Tabletop games, RPGs, and miniature painting.https://wanderingreferee.com/en-ushttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/thud-and-the-bridge-of-former-glories-2026/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/thud-and-the-bridge-of-former-glories-2026/Tue, 28 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rewriting-versus-writing/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rewriting-versus-writing/Mon, 20 Apr 2026 17:11:17 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-experience/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-experience/What keeps drawing me back to RPGs is the experience they create with other people. They combine story, flexibility, and shared play in a way that board games never quite managed for me.Mon, 31 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-portal/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-portal/Sun, 30 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-ride/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-ride/I usually handwave long travel, but the ride itself can still be worth focusing on when it's fun enough. The dinosaur race in Tomb of Annihilation is a great example of travel that stands on its own.Sat, 29 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-close/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-close/Some of the best RPG moments come from close calls: fights barely won, clues found in time, or villains stopped at the last second. Those scenes are memorable, but it's just as fun to let players completely outplay a situation when they've earned it.Fri, 28 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-favor/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-favor/If you're looking for an adventure hook, somebody always needs a favor. A small request can turn into travel, danger, betrayal, or a larger obligation with very little effort.Thu, 27 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-strange/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-strange/I like fantasy that goes a little gonzo without tipping fully into horror. Mixing in aliens, lasers, dinosaurs, or other outlandish elements can make a dungeon feel strange in the best possible way.Wed, 26 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-lever/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-lever/Players can solve a surprising number of problems with simple tools if you give them space to think through the situation. A trapped barred door in my game turned into a good reminder to build problems that reward practical solutions like levers, ropes, and pulleys.Tue, 25 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-humor/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-humor/Humor is something I want at the table, even if the game isn't a comedy. It's worth talking about up front, and when it lands well it can make a session far more memorable.Mon, 24 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-edge/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-edge/Modern D&D and old-school D&D make a useful contrast because they put the edge in different places. In one, player characters usually have the advantage; in the other, they're constantly looking for any advantage they can get.Sun, 23 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-rare/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-rare/Game-changing magic items should feel rare, but that doesn't mean every magic item has to be dull. Strange items with unusual limits or side effects are usually more fun than another clean numerical upgrade.Sat, 22 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-push/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-push/The Year Zero Engine's push mechanic is one of my favorite rules because it makes failure a choice instead of a dead end. You can try again, but every version of the rule makes you pay for it in some way.Fri, 21 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-investigate/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-investigate/Investigation is hard to run because players will miss clues you think are obvious. That's why I keep coming back to the three clue rule and try to build in enough redundancy to keep the game moving.Thu, 20 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-tower/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-tower/Tower of the Black Pearl is exactly the kind of Dungeon Crawl Classics adventure I love: flavorful setup, dangerous treasure, and a built-in time limit that forces hard choices. A tower that sinks back into the sea is a great way to create pressure and turn the escape into the best part of the scenario.Wed, 19 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-meet/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-meet/Meeting in a tavern works just fine, but a campaign opening can do more than that. Bringing the party together in a battlefield, escape pod, or some other tense situation gives the game an immediate spark.Tue, 18 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-comfort/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-comfort/Most RPGs focus on danger, discovery, and struggle, but they still need moments of comfort. A little safety, relief, or breathing room gives players a chance to recover and makes the harder parts of a campaign hit better.Mon, 17 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-dramatic/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-dramatic/Drama at the table often comes from NPCs who feel vivid and obvious in what they want. If players can hear that in the way a character talks and acts, the scene has a much better chance of landing.Sun, 16 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-frame/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-frame/Large framed art makes for excellent loot because it's valuable, fragile, and awkward to move. Treasure like that forces players to think about transport, risk, and who they can actually sell it to.Sat, 15 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-banner/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-banner/I hadn't really thought about how a battle standard could work in an RPG, but it feels like a fun item with obvious uses and obvious drawbacks. Here's a quick take on a standard that helps morale, works as a makeshift weapon, and makes its bearer an