Two Other Things You Never Heard of to Make Encounters Not Suck
If you want to break your addiction to encounter rules and mechanics, there’s just two things you need to learn. Two things I should have taught you years ago. Sorry.
You Can Quit Encounters Anytime You Want
Why can’t you run a complex, engaging encounter with nothing but a paragraph of prose description and a copy of the PHB handy? Because you’re a system junkie, that’s why.
Mr. Angry’s Wild Ride: Outlining an Angry Adventure
All right, you asked for it. Let’s use the Amazing Adventure Building Checklist to actually build an amazing adventure. First step is steps one through five. It makes sense in context.
What it Means to Design an Adventure the Angry Way
Before I use my amazing checklist to show you how to design an adventure the Angry Way, I have to explain what the Angry Way is and why it’s so much better than the Crap Way.
Recognizing Non-Humans for What they Aren’t
What makes a NPC likable? I don’t know. But I do know what makes an NPC seem like an actual human thing worthy of human feelings. We call that relatability and this whole article is how to pull that off.
…But You Can’t Make Them Care
People have been asking me for years to teach them how to create and run games that their players actually emotionally give a crap about. And I’ve been avoiding answering for years. But now I’m ready to tell you how to make players care.
How to Run an Online Game… If You Must
Have you been forced to abandon real-world gaming due to current global events? Have no fear, Angry is here to tell you to run an online game. Just in time for the global lockdown to lift. You’re welcome.
Angry’s Double Impossible Adventure Building Checklist
I’ve been dared to do the impossible: write a simple, adventure-building checklist AND keep it short. Can I pull it off? Do bears s$&% on the Pope?
Update to the Update
A quick update. Still not dead. Been working. Here’s the stuff that’s coming.
What D&D 5E Does Right
Yes, you read the title right. I’m actually going to be positive for once and talk about some of the good design choices in D&D 5E. This is what happens when you get really drunk on the day your next article is due.
How to Homebrew: Clickbait Worldbuilding
The biggest obstacle to starting a homebrew campaign is having to build a world. And the biggest obstacle to running a good game is actually building the world. You’re better off just not worldbuilding.
The Great Magic Item Analysis: How to Price an Item
It’s time for the AngryCraft Great Magic Item Analysis. Well, it’s time for the first part. The boring one with all the math. But, when it’s done, we’ll know exactly how to set a magic item’s price.
Ask Angry: The Quest for the Holy Social Encounter System Grail
A reader wants to know if I’ve ever seen an RPG system with a good system for resolving social encounters and whether such a thing is even possible.
The Whatever Stat
Systems and rules are nice, but tools are better. So here’s a simple tool that you can use to do whatever you need to do. Really.
The Great Magical Item Analysis Pregame Show
Continuing the design of AngryCraft for D&D, my play experience description has left with me with a solid plan. A plan I just can’t follow because I’m shackled to D&D.
Designing with a Strong D (And Also the Return of Crafting)
Most amateur and professional game designs try to jump from the feeling they want something to evoke right into mechanical game design. And that’s a mistake. Because, to design a good system, you need a big, strong D. As the Angry GM demonstrates by talking about the return of his magic item crafting system!
Ask Angry: How to Playtest an Entire System on Three Hours a Week
Ash wants to know how to get his brilliant RPG design fully playtested if all he can do is run one game a week for three hours.
How to Run a Biblical Campaign
A campaign bible is a powerful tool any GM can use to run a better campaign. As long as they don’t f$%& it up by trying to do it right.
The Rest of the World of D&D According to Rosewater… According to Angry
Remember last year when I decided to apply Mark Rosewater’s definition of what makes a game a game to D&D? And I got halfway through and then collapsed into a full-bore rant about D&D’s design? Well, I’m back to provide the other half and then collapse into another full-bore rant. Wheeee!
Ask Angry: Morale Systems and Player Agency
Should players ever have to make morale checks to stay in the fight?
The Return of Ask Angry… No, For Real This Time
What do you do when you don’t like what your GM does? Or one of your players? Try to get the Angry GM to yell at them for you of course. But Angry isn’t some sweary ninja for hire. Sorry.
How to F$%& CR: A Practical Example of Encounter Building the Angry Way
Weeks ago, I showed you how to f$&% CR and build monsters with my way better and way more awesome system. And then I promised I’d also show you how to put those monsters together into encounters. Well, I’m finally back to make good on that promise.
The Game Must Go On: When Procrastination Wrecks Your Gaming Life
Do you cancel too many games? Do you put off working on too many projects? Do you find yourself falling behind in your gaming obligations? Well, I sure as hell did. And what helped me might help you too.
The Lore of the Angryverse: Undead
Whenever I even hint at the idea that there’s some specific pile of setting lore that governs everything I do in my home games, I get lots of people demanding I share it all. And publish a campaign setting book about it immediately. Well, that ain’t going to happen. But if I ever did, this is what the part about Undead would look like.
How to F$%& CR: A Practical Example of Monster Building the Angry Way
Weeks ago, I told you to f$&% CR and build monsters and encounters the better way. And I confused a lot of people and even made a few people angry. So, here’s a quick and dirty example of how to build a simple monster – two different ways – that should dispel the confusion. But it won’t make the angry people less angry. Not that I care. F$&% ’em.
Out With the Old? In With the New?
I wish people would stop asking me how “the Angry RPG” is going to handle ability scores or feats or initiative or whatever. Not because I don’t want to tell people about “the Angry RPG,” but because those words don’t mean anything.
Angry’s Amazing Adventure Templates
How much stuff should an adventure have? How many encounters? How many goals? How long should an adventure take to play? Is there a simple template you can build an adventure around? Yes. Yes there is. Because I wrote one.
Fighting With Your Voice (Part 1… Maybe?)
I hate when people misuse my teachings to ruin things. Like maps. It’s okay to have nice maps. Even if you’re a mapaholic. But you should know how not to use a map. Especially in combat. You need to learn how to run a battle without a grid.
The Angry GM’s GameholeCon Seminars
A couple of weeks ago, I delivered a pair of seminars at GameholeCon VII in Madison, Wisconsin. And I recorded the things so I could eventually get them posted over on YouTube on a brand new Angry Games YouTube channel. Which I have now more or less done. Actually less. There were some issues.
Lost Player Skills: Calling
Maybe this is just me being an angry, 40-something, gen x grognard, but gamers today have lost touch with some essential skills. Skills that those fancy core books USED TO teach you. Like mapping. And calling. Which is what this one is about: calling.