System Agnostic Archives - Tribality https://www.tribality.com/columns/system-agnostic/ D&D / Role Playing Mon, 23 Jul 2018 01:37:01 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 https://www.tribality.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/cropped-logo-2020-icon@2x-32x32.jpg System Agnostic Archives - Tribality https://www.tribality.com/columns/system-agnostic/ 32 32 Using Real World Locations in Your Games https://www.tribality.com/2018/07/23/using-real-world-locations-in-your-games/ https://www.tribality.com/2018/07/23/using-real-world-locations-in-your-games/#respond Mon, 23 Jul 2018 12:00:09 +0000 https://www.tribality.com/?p=24747 You probably know your hometown well – and probably the surrounding areas as well. You know its streets, landmarks, people, the places where people gather, etc. So why not use these things in your adventures to make your gaming world seem more real? It’s easy drawing from memory and picturing the details to make descriptions vivid and mapping easy. And there’s a lot of inspiration there to draw from based on your experiences and stories you heard growing up about […]

The post Using Real World Locations in Your Games appeared first on Tribality.

]]> https://www.tribality.com/2018/07/23/using-real-world-locations-in-your-games/feed/ 0 Using Nanites in Your Game https://www.tribality.com/2017/12/25/using-nanites-game/ https://www.tribality.com/2017/12/25/using-nanites-game/#comments Mon, 25 Dec 2017 13:00:41 +0000 http://www.tribality.com/?p=22632 Nanites seem to be the stuff of science fiction, but as technology gets smaller and smaller, this idea of science fiction will quickly become science fact. But not everyone has the same idea as to what these tiny machines can do. So why not look at some possibilities? Nanites for health In the classic sci-fi movie “Fantastic Voyage,” a crew was shrunk down to microscopic size to perform surgery on a living host. But instead of needing pilots to steer […]

The post Using Nanites in Your Game appeared first on Tribality.

]]> https://www.tribality.com/2017/12/25/using-nanites-game/feed/ 2 Class Concepts Part 2: The Patternist “The Weaver Witches” Part 2 https://www.tribality.com/2017/04/16/class-concepts-part-2-the-patternist-the-weaver-witches-part-2/ https://www.tribality.com/2017/04/16/class-concepts-part-2-the-patternist-the-weaver-witches-part-2/#comments Sun, 16 Apr 2017 13:00:18 +0000 http://www.tribality.com/?p=19901 Class Concepts Part 2: The Patternist “The Weaver Witches” Part 2 By: Jesse C Cohoon   Class Concepts are a multi-part series on ideas that seem to have escaped many of the game designer’s ideologies when figuring out classes. This series is not meant to give rules or the breakdown of the progression of the classes that are being presented here per se, but ideas by which GMs can flesh out these concepts for their own games. Because my background […]

The post Class Concepts Part 2: The Patternist “The Weaver Witches” Part 2 appeared first on Tribality.

]]> https://www.tribality.com/2017/04/16/class-concepts-part-2-the-patternist-the-weaver-witches-part-2/feed/ 4 Class Concepts Part 2: The Patternist “The Weaver Witches” https://www.tribality.com/2017/04/12/class-concepts-part-2-the-patternist-the-weaver-witches/ https://www.tribality.com/2017/04/12/class-concepts-part-2-the-patternist-the-weaver-witches/#comments Wed, 12 Apr 2017 13:00:50 +0000 http://www.tribality.com/?p=19829 Class Concepts Part 2: The Patternist “The Weaver Witches” By: Jesse C Cohoon Class Concepts are a multi-part series on ideas that seem to have escaped many of the game designer’s ideologies when figuring out classes. This series is not meant to give rules or the breakdown of the progression of the classes that are being presented here per se, but ideas by which GMs can flesh out these concepts for their own games. Because my background is in D&D […]

The post Class Concepts Part 2: The Patternist “The Weaver Witches” appeared first on Tribality.

]]> https://www.tribality.com/2017/04/12/class-concepts-part-2-the-patternist-the-weaver-witches/feed/ 2 Class Concepts Part 1: The Strength Based Magic Users (“The Strength Mage”) https://www.tribality.com/2017/04/03/class-concepts-part-1-the-strength-based-magic-users-the-strength-mage/ https://www.tribality.com/2017/04/03/class-concepts-part-1-the-strength-based-magic-users-the-strength-mage/#comments Mon, 03 Apr 2017 13:00:35 +0000 http://www.tribality.com/?p=19719 Class Concepts Part 1: The Strength Based Magic Users “The Strength Mage” By: Jesse C Cohoon Class Concepts are a multi-part series on ideas that seem to have escaped many of the game designer’s ideologies when figuring out classes. This series is not meant to give rules or the breakdown of the progression of the classes that are being presented here per se, but ideas by which GMs can flesh out these concepts for their own games. Because my background […]

The post Class Concepts Part 1: The Strength Based Magic Users (“The Strength Mage”) appeared first on Tribality.

