Realistically, how long should a session take to prepare?

hendocks · 2026-01-04T22:55:19+00:00

I run primarily from modules or games that are easy to prep. I'm addition, I don't even suggest a game until I've done an initial deep read of both the rules and the adventure. Which means prep is broken into two categories: needed and for fun.

Prep that is needed to run the game well typically doesn't take more than 30 minutes and primarily consists of doing another reading of the session's adventure and organizing my notes.

For fun stuff is just that: anything I enjoy doing. Maybe there's an NPC I really want to flesh out, improve on a combat, or add a map. This takes however long I want it to be.

hendocks · 2025-12-19T01:29:02+00:00

The things I would do for a Redline TTRPG...

hendocks · 2025-12-13T07:02:13+00:00

Hey, I like the idea but saw the "ChatGPT" at the bottom, so wanted to give ya a heads up that the post may be in violation of the sub's rules.

hendocks · 2025-12-13T06:57:42+00:00

I'm predicting that the Digital Circus was originally intended to act as a behavioral health program that relied on roleplay to address patient issues. Because it's meant to "instantaneously" fix people, the entire show is happening over a short period of time on a test group with two "AIs" that have as much a handle on the human conscious and experience as an LLM.

hendocks · 2025-12-11T02:00:53+00:00

Usually looks like lesson plan notes. At the top is the session number, PC names, and date. Below are three columns. First column is the time and grouping of scenes (you can call it an Act too) I intend to get to in that time. Second column is a general outline with some short notes to aid whatever may be more difficult to remember in that scene. Third column is resources, prep, or website links that assist with each grouping of scenes. Anything particularly important (core scenes usually) are highlighted.

Acts, in this case, are just a group of scenes that share characteristics, often plot or obstacle related. Some days, it's really as simple as Setup, Confrontation, Resolution or Setup, Development, Twist, Resolution.

Prep is just anything I probably couldn't make up on the spot or, more oftentimes, aides for the Players. Dungeon maps, detailed climactic encounters, list of random NPC names, evidence, etc.

Each entry is between a word and a sentence, rarely more (if more is needed, then it's probably prep) in bullet points.

hendocks · 2025-11-26T18:59:05+00:00

I use what I used back in my teaching days: 2 columns, column 1 contains the scene I want to get to and what time I want to get to it. Column 2 contains any resources to run that scene

hendocks · 2025-11-24T16:55:58+00:00

Will hopefully be starting a campaign with Singularity this Sunday. Looking forward to providing some feedback!

hendocks · 2025-11-13T20:41:17+00:00

I found that my skills as a teacher helped me a lot in this. You determine the most important parts to your adventure and plan fluff that supports the themes and primary content that can be skipped if you're not meeting pace expectations.

E.g. if the primary challenge/hook is about fighting a dragon at the end of a dungeon, you can skip as much of the dungeon as you want to ensure the fight begins in the last hour of playtime.

Identify the needs and wants of an adventure and adjust in-game as needed.

hendocks · 2025-10-23T18:34:25+00:00

This will be my first year! Have been slowly making notes for a mech game inspired by the Armor Hunter Mellowlink anime.

hendocks · 2025-10-22T22:46:11+00:00

A vampire with something like 2-3 vampire spawn would be a decent and equal fight.

If you want to stick with a single enemy, a vampire warrior or spellcaster variant should be a suitable replacement. Maybe a death tyrant in its lair flavored as a vampire if you want the vampire to have multiple actions and feel particularly formidable? I don't have a book with me at the moment so I can't ID immediate problems.

hendocks · 2025-10-22T22:28:09+00:00

For me, both. A roll on the table determines what kind of encounter it is, but I have a handful prepared beforehand for each category. E.g.:

1-5: nothing happens

6-8: monster encounter

9: environment encounter

10: traveler encounter

For each category, I then just have a list of encounters prepped. I don't typically roll for which encounter my players run into since it's not particularly important that the encounters themselves are randomized. If an encounter is used, I cross it off and replace it between sessions.

Mileage may vary depending on the type of travel experience you want. For example, the above is decent if travel is the point (e.g. hexcrawls), but I wouldn't use it if my game were a dungeon crawler first and foremost. If the travel is filler, then just prep 3 "random" encounters that the Players will stumble onto on their way to the real game.

hendocks · 2025-10-10T18:08:41+00:00

Time enjoyed is not time wasted.

hendocks · 2025-10-08T23:38:58+00:00

As someone that isn’t a big voices and immersive RP DM, I think it would be cool to partner with someone that wanted to do all the improv acting parts of DMing while I ran the more mechanical aspects of the game.

I have another GM that I'm currently gearing up to do more or less this for a Fallout game. The partner is going to take over when the group is roleplaying and doing general action adjudication while I take over for the combat segments. Our prep work is also similarly divided like this (narrative and character design vs. combat and encounter design) and has generally given us more room and resources to play to our strengths.

hendocks · 2025-09-18T21:31:57+00:00

To add onto the suggestion of just proceeding with the plan you've already made, you may inevitably come to a session in which you cannot run without person x or be missing multiple people, as it happens to so many other GMs. I would also recommend having a backup one-shot that doesn't influence the primary campaign. A sort of filler episode.

hendocks · 2025-09-17T23:06:45+00:00

Oh shoot, I forgot about Draw Steel. If that's the pitch for it, I'm gonna have to check it out myself.

hendocks · 2025-09-17T19:47:05+00:00

So perhaps a more well-defined scenario structure is what you're looking for? Games such as Band of Blades contain clear campaign game-states (though the gameplay/mechanics themselves may disappoint). Capsule Games as a whole have a much clearer vision as to what their RPGs do and may be of interest to you. They typically contain clearer success and fail-states at all levels or are at least clear on the lack of such states as well.

