4 DM tips for encouraging party roleplay
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- Опубліковано 19 чер 2024
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▼ INDEX ▼
0:00 Intro
0:42 Roleplay vs. acting
2:16 Create the right atmosphere
5:01 The Queen's demand
6:25 Verbal prompts
9:00 Reward roleplay
10:37 Encourage character understanding
12:25 A final disclaimer
After my recent video about how players can get their Dungeons & Dragons party to roleplay with them, I had a ton of requests for a Dungeon Master version of that topic! So here are four tips for how DMs can encourage their players to really get into their characters.
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“Nothing breaks immersion like a player named Josh”
I took that a little personally 😂
I went "oof"
Same
Quit breaking our immersion, Josh!
:p
Ahahahahah
I have two players named Josh so I felt this by association lmao
I have a habit of doubting my DM abilities and I expected to watch this video and feel like I don't do much of those and I should be better, but I actually came away realizing I might be a better DM than I give myself credit for, because I genuinely do all of these and my players are having fun
You are almost certainly a better DM then you think you are.
Bad people never question whether or not they're "good" and I think that applies to GMs as well. The ones that just assume they're the bees knees are usually terrible lol. "The problem is that idiots are full of confidence while smart people are full of doubt" xD
Let go of the need to be perfect. Ignore others when they ask you to be perfect.
You are you. You are enough. Your players want to build an adventure with you.
Fun is the main reason we play, whether a character or DM. If everyone is having fun, that is all you need.
You're a great DM, because you *are* the DM. As long as you're listening to your players and not making them genuinely uncomfortable, they'll come back time after time to enjoy your game.
"Do you say that out loud?" is *absolutely* going in the arsenal.
I'm a very shy role player and 100% the thing that most got me to open up in my group was just the other players (and GM) getting excited about my rp choices with me. Ending a session and immediately having everyone excitedly discussing something *I* did is literally the best feeling I've gotten out of the game
I've been on the other end of that. Trust me, seeing a shy player's face light up when you support them (in-game and outside of the game) feels great too!
I noticed the amount of interparty roleplay and banter go WAY way up when I changed "Is there anything you'd like to do?" whenever they had downtime or traversal time to "Is there anything you would like to do or discuss?"
Suddenly a lot more roleplay was coming out either discussing what they were going to do, asking each other how they were doing after that last encounter, or even asking npc's questions (if they're traveling with npc's).
I also make sure to address them by name whenever I can. "Ok, while they're off doing that, Elik, what are you doing?"
And if the player is doing general descriptions as opposed to specific roleplaying. I make sure to respond with specific roleplaying even if they choose to continue the general. "I go shopping at the apothecary." "Afternoon, my good sir, what can I do for you." "I want to buy some health potions." "Certainly sir, no finer potions in all the land. What specifically can I interest you in?" Often as we are having that back and forth they slowly start being more specific in their conversations. But I never pressure them to be too specific if they don't feel like it. Cause, quite frankly, as a dm, I often have nights where I don't feel like being specific and I am a little more general too.
I just wanna say I saw this comment a few weeks back when I was prepping for a new campaign. It's actually low-key genius. I immediately stole it and use it every time, it feels great to put the 'Discuss' option on the table whenever I ask what they wanna do. My players are already very interested and engage in a lot of RP, but this just redoubled their efforts
@@kainan613 Aww, that’s so sweet :)
I’m so glad that worked out for you :)
My group's DM created an atmosphere for roleplaying called "close quarters". While we are journeying across the sea to get to different places, two or more of us are randomly selected to be at a certain location at the ship, and we can choose what we want to talk about, or our DM can suggest a topic.
The amount of times each of us has ended up in our hot tub with our Pastafarian Cleric is amusing and has created quite a few laughs XD
It's not easy, but something that's helped my players is having your NPCs talk to each other. If your players see you having a conversation with yourself in silly voices then it can help them break out of their comfort zone for more Active RP.
True, this is why you always have a comic relief NPC that can make jokes to a more serious NPC and make everyone amused
Anytime a DM asks how to encourage their players to do X thing, I respond the same way.
You encourage the thing you reward. If you reward players for good roleplay, not taking advantage of meta-knowledge, and truly embodying their characters, they WILL do it more. Also, I know this video is about players roleplaying with each other, but one thing that I've always found as a DM is creating compelling and likable NPCs will get players to engage with the world more often.
I definitely try to mix up 1st person and 3rd person RP when playing NPCs to signal to the players either way is valid.
