He looks like a lawyer. So he fits in with D&D. Because he can be a rules lawyer. Take rule breakers to rules court, and get them convicted of rules crimes, and sentenced to rules jail
Two words: Robert Howard. Read his stories. He is the best I know in describing an entire city or a battle with only a few sentences. Much more effective than bloated text.
All of his work is amazing. Start with Conan. But the description of Stygia in Hour of the Dragon is the best description of a city ever. Two or three sentences, and the city springs to mind.
I love this, but would humbly suggest one important took, the leading question. I often have quirky thinking out of the box players who often have unexpected ideas, so I use the leading question to tell them, "I wasn't planning a stop here, but what about you?". So, for example at the door to the inn, I would say " so you go inside?" And a quick nod and we continue, but it gives the players a chance to jump in and take an action.
When you stop and said we can imagine the "large mahogany desk and frills around his collar" I thought damn NOW I see it...now I FEEL it too" which added the next level immersion that makes RPGs so great. I think you're cutting yourself short. Spending 10 seconds instead of 30 is fine but dropping it down to 3 seconds helps no one.
I get what you mean, this is to make it clear that you don't have to tell all the details. Players can ask, if what they imagine is how it is. Like 'is he a fat balding man, with opulent rings on all fingers?' Like this it becomes a co-operative story telling, which makes it all that more fun. Players are more involved and the DM can be inspired by the players and say: "Yes and...." which is the crucial sentence in improvisation.
Exactly. Like with the thief stealing the letter. If you just say they either successfully stole it or got caught you're taking away so many rp moments. Maybe they rummage through every desk and find a few gold pieces that they wouldn't have otherwise. Or a guard making there rounds forces the player to hide in an room or under a desk. Maybe they sneak around and incapacitate the guard before getting the hell out of there with the letter. No details don't have to be overwhelming but turning what could be a character defining moment into a 5 second dice role robs your player a chance to embody their characters. What if that guard caught the player and they had to kill or injurer them which the character feels immense guilt over because he was just a guard trying to feed his family. In my opinion Large plot points can be more easily railroaded than individual encounters or situations. If a player feels that they have control of their character moment by moment. They wont think twice about the story being more directed. (If that's required)
@@catfishcave379 I was more amused by him referring to them as "discriminating" adventurers rather than "discerning" adventurers. Even if it was a slip of the tongue, It's funny.
if my players asked for the reader digest version of the city I would pause take a sip of tea and proceed to describe how the city looks as the Roc swoops in and carried off his character evicerating it over the spiraling towers, his blood striking red atop the terracotta tiles of the rooves that overhang the sleepy cobbled streats that wind with serpentine sugjestion across the primordial slopes of the hillside, his pancreas carried off by one of the city's many stray dogs that go unnoticed by those with eyes for the higher concerns and profits of man.
Dear GMs, please follow this advice. The number of times I've played in a game, been lost about what I should be doing, and had the GM get frustrated at me that I didn't cull the one singular essential detail from his laundry list of "would be novelist" descriptions that didn't matter!!! Arrrgh. Please give your players some freaking direction and let them get on with the game.
@@miaomiiao I agree I couldn't disagree with this advice more. Sometimes an important room really needs a few sentences. Sure if you are describing a puzzle take it slow and describe the things that should be paid attention to everything else however needs that awesome dripping with detail description. I always side with this more 1. describe the room in 2 - 3 sentences of detail, 2 describe and action happening in the room in a short but descriptive sentence (if none gloss over). 3 describe monsters last, always last.
I gotta say I do appreciate the Mission Impossible style caper, it's only really FUN because the plans are crazy elaborate that it accounts for everything, and then something you couldn't possibly account for happens and they just pull it all off anyway. That doesn't work in a game because there are two possibilities: 1. It's a narrative, not a game. The heist is going to just work out, like it does in the movies. Only it's not about Ethan and his IMF team, it's about the players at your table and the characters they've invested in. "About them, without them." I'm going to guess that the professor is quite familiar with the concept, but it kinda explains itself: If the players are superfluous to the game at any time, what's the point of doing it? 2. There's a very real (and given that we're talking about a game played with dice, at least a 5% chance of a natural 1 roll each decision) chance of failure. But wait, nothing's perfect, and the odds that they'll fail horribly of 5% seems quite reasonable. Except I'm here to tell you that the odds of catastrophic failure of playing out the MI-style heist aren't 5% if you're not up on your math. What're the odds of a natural 1 in a single roll? 5%. 1/20. How about on two rolls? Not 2/40. Because of the 40 possible outcomes of rolling two dice, three of those possibilities roll a 1. How many ability checks are there going to be in a heist movie style escapade? Five? Six? What're the odds ONE of those is going to be a natural 1? Can't be that high can it? Let's use n = 6 to drive home the point. The probability of rolling a natural one is the total number of outcomes minus the outcomes where you DIDN'T roll a natural one. (Leaving those where you did.) So subtract 19/20 to the nth power from 1 (actually 20/20 to the nth power, but … that's just 1…) I'll multiply by 100 for a percentage and … 100*(1-(19/20)^1) = 5.00000 100*(1-(19/20)^2) = 9.75000 100*(1-(19/20)^3) = 14.26300 100*(1-(19/20)^4) = 18.55000 100*(1-(19/20)^5) = 22.62200 100*(1-(19/20)^6) = 26.49100 ← You are here By the way, if you roll d20 about 14 times, you've got over 50% chance of having rolled a 1 at least once. "Roll a 5 and your thief pulls it off without a hitch…" It suddenly seems like a much better idea doesn't it?
Thank you for your thoughtful reply. You'll want to check out my "Social Encounters" episode later this month. It describes a Mission Impossible-style caper. Stay tuned!
Suggesting the players options of what they could or should do through clever narration is truly helpful. Not only does it engage them more, but also keep ups the pace excellently. Especially for newer players; I can tell from my experience with my current group. 😊
This has been the most helpful DnD video I have seen on UA-cam so far. It demonstrates the art of how to be more clear and concise. I’ve enjoyed immensely. Thank you!
Great stuff as usual. Spending all the time and planning effort to burgle the office is something some groups really enjoy, but it's always good to be aware that as a GM you don't have to use all that detail and spend all that time if you don't want to or the pace of the game would suffer. Some great tidbits about emphasis, focus, and giving players enough info to engage with the world and not be lost, too.