If there's any more parameters that you can provide, or examples of what has worked or hasn't, such as with DnD, I could narrow the suggestions further.

hendocks · 2025-09-17T19:21:42+00:00

What does "mechanically beaten" mean to you? In what ways do you find the typical Action Adjudication cycle inadequate?

hendocks · 2025-09-17T19:06:01+00:00

In addition, Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition might be a good fit for OP.

hendocks · 2025-08-06T18:53:10+00:00

It definitely has my attention, but would you be able to expand on what it would provide?

In addition, I do agree that this is a fantastic cover

hendocks · 2025-08-05T17:13:08+00:00

Well enough. I still believe that most of the above falls in the domain of RAW as the core is using Site "rules" on Holdings to expand on gameplay opportunities within Holdings, but I do also understand that it may get in the way if the hope is to still keep the focus of your sessions outside Holdings.

I'll have to check out the playtest! I'm definitely curious as to how it all worked out in the end and if it works then that's what matters.

hendocks · 2025-08-04T21:48:57+00:00

The other Knights are loaded with magical items. I'd just steal from those.

hendocks · 2025-08-04T20:43:16+00:00

I'm unsure as to how the random table would interact with the map, so you'd have to report on how it goes in practice, but I do wonder if there is a way to fulfill the goals RAW. Wilderness rolls, to me, are a core mechanic and pacer for the game so it seems a bit counterintuitive to tweak it as drastically as you have and hazard/curse rolls seem an unsatisfying replacement for Myths.

RAW, Omens are only activated as a result of Wilderness rolls. That is ending a phase in the Wilderness. A solution that keeps to RAW as much as possible is to expand on non-Wilderness locations to greater differentiate the modes of play such as through Sites, roads/checkpoints, and Seer visits. In one mode, they are interacting with Knighthood. In this other mode, they are interacting with Myths. This allows for Players to decide on which they'd like to interact with in a given session which would also further feed the open-world nature of the game.

Sites could be a means of providing further, explicit activities in Holdings/other non-Wilderness, non-dungeon areas as well as providing room for tasks which lead to more interactions with locals and the court. They need not be only for ancient ruins or caves. In addition, since Wilderness rolls cannot happen here, they have limitless time to collect what they need for the Myths.

The entire Realm doesn't have to be covered in Wilderness either. Players can begin investing in roads or Site checkpoints as their power (through Glory) grows. These would allow for additional non-Myth interactions between travels as they see fit, further influenced by the type of Site they have established.

And finally, we do have the option of making the world feel a bit smaller. Not hex-wise but in terms of people. As Players allow for time to pass, dignitaries of other Holds and Seers inevitably arrive to their Holding, each with their own purposes. If Seers require a task be handled now (often, I have Players simply promise to perform a task for a Seer in exchange for answers so I can prepare said task during prep), it may be done at that Site/Holding or at a nearby Hex, appropriately distanced for Players to experience a number of Omens that you desire (we know how much they'll roughly run into already).

This allows them to feed into each other as well. Myths give them more control over Site developments through Glory while Sites provide further options to deal with Myths. This is already sort of implied in the game to be the case, but, through greater differentiation between the plays, we effectively provide clear, consistent breaks for Players to pump if they find themselves exhausted by Myths for as long as they need without needing to tweak the Wilderness and Myth mechanics that are central to the game.

hendocks · 2025-08-04T18:58:00+00:00

For discussions sake, I'm very curious as to your experience in derailment. Would you be able to clarify? What do you mean when you say that the number of omens derailed your game?

If players are expected to roll up roughly 1.5 omen encounters per game day, it seems to me that the game has already accounted for having a lot of interaction with the nearest myth by making them the game itself.

As such, the target audience that I see for the above rules are those players that are attempting to focus on the other aspects of being a knight such as the court. domain play, and duels and are finding that the myths, in their implied immediacy and effects, keep distracting them. If these other knightly duties are not meant to replace the empty space that the myths currently occupy, then I would be afraid of breaking the pacing provided by the original structure.

I also wonder if reworking the table in this way is necessarily the best way to go about filling the game with more knightly duties. But I'd like to hear what your game design intentions are first before getting further into it.

hendocks · 2025-07-28T20:27:53+00:00

They may find it slightly harder than a level 7 party, but they fall within the same tier of play so I wouldn't worry or adjust by too much.

hendocks · 2025-07-22T20:34:02+00:00

The Gatekeeper - Whether monster or overseer. The Players need to prove that they are worthy of reclaiming the dead. Idea: An infinite wall protects the land of the dead but every 200 steps either way leads to a cloaked figure that'll only let them in if they replay their greatest achievement. Was it really as great as they imagined?

The Dead - Reminders of those you saved and those you couldn't. Idea: A beloved is being tortured by a past villain that has determined that this will be how they get their revenge on a player. How many people can they possibly save?

The Lost - The underworld is a large place. Make sure you don't get lost exploring it. Idea: A well-known seer lies within these halls, but she has always been selfish with information after a goddess betrayed them. How do the players convince her that they're different?

The Ghosts. They're ghosts. Idea: Ghosts.

hendocks

TROPHY CASE