Be a Kobold in Kobold Quest! www.kickstarter.com/projects/amarik/172732824?ref=a86ppk Special thanks to my wife for putting on the Kobold gloves with minimal questions.
@@Specter_1125 Unfortunately there are GMs who take the title “storyteller” literally and end up railroading their players or become frustrated then the players take left turns.
I feel targeted, but maybe, just maybe I need to come up with another name for the role we all understand creates player agency. Maybe the Game Agent? I dunno, I'll workshop it! :)
My dude. You really have something special here. PLEASE do not change a thing. I think you are destined for such great heights in this space. Im not sure if you fuck with PBTA at all but i think you would like Stonetop and the GM tools it gives you a lot for the type of games that I hear you talk about. The good ones.
For anyone interested in "chapters" and timestamps, good DnD adventure: 1. Creates player agency (0:14) 2. Has choices and consequences (1:02) 3. Lets players do what they want (1:45) 4. Is a fish story? (3:35) 5. Has more flavor, less lore (4:34) 6. Has beginning (5:18) 7. Surprises the GM (6:16) 8. Has timers (7:00) 9. Creates wonder (7:35) 10. Is interactive (8:19)
If you're confused by the phrase "fish story", here it means something you're excited to tell your friends about even months after it happened, like "and then I caught that fish, it was THIS BIG!"
@@Bruhtatochip742 sometimes you just gotta talk to the DM and if that doesn't works you gotta leave. I had a DM who made the PCs feel unimportant and after two conversations my wife and I left the group.
@@Bruhtatochip742 I think most DMs that aren't making their players feel important are just trying to hard to be a storyteller and are more interested in their story than having fun. I don't think it's usually out of malice but sometimes it can be
@@aprozach Agreed. It seems like such an easy mental trap to get caught in because the DM wants to create memorable story moments but doesn't consider that the players... don't really care what the DM wants, in a weird way.
7:40 So many ttrpg creators forget this immensely important point. If you (like me) are new. DO THE TROPES. Stand on the shoulders of giants and borrow stuff. Tropes work and you will LEARN by using them and later, your games will be BETTER for it!
Tracking time has been the best addition to my campaigns lately. Players actually take time to plan how they want to approach the sandbox map; traveling becomes a barrier to overcome and potentially master; long rests actually begin to matter! I also don’t mind them using all of their most potent, powerful abilities to trivialize an encounter. That just means they’ll have to find a more strategic and resourceful means to complete the next quest if they want to beat the clock.
I think this is the first video where the sponsorship part was flipping HILARIOUS. The blurry pause made me think of something like the Naked Gun. That was really well done, and also giving love to Willowby Hall is always a sign of discerning taste!
Me just feeding massive excel file with all looted tables into one horrific amalgamation that only savant tech priest like me can decipher what happens.
In yesterday's session, players boarded a duergar pirate ship and took their cannons and threatened them to open a hole on the cask if they didn't surrender
1. Player Agency - Just set the stage 1:02 2. Choices & Consequences - smth smth 1:44 3. Player can do what they want - Translate: Players have Agency 3:37 4. It's a Fish Story - smth smth feelings and a ton of dice that is as good as out of the gms control 4:30 5. Flavor > Lore - smth smth music + giveaway crafting see Fish story 5:16 6. A Beginning & A Beginning & A BEGINNING! - Much better explains the "Just have the setup and what happens when the player arrives" part from earlier. 6:17 7. Surprises the GM - Random tables? That's it? 6:57 8. Timers - Timers....... 7:33 9. It Creates Wonder - Actually make things EPIC and BADASS and AWESOME (First tip on this list I truly found useful) 8:16 10. Interactivity - Add items to room which the players can use as NOT part of their character sheets.
Man, every video is so well made. Genuinely one of my favorite TTRPG channels. From presentation to actual content - it's all golden! The back of the head part was brilliant
At long last we, as the audience, have been allowed to look up from the Deficient's desk to see our surroundings only to discover the horror of living in Minecraft
Failing forward is a concept I was told that’s invaluable for making a good game. Instead of just failing to pick a lock, the lock opens but breaks the tool set. Or the PCs fail to climb the fence which they still do but it takes to long and the BBEG has more defenses. (Another reason time shouldn’t be hand waived). Disco Elysium remains the best RPG to demonstrate failing forward in so many good ways that not only progress the story but provide more challenges and entertainment.
