Arid landscapes present a huge variety of scenes, interesting terrain, and challenging conditions. A GM/geologist highlights unusual story elements that can enliven your next desert adventure.
Description:
Desert landscapes are classic settings for adventures, yet they hold lots of unexplored potential for plot twists and gaming experiences. Even before adding fantastic elements to a desert setting, a GM can draw on a rich array of arid region landforms and natural processes to give distinctive environmental character to a campaign. We’ll talk about worse hazards than snakes, unexpected barriers to movement, and problems with too little and too much water. We’ll visit hogbacks, star dunes, badlands, rock windows, arroyos, hoodoos, and other weird spots. This session gives GMs, game designers, and writers (any genre) a chance to discuss story opportunities and gameplay factors with a GM/geologist. Scott Rice-Snow is author of 'Landscapes for Writers and Game Masters - Building Authentic Natural Terrain into Imagined Worlds', from McFarland Books.
Rivers are barriers, travel routes, and watering places. Place your players/readers in memorable river scenes! Examine their distinctive challenges with a GM/geologist.
Description:
This session is for GMs, game designers, and writers (any genre). Your adventurers make journeys on rivers, struggle to cross them, and seek them to sustain life (also maybe for a badly needed bath). See how your story can be enhanced by richly depicting one of the distinctive types of river channels, considering natural patterns of sandbars and islands, and incorporating tricks that currents and streambed erosion can play on unwary travelers. How does a river’s look and behavior change as you travel downstream? What interesting, game-changing terrain elements inhabit river floodplains? How are floods different from one river to another? Make each river scene memorable, with the help of a GM/geologist. Scott Rice-Snow is author of 'Landscapes for Writers and Game Masters - Building Authentic Natural Terrain into Imagined Worlds', from McFarland Books.