Regardless of your experience level in tabletop RPGs, in their home games, GMs/DMs & worldbuilders often borrow elements of other story worlds. And that’s a perfectly natural thing to do: you get inspired when you see and experience great scenes, moments, and dialogue from movies, TV, video games, and books. Today’s #worlbuildingMonday post is about…
Part 2 (others at the bottom): https://storytogether.com/2020/02/13/isaiah-the-gray-part-2/ “Am I going crazy?” says Isaiah softly. His heart begins to pound, the anxiety setting in. But then, a hand is placed on his shoulder. “It’s time,” Isaiah hears behind him. In an instant, a massive jolt of energy courses through Isaiah’s body, mind, and soul. And yet,…
We see communities built all the time around famous stories: Star Wars, Game of Thrones, the MCU…people of all walks of life coming together to share in their love for their favorite stories. They’re immediately able to relate to others through the characters, scenes, quotes, and choices. Those stories provide a common foundation on which…
Today’s Worldbuilding Monday (#worldbuildingMonday) post is inspired by a wonderful conversation I had this weekend with a young woman named Sophia about people’s inner story worlds. Growing up, it never occurred to me that having stories floating around in your brain was somehow uncommon. Whenever I listened to great music or was in an inspiring…
Part 1: https://storytogether.com/2020/02/06/isaiah-the-gray-part-1/ For Isaiah, every day is a reminder of his life’s painful not-quite-dead, not-quite-alive drudgery. Like most in the Coruscant lower class, he’s told he should feel fortunate – he has a job! – but ultimately he’s just a droid, toiling away with time at his back. He sits at his switchboard, making…
If you’ve ever seen The Mummy (1999), there is close to a 100% chance you remember the classic exchange between Rick O’Connell and his ol’ buddy Beni from one side of the Nile to the other. As always, spoilers ahead! After their Nile barge is attacked by mysterious assailants and set aflame, Rick, Evelyn, and…
This week’s Worldbuilding Monday (#worldbuildingMonday) post is all about balance. The characters in your tabletop role-playing game story are likely to encounter all sorts of obstacles and opportunities – whether it be an epic battle, a tragic encounter, or summiting your world’s tallest peak. No matter what those milestones in your story look like, it’s…
To commemorate the conclusion of the Isaiah the Gray tabletop role-playing game story my brother and I have been playing off and on for a little over a year, I am re-booting the series on the blog and making it easier to follow along with the links to each set of posts as the story…
In honor of the recent release of Star Trek: Picard, as well as StoryTogether’s own One Giant Leap taking place on Mars, this week’s If This Were a Tabletop Role-Playing Game (#ifthiswereaTTRPG) re-imagines the first scene of Picard as a group of people playing it around a table. As always, spoilers ahead! The first scene…
The main difference between tabletop role-playing game worldbuilding and the more traditional, expository worldbuilding is choice. Ultimately, people playing as characters will be making choices in your story world in contrast to a writer dictating the choices the characters make. And as the core of this wonderful art form/activity, those choices form the foundation of…