3 Wise DMs

Artificial Intelligence is a polarizing topic these days. From Skynet-style flights of fancy to the very real implications for content creators, it's an evolving technology that isn't going away anytime soon. But free from worrying about profiting off of others' work, using AI at the game table can help provide you with a set of tools and a pair of hands that can help lift the sometimes heavy and time-consuming duties of a DM. In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave sit down to discuss how they've started implementing AI into their toolbox, mainly through getting into some good old-fashioned “lonely fun” in some solo-RPGing. For anyone who has thought how AI might effect your games or your DMing, this is the episode for you.3:00 DM Chris gives the background for turning ChatGPT into a DM for a solo campaign from his previous article, and then he and Tony discuss their solo campaigns they've been playing in.9:35 Just like any game, you know what your character has and does more than the DM – real or virtual.11:45 The concept of “Lonely Fun.”12:46 Our experiences with solo TTRPGs, like Mythic, and how tools like ChatGPT can enhance that experience.16:30 AI as a tool to craft something you need quickly – DM Tony's Inn.18:00 Using AI to assist in being another “DM” to bounce ideas off of and to test your prototypes: DM Dave's new campaign that mixes WEG Star Wars RPG and Firefly: The Board Game.24:40 Our tangent into the missing Ninja class.27:37 The difference between solo gaming and party gaming. In a solo campaign, you're the star of the show.32:00 Running a solo campaign is a great way to learn how a new system works.35:25 Final Thoughts.

Terrain. Maps. Minis. Music. Handouts. TTRPGs aren't movies and television and we can't rely on moving pictures to help immerse our players, so what are some ways that you can help the imagination Build This City in your players' minds?In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave sit down to revisit our discussion with The Wizard Washburn from Paper Terrain in Episode 112 about using and building terrain and minis but then also all the other ways to help you build the most immersive experience in your D&D game.3:50 Scenery and terrain should be used as an assist. It doesn't need to be extensive. 5:45 Just like anything else, you have to find what YOUR style is.7:30 Some of the examples of what we use, build, buy, and collect.15:00 All these tools don't run the game – you and the players do.18:00 Reusability with these tools is key.20:15 Something simple on the table helps to focus the players attention and provide more flavor.23:45 Tools beyond terrain, maps, and minis to enhance immersion: bring more senses into play.39:32 Final Thoughts.

Cobbler's tools. Weaver's tools. Glassblowing. There are a host of proficiencies that are part of building a character in D&D that seem strange at first for someone who is going out on adventures. For a lot of players, it just becomes something that you picked during character creation. We've come to call these the “orphan” proficiencies.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave sit down to discuss how they utilize these proficiencies in games, and even if you should, or if you just pass over these proficiencies and get to killing orcs.3:00 The finite resources that are proficiencies, do you want to use one to be a good leather worker?6:35 Delving into the use of the orphaned proficiencies really depends on the type of game you're running and who's playing.11:55 You need to allow the space for these types of skills and proficiencies to come into play – it can't be a race against the ending of the world.13:05 Approaching it in terms of Peter Parker and Spider-Man… you've gotta pay the rent!14:40 The effectiveness of certain artisan and craft tools over others: would you prefer weavers' tools or thieves' tools?16:55 5e, specifically, has a lot of mechanics to handle most things in game. But these types of proficiencies are more narrative-focused, so don't be so slavish to the rules and mechanics.19:40 The players invested some level of thought into these proficiencies… lean into them.27:00 DM Chris develops the first Skateboarding Fighter.28:00 To shine the light on these proficiencies, you have to put some thought into building it into the campaign.32:45 It doesn't matter how dexterous or intelligent I am… I can't just play a guitar when I pick it up for the first time.39:05 Final Thoughts.

