Deep within an ancient forest, a trembling young woman enters the clearing where a ramshackle hut crouches on birds’ legs. Far below the earth, a caravan of kobold merchants passes through a stone archway carved with the faces of leering ghouls. High atop a northern mountain, a dwarf grips his battle-axe and gazes over the […]
I’m no scholar of Robert E. Howard, just a fan of his storytelling and his best-known character, Conan the Barbarian. Conan first crossed my reading list when I discovered a shelf of dog-eared paperbacks at the local second-hand shop. I was still a relative newcomer to swords-&-sorcery fiction at the time, and Conan was unlike
Howling Tower: Conan the Instructor Read More »
Back in the fall of 2009, Chris Dinkins and I interviewed a host of game designers and novelists who were also experienced game masters. We sent around too many questions to too many GMs and received far too much material for one article to hold. As a result, a lot of great material got scrapped.
The Lost GM Scrolls: Mike Mearls on Stepping Up and Taking a Poke at the World Read More »
Monsters of Sin epitomize the very worst of our natures—and they prey on others’ weaknesses. This third book in the Monsters of Sin series for the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game is devoted to Gluttony, the irresistable desire for pleasures of all sorts, so there’s bound to be one to tempt any character. It includes: The Bottomless
Monsters of Sin: Gluttony Now Available Read More »
Open Design is up for four ENnie Awards this year (vote here), and our kobold mascot Jiro is out on the campaign trail stumping for votes! He’s traveling all over Midgard, and we’ll be giving you updates on his progress. (We’re not sure how he’s going to get out the vote in the Empire of
$5 Off ENnie Nominated Books At The Kobold Store Read More »
Back in the fall of 2009, Chris Dinkins and I interviewed a host of game designers and novelists who were also experienced game masters. We sent around too many questions to too many GMs and received far too much material for one article to hold. As a result, a lot of great material got scrapped.
The Lost GM Scrolls: A Friday Funny with Mike Mearls Read More »
Today we’re going to talk about boss battles in your tabletop games, including how you can borrow a few ideas from Diablo 3 and other titles as well. Making these climactic encounters a true apex to your adventures is crucial, and they are loads of fun to dream up. Remember, folks, D&D invented the “boss
From Diablo 3 to D&D: Memorable and Challenging Boss Battles (Part 1 of 2) Read More »
“Stop! Gods, I’m done.” Gavin’s chest and legs were on fire. Gasping for air, he looked at Thurmish. The giant oaf was barely out of breath. “Where is Zaron?” Thurmish gazed ahead, spat on the ground, and said, “His magic is helping him flee. He won’t return—not for us at least.” “And what of our
Trapsmith: Impromptu Surprises Read More »
The trap is a D&D icon. Classic dungeons such as Tomb of Horrors and The Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan are famous for their mechanical ambushes. Traps are so central to the concept of dungeons that an entire class—the thief—was developed to deal with them (along with locked doors). In real life, of course, archaeologists have
Howling Tower: Placing Traps to Serve a Larger Purpose Read More »
“Dark Roads & Golden Hells is one hell of an achievement… or perhaps eleven of them. Every chapter offers a world of ideas, every paragraph a vision. Open this to any page, and see if it doesn’t draw you in. Open Design has created a dazzlingly worthy successor to the Planescape legacy.” – Colin McComb,
Dark Roads & Golden Hells Now Available Read More »
In the last post, we covered how the Threat Level system works to provide Dragon Age and AGE system game masters with a base score for deciding if a group of adversaries would make an appropriate challenge for their player characters. This post expands on those rules by providing the Threat Level system for the
AGE of Combat: Building Combat Encounters in the AGE System (Part 2 of 2) Read More »
As ever, readers who are new to the diary, please read the earlier installments first. (Art by Chris McFann.) DAY FIFTY-FIVE (later) Well. Planning—and subsequently executing—a company picnic is significantly harder than I initially expected. Here’s my whole freaking Saturday basically wasted, and I’m no closer to having that punch made than I was this
Oh, I’m Going to Get Killed Any Minute Now (Part 24) Read More »
There is singing, dancing and drinking in the kobold mines today: Open Design received four ENnie Award 2012 nominations. Here’s what we’re up for this year: Best Adventure: Streets of Zobeck Best Art, Interior: Book of Drakes Best RPG Related Product: Complete Kobold Guide to Game Design Best Writing: Your Whispering Homunculus Congratulations to Ben
ENnie Award Nominations for Open Design! Read More »
Combat encounters are a staple of most tabletop roleplaying games, and that is certainly the case in the Dragon Age RPG from Green Ronin. Combat in Dragon Age is fun, fast, and cinematic, with both heroes and villains using the game’s unique stunt system to perform daring feats of skill to quickly turn the tide
AGE of Combat: Building Combat Encounters in the AGE System (Part 1 of 2) Read More »
The kobolds descended upon PaizoCon 2012 and made it their temporary home away from home for a few days. In the gallery we’re presenting, you can see a few of the kobolds hard at work, plus some fun mittens, and the all-important booth! Wolfgang and Adam ran games, various kobolds manned the booth, and a
PaizoCon 2012 Gallery Read More »
Back in the fall of 2009, Chris Dinkins and I interviewed a host of game designers and novelists who were also experienced game masters. We sent around too many questions to too many GMs and received far too much material for one article to hold. As a result, a lot of great material got scrapped.
The Lost GM Scrolls: Will Hindmarch on Clearly Stated Goals Read More »
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