Why Your Maps Are Bad and How to Fix Them! #34
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- Опубліковано 19 вер 2024
- We look at what makes a bad map, and how you can go about creating maps that are useful and in some cases even question whether you need a map!
Thinking of making great maps? Take a look at www.dungeonfog.com our preferred map maker!
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You helped me create a fantastic world that 10 people in two different parties are adventuring through. Thank you for all your hard work and advice Guy!
Just remember that even the best laid plans will not survive the contact with the players. :p
If that isnt the truth lol
InstaBlaster
"Are we lost, Roy? You can tell me if we're lost." - "We're not lost. I know exactly where we are... I just don't know where that is." - - - Quigley Down Under
"your character is a cloistered monk, would they know tactics?" most people aren't nearly as great tactical generals as they'd like to think, so players dropping a couple hours trying to figure out how to attack a 2 room cottage isn't that far off from adventurers who don't really have much training beyond "maybe we shouldn't charge through the front door directly into an ambush...again" ACTUAL tactical experts, on the other hand would likely take 5 maybe 10 minutes, figure out the best way to enter with the least amount of risk, accept that there is inherent risk no matter what plan they formulate and commit. If the players are seriously spending hours trying to find the perfect entrance, that can easily be solved by making them make constant stealth roles to avoid being noticed, after being told that in order to get anything beyond "it's a cottage" they have to get close enough where they may be spotted.
@cak01vej yep, of course if you've got some guys who've never read or been a Sun Tzu analog, they wouldn't guaranteed do the right thing on it. which was my point of the DM putting checks in to keep the actual players from spending excessive time trying to formulate the perfect plan. I'm reminded of a critical role EP in campaign 2 where they PC's spent too long trying to figure out what they wanted to do that the DM started the encounter and they lost their surprise round. There was a good scene in a book I read where professional soldiers were storming a gaming/brothel with the intent to straight up murder the owner. another character, who was trying to stop it had a moment of confusion when it appeared that the soldiers were going to have to climb an elevator shaft to get to the guy...and how much of a kill box it was. the soldiers dealt with it by tossing a bunch of grenades up the shaft rather than attempt to climb it. Thats the point I was trying to make between professionals and talented amateurs.
"Ignore distance at your peril . . ." The last two seasons of GOT was a master class in that regard.
I derive a great deal of pleasure hearing the exited oohs and aahs of my players when they see a map I took time to craft. For me, it is balancing creation time with game time/play value. I also have to remind myself to make sure the story is the focus, supported by the map. A good map can help generate story, but story needs to be the focus.
Regarding mistakes, both on the GM/NPC's side and the Player/PC side: learning curves and experience all around! Over/under-estimating effectiveness of our strategies is part of learning. Hopefully the next encounter is defended / attacked by those who heard the tales of those who failed previously! They key Guy teaches is: are the players having fun, and our ability as GM's to adapt to make the answer a yes.
I know it is a bit random as it is just latest video... I have been watching all your past and current videos and went through the Saltmarsh campaign too (it was epic!). I finished today my first session as a GM, and I would not have done it without you Guy. Thank you mate! You are an inspiration :-) I was scared but I loved it! Players apparently enjoyed it too :-) Thank you Guy!!!
And it is these kinds of comments that encourage me to do more. Thank you!
There is one problem I have been struggling with a lot, which is that I have aphantasia, the rare inability to visualize with my mind. I need maps as a DM to be visual and descriptive so I can work from them. So I do not prefer games that rely heavily on theater of the mind.
I have the same. Before knowing it, I always preferred horror and drama RPGs over other genres, because they don't depend on visual information as much. But due to covid, I've been slowly trying to get acquainted with some visual aids and even maps, and I'm beginning to like them quite a bit.
Dig the pinkest of all Floyds
I'd love to see a video about "How to DM With an Insane Character/Characters"
Not in the idea of "these people are crazy and kill everything", but more along the lines of "This person sees and hears things that aren't really there". I have at least one person each game that can kind of fall into this category, but I don't know how to do much with it besides a few basic things, or having it be a bit anticlimactic when I have to involve the rest of the party with it.
