When players are coming up with their characters’ backstories, oftentimes they’re not doing so together. Character creation after all traditionally is a highly individual process; although, there’s certainly collaboration here and there. So as the GM when the players submit their characters’ various backstories, it becomes clear pretty quickly that sometimes their various elements can…
There’s no doubt that good GMs/DMs work hard. There’s a lot of prep work, a lot of worldbuilding, and certainly your fair share of shepherding. And sometimes GMs & DMs can get lost in all that shuffle and lose perspective; they forget that playing stories is about having a blast and not about the result…
Whenever I’m talking with a group of people who are just learning about playing stories for the first time, the topic of speaking as one’s character invariably comes up. “Do I have to speak in their voice?” “Do I have to say what they would say?” etc. So today’s newbie Tuesday post helps answer those…
If you’re a tabletop role-playing game story creator, you doubtless spend time & energy in worldbuilding. Settings, characters, plot threads…much of your investment out of session as the game master comes in ironing out these details. As obvious as it may seem on the surface, it’s important to keep top of mind during all of…
When you sit down to start your next tabletop RPG campaign, before you dive into worldbuilding, character creation, or Session Zero, you’re sitting at a fertile, nearly infinite sandbox of story. And every TTRPG story is different – its twists and turns, worlds and characters – with its many facets up to the GM &…
Part 17 (rest at the bottom): https://storytogether.com/2020/08/13/isaiah-the-gray-part-17/ Heart to Heart Corban releases the tight grip around his lightsaber as his companion, the assault droid Zero-You, powers down. Jimmy deactivates the force-field. “Thank you,” says Isaiah who invites the Jedi on-board with a polite gesture. “Please, follow me.” Corban nods and allows the Force to guide…
Over the years, you’ve probably heard someone talk about “their” character. What they did, their abilities, their items, their backstory…whatever it is, you’ve probably come across people who talk about a character in a tabletop role-playing game story as if they are their own. For folks who have never played a tabletop RPG before, the…
The Mind’s Eye, our mental canvas of limitless possibilities. And for tabletop role-playing games, the platform for our shared story experiences. This theater of the mind empowers us to collectively share and, in many ways, concurrently experience art, music, stories…any shared part of the human creative diaspora. “A stout bush sits atop a tall mountain,…
Part 16 (rest at the bottom): https://storytogether.com/2020/07/23/isaiah-the-gray-part-16/ Proceeding with Caution Corban sits for a moment, sensing the Force from within the cockpit of his inert ship. “There is an immense source of Force potential over there. Proceed with caution.” Zero-You makes an R2-D2-esque “aw, crap” series of beeps. “It’s always something, Wolf.” Corban flashes a…
When you’re a new player at an ongoing tabletop RPG story, you’re likely going to want to feel that sense of belonging. And that process can be difficult – the story you’re joining may have been going on for quite some time. There’s an established world, characters, goals, directions…sorting through all of that detail while…