The Illusion of Knowing - MarkEzraStokes.com Imagine for a moment that you’re in a dark-but-candlelit room, across a modest table from a wizened woman. She squints at oversized cards spread across the navy-felted table, and she begins to speak: “Ah yes… I see a decision weighing on you…” You hang on to her every word. What if this same narrative trick was used at your TTRPG table?

Fortunetellers use symbols, inference, and leading cues… not to know, but to help others reveal.

Stewards in Ealdsmyth do the same to draw out player truth through story.

New post digs in:
markezrastokes.com/t...

#TTRPGDesign #NarrativePlay #RPGTheory #GMlife #SELinGaming

GMing & #RPGDesign acid test: A week from now, players will be haunted by ONE thing from your game.

Not the lore, not a stat. A single feeling. A single action. A single, indelible image.

That's the ghost you leave them with. Everything else is smoke. What's yours?

#RPGTheory #IndieGameDev #TTRPG

Niche protection < niche synergy

#rpgtheory

#RPGTheory Hit points (or whatever your game calls their equivalent) are for pacing, but they are not stakes in themselves. Either side running out just helps decide which way The Things That Really Matter go.

#rpgtheory

It might be tempting for us as game designers to think that games' rules "constrain" gameplay, or that gameplay "enacts" the game's rules, but I really think it's the opposite.

A game's rules wait inert for you to reach out, in the moment of gameplay, and choose to bring them to bear.

What happens when you stop fearing powerful PCs—and start designing for them?

Let your players break the game. It’s about OSR/NSR sandbox play, emergent world-shaping, and why letting players get rich, or wield wild magic is fun, not broken. Blog post link below.
#TTRPGDesign #OSR #NSR #RPGTheory

Our new book "Get It At Sutlers" proves that everything is fun as long as an ambiguous threat of violence hangs over absolutely everything. #rpgtheory

Front Lobby Welcome to the RPG Design Quest! This is a small, relaxed community created by Rev Casey of Thought Punks to talk about TTRPG game design and roleplaying games in general. No grand purpose. Just a lov...

I went to sleep and woke up to several people joining the RPG Design Quest! ♥ It's a small #TTRPG design community site based around groups with forums and even live chat. Plus it's #IndieWeb & #Mastodon connected! Come join and talk games with us!

rpgdesign.quest

#TTRPGThroughts #RPGTheory

Front Lobby Welcome to the RPG Design Quest! This is a small, relaxed community created by Rev Casey of Thought Punks to talk about TTRPG game design and roleplaying games in general. No grand purpose. Just a love of games and a lot of friends missing an old fashioned hub like this to chew on some thoughts. Come on in, pull up a seat, and join in! Forums Groups Join Sign In

Coming very soon for my #TTRPG #IndieGameDev and #RPGTheory thinking friends. Open registration will be for limited windows with a hard open signup cap. Registrations thereafter will be invite only for manageable growth & vetting. And already starting with moderation system.

Hey all my #RPGDesign and #RPGTheory #IndieDev & #TTRPG friends!

I know some of y'all are REALLY into card mechanics. Give a look at what Rine is crunching over.

What #TTRPGThoughts are on your mind tonight or this morning? Any #RPGTheory ideas consuming you? A fun #Tabletop memory running around in your head? Plans for a #TTRPG session brewing? What's on your mind?

Help me through this tough time. Tell me about the last #TTRPG or #RPGTheory thing you came across that got your mental gears turning. What seemed like a great insight? Or what fit especially well with your play style? Any advice or guidance in a game that really hit the point?

What kind of #TTRPGThoughts have been rolling around in your head lately? Is there anything you're working on? Any #RPGTheory idea you've been pondering? Come across an insight that made a lot of sense to you? Tell us all about the #TTRPG / #Tabletop thoughts consuming you.

