BEST READS OF THE WEEK! March 15 - 21, 2015!

Welcome back to the Best Reads of the Week! Every week I read through more than 450 blogs looking for the best rpg related articles to bring them directly to you. This week we've got a game to play with unsuspecting players; some 4e love; thoughts on the non-existant 5e OGL; a fantastic fantasy location; and so much more! If you see a post that you like be sure and tell the author how much you enjoyed it!

If you've got any questions about this month's lists be sure and check out the FAQ. And as always, thank you for your comments, shares, plus 1s, and for taking the time to read this list. See you on the next set!

BEST READS OF THE WEEK!

MARCH 15 - 21, 2015!

The Railroading Manifesto Part 2, Methods of the Railroad and Part 3, Penumbra of Problems by Justin Alexander, from the blog The Alexandrian: A continuing examination of one of the great boogie-men of Dungeon Mastering theory. Well worth reading.

The Vengeful Demon of the Ring by +Vincent Baker, from the blog anyway.: While Vincent created this game with the express purpose of contradicting "the idea that playing a game is necessarily voluntary, by giving an example of a legit game with an unwitting player" (which clearly shows that he never played games with with my friends) it's too fun of a concept not to play it. Needs a few tweaks but really fun all the same!

Top 10 Things I Miss About 4e by +Joe Kushner, from the blog Appendix N: So often Fourth Edition is the whipping boy for everything that many of us dislike about Dungeons & Dragons and Wizards of the Coast's stewardship of the property; but often there is this sense that perhaps what we disliked was that it was something different. In this short post from Joe he lays out ten things that he loved about the system that might remind you why for some people it was the perfect game.

Mayberry or Notthingham? Shooting the Sheriff in Medieval times, Of Overlords, Kings, and Barons, Building a Feudal Setting Part I, and Of Overlords, Kings, and Barons, Building a Feudal Setting Part II by +Rob Conley, from the blog Bat in the Attic: For some people one of the hardest things to properly build in their role-playing games is a realistic world setting. This guide by Rob Conley is a great place to start for those of you trying to build a world set in Feudal times.

Quirks and Sanity by +Jeff Russell, from the blog Blessings of the Dice Gods: If you're looking for a good set of sanity rules than this post by Jeff is the place to start. Easy to drop into your home games (and it's fairly sold me on picking up Stars Without Number) and well worth reading.

On Vitriol Part 1; On Vitriol Part 2; On Vitriol Part 3; and On Vitriol Part 4 by FrDave, from the blog Blood of Prokopius: This series inspired by a recent spat of unpleasantness between a pair of bloggers is a fascinating read that I have trouble not coming back to time an time again to contemplate it. Well worth reading.

And Where is the OGL (Or Some Facsimile)? by +Christopher Helton, from the blog Dorkland!: When the new edition of Dungeons & Dragons launched we were told that there would be an OGL soon. We steadily creeping up on a year since the launch of the new edition and still there is no OGL. Where is it?

Knights Gone Rogue in the Underworld: What Happened?  by +Jason Sholtis, from the blog The Dungeon Dozen: One of the things that makes the Dungeon Dozen blog so special is that most every d12 chart you run across could launch a campaign. This one is no exception and the fantastic knights depicted here would be a welcome addition to most any campaign I run. Well worth reading and bookmarking.

Improvised Weapon: Grappling Hook by +Tim Shorts, from the blog Gothridge Manor: One of my favorite things to do when I'm playing is to use non-traditional weapons against my enemies. This short post by Tim is right in my wheelhouse.

"Raggi Promotes Nazis" by +James Raggi, from the blog Lamentations of the Flame Princess: So James got to talking about a fascist being OSR and people got excited and started claiming that he was promoting a Nazi. This is his defense against that assertion. What do you think?

The Doomed City of Bethmoora by +matt jackson, from the blog . . . msjx . . .: Sometimes there are ideas that come about that could launch a lifetime of campaigns and this one from Matt is just such an idea. Everything about this screams out, "Come and play!"

Variations on a Theme by Mearls by +Brian Murphy, from the blog Trollsmyth: Let's talk about the future of the hobby and its trends towards simplicity as opposed to overly complex mechanical solutions.