Multiple times a week. Once a week. Every other week. Once a month. Once every several months. We've referenced how frequency of play can really alter how you run the game, how the story flows, etc. But, our longtime listener, Dr. DM, has brought up how real life has really gotten in the way of scheduling their usually weekly games and how it has affected his confidence with running the game.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave sit down to really delve deep into how frequency of play affects how you run the game, and even what type of game you run. Along the way, they offer their eight best tips and hacks to help whenever life alters your gaming schedule.1:45 Our long-time listener (and now co-DM!) Dr. DM, catches us up on his seafaring campaign we discussed in episode 148, as well as his question.5:56 Frequency of play is going to change how you might want to play with certain aspects of the game, like how long it took for DM Tony's legendary Barbarian to read the Manual of Gainful Exercise.7:45 Tip#1: If you've got the time between sessions, use it to focus on your players goals.10:05 Tip #2: What is your usual frequency of play? If you start monthly, it won't be as jarring if you're used to playing weekly, and now it's a month.11:35 Tip #3: Try to end your session on a completed note. And, if you can't, the beginning recap is your best friend.12:35 Tip #4: Be big and bold with your secrets, clues, and rumors when weeks have passed since your last game – No Sublety!14:15 We return to DM Tony's Barbarian, Hawk, and his quest to forge the Sword of Power in a once-a-month “Race Against Time” type of game.17:10 Tip #5: If you're worried that the time between games is letting your DM skills get rusty, start another game to keep “riding the bike.”19:35 Tip #6: Giving something like a quest to forge a legendary sword needs to be given its due, regardless of your frequency of play. Narrative side quests and LOTRs mechanic of “The Fellowship Phase” offer some options.30:30 DM Dave's tangent about a possible Star Wars campaign utilizing the West End d6 system.31:35 Tip #7: Game flow and frequency of play is going to change depending on how new or experienced your players are.33:25 Tip #8: How long should it take your players to accomplish things? As long as it needs to in your game and your frequency ofplay. DM Tony shares the story of DM Dave's dragonborn cleric, Bhim, trying to gain proficiency in the longsword.37:50 Final Thoughts.

It's apropos that our first-ever players review of a campaign was for DM Tony's Storm King's Thunder campaign, as our newest iteration has us returning to the frozen world of the original giants in Mana Project Studios Journey to Ragnarok! We bring on return guests Scott (the Terrain Wrangler), Bonnie (the Chaos Engine) and our newest player to join the group, Jen (the Girlfriend!)In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave sit down with the other three players to review a campaign that had several adjustments made over the course of it – refining it from a completely open-world sandbox-style campaign to a Monster-of-the-Week style. DMs always have to be adjusting dials, so listen in as we discuss how DM Tony had to adjust for vastly different play types to still create a fun and engaging campaign. DM Chris stated it best: “TTRPGs aren't reliant on lore, backstory, and epic narratives… sometimes its just about getting together and having fun as a group.”2:25 Player and character introductions.7:20 Setting the characters in the world: Origins and Viking Clans!18:35 How much backstory is enough or is it even required? 19:45 The real time adjustment to how you run the game with various types of gamers.27:30 Refining a multitude of adventures, political brinksmanship, and storylines down to a Monster-of-the-Week tour of the Nine Realms.29:20 How new and inexperienced players can help us evolve our DM style.36:00 The players experience between two completely separate campaigns: completely open world and Monster-of-the-Week within the same campaign.41:40 Forest for the trees: Seeing a character's story arc in the macro.44:47 Final Thoughts.