I regularly play in a VampireThe Masquerade game where we only have 3 players. Our Storyteller (DM), describes the flow just as the Professor describes here. We roll no dice in our games, save a few for very rare combat encounters and the story moves almost like a play or book. A brilliant video for beginners and experienced players alike. This should always come before UDTs and worries about initiative.
Exceptional advice. I think this has helped me identify what causes me to struggle with pacing. Asking 'what do you do?' too soon, not 'Leading the Players' by presenting logical, dramatic options quick enough or failing to move the camera to where the real action is what kills my momentum the most.
Really is a brilliant invaluable video for bringing precise attention to those roleplaying moments where you can have blank faced PCs looking at you not knowing exactly how to respond to your, “So what do you do?”
Looks great! I’m watching it right now! You’ve just mentioned my favourite scenario and the first game I ever GMed “Shadows Over Bogenhafen” I really could have done with Dan’s tutorage as I was a teenager and wasn’t at all ready or prepared for what the players would eventually do. Their clever patient sleuthing in an instant turned into a murderous rampage when one of the players received severe injuries. They located the doctor’s house and started beating down the doctor’s door at like 4 in the morning. He grabbed a blunderbuss to defend himself but before any dialogue could be made one of the PCs shoot him between the eyes with a crossbow. All of a sudden even the quietest most reasonable players began acting like a gang of wild gorillas. Absolutely brilliant memories of playing it but I was personally devastated with how the investigation ended. They were massacred to a man by the local authorities aided by a large crazed posse who felt more than aggrieved at losing their only doctor.
Dungeon Craft Do you know I never even thought about the ultimate consequences of their failure. Almost thirty years of feeling bad about the outcome but never spared a single thought for the poor citizens of the Empire. Now I have another reason for feeling crap about it 😂
This was excellent food for thought. I especially like the way he presents his case then closes with the mention of railroading which is the one accusation against this style. This was definitely a good way to spend ten minutes. Thank you.
Huh, interesting. I really like deep description of rooms if my character is looking around, or sneaking in. It really helps me create the room in my head, and see things I can use. For example, how can I say that I will pull the bookshelf down against an enemy if the DM didn't say there was one there? And I noticed that as a DM, I do overdetail a lot. I never had any player complain about it though. I guess it depends from table to table.
I used to include the historical detail of various places, thinking I was adding to the depth and immersion. It turned out that I was the only one who was interested. So now, even if the history of an object is important to the plot,I share just that one bit of history and no more. It's definitely about what the players want to focus on.
Can not express how great this video is in making any RPG run smoother. Such a simple set of ideas that I am going to be kicking myself for not thinking of them 35 years ago.
Something I do as a dm is assume the player characters are familiar with the setting they are traveling in. After all, their characters grew up in this world and should have vast knowledge of it. I never want my players to be blind of information just because ‘they’ don’t know the details. Any questions the players ask is usually filled with 2-3 choices. Anymore than 3 choices just stifles the game. As professor says, you don’t want to rail road them but you also need to keep the story progression. At some point through their questions and information gathering they will come to a point where danger is a foot, or their character won’t know the details. This is when we start the adventuring! Thank you Professor for all you’re hard work!
A navy blue-feathered arrow pierces Gimble's chest like a piece of paper. He tumbles onto the cobblestone road from the caravan, "Protect the duchess! But above all else, protect the cargo!" You see red eyes glowing in the trees as wolf-like roar booms from the rosewood leaves. I think you just helped me solve my description problem. I use to do this thing where I would use figures of speech all the time, and man - let me tell you - it was draining. :) Thank you so much!
Move the camera... "After you searched the UA-cam finding one verbose guide after another, exhausted from cat video distractions, and the keys on your computer worn from use, you finally find a source of valuable tips presented concisely. He has no gimmicks but his directions are precise and intentional." THANK YOU!
Incredibly helpful. As a DM that started quite recently guiding the party has been difficult. This is gonna help me to guide the party better. Thank you!
I like his first tip, not only because you can avoid over explaining, but by keeping it brief, there are more opportunities to go with the flow of the players. What I mean is that a player could say, "is there a big goofy stuffed head of a moose on the wall" and if you like it and didn't think of it beforehand, it lacks contradiction
Initiative is only necessary when two characters are trying to do competing things at the same time. If you're both trying to stab each other, initiative decides who strikes first. But if you're stabbing a sleeping enemy, you just do it, no rolls necessary
Had to revisit this episode several times which means it’s excellent, I’ve been able to cut a swath of time out of my narrative and focus on the good bits…thank you Prof. DM.
Absolute Gold as usual, Professor. My only constructive quibble might be to add that in addition to understanding what your players like and enjoy, that understanding what the characters can do is important. Bogenhafen is great until the DM realizes there are no rogues to swipe the note or to even search for it. Suddenly, the DM is looking for a way to give that one vital clue to the party. :) Admittedly, that dichotomy might take care of itself as players in a group without a rogue might not be the sort to enjoy Bogenhafen to begin with. Great episode. Always love to see the WFRP roots show. :)
Thank you. Great advice. I've been trying to run a campaign with players new to gaming and they're often lost and reluctant about taking action. This advice will definitely help keep the flow of the game.
I couldn't agree with your sentiments more. The open ended question of "what do you do" might feel sacred ro DMs that are worried abt railroading their players. Leading your players is not the same as railroading them in my onion. It helps to set the scene and provide focus which is super helpful to the player. I find that railroading your players comes about more from limiting their options, rather than providing them with more to do if they want to. I try not to be afraid to suggest something to my players every now and again, especially if it's something that I have an outline on, or something that special I might have prepared and worry that I'm railroading them. Because some of us DMs know that even if we do lead the players, they may still decide to sidestep those scenarios anyway and sneak onto a ship that isn't theirs, uninvited, and then that becomes an Adventure all on its own... trust me. You've provided some good tips here. I liked the narrative trick of moving the camera and will make a concentrated effort to try it. Soon. I see how it could help make our once-a-month sessions run a little more smoothly and help prevent feeling like we stalled. It hadnt happened yet, but it's another tool in the toolkit. Thanks for posting!
To paraphrase some of the best advice from PDM and many others... Find out what your players like and spend your time on that. ... Role playing, roll playing, cinematic combat, shopping, grinding dungeon combat, 15th Century Venetian business law, etc.
