GM Prep Tip: Handling Magic Items

I used to run a rather magic-heavy RPG, both at my home table and tournaments at conventions. One thing that really seemed to gum up the works was how we handled the loot, especially potential magic items. With a lot of players and/or loot, keeping track of which items were identified, either as being magical or fully identified, was a bit of a pain.

One thing that took a little more up-front effort, but paid HUGE dividends later, was the creation of item cards for an adventure. I'd start off with a stack of colored index cards and regular white cards. I see no reason why you could also just use "plain" white index cards and some colored highlighters.

Every potential magic item (quality weapons, armor, jewelry, etc.) got a white card. On the card I

wrote the common name of the item and a unique alpha-numeric identifier to show where the item came from. It didn't really matter what it was as long as I could look up the item if needed. A simple format and/or a key in my GM's book helped in this regard.

If the item was magical it got another index card, but this one was a different color. All items identified only as having magical properties used the same color. Another color was used for magical items that had actually been fully identified.

The cool part about this three-color coded system was that it was easy to find out who had what. The player holding the card obviously had their PC lugging it along. If the card went missing then that item was lost. When the players started identifying things I'd just have to swap out cards and it made players divvying up the adventure's spoils more of a physical event than it usually was. Many games have Identify Magic work such that not all of the properties of an item are identified. With the cards I could just write down the identified properties as we went along.

Free GM Resource: & Magazine

This week's Free GM Resource is a great little magazine dedicated to "filling the gaps" for old school gamers.

& Magazine is a little gem that had completely flown under my radar until recently, which is good only for the simple fact that there is a lot of catch-up for me to do now. They are up to issue #5 and there are also a couple of supplements and adventures as well.

Really not bad at all figuring this magazine started a year ago.

I'll freely admit I'm still only on my first issue, but that is because I just got this and because I'm actually wanting to read through the issues instead of skimming them. Aside from some production values (ie, not a lot of art), this magazine reminds me of the early Dragon magazines. There were two titles/subtitles that really drew me in on my initial skim which is why I'm now actually reading the magazine:
          85 Points for the Mathematically Challenged
          You Can't Fix Stupid

When I saw these two titles/subtitles I knew I was going to enjoy reading this and I haven't been disappointed yet. I've already found several things I'd like to use in my game and I think a GM would be hard-pressed to walk away from an issue empty-handed.

You should check out & Magazine today.

Another Free Map Product Available on DriveThruRPG

A month or two ago I read an open request for a map overlay. A GM I knew wanted to be able to put labeled hex grids over one of his maps.

I spent an hour or two putting something together, but that wasn't what the GM wanted. He wanted a computer program or app that would just automatically put overlays on his maps.

What I came up with was a huge 60" square PNG overlay labeled from A1 through to BY68. Just because he didn't want it I figured that maybe someone else would. The original one was black on a transparent background and I made an inverted copy of white on a transparent background.

If this is something you might find useful, go ahead and give it a download. The price should be a bit on the favorable side......

Frugal GM Review: The Ruined Hamlet by Barrataria Games

This review is for the Barrataria Games free version of their Adventure Module BL1-2, downloadable from DriveThruRPG. This adventure is designed for use of "classic" fantasy roleplaying games of the basic level.

This adventure, The Ruined Hamlet: Terror in the Gloaming, is one of two offerings from this fledgling publisher. Barrataria Games does not have a website yet, but they do have this adventure, as well as two other offerings, available for printing at their Lulu webstore.

I had two immediate impressions, one bad and the other good. The overall look of this "adventure" was a little off-putting because it is rather plain and visually sparse. The main font used is Soutane Black, which does have more of an "old-school" feel to it, but I find it difficult to read. The file goes 49 pages before anything more interesting than some boxed text appears. Fortunately, this first negative impression is the absolute worst thing I can say about the "adventure". I'm using quotes around "adventure" because of my good immediate impression. At 58 pages long (56 pages of content) The Ruined Hamlet is just about a mini initial campaign setting as opposed to a simple adventure. Instead of a single playing area like you might find in the adventure, the author has put together a group of individual areas set in a wilderness location that is basically an adventure onto itself.

