Category: Tools for GMs

Bringing the Merry Band Together: A Cause Worth Fighting For

Posted by Amelia Summers | Dec 16, 2020 | Game Mastering, General, GMing Advice, Tools for GMs

Lots of tabletop RPGs spin tales of fantasy,...

A Block Tower With Benefits

Posted by Pete Petrusha | Sep 21, 2020 | Approaches and Techniques, Game Making, Game Mastering, General, GMing Ideas, Products for GMs, Tools for GMs

How do you run better games? You deliver...

Coping with Multiple Personalities

Posted by Craig Dedrick | Aug 31, 2020 | Game Mastering, GMing Advice, Improving Your GMing, LARPs, Tools for GMs

A party at the palace. A meeting of the ruling...

An Only Slightly Gushing Review of WarLock Tiles

Posted by Chuck Lauer | Jul 27, 2020 | Game Mastering, Reviews, Specific RPGs, Tools for GMs

Recently, WizKids has released several sets of...

How Dragons Brought Us Together — Game Planning In The Internet Age

Posted by Amelia Summers | Jul 13, 2020 | Tools for GMs

Oftentimes, it’s the journey that makes...

Turning Garbage into Terrain: Tree Edition

Posted by Chuck Lauer | Jul 10, 2020 | General, Tools for GMs

It is now March 127th; in the meaningless blur...

7+ Fast, Free Papercrafts to Surprise Your Players

Posted by Chuck Lauer | Apr 10, 2020 | Approaches and Techniques, General, Tools for GMs

If you’re just here for the links, here they...

Moodlists; Making Better Playlists

Posted by Di. | Feb 5, 2020 | Game Mastering, GMing Advice, Tools for GMs

I believe anyone would agree that the right kind...

The Anatomy of the GM Curse

Posted by Di. | Jan 1, 2020 | Game Mastering, GMing Advice, Tools for GMs

“Are you sure?” “It’s...

So You Want to Write an Asian Campaign Setting (Part 1: Historical China)

Posted by Daniel Kwan | Nov 29, 2019 | Approaches and Techniques, Campaigns, Editorials, Game Mastering, Tools for GMs, Worldbuilding

So you want to try your hand at creating an East Asian Fantasy campaign setting? Start with some valuable research from Daniel Kwan’s favourites!

The Joy of Insects: 4 Real-Life Creatures You Can Use to Bug Your Players

Posted by Chuck Lauer | Oct 30, 2019 | General, Tools for GMs

...

Let’s Make a Date!

Posted by Chris Baker | Oct 11, 2019 | Game Mastering, Tools for GMs

One of the challenges in creating and running a...

Exploring Encounter Theory: How to Craft RPG Adventures

Posted by Pete Petrusha | Sep 23, 2019 | Approaches and Techniques, Encounters, Game Mastering, GMing Advice, Improving Your GMing, Intro to Game Mastering, Nature of GMing, Prep, Products for GMs, Tools for GMs

Want to write better adventures? Want to prep...

Consent in Gaming Review

Posted by Jared Rascher | Sep 17, 2019 | Reviews, Tools for GMs

Generally speaking, I don’t usually review...

Playing Non-Verbal Characters

Posted by Senda Linaugh | Sep 16, 2019 | Player Perspective, Tools for GMs

Image taken by Mike Sinko and used via Creative...

It Came From The Stew Pot

Calling all Writers! Come write for Gnome Stew!

We are always looking for new articles and gnomes to throw in the stew. Drop an article proposal over at
https://gnomestew.com/write-for-gnome-stew/

Guest authors get paid the same per article rate as full time staff gnomes.

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What are people saying?

“fantastic blog for game masters, dungeon masters, and rpg fans”

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Our Products

Our Books for GMs

Through our partner Engine Publishing, we've published six system-neutral books for GMs, with over 28,000 copies sold. Available in print and PDF.

Focal Point
The Complete Game Master's Guide to Running Extraordinary Sessions
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Unframed
The Art of Improvisation for Game Masters
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Odyssey
The Complete Game Master's Guide to Campaign Management
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Never Unprepared
The Complete Game Master's Guide to Session Prep
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Masks
1,000 Memorable NPCs for Any Roleplaying Game
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Eureka
501 Adventure Plots to Inspire Game Masters
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Through Encoded Designs

Through our partnership in the G.E.M. collective, many of the Gnomes are affiliated with creating products through Encoded Designs. Available in print and PDF.