I used to be a DM, now I work in art/game dev, and I have a small suggestion that could probably help. Try to advertise/market the channel towards worldbuilders and novel writers as well as D&D GM. I found it extremely helpful to look at D&D tips to help me get back into swing of proper storytelling within the script for my game, and I truly think you should add "storytelling/writing/worldbuilding advice" as a legit tag/description part. I hope your channel grows well and I'm on board to see what else you've got to share!
I'm normally self-conscious about listing my players' options because I don't want to railroad in my sandbox, but the James Bond example showed me how to do so. I'm definitely going to be returning to this
Great video. Was really looking forward to this one. Good advice, and am glad you spoke for the many DM's that are in denial. I agree. So many are great on advice and talk, but when it comes to seeing them in action it's as if they've forgotten everything they preach about. I think this an important subject that doesn't get talked about enough when as you say "move the game forward". Loved it, keep the great content coming. Cheers!!
I do agree with most of what you present. However, it depends on the type of game IMO. A bit more description may be needed to draw the PC's into the world. But I do agree that every single thing in a room is unnecessary to point out. As a rule I would describe a room with 1. What can be seen immediately as you enter it. 2. Any smells or temperature, and 3. Any sounds if any. For example a cave. 1.2.and 3. "Rough hewn walls extend beyond the torchlight down the length of the cave. The damp smell and humid air is punctuated with the constant drips of water in the distance." Or a different cave might sound like. "The slick icy walls of the cave seem to have a life of its own as the howling winds call out like a warning. The frost from your own breath is more pronounced as you enter." or "Bones litter the entrance of the cave and as you enter the smell or rotting flesh hits you like wave on the shore." I would recommend using 2 or 3 of your senses when describing anything. Sight, Sound, Smell, Touch, even Taste if it makes sense to do so.
I agree, and would look at it like the newspapers "inverted triangle," where you start with a lot of broad strokes, and things become more and more laser-focused and brief as you move along. But it also depends on the players... I played with a new guy last week who didn't know the difference between an orc and a dwarf. I had a hard time relating to his life experience, but he got it after a few minutes and I think I made a new lifelong player out of him!
This. I have never understood people desiring to blaze past everything descriptive. The whole point is to imagine yourself in another world, to play a person in another reality. How do you get into that with no description? I have had far more problems (as a player) with players trying to do things and not being able to do X because the scene or terrain wouldn't allow it, but it wasn't well described by the DM so they didn't know. 'I want to use mold earth to--' 'You can't, the floor is gravel.' 'Then i want to shoot an arrow into the window above the door and swing over.' 'You cant, the window is a stone arrow slit, no wood.' Etc.
I often use physical pictures. If players are traveling between to places, I'll look at the terrain and get a couple of real world pictures or drawings of mountains, a lake, a middle-ages town, etc. I don't show the players these, but I describe them as they travel or reach the town. The advantages are... you don't need to pre-write or read at the session a half-page of box text, you can dynamically decide how much detail to give (if they ask a question about the lake you can keep giving more details form the picture), it comes across as realistic (since it is), it is quicker to google pictures of mountains than write up box text, etc.
Really good lesson in this vid as I am new DM and that last bit of information to help out unknowing new players with high proficiencies was a game changer.
What great advice. Anyone who gave this a thumbs down is probably a player who thinks they know what they want from the DM, but actually have no idea what flows and works. They think it is all magically happening.
This is such good advice for new dms. There are many others things that will help a new dm get started but I feel like stuff like this is largely ignored.
Finally! A good DnD tips channel with a host who is calm and pleasant. You've gotten my Sub. Way too many DnD youtubers are so excitable and talk so fast it detracts from the information they're trying to get across. You sound more like an audiobook narrator.
LOL. My friends actually make fun of me for talking too FAST in the videos. In real life I'm a slow talker. I'll rewatch this video to try to match the pace. Thanks for subbing. New videos every Thursday/
Easily your best advice really insightful. Your cinematic narration style is so much better than the dry, slow factuality that most GMs use. I'm actually building your advice into the rules of the game I am creating.
I think point 1 at least partially explains why my players seem slightly more engaged when I'm flying by the seat of my pants than when I'm sticking with the module I'm running. Because I have less planned and memorized, I tend to be more concise and stick with the few details that stick out to me, which for the size and temperament of the group I have, is probably a good thing. Guess it's time to look at how I can be more concise and engaging with all that prewritten stuff.
I'm a dm but as a player I loathed the descriptions in modules. I'd much prefer a short, concise description of 1-2 sentences and either answer player questions or Pepper in more detail as they explore/fight/interact, etc.
I just had a listen to your combat narration and I wholly agree with you, R.E.Howard's works are truly fantastic, and they get even better the more you read them. You have a natural flare for cinematography in your videos and you do relate to film and direction a lot. In this video I agree that you are once again spot on on how to improve the storytelling experience for people. There is a wonderful book that might personally interest you "The Visual Story" by Bruce Block. If you ever have the opportunity to attend one of his lectures on film making and the art of visual storytelling it's well worth it. Thank you for your videos and incites.
Very welcome! Have you see The Lost City Yet? I hate to give you hard sell but it's my best video and it has Bob World Builder in it: ua-cam.com/video/MGeXZcuI3No/v-deo.html
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 I have not yet. I've been perusing the channel and checking out videos that give tips to GMs. I will definitely give it a watch. I also watched your video on making epic NPCs and realized I was guilty of trying to make my party like my "super cool" pre-designed side characters instead of letting them form their own bonds with NPCs of their choosing.
Gonna be honest, only reason I clicked on this video is because I thought the guy in the thumbnail was Keith Olbermann, and was REALLY curious about what that dude had to say about D&D lol
Even the examples of "how to do it properly" feel like taking choices away from players. I love leaving it open, and giving the players chances to decide what they want to do. Even saying the players enter the inn and stomp off their boots... do they? Maybe they don't want to do that. Maybe it doesn't fit their character. I could already feel my players grumbling if I changed to this style, because I hate making decisions of any kind for my players. Maybe if you're running pre-generated campaigns it's fine, but I homebrew stuff and like the game to be a collaborative effort, where players are actively engaged in every detail.