]]> https://www.tribality.com/2017/04/03/class-concepts-part-1-the-strength-based-magic-users-the-strength-mage/feed/ 7 Eleven Different Factions https://www.tribality.com/2017/03/21/eleven-different-factions/ https://www.tribality.com/2017/03/21/eleven-different-factions/#comments Wed, 22 Mar 2017 02:54:22 +0000 http://www.tribality.com/?p=19652 Factions are groups within a fictional universe that are vying for control. This control can be a thing of politics, religion, magic, or other ideology. Some factions tend to get along, while others seek to destroy one another. Some factions wish to do things within the constraints of the law, whereas others seek a more violent and revolutionary approach to things. Consider adding these factions to your game. Convocation of Thorns: A group of druids which is trying to take […]

The post Eleven Different Factions appeared first on Tribality.

]]> https://www.tribality.com/2017/03/21/eleven-different-factions/feed/ 2 Make Maps | Leave Gaps – 3 Ways to Balance World Detail In Game https://www.tribality.com/2016/03/23/make-maps-leave-gaps-3-ways-to-balance-world-detail-in-game/ Wed, 23 Mar 2016 04:02:38 +0000 http://tribality.com/?p=15727 I was thinking recently about the RPG design philosophy ‘Make Maps, Leave Gaps.’ Basically, this sentiment translates to ‘have some details, but leave space for inspiration/player interest to create the environment.’ Which, for me, has me wondering what level of granular detail is appropriate (or even desirable) for a world building project. This is especially true as I continue to write about my setting (originally posted here on Tribality) The City of Salt in Wounds. On the one hand, I […]

The post Make Maps | Leave Gaps – 3 Ways to Balance World Detail In Game appeared first on Tribality.

]]> A Lich for Every Class: The Paths of Transcendence (Part 2) https://www.tribality.com/2016/02/24/a-lich-for-every-class-the-paths-of-transcendence-part-2/ Wed, 24 Feb 2016 14:46:24 +0000 http://tribality.com/?p=15178 This is the second part of a multi-part series about the character classes developing until they become ‘lich-like;’ that is, following the path of their power until they become something more or less than human. You can read the first part here. To summarize: The Path of the Lich – Wizards ‘kill’ their bodies and senses to free their mind in order to better study & master the arcane. The Path of the Imbued – Fighters transfer their consciousness into favored […]

The post A Lich for Every Class: The Paths of Transcendence (Part 2) appeared first on Tribality.

]]> The Fantasy Cold War: Synoma https://www.tribality.com/2016/02/17/the-fantasy-cold-war-synoma/ Wed, 17 Feb 2016 14:10:19 +0000 http://tribality.com/?p=15040 ‘Adventuring’ is weird. In a geopolitical sense, you have these supremely powerful beings (aka murder hoboes) exploring the world, thwarting (or occasionally enacting) plots that represent an existential threat to the planet, and (perhaps more intriguing) recovering artifacts & magics that are -essentially- weapons of mass destruction. This ignore the fact that the adventurers themselves are *becoming* walking, talking weapons of mass destruction. This is usually explained within a ‘points of light’ context where, while there may be towns and […]

The post The Fantasy Cold War: Synoma appeared first on Tribality.

]]> Alternate Magic: The Power of Sensory Deprivation https://www.tribality.com/2016/02/10/alternate-magic-the-power-of-sensory-deprivation/ Wed, 10 Feb 2016 20:55:12 +0000 http://tribality.com/?p=14946 A friend of mine was telling me about the concept (via 4th Edition Dungeons and Dragons) of the Shadowfell; a dark reflection of the mundane regularly leaking into the prime material world. Or, alternately, even when you thought you were walking through the ‘regular’ world you could really be travelling into and out of Shadowfell. Specifically, we discussed dungeons in this context; that this framework supported the (oftentimes totally implausible) existence of huge dungeons (the construction of which could serve no […]

The post Alternate Magic: The Power of Sensory Deprivation appeared first on Tribality.

]]>