Category Archives: RPG Theory

Roll20 RPG Survey

Posted on October 24, 2020 by lostdelights

I ran a brief survey on Roll20 and a few Facebook RPG sites where I knew there were Roll20 players. Here are the results, with 31 respondents. If you did not yet reply and wanted to, please go to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Advice to Beginners, Parents of Gamers, Roll20, RPG Theory | Leave a comment

XP & GP in AD&D 1E, Videogame Style

Posted on April 19, 2020 by lostdelights

I’m handling XP and GP a lot differently now than I did when I was a youngster in 1980. After each evening’s session, I award all XP, which comes from (1) Monsters, (2) Value of Loot in GP, and (3) … Continue reading →

Posted in Advice to Beginners, Dungeons and Dragons, RPG Theory, Session Summaries, Shield Lands Campaign, Thoughts | Leave a comment

On Sandbox Campaigns

Posted on April 18, 2020 by lostdelights

I’ve been thinking about how I create adventures, and realizing that I design campaigns and worlds first, and then situate adventures in them. That takes a lot more time than just writing adventures, but it is more satisfying to me … Continue reading →

Posted in Dungeons and Dragons, RPG Theory, Thoughts | Leave a comment

Games that are better than novels

Posted on June 17, 2019 by lostdelights

Dungeoncraft #56 tries to explain why rpgs aren’t novels. I think he’s right, up to a point. But only the point where my games begin. I’ll explain, but first, here’s his explanation. So he’s very definitely right about most D&D … Continue reading →

Posted in Advice to Beginners, RPG Theory, Thoughts | Leave a comment

Stric Evilknife, Team killing, and Violence

Posted on February 19, 2018 by lostdelights

I don’t allow team-killing in my games, largely because of personal experience. In-Character (IC) trauma can lead to Out-of-Character (OOC) conflict, as Sarah Bowman writes about in her article on social conflict in role-playing communities I think it also comes from my … Continue reading →

Posted in Dungeons and Dragons, RPG Theory, Thoughts | Leave a comment

Role-playing (Immersion) vs. Social Gaming (Pizza & Pretzels)

Posted on December 14, 2017 by lostdelights

I was reminded last night that there is a difference in how I play in different campaigns. When there is a deeply detailed fantasy world that I can buy into, I emphasize role-playing over social gaming. That means I enjoy … Continue reading →

Posted in Advice to Beginners, Call of Cthulhu, Dungeons and Dragons, Empire of the Petal Throne, Gamma World, Middle Earth Roleplaying, Pathfinder, RPG Theory, Runequest, Savage Worlds, Thoughts | Leave a comment

No Kill I: Character Deaths and TPKs

Posted on September 11, 2017 by lostdelights

I run long campaigns, and players develop deep connections to their characters. That means that dying can have a large impact on the player and the team, so I try to avoid killing characters in a random, meaningless way. No … Continue reading →

Posted in Advice to Beginners, Journeyman, Navah Campaign, RPG Theory | Leave a comment

Fortunae (Bennies)

Posted on September 11, 2017 by lostdelights

The foundation of my games are my Gamemastering Guidelines, which I put together in 2012. These were: Have Fun Roleplaying is not wargaming The player characters are heroes All the players are heroes The play is the thing Move the … Continue reading →

Posted in Advice to Beginners, Gaming Tools & Accessories, Journeyman, Navah Campaign, RPG Theory | Leave a comment

Thinking about Experience Levels and Journeyman

Posted on June 16, 2017 by lostdelights

Journeyman doesn’t have levels. It is a skill-based system where characters accrue expertise through training over time. Some characters accrue those skills faster than others.  There are four types of people: Background, Colorful, Significant, and Heroic. The difference between these … Continue reading →

Posted in Journeyman, RPG Theory, Thoughts | Leave a comment

Creative Juices

Posted on April 4, 2017 by lostdelights

Two webcomics just appeared at the same time that illustrate the DM’s Dilemma: Do I kill the party to satisfy my ego or do I satisfy my ego by demonstrating how awesome I am in other ways? Check it out: … Continue reading →

Posted in RPG Theory, Thoughts | 2 Comments