Basically, more carrot, less stick.
Ngl I kinda love seeing you in this comment section so often. From one rat to another, have a nice day, Crispy
True, though the latter can sometimes backfire if you overdo it. Had a DM with so many wonderful and engaging NPCs but there was little bonding or roleplaying in-party. Everyone had different favorite NPCs they'd want to help or even try to hire/recruit, so when tense moments or party conflict came up the response became splitting the party rather than working out the differences. Party was split more often than it was together for the last year of the campaign.
(Though I must admit, while most of the roleplaying was "f*ck you I'm goning to go hang out with Gary the Innkeep" I suppose it did encourage roleplay between party members either way)
I think that's the heart of the question though, the real question. I, personally, am just looking for ideas on how [good] GMs accomplish that. What do they reward for? How do they reward? What rewards are to be given for what?
I recall a session where I didn’t speak for nearly 45 minutes, just letting the in character planning happen. It was fantastic
A recent session I DM'd was 3.5 hours of straight RP. All I did was describe places they decided to go to and asked for a few rolls, kept the music fitting to the mood and such. Best session I'ver DM'd
I second the "shutting up" point. My DM was in the habit of rushing to the next thing. After briefly speaking with them about it, they eased up, and the amount of inter-player roleplay that grew to fill the gaps was great!
I found a way to have my players remember that they have inspiration on their own by using some child psychology i learned during my aprenticeship. basically people (especially children) remember stuff better if there is some kind of little ritual attached to it so i bought a small mimic chest and filled it with three kinds of differed coins, gold, silver and copper. (bought some fantasy coins that have different collors and shapes) and everytime i award ispiration i call out what kind of ispiration like "you get silver ispiration for that" and they then have to reach into this (tothy) chest and find and fish out the right coin. none of my players are actually children but this does in fact still work (at least at my table)
That's a very interesting idea! Might look into this for my own group! :)
Do your different kinds of inspiration differ in effect, or are they still regular inspiration but you color code them to make the player focus on it when taking them from the mimic chest?
@@darmakx99 they differ in effect with a higher valeu coin giving them a higher benifit, like a gold coin gives them advantage when used, a silver coin lets them add a d12 to a roll and a copper coin lets them add a d10. but no player can hhold more than one coin at a time and if they get inspiration again they can upgrade the coin they already have to a better one.
@@cthrion_uroniziir that sounds really inspired (hehe), I might try using that system myself! Even down to pulling the specific type of coin from a mimic chest (mostly because I love mimics lol)
My internal rule that helps reward roleplay is that when it comes to speech checks if they can give a really good argument for how they persuade them I always either lower the DC of it or at least role with advantage. Because I think the thing I personally feel in speech checks is if my character doesn't have decent charisma I might not bother. But at the same time people don't need to have charisma to make a good or valid point. So when the reigns are in my hands as DM I try to alleviate that like "Damn that's a good point, roll with advantage."
And not every point made by someone with really high charisma is good or valid. That's why popular people make some bad takes sometimes
As a player, I tend to struggle with roleplay when the tone of the campaign gets too serious before our characters have had the time to become friends. I tend to play down-to-earth characters that are prone to lashing out if they feel some people in the group are putting the rest of them in danger, but I don't want the other players to think I have a problem with them. Therefore, I find it much easier for characters to get to know each other in a more relaxed context first, so that the characters care about each other before a stressful situation shows up and causes friction.
I'm four minutes in and she's already said "fuck" twice.
This video is perfection in every way.
Voice of a mermaid, mouth of a sailor 😂
@@GinnyDi that's one of my favorite archetypes! 😂
Something else that may help with understanding: Make sure your players know the *setting*, both the world at large and the scene at hand. Sure, player attention is vital, but a player that's checked out might not have a grasp on the scene or know enough about the world to have context for character expression/decisions. It's especially important to relate that in homebrew and unique settings.
I really relate to this. I find it quite difficult to role play when I feel like I don't understand the scene
Just to play devil's advocate for a moment: do you ask about the context beforehand or even during the scene? I can just see this being both ways: the DM should provide relevant information but the DM can't know everything that a player would find helpful to be able to play in character.
@@Sam-pi5bh oh for sure. Loads of questions. But each time I ask a question 'out of character' it becomes harder to role play. And my character can't very well ask 'wait, how many people are in the room?' partway through a conversation. So it's a frequent interruption of any attempt to RP.
