The Internet is full of Game Masters asking for advice on how to best counter the abilities and powers the player characters acquire in their games. And while I've given my share of advice on the subject (many of which are previous entries in this very series like getting rid of doors, actually triggering multiple encounters when warranted, terrain and cover, etc.), this week I'd like to remind Game Masters that if your players go through all the effort and struggle to acquire a big gun... well, you should at least let them knock down a couple of targets with it from time to time.
They're clustered in a 20-foot radius circle, you say...
As always, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.
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Set Encounters Up (So Your Players Can Knock Them Down)
Picture this scenario. You're running a campaign, and the evoker has finally survived to 5th level. They've just picked up fireball, and their trigger finger is itching to give it a go. As a Game Master do you, A) ensure there are never groups of enemies in close proximity to one another, thus making sure this spell meant for horde elimination is never used for what it was designed for, or B) do you conjure a scenario or two where your wizard gets to sling their new spell, and feel that it made a significant difference in the encounter?
A lot of Game Masters go for the first option because they don't want their players to feel too powerful, or like they're somehow winning in the arms race versus their enemies. But you should really opt for the latter for at least a few reasons.
And morale is just one of them.
First and foremost, letting players flex their new abilities and tools is good for the game. It keeps players invested and paying attention, and it lets them come to grips with how a spell or power is supposed to work. Additionally, by creating scenarios where players get to use their abilities, it keeps them participating in scenarios... and it often uses up their resources, which is the actual point of most encounters, and what creates challenge. Encounters are supposed to be gone through in a sequence, with each one being progressively harder as players use more and more of their daily allotment of abilities to survive.
Let us say, for example, that you are running a scenario where the party has to defend a tumbledown fortress from a massive hoard of the undead. There are waves of shambling zombies and skeletons, and then after their initial assault there are disease-spreading ghouls, and then at the end the commanding death knight takes the field. You can key different aspects of this encounter specifically to the abilities of your party so that everyone feels useful, and like they're getting moments to shine.
We lead with the evoker and their fireball, because it allows them to act as an artillery piece, firing from extremely long range and punching holes in the enemy's forward line. It's possible that, if the rolls are good enough, the wizard might destroy the walkers altogether. Then the ghouls start rushing in, and as they close it's the ranger's turn to use their new feat, rapid-firing their bow to try to bring the monsters down before they can reach the walls. And if the ghouls do manage to close, the monk has placed himself in the gap, preventing the ghouls from entering, the monk's recently acquired passive immunity to disease taking away the ghouls' most dangerous weapon. Then when the death knight takes the field, the paladin steps out to smite them, backed up by the rest of the party.
Now, this encounter could be shifted and changed to make every aspect of it even more frustrating for the players. A Game Master could choose to have the undead approach under cover of darkness or mist, making them difficult to target until they're at the gates. The field could be filled with trees or ruins, giving the approaching enemies ample cover, frustrating the party's ability to actually do anything to halt their progress. There could even be a secret way into the fortress, leading to undead coming out of tunnels inside the walls, leaving the party scrambling about whether to fight the monsters within, or the monsters without, first.
The damn things are everywhere!
It's easier to add difficulty to a scenario than it is to take it away, and it's important that your players feel challenged, without feeling overwhelmed. Most importantly, though, you don't want to punish them for trying to play the game. So when you're concocting an encounter (and the dungeons/adventures they make up), make sure that you're offering square pegs for square holes so that your players can accomplish the task in order to overcome the challenge, and move on to the next step. At the end of the day, you want them to be able to finish this. You want them to succeed, because if they fail then the campaign ends.
So whether the barbarian picked up the ability to attack in a whirlwind and hit every target around them, or the bard just grabbed the power to fascinate a crowd of people, or the rogue finally got the ability to add poisons to their attacks, facilitate them actually getting some mileage out of these abilities. They just got a new hammer, and you should let them drive some nails with it. It will, overall, make your game a great deal more fun for everyone involved.
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That's all for this week's Crunch post! To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!
To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Blue Sky, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!
It was last summer when I first announced that the Literary Mercenary's Patreon page, which is where folks support both Improved Initiative as well as my writing blog The Literary Mercenary, was going to transition from a per-item rate to a per-month rate for membership. Well, between then and now there were several delays and miscommunications, but the change finally went through.
Which is why, this month, I wanted to ask for help from all my regular readers and old patrons alike. Because there's already growing pains, and I'm hoping to get past them.
Seriously, folks... if you've been thinking about pledging, now is the time!
But before I get into the meat of today's post, remember, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.
Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!
What Led To This Change
I've been on Patreon for over 15 years now, and there are some folks who've been supporting me on there for the entire time my account has been active. And when I first signed up I chose the per-item payment option because that way I felt that my readers would get what they were paying for. If I didn't write a blog that month, well, they wouldn't have to pay for it. Not only that, but my Monday posts on this blog were always free-of-charge, because I wanted to make sure I didn't overcharge folks.
And, generally speaking, I was pretty happy with this setup. However, in the summer of 2025 there was some chicanery that rocked the boat.
We have altered the bargain. Pray it is not altered further.
As I understand it, Apple's payment platform was threatening to no longer support the per-item rates on Patreon. I don't know the full story behind that, but Patreon issued an announcement that as of Fall 2025 those who were using that payment structure would no longer be able to grow their audience. I thought it over for a week or so, and decided that I should make the change. So I sent an email, and asked to start migrating my account from a per-item payment structure to a monthly membership structure.
