How Can I Get Started NOW?

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Hi, and welcome to the New Gamemaster Month program! New Gamemaster Month is January, and we’ll have our first session on January 6th. Why not right at the start of the month? Well, some people are still recovering from the holidays, or are super-busy returning to work or school. Others need a few days to settle into their New Year’s resolutions—becoming a GM might be one of them. And the 6th gives us plenty of time in January to run through the program, with the final session on the 29th—leading straight into the weekend of January 30th, which is when you’ll run your first game!

(That’s exciting—and maybe a bit scary. Don’t worry, we’re going to do everything you need to get you fully prepared. You’ll have a great time!)

OK, but it’s not January 6th yet, and you’re keen to get started. What can you do now? Here’s a quick list.

  • Choose the game you’d like to run. There are a lot of publishers participating this year, which means you can choose from a wide range of different RPGs. Regardless of which you choose, you’ll get step-by-step, specific instructions to prepare for that game. Which should you choose? Pick one that you’ve played before, or that you’re already a fan of, or that appeals to your passions. You can find links to the games under their tabs below, or on the New Gamemaster Month home page.
  • Join the New Gamemaster Month Discord Server. This is a great place to talk to other prospective GMs, folk who have done this program in years past, and loads of experienced GMs who are on hand to answer questions and provide support and encouragement.
  • Have a quick look at this web page (the one you’re reading right now). See those tabs just below this list? Feel free to click any of them. This is how each session of the program will be formatted: A general GMing lesson up here, where you’re currently reading, with great advice on the GMing process that applies to any game. Then tabs down below for each of the participating games, with specific instructions for preparing to run that game.
  • Put January 6th on your calendar, so you’ll remember to return for the first session. And subscribe to the site (down at the bottom of this page), so you’ll get an update when each session is posted!
  • Tell your friends! Post a link on Bluesky, reddit, Facebook, your favorite Discord server, or wherever you socialize. Let people know about New Gamemaster Month. The more people who participate, the more GMs we’ll have out in the world!

If Numenera is your game of choice, this is where you’ll find specific instructions, each session, to prepare you for running your first game. If you’d like to know more about Numenera, check out the Numenera website.

You’ll need a copy of Numenera Discovery for New Gamemaster Month. You can get it wherever you buy roleplaying games. If you purchase from the MCG Shop, you can get $10 off by using this coupon code at checkout: NewGamemasterMonth2026. It’s good for Numenera Discovery in print or PDF, or for the Numenera Corebook Slipcase Set (which includes Numenera Discovery along with its companion corebook, Numenera Destiny).

If Magical Kitties Save the Day! is your game of choice, this is where you’ll find specific instructions, each session, to prepare you for running your first game. If you’d like to know more about Magical Kitties, check out the Atlas Games website.

You’ll need a copy of Magical Kitties Save the Day for New Gamemaster Month. You can get the Standard Second Edition set wherever you buy roleplaying games. If you purchase from the Atlas Games webstore, you can get 50% off by using this coupon code at checkout: NewGamemasterMonth2026. It’s good for Magical Kitties in either print or PDF. You can also preview the comic book from the set; just download The Big Adventure PDF for FREE now!

If Trail of Cthulhu is your game of choice, this is where you’ll find specific instructions, each session, to prepare you for running your first game. If you’d like to know more about Trail of Cthulhu, check out the Pelgrane Press website.

You’ll need a copy of Trail of Cthulhu for New Gamemaster Month. You can get it wherever you buy roleplaying games. If you purchase from the Pelgrane Press store, you can get $10 off by using this coupon code at checkout: NewGamemasterMonth2025.

If Age of Vikings is your game of choice, this is where you’ll find specific instructions, each session, to prepare you for running your first game. If you’d like to know more about Age of Vikings, check out the Chaosium website.

If Monster of the Week is your game of choice, this is where you’ll find specific instructions, each session, to prepare you for running your first game. If you’d like to know more about Monster of the Week, check out the Evil Hat Productions website.

If Delta Green is your game of choice, this is where you’ll find specific instructions, each session, to prepare you for running your first game. If you’d like to know more about Delta Green, check out the Delta Green website.

You’ll need a copy of Delta Green: Need to Know, the free quickstart rules that include an introductory scenario. Delta Green: The Role-Playing Game, a slipcase set with two hardback volumes, is available in stores worldwide. You can get it from the Arc Dream Publishing online store at $10 off during New Gamemaster Month by using the coupon code NewGamemasterMonth2025 at checkout.

If Savage Worlds is your game of choice, this is where you’ll find specific instructions, each session, to prepare you for running your first game. If you’d like to know more about Savage Worlds, check out the Pinnacle Entertainment Group website.

All you need for New Gamemaster Month is the Savage Worlds Test Drive rules featuring Deadlands. Don’t worry, it’s a free download, and it has the adventure for you to run, characters for the players, and all the rules you need to get going.