After a little over 2 years and 20+ sessions, we have finally concluded our adventure through the Norse Kingdoms in Midgard and the remaining 8 worlds of Yggdrasill, the World Tree, where the Auspicious Signs were successful in stopping Ragnarok: the Twilight of the Gods. Journey to Ragnarok was in the campaign queue for quite a while (with DM Thorin originally wanting to run it) and DM Tony finally took the reins and led us through an epic adventure and campaign. In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave sit down to review and wrap-up our Journey to Ragnarok campaign. Along the way, we delve into the tips and tricks that DM Tony used to tie characters into the story, capture the essence of a Viking campaign, introduce new classes, abilities, and even a new addition to the leveling system of 5e!3:12 DM Tony reveals the impetus behind running Journey to Ragnarok from Mana Project Studios as well as navigating the immense amount of lore in, not only the campaign setting, but in the breadth Norse Mythology.6:55 Tying the six characters into the world and the adventure as well as the flavor of the backgrounds in this setting.12:15 How restrictions in character creation (like being only human in the Viking lands) adds to the campaign and makes it special. Lean into them!13:15 Some examples of the new subclasses in Journey to Ragnarok as well as the entirely new class.18:00 The example from our finale of the ridiculously awesome and epic abilities of the Glima Monk!21:15 An aside into the balance between the theme of the character and the mechanics of the character.25:20 DM Tony's introduction of the Farthak Die and Rune Casting into our campaign… even without the Rune Master class.29:15 The introduction of “Icebreakers” during rests, etc. to encourage roleplay and character development.33:00 DM Tony's new additions to leveling – the concept of “Runic” levels.38:40 Understanding what your players are understanding and what they aren't – adjusting the sessions to work with the table you're at.45:28 Final Thoughts

D&D does combat well. It can slow down time and can be more or less crunchy than you like, but it definitely creates aa play area that a new DM can handle during a session. Unfortunately, while the books talk about the other two pillars of roleplay, there isn't a lot for the new DM to latch onto to understand the best way to run a seamless session.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave sit down to answer a listener question about the best ways to create and run all the non-combat encounters that the characters will become involved with and how to develop them beyond “roll me an x” situation.1:15 DM Dave reminisces on the Time Life Rock ‘n Roll Era CD collection.3:15 Listener question: a new DM asks about the best ways to lend gravitas to non-combat encounters without it just boiling down to a dice roll.4:38 Tip #1: What do your players like?5:30 Tip #2: Prepare ahead and let the players guide the movement forward.6:50 Tip #3: Get comfortable with being uncomfortable. 11:15 Tip #4: Mini-games are an easy way to let the players roleplay while also rolling dice.12:45 Tip #5: The evolution of the game reflects the evolution of DMing… give yourself some time to develop.14:00 Tip #6: Lean on some resources that help newer DMs to understand how adventures can run between all the pillars of play.15:11 Tip #7: What are the characters objectives/mission/quest? Let that guide you.18:20 Tip #8: Story prompts and campfire tales… fuel for roleplay.20:00 Tip #9: Go easy on yourself… you will screw up.23:30 Tip #10: Rest times are a great time to spur talking amongst themselves.24:40 Tip #11: The Lever NPC… use them to spur forward momentum.25:50 Tip #12: What do your favorite movies, series, and books do to create “non-combat encounters.”26:45 Tip #13: Narrative side quests.29:50 Tip #14: Skill Challenges.33:35 Tip #15: Create Open-Ended scenarios… developing inciting incidents.37:15 Tip #16: “Sandbox” and “Railroad”: It's not either/or… it's always AND.39:12 Final Thoughts.

“What elements would this game need to include to feel complete for a fan of the setting and the story?” That was the question from Forever DM Larry about running a Dragonlance campaign for players that had read the books… which he hasn't. In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave reveal the best tips they have for running a setting that you're unfamiliar with while the players are steeped in it, whether it's Krynn, Middle-Earth, or a Galaxy Far, Far Away.1:45 Shout out to The Epic Beatles Tribute Band on DM Dave's recent Norwegian Cruise.2:50 Our listener question from Forever DM Larry.5:05 First Tip: Hit the Broad Strokes.8:25 Second Tip: Take a Cue from the Star Wars Stories.10:55 Third Tip: Focus on the Fun of the Adventure First.12:15 Fourth Tip: Set Expectations.14:00 Fifth Tip: What Source Material are you Using? 190 novels exist in the world of Krynn.16:15 Sixth Tip: Use Lore and NPCs as Easter Eggs, Let Your Unique Story Flourish.20:40 Seventh Tip: Know What Notes You Need to Hit.26:25 Eighth Tip: You're Always Planning for the Next Session.29:15 Ninth Tip: Pick the System That Leads to The Most Fun for the Whole Table.40:15 Final Thoughts.

