The Contemporary Quixotist

I’m not sure why I never thought of this before. While browsing through the Onsite Registration Book for Origins 2011, it dawned on me what I had in my hands – a long list of one- or two-sentence plot summaries for tons of RPG sessions! What better source of inspiration when one is looking for a quick idea for an RPG plotline?  Each entry, while very short, could easily be brainstormed into an extended adventure – and for plot twists, you could try combining two or more of them!

So save those old con books – pull the RPG Event sections out if you don’t have the room for the whole book – and take one down off of the shelf the next time you need an idea for a plot!

The Everyone Everywhere List by Erik James Olsrud is low on frills and high on utility – it’s a list of names from several cultures – from African, American, and Arabic to Turkish, Vietnamese, and Viking – to help with naming your next PC, a pivotal NPC, or just when you need a quick name for a bystander, but don’t want to name them “Bob” or “Mary” again.

There’s a special section for pulp/noir names and modern American first names and surnames, plus a list of town and city names for when you need to quickly get out of Dodge, and need to know the name of the next town over.

There isn’t a specific section for fantasy names, but just browsing through the whole PDF will net you several will little effort.

All name lists are numbered so you can roll randomly if you wish. The entire document is 31 pages, so a printed copy will fit easily in your gaming binder for quick reference – and at $3.99, the price is certainly right.

Just got back from Origins last night (we spent most of Monday driving home).

I’ve got a case of the convention sores – sore back from driving, sore feet from walking, and a sore brain from playing games, being creative, and meeting other creative people.

They’re the good kind of sores, though. I don’t mind having them at all, and of the three, I like the latter one the most.

And the experience has reminded me that I really need to post to this blog more often. And so I shall!

(I’ll also have a con report posted on The Escapist soon, and when it goes up, I’ll put a link here…)