By Marco Curran Good afternoon all, Less than 2 weeks until we meet up in person. Anyone else excited yet!!? Please find attached the latest Committee minutes. Going forward these will be send via the website to allow people to view them at their leisure. Also, please take this email as notice that an SGM will be held on Discord next Friday to propose and approve some changes to the Constitution. This is a simple change that is simply adding a new Online member option. Following the success of our online community, some of those who will be unable to come to the hall due to living further away have asked about becoming club members. Below is how the start of the Members section of the Constitution currently reads and the areas in red are the proposed changes: Members All Members are expected to: Pay their fees on time Abide by the club’s constitution Notify the Committee of any extended absences (eg. skipping a rotation) In-hall Members have the right to: Vote in the AGM/SGM Put them...

Hi Mark, well me, yep you guessed it I am interviewing myself, as one of the three GMs for the inaugural games in venue, I thought of a bit of a mini interview on the 3 GMs would be cool. So lets crack to it. When did you first start playing RPGs and what were they? Depends... I started off with things like HeroQuest, Space Crusade, Battle Masters which although are board games we played out the characters. Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone Fighting Fantasy gamebooks published by Puffin, were probably my first foray into Roleplaying games. Later Shadowrun, D&D, Cyberpunk and Vampire the Masquerade, Call of Cthulhu and LARP What was the most memorable part of those sessions Meeting mates, doing dumb shit and then rolling epic for it. Still remember an old half Troll from Shadowrun, who was a dumb detective/private eye, who thought shouting shhhh to his shotgun made it a silenced weapon. Why did you start GMing? Had the thought, it cannot be that hard can it? From there tried it out,...

Hi Jerrie, as one of the three GMs for the inaugural games in venue, I thought of a bit of a mini interview on you. When did you first start playing RPGs and what were they? I have always been a video game RPG player but table top from 16. I played abit of 3.5 D&D and abit of dark heresy. I also tried stars without numbers and a few small indie titles. What was the most memorable part of those sessions Mostly just having fun with my friends, really only two of us knew how to play but pizza mostly and That feeling you get as you roll for something really important! Why did you start GMing? I had lots of game ideas and wanted to try them out. My friends were guineapigs basically. I had some puzzles I wanted to try but then got hooked. How long have you been GMing? I GMed my first game about 6 years ago, it was a E5 D&D game. I joined the club shortly after. What systems have you GMed? Dark Heresy, dungeon world, D&D 3.5 and 5th edition and stars without numbers. What are the ...

Hi Simon as one of the three GMs for the inaugural games in venue as we restart Face to Face after this COVID mess, I thought of a bit of a mini interview on you. When did you first start playing RPGs and what were they? I started with Holmes Blue Book Basic D&D. I soon moved on to mainly RuneQuest and Traveller. What was the most memorable part of those sessions Creating characters and trying to figure out how to run or play adventures that weren't dungeons. Why did you start GMing? I'm really into world creation and tinkering with mechanics, so naturally gravitated to GMing. How long have you been GMing? 39 years. What systems have you GMed? Basic D&D, AD&D, Runequest, Traveller, Call of Cthulhu, Tunnels & Trolls, Ringworld, Stormbringer, Elric, Judge Dredd, Star Wars (West End Games version), TMNT, Vampire The Masquerade, Pendragon, Amber Diceless, Nephilim, Hero Wars, HeroQuest, Night's Black Agents, Monster of the Week, The Black Hack, Fabled Lands, Du...

Right you have some kick ass or even a one shot brief interlude NPC, great. So like the grand puppet master you have to make it dance. One of the ways to make a NPC dance is to include them saying and linking in anecdotes. What is an Anecdote? An anecdote is a very short story that is significant to the topic at hand; usually adding personal knowledge or experience to the topic. Basically, anecdotes are stories. Like many stories, anecdotes are most often told through speech; they are spoken rather than written down. Anecdotes, like other forms of stories, are common and highly effective devices found throughout literature, film, television, theater, and even real life, so include them in your RPGs. Anecdotes make conversations or dialogue more personal and interesting. Usually, they are employed in a way that will make the players laugh or think more deeply about a topic. Examples of Anecdotes Example 1 Picture a mother and a father discussing whether or not to get a dog for the famil...

