has blocked an entrance, will require a Power check, difficulty 4 to clear (reveals entrance to 5). A passage ahead of the entrance leads to 2. The room resembles a cavern, but is paved as if built by humans for walking. 2d sillhouettes of 3 human teens are miming doing graffiti on the wall, in what could generously be described as a four frame animation loop, changing frames every 3 seconds or so. The Entrance has two agitated Sandito in it, who will fight the PC’s as soon as they enter.

2. Human tunnel has dense staligmites and staligtites growing form the ground and ceiling respectively, one portion of the tunnel walls on the side the PCs enter into from 1. keeps briefly glitching to television static and back again. If a PC touches the blinking static will reveal entrance to 3. In the middle of the room, the ground has caved in at some point to open up a pit below spanning the entire stretch of the cave, requires a difficulty 2 Test to reach other side of chamber and entrance to 4. (depending on approach will depend what sort of test) to avoid failling into it (2 damage as land on a staligmites).

3. A Black backpack, looking to have something in it, lies abandoned in a heavily graffiti’d cave, some general tags and a couple of Down With Omnitech, the largest global tech company and the distributors of the Ani-Tool app – Though one of the graffiti tags is cut off abruptly at the bottom, as if it was failed to be downloaded on an old computer. Opening it grants the party 4DD + Common Prize (Uncommon Item). Only exit is back to 2.

4. Smooth cave with occasional streaks of single colour on the wall, resembling graphical glitches. In the otherwise natural cavern floor is a large spray-painted picture of a refreshing hot spring. Despite the fact it’s clearly spraypainted on, dripping water from the ceiling sounds like it’s landing in water, not on rock, when it lands on it. The scent of refreshing steam fills the room, like that of a sauna. Stepping on the graphiti it will sink the party to their necks in warm, healing, water, activating the Healing Aura. Exits lead to 2. and to 5.

5. Resembles a tunnel, with one side blocked by fallen rocks (Unless entered from 1.) and plenty of staligtites and staligmites from ceiling. Den Boss (Inkander) is using itself to paint graffiti on the wall with “Bridge For Oph,” getting cut off before it finished Ophiolis. Will hear the PC’s enter, and ‘panic’ about having been ‘caught by cops’ before attacking. Defeating Inkander will reveal an old-style USB pen, touching which will cause the PC’s to exit the Den with it in hand. Plugging it into the Toughbook will shut down the Data Core and with it destroy its Echo Zone.

(Something I should have sent him but didn't, just because of how completely different the prep I did for this campaign than either of my Animon Story campaigns - Prep I did for one of the locations in my Briar & Bramble campaign. This one's actually I think the most complicated location I prepped for it. We spent two sessions dealing with this, and specifically a string of 7-9s that ended up with one of the PC's getting mistaken for a fish and kidnapped by a seagull.)

The Flowers and the Shore

The Town
A small coastal town and fishing village, with a cove nearby. A community honey farm exists just out of town, over the river.
Threats
• Humans
• Seagulls
• Crossing the river
• Bees
Moves
• Humans come around a corner
• Seagulls steal food before it can be gotten back to the community
• Seagulls attack for being too close to their nest
• The river drags someone into the ocean
• A truck comes while crossing the bridge
• Bee swarms
• Present food within a bin
Communities
• The Gull Frenzy
• The Democratic Order of Seals

The Gull Frenzy
Description
The anarchic mob of gulls circuling the fishing town.
Tags
• Large – This community is a large collection of animals.
• Local – This community knows lots about the nearby area.
• Settled – This community has a place to call its own
• Strange – There is something odd about this Community and others can tell
Moves
• Cover a large area
• Share local knowledge
• Refuse to leave
• Put off others from joining due to a strange aura
Offers
• Noise
• Chaos
• Theft
Wants
• Food!
• Shinies!
Important Figures
• Unnamed Gulls
• Cawlos

Cawlos
Cawlos isn’t a leader of the gulls – They’re too chaotic for that – But he is the Gull most likely to offer conversation that isn’t based on trying to get stuff.
Harm Clock
• 8
Harm
• 1
Moves
• Dive-bomb from above
• Scream
• Distract with inane conversation
• Steal food
• Steal shinies
• Ask for something (incessently)
Wants
• Food!
• Shinies!
• Protect Eggs!
• Talk about nonsense
Offer
• Theft
• Chaos
• Noise

Unnamed Gull
The Gulls are insistent that anything they want should be given to them (“Gimme!”). Name list; Racaw; Michaw; Cawman; Jackaw; Cawby
Harm Clock
• 8
Harm
• 1
Moves
• Dive-bomb from above
• Scream
• Steal food
• Steal shinies
• Ask for something (incessently)
Wants
• Food!
• Shinies!
• Protect Eggs!
Offer
• Theft
• Noise
• Chaos

The Democratic Order of Seals
Description
The seals that live in the cove near the fishing town, they elect a new President each year to negotiate with outsiders and lead in a crises, this year have elected President Laminaria.
Tags
• Friendly – This community is firendly towards other Communities that it encounters
• Leader – This community has a de facto leader who they turn to in times of crises for guidance
• Quiet – This Community does not draw much external attention
• Wary – This Community is always on the look-out. If anyone sees anything that oculd be dangerous, they will alert the others.
Moves
• Help another community
• Wait for orders from the top
• Avoid attracting external attention
• Alert the Community of possible threats
Offers
• Undersea treasures
• Hostility (for small animals that get close to the shore)
Wants
• Good Eating Rocks
• The Noise To Stop
• Food
Important Figures
• President Laminaria
• Regular Seals

President Laminaria
Leader of the Seals
Harm Clock
• 8
Harm
• 2
Moves
• Grappling bite
• Drag a grappled prey into water
• Request aid on behalf of the Democratic Order of Seals
Wants
• Food
• The Noise to Stop
• Good Eating Rocks
Offer
• Knowledge of fishing times
• Fish (partially chewed)
• Eddible seaweeds

Regular Seal
A regular member of the Democratic Order of Seals (Name list – Caulerpa; Fucus; Gracilaria; Marcrocystis; Monostroma; Prophyra; Sargassum)
Harm Clock
• 8
Harm
• 2
Moves
• Grappling bite
• Drag a grappled prey into water
Wants
• Fish
• The Noise to Stop
• Good Eating Rocks
Offer
• Knowledge of fishing times
Unaffiliated to Communities

Human
Harm Clock
• X
Harm
• 3
Moves
• Hunt wild animals
• Set up traps
• Destroy nature for the sake of progress
Wants
• Bend the world to suit its needs
Offer
• Hostility
• Captivity

Bee Swarm
Harm Clock
• 6
Harm
• 2
Moves
• Sting
Wants
• Collect Nectar
• Make Honey
• Protect Hive
Offer
• Honey

Truck
Harm Clock
• X
Harm
• 3
Moves
• Rush through without thought or care
• Startle with loud noises
Wants
• To go fast without stopping
Offer
• Noise
• Careless destruction

by gonecase

Related Item: Koriko: A Magical Year

Moonlight_Fox wrote:

On the dice stacking - I found that fine, but the game to be a complete table hog when I played it about a year ago. Fantastic game, highly recommend, but... Between the dice stacking and the amount of stacks of cards you need it's definitely a game that wants a lot of space.

Yeah. One of the reasons why I decided to just push through and play one volume a night when I had time.