If I had a player grumbling about "Stomping off your muddy boots before you go into a STRANGERS BUSINESS"....I'd start kicking that PC out of the fancy inns and establishments the party is always so apt to go into...
Like what kind of assinine dickhead would complain about a DM describing a normal, decent human action the characters partake in? Did you soil their trust so badly, ever before?
Well good luck at herding cats. I find this example very nitpicking. The message is that by not spending time on details and/or leaving too many choices open you get more time to play out the actual fun stuff.
Fantastic advice for a new DM! I was wondering how to make the game less clunky for relatively new players without railroading. This is exactly what I needed!
Really nice summary. I do struggle sometimes not with being over descriptive but certainly not "moving the camera" enough. And I was aware of it, but at the same time was afraid to give them the feeling that I am controlling them. The examples you gave however really show that the storytelling has the solution :) pretty awesome! Subscribed!
I was once the only DM. I created a setting designed to make each of my players aspire to become a DM as well. It worked. I shared this with them, since soon it is likely I'll be retiring to mentorship as a welcome player in each of their campaigns ;) I think DMing is a lot like teaching. If you do it right, the students will want to teach, too.
I really appreciate you mentioning looking at your notes occasionally. That's my biggest problem on narration; How much to write down notes and how to keep it fluent and with eye-contact.
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 I have been watching all your videos in order and it is amazingly helpful! I absolutly love your channel and the information and experience you posses with DnD!
In terms of taking advantage of what your players already know, and so needing to describe less. You are in good company. Looking back to the origins of Sword and Sorcery and Robert E Howard and his stories of Conan, he took advantage of that in the very core of his world-building, using known terms and places to be the foundations of his fantastic world. Good job.
This is a great video, I have watched it twice and plan to watch is another time at least until I feel like I have really absorbed the material. Thank you!!
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 well now that you mention it... In my current campaign, I'm loosely following the lost mines of phandelver story, with all the officially sanctioned dungeoncraft twists and tricks, of course. That said, I've been really thinking about the lost mine itself and I want it to have more of a "temple of doom" feel with lots of traps and puzzles. However, I feel that I'm absolutely rubbish at coming up with interesting and fun puzzles. I know you somewhat touched upon it in this video as well as in your video on mystery campaigns, but I'd love a more in-depth look at the art of crafting a challenging, yet engaging puzzle without slowing the game down too much! Again, all your videos are absolutely of the line and I share them at every chance I get. The tips are so common sense and so easy to implement, it's simply brilliant! Thanks for saving many a common dungeon master from the evil clutches of boring exposition and the long arm of the rulebook :)
I don't know anything about this man but he looks like the most respectable Dungeon Master I've ever seen.
he looks like a professor, doesn't he
He looks like a lawyer. So he fits in with D&D. Because he can be a rules lawyer. Take rule breakers to rules court, and get them convicted of rules crimes, and sentenced to rules jail
He plays with mostly women, so I'd imagine he must be GREAT.
You haven't seen him in cosplay. It's a totally different story
Do you want this man to rule over FATE and the LAWS OF PHYSICS?
Two words: Robert Howard. Read his stories. He is the best I know in describing an entire city or a battle with only a few sentences. Much more effective than bloated text.
R.E.H. was a genius.
YES! Howard will be mentioned in my follow-up video on describing combat.
Any specific works you'd suggest?
All of his work is amazing. Start with Conan. But the description of Stygia in Hour of the Dragon is the best description of a city ever. Two or three sentences, and the city springs to mind.
@@markgarrett7428 "Tower of the Elephant" and "Red Nails"
When DMing, I bend the rules to what works for our group, so mechanical videos don't help as much, but these RP/flavor videos help a ton. Thanks, DC!
Share it. I'll do more if it gets views.
I love this, but would humbly suggest one important took, the leading question. I often have quirky thinking out of the box players who often have unexpected ideas, so I use the leading question to tell them, "I wasn't planning a stop here, but what about you?". So, for example at the door to the inn, I would say " so you go inside?" And a quick nod and we continue, but it gives the players a chance to jump in and take an action.
Great suggestions!
When you stop and said we can imagine the "large mahogany desk and frills around his collar" I thought damn NOW I see it...now I FEEL it too" which added the next level immersion that makes RPGs so great.
I think you're cutting yourself short. Spending 10 seconds instead of 30 is fine but dropping it down to 3 seconds helps no one.
I get what you mean, this is to make it clear that you don't have to tell all the details.
Players can ask, if what they imagine is how it is.
Like 'is he a fat balding man, with opulent rings on all fingers?'
Like this it becomes a co-operative story telling, which makes it all that more fun.
Players are more involved and the DM can be inspired by the players and say: "Yes and...." which is the crucial sentence in improvisation.
I really wanted to know what rings he had on his hands. Seal, mark of a guild, bling or perhaps he is married. Hands tell alot about people.
describe objects and decor that wpuld help amplify the persona of the npc you are encountering
Exactly. Like with the thief stealing the letter. If you just say they either successfully stole it or got caught you're taking away so many rp moments. Maybe they rummage through every desk and find a few gold pieces that they wouldn't have otherwise. Or a guard making there rounds forces the player to hide in an room or under a desk. Maybe they sneak around and incapacitate the guard before getting the hell out of there with the letter. No details don't have to be overwhelming but turning what could be a character defining moment into a 5 second dice role robs your player a chance to embody their characters. What if that guard caught the player and they had to kill or injurer them which the character feels immense guilt over because he was just a guard trying to feed his family. In my opinion Large plot points can be more easily railroaded than individual encounters or situations. If a player feels that they have control of their character moment by moment. They wont think twice about the story being more directed. (If that's required)
@Paul Gauthier lol
no they fucking wont
Not sure why UA-cam randomly gave me this video from over 15 months ago, but I highly appreciate it.
I know why it does, but regardless it’s a great video.
Your third point is the problem I've been stuck on that NO-ONE else I've found has seemed to address, thank you so so much!!
"Barbarian of Seville," he says with smooth transition.
I laughed and laughed at that reference.
@@catfishcave379 I think I may have to use this in my game now
@@catfishcave379 I was more amused by him referring to them as "discriminating" adventurers rather than "discerning" adventurers. Even if it was a slip of the tongue, It's funny.