ToxicGaming what about the idea of one player suggests a ridiculous idea, and then all the players are doing nothing but that?
@@flyingturret208thecannon5 Basically, how to stop your campaign from being completely derailed? A good video for that is the "How To Deal with Murder Hobos" video. Even if your group isn't being murder hobos, the analogy can normally work for that type of scenario too.
Guy, I am very sorry, but I have to steal your Jonathan Swift for the next game... It's to good to be confined to the internet!
I still remember the wonder I felt when I was a kid watching the animated Hobbit movie, when Elrond held Bilbo’s map up to the sky and told him the story of the moon maps. Maps are the best!
Spectacular content here. Thanks!
Thanks for making me a more Confident and Competent GM
"May you live all the days of your life." -- Jonathon Swift
"If we could just figure out where everything else is relation to here..."
Next time somebody asks me if I'm lost, I'm totally stealing that bit lol
anyone else remember a time where if you wanted your game to have maps you had to actually draw them yourself?...and not on a reusable game mat or anything but on graph paper? If you wanted a big dungeon you used scotch tape, and made each sheet of graph paper one room or corridor. Nostalgia goggles make me want to say that was a magnificent time, but realism makes me very glad that we now have premade maps and online map making tools.
I ended up drawing about 20 maps in total, on graph paper, and then just reusing them time and time again as I got tired of making more and more maps.
@@HowtobeaGreatGM yep, on reflection, I am really glad we've gotten more advanced.
Can you do a video on how to find people to play rpg s with?
honestly your best bests are:
if you have friends you think are interested try seeing if there up to trying
visit your friendly local game store, those are often hosting game days and some might let u rent space or join free
online avenues arent my favorite honestly but theres always people looking for games on roll20, fantasy grounds, etc
www.rpgtablefinder.com/?id=greatgamemaster
@@d4arken3ds0ul alright thank you
For starters, most local comic book and tabletop hobby stores that sell D&D related stuff will usually host Adventures League, where you can jump right in to literally any game with the only constraints being you follow a few extra rules during character creation. Next option is just ask people you currently spend a lot of time around, like friends, family, and coworkers; if some share your same interest, it should be easy to get a game going. There are many more options, like many sites that feature D&D content, may have a forum for the community to talk, which will most likely have a subsection of people looking for a group to play with. Online groups also use services like Google hangouts and Discord servers, and post any openings.
I got lucky as everyone in the discord group I was already in, wanted to play, but the issue was finding a DM, so I took up the mantle, even though I had never even played before.
As a general tip, buy the Players Handbook at the very least. Most people don't mind sharing, but it does get bothersome if the person has been playing for months and hasn't gotten it and keeps asking to use other's.
Your best bet is to join clubs. Also online sites like RPG Tablefinder often have ads up to promote tables that you can search by post code.
Remember that if you show the players a map of a location, they'll assume that there's going to be a fight. They're going to assume that fighting is an option. Which means they might get into a fight, even when they aren't "supposed" to. Matt Colville learned that lesson the hard way, with the PCs that got captured and put in a cell.
Unless you intend a fight, don't have a map. And even if you do intend a fight to break out there, keep the map back until you roll initiative. (Unless the map is part of a larger area where the players have already engaged in fighting, like a dungeon.)
Maybe the players get in a fight because the DMs only give them one when there is a fight. Be careful of cause/effect here as I have given players a map without them getting in a fight or assuming there needed to be one. When you (almost) always provide a map, players don’t assume.
@@jdunlap1974 Exactly. This is pure conditioning. Only throw maps for combat and that's what they will expect. Throw maps for multiple occasions and they might assume combat... Until they stop. Conditioning.
“We’re lost but we’re making great time” Yogi Berra
“I don’t know where we’re going but we’re making great time” Sahara
I love maps! I just wish I could create good looking ones with ease.
