Matt, you are a phenomenal orator. It is a real pleasure hearing your thoughts on any subject (for any length of time) because they are consistently well articulated with a lot of intelligence and sincerity. The Dune video was an absolute delight and I thought about your points for days afterward- even striking up conversations with others randomly about some of the ideas in Dune based on the video. Finding your channel Matt as I was randomly looking up D&D history has been one of the best discoveries in 2017. Thanks!
Backgrounds - do a video on backgrounds. They're a great addition to 5e, and I'd love to hear some ideas on how they can work. Also, if you have time, organizations - designing organizations in 5e was a HUGE hit in my games, and I think they tie in a bit to backgrounds (backgrounds are "what did you use to do" and organizations are "What are you doing when you're not adventuring?")
Bacon Batallion RPG does an interesting series on character background creation. Lookup: GREATPC: 6 Questions to create the Ultimate Backstory for your Player Character in Roleplaying
Backgrounds are by far my favourite bit of of 5e, and are the main reason I didn't particularly care about the lack of official materials in the form of new classes/subclasses. There are very few flavours of PC that can't be easily done with just what's in the PHB.
HectorGrey fully agree. Want to be a pirate? Pick a class, add sailor background. Wanna be a viking? Fighter or barbarian or ranger + sailor or soldier. As a dm, rather than adding new classes or feats to flesh out your world, you can add backgrounds which fill a better role than prestige classes of old... and are much more balanced, mechanically.
Man I cant express how much I owe to you, the CR cast and gaming in general! You mentioned weight loss and it just brought all these feels up in me. About a year and a half ago my life imploded horrifically. The only way I was able to stay sane and work through it all was to workout while listening to your videos and watching Critical role. Here I am, alive and reasonably mentally stable and I've lost about 150lbs. So thank you sir! Thank you and good luck in your own fitness adventures! Cheers!
Here's a suggestion for the drone: Consider taking it with you and do a fly-through of a town during a day off or something. Then describe the town the way you'd describe it at the table. See how much more dramatically the town is described vs. how the town is seen.
You told me to let you know what I'd like to see, so here ya go. I want to see some info on how to effectively run a game of D&D with just 2 people at the table. I'm the DM but almost exclusively only played D&D with other people one on one (night shift social life lol), and I find it to be extremely challenging. A lot of the fun of D&D is how the players interact with each other through their characters, but with only 2 players, it becomes much more difficult. I've offset this by introducing more quirky characters, but then I feel like I'm running both sides of the table since the player needs companions to interact with while adventuring. Also, the single best piece of advice I've ever gotten for D&D was from you: Don't design encounters with solutions built in. My games are very tactical and I always had solutions built in and it railroaded almost every fight and encounter super hard. Now my stuff is way better, both from my side and from player engagement. Thanks for all you do.
Now I want to write an encounter where the PCs are walking along, and are suspicious of a large trunk left in the street. That's when the curb turns into 6 large mimics, who sneak attack them. Because I'm EEEEE-VIL.
I would like to thank you, Matt, for sparking my interest in Dungeons and Dragons. Your videos inspired me to become a dungeon master, and I ran my first game tonight with seven friends(which was a huge success). You are a phenomenal teacher, and I cannot wait to see what you come up with in the coming year.
Best video so far, Matt. Your ongoing "mission" to convince people they can think and create on their own is much appreciated. Also, in good D&D tradition your auto-follow drone should be called the "ioun drone". Happy New Year!
The comics are SO GOOD. And it is in part because of your writing, because it is amazing, to capture these characters so completely in a beautiful way is great. Also "I sometimes abuse the system" says Mr. "This will be a short video" in the beginning of a 20 minute video. I'M SO GLAD YOU'RE BACK AND relatively HEALTHY AGAIN!!
Matt, you are a terrific editor, and I love listening to you talk about just about anything so far. Keep up the great work, keep putting out videos. You do an amazing job and have helped me in more ways then I could tell you.
Your channel is the first content that I watch and I feel like I'm part of the channel and the process rather than just a consumer. Keep up the good work, I look forward to everything you do!
Super pumped for what you'll be bringing next year, Matt. Your How to DM videos have been fantastic for me as a DM. But also as a resource I've given to the kids in the D&D club I run at the school I work at. Keep up the good work!
looking forward to the future of the channel there has been quite a few interesting things to think about plus I was pretty inspired by your legend of the five rings video and have been working on coming up with a few ideas along those lines so thanks for the spark
A book I recently read that taught me SO MUCH about how ancient civilisations learned and shared their stories in pre-writing civilisations was The Memory Code by Lynne Kelly. I loved it so much that I incorporated the book into Tabaxi culture when Volo's came out in my DnD campaign. The book also helped me understand why ancient monuments exist which is just great for building meaningful histories. I think I'll definitely look up Breaking the Maya Code next!
I started watching your videos because of the D&D content but I love the "what's going on in Matt's head" videos, as you put it. Movie and book videos are always awesome. Thanks for all the entertaining and insightful content Matt!
Keep up the wonderful work Matthew. I didn't realize how long I was listening and watching you until it ended. Always get lost in your voice and get great enjoyment out of hearing about anything you say.
Honestly, I really like your writing style with these characters. I'm most blown away by your portrayal of Tiberius, especially because there wasn't as much of him in the show as the others.
Hey Matt! Glad to see you've made a speedy recovery in the arm department. Love your videos, and I appreciate how open and candid you are. Keep on keeping on. I'm glad to see you're making videos that you want to make! Happy almost-new year!