@@thor30013 it wasn't a slip of the tongue. That has just beaten up a tobaxi couple in a most hateful manner
if my players asked for the reader digest version of the city I would pause take a sip of tea and proceed to describe how the city looks as the Roc swoops in and carried off his character evicerating it over the spiraling towers, his blood striking red atop the terracotta tiles of the rooves that overhang the sleepy cobbled streats that wind with serpentine sugjestion across the primordial slopes of the hillside, his pancreas carried off by one of the city's many stray dogs that go unnoticed by those with eyes for the higher concerns and profits of man.
+200xp. I'm literally doubled over with laughter. Showing my wife this. She was there for that game.
Shadows Over Bogenhafen... A Master Classic. Well played, sir.
Dear GMs, please follow this advice. The number of times I've played in a game, been lost about what I should be doing, and had the GM get frustrated at me that I didn't cull the one singular essential detail from his laundry list of "would be novelist" descriptions that didn't matter!!! Arrrgh. Please give your players some freaking direction and let them get on with the game.
I literally laughed out loud when I read this comment. I've been there and feel your pain. Keep sharing the video!
Go play a video game.
@@miaomiiao I agree I couldn't disagree with this advice more. Sometimes an important room really needs a few sentences. Sure if you are describing a puzzle take it slow and describe the things that should be paid attention to everything else however needs that awesome dripping with detail description. I always side with this more 1. describe the room in 2 - 3 sentences of detail, 2 describe and action happening in the room in a short but descriptive sentence (if none gloss over). 3 describe monsters last, always last.
I gotta say I do appreciate the Mission Impossible style caper, it's only really FUN because the plans are crazy elaborate that it accounts for everything, and then something you couldn't possibly account for happens and they just pull it all off anyway. That doesn't work in a game because there are two possibilities:
1. It's a narrative, not a game. The heist is going to just work out, like it does in the movies. Only it's not about Ethan and his IMF team, it's about the players at your table and the characters they've invested in. "About them, without them." I'm going to guess that the professor is quite familiar with the concept, but it kinda explains itself: If the players are superfluous to the game at any time, what's the point of doing it?
2. There's a very real (and given that we're talking about a game played with dice, at least a 5% chance of a natural 1 roll each decision) chance of failure. But wait, nothing's perfect, and the odds that they'll fail horribly of 5% seems quite reasonable. Except I'm here to tell you that the odds of catastrophic failure of playing out the MI-style heist aren't 5% if you're not up on your math.
What're the odds of a natural 1 in a single roll? 5%. 1/20. How about on two rolls? Not 2/40. Because of the 40 possible outcomes of rolling two dice, three of those possibilities roll a 1. How many ability checks are there going to be in a heist movie style escapade? Five? Six? What're the odds ONE of those is going to be a natural 1? Can't be that high can it? Let's use n = 6 to drive home the point.
The probability of rolling a natural one is the total number of outcomes minus the outcomes where you DIDN'T roll a natural one. (Leaving those where you did.) So subtract 19/20 to the nth power from 1 (actually 20/20 to the nth power, but … that's just 1…) I'll multiply by 100 for a percentage and …
100*(1-(19/20)^1) = 5.00000
100*(1-(19/20)^2) = 9.75000
100*(1-(19/20)^3) = 14.26300
100*(1-(19/20)^4) = 18.55000
100*(1-(19/20)^5) = 22.62200
100*(1-(19/20)^6) = 26.49100 ← You are here
By the way, if you roll d20 about 14 times, you've got over 50% chance of having rolled a 1 at least once.
"Roll a 5 and your thief pulls it off without a hitch…" It suddenly seems like a much better idea doesn't it?
Thank you for your thoughtful reply. You'll want to check out my "Social Encounters" episode later this month. It describes a Mission Impossible-style caper. Stay tuned!
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 Ohh I am looking forward to that!
great advise. And I love playing with no initiative and I love even more the "everyone declares" and attacks and rolls at the time.
Suggesting the players options of what they could or should do through clever narration is truly helpful.
Not only does it engage them more, but also keep ups the pace excellently.
Especially for newer players; I can tell from my experience with my current group. 😊
Thanks for watching and taking the time to share a comment!
Very important video! thank you!
This has been the most helpful DnD video I have seen on UA-cam so far. It demonstrates the art of how to be more clear and concise. I’ve enjoyed immensely. Thank you!
This. I wanted to say this same thing. Over. And. Over. It's perfect. Thanks
Great stuff as usual. Spending all the time and planning effort to burgle the office is something some groups really enjoy, but it's always good to be aware that as a GM you don't have to use all that detail and spend all that time if you don't want to or the pace of the game would suffer.
Some great tidbits about emphasis, focus, and giving players enough info to engage with the world and not be lost, too.
Thanks for taking the time to comment!
I regularly play in a VampireThe Masquerade game where we only have 3 players. Our Storyteller (DM), describes the flow just as the Professor describes here. We roll no dice in our games, save a few for very rare combat encounters and the story moves almost like a play or book.
A brilliant video for beginners and experienced players alike. This should always come before UDTs and worries about initiative.
You're "crazy guy" minimalistic custom rules are what makes you unique! It's why I subscribed. Keep up the good work.
Great vid as always Dan. You've definitely helped me up my DMing skills and I've been playing since '78.
Awesome! Thanks for commenting!
He has a name?!
Excellent video! I've GM'd for over 2o years and I still struggle with this. Great ideas!
It isn't easy. Thanks for commenting!
I am guilty of over-describing things. I really needed to hear this advice. Thanks Professor.
Exceptional advice. I think this has helped me identify what causes me to struggle with pacing. Asking 'what do you do?' too soon, not 'Leading the Players' by presenting logical, dramatic options quick enough or failing to move the camera to where the real action is what kills my momentum the most.
Really is a brilliant invaluable video for bringing precise attention to those roleplaying moments where you can have blank faced PCs looking at you not knowing exactly how to respond to your, “So what do you do?”
Thanks for commenting!
Dungeon Craft You’re so welcome. Thank you for making the best D&D videos I’ve ever watched
Looks great! I’m watching it right now!