There was some miscommunication, though, and Patreon didn't actually put through my request at the time. Then the site went back on the warning, stating that per-item accounts were going to be allowed to go forward, and no changes would be made. The problem was that I'd already made my decision, and put some things in-place to try to make the jump. So during the Fall of 2025, once I noticed the transition hadn't taken place, I reached back out to Patreon support. This time a date was set for January 5th for the transition to go through.
So, new year, new account style, but the same old content on the same schedule everyone has come to expect!
Here's Where The Problem Comes In...
Ideally, this would have been a simple sidestep... but there's a bit of an issue with the migration. It's one I knew about, and tried to prepare for, but I can only do so much.
To really smooth out this rough road, I need the help of all the folks reading this. Because, in short, Patreon basically put everyone down in the $1 a month pledge and expects you all to up yourself to a new tier if that's what you intend to do.
Seriously, every pledge, post, and tip helps.
In terms of hard numbers, what this means is that I go from making between $180 - $220 a month (since some months had more paid blog installments than others) to making about $45 a month or so. That is a massive change in my personal finances, and it's not a hit I can just tank. That's "pay my utilities" money, and more than once it's been "cover the rent" money. I cannot overstate how important my Patreon patrons are to me, and to my ability to keep doing what I do.
That's why I wanted to ask all my current patrons to please check out my new Patreon, have a look at the tiers, and consider choosing something above the $1 a month level if you're able to. And if you're someone who isn't currently one of my patrons (or is a free patron) I'd appreciate any help you can give while I get my feet back under me after this change! And if you're someone who wants to help, but doesn't know if you can commit to the full Patreon sign up, feel free to leave me a tip by buying me a Ko-Fi... those little gifts go a long way, as well, I can tell you that as a fact.
However, if you don't have the spare dosh lying around, but you still want to help, then please consider doing the following (all of which cost you no money):
All of these things help, and honestly the more people that subscribe, read, watch, etc., the more likely it is I'll be able to beat the algorithm, and actually make some progress. Give how restrictive the algorithm as been of-late, though, it's been tough to even reach my actual subscribers... so if anyone reading this likes my work, and wants to see my blogs keep going forward, I'd appreciate any help you could give!
Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!
That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!
To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Blue Sky, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!
In the days of ancient Rome, the massive highway system allowed the empire to be traversed with relative ease when compared to rough overland travel where roads didn't exist. These highways also allowed for rapid deployment and movement of the Roman legions, which were the strong right hand of the empire. This also facilitated one of the empire's policies, which was to ensure that legionairres would never be deployed to the areas of the empire they were from. This helped ensure unit loyalty, but it also meant the legionairre would never be asked to stand on the other side of a shield wall against their friends and neighbors, thus helping to remove that conflict of interest from their service. One of the interesting effects of this strategy was that we had legionairres of African and Middle Eastern descent stationed in what would eventually be Great Britain.
While this is a relatively small historical factoid, it illustrates a much bigger point... that imperialism, commerce, and cultural exchange can have huge, wide-reaching effects on any world. And if you're going to be designing a fantastical setting, you should really keep things like this in mind.
Piracy, on a large enough scale, can also become a cultural force!
As always, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.
Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!
Lines on a Map Mean Almost Nothing
I talked about some of these ideas back in De-Coupling The Idea of Race and Nation several years ago, but I wanted to take an even bigger view of things this week. Because when we look at our worlds and settings we have this habit of coloring inside the lines of particular nations, and forgetting that these settlements, countries, and cities aren't completely isolated from one another. As long as there are wagon trains, merchant caravans, shipping lines, tourism, wars, and imperialism, there's going to be exchanges between different groups of people. Some of these exchanges will be good, and some will be bad, but they should always be present in your setting in order to make things feel organic and believable.
Our real world history is full of examples of these kinds of exchanges, good, bad, and otherwise. For example, consider that tomatoes are not native to Europe. Neither are potatoes, for those who are curious. Both of these were brought back by expeditions to the New World, and they were adapted into many European cuisines and dishes so that, after a few centuries, we couldn't picture Ireland without spuds, or Italy without tomatoes. This simple exchange, spurred by imperialism, led to a massive shift in culinary culture. Then when U.S. troops were deployed to Europe during the second World War, particularly those who were in and around Italy, they developed a taste for pizza. This led to a boom in demand for pizza that started in New York, and which less than a century later meant this was a food that was readily available not just across the country, but around the world in many cases.
It's all connected!
The effects of cultural exchange can happen rapidly, or they can happen over the long-term, and they can be caused by all kinds of different exchanges. For example, the American film industry exports all over the world, and so it is our narratives and stories that end up in so many other countries (for good or for ill). Before that, books written by British authors were often read by people throughout their area of influence, exporting their culture, language, and ideas. You can see remnants of this today in that British fashions, slang, and even customs are still practiced in places thousands of miles away from their tiny island even though the empire crumbled some time ago.
So when you make your fantasy world, and you're asking what sorts of things people are going to experience or run into, consider the following categories:
- Commerce: What goods get traded between cultures and nations? Who is most known for trading, and what reputation does that give them? What kinds of exchanges has this relationship led to, whether it be those who are used to seeing the dragon prows of northern sailing ships, or the tents of impromptu markets set up by traders from the distant plains, this can shape the experience, and which culture people tend to associate this experience with. Trade languages and so-called lingua franca often emerge from this kind of exchange, as well.
