hawthorn-j

[hawthorn-j]

@lord-vermin you need to see this

Globus INK, Soviet spaceflight navigation computer

[hawthorn-j]

yknow i dontr fully agree with the anim post thats like a game without modules is like a console without games... mostly beause i think phrasing it specifically in terms of 'advernture modules' i think is a very narrow and limiting horizon... but i do actually kind of vibe with the core idea being expressed there, like... i Do think that your game should be playable out of the box and not require someone to go and do hours of homework just to like have a setting and plot hooks to play with

[hawthorn-j]

One of my favourite recent examples

it's really funny how whenever you tell chatgpt it got something wrong it either brazenly gaslights you or starts going "I'm sorry. I let you down. It was unacceptable. I'm holding myself accountable for my egregious failure. I should be shot"

[hawthorn-j]

mech & pilot

[hawthorn-j]

[hawthorn-j]

It's not possible for mechanics to "get in the way of the story" in a TTRPG. Whatever outcome the mechanics natively produce *is* the story. There can be a mismatch between the story you want the game to produce and the story the mechanics naturally gravitate towards producing, in which case you should consider playing a different game that actually wants to produce the story you want to experience, but "mechanics getting in the way of the story" is not a thing.

[hawthorn-j]

GMing doesn't have to be a chore and can in fact be extremely fun and rewarding but there are certain learned behaviors and attitudes that make things harder on the GM. Here are just a few tips on how to make the job easier on the GM which also may have the side effect of making the game more fun for everyone:

Everyone should make an effort to learn the rules. The rules are not there to make the game unfun and they are not a necessary evil, they are there to help carry the game so the group doesn't have to do all the work. And everyone taking part in learning the rules means the GM doesn't always have to be the one to remember how a rule works.

To that end, drop the "GM is the final word on the rules" attitude. This places the GM on a pedestal and can actually run counter to the idea of players learning the rules. If the GM has carte blanche to run over the rules it disincentivices players learning the rules because they can't actually rely on the text, and now you're right back to the GM having to carry the whole game. It is entirely okay for players to remind the GM how the rules should work and the group should agree on a method for dealing with rules disputes, and spot rulings should not rely on the GM making a unilateral decision but should rely on some kind of consensus.

Communicate your desires to the group and be willing to compromise; respect each other's prep. You may want a game that focuses on a long-form narrative but the GM wants to run an episodic series of largely unrelated singleton adventures. The GM is the one who is bringing the game, so ultimately be willing to compromise on your vision of the game and respect their prep. Ultimately, if the GM does not want to run the exact type of game you want and you can't see yourself having fun in the type of game they want to run, you will be doing everyone a favor by recusing yourself from the game.

Related to the above, communicating your desires should be an ongoing process. End each session by talking about what you want to do next and where you think the game should go. This will also make it easier for the GM to prep ahead.

This relates to learning the rules: pick a game that actually supports the type of game you want to run. Trust me, whatever time you think you will save by sticking to a game you already know you will make back by not having to fight the rules all the time and actually letting the rules take an active part in carrying the game.

You can literally just use prewritten adventures. Not every campaign or adventure needs to be custom-tailored for your specific group. Using prewritten adventures means that someone's already done a lot of the prep for you.

And finally, don't prep any more than you need to: there is this persistent myth that GMs need to have the entire campaign and world planned from the word go to begin with. While there is nothing wrong with expansive worldbuilding as such, you don't need to prep anything beyond what is strictly necessary. If you're running a wide open sandbox you can get by with a rough sketch of the world and only write things in as they become relevant. If you're running a megadungeon your players don't have to know that you've only prepared the first level for the first session, as long as you have a cohesive broad strokes plan that is perfectly fine. If you're running an episodic campaign, well, you don't need to have anything beyond the next episode prepped at a time, but of course having a rough plan can help.

Of course a lot of this is very opinionated and game specific: some games actively resist authoritative GM prep and want to involve each player equally in setting up the situation, and that's actually great, and in those types of games you should remember that the game is explicitly telling everyone to be involved in the prep. And once again, listen to what the rules have to say: they're there to tell you what the game wants you to do.

