Critical Thoughts

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Exploring big ideas and connecting through gaming, fantasy, and geek culture

Three adventurers in an underground river. Two are drowning, one drags them both to shore.

You didn't quit because you lost, you quit beca...

You didn't quit because you lost, you quit beca...

Players don't quit because their characters die. They quit because they lose hope. It’s never the TPK that kills the campaign. It’s the silence that follows—when no one knows why...

Three adventurers check their map while lost by an underground river

The alchemy of asking questions to shape reality

The alchemy of asking questions to shape reality

You're not lazy—you're just missing the quest “All that is gold does not glitter,Not all those who wander are lost;The old that is strong does not wither,Deep roots are not...

Three adventurers have recovered from a fall, now enjoy a meal by the fire

Magic never left, we just forgot how to see it

Magic never left, we just forgot how to see it

You Forgot Where You Are "The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though...

3 adventurers falling through a trap door in a dungeon

There's always another linchpin ready to pop out

There's always another linchpin ready to pop out

You feel it before you see it— That shift in the air. The stillness that suddenly becomes too still. Your torch flickers—not from a draft… but from something else. Something...

Luck is a Lie. Roll High or Die Trying.

Luck is a Lie. Roll High or Die Trying.

Luck is a Lie. Roll High or Die Trying.

Stop Blaming the Dice—The Game Is Rigged for Those Who Play You roll the dice. You fail. You call it bad luck. You try something new. You stumble. You say...

Use Your Enemies as Assets

Use Your Enemies as Assets

Use Your Enemies as Assets

The Attack is Coming. Good. Your enemies conspire against you. They whisper, they undermine, they wait for your misstep. Good. That doesn’t make you a victim. That makes you a...