Matt, I am so happy to see you recovered. Since you asked for input: “How to” ideas: “twisting expectations” (characters see something and either assume or meta game and then become surprised) “Rule bashing” - example: I’ve used the Potion miscibility” table as a trap using puddles. Your thoughts? Another example: applying the “animated object” to more than the book suggests.... and so on. “Alternate experience ideas”. Some use milestone. Some use XP. I use something different (milestone plus tokens - ask if interested) Tricks on how to “pass the torch”. In other words, when one DM stops and another starts, sometimes the “old DM” can’t “let go of the chair” (so to speak) World building- environment has to make sense. Lots of ideas. I look forward to the new stream and wonder how Tom will differ from TOM. Thanks again for all you do.
I would love to see the video about introducing historical elements into the game with modern players. I have a deep passion for the history and so have in the past tried to include elements that did track the history only to see my players so uncomfortable with these elements that they felt the NPCs adhering to them either needed correcting or were outright villains. The simplest example is the rights and privileges of being a noble. On many occasions, I have seen NPC nobles beaten (or worse) by my PCs just for demanding that he or she be addressed in the correct manner. It is very easy for a modern American player to take "No, you must refer to me as 'your Grace' or as 'Highness.'" as a challenge. We're not used to the idea of nobles believing themselves to be "above" us in a certain sense and for players indulging in the power fantasy of D&D especially, having to defer to someone else is sometimes jarring (even when there is theological support for the idea that this other person is a representative of "the gods" in the world). Another example is the limited rights of serfs...it's only been an issue once in my games, but it was a revelation to the players how close that was to slavery and it took the campaign in a new direction instantaneously when they discovered that.
Please talk more about how to write stories/campaigns “backwards”. Like seeding seemingly unimportant stuff in early sessions, that turn out to have an impact later on in the campaign. To do that you usually have to have an idea of what is gonna happen later in the campaign so you can hint about it early, hence writing “backwards”. This is something I assume skilled writers/DMs do (and us amateurs would benefit learning) to get depth, instead of just stringing up a series of one shots. Appreciate the channel, I’m having a blast co-DMing a west marches campaign! 😄
Thanks for the UA-cam recs! I'll check them out. And, for the record, I thought your SW vid was really interesting. But I get what you're saying. As for what I would like to see? It's kind of off topic but I would love to hear your thoughts on some other RPGs on the market that you like or even that look cool that you would like to check out. Happy New Year!
Matt, thank you for explaining to people that being a Light Designer is a key role in a development team. A lot of people I talk to seem to think that the Level Designer is the guy who places meshes, assigned spawns/pickups, does all the lighting and shaders and plans it all out. Yet, I know that a Lighting Artist, Textures Artist, Mesh/Asset Artist, Technical Artist (guy who works with script + art assets) are all separate things. Any way that could be simple to explain these jobs to folks? I find that Coloring comparison to Cinematographer to be amazingly simple and interested if there are others.
Hey Matt. Love your channel. Finding it has helped 2017 end on a high note. Watching your videos has inspired me to get back into D&D. Looking forward to watching more of your stuff.
Alright, but there's no promises that it won't be finished by the time you get back... warm beer's sadder than no beer. :_( -Formerly Known as Nerdarchist Ryan
It is hard to be patient for "Fighter", but I would rather you take your time so that it stands up to how great the first two were. I really hope you get the time you need for it this year. May your 2018 be exciting, busy and rewarding.
Matt, as my uncle I will trust your judgement. I would like to just mention however that one of the endearing aspects of your content is that it feels like what it currently is: a man sharing his thoughts on topics which he is both interested and knowledgable. Your videos feel like I asked you a question face to face and you are taking the time to give a well thought out answer. I enjoy this eloquent stream of consciousness that I’ve come to consider your style. While I don’t feel more editing will necessarily harm this style, I caution you to consider at what point it might. Happy New Years to you and to all Legionnaires of the Night.
Hi Matt, I have just run my first Pathfinder game and would just like to express my gratitude for all the knowledge and advice your channel has provided me with. Thank you and I'm looking forward to watching more videos!
I rely on pantheons of thought-provoking figures in my day to day life. You stand tall atop the mental mountain. Keep up the good work Mr Colville. Happy new year to all the underlings of darkness.
I would love to hear more about how mindsets were different in different time periods. One of the biggest issues I have with the NPCs I run, it that they tend to be agreeable, trusting, and reasonable, all 21st-century ideals which are very helpful for the quest givers and potential allies of the PCs, but not I feel, tremendously realistic for a religion obsessed, magic-filled, life or death, ancient/medieval world. I would love for my plays to come up against that brick wall of being outsiders and then get the sense of real accomplishment that you describe when they are finally recognized as heroes.
A video on initiative and encounter distances sounds really useful! I DMed for the first time recently and I realized in the moment there was something I was missing about how/when to call for initiative rolls. It ended up completely awkward!
I just recently started looking at your work. It is an amazing thing to see someone creative let their mind out, another proof that the expansive mind can not emanate for short bursts of time. I have started DMing and I have found you and Critical Role's videos, learned a whole lot about Dungeons & Dragons but from your videos I have learned to enhance my creativity. Thank you for your work, it never goes unappreciated, there will always be people who learn from you and your experience, I am looking forward to the next year and listen to your short videos even use them as audiobooks for whatever occasion comes up. Happy New Year, sir.
I saw you share Kids on Bikes on twitter, saw the kickstarter page and immediately thought, "my family might actually like this." Every since I came across the first "Running the Game" a few weeks ago I've been trying to convince my family to let me run a session for them but they have absolutely no interest. But I think they could enjoy something 80's classic themed. I'm really glad I found this channel.
