of Dice and Dragons

A common question that seems to be often by GMs regardless of the role-playing system they use is, “how can I be a better storyteller?”

The bad news is that I can’t think of one clear cut answer to that question. The good news is that based on the groups I’ve played in and those I’ve been the GM for (based on my players’ feedback) is that you can improve this area. The nice thing is that is doesn’t require you to memorize volumes of information from rulebooks or spend lots of money on courses - it just take a bit of effort and some time.

What I’ve decided to do to address this particular question is to add another category to my blog so that I can share my thoughts, suggestions and experiences on this particular topic. I encourage you to post a comment or two as we go along - the more we share the better we all become.

No role-playing game is complete until you’ve had a fortune teller. Of course the fortune teller doesn’t have to be the typcial gypsy like woman you peers into a crystal ball, it could also be:

- A child who “sees things” and is escorted by a protector or bodyguard (possibly related)
- A elderly man who has convulsions, announces what he’s seen and then forgets it every happened
- A fortune telling machine, the character drops in a coin and out spits a fortune

Using a fortune teller in your game can be a lot of fun and potentially very beneficial to your characters. I’ve used them to provide clues as to past and future events, get players to accomplish specific tasks and even throw out a red herring or two. That’s right, just because they can see the future doesn’t mean they are always right.

A word of caution, using a fortune teller to predict the future can be very hazardous to your caompaign so use them with caution. You’ll also want to be a bit vague with any predictions so that you can ajdust things to fit if you need to.

Be sure to check out these additional encounter ideas

Issue #302 of the Role-playing Tips E-zine is now online - Why Go Diceless? is now online and the issue contains:

CONTENTS:
–> A Brief Word From Johnn

–> TIP REQUEST: Virtual Online Tabletop Game Tips

–> This Week’s Tips:
1. Almost Everyone Has Already Played Diceless
2. For D&D - Take 10 All The Time
3. Listen And Craft Good Descriptions
4. Hide The Danger
5. Diceless Requires Trust
6. Craft Interesting Encounters That Don’t Rely
On Chance
7. Keep Rounds Short To Avoid Decision Difficulty
8. Fortune And Karma

–> Readers’ Tips Of The Week:
1. Quick Method For Creating Mundane Books
From: Garry Stahl
2. Use Civilization Games To Build Maps
From: Christian T.
3. The Black Deck
From: Jon Thompson
4. How I Prepare Campaigns
From: Bryan Ray

You can read it online here.

If you don’t already subscribe I would recommend it, you can do that here.