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Rather disastrously, it appears that lately Raging Swan Press’s crazy release schedule has broken several of my freelancers. To date, this year Raging Swan Press has released 71 products (that’s almost two a week) but this achievement has not come without great sacrifice and loss. I salute their sacrifice.
As I begin to contemplate 2014’s release schedule, it has occurred to me that I need fresh meat new designers or I’m in danger of breaking the surviving 2013 freelancers. I’ve put out calls for freelancers before, but this time I thought I’d try something different. Instead of just asking for freelancers to contact me, I’m inviting everyone reading this to send me an encounter (or two). Any I accept, I’ll pay for and publish! You’ll also almost certainly pick up another freelance design job on the strength of your encounter design.
I’ve added a page to Raging Swan Press’s website that hosts the template, instructions and other downloads you’ll need. (I’ve also posted a couple of sample encounters there so you can see the kind of thing I’m after). Alternatively, you can check out Caves & Caverns, any of the Random Encounter supplements or any of our adventures to see how we present encounters.
I don’t care if you’ve been previously published or not. I only care that you know the Pathfinder game system, have good writing skills, know what makes an encounter exciting and can follow instructions. (If you are new to the freelancing business, though, you might want to check out my Freelance Advice articles).
I look forward to hearing from you!

donato Contributor |

I'm quite interested in this. I was just reviewing the samples available and had a quick question. It seems that every creature is presented as a full stat block. Would we be able to reference material from other books, such as the Bestiaries in the simpler format or would we want to present the entire stat block?

Eric "Boxhead" Hindley |
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It's all true! Working for Creighton is awesome! The wheel of pain is not as bad as it sounds! You (yes, you!) should try this out!
@donato, I expect you'll need to include the full stat block, as that is how Raging Swan presents them in adventures. But I'm sure Creighton will answer when he sees this.

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I'm quite interested in this. I was just reviewing the samples available and had a quick question. It seems that every creature is presented as a full stat block. Would we be able to reference material from other books, such as the Bestiaries in the simpler format or would we want to present the entire stat block?
I go with the whole stat block - I hate making GMs reference other books. Everything should be on the page so running the encounter is a doddle!

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LMPjr007 wrote:You just can't keep breaking freelancers, you know! They don't just grow on trees.It would seem that he does need to be more careful there. ;-)
Plus, Creighton, don't break Mike Welham--we are sharing him!
Mike seems quite resilient. I'm sure his body won't accidentally snap...

Shadowborn |
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Christina Stiles wrote:Mike seems quite resilient. I'm sure his body won't accidentally snap...LMPjr007 wrote:You just can't keep breaking freelancers, you know! They don't just grow on trees.It would seem that he does need to be more careful there. ;-)
Plus, Creighton, don't break Mike Welham--we are sharing him!
But what about his mind, Creighton? If his body goes, he can still dictate and have someone else write it down.

motteditor RPG Superstar 2012 Top 16 |

Sounds intriguing. I'll definitely be taking a closer look.
Question: The broken freelancers page says the encounter should not include a map, but the encounter template says don’t design an encounter that doesn’t requires a map.
I'm assuming the former supercedes the latter, but wanted to doublecheck before I get started.

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Sounds intriguing. I'll definitely be taking a closer look.
Question: The broken freelancers page says the encounter should not include a map, but the encounter template says don’t design an encounter that doesn’t requires a map.
I'm assuming the former supercedes the latter, but wanted to doublecheck before I get started.
Excellent! I look forward to your submission. Yes you are right, I don't want encounters that require maps. (I've fixed the typo in the document, so thanks very much!)

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Creighton Broadhurst wrote:But what about his mind, Creighton? If his body goes, he can still dictate and have someone else write it down.Christina Stiles wrote:Mike seems quite resilient. I'm sure his body won't accidentally snap...LMPjr007 wrote:You just can't keep breaking freelancers, you know! They don't just grow on trees.It would seem that he does need to be more careful there. ;-)
Plus, Creighton, don't break Mike Welham--we are sharing him!
You make an excellent point. I'll ignore his whining from now on ;-)

Orthos |

1500 words - hmmm, based on my Wayfinder 10 encounter submission - I think "Ouch!" but doable.
Quick and probably dumb questions from a newb - is this a minimum, maximum, or ballpark aim (as in won't get dinged for hitting say 1492 or 1511)?
And does it or does it not include statblocks in that count?
Thanks.

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Template Fu wrote:1500 words - hmmm, based on my Wayfinder 10 encounter submission - I think "Ouch!" but doable.Quick and probably dumb questions from a newb - is this a minimum, maximum, or ballpark aim (as in won't get dinged for hitting say 1492 or 1511)?
And does it or does it not include statblocks in that count?
Thanks.
+/- 10% is fine. 1,500 words is pretty much what fits on a two-page spread - and I like to have everything on those two pages to reduce the amount of flipping back and forth a GM has to do. The word count includes stat blocks and all other material for the encounter.

Cheapy |
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Cheapy wrote:Goblin warriors *wearing* zombie leshies as armor...Dang it Cheapster! Back to the drawing board...
Take it and run!
I won't be submitting for this one, but I was to amused by the idea to not share it.
Undead pumpkins being worn as helmets that when the goblin is slain, reconstitutes into a guord leshy! Tickles me in more ways than one.

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Is there any issues with beginner GMs sending in a couple complete encounters? They might not be terribly good (like I said, beginner), but it would give me a good chance to practice. On the other hand, I wouldnt want to clutter up your inbox.
Limit of two - see the post right above you :)

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Is there any issues with beginner GMs sending in a couple complete encounters? They might not be terribly good (like I said, beginner), but it would give me a good chance to practice. On the other hand, I wouldnt want to clutter up your inbox.
Absolutely - send them in. What you think might not be terribly good might be great!

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I feel like I should get onto this. I've been published before, but these days my depression is a gigantic barrier. :(
I'm sorry to hear about your depression. I would encourage you to submit, though. As my players are bored of hearing me say, "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take!"