Recent content by Tavis Allison

I think this is a great article & great discussion! The only thing I'd do differently would be to go to the players for these descriptions (in addition to setting an example when it's my turn to describe a NPC's visceral and vivid action). I gave some actual-play examples of this approach at The...

I'd like to see those 27 pages of house-rules; sounds like it'd say a lot about your campaign! (Talisman of Ultimate Good = awesome.) I've been annotating my 1E Gamma World rulebook with marginalia about the rulings we've made in play, which has the advantage of having both sets of law in the...

Norm, I talk about the dynamic energy of not knowing who'll be at each session over here [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/issues/issue_271/8108-Imagine-Your-Perfect-Arcade-Game]. It's definitely a different aesthetic; the dungeon and campaign world becomes the focus of the...

Archon, you know I've got mad props for your GMing theory (your advice on gp-to-xp ratios made many White Sandbox players very happy) and I love hearing Greg talk about his experience in your games (do I correctly guess you're using the Rudimentary Resurrection Tables from the Judges' Guild...

seydaman, is that a haiku? I'm not good with syllables. There are plenty of people who play Red Box or other old-school RPGs in a committed, campaign style - for example, the Escapist's publisher...

Imagine Your Perfect Arcade Game Gaming groups around the country are playing Dungeons & Dragons using the old rules from the 1980s because of its concentration on imagination, and its do-it-yourself nature. Tavis Allison compares Red Box D&D to the greatest arcade game that you'll ever...

D&D Is the Apocalypse "Show me a Dungeons & Dragons game and I'll show you an apocalypse." Tavis Allison points out how an ancient, collapsed civilization in the setting is necessary every time you sit down to roll some dice and explore a dungeon. Read Full Article