One of the coolest things I've ever seen done by a GM for his players was years ago in a Sigil 3.5 campaign I was in. The GM was using poker chips as a counter for hero points that we could use if things got desperate and he made us all custom bags to keep them in as we accumulated a few.
The bags were small velvet dice bags and he'd added small metal lettered charms that spelled out the character's names on the bag strings. They were very a very sweet and personal touch that we all appreciated.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Two Strategies for Gaming Meals
There are lots of different ways to satisfy your hunger while gaming, but after a while having a few bags of chips and a player who shares their fries gets pretty stale. Here are two different solutions to the problem:
One: Have a common pool every session to which everyone contributes 5 dollars for take-out. This works well if you order different types of cuisine every time. We alternated sandwiches, Chinese, pizza, soups and salads and Italian. Any leftover money was saved in the dice box until the next session.
Two: Have one person cook for the group every session and have a rotation. This method is good if you want to eat a little healthier, but can cause some problems if people can't cook, or someone forgets it's their turn.
One: Have a common pool every session to which everyone contributes 5 dollars for take-out. This works well if you order different types of cuisine every time. We alternated sandwiches, Chinese, pizza, soups and salads and Italian. Any leftover money was saved in the dice box until the next session.
Two: Have one person cook for the group every session and have a rotation. This method is good if you want to eat a little healthier, but can cause some problems if people can't cook, or someone forgets it's their turn.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
The 10 Most Useful Things To Have While Gaming
- Laser Pointer
- Wet-Erase Markers
- Dice Bag
- Superglue
- Mechanical Pencils
- Ruler
- Caffeine
- Notebook (for writing down NPC names and loot!)
- MP3 Player or CD Player for gaming music soundtracks
- Take-Out Menus
- Wet-Erase Markers
- Dice Bag
- Superglue
- Mechanical Pencils
- Ruler
- Caffeine
- Notebook (for writing down NPC names and loot!)
- MP3 Player or CD Player for gaming music soundtracks
- Take-Out Menus
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Gaming Room Porn
Check out these sweet rooms and use some of them for your own ideas:
Ultimate RPG Game Room
Gospog's Flickr Stream
My very own gaming room!
Ultimate RPG Game Room
Gospog's Flickr Stream
My very own gaming room!
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Gamer Girlfriends
Anyone who has gamed for any length of time has run into the problem of gamer girlfriends. Don't get me wrong, I love having girls try gaming for the first time and it's even better when they decide to continue playing afterward. The gamer girlfriend, however, is an entirely different beast. This is a long-suffering girl, dragged along to gaming by her significant other, who has promised that this time will be different, that if she just gives it a try, she'll understand why her beau spends nearly every waking hour walking, talking, and breathing gaming. The gamer girlfriend doesn't want to understand, which is what makes this such a headache for everyone involved.
The gamer girlfriend is not a gamer herself, which is the main problem for all involved. She dates a gamer, and is therefore dragged to everything the gamer attends in the hope that she will magically fall in love with his pastimes as well as with him. I have a few guidelines (garnered from many, many bad experiences) that will hopefully make this experience less painful for everyone involved.
Guidelines for the Gamer Girlfriend:
-If you don't want to play, say so. The problem arises when you get dragged into the game against your will. There's nothing wrong with liking different things when you're a couple and respecting the fact that your interests differ makes your relationship stronger.
-If you're mildly curious, sit in on a session without playing. If you like it, there's plenty of time to ask the GM to join afterward and if you don't, you haven't alienated the other players by being miserable/bored/angry the whole time because you aren't enjoying yourself.
Guidelines for the Gamer with a Girlfriend:
-Don't make your girlfriend game if she isn't interested. Respect her feelings and don't tell yourself that she'll eventually like it.
-Don't make your girlfriend a character. If she really wants to play, she'll make it herself.
-Before you bring your girlfriend to a session, ask the GM and other players first. There's nothing worse for a gaming group than having someone assume that bringing in a new player is okay with everyone.
-If you bring your girlfriend to a session with you, reciprocate by trying one of her hobbies as well. This way, you'll both gain an understanding of one another, even if you decide you don't like the activities involved.
Guidelines for Other Players:
-Be nice. Don't ignore, mock or complain about the new addition to the group, you'll only make her experience worse.
-Be patient. Even if the girl in question would clearly rather be somewhere else, it's best to suffer in silence and raise your concerns to the GM afterward.
Guidelines for the GM:
-If the girl in question clearly doesn't want to be there, say no. There are a myriad of excuses you can come up with to turn them down without hurting their feelings (and chances are, she'll be relieved rather than upset). Asking someone to sit in on a session before playing also helps.
-Talk to the player involved and make your expectations known. As the moderator, your job is to make sure that everyone has fun, which can be difficult with someone who's been forced to play. If one session doesn't work, another go at it will probably not work either.
The gamer girlfriend is not a gamer herself, which is the main problem for all involved. She dates a gamer, and is therefore dragged to everything the gamer attends in the hope that she will magically fall in love with his pastimes as well as with him. I have a few guidelines (garnered from many, many bad experiences) that will hopefully make this experience less painful for everyone involved.
Guidelines for the Gamer Girlfriend:
-If you don't want to play, say so. The problem arises when you get dragged into the game against your will. There's nothing wrong with liking different things when you're a couple and respecting the fact that your interests differ makes your relationship stronger.
-If you're mildly curious, sit in on a session without playing. If you like it, there's plenty of time to ask the GM to join afterward and if you don't, you haven't alienated the other players by being miserable/bored/angry the whole time because you aren't enjoying yourself.
Guidelines for the Gamer with a Girlfriend:
-Don't make your girlfriend game if she isn't interested. Respect her feelings and don't tell yourself that she'll eventually like it.
-Don't make your girlfriend a character. If she really wants to play, she'll make it herself.
-Before you bring your girlfriend to a session, ask the GM and other players first. There's nothing worse for a gaming group than having someone assume that bringing in a new player is okay with everyone.
-If you bring your girlfriend to a session with you, reciprocate by trying one of her hobbies as well. This way, you'll both gain an understanding of one another, even if you decide you don't like the activities involved.
Guidelines for Other Players:
-Be nice. Don't ignore, mock or complain about the new addition to the group, you'll only make her experience worse.
-Be patient. Even if the girl in question would clearly rather be somewhere else, it's best to suffer in silence and raise your concerns to the GM afterward.
Guidelines for the GM:
-If the girl in question clearly doesn't want to be there, say no. There are a myriad of excuses you can come up with to turn them down without hurting their feelings (and chances are, she'll be relieved rather than upset). Asking someone to sit in on a session before playing also helps.
-Talk to the player involved and make your expectations known. As the moderator, your job is to make sure that everyone has fun, which can be difficult with someone who's been forced to play. If one session doesn't work, another go at it will probably not work either.
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