Following the footsteps of our Storm King's Thunder and Curse of Strahd campaigns, we gather all five players from our Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen players wrap-up!In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave welcome The Wizard Washburn, Monster Wrangler Matt, and our own Chaos Engine, Bonnie, to sit down and discuss the epic entirety of our Dragonlance campaign: what we enjoyed and what we didn't in this campaign that clocked in at just under 2 years! For anyone wanting to run or play in Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen, this episode is for you.1:50 Player Introductions:Sir William de Grey – the Knight of Solamnia who makes a devil's bargain with Sargonnas to gain power to defeat the Dragon Army, only to be redeemed by Chislev and fulfill his Anakin arc.Rasgueado Vilhuela de Latigo – A whip-wielding Bard who was in search of The Great Song, as well as his Father – only to find that his Father was Lohezet of the Black Robes, High Wizard of the Dragon Army!Adran Oakenheel – An orphaned Kagonesti Elf who was left with the Sanctuary of the First World; a monastic order dedicated to the Prophecy of the Ascendant Dragon.Mikros – A Kender Rogue who was searching for her missing past but who was chosen by Lunitari to wield magic.Dame Eeva Pyrope – An orphaned girl who squired for the Knights of Solamnia, wishing to one day become a full-fledged Knight… only to realize that she has been chosen to herald the return of the Gods!7:45 Crafting backstories and character concepts that fit within the deep lore of Krynn and Dragonlance.31:50 We discuss the implementation of the Warriors of Krynn strategy board game developed for the SotDQ adventure: what we liked, what we didn't, and some changes we would make.47:40 We discuss the extensive narrative stories that developed the character's arcs well beyond what we could have achieved at the table.52:40 The #1 Rule for DMs: Meet Your Players Where They Are.57:10 Final Thoughts.

Happy New Year! As promised, we're kicking off our 5th Season with one of our favorite episode varieties: the 3 Wise DMs Campaign Reviews! Following the footsteps of our Storm King's Thunder, Curse of Strahd, and Woodstock Wanderers campaigns, we delve deep into the High Tale of the Dragonlance with our DM Review of Shadow of the Dragon Queen.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave review how we experienced running and playing it; what we enjoyed and what we didn't in this campaign that clocked in at just under 2 years! For anyone wanting to run Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen, this episode is for you.Stay tuned for Part 2 when we bring ALL the players on for our Player Wrap-Up episode! 1:50 How close to the book did the DM run the campaign? 3:30 The momentum that is created with the overall theme of impending war in a campaign.4:30 Why DM Dave chose Dragonlance as his next campaign to run.7:00 This is the Way: How Dragonlance did NPC death right.9:30 The Kingfisher Festival: How mini games help get players invested, like fishing for Old Benebog.12:30 The first stumbling block in the adventure – the translation of the adventure into the Northern Wastes. 17:50 The second stumbling block – Lord Soth is introduced only as a plot device.22:20 The majority of the adventure is found in The Northern Wastes.23:50 The Third Stumbling Block - the strange design decision to provide the players with the ability to fly over all the travel mechanics of The Northern Wastes.27:10 The homebrewed Journey Game that we debuted in SotDQ.32:00 Classic “Fetch Quests” to get the ball rolling for the players in a new territory.35:55 The #1 Reason why this was DM Dave's favorite game to ever run…41:20 The 2 great things WotC learned leading up to SotDQ: the Adventure Hook and Encounter Difficulty.44:05 Final Thoughts.

