Oisin Duffy
@oisinduffy15.bsky.social
He/They. AroAce. Ecologist, Leftist and TTRPG fan.
Reading complaints about TTRPG systems on Reddit is fun because a solid third of the times someone's complaining about a game it's clear that they've actually just ended up with a comically bad and hostile GM who would go out of their way to make any game miserable.
November 22, 2025 at 12:09 AM
Reading complaints about TTRPG systems on Reddit is fun because a solid third of the times someone's complaining about a game it's clear that they've actually just ended up with a comically bad and hostile GM who would go out of their way to make any game miserable.
Reposted by Oisin Duffy
I have way too many things to promote. I'm going to end up diluting my message! 😓
Let's start with the Kickstarter for GRAVITY, shall we, which is doing much better since the self-pity boost last weekend. Still need £640 to fund though -- that's 32 more hard copy sales!
Let's start with the Kickstarter for GRAVITY, shall we, which is doing much better since the self-pity boost last weekend. Still need £640 to fund though -- that's 32 more hard copy sales!
Gravity: A Roleplaying Game
A one-shot TTRPG about powerful people in a bad situation.
www.kickstarter.com
November 20, 2025 at 9:36 AM
I have way too many things to promote. I'm going to end up diluting my message! 😓
Let's start with the Kickstarter for GRAVITY, shall we, which is doing much better since the self-pity boost last weekend. Still need £640 to fund though -- that's 32 more hard copy sales!
Let's start with the Kickstarter for GRAVITY, shall we, which is doing much better since the self-pity boost last weekend. Still need £640 to fund though -- that's 32 more hard copy sales!
Been painting up the 30k Saturnine box. Here's the Praetor, Centurion and a tactical squad..
November 20, 2025 at 10:02 AM
Been painting up the 30k Saturnine box. Here's the Praetor, Centurion and a tactical squad..
The thing about systems matter discourse is that it's all upside. You have a better game for those who like mechanical integrity and for those who ignore that stuff, they'll do their own thing anyway with your game, so no great loss.
I just feel like if you say "system doesn't matter" and you're a game designer I don't know how I'm expected to ever take your games seriously.
November 14, 2025 at 11:44 PM
The thing about systems matter discourse is that it's all upside. You have a better game for those who like mechanical integrity and for those who ignore that stuff, they'll do their own thing anyway with your game, so no great loss.
Mine is that the primary purpose of accruing power in our society is to facilitate sexual violence rather than sexual violence being a by-product of our power structures.
"my least woke opinion is---"
That's enough. We've had enough people indulging in the "thrill of a little conservatism", as a treat. Of considering reactionary thought to be a salacious and taboo in a world descending into reactionary mania.
Give me your MOST woke opinions. We're bringing it back.
That's enough. We've had enough people indulging in the "thrill of a little conservatism", as a treat. Of considering reactionary thought to be a salacious and taboo in a world descending into reactionary mania.
Give me your MOST woke opinions. We're bringing it back.
November 14, 2025 at 11:27 AM
Mine is that the primary purpose of accruing power in our society is to facilitate sexual violence rather than sexual violence being a by-product of our power structures.
Thinking about this because I really wanted to love The Magnus Archives RPG and was really disappointed in it and the main problem is that the core premise of the game is a really bad adaptation of the source material.
Yeah. Also, you can make them about being ttrpgs rather than trying to recreate other kinds of media and not have to worry about the inherent problems of translation. I felt this extremely hard with The Magnus Archives TTRPG where it fails to be a compelling adapatation or TTRPG because its gameplay
November 12, 2025 at 11:34 AM
Thinking about this because I really wanted to love The Magnus Archives RPG and was really disappointed in it and the main problem is that the core premise of the game is a really bad adaptation of the source material.
What's interesting to me with Avatar Legends is that the system as designed can handle someone playing the Avatar just as well as anyone else. If anything, the game feels like it was initially designed around the Avatar and then spun out to other archetypes given the whole balance system.
You need to understand that there is both an officially licensed "Avatar: The Last Airbender" RPG where nobody is allowed to be the Avatar AND an officially licensed "Doctor Who" RPG where nobody is allowed to be the Doctor. The situation is dire.
November 12, 2025 at 11:20 AM
What's interesting to me with Avatar Legends is that the system as designed can handle someone playing the Avatar just as well as anyone else. If anything, the game feels like it was initially designed around the Avatar and then spun out to other archetypes given the whole balance system.