Give "project deios" a google, and Dungeon Fog
For continents or islands. Big piece of paper and throw dice. Trace the result. Random interesting shape
Your maps don't need to look good. In theory, your players will never see them. They can look like shit, so long as they're functional and legible to you.
Oh I know, I just love to create a world even if no one will see it, but I can never create what my head sees.
I've been using Wonderdraft
Really enjoy listening to you perspective on DM'ing. I agree with some of it, disagree with others, but more and more I'm just finding myself thinking "...you, sir...have some really strange ideas on what is good or bad for DM'ing...".
For example...you see the game slowing down and the players being engaged in the map as a "negative thing". I find that attitude...strange.
That's just one. There are a LOT of others I've heard you say on various videos you do. Don't get me wrong, I'd still belly up to your table any day! Variety is the spice of life and all that, right? :) But your DM'ing "Ideals" and mine are pretty different.
Anyway, keep it up. Always looking to hear more!
I don't have a means of digitally creating maps so i hand draw them. I use a fair amount of detail but it's all situational. Some seens are rather simple others have obstacles and obstructions making things more dynamic. Maps are like any other tool available to us. With the proper use, the game is enhanced and everyone has more fun
Hooray for multiple modalities! I love cartography. I have a knack for geographical memory and not only do I appreciate the extra layer of depth a visual representation adds to a game, I tend to depend on it for tactics when in combat (thanks Chainmail circa '78/'79).
Think the hair is missing a few twigs, maybe a bird nest?
personally, I do not Hand out Maps unless the characters would be able to either make them or if they could have aquired them.
I played in the forgotten realms and handed out maps to the players. It took a way the excitement of discovering what is beyond that hill. And a much to detailed map leaves no space for any place you (as the GM) find more interessting. I my next campaign I only vaguely note what lies in which direction. If the players then need a map, they get one that had an NPC from within the world drawn to the best of his knowledge. Nothing like "the secret and forgotten planet9 is right there", more like "I assume it must be there, but for all we know, there could be dragons". I plan to draw the map as the players explore it. This way I avoid to put to much effort and detail into places, the players do never want to visit.
You should try out the ancient map models:
Write all cities names on a piece of paper in kinda random places and connect them with the streets in form of lines. No relation between where on the world the city is and where it is on the map, but the map still shows how to get to the city.
Great map for a merchant
"Merchant, In which direction lies the city?" (adventurer)
"Just follow this road for 5 days adventurer, then turn right on the crossing with stone inscribed with 'dsasgad'"
"yeah, but in which direction is it? north? west? south? east?" (adventurer with flying carped)
"No idea"
Roll initiative to murder merchant
You say "Happy spending the next 6 hours trying to find a way to get into the castle." and I'm like: "That sounds awesome!"
No seriously I love tactics and planning to take something with a lot of options, maybe scouting around first, or getting a shady figure to sell me a map of the castle, or something. And then think about where enemies might be, get information about guard posts and patrol times and where we have advantages, etc. I'd love to play a game like that ^^
I'm anti tactial map as well, except for maybe high-level territories, cities, etc. Maybe for en epic battle.
A few tricks I do enjoy regarding maps:
Trick 1. Let players study a map for minutes because an NPC gave them one. After that, the map goes away and its theater of the mind. Only the DM sees the map. If the players manage to hunker down for minutes, they can have another look. But I'm not telling them where they are, exactly. Perhaps a good Insight roll will help.
Trick 2. One player has been there before... once. Before they even know why, I give the player a map. At some point I then politely take the map back and tear it up. The party now has to completely rely on that players memory, good or bad.
3:11 You know what they say about Phalos Lake. It's Phalake :)
I have two DM styles regarding maps. First depends upon how well do they know the place. How well have they scouted a building? For buildings and dungeons I use a fog tactic assuming someone is taking the time to map or the fog might only allow them to see within their line of sight. For journies, my players often hire guides, so maps become moot unless the guide dies. Of course, that makes the PCs take good care of them less they get lost.