What really stands out as I go through this download is the author's acknowledgement of how GMs might use The Ruined Hamlet. Specific notes on playing this adventure with different level PCs or even with another system are given. Care had been taken to avoid using Proper Names and adding too many details that would make for extra consideration (work) for other GMs to use this setting in their own custom campaigns.

There are a lot of little thoughtful touches that might not seem like much, but they really do add up. Suggestions as to appropriateness for specific wandering monster checks, noting which wandering monsters should be removed from the monster pool, and tweaks to encounters to account for larger or more experienced parties of adventurers. Sure, a lot of these things may come naturally or be "old hat" to established GMs, but even for these groups an occasional reminder doesn't hurt.

While I personally appreciate a lot of the nice touches mentioned above, as well as the inclusion of a blank player's map, there were a couple of minor points that need to be mentioned. First is the fact that a couple of other adventures are mentioned, namely Adventure BL-2 and BL-3. The Ruined Hamlet is obviously intended to be part of a series, but there are no BL-2 or BL-3 listed outside of the text of this adventure, which is dated as 2008. The numbering of the encounters is a little inconsistent and could possibly be a bit confusing. In general the encounters are grouped by area, but not designated differently, meaning there are multiple encounters with the same designation (Encounter 1, 2, 3, etc.). Later on in the adventure the encounters are designated by number and encounter (V1, X3, etc.)

While I would like to see some of the text cleaned up and made a bit easier to read, I think this is a
pretty good adventure and I plan on using portions of it if my home group decides to venture to a particular nearby area in my own campaign. Of course I'll need to make a bunch of tweaks, but they will be easy enough to do. I think most any Fantasy RPG GM will find this a useful product.

GM Prep Tip: Mapping Decision Points

One thing I've come across often with other GMs is an issue of pacing that comes from information creep. As GMs we might have a huge game world rattling around in our heads and know the smallest detail, but the players don't need to know that.

I once had a GM who went far too deep into the minutia for my tastes. It wasn't uncommon to take hours (real time) to have our PCs travel down the road just a few miles. We'd joke how he could tell you exactly how many field mice were reproducing right now in every farmer's field the next county over from where we were adventuring.

Of course you could chalk this up as a severe difference between Role Playing and Roll Playing.

I think most of us would agree that the players don't need to know every small detail of every step traveled, just as they don't need to know all the detailed background information of an adventure. I've seen information creep turn a 5 page adventure into a 15 page adventure. Now this isn't as likely to happen to a GM writing an adventure for his own group, but when writing for another table, like at a gaming convention....it is easy to do. At some point you have to just let the table GM "wing it" based on some big-picture background information.

There is also a seriously diminished risk-reward ratio when you sink too much time into minutia. Quite often the most valuable GM resource is time.

My suggestion...the tip for today...is to simply map out the logical steps or paths the PCs will take
during your adventure. When writing the adventure these mini decision points are places where you may wish to write an entry or simply a bit of flavor text. At the table these places are when you might want to make rolls or describe what the PCs see. If the PCs are in unvarying terrain, these natural decision points would be spread out much father. If they are travelling a long trail or open road, you don't need to describe their travel every hour along the trip and ask if they want to go off the trail. When they come to a river crossing or a crossroad, they would probably like to know, even if they just came across another river or crossroad just a quarter-mile before.

By mapping your adventure this way you can make your GM prep time much more efficient and at the table you can keep the action moving at the player's pace. The PCs will almost always come up with something unexpected and it is a poor use of time (and futile) trying to prepare for every possible circumstance.

Free GM Resource: One Page Dungeon Contest

This week's Free GM Resource is a big one. Last week I came across the One Page Dungeon Contest because they just announced their 2013 winners.

All the submissions are Creative Common Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported and you have several choices as far as how to download them. You can simply download the winning entries, all submissions, or even individual files.

There is a lot of talent and inspiration that went into this contest and I was blown away by the entries. Even cooler is the fact that you can go through and get the submissions from years past.

I really wish I had known about this contest before because I would have entered. I don't think I would have won (because the other entries were that awesome), but it would have been a fun

Seriously....save the date!

challenge. It is good to push your GMing boundaries a bit and trying to come up with an adventure condensed to such a small format would definitely be a challenge for this GM.