Right we have talked about Plots , Genres and Themes , so what is the setting? Setting is the time and place (or when and where) of the game. It is usually introduced during the exposition (beginning) of the game, along with the characters. The setting may also include the environment of the story, which can be made up of the physical location, climate, weather, or social and cultural surroundings. There are various ways that time and place indicate setting. Time can cover many areas, such as the character’s time of life, the time of day, time of year, time period such as the past, present, or future, etc. Place also covers a lot of areas, such as a certain building, room in a building, country, city, beach, in a mode of transport such as a car, bus, boat, indoors or out, etc. The setting of a story can change throughout the plot. The environment includes geographical location such as beach or mountains, the climate and weather, and the social or cultural aspects such as a school, the...

Right we has talked about Genres and Themes , so what is the plot? A plot is the sequence of events that make up a story. The plot is the story, and more specifically, how the story develops, unfolds, and moves in time. Many people use outlines which to create complex plots. In a campaign, an outline is a list of the scenes in the plot with brief descriptions. Like the skeleton is to the body, an outline is the framework upon which the rest of the story is built when it is written or played. In RPGs, outlines are used to help organize ideas that connect to each other in sensible ways. Plots are typically made up of five main elements: Exposition At the beginning of the story, characters, setting, and the main conflict are typically introduced. The exposition of a story is the first part of the game in which the characters, setting (time and place), and basic information is introduced. These scenes allow the players to understand where the story is taking place and who’s in it. Expositi...

We (Hobbits Hole) have been contacted by North Hammer Saga, a newly-launched enterprise which, amongst other things, produces tabletop RPG content for D&D 5th Edition.  As a brand new endeavour, they are trying to get their name out there and hopefully to get people interested in North Hammer Saga world and story.  We have been offered their very first module for our group, so who would be willing to run it online? Who would be willing to play it (I know I would)?  Based in an original, Norse-inspired setting, they are looking to release regular content, following an expansive and divergent story.  In the first module, “Overpowered”, the world of Tyrgard is assaulted by a fearsome insectoid race, who strike without warning and then retreat, leaving their victims reeling, but presenting ample opportunity for the right adventurers to exact revenge... Looking at the module it looks like there are some pre-gen characters for people to choose from:     ...

One of the first questions to ask upon hearing an upcoming game or even an ongoing game, “What’s it about?” or “What’s the point?” Short answers may range from confusing genre with Theme, but can include: A powerful and destructive force to be reckoned with. The human effect on nature, fear of the unknown, and hubris. Struggle against a protagonist. A few more examples: Danger of excessive pride The risky relationship between humankind and developing technology The power of true love Fate, which sometimes tears lovers apart and then joins them together Atonement War The central idea, topic, or point of a RPG story or narrative is its theme. As can be seen from these examples, themes can range widely from ideas, as large as love and war, to others as specific as the relationship between humankind and technology. Types of Theme Just as a life is not constantly immersed in love, the pursuit of knowledge, or the struggle of the individual versus society, themes are not always constantly pr...

Date & Time:   12th May 2021 @19:00 Meeting:  Committee Meeting Venue:  Virtual via Zoom Chair:  Carol Cunningham Note taker:  Marco Curran Present Chairperson:  Carol Cunningham *CC Treasurer:  Jerrie Sharp *JS Membership Officer:  Hannah Philpot *HP Online Presence Officer:  Mark Cunningham *MJC Secretary:  Marco Curran *MC Apologies None Authorised as a true and correct record of meeting by: Carol Cunningham 31st May 2021 16:02 A1   Welcome from the Chairperson The Chair opened the meeting at 19:05 and welcomed everyone to the Hobbits Hole SE London Roleplaying Club Committee. Everyone was thanked for their attendance. A2    Minutes Minutes of last meeting: There were no corrections raised by the committee. Actions arising from last meeting: Action 1: The Secretary shared the Just Giving page on behalf of the Treasurer Action 2: The Secretary added an agenda point regarding the quarterly ...