Metagaming. It's one of the many topics that will spark controversy among those in the hobby. A listener wrote in explaining that they love making terrain and minis and have offered their services to their DM. Unfortunately, the DMs are reluctant, as they don't want the player to have metaknowledge or spoil the reveals of the campaign. In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave bring on our return special Wise DM, the Wizard Washburn, from our Terrain and Minis episode, to discuss how we have leaned into the inevitability of metagaming to enhance our campaigns by letting Scott build out a ton of our terrain, maps, and minis and how we have let it not spoil the fun for the DM, Scott, or any of the other players.3:40 Our return special guest… Scott “The Wizard” Washburn from Paper Terrain!5:05 The overview of how we approach compartmentalizing the knowledge of the player and the knowledge of the character.7:05 The fact of the matter – once you've played once, you now have “meta” knowledge.10:15 The Wizard Washburn reveals his general approach to planning with the DM in multiple campaigns he's been a player in.13:35 The idea of context in metagaming.18:22 Terrain is one thing… but what about miniatures and seeing what the other team is playing with?25:50 Always remember that RPG means roleplaying GAME.30:05 Leaning on players to help decrease the level of prep necessary for your game.32:07 Final Thoughts.

Several listener questions came in that were spiraling around the same general idea, and one that DMs have fielded since the very beginning of the game: how, and when, to exert the unlimited level of power that you possess as the DM.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave, take part in a grab bag of listener questions that deal with players constantly interrupting, as well as how to best approach using, or not using, the newest 2024 version of the Player's Handbook. For any DM who has wrestled with how and when to exert their God-level power, this is the episode for you.3:30 The first listener question that deals with the player that constantly interrupts the BBEGs monologues.4:25 The pro is that you have an excited and engaged player as well as DM Tony's idea of the “cutscene.”5:40 Exerting your control to set a scene.10:00 Teaching players how your world works and allowing the players to adjust the setup of the scene.13:15 “We'll get to that” – a bookmark for all the actions players want to take because it is still a turn-based game.17:20 We delve deeper into DM Tony's idea of the “cutscene.” What is it and how to use it.21:10 The awesomeness of the hero punching the villain in the jaw and not caring about their speech.24:07 The second listener question regarding using the new 2024 update to 5e.26:00 We already decide what races, classes, and rules we allow in our campaigns – this is no different.29:15 5e.tools – a great digital resource for DMs and the new Mastery properties of weapons.34:00 Changing rulesets halfway through a campaign.38:50 Final Thoughts.

Low Magic. We've discussed it before and, in last weeks article, DM Chris delved into ideas of how to make magic rare and special in your D&D campaigns. In our discussion online regarding the article, there was a debate over what low magic means. The issue seemed to revolve around confusing Low Magic with Low Fantasy. Middle-Earth, while being a High Fantasy setting, is, in terms of D&D, a Low Magic setting for the simple fact that there are no spellcasting classes.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss the preparations for the upcoming LOTR campaign; how magic will work, the lack of spellcasters as a class, the types of characters that we're thinking of developing, among many other topics. For anyone that is hoping to really approach magic differently in their home games, this is the episode for you.1:50 Our continuing discussion about our upcoming Lord of the Rings campaign and how we're approaching a setting with low access to magic.4:01 What are you going to do now? Trying to top your previous campaigns.7:15 DM Chris delves into his thoughts surrounding how to lessen access to magic as he began preparing and planning his Lord of the Rings campaign. 11:55 Middle-Earth as a world is highly magical, but how that plays at the table changes it significantly from all other D&D settings – Bilbo and the Dwarves didn't have a Boss Battle with Smaug.17:35 How much Meteor Swarm would change the Arthurian Tales.19:05 How rare magic will turn everything into significant encounters: healing, journeys, rests, etc.22:52 A rare Rock and Roll DM story about short rests and long rests.24:55 DM Chris explains the idea of the “Fellowship Phase” and “Shadow Points” in LOTR, like Call of Cthulhu Sanity points in Middle-Earth.32:05 What's the economy of Middle-Earth?37:50 How to build characters that will hook into the setting of Middle-Earth.40:30 Final Thoughts.

