I'm a 45 year old Forgotten Realms novels fan, who bought his first PC game in 2000 (BG1)fast forward>> to play my first D&D TTRPG (any edition)because of Critical role in 2017. I've been a DM as well teaching 5e on discord (because of Sly Flourish), played three years on a Taldor'rei server (Mercer's world) and BG3 is my fav video game of all time winning over the long standing Champ Planescape:Torment. I tell all my students to absorb all kinds of stories....and for them to tell the story and I facilitate as DM. But that's the lesson...it's collaborative storytelling.
All the players in one of my groups have been playing tons of Baldur's Gate 3; so at our last session, I asked if they'd been playing together with its party-mode... nope, they'd all been playing solo even though they're two couples! I just shook my head and chuckled
I mean being able to make all the decisions and have all the player agency is it's own experience. The amount of times in a game of either bg3 or DND that another player killed an NPC or screwed over the party is many. These can add a lot to the story but sometimes you want to see how things would go if you made the decisions.
Baldurs gate 3 can be multiplayer if you want it to be. Each player can create a create and play online. Each player can challenge the die rolls, choices, engage in secret votes, etc to create individual PC agency.
Indeed, Mike Shea is a great fountain of advice and resources. It's okay to steal relics from him; he admittedly stole it from Numenera/Cypher system. He also has recommended setting up bonds between characters during character-creation/session-zero, and encourages use of "campfire prompts" to generate inter-party social RP during rests. I believe that one of his books, The Lazy DM's Companion or Workbook (maybe both) have lists/tables of ideas for both bonds and campfire question prompts. Quick and to the point on this video, guys. Astute observations and summation. Thanks. With backstories, I recently heard somewhere that if there's certain theme/feel you're going for with the character's path, then instead of being too detailed with our backstory and trying to tell the GM what we want to have happen to our character, we should instead leave gaps and just limit ourselves to telling the GM what we do *not* want to happen to their story/backstory that would ruin the aesthetic we're desiring. (Like if your character is an orphan con-artist pretending to be a noble: it's okay to tell the GM "do not fill in my story gaps by actually making him turn out to be a real noble because I want his thing to be that's he's just a nobody con-artist", but saying "my character is actually the unaware heir to Neverwinter's throne, so please weave that into the campaign story" would probably not be okay.)
BG3 tends to allow you to do anything you want. The only thing that keeps it on the rails is that you need to deal w/ your new little buddy or you're going to die. You can go off the rails at almost any point and that's one of those things that so many people are loving about it. You can make a decision you should know is going to end with you dead and that's exactly what happens. That's something that should be easily duplicated at any table, though its not something that should be done frequently. BG3 has a handful of events that have to happen, but there is the choice to balk at them and die. You can ignore 99% of the game, be as chaotic as you want during that 99% and you can approach pretty much any encounter however you see fit. There are as many non-combat options for things as there are combat options. In my first PT of BG3, I looked up and saw Gortash looking out from his tower towards the city. I snuck up, got behind him and pushed him off the edge. Didn't have to deal w/ the Steel Watch, the gnomes, none of it, because i took advantage of an opportunity I never would have expected the game would allow me to. My point is, there are only like 5 things that you have to do in the game. That's something you can definitely do in DnD campaigns. It's something you'd have to approach with long term implications and not something that could be covered in a few sessions. At 1-2 sessions a week, you're talking about something that would take 6 months or more to complete. And I've had friends that had ongoing campaigns last years, so it's not that outlandish.
One thing that strikes me having watched others play BG3 is that they seem to roll for everything. This vid is focused on players, but I think the big thing for me is how prospective DMs might overdo rolling. If a character's good at something just let them have it sometimes, or lay down hints rather than expecting a perception check to basically decide if a hidden thing effectively exists or not. Also since they're basically the players' eyes and ears in the world, if you play BG3 you might think it's OK to just say some basic things about a place and consider it sufficient, but adding little scene details (without overdoing it of course) would bring the thing alive and inspire player decisions. That's one thing I noticed was sort of lacking in the video game, people enter a space and the DM narrator doesn't give you a general vibe the firs time you go there, I think that could be have been extra cool
people expect videogames but with a person instead of a computer. Also if anyone comes to my table expecting Bestiality i will point them to the door on the spot.
I've had the exact opposite feeling on it and I've heard others say this too. "Playing BG3 is like playing D&D with a shitty DM." As a long time GM that is also playing this game, I definitely agree with this statement.
This is just the flavor of the week/month video that is being churned out by plenty of other content creators but at least the content of the video is still viable. Not entirely clickbaity but BG3 isn't having the impact implied on D&D players other than being introduced to a masterpiece of video gaming.
I'm a 45 year old Forgotten Realms novels fan, who bought his first PC game in 2000 (BG1)fast forward>> to play my first D&D TTRPG (any edition)because of Critical role in 2017. I've been a DM as well teaching 5e on discord (because of Sly Flourish), played three years on a Taldor'rei server (Mercer's world) and BG3 is my fav video game of all time winning over the long standing Champ Planescape:Torment. I tell all my students to absorb all kinds of stories....and for them to tell the story and I facilitate as DM. But that's the lesson...it's collaborative storytelling.