Do they eat Carrots? Yes.
Are they Carnivores? Yes
Do they live in a Castle? Yes
So, we have People in that castle who get fed with the meat Carrot? Errrrr........
Nope. Nopenopenope, I apologize for my Brain.
You forgot about the "half-use" option, which I often use maps for, and that's kind of as a "hybrid" between using them and not using them. In this case, you make or otherwise borrow maps for yourself as a DM /only/ and use the map to help you describe the area to your players, but you don't actually show them the map. This allows you to change things like furniture and layouts and so forth as play progresses.
If you happen to follow the map completely and have every room planned out already while doing this, then another way is to describe it as they go along, and then show them the map of the area only AFTER they are through it, particularly IF it's going to be a recurring area, but the main first time adventure/exploration is over. Especially in the case where fog of war can reveal hidden areas in the map just by those areas still being whited or blacked out,, which could lead the players to meta and search there. This allows you to reveal the map only after the full breadth of the area is explored.
I'm starting to think that "Phalos" lake has a conveniently changed "F" to "Ph". That lake does look like a Johnson with a pair at the bottom :D
Cheeky Guy, well played
In most games I never show maps. They are cheaty, distracting and somehow everything looks small or barren on a map (maybe its just me).
However in most games I have maps for myself. Relations between empires, trading, shapes etc.
I show sometimes local maps as they pass through.
The only game I don't use any map at all is in a cyberpunk themed game.
First of all, most local maps in cyberpunk are very unsatisfying boring. A desciption will do the job way better than any map.
But world maps are terrible. Xities become small if you have a map of it. You can't expand the same square over and over again. Your map is either quick useless or you have to plan years ahead. Which tbh is just impossible.
Furthermore you are in a city. Location position don't matter at all.
Locations are just existent. Somewhere. Neither player nor gm need to know exactly in which relationship these locations stand next to another. A stripchart is all you need.
The meeting is at "bulldog empire" a store in bronx. You take a taxi and done.
NY -- bronx -- bulldog empire. No map needed.
"The players lack the tactical wherewithal..."
Get gud, then.
And the three hours of the Players - and thus the Characters - planning the best way in is RP. At least, if they're doing it right.
The barbarian is in favor of a frontal assault, while the rogue prefers sneaking in. Maybe they decide to go all-in on one or the other plan. Maybe they decide to send the rogue around back while the rest of the party supports the barbarian in a diversionary attack on the front gate. Maybe they come up with something you never thought of.
And if the characters are looking at a map, the players should have one, too.
It's worth pointing out that for any and all "gritty realism", it's still just a game of make believe... Grown adults sit around a table in an air-conditioned (or heated) space and "armchair quarterback" the general mayhem of a war strategy flowing from intangible thought to some fictional reality...
If it's their thing to at least TRY to be tactically effective, let them go for it. Enjoy the conversation and (especially if you're not particularly schooled in tactics) TAKE NOTES... you might learn something.
Besides, there is just as much to gain from a failure as there is to lose to a success. Lessons learned "the hard way" stand out and are remembered... In fantasy, PC's can be recovered from death itself... because magic. In less forgiving settings, PC's can be reskinned just like monsters and NPC's and with a few details shifted around and a name change... we're right back in the thick of things in short order.
Obviously, as a GM I don't advocate killing off PC's just willy nilly... BUT PC-death happens, so let it become something meaningful to the story... and move on. Take notes about how things went South, and you can potentially get better results next time... It is okay for Players to learn through their own folly as well. ;o)
Rogue: I'm using my sneak attack.
DM: You are alone, on the otherside of the castle 1500 paces from your own party outside the masonry walls. What in gods name are you sneak attacking?
Rogue: The castle, of course. If my party is on the other side do I get flanking?
3:20 Phalos Lake looks just like you expect a phalus lake to look like.
