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923 pieces · Titles A–Z
Ten Tips for Stress-Free Gamemastering
Like many gamers, when I first entered the hobby, I thought that it was desirable and even necessary to have rules to account for the outcome of every possible Character action or environmental condition. Thick…
test
testing
Thar Be Newbies!
It's the first editorial not by our editor. Mike Mearls discusses the friendliness and ease of the hobby to those just starting out in it.
The 2000 Origins Awards
Dak went to Origins this year, and he got us the scoop on the winners of the 2000 Origins Awards!
The Builders: A Silent Death Story
The Builders is a fiction piece set in the Silent Death universe that deals with the origin of the Builders (Night Brood First Contact page 7)--how they met the Night Brood and why they aid them. It was one of the…
The Chimeric Files: Life After Death...Briefly
Depending on how you choose to bring the dead character back into the campaign and what you hope to achieve, you may have to delve into the metaphysical nature of your setting. You might find yourself having to answer…
The Chimeric Files: The Gamesmaster
Games Master. Storyteller. Dungeon Master. Marshall. The list of names for the position is long, but the list of people willing to take on the task is short, and the list gets even shorter when you only include the GM's…
The Clans: Warriors of Kerensky
On the other side of the spectrum from Maximum Tech is The Clans: Warriors of Kerensky, which has enough flavor text to choke a camel.
The d20 License: An Explanation
With the D&D Third Edition Players Handbook coming out in two days, the hobbyist game design community is still not certain what they can and cant do under the D20 License. So, what can you create with this license, and…
The Dark Side of Gaming - Number Gaming
An article about the dark sin of "Number Gaming", which is focusing single-mindedly on numbers and winning instead of theme, content, and fun. This applies to most gamers, role-playing and wargaming alike. We all…
The Digital Predator
I recently spent an evening playing two multi-player computer games with four other people. This was an entertaining way to spend an evening and it got me thinking about computer games, role-playing games and possibly…
The Discard Pile: A Fresh Look At "Dead" CCGs
You've seen these 'dead games' gathering dust on dealers' shelves, or sitting around in online auctions, and not given them another thought. Many of them probably deserved to go, but better games may have slipped…
The Dragon and the Bear
For those who think 'real' history is lame, they have another thing coming: the Mongols.
The End of Dreams
Here it is. The last Dreaming Out Loud column. Enjoy.
The Eye of Glory: Chapter 1
The Eye of Glory is A Novel of Lejendary Earth . We are lucky enough to have the first three chapters here for you to preview. If you like what you read here, make sure to go ask for it from your local retailer.
The Eye of Glory: Chapter 2
The Eye of Glory is A Novel of Lejendary Earth . We are lucky enough to have the first three chapters here for you to preview. If you like what you read here, make sure to go ask for it from your local retailer.
The Eye of Glory: Chapter 3
The Eye of Glory is A Novel of Lejendary Earth . We are lucky enough to have the first three chapters here for you to preview. If you like what you read here, make sure to go ask for it from your local retailer.
The Fading
'The Fading' is the third installment in a five part series of fiction based on The Nearside Project. Taken as a whole, these five stories are known as "The Thirteenth Hour"
The Gauntlet Has Been Thrown Down, Mr. Skarka
Game designer Gareth-Michael Skarka is challenged to defend his perpetual negativity toward everyone, and particularly Gaming Outpost.
The Glue That Holds Us Together
It's the debate that arguably defines the gaming hobby and Jack Spencer, Jr. writes a thoughtful dissection of it: "D&D sucks. No it doesn't."
The Great War: A Multiverser SF World
The Great War between the Inner System and the Jupiter Confederation is slugged out in the Asteroid Belt with tens of millions of space marines on both sides, and body counts that sometimes surpass tens of thousands in…
The History of Warhamster
Welcome to Volume 2 of the Game Designers Journal. Ive made a few changes (youll notice the couch now faces the west wall) that I hope youll be happy with. However, I have to let you know, this one is a renter. Im only…
The Hunt
'The Hunt' is the second installment in a five part series of fiction based on The Nearside Project. Taken as a whole, these five stories are known as "The Thirteenth Hour".
The Last Game
'The Last Game' is the final installment in a five part series of fiction based on The Nearside Project. Taken as a whole, these five stories are known as "The Thirteenth Hour".
The Last Paladin
It begins in a tavern, and a stranger, coming in from the rain. Its the mean kind of cold outside, the kind of cold that bows your bones and makes them ache. The stranger shakes the wet off his steaming cloak and looks…
The Level Playing Field
Class, race, elves, and halflings. And what RPG's reveal of our attitudes about the real world.
The Long Game
'The Long Game' is the first installment in a five part series of fiction based on The Nearside Project. Taken as a whole, these five stories are known as "The Thirteenth Hour".
The Making of a Hero (version 0.3a)
"Well, it seems as though folks are interested in seeing the mechanics that I have prepared for Alyria. So I will accede to their wishes and write a bit about my basic mechanic."
The Measure of A Man
This piece of fiction was one of the entries to the Deadlands: Hell On Earth contest.
The Nature of Freedom in RPG's and Computer Games
A philosophical discussion of the differences in the nature of freedom in pencil-and-paper and computer roleplaying games.