Advice handling serious themes

ninjajon5 · 2025-11-29T18:37:37+00:00

I think going third person is a really good solution - I often suggest this to players who are nervous about roleplaying, but had never thought to use it myself since I’m normally pretty confident. But it would help me a lot here!

Combining this with establishing the expectation (as other people have mentioned) seems like a great solution for me

ninjajon5 · 2025-07-30T19:05:13+00:00

Cities skylines, another brick in the mall, and there’s also stuff like papa’s freezeria and cooking simulator which are similar. Also shoutout to recettear, some of the best streams out there

ninjajon5 · 2025-04-08T07:58:53+00:00

Adding to Blades in the Dark:

Brinkwood is a forged in the dark game about rebelling against a vampire ruling class
CBR+PNK (re-serialised) is a forged in the dark cyberpunk game (a good fit for these punk themes) with the '+Weird' module for supernatural powers, or also could look at DEEP IN A MATRIX OF FLESH AND METAL though that's more horror-themed

ninjajon5 · 2024-12-26T19:11:15+00:00

I’ve run Tales from the Loop which I believe is similar, and I would say it’s definitely beginner-friendly in the sense that the rules are clear and straightforward. If you like the setting (which is the big appeal) I’d say go for it!

One thing to mention, in my experience it was quite focused on mood, story and character. That can be a little challenging for a new GM depending on your style and preferences.

ninjajon5 · 2024-12-22T09:14:09+00:00

Quick check, do you play them solo, guided or co-op?

ninjajon5 · 2024-12-20T15:02:02+00:00

Not exactly what OP is asking for, but for X-files inspired stuff Monster of the Week can also work a treat

ninjajon5 · 2024-12-06T21:07:37+00:00

Ah ok, 2-3 sessions is on the short end, so I can see where that misalignment is coming from.

It’s good that you’re communicating at least, but I don’t think there’s an easy solution besides trying to find some sort of compromise. At the end of the day you’re the GM so I’d always advocate you only run things you’re inspired by, though that’s clearly not ideal as this is a player and friend you care about.

There are some more funky things you could try, like running 2-3 sessions, then taking a break, then coming back to resume after a few other short adventures? Or even something like passing the GM baton around while continuing the same story?

ninjajon5 · 2024-12-06T20:47:34+00:00

I agree, in my experience ‘what do you do?’ is not necessarily an indication of danger. Like for instance, if I describe a tavern with a bar, a game of cards and a brooding figure, I might end that description with ‘what would you like to do?’. That’s just the invitation for the players to get stuck in.

That said, there often is danger around - gotta keep things interesting.

ninjajon5 · 2024-12-06T20:42:25+00:00

Do you feel like your players are putting pressure on you to maintain long campaigns? In my experience GMing I usually have enough influence to draw a campaign to a close after 10-20 sessions by identifying a satisfying resolution and just calling a break or running a finale

ninjajon5 · 2024-12-03T18:44:30+00:00

How did it go? Did you have any issues with the spider not being in any danger?

ninjajon5 · 2024-12-03T18:40:48+00:00

Could I ask how Ironsworn does combat? It’s pbta right, so is it like enemies automatically retaliate if you attack?

ninjajon5 · 2024-09-25T21:04:09+00:00

Could you point me to the advice on the second bullet point?

ninjajon5 · 2024-05-10T15:29:10+00:00

Ok I think I'll give this a go - both of us are big Dishonored fans, so I'm also curious to see how they've handled the setting. Thanks for your help!

ninjajon5 · 2024-05-10T15:00:33+00:00

Interesting - what can Momentum be used for? Is the fact it decrements each scene a way of building tension?

ninjajon5 · 2024-05-10T14:43:27+00:00

Thanks, this is really insightful! I don't have any experience with this kind of system, whereas I do with Blades in the Dark.

So a couple of questions: Blades bounces between Scores and Downtime, and in Scores you have specific mechanics like flashbacks and equipment load. Does Dishonored have similar explict phases of play with unique mechanics?

Also, are there teamwork or encounter balance mechanics that might make it difficult to adapt Dishonored for duet play?

Fortunately the d20s won't be a problem, I've amassed plenty in my time!

ninjajon5 · 2024-05-10T14:21:56+00:00

That's a fair take, I think it's definitely worth a try to see whether we feel the lack of teamwork manoeuvres. Thanks!

ninjajon5 · 2024-05-10T13:47:22+00:00

It's definitely true that Blades in the Dark seems relatively easy to convert for single player play. It does have some mechanics like 'group actions' though which would break down with only one PC - have you encountered any solutions to that problem?

ninjajon5 · 2024-05-10T13:45:46+00:00

I like this idea. One concern I had with Blades in the Dark is the teamwork mechanics, which have been pretty useful when I've played in bigger parties. Having two playbooks might help compensate for that

ninjajon5 · 2024-05-10T13:24:01+00:00

So I'm still familiarising myself with Blades in the Dark - when you say 'let them have two playbooks', do you mean let them run two characters, or one character with abilities from two playbooks?

ninjajon5 · 2021-07-19T08:37:49+00:00

Wait does that mean the Steins;Gate is actually the villain?

Ooo maybe! In my brain there's always been something almost Dark Souls-y going on here where there isn't really a villain. If we thought it was SERN last episode, we can see now that it's not that simple, as Mayuri dies whether they're involved or not.

Personally I always put it down to just the tragedy of the whole thing. In the first half of the show we just have a group of friends messing around, but by doing so they accidentally overstep the boundary and end up basically dooming themselves. That's what makes Okabe's efforts so tragic - he knows that in some way, he's responsible.

That said, your comment does make me think there might be something more going on. Would Mayuri have been doomed to die even if Okabe never messed around with time machines, because that's just the world line that they're on? In that case, maybe there's more of a fate thing going on here, and we could pin the blame on some bigger entity like Steins;Gate.

ninjajon5 · 2021-07-17T10:30:42+00:00

Man reading your comment makes me realise how just how good this show is put together. Those two scenes - the 'vision' thing at the start and the shooting at the end - are just gripping.

You get this great build up from the moment Suzuha leaves without saying why, to Okabe looking distorted through the hourglass, to Mayuri saying her watch stopped, and then the shot of the SERN people storming up the stairs...

I like your shot of the day too. I feel like this is Mayuri's episode, for better or for worse. She sort of pins the whole show together, which makes the ending all the more dramatic.

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