Category Archives: World-Building

Creation Legend (Retold from the Ailu)

Posted on July 29, 2014 by Confanity

When the titan Ghan scooped out the Armhold Valley and built up the mountains around, he did so as a playpen for his three children: the twin brothers Thahn and Thahr, and their sister Eyyafel. But unknown even to the … Continue reading →

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Fiddling with XP, part 3: Apologia and Addendum

Posted on July 15, 2014 by Confanity

Last time, I outlined a rough proposal for an alternate XP system for a class-and-level RPG. This included how the DM determines awards and how the players can work to adjust their individual awards, and then how those numbers might … Continue reading →

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Fiddling with XP, part 2: Something old, something new

Posted on July 11, 2014 by Confanity

Previously I rambled for a while about XP systems, and how my ideal would be granular and world-associated – i.e. the way it works makes sense from an in-world perspective as well as a meta, mechanical one. Assuming a D&D-style … Continue reading →

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Fiddling with XP, Part 1: The Past and Present

Posted on July 9, 2014 by Confanity

Improvement over time is such an integral part of role-playing games (in general) that it has become the de facto indicator for RPGness in computer games. And there are plenty of different systems. I’m partial to one in which using … Continue reading →

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The Tomb King’s People

Posted on July 2, 2014 by Confanity

What does this picture say to you? I found it here as part of a run of undead-themed images, all labeled “Tomb King,” but this was at the top. And I’m glad it was; the rest of the series is a … Continue reading →

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Divine/Arcane Divide

Posted on June 25, 2014 by Confanity

I’ve added Ten Foot Polemic to my RSS feed, and spent a little while trawling back through the archives. While there are a few things there that aren’t entirely my cup of tea, it’s creative and inspiring enough that I … Continue reading →

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More Musings on Skill Points and Economies Thereof

Posted on December 23, 2013 by Confanity

When I think about pen-and-paper RPG design, I invariably come around to skill systems and skill points. One thing that strikes me as odd about D&D is the almost complete disconnect between the systems for combat and the systems for … Continue reading →

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An SP Economy

Posted on November 27, 2013 by Confanity

(Yes, there are some bloggers who have talked about replacing the venerable “gold piece”-centric currency system with a silver standard, but that’s not what this post is about.) (By the by, I’m in favor of world-specific, idiosyncratic currency systems. It … Continue reading →

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Brain Storm

Posted on November 17, 2013 by Confanity

“Requesting Elegant Solutions – Psionics – Visions, mind-reading, [and] mental combat all seem archetypal and [I’m] not really satisfied with a Vancian system. No point systems.” I present a brief brainstorm for psionics rules, based the above challenge/request at the … Continue reading →

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Tweaking “Turning”

Posted on October 21, 2013 by Confanity

Background One of the classic powers of clerics in D&D is “turning undead.” You present a holy symbol, the light of your patron deity shines through, and mummies shamble away or zombies are blasted into dust. The root of this, … Continue reading →

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