I think it should be noted that 'failing forward' should be used with discretion, and not all situations apply where the outcome on a bad roll might result in a fail forward, naturally. An obvious answer is some absurd player action like 'I seduce the king', but we also have to consider factors like how does the the player action correlate to what they want of an outcome and simply 'would it be more interesting, if the failure was just a failure?'. I think this is somewhat of an issue with 'fail forward' effects, where you have to understand if the system in question is mechanically and tonally built for that, and if it can be done, with what consistency? Fail forward is great for story oriented systems like Call of Cthuthlu or Burning Wheel, perhaps, but I think starts to buckle under more mechanically focused (expectantly) systems like Dungeon Crawl Classics (to a degree) or Five Torches Deep. I would especially question what place 'fail forward' has in systems like Pathfinder or Lancer, where mechanics are so cut and dry.
@@jakegray1723 Oh yeah for sure. Sometimes, players fail. The quest is over and the heroes lost. It happens and it can create great moments too. And that's another thing: Players *should* lose from time to time.
You have some seriously great takes when it comes to DMing. I have been feeling that the game I run has been lacking as of late. So I have done some research into some more tips, tricks and modern takes on running games in the last few weeks, compiling a list for myself with short notes on things i want to improve on or implement. And probably half of those points I have on there come from your videos.
Your tips always help give me confidence whenever I start to get nervous about running my next game. I can't wait to put these into practice for the next one I run!
I need to say bravo and hats off to you! The set design, the script, the acting, the voice acting, the extreme knowledge on display, it is all so good! Call me biased, but using Minecraft as set dressing and for some examples is sheer brilliance as well!
Some of this recommendations are insane. My players remember my bad guy and characters. And enjoy and always look for lore. The dice rolls and "oneshots" have all but faded away
Good time to upload, I was looking for something to watch while having dinner! Your style is very entertaining, and I always find useful insights to prep my games.
Yooo, just found your videos. The editing style goes crazy, along with the animation and light humor. MOST importantly, your videos are short, clear and concise. I am a fairly experienced DM, but no matter how interested I am in a topic, I will tune out everytime I see a video that's 45 mins that CAN be summarized in a 5 mins tldr. It's a bit ironic, because "talking longer than you should and fumbling your audience attention" seems like a pretty common DM habit...
I really like these rules because they work against the normal expectations of DMs. You always _think_ the fun part will be the lore of the world and the end boss you’re excited to bring out, but my most successful campaigns started out with the players in prison and me not having any idea what the world was like outside of it. That’s what the time between sessions is for, and it’s so much easier and better to do it based on what the players care about.
Another great video! It can be good to have lore to use as a tool, in case you need prompts to make things up. Running Tyrrany of Dragons, the ending cataclysmic battle had the party consult the greatest minds of good. Elminster said he knew of another that might help, and teleported the party to see an old friend in a distant land called Canada... It did nothing for mechanical game play, but the players loved it.
This was wonderful, kudos to you my friend! I always enjoy hearing any sorts of tips to make the game more enjoyable for everyone. Running a Shadowdark RPG adventure tomorrow, going to borrow a few of these. Thank you!
Oh my god, another video, yaaaaaay! Your video wasn’t on my Home Screen, I only found it in my subscribed feed. I can’t wait for more of your videos and I hope the show up this time!
It's interesting what changes when RPing in a text-only environment here, because the fish story rule doesn't necessarily apply in what I've seen - it has more of a book-reading quality. My players vividly remember my lore and NPCs (particularly what others would call DMPCs), to the point where I am occasionally corrected since my memory is pretty poor!
I just started doing top 7 - initially, I had planned specific monsters and NPCs for specific rooms of my 30 room dungeon, but instead I moved them to random tables. So now those random tables have meaning, but it allows the game to have flexibility about when they happen.
To be fair the second point is the most important one. The best feeling that player can have is consequences of their actions(however those must be belivable) Also diverse reactions from NPCs is also nice. (if every npc reaction to your rogue stealing valuable object was disdain and high alert when he is around it would look more like a oblivion gameplay and not a dnd adventure)
I’m the opposite when playing, I don’t care about my backstory. I really just want a bread crumb to the BBEG. Now when I DM, I like to incorporate background stories and give each player a chance to be #1 in what everyone is working towards.