- Imperialism: When a nation establishes a colony, or occupies another country, one of the major strategies they use is establishing cultural norms (for good or for ill). Did opera and theater become more commonly available after an annexation, using the entertainment of the occupying force as a way to imprint their culture on those they hoped to rule? Did they force a particular religion to be practiced, while outlawing more traditional faiths and practices? Was military conscription more common, hoping to create loyalty and integration through service? Was a new language made mandatory either by law, or simply because it wasn't safe to be able to communicate with the empire? This can often decide what the "common" tongue is in an area, even if the empire that established it has fallen.
- Cultural Exchange: When people meet peacefully, and learn about each other, there is often some kind of cultural exchange taking place. Whether someone is a tourist, a traveler, or two nations have established a friendly relation and are encouraging the mingling of their subjects, this can often lead to a more widespread exchange of norms, ideas, etc. For instance, if tattooing is an art form with a long history in one culture, and enough outsiders and visitors participate, does that create a craze back home that leads to an expansion of that art form? Do certain fashions become trendy, whether it be for clothing, makeup, hairstyles, etc., thousands of miles away because they're seen as exotic and unique? Do students attending foreign universities bring back the knowledge they gained, disseminating it in their own country like planting a seed of foreign ideas that adds to their own culture and capabilities? Or does a natural disaster lead to an influx of refugees, who end up bringing their culture, ideas, language, etc., to their host nation, sharing a bit of themselves with their new home?
All of these issues are complex in a world without fantastical creatures and reality-altering magic... but when you can add in all those extra elements, you can end up with some truly interesting ripples in your world.
For example, do certain dwarven nations or guilds have particular methods of crafting enchanted items? What happens when human apprentices try to mimic those methods? Can they master them, or must they change and alter them, keeping the core of the methods, and imprinting many of these ideas into magical manufacture methods the same way certain architectural styles can shape the entire look of a city for centuries to come? Was slavery widespread enough that the trade led to entire ethnic groups (or even entire diaspora of a particular species) being displaced, and having to rebuild their culture from the ground up once they were freed? And has that experience, even if it was generations ago, left marks on the society that enslaved them, leaving them treated as second-class citizens, and facing unique struggles? Is there a particular job associated with a particular ethnicity, nationality, or species because they're the ones who have traditionally done it, with their unique styles and methods carving out a niche in a particular culture?
So consider whether traditional, elven cuisine is popular among the kingdom of Hartur, and ask why that is. Ask yourself why a particular language became the local common tongue, and whether it was through mass education, trade, imperialism, or for some other reason. Are there slang terms from a local dialect spoken by a particular orc clan or diaspora that have woven their way into common parlance, and if so, why? All of these questions can have interesting implications on the history of your world, why cultures exist the way they do, and it can make your setting feel that much more real... even if it does make it a lot messier.
And for those who are looking for some inspirations to add to your game (along with potential cultural implications) consider some of the following:
- 100 Fantasy Tattoos (And The Meaning Behind Them): Tattooing is not universal to every culture, but this art form tends to spread the more cultural interaction one has. And if you need inspirations, consider some of these tattoos, along with their histories and meanings.
- 100 Fantasy Foods: Whether you're looking for the kind of street food found in a dwarven hold, or asking what sort of cuisine is considered highbrow among elves, this supplement is full of ideas for you!
- 100 Superstitions For A Fantasy Setting: What becomes a superstition can often say a lot about a culture, and how its prejudices and stereotypes form. So consider some of these to plant as seeds in your world!
Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!
That's all for this week's Fluff post. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!
To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!
The Christmas in July sale at Drive Thru RPG is basically over, and for a lot of creators that means we're going back to the drawing board to work on the next wave of TTRPG projects and products for all you gamers out there. However, while I'm currently hard at work on the next round of my own nonsense, I wanted to take this Monday's post to shine a light on some of my older supplements that haven't gotten a lot of love, but which I think are still worth your time to check out.
And if enough eager readers pick up copies of them, it would help me convince my publisher(s) to circle back and perhaps pen a few more pieces in these unfinished/discontinued lines and abandoned product formats.
Let's take a look in the vault, shall we?
Before we get into the nitty gritty this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.
Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!
100 Creature Supplement Series
I've got a soft spot for this one...
Regular readers know that a majority of my bestselling supplements have all been in the 100 X format or the 10 X format... but one series of these that may have slipped under your radar was what I was thinking of as my 100 Creatures series. Unfortunately I really only managed to put together 100 Unusual Aasimar and 100 Tieflings to Meet in Your Travels before I put this one up on a shelf for seriously underperforming.
While I tried to go in a different direction with 13 Fiends: A Backer's Dozen of Devils, all three of these supplements were really slow movers, and at time of writing none of them have gone very far past Copper metal status.
My original plan for this series was to do one entry for all of the core species for most fantasy games, and then to move on to the more unusual/monstrous creatures that you may still encounter so that GMs would have a slew of NPCs to hand, and players could use the lists as inspiration for their own characters, or to fill out parts of their backstories. At the time there didn't seem to be that much support for it... but maybe that's changed now, eh?
Adventure Modules
A tough product to create, but even tougher to sell.
One of the most commonly requested products from readers is adventure modules. However, writing these things is one of the more intensive, difficult tasks you could ask a creator to do, as they take the skill to tell a short story, along with the challenge of balancing encounters, and attempting to predict what an average group of players will do, giving the Game Master tips and advice on how to handle a variety of story paths without sprawling out into a massive tome.
And even if you manage to do all of that, adventure modules are, statistically, the products that are the hardest to sell. Yes there are exceptions to this statement, but attempting to move copies of this kind of product is basically playing the marketing game on hard mode.
