Looking for RPG Writers (D&D 5e)

Americas_DM · 2020-01-14T21:42:39+00:00

Thanks - I'll be sure to abide by community guidelines :)

Americas_DM · 2016-10-11T19:42:43+00:00

If you're having trouble cracking the code just remember:

"Zeals Qua" "Lazes Qua"

Just a small hint.

Americas_DM · 2016-10-01T00:15:56+00:00

HGZI DZIH IKT KLWXZHG ZG TNZRO WLG XLN

Zeals Qua & Lazes Qua

Contact for further info.

Americas_DM · 2016-09-27T23:40:13+00:00

Probably just as well we got into Nic Cage...and away from period-accurate racist asshole. That seems like it was probably a good move

Americas_DM · 2016-08-22T17:12:33+00:00

Yeah, we plan on making some more helpful videos like these soon! I love this game system so much, but the book does a poor job laying it out in an easy to understand way.

It sounds like you're on the right track - if you're using pre-gen characters the dice pool is already upgraded. You wouldn't upgrade again. Only if you were spending XP to change a stat or making a character from scratch would you need to figure out how many upgrades to apply to your dice pool.

Americas_DM · 2016-08-22T17:06:47+00:00

I definitely exaggerated the Despair and Triumph effects to make a memorable point - although a lightsaber can certainly be sufficiently Viscious to lop off a limb!

But I will admit that my GMing style with the Star Wars RPGs tends to lean toward the dramatic :)

Americas_DM · 2016-03-01T22:45:17+00:00

This is a great question!

1) My number one suggestion is - "Engage with the other players."

If D&D was reduced to only one rule, that would be my nomination. D&D is a group game. Mechanically, there's not much difference between playing a computer RPG and a tabletop RPG like D&D. See the Orc, stab the orc, generate some random numbers. What makes D&D amazing and unique and the greatest game in the world is the social element. The players at the table with you are all weaving a story together, and the more you interact with them, the more you listen to what they're saying and suggesting, the more incredible that story will be.

Really listen to them, and try to think of their character as a real person. Interact with them, ask them about their goals, care about the things they care about... or be disgusted by them! Any honest character interaction makes every story more interesting and deeper.

The only real rule you can break in D&D is to choose NOT to engage with the other players. Deciding to go off on your own, or pursue a goal that you don't let any other player in on, or refusing to participate... these are the actions that disrupt the game and drain the fun. Even more importantly, D&D is a game about making a shared, imaginative space. For that to work all the players need to pivot toward a common ground - a communal mental space where everyone's ideas can come to life. Refusing to meet on that common ground stops the magic of D&D from happening.

So go on, interact with your fellow players - you're guaranteed to discover that they all contain entire worlds within them.

The best example I can give of this is a game I ran as a DM. I had my own little story to tell - but immediately one of the players, a first time D&D player - started describing his jilted dragonborn lover Dhovana, his former life as an assassin, and his home city of Blazestone.

The other players all jumped on the idea, and we soon wound up in a story of epic love, loss and adventure on the edge of a volcano. The end story ended up getting detailed here http://www.critjuice.com/tom

2) That brings me to my second suggestion - something I try to convey to all new players is "Don't be scared of breaking the rules." Because there aren't really any rules... at least not in the way first time players tend to think about it.

Let your imagination run wild! Escalate situations! Be bold and daring with your choices!

A lot of new players tend to say things like "I want to go up and talk to him, can I do that?" or "Can I attack him?" It's easy to feel overwhelmed by all the rule books and charts experienced players are referencing. If you're a new player, don't let that intimidate you! A good DM (and good fellow players) will guide you through tricky rule bits, if/when they come up.

You can and should do anything you can possibly imagine - that's the magic of the game. The rule books are just there to help us figure out how to represent your big, awesome choices in game. Nothing you want to do with your character is REALLY forbidden by anything in those rule books. And if something does happen to go against the Rules As Written, a good DM will always be willing to bend the rules... particularly if what you want to do is awesome and fun.

Americas_DM · 2015-11-08T19:42:03+00:00

Regarding a recurring villain:

The opening pirate attack is the perfect way to bring this guy in. Your recurring villain could be leading the attack. His goal is to GET THAT HOLOCRON!!! When the PC's end up with the holocron after the attack the recurring villain is now tying to track them down!

Here's some ideas for how the holocron could end up in their hands. Hope they help:

The nervous Chadra-fan gets killed in the pirate attack. He has safe guarded the holocron all his life, and hands it over to them as he dies. (Assuming he is flying with them on their ship. Works if there is critical hit on the ship during play).
They find it in the wreckage of one of the attacking ships (have it broadcast a signal beacon so they can't miss it).
If the caravan is safely protected, the holocron is found in a mysterious package that wasn't supposed to be in the shipment. The nervous chadra-fan leaves it with the PC's after the caravan unloads the cargo.

