AntiqueWorldsTTRPG

AntiqueWorldsTtrpg
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Join me as we dive into the fun and frustrations of being a GM, designing my own TTRPG system, and exploring all types of TTRPG's. Contact Us: antiqueworldsttrpg@gmail.com

  1. 18 Aug

    Should You Use A GM Screen?

    Hello there, today we discuss if you even need to use a GM screen... (00:00) Intro (00:47) The Start of Screens (02:00) Why Have a Screen (03:05) TTRPG's Have Changed (07:50) How To Go Screenless (10:14) Challenge/Outro Contact Us: antiqueworldsttrpg@gmail.com The TLDR is maybe. It kind of depends. Also do whatever is best for your table.  1977 Judges Guild produced a Judges Shield  1979 AD&D came out with GM Screen  1979 Traveler had a Referee Screen  Makeshift screens were used before any of these products. Hide Dice rolls  Hide important roll tables/charts/information.  Rule References  Hide Mini figs  Create a boundary between the GM and the Players.  Why are GMs moving away from screens? TTRPG’s are ever changing.  Mike Mornard says Gary Gygax used to completely hide himself behind a full screen. Disembodied voice.  But the classic 4 panel plastic or 3 panel wood GM screen was used by the majority for a long time.  It works so well for that time period and OSR. It's perfect for dungeon crawling sandboxes. Hide minis, hide map, hide tables. Helps the GM referee.  But the hobby has grown and changed. Systems have started to give players a lot more narrative control. Players can help build the lore and world instead of only navigating through it.  Narrative Sandbox’s are becoming more of the “norm”. If that's the game you and your table want to run then pulling the screen down has advantages. Lets focus on 2.  For starters, you are literally removing a barrier showing that everyone is on equal footing. It shows that even though the GM runs the game and is the ultimate voice of the world they are willing to listen and accept player suggestions and ideas. GM isn’t a referee the same way as OSR.  In addition to that, no player is perfect. Everyone has something they need to work on. Whether it be because of GM experiences in the past, some players do feel the type of way about hidden roles. Rolling in the open helps put their insecurities at ease and really help to show that the GM supports the players and the players support the GM. If you want to try and play without a GM screen, how do you go about it? I use my laptop, journal, and dice tray.  My laptop has tabs open with the rules. I tend to forget, potential plot points, and then additional information I may want. I have seen Laptop not the same screen. Players use laptops and it's not an issue.  My journal is where I have any last minute ideas or prep I had to write down and where I keep notes of the session myself.  And while my dice tray is not in the middle of the table for everyone to see, anyone who wants to look is free to do so. And honestly, from what I've learned, very few players actually care too. Check your dice. I'm not big on hard and fast rules. What I do like is challenging my playstyle and trying to grow as a GM. That is why I stopped using a GM screen and fell in love with the freedom it provided.  That is what I hope. Anyone who listens to this comes away with.  Challenge yourself.  Try putting it down and try putting it up.

  2. 10 Aug

    Answering Reddit's TTRPG Questions #2

    Hello there. Feel free to contact me at antiqueworldsttrpg@gmail.com. (00:00) Intro (00:17) Which Die is Best (02:47) Player Struggles With Combat (10:10) GM/DM Burnout (16:05) AI Horror Story (23:55) Outro We dive back into the scary world that is Reddit. We offer advice that no one asked us for. Here we discuss what is the best dice or die (which one proper?) How to help a player that doesn't like mass combat. How can a GM/DM overcome their burnout??? And then we discuss a horror story...the GM/DM does not allow anyone to hand draw pictures only use AI images! Thank you so much for listening.