You’ve just mentioned my favourite scenario and the first game I ever GMed “Shadows Over Bogenhafen”
I really could have done with Dan’s tutorage as I was a teenager and wasn’t at all ready or prepared for what the players would eventually do. Their clever patient sleuthing in an instant turned into a murderous rampage when one of the players received severe injuries. They located the doctor’s house and started beating down the doctor’s door at like 4 in the morning. He grabbed a blunderbuss to defend himself but before any dialogue could be made one of the PCs shoot him between the eyes with a crossbow. All of a sudden even the quietest most reasonable players began acting like a gang of wild gorillas. Absolutely brilliant memories of playing it but I was personally devastated with how the investigation ended. They were massacred to a man by the local authorities aided by a large crazed posse who felt more than aggrieved at losing their only doctor.
Then the cult ritual went off and the town was decimated. Grim and perilous indeed.
Dungeon Craft Do you know I never even thought about the ultimate consequences of their failure. Almost thirty years of feeling bad about the outcome but never spared a single thought for the poor citizens of the Empire. Now I have another reason for feeling crap about it 😂
PDM is the best. Whoever told you to create this channel, must be a genius. You should totally always listen to that person.
Would that have been... You, per chance?
Perhaps, rabbit...perhaps.
This was excellent food for thought. I especially like the way he presents his case then closes with the mention of railroading which is the one accusation against this style. This was definitely a good way to spend ten minutes. Thank you.
I've been writing simple descriptive key words in my game notes to remind me. It helps lighten the prep but keep the game flavorful.
Huh, interesting. I really like deep description of rooms if my character is looking around, or sneaking in. It really helps me create the room in my head, and see things I can use. For example, how can I say that I will pull the bookshelf down against an enemy if the DM didn't say there was one there? And I noticed that as a DM, I do overdetail a lot. I never had any player complain about it though. I guess it depends from table to table.
I used to include the historical detail of various places, thinking I was adding to the depth and immersion. It turned out that I was the only one who was interested. So now, even if the history of an object is important to the plot,I share just that one bit of history and no more. It's definitely about what the players want to focus on.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Can not express how great this video is in making any RPG run smoother. Such a simple set of ideas that I am going to be kicking myself for not thinking of them 35 years ago.
Something I do as a dm is assume the player characters are familiar with the setting they are traveling in. After all, their characters grew up in this world and should have vast knowledge of it. I never want my players to be blind of information just because ‘they’ don’t know the details.
Any questions the players ask is usually filled with 2-3 choices. Anymore than 3 choices just stifles the game. As professor says, you don’t want to rail road them but you also need to keep the story progression.
At some point through their questions and information gathering they will come to a point where danger is a foot, or their character won’t know the details. This is when we start the adventuring!
Thank you Professor for all you’re hard work!
Clear, concise, and very helpful. Thanks prof.!
Thanks!
A navy blue-feathered arrow pierces Gimble's chest like a piece of paper. He tumbles onto the cobblestone road from the caravan, "Protect the duchess! But above all else, protect the cargo!" You see red eyes glowing in the trees as wolf-like roar booms from the rosewood leaves.
I think you just helped me solve my description problem. I use to do this thing where I would use figures of speech all the time, and man - let me tell you - it was draining. :) Thank you so much!
Move the camera... "After you searched the UA-cam finding one verbose guide after another, exhausted from cat video distractions, and the keys on your computer worn from use, you finally find a source of valuable tips presented concisely. He has no gimmicks but his directions are precise and intentional." THANK YOU!
Thanks, Mike. I spend a lot of time writing these and I'm grateful people appreciate the effort!
I love all of professor dungeon master’s videos!
This is one of the better ones.
Incredibly helpful. As a DM that started quite recently guiding the party has been difficult. This is gonna help me to guide the party better. Thank you!
I like his first tip, not only because you can avoid over explaining, but by keeping it brief, there are more opportunities to go with the flow of the players. What I mean is that a player could say, "is there a big goofy stuffed head of a moose on the wall" and if you like it and didn't think of it beforehand, it lacks contradiction
such a good vid, i keep coming back to watch it between almost every session!
I think alot of D&D channels are about to get real popular with the new D&D movie coming out.
We'll see. the B.O. is tracking lower.
Hey I just started to DM and your advice really helped me. I enjoy playing more because of your channel. Thank you
You’re very welcome!
I so enjoy using your information to better our gaming campaigns. Thanks for all the ways you've improved our gaming and the fun we have while playing
"The guy that says you can play D&D without initiative?"
Whaaaaaaaaaat
I already love it and I need to know more.
Initiative is only necessary when two characters are trying to do competing things at the same time. If you're both trying to stab each other, initiative decides who strikes first.
But if you're stabbing a sleeping enemy, you just do it, no rolls necessary
Articulating what most GM's FEEL, but never put into words. Excellent way to pass down that skill set.
Thank you!
ewwwwww
Had to revisit this episode several times which means it’s excellent, I’ve been able to cut a swath of time out of my narrative and focus on the good bits…thank you Prof. DM.
Absolute Gold as usual, Professor. My only constructive quibble might be to add that in addition to understanding what your players like and enjoy, that understanding what the characters can do is important. Bogenhafen is great until the DM realizes there are no rogues to swipe the note or to even search for it. Suddenly, the DM is looking for a way to give that one vital clue to the party. :) Admittedly, that dichotomy might take care of itself as players in a group without a rogue might not be the sort to enjoy Bogenhafen to begin with. Great episode. Always love to see the WFRP roots show. :)
Yeah. You definitely need a rogue for that scenario.
Thank you. Great advice. I've been trying to run a campaign with players new to gaming and they're often lost and reluctant about taking action. This advice will definitely help keep the flow of the game.
Great vid! I'm going to use this method because I definitely fall into the over describing trap.
I couldn't agree with your sentiments more. The open ended question of "what do you do" might feel sacred ro DMs that are worried abt railroading their players. Leading your players is not the same as railroading them in my onion. It helps to set the scene and provide focus which is super helpful to the player. I find that railroading your players comes about more from limiting their options, rather than providing them with more to do if they want to. I try not to be afraid to suggest something to my players every now and again, especially if it's something that I have an outline on, or something that special I might have prepared and worry that I'm railroading them. Because some of us DMs know that even if we do lead the players, they may still decide to sidestep those scenarios anyway and sneak onto a ship that isn't theirs, uninvited, and then that becomes an Adventure all on its own... trust me.
You've provided some good tips here. I liked the narrative trick of moving the camera and will make a concentrated effort to try it. Soon. I see how it could help make our once-a-month sessions run a little more smoothly and help prevent feeling like we stalled. It hadnt happened yet, but it's another tool in the toolkit. Thanks for posting!