Great video. These are the tenants that we followed when setting the foundation for the game we have been working on for the last year and a half. I'm working to get the first run of the core rules released in the next few weeks. I would love to get your thoughts on it. Again love the content, I appreciate any time, and we are excited to start joining the TTRPG communities!
I have had a handful of times when the dice set up a scenario that I couldn’t have scripted better if it was intentional. I use “random” tables (I use Roll 20 as my vttrpg platform) for my encounters, and more often than not, they create a perfect fit that ties to the scene nicely.
I've been working on shifting to more of this style of DMing. I had a great experience in a recent game where I had the group hear a bunch of rumors in a town where they finished up a quest. They picked where to go next. It ended up being the highlight of the entire campaign and it was just a "side mission". I took a good look at those few sessions vs the rest of the stuff I wrote and realized everyone had way more fun with the side mission.
You need certain players for this whole agency thing. Some players simply do not want it. Just putting that out there. You can teach them though! It is this whole "I dont want it" *munch* "Hey, this is good!" meme with agency.
Concur. This is where you need to know your table. If your group isn't very creative, or are low on role play, then a decent railroad of a plot might be ok, and they just change the variables on the way.
If your players don't want agency, you're probably better off playing a different game or straight up telling them a story. If someone dislikes making choices as their character (i.e. playing a role), they won't have fun playing a role playing game
Point 7 is my favorite reason why I GM. I want to be just as surprised as my players by what they come up with when they encounter the stuff I've prepared for them. It's fun!
Oh so much of this rings home in my current game I'm playing in. Our DM (bless him) wanted to do that super fancy open world game where anything can happen but also have his deep lore and rich world building at every corner. When we finally got to a point in the campaign where it felt like something was happening, the totally not evil 13th prince of the jade capital (yes its a wushu setting) stole a fragment of our souls to hold hostage and told us that we had to infiltrate the gangs of the city in order to stop a fortold murder. Cool setup! One small problem... The time we had to do this was *4 years* and our leads were "eh you'll probably figure something out". Queue endless sessions where nothing really happens because neither the players or the characters have any real idea of how to get what we want (or have been told to want)
Agreed, It is very liberating to know you only have to create the story up to the player's interactions. There is no need to make a massive plot on how to destroy the big bad using a mc guffin, the finer details on how to crack into a 7th story safe, or even what they will discuss with the rat king in the sewers. You create the world up to the point the players will be running around, and then turn the rest of it over to them. If you have set those hooks right, at character creation like a good storyteller should, the players don't need anything more then a stage on which to play.
Thanks for the video, man, appreciate it very much. I have quite a hard time DMing my first campaign, seems like players are having fun, but I have a constant feeling that my storytelling/fighting/exploration/npc communication etc isn't good enough. But your videos are really helpful
I've watched the other videos and they're all very good - I'm struggling with what you were trying to say with this one. A lot of things in this dependent on other factors - if you're entire adventure hinges on player agency, you require incredibly active and invested players. How do you get an invested player? They either already have the personality for it, or you have to design something enticing for that player to latch onto. The answer to players not taking the bait isn't always get better bait, because at the supposed not-storyteller you would end up burning yourself out or becoming wholly uninterested due to all your players do is sit and wait for something to happen
Notes Prioritize player agency, which means allowing them to do what they want instead of what they should do. It has consequences for the player’s actions. Use your time conjuring a vibe instead of writing paragraphs of lore. Ex. use music, descriptions, and physical items Write Scenarios in which the story can unravel as the players play, not stories written before play. Use random tables to keep things unpredictable for GM and players alike. Use timers to create tension and quicken the pace. Ex. Goblin has a ruby the size of a tangerine, it’ll escape in 1d4 rounds. Rival adventuring party will plunder the dungeon in 1d4 days Use imagination to create set pieces that are interesting and full of wonder. Give players and enemies toys to encourage creativity and dynamism.
My favourite RPG fish story isn't something the GM even planned. There was tension between two PCs, then a crazy bout of PvP caused by some freakish dice rolls, followed by a second bout after the big bad had been defeated and we were just about to wrap up and there were scores to settle... It was a Dark Heresy campaign so thematically appropriate really, in the grim darkness of the far future you have your moment of triumph but chaos will get you in the end.
