(Part 2) Top products from r/AskGameMasters

Jump to the top 20

We found 9 product mentions on r/AskGameMasters. We ranked the 29 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.

Next page

Top comments that mention products on r/AskGameMasters:

u/BR3AKR · 5 pointsr/AskGameMasters

First off I'd like to say that this is my first exposure to this subreddit. It's really cool what you guys are doing here! Secondly, I could go on about Fate forever and will happily talk anyone's ear off that has any additional questions so do not hesitate to ask.

> What does this game system do particularly well?

Fate does pulpy style action really well. The fast and loose rules allow for quick moving games where scenes keep clipping by. Thanks to its probability curve heavily favoring being near the player's stat, characters who are good at something are reliably good at something. This curve also allows "aspects" (small snippets of flavor text) to have a very strong impact on the game with their +2/-2 modifiers - constantly reinforcing the fiction.

> What is unique about the game system or the setting?

Aspects and Fate Points are generally what people will bring up talking about the system. The idea is that if there is an aspect that applies to the situation, a Fate Point can be spent to add +2 to your die roll. It's important to emphasize here that this isn't a D&D +2, think more like a D&D +8. This works the other way too, giving you a flat -2 to your roll as well, but you gain faint points for having aspects compelled against you (yay!) This sort of flow of Fate points constantly reinforcing these Aspects is the game's way of reinforcing the fiction.

Another part of the game that's quite unique is how hackable it is. If you get into it, you'll learn about this concept called "The Fate Fractal", or the "Bronze Rule" - which is that everything in Fate can be modeled like a character. Want to model armies? Great! Create a unique stress track, some skills, and give them an aspect or two. A cool gun? Toss an aspect on it! Want a spaceship that has a unique ability like cloaking? Give it a Stunt! Once you get the hang of this, it's so easy you can literally use it in the middle of a session to model things of all shapes, sizes, and scopes in a way that makes sense to everyone at the table.

> What advice would you give to GMs looking to run this?

There is loads of great advice on this particular topic in the Fate Core rulebook, and various resources online.

> What element of this game system would be best for GMs to learn to apply to other systems [Or maybe more politely, "What parts of this system do you wish other systems would do/ take inspiration from"]

Fate (and many more modern RPGs out there, Dungeon World for example) place a huge emphasis on player interaction during world building. They also emphasize that world-building doesn't stop at the start of a campaign, but rather continues as the game moves on. Ask questions of your players about the campaign world and incorporate it moving forward - you will not regret it. I've tried to incorporate this into my DMing style while playing 5e as well and I think has hugely improved the quality of the games overall.

> What problems (if any) do you think the system has?

First off the system is setting-less so it can be daunting creating a world from scratch, even with a group of friends. I would also say that character progression can feel really flat if you don't spend a good amount of time coming up with good unique Stunts to keep characters spicey (Stunts are similar to Feats, and class abilities from D&D). Make sure that you're really trying to bring out the flavor of the campaign world through these mechanics, or one campaign can end up feeling very similar to the next.

> What would you change about the system if you had a chance [Because lessons can be learned from failures as well as successes]

Fate is pretty bare-bones. Mechanically, there's not much you could change I think. The latest edition of Fate Core did a wonderful job making the system accessible and understandable for new players, but there is always room for improvement in explaining a game as abstract as Fate.

> What play style does this game lend itself to?

I would say a high-octane story driven campaign is probably your best bet. Characters are competent badasses from the start, and the pace at which players seem to move through adventures seems so much faster than in systems like WoD or D&D. Normally for D&D adventures I set aside 4 hours per session, and can expect to get in two or three encounters and a little bit of story. In Fate my sessions run shorter (2 to 2 1/2 hours) and players tend to get through more in the Fate sessions.

> What unique organizational needs/tools does this game require/provide?

Index cards are a part of almost every Fate campaign I run (and it seems most GMs). I love Campaign Coins' Fate Tokens. You can technically make Fate (aka Fudge) dice out of six siders, however I recommend just picking up a beautiful set from Evil Hat :).

> What module do you think exemplifies this system?

I've never personally run a module. However there are tons of really solid looking campaign settings available through Evil Hat (Save Game, and Venture City Stories are two personal favorites and they're pay what you want!), and The Fate Codex Patreon.

