why 'evil dead:rise' matters
"Looking with dread at each, ever-more horrible page, you are drawn in by the blasphemous book. The account of Al'Hazred, the book of the...
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RPG MAINFRAME: THE BLOG
hankerinferinale
- May 12
- 5 min
the myth of the map
There are many long-held myths in our glorious hobby. Among these, that encounters are somehow 'balanced' for mathematical perfection,...
2,109 views8 comments
hankerinferinale
- May 6
- 5 min
How to ruin things
A great many things weigh down our games. We have oceans of lore leaning over us, a blurry session recap with all-too-important events...
876 views1 comment
hankerinferinale
- Dec 31, 2022
- 3 min
We Orbit Together
We made it. Have a hefty helping of your favorite vice, take a look around, settle in and have another. It's time to lean back, deep...
866 views2 comments
hankerinferinale
- Nov 16, 2022
- 3 min
RPG Cons: A Meditation
Many of us know the manic excitement a few days before your favorite convention. You have your travel plans, your hotel room all set,...
842 views5 comments
hankerinferinale
- Nov 8, 2022
- 6 min
The Pelican
Annie was the kind of woman that couldn't let things go. She would just keep drilling deeper and deeper, looking for answers, or winning...
396 views1 comment
hankerinferinale
- Oct 31, 2022
- 3 min
IS ALL D&D HORROR?
Yes, yes it is As a seven-year-old in 1980, I had a front row seat (literally, as a sneaker-in of theaters) to the explosive evolution of...
735 views1 comment
hankerinferinale
- Oct 25, 2022
- 5 min
Splatter Up
Even among thousands, you can die alone In a crowd, a big crowd, there is terror. The 21st century has taught us to fear such things. We...
362 views0 comments
hankerinferinale
- Oct 23, 2022
- 5 min
Gloria
This October, be careful what movies you watch... Death horror was lost on her. Gore was meaningless, suspense predictable, ghosts...
347 views0 comments
hankerinferinale
- Oct 4, 2022
- 2 min
MacGuffin Encounters: Do 'Em!
Furious battles, perilous environments, and ribald exchanges with NPCs are the meat and potatoes of most games. As GMs, we spend each...
1,004 views1 comment
hankerinferinale
- Sep 24, 2022
- 3 min
Diverse Challenges
In my most recent release, Aethrjammr, I briefly mention that even in space-fantasy ship combat, 'challenge diversity' is essential to a...
1,926 views3 comments
hankerinferinale
- Sep 12, 2022
- 2 min
I'm not from The Renaissance
As RPG hobbyists, we all share a love of adventure. As fans of fantasy, we dream of a quieter time, when wide open wilderness and...
1,088 views1 comment
hankerinferinale
- Aug 27, 2022
- 3 min
The Challenge Curve: It's Time for Inversion
The concept of danger, challenge, and difficulty in TTRPGs has gotten it dead wrong for the last 40 some years. Sorry, legions of...
1,006 views3 comments
hankerinferinale
- Aug 20, 2022
- 3 min
Hacking HP: Buckle Up
If you're reading these words, you're probably just like me: a GM who has at least one small group of friends tricked into thinking you...
2,422 views8 comments
hankerinferinale
- Aug 9, 2022
- 3 min
When NOT to Take Notes
As game masters and role players, we live in a world of notes. We jot, scribble and scrawl everything from dungeon maps to stat blocks to...
763 views3 comments
hankerinferinale
- Jun 17, 2022
- 3 min
Don't Blame the Pringles
Once you pop, you can't stop. This may be true, but we all know the regret, the shame, the darkness creeping up from the strained...
956 views6 comments
hankerinferinale
- Jun 13, 2022
- 2 min
Vectors: A Tool for Guessing, Prepping, and Boasting
First off, 'vector' is a super cool word. It makes you feel smart, because if you're saying 'vector' you must have a very specific...
1,406 views0 comments
hankerinferinale
- Jun 12, 2022
- 2 min
The ICRPG Trojan Horse
It's been 6 years of pure craziness as ICRPG has wiggled its way under the skin of thousands of players and GMs worldwide, becoming an...
2,274 views7 comments
hankerinferinale
- Jun 11, 2022
- 1 min
The Irony and the Release
Greetings, programs! Hail to my shields and skal to all Runehammerians. Yep. It's a blog. More material from the never ending exploration...
619 views4 comments
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