Followed your advice for more wandering encounters-ergo, trusting the dice a bit more-and we had a party member get attacked by a drugged unicorn that had escaped from a group of cultists. Funny thing, it got a critical hit with its hooves and got the absolute lowest roll possible.
The best as a DM is, when the players finding very clever and kreativ solutions Zou never expanded. Mz favourite is when they make assumptions about how a sailship in reality works, or what was realistic In the historic medieval. Than they know more about your world than you 😊
I was running a one shot to play test some subclasses. The original idea was to have the players find an artifact, meet a dragon, bargain with it, and kill the dragon when they decided to keep the artifact. Instead, they sold the artifact and went home. That's it. We still had the combat afterwards to test the subclasses out, but it was funny that half the party was actually really cool with selling off the artifact to evil dragons.
I really enjoy your content on adventure and campaign building for TTRPGs. I was wondering if you could provide a list of the books and resources you mention in your videos. It would be really helpful for me to have everything in one place. Thank you!
I like this video! I feel a need to talk about greenscreen tho My ADHD brain would appreciate more variety in the greenscreen sections of the video. I feel like this is a step in right direction (more variety), but those greenscreen sections felt 'slower' than the bits at the table. Maybe more switching backgrounds? Maybe JPGs poppin up every now and then like with the table sections? I dunno! But I believe that you will do great!
@@Eyro_Elloyn yeah, I think my favorite part of the channel is the presentation style - there are so many talking heads out there (because it’s easy, no hate) but this channel stands out: fills an underutilized niche
Come on people, I need everyone that watches to like subscribe and share! Make a bunch of comments, tell me I'm an idiot, I just want more videos from Deficient Master, so get this man enough popularity he can make this his full time job!
Be a Kobold in Kobold Quest! www.kickstarter.com/projects/amarik/172732824?ref=a86ppk
Special thanks to my wife for putting on the Kobold gloves with minimal questions.
Love your content man, already brightened my day when I saw the notification!
Thanks for the shoutout!
This idiot actually said the one thing everyone hates about CoS is the reason people love it. Actual baffoon.
🤡
“You’re not the story teller. You’re the set designer.”
Brilliantly said.
I’ve always loved how OSE uses the term Referee. I think it fits so much better.
Yes! That’s one I gotta remember
The thing is that most RPG books use “storyteller” to mean that, as well as narrator, not that they’re responsible for everything that happens.
@@Specter_1125 Unfortunately there are GMs who take the title “storyteller” literally and end up railroading their players or become frustrated then the players take left turns.
I feel targeted, but maybe, just maybe I need to come up with another name for the role we all understand creates player agency. Maybe the Game Agent? I dunno, I'll workshop it! :)
Gotta start a "Dungeon Crawl Classics Mentioned" counter
Collab!
Should we? 👉👈
@@DeficientMaster my people will call your people
Mate, his vids are basically "OSR philosophy for 5e players" already, no?
I don't think a counter will go high enough
My dude. You really have something special here. PLEASE do not change a thing. I think you are destined for such great heights in this space. Im not sure if you fuck with PBTA at all but i think you would like Stonetop and the GM tools it gives you a lot for the type of games that I hear you talk about. The good ones.
PBTA is not a real system even. It pretends to be one by having all those numbers - but they don't matter.
For anyone interested in "chapters" and timestamps, good DnD adventure:
1. Creates player agency (0:14)
2. Has choices and consequences (1:02)
3. Lets players do what they want (1:45)
4. Is a fish story? (3:35)
5. Has more flavor, less lore (4:34)
6. Has beginning (5:18)
7. Surprises the GM (6:16)
8. Has timers (7:00)
9. Creates wonder (7:35)
10. Is interactive (8:19)
To the top with you!
Did you ever know that you’re my hero?
@@brebeaa glad to help ☺
If you're confused by the phrase "fish story", here it means something you're excited to tell your friends about even months after it happened, like "and then I caught that fish, it was THIS BIG!"
"Make your players feel important." Probably the best advice any GM can get.
My DM is failing
@@Bruhtatochip742 sometimes you just gotta talk to the DM and if that doesn't works you gotta leave. I had a DM who made the PCs feel unimportant and after two conversations my wife and I left the group.
@@aprozach Yeah, I don't understand DMs that are like that.
