gamesmastering
Advice for gamemasters based on decades of trying and learning
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A Simple Call of Cthulhu Chase System
I like Call of Cthulhu’s chases in theory. On the page, they’re clever: abstract locations, hazards, vehicles, movement rates. At the table, though, I always hit the same snag: I can’t remember the sequence, I start flicking through the book, and what should feel like a breathless sprint turns into a rules consult. So I
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How to Actually Improvise at the Table (Without Having a Panic Attack)
I run games in two completely different modes. On one side, there’s my Children of Fear campaign: a glorious monstrosity of prep. I’ve turned the book into episodic node graphs for an open table. Every chapter is broken into session-sized cards containing scenes and locations with arrows going everywhere. I have digital sticky notes, colour-coded
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How to Prep a Published Module
There’s a particular sadness in the eyes of a GM halfway through a 250-page campaign book. You can see the journey: they bought the shiny hardback, they decided to “run it as written,” they tried to read every word… and now they’re trapped in Chapter 4: Minor Trade Routes of the Eastern Barony, quietly regretting
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How to Actually Read TTRPG Rulebooks
I bet a lot of RPG books have never made it to the table. They sit there on the shelf like beautiful, unread bricks. The common mistake I think is treating them like novels. Most RPG books are not written to be read cover to cover like a page-turning thriller. They’re technical manuals wearing a
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Making good Call of Cthulhu investigators
I’ve been running a lot of Call of Cthulhu over the last few years on my Discord server The Other Games. Although I sometimes offer pregens for one-shots, I’ve also offered players plenty of opportunities to roll new characters for themselves. The results have been mixed and this is a short piece with advice on
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Forming Groups in 2025
A bit of a long post but here are my thoughts & advice on forming groups to play RPGs in 2025. Its something I absolutely love to do. I enjoy playing different things and meeting new people. Especially when they’re new to the hobby. Its a golden age to be a GM.
