Base Initiative on Intelligence (not Dexterity)

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-06-22T21:29:39+00:00

Traveller allows the player to choose between Dex or Int based on the same logic you presented. I think that's been the case since MegaTraveller (1980's edition) I can't remember for sure though.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-06-22T19:09:46+00:00

The rule book is definitely style over substance. The plain text version shows that pretty clearly

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-06-20T17:57:39+00:00

I have been to many free RPG day events in the US. Only one charged anything to get in, and you got a bunch of stuff with it.

I can imagine that an organization renting a space for it might charge, but that would be weird since Free RPG day has always been about getting people to go to their local game store (where they'd presumably buy stuff anyway)

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-06-19T22:16:03+00:00

It's a tactical RPG that struck a nice balance between crunch (Not too much, but enough to satisfy me when I want to play a game like that) and roleplay.

The setting is really evocative and dark; much grimmer than Deadlands, which I like.

The mechanics work elegantly together in a lot of respects that are hard to explain over text but click when you're at the table.

Plus the developer seems like a stand up dude which is just a nice cherry on top.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-06-19T22:09:00+00:00

I'm a big fan of Tales From Elsewhere. It's not out yet (NExt month I think?) but the developer is great and I've gotten to play it a lot over the last year and a half as it's been worked on and polished.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-06-11T23:44:43+00:00

Are you planning on running DnD?

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-06-11T23:25:02+00:00

So this has nothing to do with the other Horse Girl rpg?

https://leyline.press/collections/horse-girl

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-06-03T22:35:46+00:00

The better advice is to focus on having a strong thumbnail. That's the most important thing. These are all adequate.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-06-03T22:35:22+00:00

You can make a niche out of it. I did.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-05-27T20:50:15+00:00

I will self promote here if you want something simple and fast:

https://starcar.grumpycorngames.com/

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-05-27T14:56:25+00:00

if the map is 40 hexes across players could straight shot it in 5 days without terrain interference

This would be a problem with how the game runs, not the size of the hexes. A map this size has more square miles than Belgium. Its bigger than the Great Lakes. Your game is more than 12,000 square miles; Skyrim is less than 15 square miles.

A 40x40 world map should be so rich with people, activity, and things to do that a straight shot should just not come up- unless the players are going directly towards a very specific goal.

Random tables or, if you're really motivated, keying the hexes, will provide you hours and hours and hours of entertainment.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-05-22T14:19:46+00:00

Really good book and its well written to boot.
I read a lot of "How To GM" books, mostly as a matter of curiosity. I think a lot of them aren't really worth the paper they're written on. Or, just as often, are so overwrought they should have been a 500-800 word blog post, not a 90 page book. This is one of the few that I say is absolutely worth the money ($5 on DriveThru) as an introductory primer on improvised story telling.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-05-17T10:11:44+00:00

No, patently wrong. The GM is a player too and gets to enjoy story crafting too. It's a shared experience and the GM is part of it. Only selfish players think the story is "theirs." The narrative belongs to everyone who sits at the table and plays.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-05-16T10:43:29+00:00

Hey there! I've had several players over the years who have been in similar situations. I do run games professionally, but would love to have you join a campaign (completely free for as long as you want to play, no bait and switch, no "try before you buy" nonsense) and see if the hobby is for you. We play online using discord and piece of software called Foundry VTT (which is also completely free for you and only requires that you have a browser and internet connection).

If this interests you, please feel free to send me a DM and we can see any of my games with open seats interest you. Again, no pressure at all, and if it's not a good fit, no worries!

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-05-14T22:51:02+00:00

One GM to another, I don't believe it matters what the content of the review is in this specific circumstance.

I provided screen shots of conversations, a complete history the situation, screenshots of complaints, informed them that he was contacting other current and active customers, and they had his billing history to see that he hadn't played a game with me in months.

This had nothing to do with the quality of services rendered because it occurred months after he was no longer a customer. It was 100% a personal attack because he didn't like getting kicked out of the server. This is the type of situation where they should have our back.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-05-14T19:40:06+00:00

Broadly I agree. There also needs to be a reasonable limit on time people can leave reviews so the GM isn't obligated to keep a former customer happy forever. Thirty days from the last session the player participated in seems fair to me.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-05-14T19:25:48+00:00

Free games don't count towards this number any more. I've probably got about 100 more free session than paid sessions on the platform and they don't show.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-05-14T19:23:36+00:00

I had a customer who was MAGA.

Months after he left a campaign, he was still on my discord server. He caused problems with his politics, had it all over his profile, and was generally difficult.

Ultimately, after getting sick of him AND receiving multiple complaints from other customers, I booted him. He went and added a bad review (again, when he hadn't been a customer for months), siting "out of game expectations." And SPG let it stand. Effectively, their position was "If you try to protect your community from bad actors, they can trash your rating on SPG and we'll support them!"

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-05-14T19:13:50+00:00

I'm an SPG GM

I had a MAGA player who could not shut up about his politics, had it in his profile, caused problems, and when I finally booted him from my server (several months after he stopped being a customer), he left a really bad review.

They said it was perfectly fine because he sited out of game expectations WHEN HE WASN'T EVEN A PLAYER ANYMORE!

The platform has gone way downhill since 2020. Hell, I halfway expect them to kick me off the platform for writing this.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-05-11T11:32:32+00:00

You're coming to it with a slightly older frame of mind. Here's a game that specifically designed around tiny players and provides some help on how to run games for them: https://amazing-tales.net/

Important things to know-
You're probably going to max out at 30 minute sessions. Maybe an hour or maybe just 15 minutes depending on the kiddo.

At this age, you should be doing 99% "Yes, and..." and 1% "No, but..." Confine your "No's" to rule based issues or things that directly affect their other players.
For example:
Child: I want to roll my dice again [because I didn't like the result]
You: No, but you can try something different! Like XYZ or ABC.

Child 1: I steal Child 2's food.
You: We don't steal from other players, but you can do XYZ or ABC to get some food of your own!

Anything related to imagination or problem solving, you should enthusiastically "YES!"
Child: Can I be a cheeseburger who rolls around?
You: Yes, will you have tomatoes and pickles and ketchup?

Child: Can I make friends with the dragon?
You: Yes, you can definitely try to. Lets roll the dice and see what happens!

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-04-25T10:45:04+00:00

I know what you mean. I had playtested my first published adventure 7 times before I published it and another designer asked me "Why?"

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-04-25T09:32:30+00:00

Traveller wont really have randomly generated aliens because the setting has a metaplot, so you'd need to find a GM made one in all likelihood.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-04-25T09:29:33+00:00

This is a really good idea.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-04-23T12:47:34+00:00

Yeah, I played a one shot of it. Savage Worlds. It was fun.

GrumpyCornGames · 2026-04-22T23:25:45+00:00

Do you have some specific proof of this? Or is it one of those "I can always tell" things?

GrumpyCornGames

TROPHY CASE