What even is a story game?
After running Slugblaster, I realized I needed a better language to describe ttrpgs.
Drolleries
My margin notes about d&d and ttrpgs, written by a professional video game designer.
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Latest posts
A Different Kind of Combat System for TTRPGs
The Battle Wheel from the Dune board game inspired me to design a combat system that's both fast and strategic.
I Don't Understand Domain Cards in Daggerheart
The design choice I still don't get. Also announcing a small change to Drolleries.
How to Use Fear in Daggerheart and the Worry of Adversarial GMing
My experience running Daggerheart and my thoughts on fear as a metacurrency.
Fudging Dice Rolls is a Skill
When to fudge, and why I often don't use a GM screen
Prepping Factions is Easy, Actually
All factions have two wolves inside them.
When You Shouldn't Roll for Social Encounters
How to run a satisfying negotiation without dice, and when dice are actually useful.
Why New Players Struggle with Fiction-First OSR Play
How OSR games are different from other games, and how I changed my GMing style to help my players adapt.
Playtesting Class Abilities for Social Mechanics
Why my social mechanics felt too "gamified" - identifying the difference between active actions and passive abilities.
Always Tell Me the Odds
4 reasons why GMs should announce the target number before the players roll