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Most fantasy roleplaying campaigns run on the same machine. The rules might change, and the setting might shift from dungeon ruins to political intrigue to wilderness exploration. The table might only play once a month for a couple of hours, or run marathon sessions every Friday night. Underneath it all, the rhythm of fantasy roleplaying usually looks the same. The player characters encounter something dangerous and deal with it in combat. They find something valuable, and divide up the loot. After that, they’re a little stronger, a bit wealthier, or a slightly better positioned to take on the world than they were before. Then the next challenge appears, and the process starts again.
Anyone who’s ever spent time around the gaming table knows that feeling. The party clears out a ruined watchtower, and drags a chest of gold coins back to the nearest town. A rival gang loses control of a smuggling route. An expedition returns from a cursed ruin, with a handful of strange, magical artifacts and a wild story the locals refuse to believe. The details can change from session to session, but the pattern stays familiar.
Eventually, someone named the pattern.
Kill.
Loot.
Level.
Repeat.
It might have started as a joke, but the format also works as a map. Understanding it makes it easier for you to see where the campaign is headed and how to steer it without railroading the players. The chapters ahead break this kill-loot-level-repeat engine into its core components, then look at practical ways to keep the underlying engine producing the tension, and meaningful change required to create a game that remains fun and engaging and keeps the group excited to keep playing.
30 pages. PDF and epub included in a zip file.
Digital only.
Most fantasy roleplaying campaigns run on the same machine. The rules might change, and the setting might shift from dungeon ruins to political intrigue to wilderness exploration. The table might only play once a month for a couple of hours, or run marathon sessions every Friday night. Underneath it all, the rhythm of fantasy roleplaying usually looks the same. The player characters encounter something dangerous and deal with it in combat. They find something valuable, and divide up the loot. After that, they’re a little stronger, a bit wealthier, or a slightly better positioned to take on the world than they were before. Then the next challenge appears, and the process starts again.
Anyone who’s ever spent time around the gaming table knows that feeling. The party clears out a ruined watchtower, and drags a chest of gold coins back to the nearest town. A rival gang loses control of a smuggling route. An expedition returns from a cursed ruin, with a handful of strange, magical artifacts and a wild story the locals refuse to believe. The details can change from session to session, but the pattern stays familiar.
Eventually, someone named the pattern.
Kill.
Loot.
Level.
Repeat.
It might have started as a joke, but the format also works as a map. Understanding it makes it easier for you to see where the campaign is headed and how to steer it without railroading the players. The chapters ahead break this kill-loot-level-repeat engine into its core components, then look at practical ways to keep the underlying engine producing the tension, and meaningful change required to create a game that remains fun and engaging and keeps the group excited to keep playing.
30 pages. PDF and epub included in a zip file.
Digital only.