TTRPG Game Design Hashtag List #rpgdesign #rpgdev #rpggamedev #rpgidea #rpgideas #rpgjam #rpgtheory #rpgthoughts #tabletopdesign #tabletopdev #tabletopgamedev #tabletopidea #tabletopideas #tabletopjam #tabletoptheory #tabletopthoughts #trpgdesign #trpgdev #trpggamedev #trpgidea #trpgideas #trpgjam #trpgtheory #trpgthoughts #ttrpgdesign #ttrpgdev #ttrpggamedev #ttrpgidea #ttrpgideas #ttrpgjam #ttrpgtheory #ttrpgthoughts #RPG #Tabletop #TRPG #TTRPG + design, dev, gamedev, idea, ideas, jam, theory, thoughts

I see you in #RPGSky asking about tabletop design + homebrewing discussions.
In luck! There's a #TTRPG Game Design feed!
Variety of tags to choose from. Tag in your idea & design posts, follow the feed, & build up the design space!

bsky.app/profile/did:...

#TabletopDesign #RPGTheory #TTRPGRising

Many around #TTRPGSky asking about tabletop design + homebrewing discussions.
There's a #TTRPG Game Design feed!
Variety of tags to choose from.
Tag in your idea & design posts, follow the feed, & build up the design space!
bsky.app/profile/did:...
#TabletopDesign #RPGTheory #TTRPGRising

Front cover of the Tales of Xadia ttrpg book.

Recently, I stumbled across a great video by Tales Arcane.

It briefly touched on a #TTRPG called Tales of Xadia.

It uses a dicepool to determine things like challenge DC.

And now I'm hella intrigued...

#RPGTheory #IndieGameDev

Thread worth a read. But game psych thing for context:
Pick random people.
Play simple 1/3, 1/2, 2/3 odds with them.
Now guess their impressions of fairness.
Answer: Inflated sense of loss. 1/3 feels fully rigged. 1/2 like unfair/low odds, 2/3 like fair/even odds.

#RPGTheory #TTRPG #Tabletop

What parts of #TTRPG design deserve more attention? What subsystems or approaches need more love? What should devs experiment with more? What do you want see?

#TTRPGThoughts #RPGTheory #IndieGameDev

Many around #TTRPGSky asking about tabletop design + homebrewing discussions.
There's also a #TTRPG Game Design feed!

Variety of tags to choose from.
Tag in your idea & design posts, follow the feed, & build up the design space!

bsky.app/profile/did:...

#TabletopDesign #RPGTheory #TTRPGRising

What role the rules play (counter-intuitive to a lot of #RPGTheory & #GameDesign thought) comes last in that 3. Bc that's how humans work under the hood even if it "doesn't make sense" from a "rational" design POV. What's important & how it's framed defines what the role means.

Tuesday, so it's time for a #TTRPGThoughts chat!

What tabletop ideas have been rattling in your head? What #RPGTheory tangents are occupying your mind? What #TTRPG concepts are you toying with?

TTRPG Game Design Hashtag List #rpgdesign #rpgdev #rpggamedev #rpgidea #rpgideas #rpgjam #rpgtheory #rpgthoughts #tabletopdesign #tabletopdev #tabletopgamedev #tabletopidea #tabletopideas #tabletopjam #tabletoptheory #tabletopthoughts #trpgdesign #trpgdev #trpggamedev #trpgidea #trpgideas #trpgjam #trpgtheory #trpgthoughts #ttrpgdesign #ttrpgdev #ttrpggamedev #ttrpgidea #ttrpgideas #ttrpgjam #ttrpgtheory #ttrpgthoughts #RPG #Tabletop #TRPG #TTRPG + design, dev, gamedev, idea, ideas, jam, theory, thoughts

Reminder there's a TTRPG game design feed now!

Follow along to find interesting discussions.
Use the tags to make sure your posts get included.
Let's all talk about our #TRPGIdeas, share thoughts on #RPGTheory, and get deep into #TTRPGDesign!

New Simulationism - Sam Sorensen A manifesto. In everything you do, ensure that the fictional world is first. If, at any point, any aspect of the game begins to clash with the

Sam Sorensen writes the "New Simulationism" manifesto: 10 concrete points to define & guide simulationist roleplaying games.
Worth reading and taking notes even if you don't usually run simulationist games.
#TTRPG #RPGtheory
samsorensen.blot.im/new-simulati...