[hawthorn-j]

Self-Awareness by Katsuhiro Õtomo

[hawthorn-j]

I have an idea for an interesting character for Eureka!

Concept:

A rich and well connected dealer in curiosities, antiques and very specific tools. For every percieved problem they try to somehow solve it by producing some knickknack or doohickey they had in their car the whole time.

Mechanics:

the wealth skill in Eureka alows you to roll for the possibility of already having some needed piece of equipment in your car or place of residence. If your wealth bonus ist high enough, and your car and house big enough, you have a good chance of "already owning" anything you might need.

So just make a rich character:

+3 in wealth when choosing skills

+3 contextual bonus to wealth from the "Moneybags" Trait

+3 contextual bonus to wealth from the "Dangerprone Damsel" Trait

And now, to actually make the use of these "tools" mechanically usefull: just get yourself a fitting character "truth"!

Like:

"Every problem can be solved by bringing the right kind of tool. Interpersonal conflict? Research? Seduction? Everything just needs the right kind of screwdriver."

Now everytime the character runs back to their car to get some shit they receive a +1 bonus on their next 3 rolls of the scene.

---

Wealth mechanic:

[hawthorn-j]

Plastic Chair in Wood by Maarten Baas (2008)

[hawthorn-j]

Winged Priestess by Hélène Bianchi

[hawthorn-j]

Here's some paintings I've done of people looking at screens. These are all available as prints on Inprnt: Art Prints by Ollie Jones - INPRNT I'm also selling a limited edition print of my piece 'Producer' at Black Dragon Press: Producer – Black Dragon Press

[hawthorn-j]

This is an oil painting I made last year called Hobbyshop

When I was about 9 I would go to a hobbyshop to get lessons in painting warhammer, this painting is loosely based on that period of time

The guy who taught me was an older English man with a moustache, which I thought was an interesting sort of guy to be so in to warhammer

I remember the other guy who ran the shop always pottering about, fiddling with things. I like trying to paint fingers doing delicate little actions like this, although I haven't really figured out how to do it -

here's a much better example by Sorolla. Very nice hands.

The kid in this painting ended up glowering which I didn't really intend, but I like it because I think kids sometimes look a bit moody without meaning to. I was and am like that anyway.

People do interesting things with their feet when they're sitting and I think that's fun to try and paint as well. I thought I could say a lot about a kid with a rather inscrutable facial expression through the way he places his feet. So there you are.

[hawthorn-j]

imagine having your own personal hater who's been assigned to you by fate and he is a tiny little clown who won't stop following you around and yammering about your imminent demise and worst of all you love him dearly

[hawthorn-j]

dish 🌆

[hawthorn-j]

games (mostly text-based) about houses and places-- exploring them, haunting them, feeding them:

childhood homes (and why we hate them) - after a decade, you return home.

return - a text-based horror game about coming home.

singing from the far side of the hill - about a trans woman, homeless after a bad breakup, who rents a stranger's spare room. it's a decision she comes to regret.

anatomy - Explore a suburban house, collect cassette tapes, study the physiology of domestic architecture.

leave house - leave house

the open house - We at Northtree Real Estate (in partnership with Optix Dynamix Labs) are proud to present our new, state-of-the-art, open house simulator!  Come and take a quick tour of 15615 Hollow Oak Lane, a familiar and comfortable showcase home in one of our premier developments!

what girls do in the dark - This little game is based off one of the greatest fears they had as a teenage girl: showing up late to a stranger's slumber party.

unbecoming - a sonically-textured interactive horror fiction exploring cycles of trauma and unspeakable forces of nature in a mythic rural American landscape.

13 laurel road - an interactive fiction game about the relationships we have with places and reconciling with trauma. You play as a young man named Noah who has been tasked with picking up some things from his cousin’s old house.

domvs - a gothic mystery game in which you rely on your environment to uncover the truth.

flesh, blood, & concrete - you find yourself in a vast, empty apartment complex.

i am still here - a short, unconventional ghost story and vignette reflecting on the end of a long lockdown.

vacant - Film a ghost-hunting show.

[hawthorn-j]

Second one this month off the @batmanisagatewaydrug book bingo and this is one of the best books I've read this year.

I'm only two squares off a line!