TardisCaptain's Blog of Holding

Path is the topic for Day 12 of the RPGaDAY 2025 Challenge. I kind of struggled with this really generic prompt. I was thinking about blogging about the different paths prevalent in the missions for the Star Trek Timelines mobile game. There is also a lot of good information in the X-Treme Dungeon Mastery 2nd Edition book about the path that the GM can provide for the players at the table that I’d recommend reading. However, I think I’m going to take a controversial take on an RPG topic regarding the player’s path.

When is it a good idea to “railroad” the characters in a game? For those not familiar with the concept, a railroad plot is one where there is a beginning and an end, but very little wiggle room for the players to take the shared story-telling experience in a different direction. A lot of players dislike being railroaded because it feels like they are being taken along on the journey instead of helping to develop it through roleplay. Hence, there is only one track for them to travel down. This would be very bad for a campaign.

And that is where our answer comes into play. When a game is not part of a campaign, but a one-shot with limited time. I used this when I was GMing for the 5e group being introduced to OSR gaming because it was a one-shot that lasted for over six hours. I’ve also been both a GM and a player at several SaltCONs. At the most, we have four hours for a time-slot and we’ve got to get to the conclusion of the game. Sure, we may be able to turn left or right in a maze-like dungeon, but the goal was still the same. Get out alive or find the item we came to get. Hence, the railroad. There have been some games that I’ve run in a one-shot where I’ve apologized in advance about the fact that they will be railroaded at the start to get the story moving along. But I remember a couple of one-shots where the GM didn’t keep the game on track and the players got bored, or worse, let the players get really out-of-control derailing the whole story (we never made it out of the house of the noble trying to hire the party). That last example was one of the weirdest sessions I had ever experienced at the gaming table.

So, if you are running a campaign, give the plot some wiggle room (with the appropriate bumpers to keep the collective storytelling moving forward) but with a one-shot, don’t feel guilty about railroading the players.

What are your thoughts on this? Am I incorrect in my thinking or on the right track (Pun? Yea it’s a pun) Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com with any comments.

Day 6 of the RPGaDAY 2025 Challenge and the graphic posted above shows “Motive” to be our topic of the day. Another vague topic that could cover just about anything. I’ve read a few other blog posts so far about today’s topic and I think I’ve decided where I’m going to take this.

What motivates you to participate in a roleplaying game related activity?

Do you just want to sit at the table to throw dice, eat pizza and spend time with your friends? Do you want to put together challenging puzzles and scenarios for the players to solve? Do you want to write the backstory to flesh out a set of numbers written down on a character sheet? Do you want to spend some time painting a small miniature that just came out of your 3D-printer? Do you want to attend a gaming convention where you play a bunch of one-shots over the weekend with possible new friends? Do you need more shiny math rocks that go klicky klack when they roll across the table? Do you love figuring out how RPG systems work and if they can be applied to the style of game you want to play? Do you love participating in the Character Creation Challenge even though you may never get a chance to play that character? Do you post on blogs or social media websites about our hobby? Do you get frustrated when the scheduling conflict monster and that damn real life gets in the way of your gaming time?

I feel ya. Well except for the painting miniatures part. I never had the patience to do that which only makes me appreciate those who can.

But our motivation to do this comes down to one word. Fun. It is fun to do? To play? To go through the frustration of getting things put together? The players should have fun, as well as the game master. When you commit to a game, be there on time, be prepared to play, pay attention at the table. Your fellow players planned to be there, the GM put a lot of hard work into the game. Don’t play the character in a way that it’s an asshole unless the game was set up to have the PCs be bad guys. Those types of people don’t last in real-world groups, why would a group of adventurers who are risking their lives want to protect someone like that?

A fun game is one where both the players and the GM are thinking about the next session. This type of energy motivates them to get ready for the next session. I have many memories of talking with the other players between sessions about what we were going to do next. I love it when my players have that same motivation.

What motivated you today about our RPG hobby? This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com with any comments.

I was wondering what I was going to do for the Day 5 of the RPGaDAY 2025 Challenge. The prompt is “Ancient.” A quick search gave me the definition of “Belonging to the very distant past or having been in existence for a very long time.” Then it hit me, something ancient that still exists would be worth a lot for its rarity, functionality or long-lost information waiting to be uncovered. This is system agnostic for any fantasy roleplaying game.

Adventure Idea: The Battle Record of Anthelstan:
The adventurers are in (or from) the long-lasting Kingdom of Anthelheim. The Royal Family of Anthelheim lays claim to the throne since their bloodline originated with the ancient warrior-king Anthelstan. This is kept in the royal tome known as The Battle Record of Anthelstan. This rare book is only accessible to the first family and the guild of scribes; however, it is brought out on special occasions where the different guild leaders read passages from the book to the public. It was written by the First Scribe who followed the young king on his adventures and recorded down the events for posterity. The first warrior-king brings about a sense of pride in the people of Anthelheim for his many good deeds in uniting the warring clans and forming the first kingdom.

The party is approached by a middleman/mysterious figure/confidant/??? who wants to hire the party to perform a discreet search. Apparently, a hireling of a known adventure offered to sell to a guild master/prominent figure/member of a crime family/etc. an ancient parchment which matches the first page of The Battle Record of Anthelstan. They were with the adventurer when it was found while searching for the lost battlefield of Draag’s Deep and claimed they just barely escaped from the traps that took their master’s life. The problem is the first page in The Battle Record of Anthelstan is still attached to the book that was seen in the recent Festival of Thrax and Alyton. Is this page a fake? Is it part of another copy of The Battle Record of Anthelstan? The benefactor hiring the party wants to confirm if this second book exists. Who wants the book? Someone wanting to keep an ancient secret? Someone who wants to present another record of a blood line? Who else knows about this page? Is someone else looking for the book?

Pushes adventure seed into the ground and pours some water on it. Take this tidbit and let it grow. But share with me if you run an adventure from this idea. I’d love to hear how it turns out.

Did this idea inspire you? What else could I have done with the topic of “ancient”? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com with any comments.