Bard of Valiant

The core vocabulary of RPG rules, both tabletop and computer-based, revolves around some basic concepts that are understood across rule systems and genres. In creating my homebrewed rule system, I was not interested in trying to reinvent the wheel, but rather to leverage that core vocabulary.
Six standard character abilities that act as guidelines to the [...]

The main problem when you start with Twitter is that you often don’t know who to follow. Aside from millions of spammers, internet marketers and people who just tweet about what they had for breakfast, there are actually quite a few RPG geeks that are worth your time. – Stargazer’s World
He has a very good [...]

Physicist Michio Kaku talks about different kinds of space-faring civilizations and discusses the challenges and achievements we face as we advance. Well worth watching.

Sphere: Related Content

Getting your players involved in your setting can take work but an effective rule of thumb is, don’t answer all their questions. If you leave holes in the setting, players are going to ask questions about it.
Don’t answer these for them.
Instead, tell them you’ve deliberately left some things about the world vague so that they [...]

Written by Bedmyr (Darius099)
Having found the Heiress and hints of Bedmyr’s past, the party was faced with a tough decision. Return with the Heiress now, or search for further evidence of Bedmyr’s lost betrothed?
Though it was a serious force of will, Darius managed to drag Bedmyr along, finally coming safely to the surface and arranging [...]

A new contributor here at Bard of Valiant, Anarkeith is a fellow Steven Brust fan from Seattle, WA. This post is in response to Lord Oz’ discussion on an a la carte system for 4E. Anarkeith has an Obsidian Portal page which can be found here.

A few years ago I was running a stagnating 3.5 [...]

I was reading this post on RPG Athenaeum about why introducing a treasure map in your game can lead to fun and profit. this got me to thinking about how to make one and what the elements are of a good treasure map.
Who hid the treasure? Answering this question is going to answer more, such [...]

Whether it’s for a new campaign, a dead character or you just got tired of the old one, here are some tips for making a new character.

Create 2 secrets for your character. Give one of them to the GM to give to another player.
Think about those badass bad guys when coming up with a concept. [...]

Taverns are a staple of many fantasy games. Roll 2d6-1 and pick one of these encounters for this week’s game.

When the players walk in, everyone at each table in the common room is drinking through straws from a bucket in the center of the table.
Every inn and tavern in the town stops serving drinks at [...]

Zach was the runner-up in the Bard’s contest about modifying adventures. It was a terrific entry and the choice was difficult. You can read the winner’s post here.
Having gamed with some of the people in my extended gaming circle for as long as I have, I can usually tell what parts of a module or [...]