Gaming advice and resources for busy GMs

Auni Kallas

Auni Kallas (N female half-elf) worships Behron, god of travel. She’s just starting out, but wants to visit every nearby village and town. She’s friendly and happy to travel with like-minded groups. Auni's also a survival expert.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstFebruary 1, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second NPC, Ten-Second on the RoadComment

Gates & Portals: 10 Minor Features

Magical gates and portals are a staple feature of many dungeons. characters stepping through them are often whisked off to a new exciting (and dangerous) adventure locale.

GM's ResourceCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 28, 2021Dungeon Dressing, 20 ThingsComment

The Three Maidens

The Three Maidens—ancient, worn obelisks of unknown origin—form part of the Blind Fiddler’s wall. Faint, illegible carvings cover the stones where they protrude into the street. Unknown to most, a fourth Maiden comprises part of the tavern’s cellar wall.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 27, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second Low City, Ten-Second LocaleComment

Windy Corner

Windy Corner is a busy junction. Here, three roads meet, and chaos ensues. It is often jammed with carts, wagons and frustrated pedestrians. Thieves and cutpurses stalk the crowd while pedlars sell refreshments of dubious origin from battered handcarts.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 26, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second Low City, Ten-Second Alley Comment

Gates & Portals: 10 Major Features

Magical gates and portals are a staple feature of many dungeons. characters stepping through them are often whisked off to a new exciting (and dangerous) adventure locale.

GM's ResourceCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 25, 2021Dungeon Dressing, 20 Things Comments

Vappu Aikio

Vappu Aikio (CN female human) paints strange, otherworldly vistas of disconcerting aspect. Dwelling in a cramped, rundown garret Vappu is always short of money. Consumed by her art she cares little for her appearance or health. She seeks a patron.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 25, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second NPC, Ten-Second Low City Comments

The Blind Fiddler

The Blind Fiddler offers cheap beer, sour wine and wild times. Raucous laughter, drunken singing and wild yells often come from this ramshackle tavern. Kuura Tuntia (N male human), the gregarious alcoholic owner, welcomes any with coin. Drinking here isn’t for the faint-hearted.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 22, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second Low City, Ten-Second LocaleComment

Ventla’s Lament

Ventla’s Lament threads its narrow, crooked and gloom-shrouded way through the slum. Named for a streetwalker found dead years ago it is a fetid, dangerous place. Desperate, predatory folk live in the tottering houses flanking the alley. The watch never come here.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 21, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second Low City, Ten-Second AlleyComment

20 Pieces of Pit Dressing

Pits are a lurking danger that have spelled the doom of countless adventurers. Pits can be used to kill, injure or trap intruders, to block progress or to prevent escape. An explorer trapped in a pit with no way of getting out is at the mercy of the first creature or character to discover their predicament.

GM's ResourceCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 21, 2021Dungeon Dressing, 20 ThingsComment

Tuure Raita

Tuure Raita (NE old male human) sculpts lifelike waxen figures which he paints, dresses and displays in a back room museum of his chandlery. Some figures depict normal folk. Others take more blasphemous, disturbing forms. Tuure emits a faint miasmic scent.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 20, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second NPC, Ten-Second Low CityComment

The Bard & Pyre

The Bard & Pyre is a place for serious and quiet drinking and gambling. Brawls are frequent, and deaths not unheard of, in this cellar tavern. Its dour owner, the ex-pirate Ari Tapo (NE male human), hates singing, dancing and music.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 19, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second Low City, Ten-Second LocaleComment

10 Things to Find in a Gelatinous Cube

Quintessential dungeon scavengers, gelatinous cubes engulf all in their path. Untold numbers of neophyte adventurers have met their doom in the depths of a gelatinous cube. Sometimes their death leaves behind treasure for luckier, or more skilled, adventurers to retrieve.

