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Prep is Aspirational

https://gnomestew.com/prep-is-aspirational/

Published: February 27, 2026 11:00

Last month, I talked about When Play Does Not Go To Prep, mostly about how deviations are normal and ways to adjust your story when it drifts from your prep. There is something that is underlying that previous article that I wanted to expand more about…

Gnomecast 231 – Running Published Adventures

https://gnomestew.com/gnomecast-231-running-published-adventures/

Published: February 25, 2026 12:00

https://polygamero.us/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/GC_231_Running-Published-Adventures_final.mp3 Join Ang along with Josh and JT as they talk about the ins and outs of running published adventures! Whether it’s easier or harder and tips and tricks on how to…

Flirting With the Homies

https://gnomestew.com/flirting-with-the-homies/

Published: February 13, 2026 14:00

This Valentine's Day, if you want to add a little romance to your games, you should be armed with the knowledge of what goes into creating a satisfying romance arc. The ingredients and...techniques...required to bring two (or more) characters to…

Gnomecast 230 – The Points of Metacurrency

https://gnomestew.com/gnomecast-230-the-points-of-metacurrency/

Published: February 11, 2026 12:00

https://polygamero.us/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/GC_230-Metacurency_final.mp3 Join Ang along with Chris and Tomas as they talk about the finer points of metacurrencies. What are they, what design purpose do they serve, and why do our players love them?…

Giants Deserve Better

https://gnomestew.com/giants-deserve-better/

Published: February 2, 2026 12:00

In many TTRPGs, giants have become a simple, escalating challenge: bigger and bigger versions of essentially the same thing, to encounter in tactical fights as your characters progress. A scalable threat, with a side serving of elemental power.

When Play does not go to Prep

https://gnomestew.com/when-play-does-not-go-to-prep/

Published: January 30, 2026 11:01

A few weeks ago, I was running my Blades in the Dark campaign, in the Free Play stage, waiting for the players to finish gathering information to kick off their score. I figured they needed to get a few details uncovered to be ready. I had even given them…

Gnomecast 229 – M&M 4E with Steve Kenson & Alex Thomas

https://gnomestew.com/gnomecast-229-mm-4e-with-steve-kenson-alex-thomas/

Published: January 28, 2026 12:00

https://polygamero.us/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/GC_230_Mutants-and-Masterminds-with-Kenson-and-Thomas_final.mp3 Join Ang along with special guests Steve Kenson and Alex Thomas from Green Ronin as they talk about Mutants & Masterminds Fourth Edition. You…

What Is a Situation in an RPG? How to Create Dynamic Play.

https://gnomestew.com/what-is-a-situation-in-an-rpg-how-to-create-dynamic-play/

Published: January 19, 2026 11:00

There’s an idea that adventures are like trains. Each train car is a scene that has an obstacle. You need to overcome the obstacle in the train car before you move onto the next train car. When you get to the last train car the adventure is over. You get…

Gnomecast 228 – From LARP to Tabletop with Ericka Skirpan

https://gnomestew.com/gnomecast-228-from-larp-to-tabletop-with-ericka-skirpan/

Published: January 14, 2026 12:00

https://polygamero.us/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/GC_229_from-larp-to-tabletop-with-Ericka-Skirpan_Final_a.mp3 Join Senda with Erika Skirpan as they have a conversation about safety in LARPs and Tabletop RPGs and how to do it in ways that enhance your…

Fresh Starts

https://gnomestew.com/fresh-starts/

Published: January 12, 2026 11:00

It’s a new year! Time for resolutions (I don’t do those, BTW). Time for fresh outlooks on life. Time to plan some goals (I do make goals for the year, BTW). Time for some fresh starts. These fresh starts can come in many forms. New characters. New…

Why this game?

https://gnomestew.com/why-this-game/

Published: December 19, 2025 11:00

For the most part, I pick the games I am going to run by, as the kids today say, vibes. It has always been instinctual. I hear about a game, the right ones set off my Spidey Sense, and I am hooked. That has been my method for the last 43 years. At…

Gnomecast 227 – Actual Play and Your Game

https://gnomestew.com/gnomecast-227-actual-play-and-your-game/

Published: December 17, 2025 12:00

https://polygamero.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/GC_228_AP-and-your-game.mp3 Join Ang, along with Chris and Josh as they talk about Actual Play games as entertainment and what we should and should not take away from them to use in our own games. Ang has…