To paraphrase some of the best advice from PDM and many others... Find out what your players like and spend your time on that. ... Role playing, roll playing, cinematic combat, shopping, grinding dungeon combat, 15th Century Venetian business law, etc.
Man this was just what I was looking for! For me this has been the most difficult and crucial part for me as a new dm
I used to be a DM, now I work in art/game dev, and I have a small suggestion that could probably help. Try to advertise/market the channel towards worldbuilders and novel writers as well as D&D GM. I found it extremely helpful to look at D&D tips to help me get back into swing of proper storytelling within the script for my game, and I truly think you should add "storytelling/writing/worldbuilding advice" as a legit tag/description part. I hope your channel grows well and I'm on board to see what else you've got to share!
Great advice, definitely something every DM needs to know!
Thanks. I think you gave the same benediction to the "3 NPCs" video and that broke 40k. Here's hoping....
Anyone who's read LOTR knows that even the best can get carried away with describing the scenery (is that blasphemy)?!! Keep it up Professor!
Or how about game of thrones/ song of fire and Ice. So many words and nothing happens and then a ton of stuff happens in a few pages.
I'm normally self-conscious about listing my players' options because I don't want to railroad in my sandbox, but the James Bond example showed me how to do so. I'm definitely going to be returning to this
Great video. Was really looking forward to this one. Good advice, and am glad you spoke for the many DM's that are in denial. I agree. So many are great on advice and talk, but when it comes to seeing them in action it's as if they've forgotten everything they preach about. I think this an important subject that doesn't get talked about enough when as you say "move the game forward". Loved it, keep the great content coming. Cheers!!
I do agree with most of what you present. However, it depends on the type of game IMO. A bit more description may be needed to draw the PC's into the world. But I do agree that every single thing in a room is unnecessary to point out. As a rule I would describe a room with 1. What can be seen immediately as you enter it. 2. Any smells or temperature, and 3. Any sounds if any. For example a cave. 1.2.and 3. "Rough hewn walls extend beyond the torchlight down the length of the cave. The damp smell and humid air is punctuated with the constant drips of water in the distance." Or a different cave might sound like. "The slick icy walls of the cave seem to have a life of its own as the howling winds call out like a warning. The frost from your own breath is more pronounced as you enter." or "Bones litter the entrance of the cave and as you enter the smell or rotting flesh hits you like wave on the shore."
I would recommend using 2 or 3 of your senses when describing anything. Sight, Sound, Smell, Touch, even Taste if it makes sense to do so.
Great advice!
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 Thank you. Really love your videos.
I agree, and would look at it like the newspapers "inverted triangle," where you start with a lot of broad strokes, and things become more and more laser-focused and brief as you move along. But it also depends on the players... I played with a new guy last week who didn't know the difference between an orc and a dwarf. I had a hard time relating to his life experience, but he got it after a few minutes and I think I made a new lifelong player out of him!
This. I have never understood people desiring to blaze past everything descriptive. The whole point is to imagine yourself in another world, to play a person in another reality. How do you get into that with no description?
I have had far more problems (as a player) with players trying to do things and not being able to do X because the scene or terrain wouldn't allow it, but it wasn't well described by the DM so they didn't know.
'I want to use mold earth to--'
'You can't, the floor is gravel.'
'Then i want to shoot an arrow into the window above the door and swing over.'
'You cant, the window is a stone arrow slit, no wood.'
Etc.
This video helped me so much today. Thank you. I'm gonna watch it 5 more times before my game tonight.
Cool! Thanks for feeding the algorithm. Also, check out the follow-up video on Narrating combat!
I often use physical pictures. If players are traveling between to places, I'll look at the terrain and get a couple of real world pictures or drawings of mountains, a lake, a middle-ages town, etc. I don't show the players these, but I describe them as they travel or reach the town. The advantages are... you don't need to pre-write or read at the session a half-page of box text, you can dynamically decide how much detail to give (if they ask a question about the lake you can keep giving more details form the picture), it comes across as realistic (since it is), it is quicker to google pictures of mountains than write up box text, etc.
Really good lesson in this vid as I am new DM and that last bit of information to help out unknowing new players with high proficiencies was a game changer.
What great advice. Anyone who gave this a thumbs down is probably a player who thinks they know what they want from the DM, but actually have no idea what flows and works. They think it is all magically happening.
This is such good advice for new dms. There are many others things that will help a new dm get started but I feel like stuff like this is largely ignored.
Such good advice. There is nothing left to say except, thank you.
Finally! A good DnD tips channel with a host who is calm and pleasant. You've gotten my Sub. Way too many DnD youtubers are so excitable and talk so fast it detracts from the information they're trying to get across.
You sound more like an audiobook narrator.
LOL. My friends actually make fun of me for talking too FAST in the videos. In real life I'm a slow talker. I'll rewatch this video to try to match the pace. Thanks for subbing. New videos every Thursday/
Easily your best advice really insightful. Your cinematic narration style is so much better than the dry, slow factuality that most GMs use. I'm actually building your advice into the rules of the game I am creating.
Thank you sir, experience is knowledge. You did this consciously. This video deserves all thumbs up!
This is a phenomenal video for me as a new dm with new players!!!! Thank you for taking the time to make this
This is next-level GM advice. Young GM's, this is your guy.
Aaron Groves Thanks!
I think point 1 at least partially explains why my players seem slightly more engaged when I'm flying by the seat of my pants than when I'm sticking with the module I'm running. Because I have less planned and memorized, I tend to be more concise and stick with the few details that stick out to me, which for the size and temperament of the group I have, is probably a good thing. Guess it's time to look at how I can be more concise and engaging with all that prewritten stuff.
I'm a dm but as a player I loathed the descriptions in modules. I'd much prefer a short, concise description of 1-2 sentences and either answer player questions or Pepper in more detail as they explore/fight/interact, etc.
I just had a listen to your combat narration and I wholly agree with you, R.E.Howard's works are truly fantastic, and they get even better the more you read them. You have a natural flare for cinematography in your videos and you do relate to film and direction a lot. In this video I agree that you are once again spot on on how to improve the storytelling experience for people. There is a wonderful book that might personally interest you "The Visual Story" by Bruce Block. If you ever have the opportunity to attend one of his lectures on film making and the art of visual storytelling it's well worth it. Thank you for your videos and incites.