immediate target.Fri, 14 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-rest/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-rest/Rest gets more interesting once you stop treating it as empty time and start asking what the rest of the world is doing. Random encounters, clues, and downtime costs can all make that pause matter.Thu, 13 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-message/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-message/I like messages that create tension, whether that's a private note about hidden information or an out-of-game message that keeps bookkeeping away from session time. Both kinds can make a campaign run better.Wed, 12 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-stack/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-stack/Initiative can be handled in all kinds of ways, and each one changes the feel of combat a little. I've been especially interested in systems like Troika's Stack that make turn order more uncertain and dynamic.Tue, 11 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-want/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-want/I keep wanting to find the one game that does everything I need, but that search keeps leading me to more books, more systems, and more decisions about what to keep. The whole cycle is really driven by wanting to have fun with the people I play with.Mon, 10 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-light/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-light/Light feels like an easy shorthand for goodness, hope, and people trying to set things right. Whether it's sunlight on the road or a torch in the dark, it works as both a literal and symbolic force in a game.Sun, 09 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-shade/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-shade/Shade makes me think of dungeons and the people who thrive in them. They're places of danger, treasure, hard choices, and the sort of hidden movement that lets thieves and assassins do their work.Sat, 08 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-couple/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-couple/I like the idea of being able to carry just a couple of books and a couple of supplies and be ready to run a game anywhere. In practice I keep chasing new systems and genres, so that simple ideal never quite wins.Fri, 07 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-forest/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-forest/A forest is a great first adventure site because it feels close to home while still leaving room for mystery. It can hold ruins, witches, bandits, or stranger things, and it still leaves the party with options once they're done.Thu, 06 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-tribute/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-tribute/A lot of the RPGs I enjoy are tributes to earlier games, especially Basic/Expert Dungeons & Dragons. What I keep coming back to is the focus on problem solving and finding ways around a fight instead of charging into it.Wed, 05 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-vision/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-vision/Tue, 04 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-thread/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-thread/Mon, 03 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-change/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-change/Sun, 02 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-beginning/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/rpgaday-beginning/Sat, 01 Aug 2020 15:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-stone-heir/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-stone-heir/Half of this DCC supplement shines — particularly the transitional funnel adventure and the clever Adventuring Ties system.Mon, 19 Nov 2018 19:15:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/doom-of-the-savage-kings/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/doom-of-the-savage-kings/A tight DCC adventure with a well-realized town, a paranoid atmosphere, and a boss monster that punishes players who charge in without thinking.Mon, 19 Nov 2018 19:10:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/spire/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/spire/A PbtA game about being an oppressed drow elf revolutionary in your conquered city — with mechanics built around sacrifice and consequence.Tue, 13 Nov 2018 22:45:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/blights-of-the-eastern-forest-rumor-table-and-loot/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/blights-of-the-eastern-forest-rumor-table-and-loot/Wed, 24 Oct 2018 21:45:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/sky-ov-crimson-flame/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/sky-ov-crimson-flame/A DCC RPG level 0 funnel and hex crawl in one slim book — my first foray into reading the RPG pile of shame.Wed, 24 Oct 2018 21:30:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/osr-guide-for-the-perplexed/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/osr-guide-for-the-perplexed/Tue, 16 Oct 2018 01:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/gen-con-2017/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/gen-con-2017/Four days, 28 miles of walking, too much money spent, and a lot of great games at Gen Con 50.Thu, 24 Aug 2017 23:40:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-after-the-auction/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-after-the-auction/Mon, 19 Sep 2016 15:43:14 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-birth-of-a-child/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-birth-of-a-child/Wed, 31 Aug 2016 01:57:52 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-wescon-summer-2016/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-wescon-summer-2016/Mon, 18 Jul 2016 15:48:09 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-summer-doldrums/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-summer-doldrums/Tue, 28 Jun 2016 04:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-stalled/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-stalled/Mon, 23 May 2016 21:48:18 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-open-worlds-and-dice/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-open-worlds-and-dice/Tue, 