About Us
The author, playtesting Chimera
My name’s Erin—thanks for visiting The Welsh Piper. I started this site to help RPG players and game masters make the best use of their available gaming time, which always seems too short.
I cut my roleplaying teeth on the Moldvay Basic D&D boxed set in the early ’80s. It’s far less complex than today’s D&D, but after more than 25 years of playing, designing, and writing RPG systems, its “rules-lite” approach continues to have appeal. For the busy gamer, who (like me) needs to balance the hobby with the real life responsibilities of family, work, and school, “rules-lite” is the way to go. The Welsh Piper shares what I’ve learned so you can spend less time preparing for your game and more time playing it.
Rules-lite means flexible, not simplistic. Flexibility is what lets you project your imagination onto the gaming table. If your system is complex or strives for too much realism, you may find yourself bogged down by rules and struggling with mechanics. Complex systems can make it difficult for you to integrate your creativity—in the form of monsters, character abilities, NPCs, spells, vehicles, settlements, etc.—into your game. Note that I said “difficult,” not impossible: while any system should be able to handle whatever you want to incorporate, it’s the time required that may give you pause. If you’re spending more than 20% of your available game time preparing for play, you should consider some time-savers.
Which is exactly what The Welsh Piper offers. Our goal is to provide tools and ideas to help you get your imagination on the gaming table as fast as possible, without the tangle of complex rules and concerns for game balance. The material on this site is modular, so you can take any piece and incorporate it into your campaign, with as much (or as little) detail as you want.
I hope you find something here that you can use in your own game. If you have questions or suggestions, please add your comments, or contact me. I’d love to hear from you.
