The Death Cookie

1. Archetype of the Week: The Holy Man
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

... is often difficult to distinguish between a true servant of God and a delusional psychopath. Likely Stories Since most cultures have some form of religion, holy men can appear in just about ...

2. Archetype of the Week: The Noble Savage
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

... is generally less overtly primitive than the noble savage, the core concept of a character who is wise despite his otherness is very similar. Likely Stories The noble savage most commonly appears ...

3. Archetype of the Week: The Boy Scout
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

...  ethics, and idealistic beliefs can at times border on hokey. In other words, your classic Lawful Good Paladin from D&D. Likely Stories While the boy scout can appear in any type of story, he thrives ...

4. Archetype of the Week: The Warrior
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

... for example. Likely Stories The warrior is universal archetype that appears in nearly every genre of fiction. The only real difference between warriors from one genre to the next is the technology ...

5. A Six Pack of Stagger Lee
(Features/Gaming Articles)

...  Edna Ferber's book Showboat). However, the most likely origin of the tale comes from St. Louis, where a man named "Stag" Lee Shelton (or Sheldon) killed a William Lyons when Lyons grabbed Shelton's ...

6. Archetype of the Week: The Rookie
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

... sufficiently tragic to spur the heroes on so they can avenge him. Likely Stories While the rookie is most common in action movies, similar characters appear in all kinds of stories: in Westerns, ...

7. Archetype of the Week: The Trickster
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

... on Taxi), he was the fool; as Tony Clifton, Andy embodied the trickster. In literature, the trickster is often revealed to be something more than he pretends, usually a king or a god. Likely Stories ...

8. Archetype of the Week: The Fool
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

... competent minions) to cause a lot of damage. Likely Stories The fool is a universal archetype who can appear in any type of story. The Name Game Fools often have names that are funny or unusual, ...

9. The Rules: Sword & Sorcery
(Features/Gaming Articles)

... at hand. This economy of storytelling gives readers a single strong impression of the subject instead of a bunch of boring details that they'll most likely forget anyway. The lack of detail also meant ...

10. Archetype of the Week: The Spook
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

... of humor, rarely breaking character or admitting surprise at even the most ludicrous turn of events. Likely Stories Spooks can be found wherever there is a conspiracy (or potential conspiracy) ...

11. Archetype of the Week: The Mentor
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

... the younger heroes everything they need to know, but this is not strictly necessary in an RPG setting. Likely Stories The mentor is one of Campbell's classic archetypes, and appears in some form ...

12. WB101 Part 6: Son of The Big Picture
(Columns/World Building 101)

... technology will be in the hands of The Sages, with the Empire likely number two in the technology race. Other cultures will have less advanced tech, and a few of those on the far reaches of the world pretty ...

13. Fratboy of the Week: The Big Man On Campus
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

...  activities, the BMOC will likely be involved in student government, numerous clubs, and possibly even politics. He will also have a very full schedule of parties, shows, and other non-sanctioned events ...

14. The Crusader
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

... rarely acts out of pure altruism; he has personal reasons for doing what he does and is not necessarily interested in doing good if it doesn't further his own goals. Likely Stories Crusaders can ...

15. The Rake
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

...  sex. Some rakes trade sexual services for favors, gifts, or information outright. The most competent, however, can get what they want with the merest suggestion of a possible liaison.  Likely ...

16. The Squint
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

... you're playing in an game where most of the other characters are also squints. Likely Stories Squints are most common in modern and futuristic settings, especially crime fiction, super-hero stories, ...

17. The Everyman
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

... heroics. The everyman steps into the role of the hero because nobody else can or will and in many cases because it's The Right Thing To Do. Likely Stories Reluctant heroes can be found anywhere, ...

18. The Grizzled Veteran
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

... years experience is considered an old hand. Likely Stories Grizzled veterans appear in every type of story, but are most common in action-oriented genres, including war stories, police thrillers, ...

19. WB101 Part 5: The Big Picture
(Columns/World Building 101)

... the undead. Even if my zombie plague is a completely natural disease, a world with such a disease will likely have (or be developing) plenty of ghost stories. Lucky for me, most undead are former humans ...

20. The Hot Shot
(Columns/Archetype of the Week)

The hot shot is good at what he does, maybe even the best, and he knows it. The typical hot shot is relatively young, which means his abilities are more likely due to natural talent or unorthodox methods ...