Haha love that you're picking up Canadian slang! Chooch moreso means that it's going; something is choochin' along. Skookum is uncommon and usually applies to something ballsy, brave or impressive. At least in my neck of the woods- beauty of slang is that it's always regional and always changing
Yep. Skookum is more of a Pacific Northwest American word. I'm in Alaska & we use it here too. I was told the most common definition is strong, but also brave, hearty, or monstrous.
Thank you for posting all these videos. They have been very useful in fine tuning my DM-ing skills and I've tried to get others to watch. Your series is very informative and very user friendly and it makes what seems like insurmountable task ( DM-ing) into something plausible and fun. Thank you and have a great New Year Mat
Looking forward to that initiative video, Matt. I've been mixing it up a lot with initiative recently so I'm keen to see what you have to say on the matter.
Very much looking forward to our chat about initiative and backstory, both areas that I am wrestling with now. Happy New Year from Britain Matt may all your roles be twenties (unless you are playing another system ofc)
Matt, you've mentioned before that people occasionally binge watch your videos. I have done such! Been a huge fan of D&D for about 5 years now and your videos are not only helpful, but entertaining as well. Not only am I having the best time I've ever had playing a character (largely due to inspiration from Critical Role) , but I've also started my own campaign, so our usual DM gets a chance to play. Its created this loop of inspiration where both of us feed off the stories were we get to be a character, and channel that creative energy into our DMing. As for the rest of our players, they just love double the D&D. I never thought I could have as much fun DMing as playing a character, but Running the Game showed me that was not the case! Thank you for taking the time to put this all together for us, from both me, and my gaming group. Here's to another year of Colville!
You've made a lot of fine videos this year and the last one and you've done a lot for the community, Matt. I am glad I found your channel. By the way, the latest Star Wars video was legitimately beautiful. Some powerful stuff was said there, and while I *absolutely* understand you turning off the comments section, I'm still bummed I didn't get to tell you that there.
I think the argument that video essays with a talking head are rare is a reason to keep it, to be honest. The way that it took a relatively rambly and casual medium and embued it with eloquence, significant delivery and smooth pacing made it an incredibly compelling piece
Congratulations on your success in 2017. It was encouraging to hear your goals for 2018. I have no doubts that you will achieve many of these successes and many others that you did not anticipate. Your drive to constantly learn and share your knowledge is an example for every 21st century renaissance man. please continue this path in life, as it suits you well. you had mentioned removing your face from the videos if you had more time. your sincerity and honesty are strongly conveyed through your facial expressions and your gestures. there is a stunning pie chart to be made detailing the number of times your eyebrow raises have made a point. with that in mind, however you continue, just continue. you'll have our support. sincerely, Some Guy you Inspired
I've got an Oculus and I just want to tell yall...it ain't cheap...but just the inkling it gives you of what could be possible is so special, it just warms your heart as a gamer if you put it in perspective of whats been before and what could be up next. Its just a treat to try out.
Matt, I thought I couldn't love your channel more after the Dune video, but then you go and mention Vangelis and Tangerine Dream. Thank you for all the insight and uncanny feeling of community that you've fostered for me throughout 2017!
There are Guest Stars that I am always happy to see; Kerrek, Zahra, Kash, Sprigg and I did love Chod, even though as a character he was meaningless to the story.
I'm about 1/3 into Priest and loving every word! You give just enough detail while leaving plenty of space for imagination to create the vision. Happy New Year!
I love the variety of content. The more the better as far as I'm concerned. Dnd can/should always for the core of the content, but we're here for Matt and his take on things, not just the DnD. I'm still waiting for the 2001 critique and analysis, for example. Keep up the great work Matt!
Thanks for all the content you put out! This one has lengthened my reading list, and it was a treat to hear your recommendation of THE HORSE, THE WHEEL, AND LANGUAGE - I had a class in college with David Anthony right as he was publishing that book and it was fun to listen to his experiences of linguists vs archaeologists. Looking forward to what you put out in 2018!
Your introspection is the reason I like watching your channel so much Matt. This is going to sound strange to you (as you struggle with your celebrity). Watching your videos has helped me immensely in my own introspection and truly changed my life. When you explain why you "feel" a certain way about something, or your thought process behind a decision, it resonates with me. I want to think more about the "why" more everyday. I need to slow down from being a consumer of things and be more than entertained in the moment. Your videos help me with that. I think you have lived up to your view of Terry Pratchett sir, keep it up.
Hi Matt, I've been a DM for 10 years and, disappointed with my last several games, I took about a year's hiatus from running games. Your Running the Game series rekindled my interest and gave me some great ideas for how to improve myself as a DM and face the source of a lot of my DMing issues (spoiler: it was me, not the players). That said, over the last few months I have periodically looked into your reddit threads for updates on things like Adventure Lookup or the stronghold rules and I have occasionally been disappointed by your activity on reddit when it reminds me of why I have historically avoided a lot of forums - that "points system" mentality. We're all constantly working to be better and I'm happy to hear you acknowledged this specific thing as something you're working on. Thanks for all of the inspiration and all your hard work.
I really appreciated what you said about trying to be kinder on other social media. I followed you on twitter after seeing your Running the game videos, and, sure, I got that you "keep it clean" on UA-cam, but I did feel a bit put off by some things. I'm not saying you should keep the "brand" clean all over, only that I really appreciate the thoughtfulness you show to those who feel like following your thoughts over several media.
Couldn’t sleep, fell asleep listening to this video. Not because you’re boring but because you’re nice to listen to! Will watch it, again whilst also trying to fall asleep, but also again later for the content!
Matt, I actually watched your star wars video first and then found your running the game series and subscribed. However you want to make your videos going forward I have no doubt I'll enjoy them as long as you keep them as thoughtful as all your previous content.
Hey Matt, first time commenting--Love the channel, ..Just wanted to say - Don't give up on the bike! You got this, and it's so much more fun than running....
