Category Archives: Articles

In-depth articles not necessarily related to a single game product.

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Raising Ragnarok Adventure Seed

  By Jacob Wood • April 7, 2020
This entry is part 4 of 4 in the seriesGame Concepts

This entry is part 4 of 4 in the series Game Concepts

The following is an adventure seed for Raising Ragnarok, written in the style of Fire Starters.

Fimblewinter

The long winter is upon you. Both the Sun and Moon have been swallowed whole, and the world has been plunged into eternal darkness. The cocks have crowed, and both Fenrir and Loki have been unleashed from their fetters.

Ragnarok has finally come.

As a proud warrior, you are ready for the end. You welcome it without fear. This harsh reality will last for but an instant in the grand scheme of the universe, and you will go down fighting until the very end.

For now, the dead are rising and it is your job to put them back into the ground before they consume everything you … Continue reading →

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Concept: Raising Ragnarok

  By Jacob Wood • March 31, 2020
This entry is part 3 of 4 in the seriesGame Concepts

This entry is part 3 of 4 in the series Game Concepts

One idea I had several years ago was to make a Norse-themed RPG with a bit of a twist.

You may be familiar with the concept of Ragnarok. It is essentially the Norse version of Armageddon. The events  of Ragnarok are fated and everything that will happen during the time is said to be known. Some of these events include:

 

  • The Sun will not rise and the Earth will be bathed in darkness.
  • Fimblewinter, the harshest  Winter we’ve ever known, will fall upon the Earth and make life difficult for everyone.
  • The dead will rise from their graves.
  • Demons will sail in on a ship of bones, called Naglfar, and begin tormenting people.
  • The Aesir gods (Odin, Thor, Freya, etc.) will face off against their enemies including frost giants, Loki, the Midgard Serpent, … Continue reading →
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Indie Heroes, Continued

  By Jacob Wood • March 27, 2020
This entry is part 2 of 4 in the seriesGame Concepts

This entry is part 2 of 4 in the series Game Concepts

Rather than go over more of the random ideas floating around in my head, I thought I’d take a little time to hash out some of the concepts I wrote about in my last post.

Universal Subsystem

Expanding on the idea that Indie Heroes can be attached to any Supers RPG, Indie Heroes is a new subsystem of rules designed specifically to help facilitate the Indie Heroes story concept. These rules don’t include character creation, powers, etc.

As a new subsystem, it’s probably easier to use these with a lightweight rule system rather than something like Champions, because it’s going to be more to keep track of.

Doing Jobs and Getting Paid

Many Supers RPGs don’t bother with keeping track of individual character wealth. If they do at all, it’s usually to make wealth a … Continue reading →

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Concept: Indie Heroes

  By Jacob Wood • March 26, 2020
This entry is part 1 of 4 in the seriesGame Concepts

This entry is part 1 of 4 in the series Game Concepts

Like many people, I have found myself with a little extra free time lately due to the near ubiquitous lockdowns in reaction to the Corona Virus. While I am still blessed to have my day job, our work has been a bit slow and I’m using a bit of that extra time to connect with my readers (don’t tell my boss).

When I’m struck with random inspiration for a game, I jot down my ideas in a list and save them to my computer for future reference. Generally I have trouble finding any free time to work on these concepts, but just writing down the basics helps get them out of my head so I don’t have to worry about them when working on my larger and more important projects. I’m going to try to … Continue reading →

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Game Masters as Leaders

  By Jacob Wood • June 19, 2018

There has been an idea simmering in my head for a while now, so I decided to write down the basics and share it with you.

Last August, I received my Bachelor of Arts degree in Management and Organizational Leadership. Through my degree program, I learned a lot about communication, facilitation, organizational theory, and various leadership styles.

As I read and studied my textbooks, I kept coming back to this theory that being a great Game Master is like being a great leader. There is a lot of overlap between the two titles, and building your skills in one helps build your skills with the other. A lot of my time spent GMing has helped me improve on some of the skills I depend on as a leader, and learning about leadership has taught me to be a better GM.

