Sep
24
It’s a common problem, someone joins your game with a character that’s far too overpowered, or way too “awesome” (or so the writer says). They’re a Mary Sue (Or a Marty Stu, or whatever – there’s actually loads of names for the same thing. Click here for an article explaining the different different types). Read More
Sep
22
This was originally posted by Steven Savage on his blog, but has allowed me to republish it here as I think it’s useful for roleplayers! This is part of Steven’s Way With Worlds series of articles. -David
We’ve talked Utopias, their rarity, and how and why to create them in our worlds. We’ve talked Dystopias, their commonality, and why to create them anyway despite their near-omnipresence. I’d like to discuss a related, similar issue in worldbuilding – what happens when “good” and “bad” parts of the setting meet. Read More
Sep
16
The Xanadu Report
Who doesn’t love a cool gadget or app that can do all sorts of superfluous things? I for one literally have an entire folder dedicated to them on Google Chrome (Don’t you dare judge me!) A good lot of them are used for roleplaying on Ongoing Worlds. Most of them don’t actually contribute to the actual writing, they’re mostly used for expanded universe content (I wrote a rather lengthy article on that a while back). I figured, just for the fun of it, I’d put them up here for you guys to use.
Sep
15
Whether it’s placenames that your characters visit, or the setting of your entire game, sometimes you’ll have to come up with a new name of a town or city. Read More
Sep
14
This article was written by Reggie from the play-by-post game: The Five Elements: Fire, Water, Earth, Air and Blood. You can read all of Reggie’s writing tips here.
Rarely are there 3 act structures in a RP post, but use these tips to look at your story as a WHOLE. There is much to gain from understanding a basic three act structure even if you are only creating a short story. Once you are comfortable with it, defiantly feel free to break away, but it’s a good place to start for the beginner. Read More
Jul
31
Is your roleplaying game a science fiction adventure where you visit new planets on a regular basis? Find it difficult coming up with interesting planet names? Well fear not! Because here’s a few generators that’ll give you a list of cool names to choose from: Read More
Jul
29
This was originally posted by Steven Savage on his blog, but has allowed me to republish it here as I think it’s useful for roleplayers! This is part of Steven’s Way With Worlds series of articles. -David
Previously I discussed Utopias. They’re not always popular, often poorly done, and are best handled by doing real world building first. Seeking to force a Utopia into your world tends to be about as successful as forcing it in real life. If you don’t get that joke, please avoid any participation in politics until you do. Read More
Jul
25
The Xanadu Report
Sometimes it’s hard to come up with a good idea for a post. I for one usually end up writing numerous copies of the same post before actually putting it up (I’ve also got OCD, but that’s for another blog article). Sometimes we can’t post because we’re lost in the stories, other times it’s because real life is draining us, but one of the all time biggest problems is because we have no inspiration. I don’t need to go on a tirade about how essential inspiration is when writing, because you’re all aware of it already.
Jul
22
This was originally posted by Steven Savage on his blog, but has allowed me to republish it here as I think it’s useful for roleplayers! This is part of Steven’s Way With Worlds series of articles. -David
So let me be honest upfront. I love timelines in worldbuilding, in writing, in game design. I love history in general, so I’m biased, but there’s many reasons to love them in your creative endeavors. Mine is probably just a bit more irrational.
When I write, I often create timelines as a form of writing, and in worldbuilding they’re very important to me. So I wanted to cover their value for you as worldbuilder, writer, game designer, and so on. Also it sort of justifies my love so I don’t feel weird. Read More
Jul
19
This was originally posted by Steven Savage on his blog, but has allowed me to republish it here as I think it’s useful for roleplayers! This is part of Steven’s Way With Worlds series of articles. -David
Let’s talk Utopias in the worlds you make.
Utopias seem to be less popular in fiction of all kinds as I write this in 2014. Sure we’ve got plenty of dystopias; it seems that there’s always a fire sale on at the Life Sucks Dystopia Department Store. But Utopias, not so much. Read More
