I have an article printed in Bayt Al Azif #5: “The Three Clue Rule!”

“Now wait a minute,” you say. “I’m familiar with the Three Clue Rule. In fact, I can read that article right here on the Alexandrian!”

That’s true!

But this particular version of “The Three Clue Rule” has been revised and rewritten. The original version of the essay was written in 2008. In fact, today is the 15th Anniversary of the Three Clue Rule! There are people reading this today who weren’t even born when the Three Clue Rule was published.  I’ve learned a lot in the last fifteen years and I wanted to bring the “Three Clue Rule” into accord with that. (For example, the terms “node-based scenario design” and “scenario structure” didn’t even exist yet in 2008.)

Now, to be perfectly honest, if you’re already a long-time fan of the Alexandrian, this new-and-improved version of “The Three Clue Rule” probably isn’t a good enough reason to grab a copy of Bayt Al Azif #5 all by itself. The new tools I’ve incorporated into the article are things you can also find lurking around on the site.

But Bayt Al Azif is just a fantastic magazine for Cthulhu roleplaying, so it’s worth checking out regardless! Issue #5, for example, includes:

• Interviews with John Tynes, Shanna Germain, and Sean K. Reynolds
• “Die Not Gloriously,” a Trojan War scenario by Rina Haenze
• “The Human Element,” a look at good starter scenarios by Lisa Padol
• “Dead Man’s Chest,” a Golden Age of Piracy scenario by Stefan Droste
• Shannon Appelcline’s “Designs & Dragons Next: Arc Dream Publishing 2007-Present”

And more!

FROM MACMILLAN & PAGE STREET PUBLISHING

COMING TO A BOOKSTORE NEAR YOU
OCTOBER 31st, 2023!

Long-time fans of the Alexandrian who have been asking to have the site’s incredible trove of GMing lore collected into a book: This is what you’ve been waiting for. It’s your complete guide to:

• Dungeons
• Megadungeons
• Mysteries
• Node-based adventures
• Raids
• Heists
• Factions
• Urbancrawls
• Social events
• Routes
• Hexcrawls
• Pointcrawls

Plus a huge selection of extra credit, including:

• Creating Your Campaign
• Campaign Status Documents
• Learning a New RPG
• The Open Table
• Quick-and-Dirty Worldbuilding
• Rumor Tables
• Running Combat
• Scenario Hooks
• Supporting Cast
• Splitting the Party

But these aren’t just your familiar favorites. The book is chock full of brand new material, too! And everything has been freshly updated into a comprehensive and cohesive volume — the most authoritative book ever written about being a Game Master.

FROM THE BACK COVER

Have you ever wanted to step into your favorite movie or book or television series? Do you want to take your friends on impossible adventures? Do you want to play a cunning elf, a daring spy, a brilliant detective, or a dastardly villain? Do you want to create new worlds?

Do you want to be a Game Master?

Millions of people have discovered the amazing opportunities for creativity, problem-solving, and — most importantly! — fun offered by tabletop roleplaying games. Do you have what it takes to join them? Whether you’re thinking about playing Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, Vampire: The Masquerade, Cyberpunk RED, Star Wars, The Witcher, or any one of the countless other roleplaying games that let you go on adventures with your friends while playing characters of your own creation, this book is the key to unlocking the limitless vistas of your imagination.

ENnie Award-winning game designer Justin Alexander offers you the only true step-by-step guide to becoming a Game Master. In less than an hour, you’ll have all the tools you need to run your first adventure (including the adventure itself!). From there, Alexander guides you one step at a time, showing you how to create your own adventures along with the practical, actionable tips and tricks you’ll need to share them with confidence. With your friends you’ll explore dungeons, solve mysteries, steal priceless artifacts, unravel strange conspiracies, and venture forth on epic journeys!

And even if you’ve been playing for decades, So You Want to Be a Game Master? will level your game up with never-before-revealed secret techniques and a huge selection of extra credit lessons that will blow your players away.

PREORDER NOW!

Also available in France, Germany, Spain, Japan, Brazil, Australia, and worldwide! Search your regional sites online or check with your favorite local bookstore!

Here’s a fun announcement: Rebel.pl, the official Polish publishers of Dungeons & Dragons, have licensed Act I of the Avernus Remix, translated and adapted it into Polish, and released it as an official PDF sidekick for the campaign.

This is really cool for me because it’s technically my first official D&D book.

If you’re Polish, it’s cool for you because I’m sure it’s an awesome book for your campaign! (I, unfortunately, do not understand a word of Polish. So if you do, let us know how they did!)

If you’re not Polish, this is cool for you because this PDF includes a bunch of original graphical resources and maps that you may find useful for your Descent Into Avernus or Baldur’s Gate-based campaigns.

The book is currently free on the DM’s Guild, so it’s the perfect time to grab a copy!

D&D BALDUR’S GATE: SIDEKICK
ZSTĄPIENIE DO AVERNUSA: POMOCNIK
Rebel.pl – 2021
(Designer)
PDF Edition

Justin Alexander is one of the most prolific and insightful RPG writers around. Between his long-running blog at The Alexandrian, his work at Atlas Games, his hundreds of published books and articles, he has among the most in-depth knowledge of what makes for great gaming. And right now he’s been following the drama with WOTC trying to break the OGL 1.0 as close as anyone. What’s Justin’s outlook for the future of Open Gaming and Atlas Games?

Wandering DMs Paul Siegel and Dan “Delta” Collins host thoughtful discussions on D&D and other TTRPGs every week. Comparing the pros and cons of every edition from the 1974 Original D&D little brown books to cutting-edge releases for 5E D&D today, they broadcast live on YouTube and Twitch so we can take viewer questions and comments on the topic of the day. Live every Sunday at 1 PM Eastern time.

Watch here!

After the bombshell report by friend-of-the-show Linda Codega on Wizards of the Coast’s disastrous new version of the Open Gaming License, we discuss the controversy with two guests: Justin Alexander and LegalKimchi. We dive into what the Open Gaming License (OGL) is, its history and context, the legal issues raised by the new document, why no company in their right mind will sign the new license, the reasoning that may be guiding WotC’s decision, and where companies and fans can go from here.

Listen Here!