You sound like an english Silvio Santos (a Brazilian television host) at the start of the video and i love it
To recap:
Use maps when you want to create a visual atmosphere at a special location that will also perhaps feature combat, where spacial clarity and tactical thinking are required and when you want to have opportunities to become inspired for more world building content.
Don't use maps when it's a mundane place that you don't want the players to spend a long time at or you want to skip the process of narrowing yourself down to a fixed aesthetic and perhaps too much detail that could be distracting.
I love maps, especially as a player. As a DM, I've been using Roll20's Dynamic Lightning, which really makes the game different, and more interesting in a lot of ways. Describing a dark room in theater of the mind is a lot less impactful than showing them a black room where they actually can't see anything.
TotM is great too, for different reasons. I think your imagination makes things much more vivid. The problem comes in when one person's imagination makes a different picture than another's. Sometimes people get quite angry because what they thought was happening is different than what the DM knows is happening.
Great work! Thank you friend!
Excellent discussion on Maps Guy! Keep up the great content.
A thing I dislike about tactical maps is the they highlight the artificiality of the combat system. In real life, people don't take turns moving and melee includes moving as well. The extremely precise placement of area of effect spells and splash weapons just wouldn't work.
The aspect that options for GMs are lowered is actually an advantage in my book. It means that the world is consistent. Furthermore, the basics of tactics that apply to these sorts of maps are easy enough. I greatly prefer to fail because my plan was stupid rather than just rolling bad, so it is good to have the option of failure there
Alex Bermann
The thing about most RPG combat is that each Round takes place in the span of 6 seconds, with each turn in that round supposedly happening at the same time.
I imagine if someone figured out a way to play back combat in real time, it would look a lot more realistic than it sounds normally
@@Kingdomkey123678 Baldurs Gate attempted that and it looked silly. Imagine two novice fighters in a duel. Each one can attack once a round which leaves a lot of time when they just stand around. Of course, those fighters may try to get to each other's flanks, interrupt each other's tempo, test each other's distance and defenses and so on. This involves movement.
It's okay to me if this movement doesn't have any effects, suspension of disbelief can account for some level of abstraction. However, if a fireball is placed in a way that just doesn't hit an ally, this contradicts the assumption that people are movi g around.
Another weird contradiction that comes up with precise maps is reflex saves against spells like fireball. It's not hard to imagine that someone making this save jumps behind cover or away from the blast. But again, this assumption contradicts the precise positioning on the map.
I'd never seen so anyone perform the Bull rush combat maneuver (Pathfinder) until my party started fighting in some of these tight 5 foot spaces.
Every time I enter a garden, I ask "Who planted this garden? And why?"
i like to use a mix of TotM and tactical maps, but honestly, I've just had so many DMs who don't use maps that also don't describe the scene in detail and then spring some event. So i'm all for tactical maps, even if it's just outlines on a grid page. it at least gives me a sense of distance between objects and doesn't become this "you're 90ft away and they fire arrows at you" mess
I love these types of videos. Thank you!
Fairly long for a fairly complex topic. I say, "Well done Sirrah."
With map building I tend to make one large world map, but keep the features on that map minimalistic to represent lack of player knowledge about their surroundings, and then as they go and explore new places and learn more I leave it on the map for any returns if need be.
With tactical maps however it’s imperative I make them because my campaign involves a tonne of gun play, where cover and positioning is key to success lest you wish to get annihilated by a bullet storm. But, I keep the features minimalistic to avoid distraction.
The cold opens to these videos are always The best part of the video
You are very wrong. Pineapple, strawberry and kiwi is a fantastic combination.
Awesome video, as always!
I just found this video. Nice. I don't like using Maps for encounters. Even the most hastily scribbled sketch of a location changes any RPG into a tabletop wargaming session. If I want to play Warhammer I dont start a D&D session. I have a group of players that like to have some sort of map when they play. 'Just to help imagination'. So I suggested, to have a map to show them the overall situation, but I am the only one touching and moving any minis/tokens and I have the final decision where exactly they end moving or whatnot. So they can have a look and feel of the overall situation but i don't have to play chess on extra hard because I need to calculate every possible option. Guess what: the wargamers dont like that. They want to see every tree and calculate their options and every line of sight. So theres no maps.
