Next on Master Plan: Cartography with Mark Richardson

February 3, 2015
Future Episode Announcement | | 1 Comment

This coming Saturday, February 7th, Ryan will talk with Mark Richardson, professional cartographer and creator-publisher. For the last 15 years, he’s made cartography a career in Canada. (I’ve seen some of his work, and it’s pretty amazing.) Now he freelances as a mapper for RPGs, including for Will Hindmarch’s Project: Dark. We’ll talk about the process of creating maps of made-up and real world locations from the standpoints of his job as a cartographer and of a creator-publisher’s needs.

This will be a live G+ Hangouts on the Air interview, with the audio-only version on the podcast feed later that day.

Time: Saturday, February 7th, 2015 — 3pm Eastern, 12am Pacific — 1 hour

G+ Hangout Event: plus.google.com/events/c3ql16ib6v5dnq1rfqmpq44057s

We’ll also talk a bit about his upcoming RPG Headspace, and I’ll ask him how he’s planning on using his cartography skills for his own publication.

If you have cartography design and process questions, or on working with a cartographer, please comment on this post[1] or use the Q&A feature during the Hangout. I’ll take your questions in the latter third of the interview.

– Ryan

[1] Last time I did one of these, the comments didn’t come to me in time to process from some reason. I’ll keep better watch this time. But the Q&A app on the Hangout page should work this time.

Master Plan #66: Robin D. Laws on RPG Setting Design

January 21, 2015
Interview, Live | , | Comments Off on Master Plan #66: Robin D. Laws on RPG Setting Design

Ryan kicks on one of his planned 2015 interview series—this one on setting design in roleplaying games—by talking with luminary and setting veteran Robin D. Laws. Robin’s well known for his work in Feng Shui (and the recently Kickstarted second edition), the Dying Earth RPG, and various games using his GUMSHOE and DramaSystem engines.

Works that we brought up that you can check out now:

If you want more Robin goodness, check out Ken and Robin Talk About Stuff.

– Ryan

59:35 /29.2M

View on YouTube: youtube.com/watch?v=BeG2XtV-C1g

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 59:35 — 27.9MB) | Embed

Next on Master Plan: RPG Setting Design with Robin D. Laws

January 13, 2015
Future Episode Announcement | 11 Comments

On Tuesday, January 20th, 2015, I’ll chat with tabletop luminary Robin D. Laws about the craft of creating compelling roleplaying game settings for publication. He’s forged numerous RPG settings, including his compelling GUMSHOE games (The Esoterrorists, Mutant City Blues, Ashen Stars), his DramaSystem settings (Hillfolk, Blood on the Snow), and the recently crowdfunded Feng Shui 2.

This will be a live G+ Hangouts on the Air interview, with the audio-only version on the podcast feed later that day.

Time: Tuesday, January 20th, 2015 — 1pm Eastern, 10am Pacific — 1 hour

G+ Hangout Event: plus.google.com/u/0/events/cm312d9pf05dh3duec1m9ii6b2g

We’ll talk about what a setting designer needs to think about when bringing a setting concept forward into a book for others around the world to enjoy. What are the dos and don’ts of setting design? What common pitfalls are there, and how do we get around them? What tips and tricks does Robin use?

Part of why I want to talk with Robin about this is because with Hillfolk and Blood on the Snow, Robin sheparded a number of writers (including yours truly) into making gameable settings in a short format. I’m excited for this interview, for him to share his insights with you and me.

If you have questions, please comment on this post or use the Q&A feature during the Hangout. I’ll take your questions in the latter third of the interview.

– Ryan