👇 This DM Guide moved from Patreon to DMs Guild! ✨ Complete DM Guide PDF: www.dmsguild.com/product/421704?affiliate_id=1987166 ▶️ Icewind Dale DM Guide Videos: ua-cam.com/play/PL1lMCvJ_l52Wg1IRW__ES0osVXGHv3AgM.html 📜 Eldritch Horror in 5e - When Madness Calls: www.dmsguild.com/product/322189/When-Madness-Calls?affiliate_id=1987166
Thanks for the shoutout, Bob! Cheers to more horror D&D contents! If any of you here are looking for other horror adventure. We also have "And When The Dogs Start Barking", a Slasher Horror set in Icewind Dale, perfect for Rime of the Frostmaiden and Halloween! Link: www.dmsguild.com/product/327449/And-When-The-Dogs-Start-Barking-An-Icewind-Dale-OneShot Or if you folks would like to get both When Madness Calls & And When The Dogs Start Barking as a bundle, we also have it! Link: www.dmsguild.com/product/330647/Tentacles--Dogs-A-Horror-Bundle-BUNDLE
The best way to create horror is using the 5 senses in descripting places. When my players were in the Mind Flayer Colony, they TASTE the metallic air as they breath in the air, they FEEL cold not only because of the steel of the colony buildings, but from the sense of evil. They all had dark vision, so they SEE the alien-like architecture. As they look for their things, they TOUCH the cold steel and mucus surrounding the colony, and they HEAR screams, of victims being experimented on, and creatures unknown to their knowledge. All my player then were scared Looking around every corner.
Played D&D as a kid and now that I'll have kids of my own and we're stuck inside, decided to start them down the path. 5 kids from 8 to 16 and I couldn't be happier to have your walk throughs to guide me. Great content and well-earned subscription.
Awesome video as always, Bob! Thank you for the opportunity for featuring When Madness Calls! I really hope that people will check Call of Cthulhu now, since the rulebook itself gives a lot of ideas to create an awesome horror scenario/adventure. Some of the rules can even be adapted for D&D 5e to put more emphasis on horror and terror! For example, the sanity system is amazing which balances the simulation side to replicate madness and the game-y side that is supported by good mechanics/rules.
I am amazed by how much STUFF you put into your guides! You deserve way more subscribers than you already have, I will spread your channel like the plague😂Keep up the good work❤️
Thank you! Honestly when I finished this one, I was afraid it might be TOO much stuff haha 😆 glad you found it useful! And thanks so much for sharing my videos!!
Bob! What a gem you are. Inspiring, informative, and I dare say it’s all delivered with a smooth voice that’s titillating. Keep these up mate. Much obliged to you for your work here.
I tried to bring forth the feeling of horror in my game was to have them followed by a shadowy figure. When the figure's face turned toward them there was simply cold white light and the sight filled them with dread. Now I know that a coldlight walker is way to dangerous for this party, but I wanted simply to scare them. First thing they did was set up an ambush and attack the thing. It was a saving grace that one of the party had rolled the orc stone as a secret.
Nice! I want to do the same thing where the party will see the light from a distance, and at least one will know they are dangerous and hopefully they'll stay away... might have to build in a safety net though just in case!
Just wanna say thank you for your videos. This series has helped me get my players engagement and my DMing skills to the up to the next level during our IWD campaign. This video in particular helped me a ton with the adrift Nautiloid in the other Spelljammer game I'm running where me and another player planned his character death at his request so he could roll a Plasmoid lol
Something I recommend using more than the X card is the traffic light system (green means “I’m okay”, yellow means “could you tone it down?” and red means “I need a break, this is too much”. This makes communication between players and GM really easy without breaking the flow of roleplay for players that want to keep the session moving. It also helps the DM know where to draw the line with certain topics.
I do a Intro do most Campaigns, this one shot is action oriented and is like a movie set-up. It also get them from level 1 to 2 in a session. So the characters get start the game hunting down a trapper gone feral and his "winter wives" hiding nearby a town stealing from locals. They find his secret stash of food in a cave nearby and it is pretty gruesome. Welcome to Icewind Dale Players! I do want to slip Oblex's in all of the towns and add a Bodysnatcher/TheThing aspect to the campaign. This will cause problems for any changlings or dopplegangers trying to live in the area peaceably.