The first series of adventure modules I wrote, called the Critical Hits, was a series of 3 adventures I put together 5 years ago. It consisted of:
- False Valor: A murder mystery where players have to solve a wrongful death, and perhaps kick some fantasy Proud Boys in the face!
- The Curse of Sapphire Lake: The bastard child of Beowulf and Friday the 13th, an awful specter is haunting the settlement of Kingsbridge... can the PCs figure out what is happening, and stop it, before anyone else dies?
- The Ghosts of Sorrow Marsh: Something strange is happening around the town of Bracken. Bizarre sights lurk just off the high road, waiting for darkness to lurch out of the marshes. The town is being strangled... but who will put these haunts to rest?
Since these modules were released, the first two have only managed to go Copper, and the last one hasn't even reached that level. I haven't been shy about sharing them (particularly around Friday the 13th for all the horror fans who also enjoy TTRPGs), but aside from a few players who really loved them, most folks seem pretty indifferent.
The same could be said of the other two adventure modules I've written. Dreadful Tales was a series of 3 modules for the Victorian Gothic TTRPG, and my contribution was a module that was a nod to both Arthur Conan Doyle and Robert Louis Stevenson. The most recent module I wrote was the above-pictured The Price of Iron, a bizarre little adventure featuring dark fae, rips in reality, lies, betrayal, and horror that can really test your players. But, like all the others, it's really had a hell of a time getting traction.
So if you're one of the folks out there who'd like to see me write more modules, please consider grabbing a couple of these. And if you're one of those rare readers who's already gotten your copies, make sure you leave a rating, a review, and share them on your social media for other folks to see!
Fiction
It comes in a lot of shapes and sizes.
Another request I've gotten a lot over the years is people who want me to expand into game tie-in fiction, particularly for my Sundara: Dawn of a New Age TTRPG setting. This is something I'd really like to do, actually, as I got into game writing via writing the short story The Irregulars for Paizo back in my early days. However, neither that story, nor the anthology Tales From The Moot have been particularly popular when it comes to sales.
Now, there could be a lot of reasons for that. Maybe it's the format, maybe it's the setting, maybe it's the length, but I would actually really like to write more fiction than I do these days... the only problem is actually finding an audience of folks out there who want to read it.
I may have a loophole, though... especially if you're the sort of person who enjoys audio drama content.
As some readers know, I've been including fiction in my TTRPG supplements for years, and for about a year and a half I've been making these little audio dramas for them over on the Azukail Games YouTube channel. I've also been slowly linking these little vignettes together into several different series, weaving narratives between my supplements which then become things my listeners can follow for free.
So even if you're not the sort of person who would necessarily buy copies of short stories (or even novels) of tie-in fiction, but this is something you'd enjoy, please subscribe to the channel, watch the videos, and share them around so we can get more views! Because as I said recently in "Windy City Shadows," A Chronicles of Darkness Podcast Proposal, if we can get that channel monetized it will give me the leeway to start making bigger, bolder, interconnected narratives that listeners can really sink their teeth into.
We have all the followers we need (though more are always appreciated)... the issue is we're falling short on how many hours of watched content it takes. We need to cross 3k hours in the past year, and when last I checked we'd barely cleared 1k hours. So check out the audio drama playlist, share some videos with your friends, and help us clear this hurdle if this is a project you'd like to see more of!
Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!
That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!
To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!
Over the years various people have asked me why I only make content for existing games instead of making my own game. Well, about 5 years ago I started doing that very thing. Though there have been some ups and downs, today marks the final straightaway of this particular journey, because my TTRPG Army Men: A Game of Tactical Plastic is currently live on Kickstarter!
While I'm trying to spread the word to help it get funded, I also wanted to give my readers a peek behind the scenes to see how the sausage is made, and to talk about the journey that led to this place a little bit. And, of course, to talk about the aspects of the game I think folks will enjoy, should they choose to help make it a reality!
Art by Anonymous Katsudon, found in the Army Men book!
Before we get into the nitty gritty this week, don't forget to sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron!
Lastly, to be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!
What Is Army Men?
Army Men: A Game of Tactical Plastic is an RPG where you take on the roles of soldiers within the Plastos Federation. You choose your resin (green, gray, blue, red, or tan), your cast (medic, grunt, ordinance, tactician, or scout), customize your backgrounds and abilities, and then you are all formed into a squad sent off into the field. Whether you're exploring the wilderness and seeking deposits of much-needed resources for your home nations, you've been sent to reinforce a battle line, or you're on patrol to deal with the threat of the Vespoids (colossal, insectoid creatures that have put the Federation into a state of constant, military readiness), there's no shortage of threats for your squad to contend with!
Or, put another way, you're all living plastic people in a living plastic world, just trying to survive against the various threats that come knocking on your doorstep.
And to get out in front of several of the questions folks have asked, this is not a Toy Story style situation. The resinous peoples in the game are all human-sized, and the world they live in is written from the perspective of these characters. However, there is definitely a streak of the absurd running through the game that I feel makes it similar to Pugmire in its tone. This gives you a lot of flexibility, allowing you to do big, silly, bombastic stories that just feel like toys fighting each other (and which could just be the story a bunch of kids are making up around their games of plastic, backyard warfare), but you can also run tense survival-horror scenarios, stories about the scars of war, or anything else that your table can think of!
What About The Mechanics?