One of my favourite things about GMing Blades in the Dark is that I never have to pull my punches. Getting to go "Here's how you die horribly" and the player going "Actually, here's how I don't" and it be mechanically supported is so much fun
November 12, 2025 at 11:10 AM
One of my favourite things about GMing Blades in the Dark is that I never have to pull my punches. Getting to go "Here's how you die horribly" and the player going "Actually, here's how I don't" and it be mechanically supported is so much fun
Reposted by Oisin Duffy
My theory about Joyce Carol Oates is that all her bad posts are her charging up like Godzilla's spines until she lets loose with a radioactive blast that leaves the world's richest Nazi a pile of ash
November 9, 2025 at 2:31 PM
My theory about Joyce Carol Oates is that all her bad posts are her charging up like Godzilla's spines until she lets loose with a radioactive blast that leaves the world's richest Nazi a pile of ash
I say this as a fan of Trench Crusade so feel free to dismiss this as fan defensiveness but I genuinely find it kinda odd how the vast majority of negative criticisms I see about Trench Crusade that aren't from Christofascists or people with genuine issues about the Kickstarter reward rollouts have
November 10, 2025 at 10:26 AM
I say this as a fan of Trench Crusade so feel free to dismiss this as fan defensiveness but I genuinely find it kinda odd how the vast majority of negative criticisms I see about Trench Crusade that aren't from Christofascists or people with genuine issues about the Kickstarter reward rollouts have
This feels like kind of a non sequitur because the problem here isn't the mechanics, it's the terms of discussion. If course there's nothing special about mechanics when talking about them in a white room devoid of context, but mechanics when implemented don't exist that way.
Game mechanics aren't that special.
There is nothing inherently better about rolling 2d6 vs a d12, rolling over or under a stat for a skill check, or using tokens.
The special part is when you, the designer, noticing how a particular mechanic lets you share a part of the human experience
There is nothing inherently better about rolling 2d6 vs a d12, rolling over or under a stat for a skill check, or using tokens.
The special part is when you, the designer, noticing how a particular mechanic lets you share a part of the human experience
November 10, 2025 at 8:49 AM
This feels like kind of a non sequitur because the problem here isn't the mechanics, it's the terms of discussion. If course there's nothing special about mechanics when talking about them in a white room devoid of context, but mechanics when implemented don't exist that way.
Reposted by Oisin Duffy
When people talk about the excesses of MeToo, they have to lie, because the reality is that there was no massive social reckoning forcing people to believe survivors or hold perpetrators accountable. In fact, there has been a significant backsliding and new punishments in rejection of MeToo
November 6, 2025 at 4:33 PM
When people talk about the excesses of MeToo, they have to lie, because the reality is that there was no massive social reckoning forcing people to believe survivors or hold perpetrators accountable. In fact, there has been a significant backsliding and new punishments in rejection of MeToo
Let's hop on this.
Judge me based on 4 favourite films, GO!
Judge me based on 4 favourite films, GO!
November 6, 2025 at 10:18 AM
Let's hop on this.
Judge me based on 4 favourite films, GO!
Judge me based on 4 favourite films, GO!
I think there's lots of reasons. One is scheduling. TTRPGs generally require the same group of people to be consistently available. If you do 5 a side soccer in a club of like 20 people, people not being able to make it consistently doesn't matter because so long as you have your minimum, you're
TTRPG Question of the Day
What do you think keeps more people from playing TTRPGs?
It's be said that TTRPGs are in the spotlight more than ever before. They're referenced frequently in shows. There are movies & TV series based on them. Some have become video games. So why don't more people play?
What do you think keeps more people from playing TTRPGs?
It's be said that TTRPGs are in the spotlight more than ever before. They're referenced frequently in shows. There are movies & TV series based on them. Some have become video games. So why don't more people play?
November 6, 2025 at 9:36 AM
I think there's lots of reasons. One is scheduling. TTRPGs generally require the same group of people to be consistently available. If you do 5 a side soccer in a club of like 20 people, people not being able to make it consistently doesn't matter because so long as you have your minimum, you're
Saw a Reddit post about rules light vs rules heavy and while I think it's basically a false dichotomy I think maybe a better way to frame that conversation is "how much do you need to know to start playing?" Someone can hand you a character sheet in DND and introduce each part of the game piecemeal
November 4, 2025 at 5:59 PM
Saw a Reddit post about rules light vs rules heavy and while I think it's basically a false dichotomy I think maybe a better way to frame that conversation is "how much do you need to know to start playing?" Someone can hand you a character sheet in DND and introduce each part of the game piecemeal
I'm reading through Brindlewood Bay at the moment and something I love about good pbtas like it is how much of the book is devoted to explaining how to use the rules rather than just laying out a bunch of mechanics and expecting you to figure it out.