@@UnproductiveSunbeam yeah, definitely. That's something I thought about after replying. I know I've done that myself and it takes a couple moments to get back into character.
Additionally, I know for me it feels bad when I learn a seemingly minor or insignificant piece of information that would have drastically altered the way my character would have acted. Then I feel like I either missed a great opportunity to show off a character quirk , or worse, that I know it would have led to entirely different dialog/ actions.
Yeah, my friend and I have been world building and we're finally running some games in that setting, and parts of it are very different and I have to rein in my desire to infodump too much. Did a little exposition at the beginning and now I just describe things as they come across them. I'll note if it's a thing that's "normal" to them so they'll be like, "Ahhh, this entire culture designs their buildings for humanoids AND full sized dragons". Or sometimes I throw in a random factoid here and there for no real reason. Hopefully they'll slowly learn about the wider world we've come up with, while both players and us DMs learn about the local area we've started playing in (just making up this town and local surroundings as we go along, using our worldbuilding as a framework)
I love that you mentioned the silliness inherent in D&D. acknowledging the absurdity was one of the things that helped me most as both player and dm when i first started out.
(9:29) "My rogue starts dancing while singing 'Ooh Child' by The Fire Stairsteps." Demonstrate for the group.
"I'm distracting you, you big turd blossom!"
Haha yes. "Bonus points if you act it out." Best outcome would be everyone sings along
My DM is wonderful with this, one of the things that helps the most for me is getting bread crumb trails like "Elektra,. You'd know *thing* from your time in the temple,"and it gives me an engagement point to share with the party
definitely! Ive been thinking that rather than having everyone roll for knowledge or whatever you focus on the character whose background means they should know about thing or notice a thing.
If a player shows up with a backstory, heck yeah!
The DM can dump exposition, but it's often more exciting when you can hairpin it through a player like this.
I like to tell the player more than the party needs to know, and then prompt "that's what you know about it. What do you actually tell the party?"
This little bit of telephone game results in great PC to PC role play!
Bonus points: include bits that would be dishonorable or embarrassing for the PC's order/village/priesthood and watch them dance around those bits in what they relay to the party 🤣
I have two different groups I DM for. My one is very roleplay heavy and its hard to get them into the action while the other is very action oriented and rarely ever roleplay.
Ooh this is a good idea for a video too! What do to when your party gets stuck in roleplay and won't take action hehe
@@annafantasia this is not a problem… not at all, as long as they’re moving throughout the plot
Same!
We need just a few more characters for the Ginnyverse and we'll be ready for the one-person LARP movie series.
Oh man, this ad would make a GREAT set up to a one shot...
King/Queen gives the party an easy task, and then uses their success as an excuse to abdicate the throne. The party soon learns WHY the nation's sovereign was so eager to abandon their post: They don't have time for fun anymore! Also, assassins, but mostly the fun thing
It took me so long to get comfortable with 1st person RP , I just thought I was bad at DnD/ttrpg. My first DM assured me I can always go 3rd person and descriptive and it would still be cool/in character. It helped so much to jump start my comfort in the hobby. I always think of my DM being supportive and teaching me how to do fun 3rd person.
Anyway, Nostalgia aside, great video today! 🧡🧡🧡 Especially the leaving moments of silence bit. 💯
Choosing to play DnD with a couple of former theater kids/improv comedians was one of the best RPG decisions of my life.
I love it when my players just start engaging each other in character, and I can just sit back and watch the show until they need me. 😁
I love that tee! It gives me an idea for a barbarian noble who's a fashionista of some kind, and might pick a fight with the big bad in order to get that new purse or shoes it has. Heck, I'd even go reckless, in order to take disadvantage, and have everything even out in order to keep from hitting the accessory
One other subtle advantage - when you're not talking, you can listen to your players - the things they discuss and how they discuss them will tell you far more about what intersts them as players than nearly anything else, and you can also learn which players need something else by noting who isn't as involved int he discussion.
Here’s another slight edge tip I stole from Zipperon Disney: instead of asking “what does (name) do?” Ask “what is (name) doing?” It’s subtle, but it invites the player into a space of ‘right here, right now’ instead of just ‘hmm…. Let’s plan out what my character might be doing today…’
Our method of reward is just a little turn of table at the end of the session in which you tell one of your favorite moments of the session that you/your character didn't cause. Sometimes an action or phrase really stuck in everyone's mind, sometimes we all have a different moment we thought was cool or interesting, but it gets us thinking about our characters
I absolutely LOVE your beginning question idea though, I shall become rogue and steal it from you, D&D lady
my dm started doing a thing in our campaign where he gives out dm inspiration at the end of a session to a person in game that he feels roleplayed well / made an pivotal or really clever character decision / had a defining character moment. its not necessarily a motivator to RP as our group is pretty good with it, but it feels really nice to be rewarded for playing your character or interacting with the world in an interesting way.