Thank you very much for all of your videos! They inspired me to start GMing this year, although not D&D(my friends are more of a Warhammer 40K fans). Rewatched all the "Running the Game" playlist, and , maybe subconsciously, but when I wrote and run the first adventure, accidentally I've made a 'grimdark Temple of Delian Order' from your videos. Your videos help a lot, they contain a ton of useful information and I always recommend them to new people in hobby, who want to become a GMs themselves. In 2018 our local group plans to start a D&D West Marches campaingn and I plan to sign up as one of DMs, so I can start a long and, I hope, fun road as a D&D Dungeon Master! Once again, thank you for your work!
I don't even remember how I found your videos, but I have since seen your entire catalog of videos, and bought both of your books. I even read and enjoyed the first one. Haven't gotten around to reading the second one yet
On getting players getting into magic items. I will often let players pick an uncommon magic item to start with. This both lets the players feel cool, and tricks them into searching through the item list. Every time I’ve done this players have come to me to ask about powerful items they saw while they were looking through the book.
Hi Matt, I bought your two books to show my thanks for all the vids of yours I have watched. However your books are bloody brilliant. Thank you from the UK.
""Like the green screen here, behind me."", he says and leans back and knocks on air and there is sound of knocking and the world shakes a little. My mind exploded, "WHAT?!" I am confident that I did not hear anything Uncle Matt said for the next minute after that.
Matt, long time follower first time to comment. Your just the best i dont come here for just D&D anymore. I come to broaden my mind on different subjects. So thank you sir
So this year I stumbled on your videos and in the course of about 3 months I've gone through about 90% of running the game and have run 3 one shots with 3 different groups. Starting my 4th one shot in January and will have 3 full time groups in January. Your advice is great! I ran your starting adventure with the knights tomb and the goblins. Changed a few things one being the earl Darius Marin's daughter got abducted and he was selfish and wicked. The players ended up overthrowing the earl and making the old ranger who gave them directions to the goblins the temporary earl. They now have a safe haven in the town for when I kick off Lost Mines of Phanda-whatever.
40 minute or longer videos. thus implying that since this is a long video and we usually get 40 minutes or longer this must be over an hour atleast. so more content to enjoy.
45:00 ~ So I heard your video on stat rolling recently and it really clicked with me. I get it's designed for newer players, but even as someone who played for awhile it still even helps me because I still haven't played most of the classes. So I'm glad to have learned about that.
"...How much combat there is, and how much roleplaying there is. And you can turn them both up or-- They're both independent of each other." Amen. I've found that notion to be nigh on impossible to get through some people's skulls.
Slipping in some Matt C time prior to my game of D&D, Happy New Year Matt, keep doing it your way, a lot of us are loving the ride! PS glad you have improvement with your injury.
That's awesome about the weight loss goal! I was in the medical necessity boat and it's a really good feeling when you hit those goals. The Artisan Dice is good to know, I was considering buying some this year.
I dislike editing my videos for UA-cam, I never feel they are good enough. In the end I just have to put them up and see what happens. Your channel has just been amazing to watch grow and develop.
Nice to get a good, short video from you, Matt!
Matt, you are a phenomenal orator. It is a real pleasure hearing your thoughts on any subject (for any length of time) because they are consistently well articulated with a lot of intelligence and sincerity.
The Dune video was an absolute delight and I thought about your points for days afterward- even striking up conversations with others randomly about some of the ideas in Dune based on the video. Finding your channel Matt as I was randomly looking up D&D history has been one of the best discoveries in 2017.
Thanks!
Labor Days agreed I can listen to Matt talk for hours even when I'm disagreeing with his points. It's a rare skill.
Seconded - Same here: I'm starting out as a new GM and wanted some advice; Matt is great at that and I'm really grateful for the help.
Welp, I guess my next hour just became unavailable. Happy New Year to you sir!
I wish I had the time right now.
Heeeyy nice seeing you outside of your own channel :)
1.5X Speed sir or ma'am.
Dad is here!
Backgrounds - do a video on backgrounds. They're a great addition to 5e, and I'd love to hear some ideas on how they can work. Also, if you have time, organizations - designing organizations in 5e was a HUGE hit in my games, and I think they tie in a bit to backgrounds (backgrounds are "what did you use to do" and organizations are "What are you doing when you're not adventuring?")
David Steeves yes I would love if Mr Colville did an episode on this subject
I support this motion.
Bacon Batallion RPG does an interesting series on character background creation.
Lookup: GREATPC: 6 Questions to create the Ultimate Backstory for your Player Character in Roleplaying
Backgrounds are by far my favourite bit of of 5e, and are the main reason I didn't particularly care about the lack of official materials in the form of new classes/subclasses. There are very few flavours of PC that can't be easily done with just what's in the PHB.
HectorGrey fully agree. Want to be a pirate? Pick a class, add sailor background. Wanna be a viking? Fighter or barbarian or ranger + sailor or soldier.
As a dm, rather than adding new classes or feats to flesh out your world, you can add backgrounds which fill a better role than prestige classes of old... and are much more balanced, mechanically.
Man I cant express how much I owe to you, the CR cast and gaming in general! You mentioned weight loss and it just brought all these feels up in me. About a year and a half ago my life imploded horrifically. The only way I was able to stay sane and work through it all was to workout while listening to your videos and watching Critical role. Here I am, alive and reasonably mentally stable and I've lost about 150lbs. So thank you sir! Thank you and good luck in your own fitness adventures! Cheers!
Matt you TAPPED THE GREENSCREEN
THE ILLUSION IS BROKEN
I AM SO DISTRESSED
LemonPlanter wait where is the greenscreen?!?
rutger de boer The whole background. It's just a picture.