Army Men's engine uses the parts of Dungeons and Dragons that went into the Creative Commons recently, with a lot of tweaks and changes to help make it into a more tactical game. For example, there are additional options one can take during combat regarding cover, laying down distracting fire, and even shaking their comrades out of shock and fear so they can keep fighting. There's also 5 resins to choose from for your character, 5 casts (classes), along with 3 separate paths for each cast. There's also a bunch of fresh backgrounds, as well as the Exploits System, which replaces feats, but gives everyone a wider choice of abilities, and characters gain 1 exploit every odd-numbered level regardless of which casts they're choosing.
But wait, there's more!
Not everything in Army Men is about added complexity, though. In fact, there are a lot of mechanics in it that have been streamlined, simplified, or outright chucked out the window so that GMs and players don't have to deal with them anymore.
As a for-instance, this game has no XP; players simply level up after completing a certain number of missions. There's also no treasure to balance for the GM, because characters are all members of the armed forces; you requisition your equipment before you're sent into the field. That means you have the ability to give them as much (or as little) as you want to directly affect the challenge of the mission. There's also simplified rules for ammunition tracking, including the Hollywood Guns feature for folks who want to run a game that feels more like The Expendables or one of the later Rambo films.
Is There More Coming?
The Kickstarter for this game is set at $6k, but we do have some fun stretch goals in place. As Josh Heath said on the Dads With Nerdy Ambitions podcast (Steve Plays With Army Men is the episode), at $10k we're going to offer a d20 set of dice in the traditional, army green with gold numbers to ensure you've got your standard-issue polyhedrals by your side. And if that wasn't enough, at $15k the stretch goals will include an option for an ammo can to keep your materials in so that you're ready to rock whenever it's time to go on your next mission.
But what's coming down the pipe?
While the core rulebook for Army Men gives you everything you need to play the game, including a starting mission module, my hope is that this is merely the first step into a much larger world. I currently have ideas for a lot of extra content, ranging from missions Game Masters can run their players through, additional antagonists for the setting, expanded weapons, gear, and even advancing the meta story beyond the initial Vespoid conflict.
However, a lot of that is going to depend on you, the folks reading this right now.
The game is an all-or-nothing Kickstarter, meaning we need to at least hit the initial goal to make it happen. However, the more funding it generates, the bigger a message it sends to High Level Games that this is a good investment, and the more time it will buy me to put out additional content going forward.
The initial game took me roughly 2 years to write all the content for, because I had to squeeze it in between all the other TTRPG projects that were actually paying my bills. But if I could dedicate a lot of time and energy to expanding the setting, and adding new elements, folks would see follow-up projects coming to market a great deal more quickly. And, of course, if we had a bigger budget that would mean we could reach out to other creators, and put teams to work on future installments rather than keeping things small and controlled as we did with this initial game.
So, if you made it this far and Army Men sounds like a game you'd love to play, go back the Kickstarter today! Additionally, consider sharing the campaign on your social media pages, in your groups, or just telling your table about us... any and all help is greatly appreciated!
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That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!
To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!
Even though I've been playing RPGs for half my life, and designing content for them for going on 8 years now, I still make fun little discoveries that give me light bulb moments. This week I wanted to share one that I came across on Reddit a week or so ago that's just been sloshing around in my brain, picking up speed with every lap in the pool.
That term is Opportunity Cost, and for me it helps immensely when it comes to explaining choices and resource expenditure when it comes to TTRPGs.
Because you can't do all the things when it comes to your game.
Before we get into the nitty gritty this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron!
Lastly, to be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!
It All Comes Out of The Same Budget
There was an article I read forever and a day ago that talked about the choices we make in our lives. There are only 24 hours in the day, after all, and you have to choose what you're going to do with them. And if you want to make positive changes then you are probably going to have to sacrifice something along the way... which is one reason so many of us have such a hard time making the changes we want.
For instance, let's say you want to start a workout routine. That's at least an hour or so of your day that has to come from somewhere... so what's getting replaced? Are you going to play fewer video games? Cut down your TV watching? Sometimes it might be possible to modify your choices, such as convincing a friend to come workout with you so you still get to do an activity together, but generally speaking you're going to have to pay the cost in time and energy out of your finite supply in order to get the results you want.
Or, put another way, when you make one choice, you lose the ability to pursue other choices because you've already spent that allotted time, energy, etc.
And what does this have to do with gaming?
When it comes to TTRPGs, every player is faced with the same choices, and the same pool of resources. The decisions they make, and the abilities their characters acquire, come with an opportunity cost.
For example, say you want the spellcasting abilities of a wizard. Cool, you have chosen to play a wizard. But you now have wizard hit points, weapon proficiencies, skill points, etc. You might wish you had the fighter's proficiencies, or the cleric's spell list, or the rogue's skills, but you don't. You made your choice, and by making that choice you are locked in to what you picked. You may have more opportunities down the line, but right now you made your choice, and you are stuck with it until you get the chance to make another.
Every player should have the same opportunities and resources as every other. However, any time you find yourself feeling like someone else's character is more powerful, more effective, or is just overall doing better, it's important to ask what opportunity cost they paid... because they did pay one.
The barbarian is a beast in close combat, dealing out massive damage in melee. That's fair... but they can't cast spells. The fighter is able to stack their armor class so high they're practically untouchable... but do they have more than 1 or 2 skills? The sorcerer can cast spontaneously, but they have all the weaknesses of the wizard without access to a wider selection of spells. The bard can do a little bit of everything, but they're often not as effective as someone focused on a particular task.
And so on, and so forth.
