Category Archives: Blog

29 April, 1916 The soldier kneels in the muddy ground, resting a rifle on the parapet of the trench and looking across no man’s land toward the enemy with the white flag. For days, shells have fallen continuously, their deep booms punctuating the sharp crack of rifle fire and the stutter of machine guns. TheyContinue reading “History Check 4: Constance Markievicz”

Convent of Poissy, July 1429     A grey-haired woman in the simple garb of a nun sits at a writing table in a plain cell, quill in hand. On the page are the final lines of an epic, unusual not only for its author, but for its hero, who is not only a woman, butContinue reading “History Check 3: Christine de Pizan”

    Kyoto, 1582. The serenity of the Temple of Honno-ji belies the chaos outside, where countless soldiers stand, besieging the compound. An older man, balding with sparse hair at the back of his head and a thin mustache, Oda Nobunaga kneels in the center of the room. He has put aside his outer garments and holdsContinue reading “History Check 2: Yasuke”

Welcome to History Check. This will be an ongoing series of blogs where I’ll introduce you to some of the real life adventurers throughout history,  and discuss how their story can serve as inspiration for your RPG as a character or NPC background, or even inspiration for an adventure or campaign. In each article, I’llContinue reading “History Check 1: Harald Hardrada”

Previously on Mummy’s Mask… Wati is attacked! Having triumphed over Drusiss, the players return to Tephu. Their attempts to wrap up a few loose ends in the city are interrupted when a flying pyramid accompanied by an undead dragon arrive and begin bombarding Tephu and its neighboring city Wati! At the same time, Sabine (FContinue reading “The DM Experience 5: Failure is Always an Option”

  Previously on Mummy’s Mask… Ali died. Sarenrae offered her the chance to stay in Nirvana, and Ali said no, she had things to do. She returned in response to the call of a resurrection spell, but resurrection does not go unnoticed by the guardian of Death’s gates – the Raven Queen. With Ali returned,Continue reading “The DM Experience 4: No Plan Survives Contact with the Enemy, I mean Players”

Previously, on Mummy’s Mask Vendetta! The party return from their travels in the Mana Waste only to be ambushed by Drusiss – the Mind Flayer whose ship they stole and who they foolishly taunted. He mind-controls the sorcerer into disintegrating a Marshal, resulting in the party split up and in jail, right where Drusiss wantsContinue reading “The DM Experience 3: Murder Most Foul”

     Recently I sat down at the table to play a marathon session of FFG’s Edge of the Empire.  The session had all of the trappings of a typical tabletop session: crude jokes, soda, cheetos, and a distinct odor that only 5 people sitting in a hot room for over six hours can create.Continue reading “3 Paths to a Deeper More Meaningful Game”

Previously on Mummy’s Mask…. Having vanquished the Cult of the Forgotten Pharaoh, and resurrected his last victim, the adventurers have decided to travel to Alkenstar in the Mana Wastes, hoping to find another workshop belonging to the ancient genius and engineer Chissisek. To do so, they spend some of the massive wealth (my players areContinue reading “The DM Experience 2: Large Battles, Crazy Spells, and Nemeses”

Theme Parks, Sandboxes, and a Night Without Combat By Philip Ledbetter These posts are an homage to the incomparable Chris Perkins. Throughout the lifespan of D&D’s 4th edition, Mr. Perkins wrote a series of articles called the Dungeon Master Experience, in which he doled out wisdom based on his many years of DMing by sharingContinue reading “The DM Experience”

Tabletop gaming is fun. I know that’s an overly simple premise, and every gaming group has a different definition of the term; however, if we aren’t at least having our own brand of fun, then why play the game? And as we can all attest from experience: when this game is fun, it creates memoriesContinue reading “The Four Hour Epic: 5 Ways to Make Your Game Sessions Better! (Even For You)”