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 How to Create a Murder Mystery
Posted: Thu, 04 Sep 01:43:13
Category: Adventure Building & Campaigns, Adventure & Campaign Building, GMing - Advance

Platinum Wizard of Adventure Arvindh asks: Can you teach me how to create a murder mystery? Sure. A quick caveat before we begin though. A TTRPG murder mystery experience is different from a book or film. With static and scripted mediums, the audience is passive. Writers rely heavily on information silos to keep the audience […]

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 Weeds: What My Garden Taught Me About World Building
Posted: Wed, 27 Aug 02:42:42
Category: World Building, Descriptions, Gming - Beginner

Each empty space on our map offers an opportunity. We often focus on the big things like rooms, doors, and treasure, but the real magic is in the clutter. The makeshift gardens, the forgotten tools, and even the weeds. As GMs, our goal is to make our settings feel lived in, and I was recently […]

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 Before the Quest – A Session 0 Backstory Game
Posted: Tue, 19 Aug 01:20:15
Category: Players & Characters, Agile Gming, Gming - Beginner

Play a game and build character backstories at the same time. Wizard of Adventure Auke shared this little gem on the Roleplaying Tips Discord #gm-help-requests channel: I recommend a co-operative backstory-building improv session. Sit around a table with a large sheet of paper and co-create a mindmap. Start by writing down all the PC names. […]

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 The One Book That Changed How I Build Cities (Johnn’s Bookshelf #02)
Posted: Wed, 06 Aug 04:16:19
Category: World Building, Design, GMing - Advance

Who knew economic and urban development theory could be exciting? I certainly didn’t, until I stumbled upon a book called The Economy of Cities by Jane Jacobs. This small academic tome changed how I build worlds, and today I’ll show you why. Welcome to the latest installment of Johnn’s Bookshelf, my series where I share […]

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 Getting Players Attached To Their Home Base
Posted: Wed, 30 Jul 01:47:11
Category: Players & Characters, GMing - Advance, Towns & Cities

Getting Players Attached To Their Home Base Home bases are like Swiss Army Knives for GMs. A collection of useful campaign tools in one small package. With home bases, we get great GM boons: When players get attached to their home, all kinds of plots and adventures open up. However, if players are willing to […]

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 Do You Speak in Ellipses? A Common GM Mistake (And How to Fix It)
Posted: Fri, 25 Jul 04:50:46
Category: Running Games, Descriptions, GMing - Advance

Here’s a way to instantly improve communication at your game table and keep your players more engaged than ever. There’s a common, often overlooked, communication habit that might be subtly sabotaging your sessions. In today’s tip, I’ll share a powerful, easy-to-implement way to eliminate choppy descriptions and ensure seamless interaction. Speaking in Ellipses… I’ve noticed […]

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 World Calendars & Campaign Timelines
Posted: Thu, 24 Jul 03:14:42
Category: World Building, Campaign Logger, GMing - Advance

Do you create a world calendar and campaign timeline? RPT GM Chris asks if this is common: Good day Johnn. I was working on my game world history a bit today, and found myself wondering if things I do are common among many other DMs? For instance, I always have a calendar for any world […]

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 A Book of Fantastic Dungeon Inspiration – Johnn’s Bookshelf
Posted: Tue, 22 Jul 03:28:51
Category: Adventure Building & Campaigns, Adventure & Campaign Building, Design

Over the last 50 years, I’ve amassed a collection of books useful for GMing that you probably won’t find in any game store. In this series, Johnn’s Bookshelf, I’ll be pulling these hidden gems off my shelves to share with you. The first book I want you to check out is small but packed with […]

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 Battle of the Organs: The Gallbladder Strikes Back
Posted: Mon, 21 Jul 04:09:05
Category: NPCs & Roleplaying, Johnn's Games, Monsters

I was working on a campaign faction last night called The Choir and my wife gave me a gruesome idea. But the idea didn’t mesh with what I had in mind for The Choir, so I used it to homebrew a horrific monster instead. Choir Culture: Death, Music, and Bone Organs The Choir ruled as […]

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 How I Run One-Shots (Great For Convention Games Too)
Posted: Sat, 12 Jul 00:46:35
Category: Running Games, Gming - Beginner, Johnn's Games

How much should you cover before and in the first session so new players feel ready and excited – but not buried under rules? Wizard of Adventure L asks: I’m looking for practical thoughts on how to run a Session 0 (or 0.5) that helps brand new players feel comfortable with the rules – without […]

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 My 2-Stage Prep System And How I’m Ready For EVERY Session
Posted: Thu, 10 Jul 01:22:25
Category: Adventure Building & Campaigns, GMing - Advance, Preparation

Do you ever feel overwhelmed by prep? Or struggle to balance world building with what’s urgently needed for next game? I used to fall into this GM pit trap a lot. Scrambling every game day while also stressing over my incomplete campaign plans and setting. The core issue often stems from mixing Session Prep and […]

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 My New Dice Tower
Posted: Wed, 09 Jul 04:10:32
Category: Adventure Building & Campaigns, Adventure & Campaign Building, Encounters

Check out this sweet dice tower I made on the weekend with my father-in-law: It just needs a couple coats of stain. Then the critical hits can begin rolling down upon my players’ heads like bard tears at an orc wedding. I’m learning woodworking, thus this is my “build a bird feeder” first project. While […]

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