@@Bruhtatochip742 I think most DMs that aren't making their players feel important are just trying to hard to be a storyteller and are more interested in their story than having fun. I don't think it's usually out of malice but sometimes it can be
@@aprozach Agreed. It seems like such an easy mental trap to get caught in because the DM wants to create memorable story moments but doesn't consider that the players... don't really care what the DM wants, in a weird way.
Your videos broke into my house and forced me to do my own indie rpg
Me too 😢
7:40 So many ttrpg creators forget this immensely important point. If you (like me) are new. DO THE TROPES. Stand on the shoulders of giants and borrow stuff. Tropes work and you will LEARN by using them and later, your games will be BETTER for it!
Tracking time has been the best addition to my campaigns lately. Players actually take time to plan how they want to approach the sandbox map; traveling becomes a barrier to overcome and potentially master; long rests actually begin to matter!
I also don’t mind them using all of their most potent, powerful abilities to trivialize an encounter. That just means they’ll have to find a more strategic and resourceful means to complete the next quest if they want to beat the clock.
This is probably the only Dungeontuber I don't put on my 2nd monitor. The editing and advice is fantastic.
I'm hypnotized by the facial warping...
Ben Milton is a gift to the TTRPG community
I think this is the first video where the sponsorship part was flipping HILARIOUS. The blurry pause made me think of something like the Naked Gun. That was really well done, and also giving love to Willowby Hall is always a sign of discerning taste!
The editing skills on this video were so good, i really enjoyed the video
man I LOVE deficient master
And I love you, @jonahgreene4526
Babe wake up, It's new Deficient Master!
Deficient Master Minecraft Let's Play confirmed
Me just feeding massive excel file with all looted tables into one horrific amalgamation that only savant tech priest like me can decipher what happens.
"00011101010111011!!!"
In yesterday's session, players boarded a duergar pirate ship and took their cannons and threatened them to open a hole on the cask if they didn't surrender
1. Player Agency - Just set the stage
1:02 2. Choices & Consequences - smth smth
1:44 3. Player can do what they want - Translate: Players have Agency
3:37 4. It's a Fish Story - smth smth feelings and a ton of dice that is as good as out of the gms control
4:30 5. Flavor > Lore - smth smth music + giveaway crafting see Fish story
5:16 6. A Beginning & A Beginning & A BEGINNING! - Much better explains the "Just have the setup and what happens when the player arrives" part from earlier.
6:17 7. Surprises the GM - Random tables? That's it?
6:57 8. Timers - Timers.......
7:33 9. It Creates Wonder - Actually make things EPIC and BADASS and AWESOME (First tip on this list I truly found useful)
8:16 10. Interactivity - Add items to room which the players can use as NOT part of their character sheets.
Man, every video is so well made. Genuinely one of my favorite TTRPG channels. From presentation to actual content - it's all golden! The back of the head part was brilliant
Man, I think this is one of the best (if not the best) channel about DM I've seen
YESSSS new deficient master just dropped
At long last we, as the audience, have been allowed to look up from the Deficient's desk to see our surroundings only to discover the horror of living in Minecraft
Failing forward is a concept I was told that’s invaluable for making a good game. Instead of just failing to pick a lock, the lock opens but breaks the tool set. Or the PCs fail to climb the fence which they still do but it takes to long and the BBEG has more defenses. (Another reason time shouldn’t be hand waived). Disco Elysium remains the best RPG to demonstrate failing forward in so many good ways that not only progress the story but provide more challenges and entertainment.
I think it should be noted that 'failing forward' should be used with discretion, and not all situations apply where the outcome on a bad roll might result in a fail forward, naturally. An obvious answer is some absurd player action like 'I seduce the king', but we also have to consider factors like how does the the player action correlate to what they want of an outcome and simply 'would it be more interesting, if the failure was just a failure?'. I think this is somewhat of an issue with 'fail forward' effects, where you have to understand if the system in question is mechanically and tonally built for that, and if it can be done, with what consistency? Fail forward is great for story oriented systems like Call of Cthuthlu or Burning Wheel, perhaps, but I think starts to buckle under more mechanically focused (expectantly) systems like Dungeon Crawl Classics (to a degree) or Five Torches Deep. I would especially question what place 'fail forward' has in systems like Pathfinder or Lancer, where mechanics are so cut and dry.
