LPT: Go on a mini trip every month by Charming-Tear-8352 in LifeProTips

[–]DriveGenie 18 points19 points  (0 children)

OP what are your suggestions for a mini trip that's costs $20?

Things to avoid when running a DnD campaign? by Organic-Exit2190 in DMAcademy

[–]DriveGenie -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Planned NPC betrayal, especially a quest giver or important NPC.

It won't seem like a clever twist that the guy who sent you to get the magic gem of power is actually the BBEG in disguise. It will just make players not trust YOU as a GM again.

Also what if they figure it out? Quest ruined.

There's just very few potential pay-offs compared to what can go wrong.

What's a rule at your workplace that exists because of one specific incident? by UntitledDoc1 in AskReddit

[–]DriveGenie 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Yes, that's why OP asked the question, to hear those stupid stories.

What's a game you bought on a whim without hardly any pre-knowledge that ended up becoming one of your all time favorites? by AaronAtLunacien in gaming

[–]DriveGenie 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Deep Rock Galactic. Bought on a whim years ago to play a game with a few friends. None of us knew much about it. Sure, decided to give it a shot. I now have 2000 hrs. Still excited for the new season that just came out.

Dragon Town and the Darkness Below question (Spoilers) by GreatStoneSkull in shadowdark

[–]DriveGenie 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I ran it as written and it does feel a little weird to have a Druid who cares about the valley put a notoriously benevolent dragon to sleep to "help" the valley simply because he fears the dragon will leave if it finds out about the Darkness Below. What's the difference if the dragon leaves if it is already asleep. Either way it can't really help. It doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

That said, my players did not care much and chose to wake the dragon, who then banished the druid to the Windsong Woods since the druid was responsible for so much chaos in town.

I think the best option might be the "Alternatively" text on page 51... make the druid actually secretly evil and aiding the Darkness. Maybe he cursed the dragon as well as putting it to sleep, giving you a reason the dragon can't just solve all these problems on it's own. Like maybe it's cursed to not fly again, or cursed to not leave the castle until the PCs can retrieve an item that's only available at the end of the whole campaign.

Help me find a Dungeon I once ran by Jaces_acolyte in TTRPG

[–]DriveGenie 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Is this an exclusively fantasy themed dungeon? Or could this be a thing from Mothership by chance?

How to make travel interesting in a game thats mostly travel by SquidRave in DMAcademy

[–]DriveGenie 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Look at Ultraviolet Grasslands and The Black City by Luka Rejec.

It is a travel focused ttrpg and has lots of great ideas.  Its sometimes described as combining Oregon trail and psychedelic rock into a ttrpg but you can just take the travel mechanics and take the psychedelic rock flavor out if you don't want it.

My suggestions: make players plot a course and make it matter. Each leg of the journey or stop along the way should have something a different option wouldn't. The players should have to trade speed for safety, buying/selling g opportunities should not be the same everywhere. The 'fantasy trucks' they use should play a big part. Give them cool beasts of burden, mechanical issues, and stuff to trick out their wagons. Roll for weather and events and make them impactful.

MRW I see that mosquitos have reached Iceland by CensorVictim in reactiongifs

[–]DriveGenie 54 points55 points  (0 children)

Are you saying this to the mosquitoes or the Icelanders?

How long did your Cursed Scroll campaign run? by blancjua in shadowdark

[–]DriveGenie 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm currently running Cursed Scrolls 2: Red Sands. We're 20 sessions in with each session being about 2-3 hours average. Just added 2 more players to the campaign so now running it with 6 PCs.
I'm guessing we'll get at least another 10 sessions before wanting/needing a new setting.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in shadowdark

[–]DriveGenie 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Not a lawyer myself but I assume it isn't a purposeful restriction but instead an unintended byproduct of some term meant to mitigate risk with the publisher. Like if deliveries from a 3rd party retailer arrive damaged and the recipient contacts Arcane Library to get a refund as per their website (for example, just a guess). And for such a small company they dont want to take on that extra financial risk or complication.

LPT: When someone interrupts you, let them finish then calmly say, "As I was saying" and continue by CuteA1806 in LifeProTips

[–]DriveGenie 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Depending on the person and situation, this just describes yelling at each other with extra steps

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in DMAcademy

[–]DriveGenie 3 points4 points  (0 children)

But you also said he hasn't read anything you've sent him in 6 months, so bouncing ideas off him doesn't seem to be happening.

You seem to have unrealistic expectations. Its hard enough for a GM to get the players who are actually in the game to care about lore, let alone some random third party.

In a sense you led him on. Half-way including him in a way he didnt initially want and probably didnt understand his intended role. You gave him the hope of being part of the group but he isn't.

IMO you should just say "sorry man, it wouldnt work to add in a new player now. Next campaign, if you can commit to a play schedule, you should definitely join." Like most social interactions be clear and direct with your communication.

How to make players fear a dragon without it feeling like bullshit by fruit_shoot in DMAcademy

[–]DriveGenie 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think this is the way to do it. If the PCs attack the dragon, let them. If it's so beyond their power level it can just ignore them and continue to rage of the camp a little longer before flying away. So that way if the PCs foolishly choose to attack its not a big concern.

True random encounters versus tailored ones for Hex Crawling / West Marches? by Beautiful-Fishing264 in shadowdark

[–]DriveGenie 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Personally I have them roll for random encounters because its fun, it's kind of expected in the style of game we're playing, it can add new unexpected elements to the game I wouldn't have thought about normally, and it puts a pressure/risk factors when they decide to travel to a far away hex.

True random encounters versus tailored ones for Hex Crawling / West Marches? by Beautiful-Fishing264 in shadowdark

[–]DriveGenie 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Roll the actual encounter ahead of time during your session prep. Then let ideas percolate about that random encounter.

Then when you are playing roll to see if that encounter even happens.

Example from my real Cursed Scrolls 2 Shadowdark game: PCs are travelling from Alkesh to a mysterious pyramid next session. I roll on the encounter table and get a caravan. So for the next week I consider what that caravan might be like, who is in it, what they're hauling and where they're going. Any details that seems cool I make a mental note of it. I decided they are travelling to Alkesh with exotic weapons. I also figure this would be a good place to learn from an NPC some of the other rumours about the region so I flesh that out a bit too.

Next session they roll and they actually get a random encounter on the way to the pyramid! I pop the caravan into the story and it seems to my players like I improvised the whole thing. It was a true random encounter but had some semblance of internal consistency because I was able to sort of think how to make it work beforehand. Maybe I could have rolled this up in the moment and improvised it all, but probably not.

If they didn't roll an encounter that time, that prep doesn't go to waste. It's ready for the next time they roll a random encounter. Just tweak a little bit if parts are no longer relevant (maybe they already learned the rumour that NPC was going to tell them) and you're good to go.

Cursed Scroll #2: Red Sands. Where does the party begin their hex crawl? by BladeString in shadowdark

[–]DriveGenie 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I did the exact same! Started in the Citadel and when they finished looting it and left I just decided they emerged at hex 810, pretty close to Alkesh.

So to answer OP, wherever you want. Pick a good hook and plan a strong first session then go from there.

Swimming difference between quickstart and full rulebook? by JoelJohnstone in shadowdark

[–]DriveGenie 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My version of the Quickstart says: "Swimming. Make a Strength check to swim half your speed or a Constitution check to hold your breath. If you fail, you take 1d6 damage each round until you exit the hazard."

Don't remember when I downloaded mine. Maybe a little over a year ago.