It’s August, so you know what that means!

RPGaDay is back! This year’s prompts follow the pattern of an adventure. But to make things more interesting (and in my case, easier because sometimes I blank out if you give me an abstract concept), we get 3 additional roll tables we can roll each day.

Before we proceed, I’d like to thank AUTOCRATIK and Casting Shadows for hosting another year of the event. Now, let’s begin.

Today’s prompt is “patron”, which makes sense in the context of an adventure. A patron is someone who gets you into an adventure. Gandalf is a prime example, with two generations of hobbits getting into trouble thanks to him.

In terms of an RPG, patrons are powerful individuals or organisations. The individuals can range from simple mortals to deities, and everything in between. Angels, dragons, Fey lords, liches, kobolds with greatness in their minds, it’s all fair game. The motives may vary greatly. An angel may want to equip the adventurers with the powers for the trouble ahead. A dragon could use a few useful minions to help increase their hoard or get rid of a rival dragon. A Fey lord would probably do this just for their amusement, wanting to see how the adventurers overcome the obstacles they face. And those obstacles are probably placed there by the Fey lord themselves, all as part of a bet with another Fey lord. Go figure.

However, there are patrons in real life. That one GM who got you into RPGs. That friend of yours who brought a cool boardgame and showed you that Scrabble is merely the tip of the iceberg. Or that older cousin who left you speechless when you visited because he was playing Age of Empires 2, and that was the coolest thing you had seen a computer do in your life.

And I can argue these patrons are the most important because, without them, you probably wouldn’t see the other ones. Patrons mark a beginning. And I am glad some of my patrons moved me towards a nerdy life. That cousin who got me into computer games. That GM who ran the first game for me. That guy who decided to open the first LGS in my city, which got me closer to RPGs, board games, and card games. All played their role for me to be here and write this. And in turn, I can create cool dragon patrons and have new players join, have fun, and, hopefully, GM themselves someday.

And that’s all for today. But let me know who your patrons are. Abstract prompts tend to make me go all over the place. So be prepared for some rambling. Tomorrow’s prompt is “prompt”. Now that’s meta. Tomorrow I will be doing some travelling, so the post may be a bit late.

And until next time, have fun!