> Which modules/toolkits/supplements do you think are most beneficial to the average GM?

Honestly, the Fate Core rulebook and the plethora of resources online are just about all you need.

> From your perspective, what was the biggest hurdle you had to overcome to run this specific system successfully?

Understanding, fully, the different ways you can use (and abuse) aspects. Honestly, I'm still wrestling with it. There are always so many at your disposal and it can be easy to forget to lean on them regularly. If you fail to do that, Fate can really lose its magic.

> Can you explain the setting the system takes place? Is there some sort of "starter adventure" ? If so then how is it constructed?

Fate is generic out of the box without an assumed setting. See my answer about modules above, they're all pretty short reads so go with whatever sounds exciting. Drive Thru RPG has loads of really really cool Fate campaign settings available.

> Is there an easy transition to other adventures and/or own creations?

I've run quite a few D&D adventures myself in traditional high fantasy settings, but after learning about Fate I got absolutely stoked about running a Space Opera (think Star Wars, or Battlestar Galactica) campaign. I came to the table with a general idea of the kind of campaign I wanted and worked with the players to build the campaign up from there. The Fate Core rules supply a nice structure for pulling a campaign setting together as a team. This really helps both the players and the GM be invested in the campaign you're playing. I've run two campaigns in that universe so far and it has probably been my favorite campaign setting to date.

> What cost should I expect if I want to start GM'ing this system?

Minimum - $0

This assumes you use the Fate SRD as your rules resource, or pay $0 as a pay what you want on drive thru rpg for the PDF. It also assumes you're either using your computer for rolling Fate dice or used regular six-siders to make your own Fate dice.

Usual Starter Kit (Remember to support your FLGS) - $40

u/Kaiyoto · 2 pointsr/AskGameMasters

I've wanted to try one of these, particularly to go up against my misfits running Detroit. I deal with Knight Errant in Detroit but it's really not much different than Lone Star at heart.

Not entirely sure what you're looking for but there's a couple of things worth looking through. If you have Corporate Security from I think it was 3rd or 2nd edition, there's some info there about how Knight Errant and what services they provide. They do a lot of security consulting for setting up. Not sure if it's worth buying if you don't already have access to it. Run and Gun (5th edition) p89 is good. It provides a makeup of security teams and team tactics. There's also mechanical benefits if they want to delve into that realm, but if nothing else it's good for fluff.

There's no police rank structure provided in Shadowrun so I just used this for KE https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Police_ranks_of_the_United_States

KE is Lone Star's competition. If I remember rightly they beat KE out of a contract to police Seattle. These agencies are also no less prone to Corporate Warfare than any other corporation. So don't forget that you can use backstabbing and what not like any other Shadowrun game. You'll probably find more "white knight" cops here, but there's still going to be plenty of corrupt agents all the way up the ladder.

And also, the term for illegal magical goods is Maleficium. Nobody is allowed to practice magic without a license or have magical goods without licenses. There is also cyber crime. Having things like a cyberdeck require a license. So make sure to add magical and cyber crimes to your list of crimes.

I'm not sure how low down the ladder you want to start them but starting them off as beat cops could be fun, but also tedious. Maybe give them a chance to get promoted via doing favors for someone higher up. In a lot of ways, some teams in a police organization could be used like Shadowrunners. They might be more trustworthy but yes it does remove "deniable asset" aspect of using a Shadowrunning team. But then again, if they mess up, Lone Star would still chop it up to an "Industrial accident" or "died in the line of duty." I could also see them being a part of a specific unit devoted toward investigating certain types of crimes.

Check out the wiki for ideas http://shadowrun.wikia.com/wiki/Lone_Star_Security_Services it actually lists departments and lists a specialized force called "TacDiv"

Oh yeah, I forgot, there's a Lone Star sourcebook. It's an older edition but the it would still be really good for reference https://www.amazon.com/Lone-Shadowrun-Sourcebook-Nigel-Findley/dp/1555602304

I'd be open to discussing more ideas. You'd be helping me as well.

u/blacksheepcannibal · 13 pointsr/AskGameMasters

> I want to start a Pathfinder group with two players who just want to have fun and don't mind if it's not a real campaign

You're wanting to use one of the most complicated, rules intensive, and prep-heavy games on the market. In a perfect world, that's the first thing I would change.