Das Königreich der Spiele where can you see that?
rutger de boer 1:09:15 he taps the screen
There's nothing as comforting as lighting a fire, cuddling with my boyfriend and listening to a Matt Colville video for over an hour
Couples that listen to Colville together stay together.
It is equally a pleasure working with you, Matthew :) Thank you so much for the shout out and glad you're back to UA-cam-in'
Here's a suggestion for the drone:
Consider taking it with you and do a fly-through of a town during a day off or something. Then describe the town the way you'd describe it at the table. See how much more dramatically the town is described vs. how the town is seen.
Yeeeeeeeeeeesssssssss
You curate your spare time to a magnificent degree. I am in awe of how many balls you keep in the air. Thanks for all that you give to your viewers!
You told me to let you know what I'd like to see, so here ya go.
I want to see some info on how to effectively run a game of D&D with just 2 people at the table. I'm the DM but almost exclusively only played D&D with other people one on one (night shift social life lol), and I find it to be extremely challenging. A lot of the fun of D&D is how the players interact with each other through their characters, but with only 2 players, it becomes much more difficult. I've offset this by introducing more quirky characters, but then I feel like I'm running both sides of the table since the player needs companions to interact with while adventuring.
Also, the single best piece of advice I've ever gotten for D&D was from you: Don't design encounters with solutions built in. My games are very tactical and I always had solutions built in and it railroaded almost every fight and encounter super hard. Now my stuff is way better, both from my side and from player engagement. Thanks for all you do.
I'm calling him Uncle Matt from now on!
gcollins1992 You beat me to it... I think we shall all call him Uncle Matt from now on.
In that case, are we his nieces and nephews?
Agreed
gcollins1992 one of those good uncles lol
Are you doing a greenscreen of your room or have you dyed your beard green? Both are cool ;)
ua-cam.com/video/alh6d-WUKag/v-deo.html
I'd put myself in front of space or a volcano. The same room seems redundant. Lighting? Sound? Where is he really...?
Nice spot!
Stop it - now I can't stop looking at it
Arian missed that throw away reference too
"Wanna know how I got this scar? Fighting a curb!"
"I used to be a Dungeon Master like you, 'til I took a curb in the arm."
And the curb have advantage and sneak attack
Now I want to write an encounter where the PCs are walking along, and are suspicious of a large trunk left in the street. That's when the curb turns into 6 large mimics, who sneak attack them. Because I'm EEEEE-VIL.
Matt, I loved your Campaign Diary's
They are my favorite thing. :(
I would like to thank you, Matt, for sparking my interest in Dungeons and Dragons. Your videos inspired me to become a dungeon master, and I ran my first game tonight with seven friends(which was a huge success). You are a phenomenal teacher, and I cannot wait to see what you come up with in the coming year.
Best video so far, Matt. Your ongoing "mission" to convince people they can think and create on their own is much appreciated. Also, in good D&D tradition your auto-follow drone should be called the "ioun drone". Happy New Year!
The comics are SO GOOD. And it is in part because of your writing, because it is amazing, to capture these characters so completely in a beautiful way is great.
Also "I sometimes abuse the system" says Mr. "This will be a short video" in the beginning of a 20 minute video.
I'M SO GLAD YOU'RE BACK AND relatively HEALTHY AGAIN!!
Sweet more Coville! You’ve done an awesome job on your channel and helped me become a Dungeon Master, Thanks!
Success!
Happy new year. I used adventure lookup and found the next adventure I’m running.
Matt, you are a terrific editor, and I love listening to you talk about just about anything so far. Keep up the great work, keep putting out videos. You do an amazing job and have helped me in more ways then I could tell you.
Your channel is the first content that I watch and I feel like I'm part of the channel and the process rather than just a consumer. Keep up the good work, I look forward to everything you do!
Super pumped for what you'll be bringing next year, Matt. Your How to DM videos have been fantastic for me as a DM. But also as a resource I've given to the kids in the D&D club I run at the school I work at. Keep up the good work!
My favorite video is the l5r one, I could listen to you talking about that stuff for hours
looking forward to the future of the channel there has been quite a few interesting things to think about plus I was pretty inspired by your legend of the five rings video and have been working on coming up with a few ideas along those lines so thanks for the spark
A book I recently read that taught me SO MUCH about how ancient civilisations learned and shared their stories in pre-writing civilisations was The Memory Code by Lynne Kelly. I loved it so much that I incorporated the book into Tabaxi culture when Volo's came out in my DnD campaign. The book also helped me understand why ancient monuments exist which is just great for building meaningful histories. I think I'll definitely look up Breaking the Maya Code next!
I started watching your videos because of the D&D content but I love the "what's going on in Matt's head" videos, as you put it. Movie and book videos are always awesome. Thanks for all the entertaining and insightful content Matt!
I don't mind a long video, the more Colville the better!
Entertaining and eclectic as usual. Loved the concept : "Lore must be presented in a dramatic fashion." Something I need to work on more.
Backgrounds would be good, especially since Wizards did pay so much attention to it in Xanathar’s guide
The right hand wave was on point. Glad things are feeling better with your injury!
Matthew, there's a town in Northeast Washington State called Colville, and the yearbook at its high school is called "The Skookum".
Elijah Santoyo ok .... never expected any crossover with Matt and AvE!
Keep up the wonderful work Matthew. I didn't realize how long I was listening and watching you until it ended. Always get lost in your voice and get great enjoyment out of hearing about anything you say.
Matt, I'm really glad to see you healing up. Hoping recovery continues without complication!
Honestly, I really like your writing style with these characters. I'm most blown away by your portrayal of Tiberius, especially because there wasn't as much of him in the show as the others.