We're getting geared up for some new campaigns to begin. Both our Dragonlance and Journey to Ragnarok campaigns are coming near their finale, so we've begun thinking about what's next up. Just in time, DM Chris sent out his Player's Guides for the upcoming Lord of the Rings campaign that he's going to be running in the new year. In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss what makes a good Player's Guide, what to include, what to leave out, and how they can help to start your campaign off on the right foot before your players ever get to the table.2:53 What's different in this campaign from other campaigns?3:23 Session Negative One; giving your players time before Session Zero to reflect on choices.8:30 The types of choices in different settings that the players might want to reflect on. Including the one-sheet Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen campaign guide.11:45 Some campaign settings, like Lord of the Rings, require a lot of information prior to starting the campaign. These Player Guides can also be helpful as fodder for character backstories.13:55 Depending on how experienced your group is will provide how much additional information you send along. Don't send a 20-page Player Guide to the newbie player, the PHB is MORE than enough.15:50 Building excitement about the new campaign.18:30 Assembling the Player's Guide can serve as a focusing mechanism for you as you build out the campaign.23:50 Setting the flavor, tone, and rules of the road before players ever come to the table.25:05 The excitement for the campaign is not just for the players, it's for the DM as well. Injecting something new keeps your game table fresh.30:20 Final Thoughts.

Play through an adventure and you'll realize how strangely time can move in your D&D campaign. Longtime friend of the show, Dr. DM (Jason) returns with a question about his ocean-based campaign that we discussed in Episode 148. His question revolves around how quickly leveling can affect the passage of time in the adventure. In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss the strange way time can move in your campaign and how to best handle that. Is your game a non-stop march towards the inevitability of the BBEG or is it more a classic-type of campaign with a bunch of adventures linked together? As DM Tony wisely states, “The passage of time is not nearly as important as the passage of good sessions.”1:25 Dr. DM returns with the ongoing ocean-based campaign that started from our Shipping Up To Boston episode!4:08 How does time work in your campaign? One crazy summer or lasting over decades of the characters lives? How fast, or slow, are you leveling?6:45 Using a campaign calendar and how it shows how quickly time can move in D&D.9:45 Many adventures don't allow for a lot of “downtime” or times when you're not actively adventuring. 11:40 Structuring your campaign to allow for time to pass. DM Chris explains the Fellowship phase in the Lord of the Rings 5e campaign he's preparing.18:25 Does training and time really matter in your campaign? The Luke Skywalker example.23:05 Hiring crew, guides, and hirelings for your keep. How much do your players want control in this? DM Chris reviews the hiring of guides in Tomb of Annihilation.32:12 Using your NPC hirelings and townspeople to hook the characters deeper into the story… the Invasion of Vogler in Dragonlance.37:09 A slight aside to an addendum of Dr. DMs question: paying dues in game… yes or no?42:35 Final Thoughts.

Bad sessions. We've all dealt with them and we'll continue to have them periodically. It's all part of running TTRPGs. But how to you deal with them when they happen? What do you do to salvage the game at the next session? DM Dave offers a question to his fellow Wise DMs regarding a recent session that he felt he could have run better, smoother, better improv. But he got stuck. Hey, it happens.In this episode, Tony and Chris help Dave talk it out and, in the process, reveal what we all deal with… sometimes, everything just goes south in the game and it isn't fun. It's even tougher to deal with when you've handled these kinds of issues successfully before. So what are you going to do about it?2:20 DM Dave gives a high overview of his Melora's Light campaign that led to the recent game that went awry.9:25 Disrupting the DMs plans. How new players are great for this.11:20 Wait, the players just walked straight to the Big Boss? How to deal with it when they walk right up to the front door.12:35 The forever debate between sandbox and rails.18:12 It's important to be honest about how you're feeling about the game and what is fun for you and your group. 21:05 “Back in the Day” with DM Tony. 24:25 The unlikely team-up with the arch-nemesis.27:05 Always remember to prep enough for you to feel comfortable improving through anything.28:22 DM Chris reviews his recent issue with releasing an overpowered weapon and how to properly retcon it. Also, Baghtru.35:05 There's always the next session.42:25 Final Thoughts.