It's All About Where You Spend Your Points
Different games have different structures. Some are level based, and some allow you to buy new abilities by spending XP as you go. Some are based more on your equipment, making what you're wielding even more important than who your character is underneath it all. But this concept translates to every game, regardless of its specifics.
You can choose between the sword that does more damage, or the sword that heals you, but you can't afford both. You have enough XP to increase your Strength or your Presence, but not both. You leveled up, but you may not be able to take levels of certain classes because of how you arranged your character's attributes, or because some classes are mutually exclusive.
No matter the situation, there is always an opportunity cost when it comes to what you choose to add to your character.
Everything has its cost.
This term is particularly important when it comes to asking how many resources it takes for your character to be able to accomplish the things you want out of them. Because all of you sitting at the table have the same choices... but once you've locked in those choices, you usually can't go back and change them. You chose to walk through door number three, and by doing so you now can't go back and open the first and second door, as well.
Recommended Reading
If you enjoyed this week's topic, and you'd like to check out some more articles by yours truly, consider checking out the following!
- Players, Don't Overcomplicate Solutions To In-Game Problems: All too often we end up creating huge Rube Goldberg devices for solving out problems in-game, sometimes it's important to step back and make sure we actually know what goal we're trying to reach, and that we're focusing on reaching it.
- The Power of Martial Characters: So often we focus on the raw power of magic users, stating that martial characters just fall by the wayside halfway through the game. But is that really true? Consider, instead, this perspective.
- An Exploration of "Reverse Stereotype" Characters in RPGs: So often we look at the stereotype of a given character archetype or class, and we immediately try to flip it to become a photo negative... but does this just create a new stereotype, rather than an interesting, unique character?
Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!
That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!
To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!
Anyone that's sat in the big chair as a Game Master has likely heard the advice that you should work with your players to create a cooperative environment whenever possible. Nothing spikes the game harder than the GM keeping a white-knuckled grip on the reins, and taking away the independence and creative autonomy of the rest of the table.
We already know that the higher-ups at Wizards of The Coast who've been largely responsible for the current crisis don't play the game. Because if they did, then they would know that the harder you try to control the players, the more problems you make for yourself.
What do you mean they'll just make their own games?
Before we get into the nitty gritty this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron!
Lastly, to be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!
Capital Doesn't Create (It Simply Tries To Control)
I know we're all sick of this OGL talk, so I want to draw everyone's attention to something that a different gaming company did in the recent past. A year or two back there was a big kerfuffle with Games Workshop, a company that's rather notorious for having a contentious relationship with its own community. They were leaning hard on fan creators who made video content, they were sending out rather angry messages to third-party mini makers and 3D printing folks, and generally being even more snappish than usual.
Why were they doing this?
First and foremost, GW was trying to clamp down on control of the minis market regarding its IP. It was getting a lot stricter about requiring players to buy official products for participation in events, but more than that it wanted to try to build walls to keep 3D printing away from anything that might look vaguely like a space marine, tyranid, or tau. Secondly, though, the company had plans to build its own streaming service, Warhammer+, where it was going to put out multimedia content to those willing to pay a monthly fee.
Short answer, they wanted to make sure there wasn't competition who was doing it better than they were.
Now, if we were to Monday-morning-quarterback this whole thing, we can see that this approach was a massive mistake. Games Workshop coming out swinging, particularly against smaller companies and fan creators, made them look like a bully who was trying to crush other people's livelihoods, steal content that took a lot of work to make, and generally just take things away from fans. This left a particularly bad taste in the community's mouth, and it's a big reason why so few people signed up for Warhammer+ when it was announced, and it led to a lot of fans out and out abandoning Warhammer 40K as a game, moving over to games like Mechwarrior instead.
So what could they have done differently?
Well, if you have fan creators who are putting in long hours of work to make passion projects, and they have hundreds of thousands of followers on YouTube, that shows there's a thriving community with a big interest in your IP. Each one of those people represents a doorway into your hobby, and a way to expand your community. So rather than kicking in their front door and demanding they kiss the ring, a smarter move would have been to offer them some kind of sponsorship deal. Get them to help move figures, get eyes on upcoming games, or recruit them to make content for the company without the underlying threat that if they don't say yes you'll force them to remove their channel from YouTube. Be magnanimous, and show the community that you support them, and you want them to keep talking about how much they love your products.
But what about those 3PP minis producers? Surely they need to go, don't they?
Let's get one thing straight here; Games Workshop only produces miniatures for a small fraction of the forces and factions that exist in the grim darkness of the far future. There are hundreds of space marine chapters, thousands of imperial guard regiments, dozens of orders of the adeptus sororitas, and that's just the human faction. You throw in the diversity for the eldar, the orks, the tau, the tyranids, chaos, and more, and it would be impossible for GW to ever make full runs of minis for every option someone might want to play without losing a massive amount of money. As a company they need to move minis in bulk in order to justify the cost of doing a particular run, which is why they tend to focus on the units with the broadest possible appeal.
Those other companies, though, could create stuff for the parts of the game that GW isn't going to run. Whether it's offering unique head sculpts for space marines, or making unique armor additions, or putting out weapon modifications, bases, or insignia, they have the flexibility that a bigger company doesn't. This goes double if they're selling digital STL files for users to print out at home for their own use. Games Workshop could have approached these companies in good faith, and worked out a deal so that they could produce more obscure sets of minis and parts as they wished, provided they gave GW a small cut of the proceeds. They could even have sweetened the pot by allowing content from official partners to be used in tournaments and events. These other companies get more customers, the community gets more diverse, and GW makes more money overall.