There are a variety of TTRPGs out there in all genres that require little, or often times explicitly no prepwork of any sort to play very nicely. For instance, when I play Blades in the Dark, I keep my stuff in a 3-ring binder. It gets shut when we finish the session, it gets opened when we start, and I don't touch it otherwise.

But the normal response is "but I want to play Pathfinder because (insert whatever reason here) and no other game will do".

Read this and this and do yourself a favor and read this and take what you can from it.

There are a few other tricks, but that's a pretty reasonable starting point.

Other than the best solution, which is to play a no-or-low-prep game.

Another consideration: are you sure you want to play a TTRPG not not a legacy boardgame like Decent, or Gloomhaven, or some other legacy game like that? Especially if you're mostly interested in the mechanical aspects of fighting and such, it's a good consideration.

u/bobbleprophet · 1 pointr/AskGameMasters

One of the best resources I’ve found for Mesopotamian mythology is the book Treasures of Darkness. It’s a bit dense relying heavy on translated source material but one of the most insightful reads on the topic. Religion in Ancient Mesopotamia is another good one that is more of a general examination on the topic and has an easier-to-read narrative structure.

Do you have academic credentials? There are a couple papers on Gilgamesh I have in mind but they’re behind a paywall. Here’s a open-source analysis (direct link to pdf-it’s clean) that touches upon some of the themes I mentioned and could be of interest in building out your world.

Edit: I’m just remembering that the Mesopotamian god names are used in Forgotten Realms(sorry it’s been a while). Some aspects which have been altered to fit into the alignment grid but much of their core remains intact. Reading up on their mythological counterparts will provide a lot more nuisance than the DnD source material.

u/wiljc3 · 3 pointsr/AskGameMasters

So, I started down this path with Hamlet's Hit Points by Robin Laws, and I'd highly recommend it as a guide for fitting a functional narrative into an RPG.

Having not re-read the book in some time, it's something that I do almost intuitively at this point with the concept of story beats. I just kind of feel when the time is right for things to take a turn - whether dark, triumphant, unexpected, etc. It's just about feeding off the fiction in progress, the room, and the dice to keep both story and tone interesting and engaging. That often means surprising myself as much as anyone because I have the flexibility to grab at any thought that pops up in the moment and fits the continuity.

u/Downtym · 1 pointr/AskGameMasters

> would you buy a campaign setting sourcebook?

Yes. Have done so before, will do so again.

> If so, what features would you look for?
> If you've bought them in the past, then what made you want to buy them?

Maps! Descriptions of things on those maps. Interesting personalities. Story stuff.

When it gets to mechanical stuff I could live without them.

As a GM I can come up with stats that balance for my group. I can come up with cool toys. I can come up with fun tactical events.

I buy sourcebooks for the content which takes a lot of time to create: The maps, the personalities, the political conflicts, the broader strategic issues that are occurring.

Example: Ptolus. I have used and re-used people, places, and plots from Ptolus in numerous ways. One of my best RPG purchases ever.

u/RPGRhetor · 2 pointsr/AskGameMasters

I'll second the folks encouraging emphasis on tone and add in word choice - remembering that this character only uses one-syllable words or this character overuses (or misuses) 50-cent words goes a long way towards making them memorable to the PCs.

I have a book from my Speech & Debate days on Accents called Accents - A Manual for Actors that I've found super helpful when I want to make use of an accent: it's got pronunciation guides and a CD to help.

u/dneighbors · 1 pointr/AskGameMasters

Strongly suggest DMGR2 : Castle Guide. TONS of good data. You can purchase or get PDF online.
https://www.amazon.com/Advanced-Dungeons-Dragons-Dungeon-Supplement/dp/0880388374

Chapter 5: Castle Construction has everything you want.

  • Acquiring Land
  • The Construction Site
  • Climate Type
  • Geography
  • Ground Cover
  • Resource Availability
  • The Work Force
  • Local Social Structure
  • Worker Skill
  • Worker Morale
  • Castle Design
  • Castle Modules
  • Average Construction Time & Cost
  • Works of Art
  • Overhead Costs
  • Final Calculations
  • Monthly Events
u/Phuka · 2 pointsr/AskGameMasters

Before name generators, this was my go-to.