By sharing with the players your questions and processes in creating the world, you begin to establish the group as a self reflective container. Tell the group a description of the world and how it is a personal reflection of you: what your biases are, or what issues you are going to be looking for. Tell them that they don't have to bring those issues out in the game, but that this is what you are interested in. Often people follow the lead... the deeper and more personal that you set the tone, the more likely they will be to reveal about themselves.
One of the most hotly anticipated games of the new millennium has been R. Talsorian's Cyberpunk 203X, the third incarnation of the definitive Cyberpunk RPG. After some rethinking, restructuring and much grumbling by fans (myself included), it appears that there's finally a neon light on the horizon.
No one should feel they have to play in a bad game. I'm sure you've heard the story as often as I have. "I have a crappy DM, but I have to play in his game if I want to play at all." Here are three basic steps to getting the game you want: pick your players, pick your game, set the stage. Get the game you want.
Nik Naks are extra ingredients that can be added to any gaming campaign. These won't be found in the Player's Handbook... they're homegrown. This article, a followup to the well received "Nik Naks", includes three new additions: "Played By", "Quote of the Night", and "The Toss Game".
Should you allow a player to play a non-human character or not? In this article I attempt to list some of the pitfalls associated with playing these characters and how to avoid them in your sessions.
The inside book jacket explains that "(t)his book is a celebration of that phenomenon (D&D, natch) and a tribute to the millions of players who brought the Dungeons & Dragons experience to life." When I think of tributes, I think of missing man formations flying over stadiums, of 21-gun salutes and taps played on a lone bugle. As a tribute, this book is the equivalent of a handful of cellophane balloons released from the rooftop of a car dealership just before noon on a Sunday, with Kool and the Gang playing on a cassette deck nearby.
This may come as a shock for those of you who know me or those of you who are familiar with my work, but I like horror. Horror in all its forms, with the exception of lame ass slasher flicks, is something I just really dig. When it comes to my tastes in gaming there's no difference: I just love to freak the shit out of my players.
I'm 15th level. . . now what?
I love level one characters. Love them. Imagine how much you love leveling up in your game of choice. Masterwork that feeling and add a +2 bonus to hit, and that's about how much I love role-playing level one characters. Why, you may mumble incoherently into your computer screen? There are many reasons, one of which is the ideal that players should overcome obstacles with their intellect, tenacity, audacity or luck, not their magical items.
The group's assembled, but you don't have an adventure prepared for them. What to do? Rather than ripping off the plot of some movie or book that everyone has already seen, turn away from the bookshelf and head over to your CD shelf. It's time for a little Rock and Role-Playing.