Hey Matt! Glad to see you've made a speedy recovery in the arm department. Love your videos, and I appreciate how open and candid you are. Keep on keeping on. I'm glad to see you're making videos that you want to make! Happy almost-new year!
Matt, I am so happy to see you recovered.
Since you asked for input:
“How to” ideas:
“twisting expectations” (characters see something and either assume or meta game and then become surprised)
“Rule bashing” - example: I’ve used the Potion miscibility” table as a trap using puddles. Your thoughts?
Another example: applying the “animated object” to more than the book suggests.... and so on.
“Alternate experience ideas”. Some use milestone. Some use XP. I use something different (milestone plus tokens - ask if interested)
Tricks on how to “pass the torch”. In other words, when one DM stops and another starts, sometimes the “old DM” can’t “let go of the chair” (so to speak)
World building- environment has to make sense.
Lots of ideas.
I look forward to the new stream and wonder how Tom will differ from TOM.
Thanks again for all you do.
I'm happy to hear about your speedy recovery, Matt!
I would love to see the video about introducing historical elements into the game with modern players. I have a deep passion for the history and so have in the past tried to include elements that did track the history only to see my players so uncomfortable with these elements that they felt the NPCs adhering to them either needed correcting or were outright villains. The simplest example is the rights and privileges of being a noble. On many occasions, I have seen NPC nobles beaten (or worse) by my PCs just for demanding that he or she be addressed in the correct manner. It is very easy for a modern American player to take "No, you must refer to me as 'your Grace' or as 'Highness.'" as a challenge. We're not used to the idea of nobles believing themselves to be "above" us in a certain sense and for players indulging in the power fantasy of D&D especially, having to defer to someone else is sometimes jarring (even when there is theological support for the idea that this other person is a representative of "the gods" in the world). Another example is the limited rights of serfs...it's only been an issue once in my games, but it was a revelation to the players how close that was to slavery and it took the campaign in a new direction instantaneously when they discovered that.
Please talk more about how to write stories/campaigns “backwards”. Like seeding seemingly unimportant stuff in early sessions, that turn out to have an impact later on in the campaign. To do that you usually have to have an idea of what is gonna happen later in the campaign so you can hint about it early, hence writing “backwards”. This is something I assume skilled writers/DMs do (and us amateurs would benefit learning) to get depth, instead of just stringing up a series of one shots.
Appreciate the channel, I’m having a blast co-DMing a west marches campaign! 😄
Thanks for the UA-cam recs! I'll check them out.
And, for the record, I thought your SW vid was really interesting. But I get what you're saying.
As for what I would like to see? It's kind of off topic but I would love to hear your thoughts on some other RPGs on the market that you like or even that look cool that you would like to check out.
Happy New Year!
Just started Following the Videos, Chats and whatever you're posting. Just a few weeks at this point and I'm really enjoying it.
The Star Wars video was the most disliked video ever because you didn't say "Peace...OUT"
There is no other possible explanation... at all.... ever.
Man, those dice look incredibly stunning!
Edit: Now I am done. Looking forward to 2018, "Dr. Colville"!
Matt, thank you for explaining to people that being a Light Designer is a key role in a development team. A lot of people I talk to seem to think that the Level Designer is the guy who places meshes, assigned spawns/pickups, does all the lighting and shaders and plans it all out. Yet, I know that a Lighting Artist, Textures Artist, Mesh/Asset Artist, Technical Artist (guy who works with script + art assets) are all separate things.
Any way that could be simple to explain these jobs to folks? I find that Coloring comparison to Cinematographer to be amazingly simple and interested if there are others.
Hey Matt. Love your channel. Finding it has helped 2017 end on a high note. Watching your videos has inspired me to get back into D&D. Looking forward to watching more of your stuff.
a 76 minute Colville video outta nowhere? Hold my beer....
Alright, but there's no promises that it won't be finished by the time you get back... warm beer's sadder than no beer. :_( -Formerly Known as Nerdarchist Ryan
Miss ya, bud!
D'aww! Well, I'm still around the wide world of the internets, just doing my own thing.
It is hard to be patient for "Fighter", but I would rather you take your time so that it stands up to how great the first two were. I really hope you get the time you need for it this year. May your 2018 be exciting, busy and rewarding.
Matt, as my uncle I will trust your judgement. I would like to just mention however that one of the endearing aspects of your content is that it feels like what it currently is: a man sharing his thoughts on topics which he is both interested and knowledgable.
Your videos feel like I asked you a question face to face and you are taking the time to give a well thought out answer. I enjoy this eloquent stream of consciousness that I’ve come to consider your style. While I don’t feel more editing will necessarily harm this style, I caution you to consider at what point it might.
Happy New Years to you and to all Legionnaires of the Night.
Very happy to hear about your shoulder. Those docs did a good job, that recovery looks great at the rotary cuff!
i have a lot of respect for your honesty and humbleness in this video. really appreciate it.
Happy new year Matt, I hope you get to do all of the cool stuff you're wanting to do, cause it all sounds quite exciting and interesting
Hi Matt,
I have just run my first Pathfinder game and would just like to express my gratitude for all the knowledge and advice your channel has provided me with.
Thank you and I'm looking forward to watching more videos!
I rely on pantheons of thought-provoking figures in my day to day life. You stand tall atop the mental mountain. Keep up the good work Mr Colville. Happy new year to all the underlings of darkness.
MY LIEGE YOU HAVE RETURNED!
