How can you add items to your inventory when it is full? You cannot. You must first empty it. Learning FKR is not added to your gaming tools. FKR is the tool that unmakes all others. In this light all other systems and tables serve it and it serves you. But only if you are willing to learn. And for that, you must empty yourself. Pick up a book, any book. In there you will find worlds and fragments of worlds. Split them and tear them to pieces. Take what’s left and glue it in your notebook. One is not able to immersed fully in a system. But they be drenched in a world. “But I NEED to get the b ..read more

Just saw Andrew Kolb’s new setting book announcement: CALLED IT! Next I’ll predict the housing market and stock market.  Stick around ..read more

Hi Sam! I decided to hold back on my review of ZOMBIES RIGHT NOW. I think I didn’t play it with the right group, or perhaps didn’t guide enough as host, to get a fair experience out of the game this time around… So pretty quickly the game went full flight of fancy. I stepped back pretty significantly as host, not moderating any actions that were proposed once people got the hang of it. I wanted to see where it went. It went into nearly joke territory, visiting the Minecraft Nether, the Mar-a-lago, etc… Everyone had fun, but I get the sense they saw no long-term viability in this type of game ..read more

First sincere sip of YouTubing. Fun experiment, I was excited the whole way through ..read more

Problem: The imperial sailing ship HMS Nebular is on an expedition voyage to the distant star of Last Rigel. The gas giant is speculated to be home to a vapor of prized scientific value. However, the journey is doomed from the beginning by the presence of mutinous pirates aboard the ship. Characters: Loyals: Isabella Starwind, captain (celestial compass) Icarus Sunblade, engineer (cybernetic limbs) Zara, alien navigator (living star map) Lucius, academic (animate rope) Mutineers: Vortex, chief mutineer (life-drain cutlass) Grax the Ironheart, elemental enforcer (gravity hammer) Luna, specia ..read more

Shipwright As with RPGs, the core of matrix games is fairly solid. In RPGs, you play a character by saying what you do next within the scenario outlined by the game master. In matrix games, you play a scenario by saying what happens next, regardless of which characters “you control.” What can easily change in RPGs and matrix games is the system of resolution. Do we roll a d20? Or play rock-paper-scissors? Or use a timer dexterity game? In fact, when I first wrote about matrix games, one of the first responses was “You’re using 2d6, rolling 7 or higher? Why not one of those 50/50 resolution mec ..read more

My wife and I got married July 22nd of last year. Six months in, we’ve officially changed our names. My name is Samuel Doebler James. That, and happy fifth year anniversary of the blog. Been here every month since Feb 2019. It’s been a blast. Thanks for reading and being a part of this ..read more

Shipwright Start with a problem. Say what happens next. There is no order of play. Anyone can add to what happens. Any player may challenge what another player says and tell them to roll 2d6. On a 7+, what was said happens and cannot be altered. On a 6-, it does not happen and cannot happen. The host may veto what another player says, but this must be done before dice are rolled. The game ends when the problem is resolved. Matrix Game Rules This is a matrix game. I wrote this with 6-10 players in mind. Enjoy! Problem: The plane crashed on a tropical island. You need to find a way off and back ..read more

“How oddly austere for something focused on being fun…” Shipwright. Start with a problem. Say what happens next. There is no order of play. Anyone can add to what happens. Any player may challenge what another player says and tell them to roll 2d6. On a 7+, what was said happens and cannot be altered. On a 6-, it does not happen and cannot happen. The host may veto what another player says, but this must be done before dice are rolled. The game ends when the problem is resolved. The above is the matrix game. It’s the most accessible game to create a story. Chris Engle was the one who led me ..read more

Shipwright Start with a problem. Say what happens next. There is no order of play. Anyone can add to what happens. Any player may challenge what another player says and tell them to roll 2d6. On a 7+, what was said happens and cannot be altered. On a 6-, it does not happen and cannot happen. The host may veto what another player says, but this must be done before dice are rolled. The game ends when the problem is resolved. The above is a matrix game. It’s the most accessible game to tell a story. You have a problem in a location that affects some characters. The game is playing to find out w ..read more