  3. 3 Aug

    A GM's Retrospective || Campaign 1: Session 10&11

    This is session 10 and 11 of my first ever TTRPG campaign. What do I do wrong this time? What did I do that I need to learn from? Contact Us: antiqueworldsttrpg@gmail.com So, for session 10 I do not GM. Instead, the Player of Warden takes over as GM. We are trapped in Warden's dying mind and must escape before we are trapped there forever. We meet space whales that help us fight crystal beetles. I play a rockstar named Stick Stickly. We go into a beautiful forest and information about the Fracture is revealed. We go into a beautiful castle and information about the Fracture is revealed. We fight a giant space octopus and everyone, except me, manages to survive and make it back home. As everyone is expelled from Wardens body and about to pass out, they are approached by an old figure with hounds by his side. He says, "Well, looks like the Grey Eyed Girl was right." And then everyone passes out. End of Session 10. Now I am GM again. Session 11 begins with everyone in jail again. Well, more specifically cages. Here they are introduced to the new PC named Jack. He is a massive man that loves to drink. They also are able to talk to the evil Dr. Sobet. He tells them that Parallax (Project Downfall) is a failure and will be terminated in a few hours. The Party escapes. Defeats androids. Encounters Teyolia. Finds Wardens head. Hack a computer and then the session ends. Fin.

  4. 20 Jul

    Do GM's Fail At Revealing Information?

    Hi, my name is Nick. Join me this episode as we discuss how a GM/DM can stop struggling with revealing important information. Contact us at antiqueworldsttrpg@gmail.com This is my biggest struggle as a GM. As I've gone through my GM's retrospective of my first campaign, I have seen countless times where I had saved and held on to information because I wanted to save it for a grand reveal. Only that time never came and that information ended up staying a secret. Honestly, it is completely understandable to want that.  we constantly see clips of a GM revealing something and the party absolutely loving it and then the GM explaining they had been sitting on that for the last 40 sessions and couldn't wait to reveal it to the party and then they go nuts again.  We all want that in our game and there's nothing wrong with that.  Reveals are not guaranteed to happen. It's better to do reveals too early rather than too late. Players can move, life can happen, PC’s can make choices you weren’t expecting.  Revealing information should be like a 3-course meal.  In a well-made beautiful fancy three-course meal the most important part of that meal is the main entree, the main part of dinner and that is when a reveal should be made.  Unfortunately, we have a habit of thinking that dessert The final course is the most important part and tend to say the reveals for them.  Just like in a real meal. Sometimes after the main course, you're full and don't eat any dessert or eat a very little. Likewise in the campaign. Sometimes when the main course of the campaign hits there's no room to add that reveal after.  Amuse-bouche  This should be used to whet the appetite. Honestly, it should be a clue or a hint that the players will only notice once they review their notes. Starter  Only the most eagle eyed should be able to solve reveals here. Just like a starter is meant to be delicious yet small so should your clues. There needs to be real substance there, just dont let the party fill up on them.  Main course  This is the reveal. Don’t hold anything back. View this as the last time this reveal will be discussed in the campaign and don't hold any cards back.  Dessert Fruit of labor. Excellent RP moments. And your players discussing the fallout of the reveal.  Example: The reveal is the assassin hunting the party is secretly the long last brother of one of them.  Amuse-bouche: similar hair color…or similar build…something super innocent in their description. Age estimation Starter: On another encounter. Goad the player. (Fathers name) must be so disappointed in you….(dead brother’s name) would have hated to see what you did with your life.  Main course: reveal must happen here. If PC accuses “I would never demean myself by admitting I was kin with you” or confession “After you and dad left me for dead, i realized we were never family. I wasn’t your brother, I was just something to be thrown away” Dessert: RP We do have tendency to hold back if a player gets to close to the truth. That's ok. You want them to figure out the reveal. If they are getting close, lean into that. Make your players feel special and smart.  Hopefully this will help as you continue to make reveals that cause your Players to lose their minds.  Fin

  5. 13 Jul

    Answering Reddit's TTRPG Questions #1

    Hi my name is Nick. Creator and Lead Designer on an unreleased TTRPG called Antique Worlds. Feel free to contact us at AntiqueWorldsTTRPG@gmail.com On this episode we will be answering a few different questions about TTRPG's that can be found on Reddit. I find questions from r/askgamemasters and r/dndhorrorstories. Today we cover topics such as "what do I do if two of my players break up?" and "Am I railroading my player?" also "What is your best quality of life tip as a GM?" We also delve into dnd horror stories to discuss how a group of players refused to believe that a woman could be a GM. If you enjoy this please send it to a friend.