I love the empathy and sensitivity you show to your players. So much respect. Thank you!
I love that the day my group plays dnd is also the same day Ginny releases videos. Always lets me have some new tips and tricks to take to the session.
As a DM I revert back to descriptive roleplaying when I am tired of doing a silly voice 😂
As a DM, I personally enjoy witnessing both player roleplay and NPC-Player roleplay. For example, my two friends got their characters into a relationship. At one point, they were having problems in there relationship, & had a whole discussion about them in character, & I would say little inputs as the current NPC, Shelby. It was quite fun & made me happy that they were interacting with each other in character.
I mostly use active roleplay but descriptive roleplay is really good to display the characters emotions, facial expression and body language.
My favorite way to scare players is to ask "Are you sure you want to do that?"
Especially when they have the correct answer to the puzzle.
I don't think that's a good Idea to say that if the answer is correct. I think this is the phrase to metagame a bit if your player wants to do something that will obviously lead to bad consequences. Like punch a royal guard in the face or jump from a cliff. It's like "I warn you". If he's going to die that's on him.
What I think is a good idea is "do you touch?" Or "Are you just opening that door standing right before it?" If they are in a town just entering a shop. If at first they will say "Nope, I slowly open it standing at the corner and try to see the insides before anything on the other side sees me" and all they will see is just a confused shopkeeper, they later will try to think in character if they would really be worried to open a door to a shop.
I suppose i'm fortunate that most of my players really love immersing themselves in their characters. it perhaps helps that i hand out extra XP for good Roleplay. also my more experienced players are always happy to support the less experienced who want to have a go at roleplaying. equally they dial down their own role play when there is a player who isn't comfortable with that element of the game.
My group plays with milestone level ups, but similar principle. I hand out inspiration like candy and they have a blast hamming it up
Thank you, Ginny! It's great to know that you're listening to us! Good intel! It was also really helpful to me for you to say that "roleplaying and acting aren't the same thing"!
I like using the traits as a help for character design. I either let my players pick from the tables or roll on them and they come to me later with backstory built on it. I find my players think it’s easier to build a backstory based on personality rather than the other way around and that helps them roleplay their characters more since the character is more defined by these traits then they might be otherwise
That look from Book when reading the flaw ... I'm dying over here.
In my current group, the other PCs are always having to babysit my fairy rogue. She's easily bored and curious about everything. It gets her in trouble. A lot. So, even though she's great at a lot, she gets sidelined often because she almost accidentally started a war on more than one occasion. Not to mention she sets off as many traps as she disarms, since she likes to play with the triggering mechanisms. More "Oooh, what does this do?" than "Is this a trap?". It's so much fun for all of us to roleplay this. One guy wishes his character was a gnome or artificer just to make toys to distract her with. I love this group.
I'm saying this not specifically for you, because I totally don't know the situation and group! But in general, for anyone reading: Be careful with characters that go off track, don't learn, always push the red button, etc. That kind of PC can get *extremely* aggravating for the other players. (Sometimes even in small doses, lol.) Making other PCs clean up your messes, have to pay attention to make sure you don't get into trouble, and so forth means that you're putting extra work on them. It may be fun for you to play, and they may laugh it off outwardly, but they may become very frustrated with you over time.
Some tips for successfully playing a chaotic button-pusher or mistake-maker:
1) Perhaps make an agreement with another player ahead of time that your characters know each other, so they can have a "babysitter" dynamic already established.
2) Read the room in each situation, and try to determine the scope of the problems your character might cause -- if the stakes are too high, get creative to find a less harmful outlet for their energy in that moment.
3) Have your character show growth, learn from their mistakes, and try to be more accommodating; even if they fail sometimes (like my chronically curious black dragonborn rogue who just wants to PUSH EVERY BUTTON but knows she's gotten people hurt too many times), party members will see that they're trying, and that goes a long way!
@@annafantasia Totally agree with you. The only reason this is working for my group is because my character may be curious, but she's not an idiot. If she knows something will cause too much trouble, she tries to distract herself. A lot of the trouble came because I didn't realize there was going to be trouble.