Running the adventure outside of the game session? Yes, that's right. Starting back in DM Dave's Curse of Strahd campaign, we began to develop characters and backstories with narrative side quests via text, email, and online documents (like Google Docs). In our Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen campaign, we have utilized them from the very beginning for each character individually, as well as the whole party, to further flesh out the characters, world, and story.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss their strategies for running narrative side quests outside the game as well as completely text-based campaigns.Episode 358 of Dragon Talk.DM Tony's article on running narrative side quests outside the game.3:08 What do we mean when we're talking about a narrative side quest?4:55 Our most recent use of narrative side quests in our Dragonlance campaign.7:25 There must be an active give and take for narrative side quests and campaigns to work.13:00 DM Chris' Days of Future Past text-based Marvel Super Heroes campaign.14:35 Narrative side quests for individual characters are a time to build out backstory and character, not for leveling and gaining experience.16:48 DM Chris literally “Squirrels”!20:12 Narrative, or “Descriptive”, side quests. What is your threat level? Will the character die while away?22:40 How narrative side quests can help spur roleplay moments in-game. 23:55 How to build out actual side quests with monsters, loot, and experience for individual characters.25:26 How far away are your characters and how long will they be gone? How many players are you currently juggling with side quests? 32:20 Narrative side quests allow players who miss a session to not feel like they missed out.34:35 Excellent method for important plot drops… when they find it, they'll want to shout it from the rooftops.39:32 Final Thoughts.

Pirates. It doesn't take long for a D&D group to want to play as pirates, swashbucklers, privateers, and sailors. In our modern day, we can blame Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean. But how do you approach running a seafaring adventure? Is it just a fancy travel mechanic? Is it just a vehicle to get from town to town? Or is it the basis of the whole campaign?In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave sit down to answer a question from a longtime friend of the show, Dr. DM himself, Jason, on how to run a great, epic, and memorable ocean-themed campaign outside of just being evil pirates who rob everything.4:00 How is this different from every other setting? Taking care of the business of a sailing vessel.6:30 DM Dave reviews how he has been approaching this in his Melora's Light all-girl campaign. Including the idea of generating backstories and campaign settings through Call to Adventure.9:10 Playing with resources: water, food, rests, etc. 11:55 Lean into the danger of setting sail in a wooden ship.14:05 Using sourcebooks, like Ghosts of Saltmarsh, to stimulate your imagination.16:25 The unique ability to travel to vastly different adventure locales when in a ship.18:45 Focus in on the theme of the campaign that makes it different.20:30 What happens when the ship is commandeered or stolen?22:40 An ocean-themed campaign can be any type of campaign – High Fantasy, Pirates, Political, etc.23:40 DM Tony using the airship in Storm King's Thunder.25:25 What are the character's goals in this ocean-themed campaign? Will that change over the whole campaign?35:30 We discuss how we made hex crawl travel interesting with our homebrewed Journey Cards.39:15 Final Thoughts.