  6. 6 Jul

    A GM's Retrospective || Campaign 1: Session 9

    This is session 9 of my first ever TTRPG campaign. What do I do wrong this time? What did I do that I need to learn from? Contact Us: antiqueworldsttrpg@gmail.com Oh no! A Player Character dies. This is the first time that I have killed a Player Character. But before that happens the Party must travel back to Camden village. There they talk to the leader, and he has no new information. They talk to the girl they rescued and take her blood to see if she's sick. She tells them about a horribly disfigured evil Dr. named Sobet. He was the one experimenting on her and a bunch of other kids. The Party tracks down the home of Dr. Sobet and break inside. There they find a secret room that is a secret lab, hiding many secrets. An AI named SISTER scans them revealing that Ox is a secret rare alien, Parallax is referred to as Project Downfall and it was a failure, and Charli is absent from the AI records. Charli then hacks a computer and gains the following information: The Fracture Event started the black sickness. The 6th continent was made during the Fracture Event. The leader of the 6th continent is named Suer'ver and he is sending slaves to Dr. Sobet to experiment on. Once they leave the house they are attacked by mutated hounds. A long hard battle takes place and kills Warden. Warden dies and a blackhole erupts from his broken shell and sucks the entire Party.

  7. 22 Jun

    A GM's Retrospective || Campaign 1: Session 8

    This is session 8 of my first ever TTRPG campaign. What do I do wrong this time? What did I do that I need to learn from? Contact Us: antiqueworldsttrpg@gmail.com In this session the Party must survive cold weather, a rich resort town, and a burnt down cabin in the woods. They find letters. They met a guy who is a tool. They come to the understanding that their lives may be more interconnected than originally thought. Sloane rolls a Natural 20. Warden talks to someone. Ox stalks a goat for food. They all drink at a tavern. Also, they find that someone killed Decest and drug his body all the way from Camden just to send a message. Is this the same madman that sent them the scary letter? After returning to Tera's home they find out her dad may have been an elite guard that protected royalty from the country of Arluck. Also, Anji Jin and TX-30 did battle there years in the past. This battle resulted in the town burning down and Tera's sister going missing.

  8. 15 Jun

    A GM's Retrospective || Campaign 1: Session 7

    This is session 7 of my first ever TTRPG campaign. What do I do wrong this time? What did I do that I need to learn from? Contact Us: antiqueworldsttrpg@gmail.com The Party explores the mountain caves and kills monsters and finds treasure. Unfortunately for some, a Player choses to keep multiple pieces of found loot and not share it. This means other Players go without. Eventually they find a sentient door named Doornauld. He was transformed into a giant door by the Fracture Event. Now he guards the way to the precious stones that the Party must reach. He will let them pass if they make a sacrifice. After much arguing and no one willing to make a genuine sacrifice, Sloan steps up to help the Party (and the World) as she chooses to sacrifice the sword of her father figure Anji Gin. This is good enough and Doornauld allows them to enter the sacred room. In the room they see a giant mural depicting a battle between knights and shadowy figures coming from a Fracture Event. There is an ancient keeper of the cave named Grovel that is there to answer questions. He explains that this is a fracture event that happened on a different planet. Each player looks into the emeralds and has a vision. Tama sees smoke. Paralax sees his Master bowing to Teyolia. Ox sees where his brother is. Charli sees her mom give her to the man that raised her. Warden sees Nyx working on math problems. Tera sees where her sister is. Sloan sees a living darkness. Then they wake up outside of the mountain and a tortured half robotic bird lands on Tera's shoulder. It has a note attached to it. The note is bad and is a letter that something is coming to kill them.

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About

Join me as we dive into the fun and frustrations of being a GM, designing my own TTRPG system, and exploring all types of TTRPG's. Contact Us: antiqueworldsttrpg@gmail.com

Information

  • Creator
    AntiqueWorldsTtrpg
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    15
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © AntiqueWorldsTtrpg
  • Show Website
    AntiqueWorldsTTRPG