Hey Liches!
Great vid as always!
Thanks Wayne!
In cypher system, "relics" or cyphers, is an integral part of the game. One shot items that give players interesting and fun abilities
I am currently running two games with zero storyline, zero plot, zero BBEG, zero backstory plots to go on, just open-world and it's fun as hell.
Relics just sound like scrolls?
All the players in one of my groups have been playing tons of Baldur's Gate 3; so at our last session, I asked if they'd been playing together with its party-mode... nope, they'd all been playing solo even though they're two couples! I just shook my head and chuckled
Solo and party mode are really two different games.
I mean being able to make all the decisions and have all the player agency is it's own experience. The amount of times in a game of either bg3 or DND that another player killed an NPC or screwed over the party is many. These can add a lot to the story but sometimes you want to see how things would go if you made the decisions.
Great video!
Baldurs gate 3 can be multiplayer if you want it to be. Each player can create a create and play online. Each player can challenge the die rolls, choices, engage in secret votes, etc to create individual PC agency.
Indeed, Mike Shea is a great fountain of advice and resources. It's okay to steal relics from him; he admittedly stole it from Numenera/Cypher system.
He also has recommended setting up bonds between characters during character-creation/session-zero, and encourages use of "campfire prompts" to generate inter-party social RP during rests. I believe that one of his books, The Lazy DM's Companion or Workbook (maybe both) have lists/tables of ideas for both bonds and campfire question prompts.
Quick and to the point on this video, guys. Astute observations and summation. Thanks.
With backstories, I recently heard somewhere that if there's certain theme/feel you're going for with the character's path, then instead of being too detailed with our backstory and trying to tell the GM what we want to have happen to our character, we should instead leave gaps and just limit ourselves to telling the GM what we do *not* want to happen to their story/backstory that would ruin the aesthetic we're desiring. (Like if your character is an orphan con-artist pretending to be a noble: it's okay to tell the GM "do not fill in my story gaps by actually making him turn out to be a real noble because I want his thing to be that's he's just a nobody con-artist", but saying "my character is actually the unaware heir to Neverwinter's throne, so please weave that into the campaign story" would probably not be okay.)
BG3 tends to allow you to do anything you want. The only thing that keeps it on the rails is that you need to deal w/ your new little buddy or you're going to die. You can go off the rails at almost any point and that's one of those things that so many people are loving about it. You can make a decision you should know is going to end with you dead and that's exactly what happens. That's something that should be easily duplicated at any table, though its not something that should be done frequently.
BG3 has a handful of events that have to happen, but there is the choice to balk at them and die. You can ignore 99% of the game, be as chaotic as you want during that 99% and you can approach pretty much any encounter however you see fit. There are as many non-combat options for things as there are combat options. In my first PT of BG3, I looked up and saw Gortash looking out from his tower towards the city. I snuck up, got behind him and pushed him off the edge. Didn't have to deal w/ the Steel Watch, the gnomes, none of it, because i took advantage of an opportunity I never would have expected the game would allow me to. My point is, there are only like 5 things that you have to do in the game. That's something you can definitely do in DnD campaigns. It's something you'd have to approach with long term implications and not something that could be covered in a few sessions. At 1-2 sessions a week, you're talking about something that would take 6 months or more to complete. And I've had friends that had ongoing campaigns last years, so it's not that outlandish.
Lovely video gents!
1:29 Choo, choo!
One thing that strikes me having watched others play BG3 is that they seem to roll for everything. This vid is focused on players, but I think the big thing for me is how prospective DMs might overdo rolling. If a character's good at something just let them have it sometimes, or lay down hints rather than expecting a perception check to basically decide if a hidden thing effectively exists or not.
Also since they're basically the players' eyes and ears in the world, if you play BG3 you might think it's OK to just say some basic things about a place and consider it sufficient, but adding little scene details (without overdoing it of course) would bring the thing alive and inspire player decisions. That's one thing I noticed was sort of lacking in the video game, people enter a space and the DM narrator doesn't give you a general vibe the firs time you go there, I think that could be have been extra cool
Damn that Mercer. You do know he is even in BG3 right?
THERE IS NO GOLD IN HERE!!
people expect videogames but with a person instead of a computer.
Also if anyone comes to my table expecting Bestiality i will point them to the door on the spot.
[You open the door and a bear wearing mascara bats their eyelashes at you.]
I've had the exact opposite feeling on it and I've heard others say this too. "Playing BG3 is like playing D&D with a shitty DM." As a long time GM that is also playing this game, I definitely agree with this statement.
Hard disagree
This is just the flavor of the week/month video that is being churned out by plenty of other content creators but at least the content of the video is still viable. Not entirely clickbaity but BG3 isn't having the impact implied on D&D players other than being introduced to a masterpiece of video gaming.
Tip #1 should have been "play a TTRPG that's not D&D"
I don't play with players that expect Matt Mercer or Baldur's Gate 3. I run something much better.
Thinking everyone loves your bs is a huge mistake.