That wasn't the approach they took, however. Instead they simply tried to clamp down on control, bullying and intimidating people not on their payroll. At the end of the day this burned bridges, alienated a lot of known talent in the community, and drove off a lot of people who were active participants up to that point. And, last time I checked, Warhammer+ has been plugged in to a golden throne and has to be fed a dozen GW employees every day just to keep it breathing.
Parallels to The OGL
For those who saw the parallels, you know where this is going. In case you don't, though, let me go through the details.
Prepare your symbols of disapproval!
We have to go back 23 years ago to the creation of the Open Game License. The short version is that, though you cannot copyright game mechanics any more than you can copyright math, you can get contentious with the language used to describe those mechanics. So the OGL was proposed by Wizards of the Coast as a kind of peace treaty between themselves and third party publishers. It was meant to be a perpetual agreement that said while their intellectual property was not open to all (unique creatures they'd made, settings for their games, etc.) that anyone who wished to use this license could use both the mechanics and the language to describe those mechanics without fear of reprisal.
This agreement is what made Dungeons and Dragons' d20 system the most popular basis for dozens of RPGs out there. It wasn't the only option, obviously, but DND became the lingua franca of gaming. Because Dungeons and Dragons was already a popular game, so making your own supplements, settings, etc., that didn't require players to learn a whole new language just to try your product out made for an easier transition, and it netted smaller publishers more fans, and more sales. Not only that, but this allowed publishers to make smaller, niche books and products that Wizards simply wouldn't print because they wouldn't sell enough copies, or they were considered too risky.
And what did Wizards get out of this? Well, folks who wanted to try those other games usually bought the base books from Wizards of The Coast. It allowed Wizards to act as the kind of first-among-equals when it came to DND, and it ensured that a lot of the gaming world thought of them as the default game. So while there were always going to be people who preferred the World of Darkness, or Call of Cthulhu, or Warhammer 40K, DND was something a majority of gamers were going to at least be familiar with. As an RPG creator myself, I can say that up until the end of last year if I wanted to write a module, supplement, etc., for a fantasy RPG, it needed to have a 5E port for the simple reason that if it didn't it simply wouldn't sell.
Some estimates claimed that, for online play, DND 5E was about 85% or so of the market. I can't speak to the accuracy of that number, but I would be surprised if it was too far off.
Seriously, it was the DEFAULT fantasy game until three weeks ago.
As you can see, Wizards of The Coast was in a similar position to Games Workshop. They were a huge brand, their games had a really active fan base, and they were poised to grow even bigger in the near future. And while both companies had dips in profits just before this move, let us be clear, they were not going bankrupt. They were both still hugely profitable companies.
But like Games Workshop, Wizards thought the best way forward was to put up paywalls, and to cut off as much of their competition at the knees as possible. What they didn't realize, though, is that their "competition" was basically creating the rich ecosystem they needed to make money, and remain king of the heap. Because without all those third party publishers putting out fresh adventures, and new subclasses, or unique species guides, Wizards simply wasn't producing enough books, figures, and accessories to keep itself afloat.
And then there's this digital product it's apparently shoveling money into... something that didn't work when Games Workshop did it either.
DND Shorts broke it down above, but it's looking like what the folks in charge of DND were planning was to create a proprietary virtual tabletop that would act as their primary money maker. People would pay a subscription fee to use it, there would be microtransactions for everything from outfits for your mini to effects from your spells, and it would finally be the answer to how you could get money out of everyone at the table, not just the Game Master who was the one that bought the majority of the rule books, campaign guides, etc. in the past.
The result of all of this, of course, has been a massive backlash straight to Wizards' knees. Players have cancelled their DND Beyond subscriptions en masse, and there is a large boycott of Wizards products. Companies that were using DND as the default rules system for all their products have cut ties completely, and won't be going back. YouTubers, digital play platforms, everyone it seems is abandoning Wizards.
Because they tried to force their community to do something, rather than innovating and providing them something of value.
Second Verse, Same as The First
This might be a controversial opinion, but I think that all of the stuff Wizards has talked about is stuff that, in another context, we really would have been super excited about. Expanded digital tools for making our games better? More options using digital tabletops? The ability to run through modules with a robot GM? I'm sure that a lot of us would have at least signed up for a free trial of that kind of program, if it was presented to us as a cool new option for playing the game.
That's the key, here. Option. Freedom. Choice.
The attitude from Wizards of The Coast has been to take away as many options for their players as possible, while attempting to ram through their own decision. It is, in a lot of ways, attempting to turn Dungeons and Dragons, a game based on imagination and innovation, into just another mobile game filled with microtransactions that reliably earns a profit for the company who holds the rights to it.
It's not working out too well so far.
And I think this could have been done in a way that was beneficial to the community rather than turning it into the firestorm we're seeing now. Wizards could have partnered with popular virtual tabletops to ensure they had multiple digital storefronts to sell to the widest range of players possible. They could have cultivated connections with more live play YouTube channels, and opened the doors for those who wanted to focus more on digital content by giving them a suite of publisher's tools, and taking a cut of what was made just like with DM's Guild. Most importantly, though, they could have left the OGL alone so that even if they didn't want to focus on making print books anymore, other companies who wanted to fill that niche would keep their brand on top by filling that need.
But instead of building bridges and cooperating, polishing up their reputation and growing the community (and thus increasing the number of people who might buy their product) they opted to try to burn down everything they deemed too close to their borders. They chose to share nothing, and to alienate everyone... which is why they'll likely end up ruling over a kingdom of ashes.
