As playtesting of Realm of Runes continues driving the system to be the best it can be, the rulebook art (by the fantastic Nikki...

Many characters in Realm of Runes can learn spells directly through their class, and those that can't can still make use of magic through...

Combat is not the point of a tabletop role-playing game, but it is an important aspect of what makes such games fun and interesting. It...

Every character is unique. Even those that share ancestry and class can be very different from each other, and there are myriad...

An involuntary quest to slay a dragon is much harder when only pretending to be a wizard. Can a fake magician become a real hero?

Many characters have access to magic directly through choice of class. Those that are primary casting classes have spell slots that can...

In a universe with deities that are tangible beings that can and do intervene directly in the lives of mortals, ethics takes on a more...

There are some aspects of character improvement that aren't so powerful that they must always wait for a new level to achieve. ...

Even when "underhanded" tactics are eschewed by players, poison and disease still play a large recurring role in many campaigns. ...

Traps occupy an odd space in encounter design, since they typically only work as expected if nobody notices them. Unless encountered...

A staple of RPGs is the challenges that the player characters face as they adventure. Perhaps the most diverse and interesting...

As important as rules are for a role-playing game, they are only the skeleton. Its the stories told using those rules that make for fun...

Whereas other classes have innate magic, or are granted their magic by deities, blood or other powers beyond their control, Wizards earn...

It's inevitable. No matter how many classes there are, will be, or how diverse the options are within those classes, there will be...

We interrupt our ongoing exploration of the design of Realm of Runes to let you know that Lee Draper (also the one writing these blogs)...

Potent spellcasters by inheritance rather than choice, Sorcerers draw upon the capability of their magically-infused blood for...

One important aspect of any tabletop roleplaying game is not covered in the rules, but is the rules themselves, and how they're supported...

Ever since the class was simply called "Thief," Rogues have been a major part of the iconic party construction, and one of the first...

One aspect of roleplaying games that often goes overlooked is language and communication. Even when multiple different languages are in...

Skilled hunters and outdoorsmen, Rangers are often more at home in the wild than they are in civilization. While some Rangers are to...