03 May 2016 02:20:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-dueling-caballeros/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-dueling-caballeros/Tue, 26 Apr 2016 15:15:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-online-only/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-online-only/Tue, 19 Apr 2016 16:02:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-istanbul-and-constantinople/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-istanbul-and-constantinople/Tue, 12 Apr 2016 02:12:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-the-as-have-it/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-the-as-have-it/Tue, 05 Apr 2016 18:55:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-back-to-cosmic/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-back-to-cosmic/Wed, 30 Mar 2016 00:39:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-two-player-game-day-edition/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-two-player-game-day-edition/Mon, 21 Mar 2016 01:52:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-quick-ones/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-quick-ones/Mon, 14 Mar 2016 20:43:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-ketchup/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-ketchup/Wed, 09 Mar 2016 15:39:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-light-edition/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-light-edition/Tue, 01 Mar 2016 21:48:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-money-meeples-mocked-art-and-managed-diseases/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-money-meeples-mocked-art-and-managed-diseases/Mon, 22 Feb 2016 20:00:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-rolling-dice-and-making-a-case/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-rolling-dice-and-making-a-case/Mon, 15 Feb 2016 21:16:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-foiled-again/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-foiled-again/Tue, 02 Feb 2016 18:22:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-group-of-ten-2015-edition/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-group-of-ten-2015-edition/Mon, 25 Jan 2016 02:58:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-a-new-year/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-a-new-year/Sat, 23 Jan 2016 18:03:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/best-games-of-the-year-2015/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/best-games-of-the-year-2015/Sun, 03 Jan 2016 18:32:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-year-end-sale/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-year-end-sale/Sat, 02 Jan 2016 00:14:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-creating-and-saving-the-world/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-creating-and-saving-the-world/Fri, 01 Jan 2016 18:04:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-building-an-empire/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-building-an-empire/Tue, 08 Dec 2015 20:02:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-dice-and-cubes/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-dice-and-cubes/Wed, 25 Nov 2015 20:07:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-build-em-up-and-tear-em-down/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-build-em-up-and-tear-em-down/Tue, 03 Nov 2015 01:49:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-woefully-behind-again/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-woefully-behind-again/Fri, 02 Oct 2015 00:44:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-the-summer-doldrums/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-the-summer-doldrums/Tue, 22 Sep 2015 18:30:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-with-a-bias-towards-dice/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-with-a-bias-towards-dice/Sun, 23 Aug 2015 14:26:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-rolling-dice-and-taking-actions/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-rolling-dice-and-taking-actions/Mon, 20 Jul 2015 01:19:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-woefully-behind/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-woefully-behind/Sun, 05 Jul 2015 01:04:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-two-kinds-of-war-a-job-application-and-crawling/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-two-kinds-of-war-a-job-application-and-crawling/Mon, 22 Jun 2015 21:02:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-asencion-in-space-and-civilization-building-by-razing/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-asencion-in-space-and-civilization-building-by-razing/Tue, 19 May 2015 19:25:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-rome-rome-and-a-victory-class-star-destroyer/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-rome-rome-and-a-victory-class-star-destroyer/Mon, 11 May 2015 13:28:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-the-41st-millenium-some-greek-isles-homicidal-wizards/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-the-41st-millenium-some-greek-isles-homicidal-wizards/Tue, 05 May 2015 16:39:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-a-10x10-challenge-sweep/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-a-10x10-challenge-sweep/Tue, 28 Apr 2015 02:08:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-nomadic-lifestyles-making-wine-building-castles-and-saving-the-world/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-nomadic-lifestyles-making-wine-building-castles-and-saving-the-world/Mon, 27 Apr 2015 19:36:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-back-in-the-swing-of-things/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-back-in-the-swing-of-things/Mon, 27 Apr 2015 18:40:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-bar-hopping/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-bar-hopping/Mon, 27 Apr 2015 18:40:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-playing-catch-up/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-playing-catch-up/Mon, 27 Apr 2015 17:42:00 GMThttps://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-aliens-trading-the-love-hut-and-more/https://wanderingreferee.com/posts/the-re-review-aliens-trading-the-love-hut-and-more/Sun, 19 Apr 2015 23:13:00 GMT