That’s a very cool idea! And oblexes in EVERY town might become predictable, but I like it. When you’re players have already encountered (and identified) a few, they’ll be like “okay this town can’t possibly have one too!” So it’ll stay surprising after all 😆
Bob! First, I loved your Dragon of Icespire Peak videos and look forward to more Icewind Dale videos from you too! Second, thank you for pointing out a discussion with players on what is ok and not ok is important for horror. I also think it’s valuable for campaigns that include other possibly offensive material (like overtly crude sexual humor for example-we might assume it’s ok, but for some people, it isn’t). I guess a tough question is when to figure out you’ve discussed enough things-should you ask players if they’re ok with NPCs participating in combat? Should you ask players if talking animals would ruin the horror atmosphere? Lots of food for thought.
Agree with all of this, but I think if you’re going to pull up the X-Card as an example - which I fully support, because it’s a good safety tool - you should probably credit John Stavropolous, who published it.
Sometimes during travel I'll ask for their passive perception and if they have either under or over a certain DC (higher in blizzards) I'll tell them "something". It could be true, like an duo of owlbears tracking them to the side, or untrue, like a person far to the left walking alongside them or the shadow of a dragon in front of them. It's a great way to keep them scouting around or even on the lookout for things proactively even when there is nothing there and it's always fun to just say "...but there's nothing there when you investigate further".
Good video, but one distinct problem I noticed was that you, unironically, suggested "the dark" as something that's scary. Now, normally that's not so bad, but in the context of D&D 5E, nearly every race has darkvision, which makes darkness, even pitch black, merely gray scale. (I got what you meant, but I couldn't resist the joke. That is, darkness is a joke in 5E :P )
Dnd is not horror friendly. If the characters are marvel characters with a very good fighting chance then it's not The Thing or The Mist, it's DOOM staring The Rock xD
Agree with both. They don't even try in this book to convey an atmosphere of isolation and horror. It's all up to the DM, if they want to do it. But when ran "as is", this adventure is a regular D&D adventure. On top of that, as stated, DnD is a heroic game, heroism and horror don't go together. The best you get in horror are small moments of heroism. If you have a strategical party, they will try to fight back. For the horror feeling to be strong the players have to basically be victims, not heroes. They need to have no chance and KNOW they have no chance. But if that is what you deliver every session then players will not enjoy it, because that's normally not why people play DnD
Yeah, I agree it's more about "creepy" stuff here than there than straight horror. That's part of why I wanted to mention Call of Cthulhu in this video which does it a lot better!
I totally agree. Most of the horror will have to happen in tier one before the PCs are very powerful. Some of the location tips I included help keep players on edge no matter their level, but what I recommended is not really D&D :P
👇 This DM Guide moved from Patreon to DMs Guild!
✨ Complete DM Guide PDF: www.dmsguild.com/product/421704?affiliate_id=1987166
▶️ Icewind Dale DM Guide Videos: ua-cam.com/play/PL1lMCvJ_l52Wg1IRW__ES0osVXGHv3AgM.html
📜 Eldritch Horror in 5e - When Madness Calls: www.dmsguild.com/product/322189/When-Madness-Calls?affiliate_id=1987166
Thanks for the shoutout, Bob! Cheers to more horror D&D contents!
If any of you here are looking for other horror adventure. We also have "And When The Dogs Start Barking", a Slasher Horror set in Icewind Dale, perfect for Rime of the Frostmaiden and Halloween!
Link:
www.dmsguild.com/product/327449/And-When-The-Dogs-Start-Barking-An-Icewind-Dale-OneShot
Or if you folks would like to get both When Madness Calls & And When The Dogs Start Barking as a bundle, we also have it!
Link:
www.dmsguild.com/product/330647/Tentacles--Dogs-A-Horror-Bundle-BUNDLE
"Monsters are not stat blocks, monsters are the things that go bump in the night."
You summed this up gloriously!
Thank you! 😊
*Rules lawyer with Monster Manual wants to know your location*
The best way to create horror is using the 5 senses in descripting places. When my players were in the Mind Flayer Colony, they TASTE the metallic air as they breath in the air, they FEEL cold not only because of the steel of the colony buildings, but from the sense of evil. They all had dark vision, so they SEE the alien-like architecture. As they look for their things, they TOUCH the cold steel and mucus surrounding the colony, and they HEAR screams, of victims being experimented on, and creatures unknown to their knowledge. All my player then were scared Looking around every corner.
That's awesome!! Using vivid descriptions makes any D&D session better, but it's crucial for horror!
Getting the players top 3 horror movies is a great way to “Borrow” ideas for the session.
That's a great tip!
Neat, I mean terrific!
Played D&D as a kid and now that I'll have kids of my own and we're stuck inside, decided to start them down the path. 5 kids from 8 to 16 and I couldn't be happier to have your walk throughs to guide me. Great content and well-earned subscription.
