Idle Cartulary

If you’re walking in on the middle of this series, there’s an index here. My first post on ethos, my elevation of a minor ruling to cover the failures of alignment as a concept, wasn’t very concreted in its approach, but working through the GM guidance section I realise ai need to revise ethos before… Continue reading

If you’re walking in on the middle of the Advanced Fantasy Dungeons series, there’s an index here. So, in my search for simplification, I realise that I want to amalgamate secrets and rumours. These only exist in passing in the text, so I have a lot of leeway. Secrets are just rumours PCs don’t know,… Continue reading

If you’re walking in on the middle of the Advanced Fantasy Dungeons series, there’s an index here. One piece of preparation that really helps with world-building is a calendar. It gets a whole section in the second edition DMG, but I think of a calendar as twofold: It helps track what’s happened in your campaign… Continue reading

If you’re walking in on the middle of the Advanced Fantasy Dungeons series, there’s an index here. Economics gets a lot of words, especially in the DMG, but concrete implementations are non-existent. I want to cast fantasy economics in the context of the personal: The shopkeeper and their family. To summarise the NPC post: To… Continue reading

If you’re walking in on the middle of the Advanced Fantasy Dungeons series, there’s an index here. Equipment does need simple mechanics like the heavy descriptor which indicates it takes up two inventory slots. I want to minimise these mechanical hooks, though. In order for us to keep tagging to the minimum, we need general… Continue reading

If you’re walking in on the middle of the Advanced Fantasy Dungeons series, there’s an index here. I realise some people hate the idea of combat without location. But I hate the idea of grids and stuff. And most of the solutions I’ve seen seem overly complex. Here’s my take: If you do not consider… Continue reading

If you’re walking in on the middle of the advanced fantasy dungeon series, there’s an index here. In the context of the dungeon grid, I’m going to revise Journeying. It shouldn’t change much, but I’ll take the opportunity to reduce the rolling mechanics as well. The extra roll is purposeful in the dungeon, as it’s… Continue reading

If you’re walking in on the middle of the Advanced Fantasy Dungeons series, there’s an index here. There are two things in the campaign that need restocking or refreshing intermittently: Dungeons and Rumours. They’re reflective of the dynamic change that occurs in these locations. Rumours change when they’re not investigated by the PCs, but dungeons… Continue reading

If you’re walking in on the middle of the Advanced Fantasy Dungeons series, there’s an index here. “Nothing is more important to the AD&D game than the creation and handling of nonplayer characters. Without nonplayer characters, the AD&D game is nothing, an empty limbo” Second edition’s DMG is pretty clear about the central importance of… Continue reading

If you’re walking in on the middle of the Advanced Fantasy Dungeons series, there’s an index here. Preparation gets the barest of nods in second edition, compared to campaign building. It’s hinted at here and there, particularly in regards to talking with other players Bout their characters and what they want, but there’s no mention… Continue reading