@@suddenenigma Aww, that's good of her! She sounds like me with my ADHD haha
I love the idea to warm up the roleplaying muscles at the top of the session. I spend between fifteen minutes and an hour before each session putting myself in the mindset for the world and the game, but I've never thought to prompt my players in this way.
My problem isn't lack of encouragement; sometimes I have a really hard time finding my character's "voice". I'm getting better at this as I practice, but it can be really tough.
Got to love these tips, even for a long time DM they're good reminders. We can always hone our craft to further highs.
"Do you say that out loud" is my favorite question because the answer is always yes and the DM is sometimes like ohhhhh dear
"They don't need to be liam o'brien using a subtle German accent while looking constantly on the verge of tears" absolutely DESTROYED me. 😂😂
Your shirt is incredible and I desperately need one to wear to my next session with my valley girl centaur barbarian character 😍😍
Gotta remember these ideas, I need that time to learn how they see the game, to think about what is coming next, and enjoy my friends creativity!
Getting ready for tomorrow's first real session for a 12 player group, and I'm happy to have found this video. Nail biting while I prepare for the session, despite having been a DM for over 30 years. Ginny, your content is great, and I can nearly always hear something I didn't think of, or just need a reminder on.
DMs and players need to trust and embrace silence. Rushed talking merely to fill silence for fear of it can rob a moment of its weight or a player of a thought-out statement.
And your shirt is so clever.
Also this is why Blades in the Dark is an amazing system. You get XP through roleplay. Roleplay is your primary resource.
I enjoy the roleplay aspect of D&D.
I happen to find the idea of prewriting ideals, bonds and flaws to be limiting just because I end up discovering them through roleplay.
My first D&D character was so difficult for me to create because ideals bonds and flaws felt more like a limit than a help.
I'm fairly new to the channel, so you probably already did a video on how to come up with good ones, though.
This is totally just me, though. Other people may greatly benefit from coming up with all of those beforehand
l Dm for my high school early college kids and thier friends... they are mostly theaters kids... we order food and watch critical role for every Thursday.... most of the kids are ok with longer play , if they get to stretch thier 'chops' a little bit . l usually give that space. l , however miss the opening , l like those and your singing ... thanks for those.
If you REALLY wanna get your players to try role play, suggest a one shot/quick campaign of Fate. The character creation requires you to write in a connection to a few of the other characters, as well as connections to the world. You dont have to see the story through to the end, but its got a system the gives bonuses to players for role playing, and they're handed out by the table agreement. So as long as everyone at the table agrees something should be reward for role play, or can even suggest role play moments themselves, the players may be more open to just goofing off and getting into character cuz its a mechanic to be taken advantage of. It helped some of my players, might be an option to consider!
"Nothing breaks immersion than having a player named Josh"
I feel called out, by name no less.
Just yesterday I commented on one of your videos that I'm not a good role player because I don't do voices and don't act, and I play in third person talk, and now I'm watching this videos (awesome as always) and the first thing you say is "you don't have to act and do voices to be a good role player", thanks I needed to hear that.
My group and I need to be reeled in sometimes cause we’ll just be yakking away in character for 45 mins trying to plan our next move. It was hard at first but once you are comfortable with your table just remember everyone is there for the same thing and no one is going to think you are weird for participating in the game you are all playing.
Running my first session this weekend! Thank you for all the resources I've been binging to quell my nerves!
Youv'e got this! Super excited for you!
Ahh, dramatic un-cloaking adventuress! And I guess, Queen Noob the First now.
On my first ever game dming, I started out by role playing a very loud character and adding some weird things in the dialogue. It was a guard called Olivia, she kept complaining about life being boring and that she was tired of rescuing cows that kept ending up on roofs after parties for some reason. My players found her so strange and ridiculous that it made them relax instantly, making it easier to get into character. It was their first time ever role playing and they did great!
This is the best!
@@annafantasia Thanks!
Ironically, this really needs to be said.
And again I love your video!! My party is doing an outstanding job at the roleplaying part. I didn't expect them to go all out like this! It's so fun to just see them have fun and whenever I introduce a new npc make them completely different from the last! And like you said, when you go all out yourself, its easier for the party to join that vibe! Thank you so much for the lovely video and amazing advice!!
As a GM, I love keeping quiet as much as possible. My prompts, events, encounters and so on, only get triggered when no one of the players has anything to say. Even if I'm narrating or roleplaying a NPC and a player interrupts me, I tend to give the preference to the players. I try to see my role as GM not as a storyteller or a guide through a ride, but as a facilitator so that the players can play and express themselves. What I prepare for the session serves only as auto-pilot, to unstuck the players and keep moving the game when the players simply: do nothing.