I would love to hear more about how mindsets were different in different time periods. One of the biggest issues I have with the NPCs I run, it that they tend to be agreeable, trusting, and reasonable, all 21st-century ideals which are very helpful for the quest givers and potential allies of the PCs, but not I feel, tremendously realistic for a religion obsessed, magic-filled, life or death, ancient/medieval world. I would love for my plays to come up against that brick wall of being outsiders and then get the sense of real accomplishment that you describe when they are finally recognized as heroes.
A video on initiative and encounter distances sounds really useful! I DMed for the first time recently and I realized in the moment there was something I was missing about how/when to call for initiative rolls. It ended up completely awkward!
I just recently started looking at your work. It is an amazing thing to see someone creative let their mind out, another proof that the expansive mind can not emanate for short bursts of time.
I have started DMing and I have found you and Critical Role's videos, learned a whole lot about Dungeons & Dragons but from your videos I have learned to enhance my creativity.
Thank you for your work, it never goes unappreciated, there will always be people who learn from you and your experience, I am looking forward to the next year and listen to your short videos even use them as audiobooks for whatever occasion comes up.
Happy New Year, sir.
I saw you share Kids on Bikes on twitter, saw the kickstarter page and immediately thought, "my family might actually like this." Every since I came across the first "Running the Game" a few weeks ago I've been trying to convince my family to let me run a session for them but they have absolutely no interest. But I think they could enjoy something 80's classic themed. I'm really glad I found this channel.
Haha love that you're picking up Canadian slang!
Chooch moreso means that it's going; something is choochin' along.
Skookum is uncommon and usually applies to something ballsy, brave or impressive.
At least in my neck of the woods- beauty of slang is that it's always regional and always changing
Ghonosyphlaids Skookum = Awesome. Powerful. Bitchin.
Yep. Skookum is more of a Pacific Northwest American word. I'm in Alaska & we use it here too. I was told the most common definition is strong, but also brave, hearty, or monstrous.
Indeed! Vancouver, BC over here :)
Thank you for posting all these videos. They have been very useful in fine tuning my DM-ing skills and I've tried to get others to watch. Your series is very informative and very user friendly and it makes what seems like insurmountable task ( DM-ing) into something plausible and fun. Thank you and have a great New Year Mat
i love this man
Looking forward to that initiative video, Matt. I've been mixing it up a lot with initiative recently so I'm keen to see what you have to say on the matter.
Don't stop riding matt! i had a pretty bad crash a few years back but every day i am riding my bike makes me feel better about my day
Very much looking forward to our chat about initiative and backstory, both areas that I am wrestling with now.
Happy New Year from Britain Matt may all your roles be twenties (unless you are playing another system ofc)
I love that you are planning on doing live character creation. So many streams/podcasts don't do character creation and I for one enjoy that aspect.
Matt, you've mentioned before that people occasionally binge watch your videos. I have done such! Been a huge fan of D&D for about 5 years now and your videos are not only helpful, but entertaining as well. Not only am I having the best time I've ever had playing a character (largely due to inspiration from Critical Role) , but I've also started my own campaign, so our usual DM gets a chance to play. Its created this loop of inspiration where both of us feed off the stories were we get to be a character, and channel that creative energy into our DMing. As for the rest of our players, they just love double the D&D. I never thought I could have as much fun DMing as playing a character, but Running the Game showed me that was not the case!
Thank you for taking the time to put this all together for us, from both me, and my gaming group. Here's to another year of Colville!
You've made a lot of fine videos this year and the last one and you've done a lot for the community, Matt. I am glad I found your channel.
By the way, the latest Star Wars video was legitimately beautiful. Some powerful stuff was said there, and while I *absolutely* understand you turning off the comments section, I'm still bummed I didn't get to tell you that there.
I think the argument that video essays with a talking head are rare is a reason to keep it, to be honest. The way that it took a relatively rambly and casual medium and embued it with eloquence, significant delivery and smooth pacing made it an incredibly compelling piece
Congratulations on your success in 2017. It was encouraging to hear your goals for 2018. I have no doubts that you will achieve many of these successes and many others that you did not anticipate. Your drive to constantly learn and share your knowledge is an example for every 21st century renaissance man. please continue this path in life, as it suits you well.
you had mentioned removing your face from the videos if you had more time. your sincerity and honesty are strongly conveyed through your facial expressions and your gestures. there is a stunning pie chart to be made detailing the number of times your eyebrow raises have made a point.
with that in mind, however you continue, just continue. you'll have our support.
sincerely,
Some Guy you Inspired
THE LONG SHIPS IS MY JAM! Or Red Worm (Røde orm) as I know it. Greetings from Denmark!
I've got an Oculus and I just want to tell yall...it ain't cheap...but just the inkling it gives you of what could be possible is so special, it just warms your heart as a gamer if you put it in perspective of whats been before and what could be up next. Its just a treat to try out.
Matt, I thought I couldn't love your channel more after the Dune video, but then you go and mention Vangelis and Tangerine Dream. Thank you for all the insight and uncanny feeling of community that you've fostered for me throughout 2017!
There are Guest Stars that I am always happy to see; Kerrek, Zahra, Kash, Sprigg and I did love Chod, even though as a character he was meaningless to the story.
I'm about 1/3 into Priest and loving every word! You give just enough detail while leaving plenty of space for imagination to create the vision. Happy New Year!
Thank you, as always for sharing sir. BACKGROUNDS would make an excellent video.
Seconding Backgrounds
WheezyWaiter used to be a waiter and he has asthma. His real name is Craig Benzine(sp?) Now you know :)
+
I love the variety of content. The more the better as far as I'm concerned. Dnd can/should always for the core of the content, but we're here for Matt and his take on things, not just the DnD. I'm still waiting for the 2001 critique and analysis, for example. Keep up the great work Matt!