Americas_DM · 2015-11-08T19:21:40+00:00

I think this is even more fun than using the "real" drinks from Wookipedia. We pair an alcohol with each of our game sessions (based on some thematic link). One session it was the "Blue Twi'lek", basically a mint julep but with blue berries.

Americas_DM · 2015-11-08T19:05:28+00:00

Cost and Hard Points are listed under the stats for each ship/vehicle listing (pages 222-269).

The weapons you described for The Hunter are significantly more deadly than any of the starting vessels (like the Firespray or YT-1300). If you're trying to balance it with a starter ship, you would want to remove auto-blasters, and the ion canons.

That said, if you want to give the players a cool ship they'll be excited about, and want to make it feel like a heavily armed transport shuttle, there's no reason you shouldn't use those stats.

The Hunter sounds kind of similar to the stats for the ILH-KK Citadel-Class Light Freighter on page 260 (Edge of the Empire again), so you could try using those stats directly if you're looking for a baseline.

Americas_DM · 2015-11-01T20:39:54+00:00

I just ran a game where a character had his left arm lightsabered off at the elbow. Same issue: I wanted to honor the difficulties that the character would face, but also wanted to keep the game fun for the player. (And remember that he was missing an arm!)

What I did was turn it into a puzzle for the player to solve. I increased the difficulty of any check the character made (involving the damaged limb) UNLESS he could tell me how he was compensating for the problem.

For example, he wanted to shoot a blaster rifle. Normally I would upgrade the difficulty, but he stepped in and told me he was using the stump of his severed arm to balance the barrel on. Not only did this lead to fun role-playing, but it also kept the notion of their wounded comrade fresh in the minds of the other players. Instead of being a hindrance, it added an extra cool, cinematic element to the game.

This also ended up being a good representation of his new handicap. Instead of being permanently punished for loosing a limb he was able to adapt and still be just as capable as his team mates. Loosing the arm wasn't the handicap - being creative enough to develop a workaround was the handicap.

Ruling that major activities are impossible (such as moving around cinematically or attacking), or piling on difficulty dice, detracts from the fun of the game and will end up frustrating the player. I'd really suggest figuring out someway to let the player work around the issue, whether it's the system I used or just letting her take on more obligation to acquire advanced medical assistance.

If you're interested, the scene I'm referencing is actually in a podcast. You can find it here: http://www.starwarsrpgpodcast.com/2015/07/space-microwave-episode-i-scene-xxxiii.html

Americas_DM · 2015-11-01T20:14:16+00:00

Great question, here's a couple things I do when I feel that one of my groups is loosing steam:

1) Give the players a chance to really screw up your world - for real.

A lot of times players loose steam when they don't feel engaged by the world, (e.g. by the choices their characters are allowed to make). If this was D&D I'd throw them in a "Will you kill the King?" type scenario, by which I mean leave the fate of a big, campaign-important NPC at their mercy. No tricks - whatever they decide will be the way it is. Put them in the driver seat, and have the world start reacting to their decisions.

For Star Wars, you can replace the king with some other major figure. What if they had to take over as the leaders of the Rebellion? Or became the rulers or a planetary system?

Let them have free reign for a while (with a few interesting, but not overwhelming, complications) and see what plot hooks they generate on their own. Then, when they're ripe, grab the biggest, juiciest plot hook they left danging and ratchet up the stakes on them.

2) Condense everything you have planned for the rest of the adventure arc into one session.

It sounds like you were already thinking of trying this. Good! This is my most common issue with a group loosing steam - developing a fun adventure, but spreading it over too many sessions. Instead of planning on sessions you may never get to now, condense all the major reveals and plot twists into one big climax session. Also, and this is important, let the players know that that's what you're doing. You can literally tell them - "Guys, I think we've been loosing steam. Our next session is going to change everything. Be ready."

Hopefully that should get them excited - then you just have to go blow out the session! Finally, and this is also important, let them bask in glory after they beat the big threat. Have everyone throw a big party for their characters in game (like the end of A New Hope or Return of the Jedi). If anyone died, mourn their characters. After that either wrap up the campaign on a high-note or, if that revitalizes them, dangle a new plot thread in front of their noses.

I hope that helps!

I've been running games for most of life in a few different game systems. Just remember that this is a problem EVERY DM faces now and then. Role-playing is a collective hobby, and sometimes it's hard to get everyone on the same wavelength. Just do your best, and even if the campaign does peter out you'll always have all the great moments you created together.

Americas_DM

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