i think reframing 'writing a campaign' or 'writing a plot' as writing beats has dramatically changed the quality of my dming. for me personally, i work best when i have a world with pieces that would be moving (regardless of whether the players would be there but obviously, you put the players in the crosshairs to effect change) and plan each 2-4 sessions as its own small story and i've developed a method that really works for me that i use for oneshots, mini campaigns, and in arcs for longer games.
[ID: a screenshot of a bullet point list with template headers: Location, Framing Plot (subheaders Social, Exploration, and Combat), Key NPCS, World Plot Progression, Player Hooks (subheaders repeating Player to be replaced with a PC's name)]
to further explain:
Location(s) — where the sessions will likely take place, so I have a manageable list of places to develop further in terms of worldbuilding.
Framing Plot — What is happening, what is the inciting the incident and what are the things the players cannot control. Then the subheaders are the three tiers of play. I think it's important to have an idea to tap into all of them or lean heavier into what your party is interested in but consider all of them for fun and exciting Mechanical gameplay as well as story and roleplay.
Key NPCS — Who are the NPCS that are going to be important to the framing and to the players. This is usually just a handful.
World Plot Progression — How does / how will the events of this scenario push forward what your players are working towards?
Player Hooks — Specific thoughts for how to connect the framing plot to each player character and make each player feel invested and like their choices matter.
and that's what I do to plot out my games. It's never "this is how things will resolve" it is, "this is what the situation is and this is how i want to connect my players to it and see what they do"
just finished ninth house by leigh bardugo….and it knocked me out. there’s been a whole trend of feminist dystopia books lately (vox, red clocks, only ever yours, etc.) and something about them has always turned me off but i could never quite put my finger on it…now though i think i can say that all those books so severely sensationalize the horror done to women that the commentary almost falls flat because it’s so singular in tone. ninth house however is so focused on the worldbuilding of the occult that the politically minded messages don’t come through in the same heavy handed way they do in other books where the commentary is the plot and vice versa…because of that the themes in ninth house about women not being believed, poor girls especially poor immigrant girls being treated as disposable, boys/men abusing power just because they can….these themes don’t feel like themes for the sake of themes they feel like the very natural effects of the plot…i don’t know if this is making sense but basically:
ninth house feels like a book that was written about the occult but by nature of being a book about a young woman with her eyes open to the way others are mistreated it includes certain political commentaries whereas with feminist dystopian books oftentimes it seems like the plot was written to serve the commentary and the commentary itself was the original idea and those types of books tend to suffer for that
comics that make me cry a little (first comic attributed to lynda barry. second comic attributed to pictures for sad children. third comic attributed to grebcomics.)
Morizkirche - Coburg, Germany
The kiss and the fight for love
June 2022
Picture by J.Konrad Schmidt
heart
twitter/ insta/cara/ store
In the heart everything lonely takes root
- Miguel Hernàndez
what do you think dark academia could look like in Asia, both visually and academically? also, here's a bad pick up line: are you rice? cos you get me up in the morning
Firstly, bad pickup lines are literally my thing so thankyou.
so I can only really speak to south Asia but i hope there something in there for everyone.
sliced fruits and tea while you study
takings rikshaws to class
bleached white uniforms and polished shoes
studying on the roof on a sunny day listening to the street noises
street food with friends
fountain pens and perfect handwriting
late nights studying without coffee
studying through repetition and reading
teachers who point with their middle finger
full bookshelves of textbooks and class readings full annotated
hanging out with local stray cats
anyways the show opens with percy slamming down on his alarm clock..perfect day by hoku is playing...he runs into the dorm bathroom..theres a scene with him brushing his teeth but it's just the back of his head and u cant see his reflection in the mirror...a shadow passes by the window that's in his room where you can see messy clothes across a messy bed... again the camera is low as percy struggles to put his clothes on (the whole jumping in ur pants thing I did this when I was 12 all the time) the song abruptly ends with a knock at the door and as percy looks to the door u see his eyes for the first time
theres no explanation ur on the loud ass bus with a bunch of kids and Percy's I didnt want to be a halfblood voice over begins
I watched the boy and the heron and walked away with a fave creature design