Thanks for all the content you put out! This one has lengthened my reading list, and it was a treat to hear your recommendation of THE HORSE, THE WHEEL, AND LANGUAGE - I had a class in college with David Anthony right as he was publishing that book and it was fun to listen to his experiences of linguists vs archaeologists. Looking forward to what you put out in 2018!
Your introspection is the reason I like watching your channel so much Matt. This is going to sound strange to you (as you struggle with your celebrity).
Watching your videos has helped me immensely in my own introspection and truly changed my life. When you explain why you "feel" a certain way about something, or your thought process behind a decision, it resonates with me. I want to think more about the "why" more everyday. I need to slow down from being a consumer of things and be more than entertained in the moment. Your videos help me with that.
I think you have lived up to your view of Terry Pratchett sir, keep it up.
Hi Matt, I've been a DM for 10 years and, disappointed with my last several games, I took about a year's hiatus from running games. Your Running the Game series rekindled my interest and gave me some great ideas for how to improve myself as a DM and face the source of a lot of my DMing issues (spoiler: it was me, not the players).
That said, over the last few months I have periodically looked into your reddit threads for updates on things like Adventure Lookup or the stronghold rules and I have occasionally been disappointed by your activity on reddit when it reminds me of why I have historically avoided a lot of forums - that "points system" mentality. We're all constantly working to be better and I'm happy to hear you acknowledged this specific thing as something you're working on. Thanks for all of the inspiration and all your hard work.
I really appreciated what you said about trying to be kinder on other social media. I followed you on twitter after seeing your Running the game videos, and, sure, I got that you "keep it clean" on UA-cam, but I did feel a bit put off by some things. I'm not saying you should keep the "brand" clean all over, only that I really appreciate the thoughtfulness you show to those who feel like following your thoughts over several media.
Couldn’t sleep, fell asleep listening to this video. Not because you’re boring but because you’re nice to listen to! Will watch it, again whilst also trying to fall asleep, but also again later for the content!
TREK! Wisconsin made, baby! Great bikes. Hope you can continue to enjoy it post-recovery
Matt, I actually watched your star wars video first and then found your running the game series and subscribed. However you want to make your videos going forward I have no doubt I'll enjoy them as long as you keep them as thoughtful as all your previous content.
Hey thanks!
Hey Matt, first time commenting--Love the channel, ..Just wanted to say - Don't give up on the bike! You got this, and it's so much more fun than running....
Thank you very much for all of your videos! They inspired me to start GMing this year, although not D&D(my friends are more of a Warhammer 40K fans). Rewatched all the "Running the Game" playlist, and , maybe subconsciously, but when I wrote and run the first adventure, accidentally I've made a 'grimdark Temple of Delian Order' from your videos. Your videos help a lot, they contain a ton of useful information and I always recommend them to new people in hobby, who want to become a GMs themselves. In 2018 our local group plans to start a D&D West Marches campaingn and I plan to sign up as one of DMs, so I can start a long and, I hope, fun road as a D&D Dungeon Master! Once again, thank you for your work!
I don't even remember how I found your videos, but I have since seen your entire catalog of videos, and bought both of your books. I even read and enjoyed the first one. Haven't gotten around to reading the second one yet
On getting players getting into magic items. I will often let players pick an uncommon magic item to start with. This both lets the players feel cool, and tricks them into searching through the item list. Every time I’ve done this players have come to me to ask about powerful items they saw while they were looking through the book.
Hi Matt, I bought your two books to show my thanks for all the vids of yours I have watched. However your books are bloody brilliant. Thank you from the UK.
Wait! What? A green screen? Holy ballz! Since when are you shooting in front of a green screen? What happened to your room???
""Like the green screen here, behind me."", he says and leans back and knocks on air and there is sound of knocking and the world shakes a little.
My mind exploded, "WHAT?!" I am confident that I did not hear anything Uncle Matt said for the next minute after that.
Worth watching all the way through. Especially loved the low tech teleprompter!
Matt, long time follower first time to comment. Your just the best i dont come here for just D&D anymore. I come to broaden my mind on different subjects. So thank you sir
So this year I stumbled on your videos and in the course of about 3 months I've gone through about 90% of running the game and have run 3 one shots with 3 different groups. Starting my 4th one shot in January and will have 3 full time groups in January. Your advice is great! I ran your starting adventure with the knights tomb and the goblins. Changed a few things one being the earl Darius Marin's daughter got abducted and he was selfish and wicked. The players ended up overthrowing the earl and making the old ranger who gave them directions to the goblins the temporary earl. They now have a safe haven in the town for when I kick off Lost Mines of Phanda-whatever.
soo i see a notification that says the video is LOOONG, from a youtuber for whom 40m+ videos are common =)
40 million + videos?!?!?
40 minute or longer videos. thus implying that since this is a long video and we usually get 40 minutes or longer this must be over an hour atleast. so more content to enjoy.
45:00 ~ So I heard your video on stat rolling recently and it really clicked with me. I get it's designed for newer players, but even as someone who played for awhile it still even helps me because I still haven't played most of the classes. So I'm glad to have learned about that.
"...How much combat there is, and how much roleplaying there is. And you can turn them both up or-- They're both independent of each other." Amen. I've found that notion to be nigh on impossible to get through some people's skulls.
Slipping in some Matt C time prior to my game of D&D, Happy New Year Matt, keep doing it your way, a lot of us are loving the ride! PS glad you have improvement with your injury.
That's awesome about the weight loss goal! I was in the medical necessity boat and it's a really good feeling when you hit those goals.
The Artisan Dice is good to know, I was considering buying some this year.
I dislike editing my videos for UA-cam, I never feel they are good enough. In the end I just have to put them up and see what happens. Your channel has just been amazing to watch grow and develop.