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100% GMing
Treasure Tables is dedicated to game masters, offering GMing advice and ideas since 2005. I'm Martin Ralya, and I've been GMing since 1989 and writing for the RPG industry since 2004.
About Treasure Tables
Whether you’re a beginner or a veteran game master, Treasure Tables is here to make your time at the gaming table easier and more fun.
I’ve been GMing since 1989, and in July of 2005 I started Treasure Tables as a way to combine two of my passions — writing and GMing — and share ideas with fellow GMs. It grew steadily through the end of 2007.
In December of 2007, after posting daily for two years, I needed a break. I put the blog on hiatus, leaving the archives in place. In May of 2008, I recruited a host of excellent authors — and great GMs — and started blogging again on Gnome Stew.
First Time Here?
I recommend starting with the top 25 posts, which make a great introduction to Treasure Tables. You might also enjoy our free GMing PDFs, and you can dive right into two years of past articles in the archives.
Dedicated to Helping GMs
Treasure Tables (or just TT for short) brings together a community of intelligent, passionate GMs who are interested in improving their craft and discussing a wide range of game mastering topics.
Over 800 system-neutral GMing posts in the archives, from full-length articles to quick blurbs. Need advice? You’ll find it here.
Thousands of reader comments on those posts from fellow GMs, offering tips, ideas and different perspectives.
Free game mastering PDFs packed with advice, as well as free adventures written by fellow GMs.
The RPG Glossary, which defines over 250 gaming terms.
…and more, including ways to find players and links to useful GMing sites.
About the Author
Hi, I’m Martin Ralya. I’ve been GMing since 1989 and doing freelance writing for the RPG industry since 2004.
I live in Utah with my amazing wife, Alysia, and our neurotic beagle, Charlie, in a house full of books.
If you’d like to get in touch with me, head on over to the contact page.
The Buzz About TT
In 2007, Treasure Tables was nominated for an ENnie Award for Best Fan Site.
“Treasure Tables is a great resource for players and GMs. I enjoy Martin’s no nonsense approach to the art and craft of gaming…” — Mike Mearls, game designer (Monte Cook Presents: Iron Heroes, many more) (Source)
“Keep up the good work on Treasure Tables – itโs one of the most valuable resources for GMs that Iโve ever seen.” — Clinton R. Nixon, game designer (The Shadow of Yesterday) and co-founder of the Forge (Source)
“…Martin Ralya is a freelance RPG writer whose blog Treasure Tables has consistently excellent and thoughtful commentary about the art of game-mastering. Bookmark it now.” — Tavis Allison, President of Behemoth3 (Source)
What’s With the Name?
When I started TT in July of 2005, I was writing material for The Mother of All Treasure Tables, published by Necromancer Games. This project was a blast, and I had treasure tables on the brain. That’s one reason.
The other reason is that I’ve always loved treasure tables in RPGs, because when you roll on one, you never know exactly what you’re going to get — except that it will be treasure, and it will be good.
That was my goal with TT: As a reader, you wouldn’t know exactly what you’d find here every day, except that it would be about GMing — and hopefully it would be good!
Site Notes
TT is powered by several great free and inexpensive tools and services, including:
- Web Hosting: DreamHost (affiliate link)
- Blog: WordPress (ported over from Blogger)
- Blog Theme: A modified version of Brian Gardner‘s Vertigo 3-Column
The treasure chest logo was created by my friend Darren Hardy, who rocks on toast.