GM's ResourceCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 18, 202120 Things, Dungeon Dressing, Creature DressingComment

The Broken Path

The Broken Path meanders passed scores of once well-to-do homes. High walls pierced by locked or bricked-up gates flank the path. Overshadowed by hoary trees, moss and weeds grow thickly in this cobbled, little-used alley.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 18, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second Low City, Ten-Second AlleyComment

Sipi Vihas

Sipi Vihas (CN male human) walks with a bad limp and rails against the injustice that put him in that cart’s way. A self-proclaimed genius he has many views on many things, but few friends. Sipi wears old, stained robes. He rarely shaves or washes.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 15, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second NPC, Ten-Second Low CityComment

What Makes a Dungeon Awesome?

Dungeons are literally the bedrock of the hobby. They have been a core concept of the game from the first campaigns.

All dungeons are not created equal, however. Some are great, some are terrible and some are mediocre.

QuestionCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 14, 2021GM Question, Player Question Comments

Kaleva’s Cuts

Kaleva’s Cuts hides a dark secret. Kaleva is a Braalite cultist and uses his butcher’s shop to dispose of his sacrifices’ remains. The shop backs onto a rowdy pub and the noise from its taproom masks any odd sounds coming from Kaleva’s workshop.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 14, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second Low City, Ten-Second LocaleComment

Dead Man’s Court

Dead Man’s Court huddles within a ring of lofty, dilapidated tenements. A covered passage cuts through each building to the shadow-filled, cobbled court. Corpses discovered here with shocking regularity spawn lurid rumours of ghosts, vampires and cultists.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 13, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second Low City, Ten-Second AlleyComment

Rusi Niera

Rusi Niera (N old male human) “worries” about the local whores and works tirelessly to save them from themselves. A wealthy merchant this clever letch professes deep religious beliefs, but is a hypocrite and bounder. Skinny and bald, Rusi dresses well.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 12, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second NPC, Ten-Second Low CityComment

To Cut a Long Story Short... Announcing Storylines!

GM's ResourceCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 11, 2021The Lonely Coast, Dungeon Backdrop, StorylineComment

Coppers

Coppers offers a vast array of wares. Disorganised, piled-high shelves fill the shop’s dingy interior, and everything costs less than a silver penny. Albin Panu (LE old male human) owns the place and has a reputation as a peerless skinflint.

Ten-SecondCreighton BroadhurstJanuary 11, 2021Ten-Second, Ten-Second Low City, Ten-Second LocaleComment

You Should Practise Foveated Campaign Design

May 25, 2026

Design Advice, GM's Resource, Campaign Design

You Should Practise Foveated Campaign Design

Having a detailed, believable setting laden with verisimilitude is the foundation of a successful campaign. That said, designing an entire world for your game is exhausting, impractical and unnecessary.

April 13, 2026

Design Advice, GM's Resource

Run Your Games in HD

When you watch a film, do you prefer watching it in Standard Definition or High Definition?

December 30, 2025

Finding the Time

I remember the Good Old Days when I had acres of free time to game. It was a carefree time. School holidays were epic—we’d game for days at a time. We had nothing else to do.

September 2, 2025

Dungeon Design Tips For Beginners

Designing a dungeon can be a daunting prospect. Fear not. If you follow these tips, you’ll be well on the way to designing a fun, engaging dungeon for your friends!

April 11, 2025

GM's Resource

GMs! Details Matter

To be a successful GM, your adventures and settings must connect deeply with your players.

November 5, 2024

Dressed vs. Undressed: An Example of Play

Raging Swan Press is a big fan of dressed dungeons. A dressed dungeon feels more real than an undressed dungeon. A dressed dungeon engages your players’ imaginations, promotes creative play and helps them immerse themselves in the adventure.

October 8, 2024

Dungeon Dressing Explained

Games set in a richly detailed, immersive world are better than games that are not. It should come as no surprise that we are huge fans of dungeon dressing, but what exactly is dungeon dressing, and why do we keep going on about it?

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