Yeah man! I haven't quite been able to keep up with your Champions FRED game, although I have been feeling a Champions/HERO-related itch so I might need to get back into that system soon! ~ Arlen
@@LivefromPellamsWasteland If you ever want to play a little Champs give me a few weeks notice. I can get you into a few Sunday mornings no problem? Saturday night I could get you in somehow for a few games. ~Brian.
Cool tool for generating inspiration as you said. I'm not a huge fan of static tables, though this one seems a bit deeper than most? maybe? Because I don't like the same results being pasted onto every situation, often when they don't really fit the narrative happening in the now I tended to change things up or create something on the spot. But I'd find something like this useful along with a little DM imagination. Such as the lie, part. Doesn't have to be a direct lie from an NPC every time right? Could be the PC's find a false clue or are innocently lead generally in the right direction but not entirely given ALL the information correctly. If I was actually playing I'd probably go ahead and buy that. Hopefully now that I'm well enough to work again I can get back into some D&D somewhere soon. I'll keep this book in mind. Thanks for the review.
Yes I agree that DM/GM imagination is a very valuable tool to add depth and verisimilitude to the results produced by 'The Adventure Crafter'. The book does a great job of creating an intricate network of events but it doesn't tell you why those events are happening or what they mean to the characters experiencing them, which is obviously at the heart of good storytelling. For me this tool is a great way to sketch out a quick rough draft without too much hassle which I then go back through and fill in the gaps and tinker with the story, much like I would do with a rough draft I wrote myself, it just is sometimes easier to edit the table's work than your own (and it helps me get over the 'blank page' moment, as I think I mentioned in the video). I agree that the random table in 'The Adventure Crafter' is deeper than most, although it still has its limits (like all tools). But to the main point in your comment, yes I find this tool most useful when combined with some GM creative writing and tinkering. Thanks for commenting Wayne, and let me know about your experiences with 'The Adventure Crafter' if you pick it up!
GM imagination is still a requirement for these sorts of generators. More of an inspirational tool than hard results. It's nice to have something that can stir up your thinkmeats, as this does, and aid in spurring your creative process to places you may not have gone on your own. They also offer a PoD card deck which, once you get used to using the system, will likely speed up the whole process since you don't have to roll and look up each result on the tables.
Brilliant tutorial, would love to see you review the cards also!
Hey DM Arlen. I need to get back into doing my online gaming content talk show. ~Brian
Yeah man! I haven't quite been able to keep up with your Champions FRED game, although I have been feeling a Champions/HERO-related itch so I might need to get back into that system soon! ~ Arlen
@@LivefromPellamsWasteland If you ever want to play a little Champs give me a few weeks notice. I can get you into a few Sunday mornings no problem? Saturday night I could get you in somehow for a few games. ~Brian.
We'll see, my weekends are a little busy right now but maybe in a month or 2 they will settle down and I could play some Champs!
Cool tool for generating inspiration as you said. I'm not a huge fan of static tables, though this one seems a bit deeper than most? maybe? Because I don't like the same results being pasted onto every situation, often when they don't really fit the narrative happening in the now I tended to change things up or create something on the spot.
But I'd find something like this useful along with a little DM imagination. Such as the lie, part. Doesn't have to be a direct lie from an NPC every time right? Could be the PC's find a false clue or are innocently lead generally in the right direction but not entirely given ALL the information correctly.
If I was actually playing I'd probably go ahead and buy that. Hopefully now that I'm well enough to work again I can get back into some D&D somewhere soon. I'll keep this book in mind. Thanks for the review.
Yes I agree that DM/GM imagination is a very valuable tool to add depth and verisimilitude to the results produced by 'The Adventure Crafter'. The book does a great job of creating an intricate network of events but it doesn't tell you why those events are happening or what they mean to the characters experiencing them, which is obviously at the heart of good storytelling. For me this tool is a great way to sketch out a quick rough draft without too much hassle which I then go back through and fill in the gaps and tinker with the story, much like I would do with a rough draft I wrote myself, it just is sometimes easier to edit the table's work than your own (and it helps me get over the 'blank page' moment, as I think I mentioned in the video).
I agree that the random table in 'The Adventure Crafter' is deeper than most, although it still has its limits (like all tools). But to the main point in your comment, yes I find this tool most useful when combined with some GM creative writing and tinkering.
Thanks for commenting Wayne, and let me know about your experiences with 'The Adventure Crafter' if you pick it up!
GM imagination is still a requirement for these sorts of generators. More of an inspirational tool than hard results. It's nice to have something that can stir up your thinkmeats, as this does, and aid in spurring your creative process to places you may not have gone on your own.
They also offer a PoD card deck which, once you get used to using the system, will likely speed up the whole process since you don't have to roll and look up each result on the tables.