It took me a lot to learn this lesson, which I learnt thanks to my players giving me feedback in the way of: "Why did you cut that scene? we were having so much fun". "Why did you unleash that monster? We hadn't finished talking". Many times, what you percieve as boring as a GM, are those times when the party is having a blast, is just that, currently, they aren't needing you.
I’ve been awarding people inspiration for bringing snacks.
There hasn’t been a week without some snack brought to the table yet!
Lol, that's one of the better commercial tie ins i've seen.
As for any insights, i'd say for players who feel disconnected and unsure of rpg's and playing characters, i say this.
Your character is not you. But 1, it is your character. 2 , you should have something that resonates with yourself, but you should also have something that differs from yourself.
For beginners, perhaps said beginner loves animals. Have the character love animals. But player is shy, perhaps character is fearless in combat.
That's a good start. Later on, one can mix up the characters and have them further from oneself than before.
That way, the character might have several traits unlike yourself, like outgoing, vile, adventurous, giggly, whatever they may be, but as long as there is something left that you as a player resonates with, you can relate to your character.
Probably good for gm's as well. If one is to have an npc that's a horrible murder rapist that tortures animals, as long as there is something left to relate to, one can manage to portray these villains believably through roleplay, and then be happy when the heroic party absolutely trashes this horrid villain.
Point is, if you feel no connection to the character you portray, you can't portray it well. Nor feel any want to portray it well.
Sure one shouldn't want to relate to the villain (especially one as horrid as my example) but if the portrayal of the villain is just..... meh, it won't be that satisfying to defeat him.
So yeah, keep it simple to begin with and journey from there.
And the rules are a guide, if the GM say "Oh you can just roll on this table for a personality" but the player really, REALLY doesn't feel like one of the results.
Skip it, random tables are best to get the creative juices going, when it's going it's often best to stop rolling. Especially with something as important as the characters personality.
Since if it doesn't resonate with you, you won't wanna play the character. If you don't wanna play the character, well roleplaying the character has zero appeal.
Even when one of my groups isn't playing we kinda RP in discord with jokes and memes or plan for downtime activities. One of the best groups I've had in awhile
'Im standing right here. I can hear you.' - my npc reminding players that their conversations are roleplay
"Just like any effort to control other people's behavior, you cant!"
You know this is true, because if Ginny knew a way these comments and her Twitter replies would look *a lot* different.
1:03 nothing important to add but that description of Caleb is sending me
Great video.. but I LOVE that T-Shirt holy shit
I love the reference to Edith, Ellie, and Na’Krasha!
I love the deserved sass in this episode (thanks, twitter), and of course all of the great points for GM’s!
Lol I roleplay a bit more recently. I just like conveying my stories for my characters better. I’ve been told I was already doing pretty good from my first game but it’s only a recent campaign I joined a couple months ago that I finally felt comfortable enough to do what I consider roleplaying. The dm is also amazing too, giving us space to roleplay and actually reading and weaving in our backstories and noting down what we say and do during roleplay moments. It helps that there is actually less combat too. Not that there isn’t any, but we can go several sessions now and not be in combat, though there is always something to roll dice for (like fun contests, etc). The dm is also just a really good storyteller, more of a cinematic type who really paints the picture and emotion of a setting and then having us react to it. I’ve played with a variety of dms with a variety of styles and I have enjoyed them all, but this particular one is a really good fit for the party I play with and our comfort and ability to role play. I’m not saying I act really. For one thing my games are voice only and online via discord and some other online tools. So I don’t really show my face ever with it. I also can’t do crazy voices. Can’t do accents either. Two of the other players can and that is entertaining, but the most I can do is choose my words carefully and set a patterned tone to my voice. Nothing crazy, just a steady but soft tone (but not so soft my mic can’t catch all of it) with a set pace of how I use my words with care towards pauses in my speech pattern that I feel convey my character’s thoughts and emotions at the time and how I feel they might speak. I do talk in a very slightly deeper register too. But this isn’t not, over all, a major change in how I might speak normally over all. It’s not acting. Most times I’m not even talking but narrating details and body language of my character in the moment. Which is still roleplaying. When I tell stories normally this is actually a huge chunk of my writing style, I like to show not tell things, so I don’t convey too much via conversations. But I will, if one pays attention, convey a LOT of the mood of my character and their inner thoughts for the other players to bounce off of. In fact, my character for my roleplay heavy campaign is a mostly quiet guy, and more a world