@@jakegray1723 Oh yeah for sure. Sometimes, players fail. The quest is over and the heroes lost. It happens and it can create great moments too. And that's another thing: Players *should* lose from time to time.
Disco Elysium itself is actually an amazing basis for a TTRPG
So many new camera angles... How is this possible??? >:O
Another video this quickly? Hell Yeah!
Saw there was a new Deficient Master video and immediately took my lunch break to watch it. The customers can WAIT.
You have some seriously great takes when it comes to DMing. I have been feeling that the game I run has been lacking as of late.
So I have done some research into some more tips, tricks and modern takes on running games in the last few weeks, compiling a list for myself with short notes on things i want to improve on or implement. And probably half of those points I have on there come from your videos.
Your tips always help give me confidence whenever I start to get nervous about running my next game. I can't wait to put these into practice for the next one I run!
I need to say bravo and hats off to you! The set design, the script, the acting, the voice acting, the extreme knowledge on display, it is all so good!
Call me biased, but using Minecraft as set dressing and for some examples is sheer brilliance as well!
I love the new camera angles, and the knowledge you live in a Minecraft world
Great ideas as usual. Some of the best editing in this genre.
Some of this recommendations are insane. My players remember my bad guy and characters. And enjoy and always look for lore. The dice rolls and "oneshots" have all but faded away
Best lead up to an ad I've ever seen, bar none. I watched it out of respect
Love the new editing techniques you're implementing! Really smart to use Minecraft as virtual sets. Keep up the amazing work!
Its a good day when deficient master uploads, this is a great video topic! I definitely need help writing good adventures
Good time to upload, I was looking for something to watch while having dinner! Your style is very entertaining, and I always find useful insights to prep my games.
You’ve done it! This is your format! Stick with it!
this is by far your best video yet and also the most profound, and the one that GMs of 40+ years need to hear as much as the new ones.
Yooo, just found your videos. The editing style goes crazy, along with the animation and light humor. MOST importantly, your videos are short, clear and concise. I am a fairly experienced DM, but no matter how interested I am in a topic, I will tune out everytime I see a video that's 45 mins that CAN be summarized in a 5 mins tldr. It's a bit ironic, because "talking longer than you should and fumbling your audience attention" seems like a pretty common DM habit...
Actually wearing the face disk; Inspied! Chef's kiss!
This is the best and most entertaining DM advice channel on the block.
Subbed since the first video, was not dissapointed since.
I really like these rules because they work against the normal expectations of DMs. You always _think_ the fun part will be the lore of the world and the end boss you’re excited to bring out, but my most successful campaigns started out with the players in prison and me not having any idea what the world was like outside of it. That’s what the time between sessions is for, and it’s so much easier and better to do it based on what the players care about.
Another great video! It can be good to have lore to use as a tool, in case you need prompts to make things up. Running Tyrrany of Dragons, the ending cataclysmic battle had the party consult the greatest minds of good. Elminster said he knew of another that might help, and teleported the party to see an old friend in a distant land called Canada... It did nothing for mechanical game play, but the players loved it.
This was wonderful, kudos to you my friend! I always enjoy hearing any sorts of tips to make the game more enjoyable for everyone. Running a Shadowdark RPG adventure tomorrow, going to borrow a few of these. Thank you!
I love your example of showing the cos adventure, truly one of the best dnd ever released
Oh my god, another video, yaaaaaay! Your video wasn’t on my Home Screen, I only found it in my subscribed feed. I can’t wait for more of your videos and I hope the show up this time!
Point 7 is my favourite. I love randomness in my games. It keeps things fresh and makes everything exciting.
Finally some great advice that actually reflects what I have learned at the table! Instantly subbed.
Your editing continues to improve. Great video!
It's interesting what changes when RPing in a text-only environment here, because the fish story rule doesn't necessarily apply in what I've seen - it has more of a book-reading quality. My players vividly remember my lore and NPCs (particularly what others would call DMPCs), to the point where I am occasionally corrected since my memory is pretty poor!
I just started doing top 7 - initially, I had planned specific monsters and NPCs for specific rooms of my 30 room dungeon, but instead I moved them to random tables. So now those random tables have meaning, but it allows the game to have flexibility about when they happen.
@DeficientMaster Just discovered your channel. Fantastic stuff! Clearly stated, engaging, and entertaining. You've gotta great thing going here!!!