Phalos lake sounds like it might have a penetrating atmosphere.
Maps really pull me out of the narrative experience into more of a low-fi video game experience. Pulls me out of my character's perspective. I prefer theater of the mind.
I create maps for myself as DM to guide my narration, but I never show them to my players :p
Phalos Lake, I see what you've done there ;)
Hm, all my maps so far are just me drawing on a whiteboard so my players have a solid view of the tactical. I draw sketched out maps for reference, and I'll do regional and city maps, again so they know what they're dealing with. I've been working on a world map but by hand I find that quite difficult to make look nice, and its a big world so there's a lot of map. Keeping things in a useful scale is challenging. I don't think I'll be going fully digital any time soon, but I might want that map software for my world map.
I'm a big fan of maps.
Theatre of the mind is great, but no two people imagine things the same way, no matter how detailed your description, plus people forget details in seconds.
I really don't see how the realistic details are a bad thing though. The players don't have the strategic acumen to not do stupid things? That's on them. I don't want to encourage stupid plans. Now of course if the *characters* would have that knowledge, I'd give that to them.
We're not lost! Were momentarily inconvened...
I've never been lost in my life, AND I've traveled a fairly huge chunk of the world. The funny thing is, wherever I go, I can find me just fine! ;o)
I see what your point was when referring to Tolkien and jumping from point A to point B...and I’m sure most folks don’t care....but for those that doooo!
Fun fact about Tolkien’s work: He was incredibly meticulous when it came to the time frame his stories happened in, so that if a reader was hyper focused (or....super crazy mega hyper focused honestly) they would be able to notice that every storyline took the same amount of time. That way at the end no reader would go, “but wait Frodo and Sam were months ahead of the others! This doesn’t make any sense!”
Just something I think is cool/neat. Honestly I think most DMs, myself included, tend to hand wave time about as needed, and don’t need to try and be as detailed as Tolkien. Though in my next game I just started running I have built my own calendar to run it the other way - go all in on the Tolkien levels of detail.
Personally, I favor world maps, so we can easily get a view of the world, and running the battles narratively. It tends to speed up battles and the tactics get too involved a lot, and it keeps the DM and players describing everything it more detail and a lot of that slips a bit when given the visual. I have seen really great GMs who could run a game well without any maps, but it is rare to be able to travel the world building it all only though narrative, but it is great when it works. :)
You could always have the map look hand-drawn if it is a physical map the players are holding, whether it is intended for general navigation, architecture, or someone scouting.
It is also useful for a blend of visual and theatre of the mind play. You can have an NPC describe the layout of a location and provide a poorly-drawn map for the Players to visualize his explanation, with large sections obviously empty.
The benefit for using these rather than conventional digital tools for filling in every detail is that you can then fill in said details later on the fly or (as per using it to show someone's verbal description) have an unreliable informant cause a plan to go south because they lied, misremembered, or just did not notice some detail.
Also, since the map would be so roughly drawn rather than being exact, placing something to represent a bed's location in the room means it is not as exact. This can alleviate the problem of not having enough space to navigate you showcased in the barracks.
Im used to using theater of the mind, irl we just draw a battle grid with dry erase markers.
Just started hosting a roll20 campaign and it seems like the players RELY on the maps for the game to work at all... lol, learning new things every day
You know what'd be great? If you and MrRhexx streamed a D&D game as players with the guy from Taking20 as a DM. You could both play different types of Wizards or maybe he could play a Lore Bard, and you could get into arguments about magic and the world and history the whole game xD
I have no problem with the garden's tactical situation. If any of my PCs were soldier types (yes, that is different from a fighter/gladiator type or ranger type, etc...) I would give them some info on the tactical possibilities of what they run into. That is the same as helping the mage with magic stuff or the cleric with religious stuff or the rogue with thief stuff. If they still decide to go that route (I think the word you use is "stupidly") then they take what comes. In fact, I disagree with the idea that a map limits choices, except in the most obvious, no duh, sort of way. What I think they do is encourage inspiration. By seeing the layout and the various things, including such things as elevation differences and built-in structures or objects, it gives the players tools to come up with crazy and/or awesome ideas (I said 'and/or' because some times they are both).