Optionally, if you enjoy your experience with Savage Worlds, please use this 50% off coupon good on any or all of the Savage Worlds Adventure Edition Core Rules, the Savage Worlds Adventure Edition Player’s Book, and/or the Savage Worlds Adventure Edition Accessory Box in print or PDF.  Enter code NGMM at checkout for the discount. Note: purchase is not required for full participation in New Gamemaster Month.

If Tales of the Valiant is your game of choice, this is where you’ll find specific instructions, each session, to prepare you for running your first ToV game. If you’d like to know more about Tales of the Valiant, check out the official ToV website. 

For New Gamemaster Month, you will need a copy of the first core book, Tales of the Valiant: Player’s Guide. The Player’s Guide includes rules for 13 heroic base classes, lineages including elves and dwarves, and more from classic fantasy roleplaying. It has all the rules for being a player or GM in one volume. You can get 10% off the Players Guide by CLICKING HERE.

You’ll need a copy of the Dungeon Crawl Classics core rules, which you can purchase at your local gaming store or online—wherever you normally buy your roleplaying material. If you choose to purchase it through the Goodman Games website, we can give you a 20% discount by using the code GamemasterMonth2026 at checkout. This coupon is good for any print version or the PDF version of the Dungeon Crawl Classics core rulebook, and is valid through the end of February 2026.

See you back here in January!

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PARTICIPATING TEAMS

EVIL HAT

Turning passion into great games for more than 10 years, Evil Hat Productions publishes critically-acclaimed titles including Fate, Blades In The Dark, Monster of the Week, the Dresden Files RPG, and forthcoming Thirsty Sword Lesbians. We’re committed to transparency, inclusivity, and top-notch customer service. From the feel of the book in your hands to the thrills and suspense that arise when the dice hit the table, we’re here to deliver a great gaming experience.

ARC Dream

Blame Arc Dream Publishing for Delta Green, a roleplaying game about a conspiracy of modern investigators desperately struggling to save people from unspeakable cosmic horrors. Delta Green has been winning industry awards for nearly 30 years and is more successful now than ever. Arc Dream publishes many other games about deadly suspense and the terrible risks of courage: the World War II superhero RPG Godlike, Wild Talents, Better Angels, Monsters and Other Childish Things, and more.

Chaosium

Chaosium was founded by visionary game designer Greg Stafford in 1975. Our award-winning roleplaying games, boardgames, and fiction have been acclaimed as some of the most engaging and innovative of all time. For the past half-century, Chaosium Inc. has captivated gamers, readers and mythic adventurers worldwide.

KOBOLD PRESS

Kobold Press is an independent tabletop publishing company producing high-quality RPG adventures, sourcebooks, campaigns, and gaming supplements focused on 5th Edition and the Tales of the Valiant RPG system.

Pelgrane Press

Pelgrane Press publishes character-focused, story-driven RPGs. Our GUMSHOE system enables collaborative mystery-solving RPGs, as seen in the 1930s mythos Trail of Cthulhu, the spies-vs-vampires thriller Night’s Black Agents, and the sword & sorcery Swords of the Serpentine. Our DramaSystem facilitates affecting dramatic interactions between characters, as do our RPG anthologies, #Feminism, Seven Wonders, and Honey & Hot Wax. 13th Age is our epic d20 fantasy RPG, which weaves characters’ backgrounds and unique traits together for engaging, heroic adventures.

Atlas Games

Atlas Games publishes award-winning card, board, and roleplaying games like Magical Kitties Save the Day, Ars Magica, Feng Shui, Unknown Armies, Gloom, and Once Upon a Time. Since 1990, we’ve delivered some of the most fun and widely respected games in the tabletop hobby.

PINNACLE ENTERTAINMENT GROUP

Pinnacle began in 1994 with Fields of Honor and The Last Crusade. Certainly what we’re best known for is Deadlands, which has now been going strong since 1996. Our core rules for all Pinnacle’s settings is Savage Worlds, first published in 2003. Check out the great variety of settings to play in, including Rifts® for Savage Worlds, Pathfinder® for Savage Worlds, Holler: An Appalachian Apocalypse, East Texas University, Weird Wars, and many, many more!

Monte Cook Games

At Monte Cook Games, we love the power of imagination. We love to build stirring vistas, craft great stories, and inspire dreams of other worlds. Our all-star team combines sweeping visions with premium art, storytelling, and design to bring you high-quality, innovative tabletop RPGs such as Numenera, Invisible Sun, the Cypher System, and our family RPG No Thank You, Evil!.

GOODMAN GAMES

Goodman Games is your source for classic adventures! Best known for the popular Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game and associated adventures, Goodman Games also publishes titles such as Mutant Crawl Classics, Xcrawl Classics, Fifth Edition Fantasy, and the hit Original Adventures Reincarnated series. You can meet our staff every year at Gen Con and other conventions.

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