November 4, 2025 at 3:45 PM
I'm reading through Brindlewood Bay at the moment and something I love about good pbtas like it is how much of the book is devoted to explaining how to use the rules rather than just laying out a bunch of mechanics and expecting you to figure it out.
Ultimately not that bothered about the move to plastic kits for Trench Crusade once they get their logistics and shipping under control. Like, I like having the 3d printer and being able to digitally kitbash and mess around with my models, but it's not like the old STLs or the 3rd party stuff is
November 4, 2025 at 10:21 AM
Ultimately not that bothered about the move to plastic kits for Trench Crusade once they get their logistics and shipping under control. Like, I like having the 3d printer and being able to digitally kitbash and mess around with my models, but it's not like the old STLs or the 3rd party stuff is
The nice thing about playing games that actually suit your playstyle instead of D&D is more often than not you won't need to rule of cool shit because the game already facilitates what you want.
November 3, 2025 at 11:36 PM
The nice thing about playing games that actually suit your playstyle instead of D&D is more often than not you won't need to rule of cool shit because the game already facilitates what you want.
It's fun how Klein has decided that people disagreeing with him is good, but also that disagreement is enough and he never needs to learn or change.
November 3, 2025 at 1:35 PM
It's fun how Klein has decided that people disagreeing with him is good, but also that disagreement is enough and he never needs to learn or change.
Legit think the litmus test for whether someone is good at Pathfinder 2e (or if they have a bad GM tbf) is if they think the Investigator is a good class or not.
November 3, 2025 at 12:24 PM
Legit think the litmus test for whether someone is good at Pathfinder 2e (or if they have a bad GM tbf) is if they think the Investigator is a good class or not.
Feel like that's kinda the point...
Yeah. And the visuals for me honestly kinda fail cuz like… Can you tell by looking which of these is a Christian and which is a Satanist?
October 30, 2025 at 5:42 PM
Feel like that's kinda the point...
Maybe I'm biased, but it also seems particularly connected to D&D as opposed to other games. Maybe because the dice are so swingy there combined with the culture of downplaying the game design in favour of what is basically superstition (lucky d20s, dice jail, etc.). Like I found that all dice
Dice consumerism is something I really hate about this hobby.
October 30, 2025 at 10:28 AM
Maybe I'm biased, but it also seems particularly connected to D&D as opposed to other games. Maybe because the dice are so swingy there combined with the culture of downplaying the game design in favour of what is basically superstition (lucky d20s, dice jail, etc.). Like I found that all dice
Maybe this is the scientist in me speaking, but your creative and personal writing will always be better when you actively engage with surrounding literature in your work.
October 30, 2025 at 10:11 AM
Maybe this is the scientist in me speaking, but your creative and personal writing will always be better when you actively engage with surrounding literature in your work.
This is the thing. The whole games should cost more line of argument is one that relies on vulgar oversimplification rather than engaging with the aaa segment of the industry as it is right now.
"games should cost more" is dumb and most of you thinking they should be more expensive are forgetting what N64 cartridges cost to ship and manufacture and simplistic inflation comparisons might be the stupidest shit I've seen all day lol
October 23, 2025 at 6:38 PM
This is the thing. The whole games should cost more line of argument is one that relies on vulgar oversimplification rather than engaging with the aaa segment of the industry as it is right now.
Coming back to running Pathfinder 2e after years of mainly world of Darkness and indie stuff has really shown me how even in low combat games, that non combat play is largely just preludes to combat
The fundamental disconnect I am starting to put together here, which I'm sure someone else has long since beat me to, is people keep conflating what you CAN do with a game versus what the game itself actually IS, and do not seem capable of separating the two out from one another
You can roleplay in anything, you can roleplay in fucking Monopoly if you want, and if you see that and go "well that sounds dumb" then congrats, you know what it's like to be told that a game can have 200 pages about combat and two paragraphs for Diplomacy checks and not "be about violence" somehow
October 21, 2025 at 11:25 AM
Coming back to running Pathfinder 2e after years of mainly world of Darkness and indie stuff has really shown me how even in low combat games, that non combat play is largely just preludes to combat