I love you and all the knowledge you have shared, thank you for the inspiration!
Btw, have you ever tried a green stick? It’s great for face redness...
You DARE!
Good suggestions. I will add more.
hold up. the "how to fix them" wasn't really covered
you covered the problems of the maps, but didn't give any examples of how to avoid them
My maps aren't bad, fight me guy!
I feel like I'm attending a lecture for game mastering.
I'm going to say something: you obviously play RPGs a lot and are talking from real game experience. Sometimes I get the feeling from other people on youtube that try to give gaming advice (no names) that they are more 'armchair theorists' and talk about what they THINK happens in a game rather than have extensive empirical experience (triple E's) to back their position. I love maps and I love making them and the issues you are describing are the exact issues I see happen in games. I will definitely review all your other videos as time permits. Thank you for making these videos.
Phallus Lake?
I suggest you refrain from drinking from that...
i personally need maps as i suck at describing things. i need the map to do the visualisation, same with the tokens.
and it's simply a must for nearly every combat encounter. i have up to 6 players if they all show up one with a rangers companion. there's no way i could keep track of how far everyone is away from each other without a map.
So
Wastes aren't wasted space
it's very very simple.
Dungeon or site to explore and fight? Create a map with only the basics and describe the rooms when they enter
Players in cities, castles, traveling etc etc? never ever use map, and if you need to, just use an empty whiteboard like the ones in schools and make an crude representation of the room and let the player visualize the rest.
"i only drink milk and of course that cant sour" subbed after that one
The stairs in your detailed room are just 4 steps down before the ceiling begins... is it a tiefling castle?
That was the longest intro I've yet seen on this channel. Glad UA-cam has a playback speed x2 option. The rest of the video was good though. Informative as always.
While I see the advantages of using maps, especially for tactical resolution. As a DM I absolutely hate them, as I far prefer painting the room with a description, rather than just an overhead picture of it.
I love your videos. They get my brain thinking .
Hello. Not sure if you have time to answer a video this old :) but
your worldmap that you have there from wonderdraft. can i please ask about the settings you have on it? size, type, theme etc?
Opening is demonstration of bad GM type caller the actor.
Who let Rudolph go free? Bit of clickbait but you have some decent stuff here.
I make all my maps in microsoft excel(well, open office but anyway). Visually they are nothing special, but they convey kingdoms, primary terrains, and distances. Everything we need. As for tactical maps, playing om Roll20, i just paint the map and add furniture as needed and appropriate. Its not stunning to look at. But that's why we have narrative.
It's a completely illegal continent
I laughed hard
Everything is legal when there are no cops around
"This is a completely illegal continent", haha
It’s very visual seeing things with your eyes
I'm going to be honest man... I like your video titles, I like your themes and ideas, but every time, I end up not watching more than 2-3 minutes because it's so long!
I'm nobody to tell you what to do, but I really wish you would edit more or improv less or whatever.
I would love to watch your videos entirely, but when I do I just feel I wasted my time, because out of 25 minutes I perhaps got 2-3 minute worth of "good" stuff.
I'm just trying to give some feedback, thanks for reading
I disagree...love the long vids and content in them.
It's honest and always appreciated. Most people prefer longer. However, I'm told if you run it at 1.5 or 2 times the speed whole thing is much faster! Maybe that will help?