Really well done video again! The new angles are a cool touch and so perfectly executed! Kudo’s mr!
To be fair the second point is the most important one.
The best feeling that player can have is consequences of their actions(however those must be belivable)
Also diverse reactions from NPCs is also nice. (if every npc reaction to your rogue stealing valuable object was disdain and high alert when he is around it would look more like a oblivion gameplay and not a dnd adventure)
Well said when you mention that great adventures as of of high wizards in war in another plane can be played for characters of level 1-2
I’m the opposite when playing, I don’t care about my backstory. I really just want a bread crumb to the BBEG.
Now when I DM, I like to incorporate background stories and give each player a chance to be #1 in what everyone is working towards.
Great video. These are the tenants that we followed when setting the foundation for the game we have been working on for the last year and a half. I'm working to get the first run of the core rules released in the next few weeks. I would love to get your thoughts on it.
Again love the content, I appreciate any time, and we are excited to start joining the TTRPG communities!
I have had a handful of times when the dice set up a scenario that I couldn’t have scripted better if it was intentional. I use “random” tables (I use Roll 20 as my vttrpg platform) for my encounters, and more often than not, they create a perfect fit that ties to the scene nicely.
I've been working on shifting to more of this style of DMing. I had a great experience in a recent game where I had the group hear a bunch of rumors in a town where they finished up a quest. They picked where to go next. It ended up being the highlight of the entire campaign and it was just a "side mission". I took a good look at those few sessions vs the rest of the stuff I wrote and realized everyone had way more fun with the side mission.
You need certain players for this whole agency thing. Some players simply do not want it. Just putting that out there. You can teach them though!
It is this whole "I dont want it" *munch* "Hey, this is good!" meme with agency.
yep
Concur. This is where you need to know your table. If your group isn't very creative, or are low on role play, then a decent railroad of a plot might be ok, and they just change the variables on the way.
If your players don't want agency, you're probably better off playing a different game or straight up telling them a story. If someone dislikes making choices as their character (i.e. playing a role), they won't have fun playing a role playing game
Point 7 is my favorite reason why I GM. I want to be just as surprised as my players by what they come up with when they encounter the stuff I've prepared for them. It's fun!
Oh so much of this rings home in my current game I'm playing in. Our DM (bless him) wanted to do that super fancy open world game where anything can happen but also have his deep lore and rich world building at every corner.
When we finally got to a point in the campaign where it felt like something was happening, the totally not evil 13th prince of the jade capital (yes its a wushu setting) stole a fragment of our souls to hold hostage and told us that we had to infiltrate the gangs of the city in order to stop a fortold murder. Cool setup! One small problem... The time we had to do this was *4 years* and our leads were "eh you'll probably figure something out".
Queue endless sessions where nothing really happens because neither the players or the characters have any real idea of how to get what we want (or have been told to want)
Agreed,
It is very liberating to know you only have to create the story up to the player's interactions. There is no need to make a massive plot on how to destroy the big bad using a mc guffin, the finer details on how to crack into a 7th story safe, or even what they will discuss with the rat king in the sewers. You create the world up to the point the players will be running around, and then turn the rest of it over to them. If you have set those hooks right, at character creation like a good storyteller should, the players don't need anything more then a stage on which to play.
Thanks for the video, man, appreciate it very much. I have quite a hard time DMing my first campaign, seems like players are having fun, but I have a constant feeling that my storytelling/fighting/exploration/npc communication etc isn't good enough. But your videos are really helpful
I love your content. Every video is so fun to watch and well put together. Keep up the good work master
really well produced video with useful information. Instant sub! I cant wait to see more of your content!
I've watched the other videos and they're all very good - I'm struggling with what you were trying to say with this one. A lot of things in this dependent on other factors - if you're entire adventure hinges on player agency, you require incredibly active and invested players. How do you get an invested player? They either already have the personality for it, or you have to design something enticing for that player to latch onto. The answer to players not taking the bait isn't always get better bait, because at the supposed not-storyteller you would end up burning yourself out or becoming wholly uninterested due to all your players do is sit and wait for something to happen
I predict a "D&D Players SUCK!" video from DM.
Dude, this is great advice delivered in a great way. Thank you.
Holy shit Dragonbane mentioned! Absolutely goated system!
