SPOILER ALERT TO MY ADVENTURERS! The following post contains spoilers for the up and coming campaign. You may want to avoid this post and join me in a future one.

A few years back now I read a book that was part of the history of The Lord Of The Rings. I can’t remember which volume it was. I also read a bio on the author as well. So the following is probably a mash up by my poor memory. But between the two books I remember that whilst writing The Lord Of The Rings the language and names used by Tolkien were based on Old English (his speciality). The reason for doing so was to give a feel of a history, an authenticity when read.

I want that in my D&D sessions.

You saw a snippet of that (or an attempt) in yesterday’s post where I created Sealby. I tried (and those that know better will decide how successful I was) to create a name for the settlement that felt authentic, given the Norse influence.

Luckily for names we are pretty well supported in D&D, and to be fair these can be used in other systems as well.

For starters there is Gary Gygax’s Extraordinary Book Of Names. This book is amazing. It has name lists from a really wide range of cultures and languages (past and present) from around the world. Plus tables and methods for creating more. So “to get names from the book, simply assign names from the lists, or generate them using the tables.”

Naturally my focus at the moment with this book is Norse names but when my campaign moves to the more traditional D&D Western Europe medieval fantasy influence I’ll switch over to Anglo-Saxon names.

The next handy source is an appendix in Xanathar’s Guide to Everything. Appendix B is character names, organised by non-human and human names. This is great as a handy tool to create quick names on the fly using the lists provided. Roll a d100/percentile, then look at the appropriate table (based on race and gender) to get a name.

There are also numerous websites that will also generate names for you randomly at the click of a button. Just google some, play with them and bookmark your favourite.

I used google to also find some handy sites that talked about the Norse influence on UK place names. But do I really need to tell you about this? Surely that’s a given these days.

My preference is the first two sources. With Gygax’s tome it’s very detailed, I’m learning at the same time. And is ideal for preparing my campaign, when I have the time to indulge in this sort of depth. Whilst Xanathar’s is ideal to have on hand for that on the fly moment when you need to name an npc.

How do you generate authentic names for your campaign?

With mixed emotions we have arrived at the last day of #RPGaDAY2019.

The last days theme is…

Wow this is a hard one to finish on.

What lasts can we have in an RPG?

• Last in combat turn order.
• Last in party order.
• Last to survive.
• Last in a competition against other players/NPC’s.
• Last to solve the puzzle/mystery.
• Last to arrive at the session.
• Last to leave the session.

It’s the penultimate #RPGaDAY2019 post.

Here is the penultimate theme for the day…

For me this is all about the connection between a player and their character.

What is it about the character created that resonates with the player to form that connection?

For me with Dram the halfling wizard there were several connections I had with the character.

The first was the character’s name. Back in the late 80’s when I was at poly, studying for my HND, I played MERPS (Middle Earth Role Playing Game). In the campaign I played a halfling warrior (I think that was his class) called Dram. I have very fond memories of playing that RPG and Dram. So when it came to naming my new halfling character it could only be one name.

I’m also a big Tolkien fan, and within the Middle Earth universe the Hobbits are my favourite characters in the stories. So naturally when I create characters in a fantasy setting I create characters that are the equivalent race to Hobbits. In D&D that’s halflings.

I also like wizards, Gandalf is also another Middle Earth character I love. So combining my favourite class with my favourite race seemed natural.

When it came to playing Dram I had another connection/influence. Another fantasy series of books I enjoyed, and have fond memories of are the Dragonlance Chronicles. Unsurprisingly my favourite character from those books is Tasslehoff the kender so when it came to playing Dram I tried to use elements of Tasslehoff that I remembered. Particularly the always getting into trouble.

So I had a few connections to Dram all personal in some way or the other. And those connections made Dram fun to play. More importantly they made it easier to play Dram and decide what he would do in situations.

Back to back #RPGaDAY2019 posts. My gaming life must be boring this week!

So here is today’s theme…

I’m not writing much on this today, but instead just putting this simple “Infographic”/timeline showing how D&D evolved over the decades.

Let’s jump straight in and see what today’s theme is…

Oh this is a good one, and extremely hard.

Let’s some stuff out of the system first before getting on with the post. Otherwise it’s just going to be hanging there in the background. Over shadowing everything I write, waiting to interrupt and distract from whatever poor point I’m making.