That's amazing! Happy to hear these videos are helping you share this awesome game with your family :)
Horror! We’re synced up here bro! I love your take on it! Love the description vocabulary tips too!
Tis the season! Thanks for the support coach! :)
I bought Rime of the Frostmaiden a week ago for an upcoming campaign. And I'm really love your dm-help vids thanks!
Awesome! Happy to help! :)
I needed this so much with halloween upcoming. The right tips at the right time! Great job, Bob!
I really appreciate that! Happy to help!
Awesome video as always, Bob! Thank you for the opportunity for featuring When Madness Calls!
I really hope that people will check Call of Cthulhu now, since the rulebook itself gives a lot of ideas to create an awesome horror scenario/adventure. Some of the rules can even be adapted for D&D 5e to put more emphasis on horror and terror! For example, the sanity system is amazing which balances the simulation side to replicate madness and the game-y side that is supported by good mechanics/rules.
Definitely! Thanks again for the opportunity :)
I am amazed by how much STUFF you put into your guides! You deserve way more subscribers than you already have, I will spread your channel like the plague😂Keep up the good work❤️
Thank you! Honestly when I finished this one, I was afraid it might be TOO much stuff haha 😆 glad you found it useful! And thanks so much for sharing my videos!!
Bob! What a gem you are. Inspiring, informative, and I dare say it’s all delivered with a smooth voice that’s titillating. Keep these up mate. Much obliged to you for your work here.
Heck yes!!! I try to utilize all your tips in our stream!! Keep em coming!!
Awesome! Thank you for the support :)
@@BobWorldBuilder no, thank YOU! :)
I tried to bring forth the feeling of horror in my game was to have them followed by a shadowy figure. When the figure's face turned toward them there was simply cold white light and the sight filled them with dread. Now I know that a coldlight walker is way to dangerous for this party, but I wanted simply to scare them. First thing they did was set up an ambush and attack the thing. It was a saving grace that one of the party had rolled the orc stone as a secret.
Nice! I want to do the same thing where the party will see the light from a distance, and at least one will know they are dangerous and hopefully they'll stay away... might have to build in a safety net though just in case!
Bob, thanks for sharing a chill attitude and a route for me to up my game.
My pleasure!
Just wanna say thank you for your videos. This series has helped me get my players engagement and my DMing skills to the up to the next level during our IWD campaign. This video in particular helped me a ton with the adrift Nautiloid in the other Spelljammer game I'm running where me and another player planned his character death at his request so he could roll a Plasmoid lol
Something I recommend using more than the X card is the traffic light system (green means “I’m okay”, yellow means “could you tone it down?” and red means “I need a break, this is too much”. This makes communication between players and GM really easy without breaking the flow of roleplay for players that want to keep the session moving. It also helps the DM know where to draw the line with certain topics.
Man ... watching your videos makes me want to run Icewind dale. I don't even play 5E at the moment. xD Good video.
Haha do it!!
Absolutely love all the icewind dale videos cant wait to dm for my friends
Thanks! You’re going to have a blast! :)
These videos are great. New favourite DnD channel
Wow, thanks!
Love that call of Cthulhu book in the background!
Thank's for the video man! very useful. Keep it up!
Glad you think so! Getting to the starter quests next week! :)
Great video! Thanks Bob!
Thanks Bob!! My pleasure :)
Got to put some of these spooky songs in my game
Do it! 🎃
I do a Intro do most Campaigns, this one shot is action oriented and is like a movie set-up. It also get them from level 1 to 2 in a session. So the characters get start the game hunting down a trapper gone feral and his "winter wives" hiding nearby a town stealing from locals. They find his secret stash of food in a cave nearby and it is pretty gruesome. Welcome to Icewind Dale Players! I do want to slip Oblex's in all of the towns and add a Bodysnatcher/TheThing aspect to the campaign. This will cause problems for any changlings or dopplegangers trying to live in the area peaceably.
That’s a very cool idea! And oblexes in EVERY town might become predictable, but I like it. When you’re players have already encountered (and identified) a few, they’ll be like “okay this town can’t possibly have one too!” So it’ll stay surprising after all 😆
Epidemic Sounds is another great audio resource.
Sound effects, music, and you can use them on UA-cam or personally,
Yes! I know what my Halloween is going to be! And, believe me, you can make it to 10k no problem.
Awesome! And yeah, it looks like we should hit 10k in time :)
Awesome tips and great idea about When Madness Calls, had never heard of it so will definitely be looking into that one now!
Thanks! Hope you enjoy it!