weary and sad mentor type. He is still somewhat of what osp’s trope talk could call a lancer in role, but he is a mostly well spoken but quiet guy. He isn’t intimidating (until you start seeing his damage and brutal tactics lol), he is more pretty than anything (astral elf, it was a whim pick), but he still fills his role as the sweetheart when he isn’t triggered into being cold hearted or feral. And those sides are FUN to convey. Because I try to make them subtle and in more show not tell way. My character never says he is a badass. He just is brutal and protective, with protective being what brings out his feral side. If those aren’t triggered, he is soft and caring and likely to cast light on the ball of the local children so they are entertained and can pretend they are running around with the “sun” or some great treasure. He enjoys being a mentor and would prefer never to have to flip into his more unhinged side. He doesn’t see himself as a hero however. He sees himself as a broken man who has been through a shit life, and as much as he appreciates meeting such kind people, he is getting flashbacks occasionally from past traumas that make him on edge and make harsh decisions (this part the group has discussed lines and veils on exactly because we all have a rough idea of the harsh nature of some of each other’s backstories). Anyway! That’s how I play him. Does he seem a bit brooding and edgy? I guess on paper but I play him as that constantly depressed friend who genuinely wants you to feel better even if they can’t and who gives you great life advice and listens to you when you are upset and is genuinely one of your dearest friends. My character isn’t about running the fun and lighthearted moments of the group. He wants to have fun and smile and feel better. And that’s the story I like to tell with him. I want his story to be of healing. Anyway, enough of my story. Thanks for reading.
I LOVE the implication that all of Ginny's roleplay video NPCs are members of the same adventuring party
Great video.
My group is very fortunate - most of us have theater backgrounds, and several us have even performed together for years doing improvisational comedy.
So are games are filled with fun roleplaying, character act-outs and various shenanigans.
HOWEVER - this not always the case (we have multiple campaigns going) - while most of the stuff in this video we either already do, or don't need as much - you ABSOLUTELY nailed the problem in one of the games I am running - GM - SHUT UP!!!
Excelling point on the power of silence. Ironically, some of it comes from my improv experience - where, if unintentional - dead air can hamper a performance (again, intentional silence is a dramatic tool...) thus I noticed that I was not letting enough silence for my players to fill.
Thanks for the video - proved that you have great info for both novice, learning and experienced dm's alike.
4:01 Nailed it! Thank you for being clear about what roleplaying is and isn't - that stymies so many conversations around this topic. I also found that the best thing I could do to encourage my players to roleplay - was to get out of their way!
Ginny's Noble character really said "Hey queen, you dropped this 👑"
I recently started playing an tabletop RPG with mostly strangers, my friend invited me because they didn’t have enough players and I find that I get more into the role playing with that group as I don’t know most of them. With my own group with my friends I felt like there was more pressure because they knew me and with these strangers I could just let my character take over and really get into it, I was invited to do just that so why would they judge me for it. The GM also didn’t know me so I didn’t feel like they judged me, they judged my character bc they know more of my character than about me. It’s really freeing so don’t be scared to roleplay with people you don’t know that well, it can actually really bring it out in you
It can also help to try a variety of situations, some people are more interested/comfortable roll playing different scenarios. A table mate of mine really likes roll playing ‘a night on the town’, which more power to him but it’s not my thing; but give me a base building scenario and I will tell you all about core education goals, trade agreements, immigration policy, etc. Different players and characters will care about different things provide options.
Also if you as the dm (or other players) notice 1-2 players dominating the conversation it can help to ask directly if the quiet players have anything to add, it can be difficult for shy ppl to force their way into a conversation.
I am super into roleplay as a person who has acted in high school, been to thespian conventions in high school, and in general have the persona of a performer, which we all know is one of the many calling cards of a DM, whether good or bad.
For me personally, I myself as both a player and a DM of any pre-written campaign from any WOTC DND module or any other system for that matter, my introduction to TTRPG has *always* been homebrew, and I haven't played with anyone else than my current group of friends. With that dynamic in mind, I've always felt comfortable in both PF and DM Role to just have fun with any ROH interaction. The only hurdle I've felt is feeling that I as a DM that I push a personal interaction that a player isn't feeling for whatever reason; they aren't into RP-ing as much, they don't understand the tone in going for, they might think it's a little cringe and they might think Im too exuberant or begging or railroading their actions, and it holds them back.