Around the time I finished my degree, I thought I’d … Continue reading →

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Part-Time Gods 2e, Interview with Eloy Lasanta

  By Jacob Wood • May 23, 2018

Introduction

Eloy Lasanta, a friend of Accessible Games and all-around good guy, is running a Kickstarter campaign for Part-Time Gods 2nd Edition (PTG2e). It is already successfully funded as of this article’s publication date, but he’s working on some fabulous stretch goals which will enhance the game.

When I first learned of PTG2e I was stoked. I am an enormous fan of the first edition, and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for its future. Eloy described this as the game he always wanted to write but didn’t have the experience for, but now with dozens of books to his name he’s finally in a place where he can really make this setting ascend to greatness. As soon as I heard about the Kickstarter campaign I reached out to Eloy to do an interview, and what follows is a transcript.

Interview

Eloy is the owner of Third … Continue reading →

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Interview with T. Dave Silva about Metahumans Rising

  By Jacob Wood • September 29, 2017

Metahumans Rising Logo

We have another interview for you, this time from T. Dave Silva of House Dok. His new supers game, Metahumans Rising, is currently on Kickstarter.

Interview

Accessible Games: First of all, thanks for taking the time to talk about accessibility with us. For those of us who aren’t familiar with your work, can you tell us a little about yourself and what you’ve published in the past?

DS: As a gamer for about 30 years I’ve played, I don’t know how many, different RPGs. I think that the indie press shift for role playing games has really opened the door for people to express ideas or themes that might not have been represented in the past. It’s part of what inspired me to try and publish our first … Continue reading →

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Interview with Todd Crapper about High Plains Samurai

  By Jacob Wood • June 8, 2017

High Plains Samurai Kickstarter ImageTodd Crapper, also known+ as The Warden, is the founder of Broken Ruler Games and the designer behind the award-winning Killshot and ENnie-nominated ScreenPlay. His latest effort, High Plains Samurai, is currently on Kickstarter.

I had the opportunity to talk to Todd about his new game and his plans for making it accessible. If you’re into RPGs with over-the-top action and adventure, read on.

Interview

Accessible Games: First of all, thanks for taking the time to talk about accessibility with us. For those of us who aren’t familiar with your work, can you tell us a little about yourself and what you’ve published in the past?

Todd Crapper: Certainly. My name is Todd Crapper (though I have also published under the pseudonym of … Continue reading →

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Guns, Babies, and Gamestorm 17

  By Jacob Wood • April 14, 2015

Introduction

Once again, Gamestorm came to the Portland area on the third weekend of March. This year was a bit different for me as it marked the first year I participated as an industry guest. I spoke on a few panels, ran a few games, and played… unfortunately not very much. But the time I spent at Gamestorm this year was fun, and it was nice to see some old familiar faces and to meet a few new ones.

Friday, March 20th

Gamestorm is a four-day event running from Thursday evening through Sunday afternoon. I had to work the day job on Thursday so I didn’t get to arrive until Friday morning, but that’s when most of the real fun starts so I don’t think I missed much.

I kicked off Friday morning with a 10 a.m. panel about Accessibility in Gaming. This is the first year I’ve been a … Continue reading →

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Gamestorm 16: Day Three

  By Jacob Wood • March 29, 2014
This entry is part 3 of 3 in the seriesGamestorm 16

This entry is part 3 of 3 in the series Gamestorm 16

Day three of Gamestorm 16 was a lot slower and more laid back than previous years. I had no real plans other than to hang out with some friends and play a few board games, and that’s exactly what I did.

My friend’s wife joined us for the entire day, and my own wife had plans to show up in the afternoon. The day was short (most areas of the con closed around 4:00 p.m.) but it was still a lot of fun.

Late Start, Lifeboats

Since we had no plans, we didn’t even leave the house until around 9:30 a.m. The three of us reached the convention hotel around 10:00, and we went and grabbed a bite to eat before getting started.

We started out looking for a game to play, … Continue reading →