@@HowtobeaGreatGM Fair enough :) I bend to the majority, then
@@kevinsullivan3448 Don't worry about my attention span. It's doing just fine. I enjoy watching 30+ minute videos on other channels, it's not about the time, it's about the balance between quality and quantity of information shared during that time
Sometimes it's better to provide a map with just numbered room shapes and descriptions of what is in which room. Putting too much detail on it can break how players imagine a scenery. I prefer to see myself as an adventurer in a dungeon, not to look at my hero from above
Your intro cards are odd, but mostly delightful. Sometimes they go on a bit to long though
We mostly play way to quick without maps thats a reason why we use them
Im basing a character off that guy that....Guy played in the begging, lol
Trinston was here
Best reoccurring NPC? Jonathan Swift :)
An english guy doing an american guy doing an english guy's accent. at least, I think this guy is english. I could be wrong.
Can someone point me towards more castle maps like the one shown at 3:28 or a campaign featuring one? I need more ideas/info for a homebrew castle I'm working on. :)
What did he use to draw that battle map?
Anyone else think that Phalos lake looks a bit... Phalic?
This opening is brilliant
Something is wrong with dungeonfog.com. Either the server is down, or the DNS is configured wrong.
Edit: if I go to any of the other pages besides the index they work. But just typing the domain & trying to reach the index page it always times out.
www.dungeonfog.com/media/map-gallery/ works for example though
"Battle Hoπours" (Battle Hopours)
So I'm 17 and all my life I have been roleplaying. I have my own system I call chasm. I have 6 players and their all about 20 and older.
I've been running them in various things for about a year, however ive run into a problem and kind of wondered if you had suggestions on what I should do...
So the problem is that my group is slowly falling apart in game.
"Player one" hates "player two" because they are a viking who slays undead. And "player one" is a vampire, so naturally they hate one another. And some of the others don't want to work together because of various reasons. And basically what I'm trying to ask is...how do I get my story back on track to where they will work together and at the least just have a mutual care for one another just so they will get the campaign complete.
What should I do?
Well to keep the party unites, I love to run party with different souls in it in a very open-ended open world at all times, you can do a couple of things :
Keep them together by interest, so offering to them a reward that they cannot hope to achieve alone and so they need to stay together to overcome the challenge awaiting for them in order to gain it. It's important that the danger should be clear to them, an unknown danger of sort will not be enough, into my experience, to motivate all of them to face it together.
Keep them together by danger itself, an enemy, a parent or relative or friend or ally of one of their already slain foes has sworn to take them down, one by one, for the sheer love of the person they killed or for personal interest, like the prestige this enemy will obtain from killing them by his guild, family, kingdom and so on. Again, try to make clear to them they cannot hope to survive or win alone against this enemy, not by simply saying it to them, but by showing to them his power. Like make the players know this person now knows the player whereabouts after having killed a very powerful npc of the world the players already knew/have heard of and the news has traveled to them in some way.
You could also resort to things like a prophecy that saw them together triumphing, reinforced by a shared dream and the likes of it, but I personally do not like too much this sort of things, but considering you're quite young and your players too, probably you didn't hate already as an older man like myself all this kind of faith things into a game or a movie.
Then start planning after this thing, that can quite last 10 sessions or more, depending on how you will handle it, to make them grow an attachment to a place, like a ruin in a very strategic position, that they could, putting together their money and efforts, bring back to its former glory and beyond, making them part of the politics of the area where this place is and further encouraging their staying together. This can very well be your interest solution as mentioned before, but frankly, if they hate or quite don't like each other it would be pretty difficult to pull off, I mean rationally one of them can simply kill the other after the ruin has been reconquered/has almost finished being built again and so I advise you against this.
But your party your call!
I hope you found something interesting in all of these ramblings! Best of luck to you!
@@sirioguidoandreapreziosi3836 I really really appreciate it alot.
Very very much so.
I definitely will try these. This helps alot 😄
Why swift? Cos of gullivers travels I guess... why not gulliver then?
He found his way home...
I rarely use maps cause I am to lazy for creating a map but then we get into combat and I am always like you should have used a map...