I've just started playing 5e as the DM with my kids. This was really helpful for me. Thanks!
Thanks for watching and taking the extra time to comment!
I love all these videos! I feel like I should have been taking notes 20 videos ago but I just keep forgetting to bring a pen.
Lol. That's okay. Just watch them again from a different device so it feeds the algorithm!
I've been very guilty of dropping my players without direction for awhile. Thank you for the insight.
Very welcome! Have you see The Lost City Yet? I hate to give you hard sell but it's my best video and it has Bob World Builder in it: ua-cam.com/video/MGeXZcuI3No/v-deo.html
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 I have not yet. I've been perusing the channel and checking out videos that give tips to GMs. I will definitely give it a watch.
I also watched your video on making epic NPCs and realized I was guilty of trying to make my party like my "super cool" pre-designed side characters instead of letting them form their own bonds with NPCs of their choosing.
To be fair, having to make a Spot Hidden roll to find your luggage is totally legit.
Was looking for this comment! Haha!
Gonna be honest, only reason I clicked on this video is because I thought the guy in the thumbnail was Keith Olbermann, and was REALLY curious about what that dude had to say about D&D lol
Good stuff for old and new DM's! Player since 1980, DM since 1983. New subscriber since 30 seconds ago.
Another thoughtful video. I appreciate your videos because you do a great job presenting both the “why” of your techniques as well as the “how”.
Even the examples of "how to do it properly" feel like taking choices away from players. I love leaving it open, and giving the players chances to decide what they want to do. Even saying the players enter the inn and stomp off their boots... do they? Maybe they don't want to do that. Maybe it doesn't fit their character. I could already feel my players grumbling if I changed to this style, because I hate making decisions of any kind for my players. Maybe if you're running pre-generated campaigns it's fine, but I homebrew stuff and like the game to be a collaborative effort, where players are actively engaged in every detail.
you could always say "you can do this, this, or whatever you want. Offering choices isn't limiting choices.
If I had a player grumbling about "Stomping off your muddy boots before you go into a STRANGERS BUSINESS"....I'd start kicking that PC out of the fancy inns and establishments the party is always so apt to go into...
Like what kind of assinine dickhead would complain about a DM describing a normal, decent human action the characters partake in? Did you soil their trust so badly, ever before?
You go to take a poop and an assassin attacks you...."NO!! I DON'T POOP!!!"
Well good luck at herding cats.
I find this example very nitpicking.
The message is that by not spending time on details and/or leaving too many choices open you get more time to play out the actual fun stuff.
This video has helped me sooooo much. You really do have max wisdom
I've watched A LOT of DnD videos online, this is among the best. Wish I would have found it sooner.
Fantastic advice for a new DM! I was wondering how to make the game less clunky for relatively new players without railroading. This is exactly what I needed!
Really nice summary. I do struggle sometimes not with being over descriptive but certainly not "moving the camera" enough. And I was aware of it, but at the same time was afraid to give them the feeling that I am controlling them. The examples you gave however really show that the storytelling has the solution :) pretty awesome! Subscribed!
I'm running THE ENEMY WITHIN very soon. Thank you for the advice on the Bogenhafen scene.
As a DM, I found this super helpful, and honestly was exactly what I needed to hear! Thanks!
Stay tuned. How to describe combat drops in a couple weeks.
I was once the only DM. I created a setting designed to make each of my players aspire to become a DM as well. It worked. I shared this with them, since soon it is likely I'll be retiring to mentorship as a welcome player in each of their campaigns ;) I think DMing is a lot like teaching. If you do it right, the students will want to teach, too.
Well this is brilliant and I'm gonna have to rewatch when I GM again.
Thanks! Watch it before very game!
I had an issue with over describing in my Dungeon World campaign and this video helped me out a lot. Shared!
Your pathfinder goblin behind your shoulder is adorable
Excellent video. I haven't seen anyone else talking about this. Extremely well done.
That was some of the best advice I've heard about narration. Thank you
I really appreciate you mentioning looking at your notes occasionally. That's my biggest problem on narration; How much to write down notes and how to keep it fluent and with eye-contact.
Thanks. Check up the follow video on narrating combat. I thought that was a good one too.
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 nah im good
I am a new DM and am very happy to have found your channel 😀 Thank you for all the tips!
You’re welcome. I hope you enjoy my videos. There are a lot of them.
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 I have been watching all your videos in order and it is amazingly helpful! I absolutly love your channel and the information and experience you posses with DnD!
Excellent advice. You know it's good advice when it seems so obvious once said out loud.
As always, sound advice from the Professor. Will share this video to my Universitys DM's group!
In terms of taking advantage of what your players already know, and so needing to describe less. You are in good company. Looking back to the origins of Sword and Sorcery and Robert E Howard and his stories of Conan, he took advantage of that in the very core of his world-building, using known terms and places to be the foundations of his fantastic world.
Good job.
This is a great video, I have watched it twice and plan to watch is another time at least until I feel like I have really absorbed the material. Thank you!!
Thanks, Scott! Working on a "How to Narrate Combat" video now. Stay tuned!
I was actually going to request a video on narration a few days ago! Great content as always and even more things to try out with my upcoming session.
Let me know what other topic you want to see and I'll see if I can make it happen. Cheers!
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 well now that you mention it...
In my current campaign, I'm loosely following the lost mines of phandelver story, with all the officially sanctioned dungeoncraft twists and tricks, of course.
That said, I've been really thinking about the lost mine itself and I want it to have more of a "temple of doom" feel with lots of traps and puzzles. However, I feel that I'm absolutely rubbish at coming up with interesting and fun puzzles.
I know you somewhat touched upon it in this video as well as in your video on mystery campaigns, but I'd love a more in-depth look at the art of crafting a challenging, yet engaging puzzle without slowing the game down too much!
Again, all your videos are absolutely of the line and I share them at every chance I get. The tips are so common sense and so easy to implement, it's simply brilliant! Thanks for saving many a common dungeon master from the evil clutches of boring exposition and the long arm of the rulebook :)
I needed this. I have an especially bad habit of asking "what do you do" too soon.
Great episode as always, Professor!
Thanks!
My way of handling is something I heard from Penn and Teller's master class on magic. It is called the