So, as a reminder, we cannot let up the pressure if we want Wizards of The Coast (or the next big-shot games company who thinks they can get involved in a land war in Asia) to learn a lesson. Keep supporting third-party companies, and if you have a subscription service to anything Hasbro does, cancel it. Because while they appear to be trying to mollify the fan base, they seem set on forcing through as many poison pills as we'll let them.
For Folks Who Want To Help Me Get Through This
If you made it all the way through this post, and you want to help me haul myself up a rung or two so I can get off this sinking ship and to a safer harbor, here's a handy list of the places you can go where your efforts would be much appreciated!
Lastly, consider checking out my Sundara: Dawn of a New Age setting. The more sales I can eke out before decisions come down on this OGL situation, the more likely it is my publisher will work with me to convert it to a new rules setting instead of just writing it off as a loss going forward.
Cities of Sundara
The setting first began with the Cities of Sundara splats. Self-contained guides to some of the larger and more powerful centers of trade, industry, arms, and magic, these unique locations provide plenty of fodder for character generation and plots. Not only that, but each one comes with unique, mechanical goodies for players and GMs alike to take out for a spin!
- Ironfire: The City of Steel (Pathfinder and DND 5E): Built around the Dragon Forge, Ironfire is where the secret to dragon steel was first cracked. The center of the mercenary trade in the region, as well as boasting some of the finest schools for teaching practical sciences, Ironfire is a place where discovery and danger walk hand in hand!
- Moüd: The City of Bones (Pathfinder and DND 5E): An ancient center of trade and magic, Moüd was lost to a cataclysm, and then buried in myth. Reclaimed by the necromantic arts of the Silver Wraiths guild, this city has once again become a place teeming with life. Despite the burgeoning population, though, it is the continued presence of the undead that helps keep the city running, ensuring that Moüd is not swallowed up once more.
- Silkgift: The City of Sails (Pathfinder and DND 5E): Built on the cottage industry of Archer cloth (an extremely durable material used for sails, windmills, etc.), Silkgift is a place that prizes invention and discovery. From gravity batteries that store the potential of the wind, to unique irrigation systems, to aether weapons, the city positively churns out discoveries... and then there's the canal they cut through the mountains that makes them a major center of trade across the region.
- Hoardreach: The City of Wyrms (Pathfinder and DND 5E): A center of power across an entire region, Hoardreach is ruled over by a Cooperation of five different dragons. A place for refugees and outcasts of all sorts, Hoardreach boasts some of the most unusual citizens and creations from across Sundara. Infamous for their sky ships, which require the cast-off scales and unique arcane sciences of the Dragon Works to take to the air, one never knows just what they'll find in this city built atop a mountain.
- Archbliss: The City of The Sorcerers (Pathfinder and DND 5E): A floating city in the sky, Archbliss has been a refuge for sorcerers for thousands of years. It's only in relatively recent years that the city has allowed those from the ground below who lack the power of a bloodline to join them in the clouds. However, while there are certainly amazing wonders to behold, there is a darkness in Archbliss. Something rotting away at its heart that could, if not healed, bring the city crashing to the ground once more.
Gods of Sundara
- Gods of Sundara (available for Pathfinder and DND 5E): In a world with no alignment, and where the gods are often genuinely mysterious forces that are far too large for mortals to truly comprehend, the divine feels genuinely strange and unknown... something that really does have to be taken on faith. This supplement provides a sample pantheon for Sundara, but also provides instructions on how to easily make your own gods in a world where you can't cast a spell and tell whether someone is good or evil.
Species of Sundara
Sundara is filled with creatures that many of us recognize, but I wanted to give greater depth to their cultures, and a wider variety of options. After all, humans always get 15+ ethnicities, languages, and unique histories, while elves, dwarves, orcs, halflings, etc. are almost always left with footnotes, or maybe with a handful of offshoots. So, in short, I wanted to give all the fantastical creatures the treatment that humans usually get in our games.
And there is no human book yet. If readers demand to know more, then I may sit down to pen one... but I figured that humans didn't need to be front-and-center in this setting just yet.
- Elves of Sundara (Pathfinder and DND 5E): Elves are one of the most quintessential fantasy creatures... but if you want to see more than just high elves, wood elves, and elves of the sun and moon, then this supplement has you covered!
- Dwarves of Sundara (Pathfinder and DND 5E): The children of the primordial giants who were meant to fill in the details of the world they'd made (or so the myths say) there are as many kinds of dwarves as their are kinds of giants... and possibly more, depending on who is keeping count.
- Orcs of Sundara (Pathfinder and DND 5E): Supposedly a creation of the elves, none can say for certain exactly how or why orcs have been made. What most agree on is that these creatures are far more than most may think at first glance.
- Halflings of Sundara (Pathfinder and DND 5E): Little cousins to the dwarves, halflings are tough, clever, and not to be underestimated. From living beneath the hills, to taking up residence in the deep forests, halflings in Sundara come in quite a variety!
- The Blooded (Half-Elves and Half-Orcs) [Pathfinder and DND 5E]: When orcs and elves mix their bloodlines with other creatures, the result is one of the Blooded. This inheritance takes many forms, and it can even wait generations before manifesting when the right combination of individuals come together to have a child.
- Gnomes of Sundara (Pathfinder and DND 5E): Gnomes are strange creatures, found in places where the spirit of the land has coalesced and made children of its own. The sons and daughters of the ancient nymphs, they are the stewards of these places, and they change as often as the weather and the land.
Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!
That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!
To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!