Love the Minecraft Background
DCC mentioned WOOOOO! Best TTRPG of all time!
Notes
Prioritize player agency, which means allowing them to do what they want instead of what they should do.
It has consequences for the player’s actions.
Use your time conjuring a vibe instead of writing paragraphs of lore.
Ex. use music, descriptions, and physical items
Write Scenarios in which the story can unravel as the players play, not stories written before play.
Use random tables to keep things unpredictable for GM and players alike.
Use timers to create tension and quicken the pace.
Ex. Goblin has a ruby the size of a tangerine, it’ll escape in 1d4 rounds. Rival adventuring party will plunder the dungeon in 1d4 days
Use imagination to create set pieces that are interesting and full of wonder.
Give players and enemies toys to encourage creativity and dynamism.
I run a very sandboxy game and I love my games the most when I discover my world with my players together.
I was just looking for your other video about adventures and this video pops up. A surprise indeed, but a welcome one. I'll ring the bell now :v
You're right, all good campaigns do have kobolds.
Not at all biased because I'm running Crown of the Kobold King right now.
My favourite RPG fish story isn't something the GM even planned. There was tension between two PCs, then a crazy bout of PvP caused by some freakish dice rolls, followed by a second bout after the big bad had been defeated and we were just about to wrap up and there were scores to settle... It was a Dark Heresy campaign so thematically appropriate really, in the grim darkness of the far future you have your moment of triumph but chaos will get you in the end.
Master, you really should make a campain series!! 🙏🙏
Bro I needed this video so bad today
Actually watched the ad this time, because it wasn't about that other kickstarter, that's everywhere right now.
Followed your advice for more wandering encounters-ergo, trusting the dice a bit more-and we had a party member get attacked by a drugged unicorn that had escaped from a group of cultists.
Funny thing, it got a critical hit with its hooves and got the absolute lowest roll possible.
The best as a DM is, when the players finding very clever and kreativ solutions Zou never expanded. Mz favourite is when they make assumptions about how a sailship in reality works, or what was realistic In the historic medieval. Than they know more about your world than you 😊
Finally! The full elbow reveal! *The Prophecy*
I was running a one shot to play test some subclasses. The original idea was to have the players find an artifact, meet a dragon, bargain with it, and kill the dragon when they decided to keep the artifact. Instead, they sold the artifact and went home. That's it. We still had the combat afterwards to test the subclasses out, but it was funny that half the party was actually really cool with selling off the artifact to evil dragons.
I really enjoy your content on adventure and campaign building for TTRPGs. I was wondering if you could provide a list of the books and resources you mention in your videos. It would be really helpful for me to have everything in one place.
Thank you!
Fantastico! It´s a pleasure watch this videos, they ´re so levely and funny!
The deficient master is in the mincraft phase judging by the background
I've been playing 25 years and ya know what? I still love a fucking tomb full or skeletons, man. Nothing beats the classics.
I've watched many a dnd advice video. but this one, sir, will serve me best.
Awesome! More of these are needed!
I was watching that coffee closely during the consequences section 😂
I like this video! I feel a need to talk about greenscreen tho
My ADHD brain would appreciate more variety in the greenscreen sections of the video. I feel like this is a step in right direction (more variety), but those greenscreen sections felt 'slower' than the bits at the table. Maybe more switching backgrounds? Maybe JPGs poppin up every now and then like with the table sections? I dunno! But I believe that you will do great!
Thank you DeficientMaster for Masterfully Deficienting all over us.
OMG, I so LOVE the coffee cup with subscribe!
Thx for video, man, but honestly i prefer a "hand-made" sequence - it's create more nice and homely cozy atmosphere for wacthing
Another great video keep them coming!
I prefer the not-talking-head version of the show
I kinda got sick of the hands talking all the time.
Yeah, if he's not gonna use his face I definitely prefer the hands on tabletop view.
@@Eyro_Elloyn yeah, I think my favorite part of the channel is the presentation style - there are so many talking heads out there (because it’s easy, no hate) but this channel stands out: fills an underutilized niche
Come on people, I need everyone that watches to like subscribe and share! Make a bunch of comments, tell me I'm an idiot, I just want more videos from Deficient Master, so get this man enough popularity he can make this his full time job!
Damn, really goin' all out with the green screen this time!
Cool video