I'm making a new campaign that's a sequel to the originalhomebrew I made several years ago and I want to recompense for my sins as it were to my PCs for my failings, and I feel not a big part but an observation of them that I replied too much on RPing was part of my downfall.
Accents and speaking in character are definitely not necessary, but I must say the delivery of Edith asking Na'Krasha to break the door KILLED ME
Huge fan of using backgrounds ideals bonds and flaws as a way to think about how to replay.
thanks for the roleplay vs. acting part. Too many times I see those two confused, you can have great Roleplay without any first person narrative at all.
Hey, thank you for this!
I've been GMing a short while now with my homebrewn set of rules (not D&D) and it's been fun, but players roleplaying more is something I've wanted to see. These were all solid advice on how to achieve just that, and I think I'll be trying them out soon.
This is a great channel, by the way. Even if we don't play D&D, I've gotten plenty of great tips and just general support for my first GMing campaign from your videos. So thank you for doing this. I really appreciate it, and the effort you put into making these videos!
Just started DMing and your point about shutting up made me chuckle. I’m running Witchlight and it’s been driving me crazy how I’ll say something as an NPC and then just wait…and wait… and no one wants to respond to them 😂
After Ginny Di’s recent song compilation video, it’d be so fitting to make a similar shirt to this, except ‘BARDbie’! - Great tips! (:
My first solo DM experience has been leading a virtual 5e campaign during the pandemic. One of my favorite sessions we had was an entirely RP session:
The players were traveling via ship between cities with some of their favorite NPCs. I narrated how those NPCs made a feast and broke out the ale and everyone spent the night playing drinking games and telling stories about themselves. I love having NPCs as my way into scenes. I prompted conversations by asking PCs about their families, significant events in their lives, stories they were told growing up, etc., and that led players asking questions and role playing with each other as well. We were all just hanging out together in character and I loved every bit of it.
It was a great downtime session, gave me a break as a DM, and added some levity to the campaign if just for a moment. 😉
Really love these videos, also the new throne is a great addiction to the props!
I have a great party of players who all love roleplaying their characters. So much, in fact, that sometimes is too much: it's amazing while playing in the main campaign, where the rhythm is loosely set on what and how they progress trough all the stuff they're in, but when we're playing three-hours oneshots and after half an hour they're still roleplaying the intro picking up shells from the beach and talking about bard music and past adventures and shared common interest... I love them, I really do, but sometimes I gotta tell them "folks, c'mon, stay on track". And it's not that they're not interested in the lore, they take notes and make crazy theories and are so passionate about their own characters and NPCs... It's just sometimes they get too into it.
Insanely, maybe, but I'd also like some tips on how to make players roleplay a bit less in certain situations, lol. There are times when I have to almost shut them up so we can get half the things done (again, we're talking one-shots) and I feel really bad about it, because they're having fun...
Yes!! This would make another great video!!
I'm such a fan of your ads: the scripts are forever amusing!
I need to start calling characters by name I believe that alone will make my players get way more invested
Thanks for the amazing Ideas I'm going to be DMing a campaign for the first time in the coming weeks with my wife and a few friends so this video has really helped with inspiration as more than anything I want it to be fun for them and more roleplay focused so I'm hoping I can get them to drop any fears of being silly or cringey for the sake of just having fun.
these videos are so helpful!! always excited when I see you upload :D
8:00 this can be done as a player like: "(character) is doubting (npcs) intentions and will try to look closely at them trying to get a hint of whats going on in that mind, should that be a perception check DM?"
let the DM confirm you or maybe tell you to wait for a prompt.
8:15 I love that, "did you say that out loud, or you just looking funny at them"
I haven’t played D&D in a long time; my jam these days is lots of other great RPGs. But I’m subbed to this channel because your ideas and presentation, the thought you put into your content, is just fantastic, and almost all of it is applicable no matter what system you’re playing or running in.
I’m so blessed that my friends just role play awesomely. Awesomely in this case means we feel comfortable, have fun, and want to play our characters.
"Nothing breaks immersion like having a player named Josh."
I feel called out... lol
I look forward to every video you do regarding making D&D better for everybody. Thank you for these!!!
"Nothing brakes immersion like a player named Josh." That hits close to home... It's true though
Ah fantastic! This is exactly the advice I need.
Thanks Ginny!
Great use of your new throne!
excellent video and excellent advice! I took notes.