I'm assuming that next-year's contest will be in April, so you might want to save the date!

Frugal GM Contest for Inked Adventures Stuff!

OK, I've had some time to think about things regarding a sponsored Inked Adventures contest and I've come up with some parameters for the contest.

My goal is to get some evidence of people using Inked Adventures product in their home game. I know from experience there is a huge difference between making something for others to use, seeing that people have at least downloaded it, and actually witnessing people having fun with your "stuff".

For the record, I don't benefit personally from this contest. This is my way of helping support a cool indie publisher.

Contest Rules:

1. This contest will be open to all followers & viewers of the Frugal GM.
2. There is a maximum of one entry per person.
3. The number of prizes awarded will be determined by the number of contest entries, with 1+ entrants there will be a first-place prize (Inked Adventures Hand Drawn Large Geomorph Tiles $8.00 value), 11-20+ entries will introduce a second place prize (Inked Adventures: Modular Dungeon Cut-Up Sections Basic Pack $4.50 value), and 21+ entries will allow for a third-place prize as well (Inked Adventures Encounter Lairs 2 Templar Chapel $2.50 value).
4. The Frugal GM reserves the right to substitute a DriveThruRPG gift card in the appropriate value amount or other Inked Adventures products at the same dollar value (In case you already have the prize in your library).
5. Contest period starts today (May 23, 2013) and ends at midnight on June 30, 2013.
6. To enter, post a picture of Inked Adventures product in use at "your" table somewhere on the web, along with a few (at least 50) words on how you used it at your table. Email a link to "article" the Frugal GM or put it in the comments for this blog post. 
1. The web location must be publicly view-able.
2. The picture must be original.
3. "Your Table" refers to a game you are running or playing. You must be an active participant. It can be an online game.
4. It can be a pic/post of free Inked Adventures product.
7. The Frugal GM reserves the right to change this contest as needed, but all changes much be published edits to this contest blog, dated and displayed prominently.
8. The winning entries will be determined at random from all entries received. (2013.05.23-I can't believe I overlooked this one huge detail!)

TLDR Version:

Make a unique post online with a pic of you using Inked Adventures product, along with a blurb before the end of June. Let the Frugal GM know about it.

Go out, download and use some free product (or buy some....buying some is good too), and have fun!

Free GM Resource: Inked Adventures

I'm making a small departure from my normal Free GM Resource and instead giving you a link straight to a GM's or publisher's website, I'm linking straight to some specific free offerings on DriveThruRPG.

Last week I was excited to find out that Inked Adventures had a new product: Hand Drawn Large Geomorph Tiles. If you've read all of my product reviews you'll probably remember that I did a review on the original set of geomorph tiles. I really liked the tiles set, but there were just a couple of minor tweaks I wished for.

After finding out about this new tile set I reached out to the artist, Billiam Babble, and in the course of a few emails back & forth he offered to give the Frugal GM some complementary product to give away to readers as part of a contest.

How fricken cool is that?

I haven't figured out the parameters for a contest yet, but I plan on incorporating some of the Inked Adventures tiles as part of that contest. Right now I'm leaning towards people submitting a picture of them clearly using an Inked Adventure Tile in play, one entry per person. I'm trying to figure out a method for bonus entries, but in either case expect detail in an announcement later this week.

It doesn't help that Inked Adventures is currently running a big promotion on DriveThruRPG where everything is on sale. Now I'm not suggesting you go an purchase any of Billiam's products, but I think if you check out the free downloads you might very well decide to pick something up....and if you do, now is a good time to do it.

If anything I'm just trying to point out an opportunity to pick up some free product and if you like it get some more at a discount......and maybe win some free product on top of that. Now if you end up liking the Inked Adventure line and end up purchasing the very product you end up winning, then I'll make sure you get taken care of, either with different product or DriveThruRPG credit in the appropriate amount.

The assorted free Inked Adventures products can be found here.


I have one simple request if you download and use any of these files: please make sure to fill out a feedback sandwich) as well. I can tell you from experience that product reviews really help motivate a small publisher in putting out new product or making tweaks to older ones.
brief review on the item. At a minimum, click the appropriate number of stars. It'd be cooler if you left some positive feedback.