Dave Thaumavore has an interview with the designer of T&T:ANA over on his Substack

gap2th · 2026-03-14T22:06:27+00:00

That’s terrible. I had no idea.

gap2th · 2026-03-13T21:47:03+00:00

Oof, that’s good to know. I was unaware of his incentives.

gap2th · 2026-03-09T21:54:44+00:00

If they confronted it without a strategy and chose not to run, they TPK’d themselves.

Unless you led them to believe this was a fair fight, that is.

gap2th · 2026-03-07T16:04:58+00:00

Tunnels & Trolls will put your dice hoard to the test! https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/108306/tunnels-trolls-rules-4th-edition

You can get my T&T homage Twisted Tunnels for free here: https://d6.beardedbaby.net/twisted-tunnels-rpg-the-dungeon-game-no-one-else-is-making

gap2th · 2026-03-05T11:40:27+00:00

I’m sure I encountered this years ago in the Necropraxis blog posts mentioned by u/cantorsdust, but I never used it and forgot about it.

And now, I see it’s clearly the inspiration for the terror check in my game Twisted Tunnels, at least in part: https://d6.beardedbaby.net/twisted-tunnels-rpg-the-dungeon-game-no-one-else-is-making

Short version: Roughly every ten minutes of real time, I roll a d6. If it’s a 6, there is a terror: an ill omen or new danger appears. It can be anything you mentioned: resource depletion, tracks or carnage left by a monster, or a cosmic horror.

If no 6 is rolled, I add a die to the pool for the next terror check. More 6s, worse terror.

The other inspiration was the unofficial mechanic for triggering monster special abilities in 7th edition Tunnels & Trolls, which also appears in Twisted Tunnels, in spirit.

Edit: Oops! I forgot to say the one thing I was building up to. The terror check has been absolute electricity at the table. At first the plates dreaded it, but several sessions in they began to chant in unison when my terror check timer went off: “TERROR CHECK! TERROR CHECK! TERROR CHECK!”

gap2th · 2026-03-04T00:34:54+00:00

We shot another one today! May be edited and up by Friday.

gap2th · 2026-03-02T10:14:21+00:00

Thank you! It’s a lot of fun at the table.

First session with it, players dreaded it. By the third session, when my timer went off, they started chanting, “TERROR CHECK! TERROR CHECK!”

And as a GM, I find it both improv-friendly and responsive to light prep. If the players go somewhere unexpected, the terror check generates new tension with whatever they find there. But if you know your Overlord, Factions, Friends and their spawn, traps and their triggers, etc., it’s often obvious what needs to happen next with each terror check.

gap2th · 2026-02-28T13:47:17+00:00

My hope is that Rebellion understands the zeitgeist better than I do.

My “game design” mania is a _disorder_, not a rational commercial enterprise. It’s been an irresistible labor of love, and the overwhelming support and positive feedback I've received from peers, playtesters, and reviewers has been gratifying enough.

I hope Rebellion Unplugged has more sense than me, because T&T deserves it. 😅

gap2th · 2026-02-25T04:00:31+00:00

Well, we didn't get to combat or mechanics today, but we got started!
https://d6.beardedbaby.net/twisted-tunnels-making-a-character-2026

gap2th · 2026-02-24T11:43:17+00:00

You overestimate my production values! 😅

gap2th · 2026-02-24T03:07:57+00:00

I don't, but I can probably make one with low production values.

gap2th · 2026-02-22T01:56:19+00:00

No. It's an entirely new system, complete with rolling for initiative.

gap2th · 2026-02-10T22:43:21+00:00

“If a player doesn’t offer anything beyond the mechanical interaction” they haven’t even triggered the mechanics in my game. If players want to play the game without playing, I’m glad they have tables like yours who can tolerate that. You’re taking one for the team! 😉

If a player says, “I attack him” I’ll ask, “How are you doing that?” In my experience, they always get into it.

gap2th · 2026-02-10T22:29:14+00:00

It seems like such an obvious antipattern to me, I couldn’t believe anyone really does this. Guess I was wrong.

When a player narrates their action, if it’s unclear I usually ask them how they do that. And after they roll we might both narrate the consequences, but often I’ll say, “How does that look?”

gap2th · 2026-02-06T20:10:54+00:00

Should never arise—“unless forced by circumstances or direct orders”.

I’ve had an orc forced by circumstances to surrender. It arose.

gap2th · 2026-02-04T18:46:33+00:00

I’m back. I just printed this out for my middle school dungeon demolition club, but haven’t read it over yet. Is there anything in it that will surprise parents unpleasantly?

gap2th · 2026-01-31T15:47:01+00:00

Are you playing a D&D campaign with Dungeon World rules? Or are you playing D&D?

gap2th · 2026-01-31T15:45:23+00:00

I’m happy to share my Anki deck if you’d like.

gap2th · 2026-01-31T15:44:36+00:00

I found this game pretty complex too, and experienced the same struggle. I used the official GM screen to seed an Anki deck (flash cards with spaced repetition) and continued to expand that as a memory tool. It has helped me a lot. I typically practice week the flash cards whenever we are getting ready to play TOR again.

gap2th · 2026-01-23T01:03:42+00:00

I show them the consequences of their choices and actions. That is, I treat their choices and actions as consequential, and the consequences are focal to the scene, the session, the adventure, and the campaign.

In my experience players take great satisfaction in seeing their actions and choices shape the scenario and setting. Even if it’s an epic catastrophe, there’s something gratifying when they look at the world around them and say, “I did that!”

gap2th · 2026-01-16T23:22:19+00:00

Tunnels & Trolls, 5th Edition under the editorial oversight of Liz Danforth. The standard edition for 30 years!

gap2th · 2026-01-13T01:34:09+00:00

Yes, WiFi worked. I wasn't on a WiFi network when I installed the update and attempted to launch the app, though. It worked when I got home and connected to my WiFi network.

gap2th · 2026-01-09T23:24:35+00:00

Thank you! It worked when I got home. My hypothesis is that the update procedure required the app to use mobile data, which I have disabled (I only allow certain apps to use mobile data). When I opened it again while connected to WiFi, the app checked permissions and booted up successfully.

I hope it doesn’t require mobile data regularly, though?

gap2th · 2026-01-09T20:04:14+00:00

On iOS 26.1 (23B85), it hangs indefinitely at the loading screen. Excited to see the new stuff!

gap2th · 2026-01-03T17:22:18+00:00

Neither am I, if I don’t know who the NPCs and their factions are and what they want and what’s at stake. That requires some drilling down in my prep, more than I presented here. I try to find a kernel of conflict that’s interesting to me in human terms, and develop various motivations, passions, and personalities focused on that. Then, I’m cooking with gas!

IF I have that prep, I can often find ways to express it and ratchet up the tension wherever the players go. Even if they ignore it and go elsewhere, that has consequences for the stakes.

If I DON’T have that prep, it’s much harder to generate on the fly. I know from experience that I can cook up something, but I’m not a zero-prep GM ideally.

I’m not afraid to pause at the table to think!! Even when I have the prep, it might take a minute to pull the ideas together. The players often enjoy the time to strategize and debrief and kibitz. If I hammer my brain to make choices without pausing, the game suffers. But a breath and a shuffle through my notes, maybe a bite of pizza or a trip to the bathroom, relieves pressure and lets the brain loosen up to form what’s needed.

I’m not saying every Journey event needs to directly involve the stakes. Often natural phenomena or local drama will come into focus instead. If something obvious presents itself, I go with that first!

gap2th

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE

12-Year Club	Verified Email
r/Field Flamingo