“What’s love got to do, got to do with it

What’s love but a second hand emotion

What’s love got to do, got to do with it

Who needs a heart when a heart can be broken…” (Tina Turner)

and

“I wanna know what love is

I want you to show me

I wanna feel what love is

I know you can show me…” (Foreigner)

Lurve in RPG’s. This is something you don’t often see in an RPG. It’s very player dependent. It can be something that would make the players very uncomfortable. Especially if we take a literal, carnal interpretation of the word. There are systems out there that have that element (Vampire I believe does). But generally it’s third party adventure ideas that explore this.

But love can be included in a campaign that doesn’t involve the players directly. NPC’s can be in love with each other. And what the players see is a love story unfold in front of them, maybe a Romeo and Juliette plot line, with the players helping the main NPC’s meet in secret. Or we see love as a major motivator for an NPC. I’m just spit balling ideas here of how I’d include it in a campaign.

The other interpretation of love for today is, I love RPGs and being a DM/GM. I love the creative process, the generating ideas. The plotting, discovering new things as you do the research. Seeing those ideas come to life at the table, the enjoyment the players get.

Phew I’m glad this ones over.

Having avoided another couple of difficult themes by boring you all with basically diary updates of game sessions, I’m back with the #RPGaDAY2019.

So let’s jump straight in with today’s theme of…

This theme seems on the surface a softball. But that’s misleading. This is the #RPGaDAY2019 theme version of an iceberg.

For me this theme is synonymous with my first and current homebrew campaign.

I think as a DM and creating your own campaign it helps to generate ideas from as many sources as possible.

For instance my In the wake of Pytheas campaign has a big clue in a major influence for ideas I will be using in the campaign. Despite being a D&D Forgotten Realms campaign, I will be using not just ideas from the said Pytheas and his journeys. But also from other Greek mythology such as Jason and the Argonauts, Theseus and the Minotaur, and the epic poem Odyssey. Add in some fantasy inspired films like Clash of the Titans, the 1970’s and 80’s Sinbad movies.

But my misspent youth sat in front of a tv watching whatever tv series and movies I was deemed worthy to watch by the three tv channel gatekeepers, and later during the home video explosion. Is now paying off! Just not financially.

Other ideas I want to use inspired by movies I watched growing up that would fit in nicely with this nautical island hoping theme are Warlords of Atlantis (actually saw this at the cinema, and yes I’m that old), The Island at the Top of the World. More modern films such as Jurassic Park has also sparked an idea for an island. Although I spent the last post in this #RPGaDAY2019 criticising Lost, the theme is great for using in this campaign. The semi recent Kong Skull Island is also a great source of ideas. As is Wonder Woman. I like using the premise of Waterworld, if not the idea of having a floating humanoid/magic created floating island.

Krull is a movie from my teenage years which I’m definitely taking the plot from. It’s a variation of the Clash of the Titans plot. Taking the plots of films outside the fantasy genre is also a great idea. The Magnificent Seven, The Dirty Dozen/Inglorious Bastards, Kelly’s Heroes, great movies, great plots that can be transplanted into a campaign. Or keeping with the nautical ship based idea for the campaign The Poseidon Adventure and it’s sequel would make a great adventure.

I enjoy playing Magic the Gathering and I’ve also taken ideas from there. Especially the Ixalan block. Ixalan is an island that has dinosaurs, merfolk, pirates and vampires. And is a great rich source of ideas to also use. In fact I’m using a couple of Planeswalkers from these as antagonists for the campaign on the pirate side.

Treasure Island and Kidnapped are the main sources of ideas for me on the pirate front and the news about modern pirates.

From comics I like the idea of Ka-zar and the Savage Land. Which kind of crosses over with the Jurassic Park and Ixalan stuff. But there is plenty from there plot wise I can borrow.

I could also use other mythology other than Greek. For instance Arthurian Legend and the sword in the stone, Beowulf, Norse mythology, even Roman.

So as you can see by exploiting my wasted misspent youth, I have more than enough ideas to run a very very long campaign. And that’s without even touching any of the many source materials for D&D both official and unofficial.

The ideas and inspiration can come from anywhere. By breaking out of your comfort zone and usual media and genres you can find a rich vein of ideas for campaigns.

