One of my most favorite of clans yet so riddled with missteps in how played and GM'S constantly,tragically represent them so poorly.
Author: Runkle Plays Games
Always split the party
I find myself with the Blogger on this one. Shocking as most readers will find it a well run game can handle a split party and the game with thrive. But the execution rests on the GM.
This advice is not taken lightly if you are not confident that you can handle the party breaking up tell your players. Be honest with yourself and your fellow gamer’s. If you can no handle a split party you will lose your players fast and it can easily make a great session a boring or even bad session.
Myself I am very confident and comfortable splitting my party. To the point that often the moment my players hit the safe location they scatter to the four winds. Nine times out of ten I handle it like a champ. Some nights rare as they are it is an utter failure. And I have been at this for nearly 30 years !
But my advice do it anyway! your players will thank you for it in the end. Those moments when you pull it off and allow your players to play to their individual strengths and develop. Far outweigh the occasional slow moments.
The most common advice I heard on RPG boards for awhile was “Never split the party.” The reasons for this on both sides of the screen are compelling. As a player, separating the party weakens and exposes you to dangers. As a GM, it makes your work much harder, trying to manage all the separate strands. This makes it great advice for new players or GM’s. If you aren’t new though, it limits you in what you can accomplish in terms of telling diverse stories or enacting cunning plans.
Lets start from a player perspective. Always being grouped together means you can’t really pursue individual goals or stories. Think how much less epic those Vader Luke fights would have been if every time Luke was backed by a wookie, smuggler, two droids, and a princess. Hardly the climatic showdown we all wanted. Or imagine trying to flirt with your first…
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Runkles Review: Winter Eternal for Savage Worlds
Winter Eternal Winter Eternal by Morné Schaap Cover: Lord Zsezse Works, Morné Schaap & Anton Vermeulen Layout: Morné Schaap & Anton Vermeulen Interior art: Doug Anderson, Jeff Brown, Jason Heeley, Jeremy Jack, Bob Kehl, Riaz khan Eusouff, Christopher Onciu, Morné Schaap, Adam Schmidt, Colin Tan, Anton Vermeulen Overview: Winter Eternal comes out of the gates… Continue reading Runkles Review: Winter Eternal for Savage Worlds
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Review: Savage Kingdoms
So an interesting title has made its way across my desk. A game of Heroic sword and sorcery, Savage Kingdoms. This was a Kickstarter that slipped past my radar back in March of last year. Likely because we were getting deep into preparation for Storm-Con. Savage Kingdoms is inspired by Robert E Howard and is… Continue reading Review: Savage Kingdoms
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Kobold’s Corner: Pillars Of Eternity Impressions: NPC Writing
Good read, you are the second person that has mentioned to me how great PoE is. This is now on my list of must play games.
That said these tips are great to any DM/GM as well at the Tabletop. When you make NPC’s that your players value they will grow to love the world around them as much as their own Character.
Making a player put value in an NPC good or bad. Makes every interaction with them that much better. This is a wonderful way to curb the much hated Murder Hobo groups that DM’s dread.
But much like any MMO. Not everyone needs a name. Suzy the barmaid only requires a name if she is addressed by the players and they engage her in conversation. Until that time she is just a Drone on auto pilot. This goes for any other NPC that is not a key character in your stories.
MMORPG published an article a few days ago: 5 Things MMOs Could Learn from Pillars of Eternity. It was good to see characters and story near the top of this list.
Some reader comments on the article are skeptical, suggesting that single player RPGs and MMOs are different categories, but no. Characters should be the #1 most important thing in anything fiction, and every video game is fiction.
No? When you think of Mortal Kombat, what comes to mind? The gameplay or the characters? What about driving games? GTA is the best-selling driving franchise of all time, edging out Mario Kart. And Mario Kart is called Mario Kart.
MMOs tend to overwhelm players with too many throw-away character names. Pillars of Eternity tries to avoid this trap. Instead of naming every villager, PoE just calls them villagers.
One of the companion NPCs in PoE, written by…
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Kickstarter Watch: GNL Mats.
Game Nightlife Mats. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/gamenightlife/gnl-mats/description This Kickstarter came onto my radar last week when it launched. From the very moment I was excited. I always liked Tack Tiles but I never picked them up due to the puzzle board shape. Something about it never had the visual appeal to me on a personal level. That said… Continue reading Kickstarter Watch: GNL Mats.
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Stormlord Publishing Black Powder Black Magic
Well I currently do not have a regular game of DCC going to date. Regular game or not I love the gritty feel and old school flavor of this System. Stormlord Publishing now has come along and puts out a six-guns and sorcery setting based in a fictional USA. Well I am sold. Honestly the… Continue reading Stormlord Publishing Black Powder Black Magic
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