Bob! First, I loved your Dragon of Icespire Peak videos and look forward to more Icewind Dale videos from you too! Second, thank you for pointing out a discussion with players on what is ok and not ok is important for horror. I also think it’s valuable for campaigns that include other possibly offensive material (like overtly crude sexual humor for example-we might assume it’s ok, but for some people, it isn’t). I guess a tough question is when to figure out you’ve discussed enough things-should you ask players if they’re ok with NPCs participating in combat? Should you ask players if talking animals would ruin the horror atmosphere? Lots of food for thought.
Glad you’re enjoying both series! Always better safe than sorry when it comes to understanding your players’ limits 👍🏻
I guess that’s true-better overinclusive in Session 0 than having a player be uncomfortable and exiting later!
Exactly!
Agree with all of this, but I think if you’re going to pull up the X-Card as an example - which I fully support, because it’s a good safety tool - you should probably credit John Stavropolous, who published it.
Amazing video
Thanks for your support! :)
Sometimes during travel I'll ask for their passive perception and if they have either under or over a certain DC (higher in blizzards) I'll tell them "something". It could be true, like an duo of owlbears tracking them to the side, or untrue, like a person far to the left walking alongside them or the shadow of a dragon in front of them. It's a great way to keep them scouting around or even on the lookout for things proactively even when there is nothing there and it's always fun to just say "...but there's nothing there when you investigate further".
Cheers Bob! - Tim
Hey! Thanks for watching, and keep up the awesome work!
Outstanding video !!! So many ideas 💡
Glad you think so! :)
On zombies, in explorers guide to wildemount there are husk zombies, which transform you
Ahh, I haven’t read through that but I recall that creature (I assume) in the first episode or two of the current Critical Role campaign!
Oyaminartok is such a fun ally for the party
Yeah since my party has already faced an awakened polar bear, I can’t wait to introduce them!
@@BobWorldBuilder I wish but fighting the cult of dragons.
Great video! :D
Thank you! I’m glad you liked it :)
Still going to work on The Thing/30daysofNight Mod when I ever get a chance.
That sounds awesome!
@@BobWorldBuilder Karp thought of it 1st but I figured locking the party in one of the towns with vampires would be thrilling.
Bruh. You're good. 🖖
Bob, i like you. You do a good job therefore you get a sub. Good luck, wishing the best for you and this channel. :)
I appreciate that! Thanks for subscribing! :)
How often do you meditate? Seriously, you're chill.
I don't haha :) Thanks! But I've been meaning to start for a long time.
Good video, but one distinct problem I noticed was that you, unironically, suggested "the dark" as something that's scary. Now, normally that's not so bad, but in the context of D&D 5E, nearly every race has darkvision, which makes darkness, even pitch black, merely gray scale.
(I got what you meant, but I couldn't resist the joke. That is, darkness is a joke in 5E :P )
don’t instill horror, instill terror
I see what you mean. There are a lot of ways to break it down, but it comes down to a healthy amount of FEAR!
Literally don't understand how people could be legitimately scared by this game
Very nice tips but I think during online playing, which is the only way I’ve been able to play D&D lately, it’s hard to set up a horror mood.
Something like John Carpenter's the Thing would work well in this module.
The intro really messed me up when you "together" before saying "where we have fun plating D&D"
Haha yeah, I can never decide which sounds "normal" to me :P
is a bunch of advertisements?
Anyone else light up a fatty to have while you listen to Bob?
Yr vid cool...but IWD is not the horror laden product they promised....its cute talking whales ...
Dnd is not horror friendly. If the characters are marvel characters with a very good fighting chance then it's not The Thing or The Mist, it's DOOM staring The Rock xD
Agree with both. They don't even try in this book to convey an atmosphere of isolation and horror. It's all up to the DM, if they want to do it. But when ran "as is", this adventure is a regular D&D adventure.
On top of that, as stated, DnD is a heroic game, heroism and horror don't go together. The best you get in horror are small moments of heroism. If you have a strategical party, they will try to fight back. For the horror feeling to be strong the players have to basically be victims, not heroes. They need to have no chance and KNOW they have no chance. But if that is what you deliver every session then players will not enjoy it, because that's normally not why people play DnD
Yeah, I agree it's more about "creepy" stuff here than there than straight horror. That's part of why I wanted to mention Call of Cthulhu in this video which does it a lot better!
I totally agree. Most of the horror will have to happen in tier one before the PCs are very powerful. Some of the location tips I included help keep players on edge no matter their level, but what I recommended is not really D&D :P
@@BobWorldBuilder Yes, I love your tips and the video, thanks for the content.
2nd
craps on Pathfinder 😆
Pathfinder is just D&D to me :P
@@BobWorldBuilder Ahahahahaha
First
Woo! You beat me to it today :D haha