I’ve talked about MtG today so I suppose I should talk about #RPGaDAY2019 and not just bury my head in the sand and avoid today’s theme.

So here is today’s theme…

When I see the word lost I instantly think about the tv show. About how hip and cool it was. How every one was discussing it, looking for clues about the island and it’s secrets. Almost every other person who watched it had their theories.

For at least 3 or 4 of the seasons it was must see tv. But then it started to lose its way. Until in season 6 we end up with probably one of the all time most disappointing ends to a series ever. A Game of Thrones did it’s best to try and match that honour. Both in the last couple of seasons and it’s final episode.

So what has this got to do with D&D and RPGs in general?

I think it serves as a warning. Something that should be studied and learnt from.

As a DM we want our campaigns to be like those first 3 or 4 seasons. Compelling, must watch, not to be missed. Have our players talking about the campaign and what they have just done in that session. Discussing theories and what they want to do next session. That water cooler moment.

But a campaign like any story has to end. We want our campaign to end more like Battlestar Galactica, M.A.S.H. or Twin Peaks: The Return. We want to try and avoid the last two seasons of Lost or that matter A Game Of Thrones.

In A Game Of Thrones they rushed things, didn’t take the time to set things up for particular plot pay offs. So when certain events happened the fans/audience felt cheated because often they felt they came out of nowhere for no reason. Basically things were truncated when they didn’t have to be.

With Lost they were doing the opposite trying to stretch things out, even when the story should have ended earlier. I read somewhere that you could watch the first couple of seasons and the last and get the whole story. The inbetween was just fluff.

So in our campaigns I think it’s important to avoid fluff. Try and keep things tight. Of the encounter doesn’t advance your story/plot, then cut it. You can always throw in a random encounter to break things up if need be. But we have to be on guard about being too ruthless and not having enough encounters to tell the story we want to tell.

Lost also never really established a main antagonist. It was fluid from season to season who the bad guys were. A good antagonist just makes memorable moments. It’s conflict. It’s good storytelling.

Lost also never ended story arcs. Viewers were just left hanging. Poor storytelling. I think when it comes to running a campaign, of the party get sidetracked from the current story arc or splinter off on another for some reason, it’s important that at a future point the story arc is concluded. So it could be they return to a inn and hear how the events of the abandoned story arc finished. That the bad guy they left massacred a village. You get the idea.

Lost also had lots and lots of unanswered questions. It’s good to have unanswered questions, they are future adventure hooks. But not the share number Lost had.

The hardest one to judge is the satisfying ending. You won’t know that until it happens and how the players react. But I think if you avoid the above the likely hood of the ending being a damp squib is greatly reduced.

The creators and writers of Lost were brave. They obviously knew the rules of storytelling. They had to to break them. Sadly the implementation was poorly executed. Which is lucky for us, as we can learn from what they did and their mistakes.

Hopefully my fading memory of the series, hasn’t faded too much. And I’ve remembered enough detail to make the points above correctly.

I think this might just be a very unique take on the theme for the day. Why do you think?

After yesterday’s brief look at Generation Decks, and skipping another day of #RPGaDAY2019 (it’s just a coincidence that it was a hard theme) we are back on the month long bandwagon.

So let’s see what today’s theme is…

Vast, such a big word! Sorry couldn’t help that.

After that poor attempt at a joke, what does vast mean to me?

I think it describes the Forgotten Realm perfectly. It’s a word that pops to mind when I think about it.

The map below of the Sword Coast is a tiny part of that world.

Despite that, even that seems overwhelming in it’s size.

You can narrow in on any area, and be blown away with the share amount and richness of ideas that will be inspired.

I think of where my homebrew campaign is taking place around the Moonshae Islands and Mintarn and the share volume of adventure ideas that I have for that small part of the Sword Coast.

Adventures based on classical literature such as the Greek stories and legends. Encounters at sea with pirates and monsters, and also on the sea bed. Islands inspired by movies like Jurassic Park or the Island of Dr Moreau. Then you get on the Moonshae Islands themselves and all that they inspire above ground and below in the under dark.

It almost seems overwhelming.

I just love how the Forgotten Realm is such a vast and rich realm to base a campaign.