In combat, when someone rolls a natural 20, they get excited, the mood shifts around the table. It shouldn't end there with another, possibly disappointing, damage roll. A natural 20 should change the fight, become cinematic, memorable. Maximum damage is satisfying. A critical hit gets more memorable when
Theater performance and high production values did not ruin the hobby, in fact, they helped expand the audience. Brought more players and GMs into the arena. What might ruin the game for a new player to a new group? Invisible expectations. The real problem is assuming every player means the
Do you make notes at the end of a session or the end of an adventure? If done properly, your notes could easily set you up for your next adventuring session by placing a variety of pressures on the party forcing them to make decisions and giving the Game Master
Startup Friction is the Real Enemy The faster a game gets to a live situation, the easier it is to trust, demo and run. For commercial enterprise in the TTRPG world, if it takes too long to get from product to playable, the game will sit in the closet and
A Tavern Should Already Be in Trouble When the Characters Arrive Too many tavern scenes are neutral containers. They are places to receive quests, overhear rumors, and maybe meet somebody interesting. That works, but it usually leaves a lot of interesting play sitting on the table. Taverns are typically the
If a scene only works when the players pick the one correct answer, it is not really a situation. A usable situation gives them a few honest choices, lets each choice matter, and then their choice plays out at the table. One of the easiest ways I know to test
I just finished up at ConCarolinas.org convention in Charlotte, NC where I had a table for 3 days and sat in on 4 panels, one of which I was moderator which I enjoyed because it felt a liltle like being a GM. Of course I constantly saw the same
2026 Is the Year I Stop Designing Adventures the Old Way As 2025 wraps up, I don’t really want to do a victory lap about releases. I want to talk about what quietly broke for me this year. Not my creativity. The structure of how I design adventures. When
Stop Letting "Good" DM Advice Ruin Your Game (And Your Sanity) Howdy Game Master, Let's be honest. How many times have you read, or more likely watched, some "definitive" DM advice and felt… worse? Like you’re failing if you’re not prepping 20
Already have an RPG adventure and would like to convert it to an interactive format but don't have the time or don't think you have the skills? Hire me to convert your RPG adventure to an interactive clickable format in the EAS style that I have
Dungeon modules are now being made available on Itch.io for sale and for free. Visit my page at the following link brainamp. Paid newsletter members will continue to get all dungeon modules I release included with their membership along with the ability to ask me questions about using Genially
Found another design tool similar to Genially that performs the same functions and allows you to design drag and drop RPG adventure modules. It is a little more expensive but it does have a few more bells and whistles from what I can tell without signing up for a paid