Movies like The Godfather, The Lord of the Rings, Shawshank Redemption, Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill, Gladiator, Goodfellas… the list is inexhaustible. Movies that are “must-see” movies, classics that are nearly required viewing. Many published adventures, like Curse of Strahd, Storm King's Thunder, Dragonlance, The Keep on the Borderlands, Against the Cult of the Reptile God, Tomb of Annihilation… they're classic adventures that you want to experience, just like a classic movie. So what do you do if your players want to experience one of these “classic movies” and you've been running all homebrewed worlds? In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave sit down to answer a listener question about what their top tips are for approaching running a published adventure for the first time.3:45 Tip #1: Know the general plot of the adventure – the “elevator pitch.”4:50 Tip #2: Think of the adventure more like a sourcebook, rather than the gospel.8:10 Tip #3: How to manage a giant adventure? One session at a time.10:40 Tip #4: Focus on the plots in the adventure that will be fun for your players.13:00 Tip #5: Lean on your fellow internet DMs… every published adventure has tons of hacks.15:00 Tip #6: Approach these longform adventures as multiple adventures in your overarching campaign.22:30 Tip #7: Make sure your initial hook is solid. Often, the published adventure hooks are “ehhh.”26:06 PSA: Stop listening to “Tough Guy” DMs who use Railroad as an insult. Do what makes you and your table have fun.36:40 Final Thoughts.

The 3 Wise DMs are all approaching campaign finales: DM Tony's Journey to Ragnarok, DM Chris' “Wednesday-Nighters” campaign in our homebrewed world of The Further, and DM Dave's Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen campaign. Just like the start of a campaign, the end only comes along once. So what should you focus on when your campaign is coming to a climax? What questions should you ask yourself? What do you have to make sure you do? How do you create something that will be talked about for years to come?In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave sit down to continue our discussions from the last two episodes about tying elements of the game together to share their pro tips about designing and executing a great finale that will be the capstone for the game that has gone on for weeks, months, or years!1:10 3WD is Big in Algeria!3:40 What do you mean by the end of a “campaign”?6:40 What has been the Theme of the campaign?8:05 Lessons learned for your games, good and bad, from the ending of Loki.12:00 Does a campaign or campaign ending need to be “epic”?13:45 How our Curse of Strahd campaign really had 2 separate finales.16:40 Does every character's story need to be tied up by the end? Does the campaign actually end?28:25 The story ends when the story ends, whether it's 10 sessions or 100.33:10 The pros and cons of running a “Resolutions” session after the finale.43:00 Final Thoughts.

Immersion in your D&D game. It's one of the most sought after and asked about topics in the whole DMing Multiverse. The real trick always lies in how well you can tie together all the seemingly disparate pieces of your group – characters, backstories, motivations, and adventures – into one cohesive, epic story.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave answer a listener question about how to best tie their characters into their newest campaign, Tomb of Annihilation, following the finale of their Curse of Strahd campaign. Along the way, we brainstorm how to tie these two adventures together into one large epic story. 4:02 We delve into what we thought the question really was… how do you tie Curse of Strahd and Tomb of Annihilation together?7:15 What to do with Curse of Strahd's Megaliths?8:00 Published material, like Curse of Strahd, is great fodder for ideas of how and where to tie characters into the story.9:10 The heavy lift of some published material, like Tomb of Annihilation, in hooking the characters into the story.11:05 Detailed backstories vs the blank slate as well as DM Tony's idea of “Reactive” backstories.15:20 Tying in the characters, backstories, motivations, and adventures in the same way as you plan your sessions… one session at a time.24:40 Providing the characters with stakes that really matter.26:15 Weak hooks with adventures that were meant to be from tournament modules and how we've tied characters in.29:25 Remembering the perspective of the characters, not the audience.32:00 Creating a one-sheet Campaign Guide (like Mike Shea's) to help players tie the characters in at creation.38:35 Final Thoughts.

2:05 A listener question regarding how to run episodic adventures that serves as a jumping off point for Matt Colville's recent video asking the question, “How long should an adventure be?”3:40 DM Tony's lead-off question… what is your table hungry for?5:25 The classic Monster of the Week theme and DM Chris' love of The X-Files.7:25 Episodic Adventures can easily become a railroad.8:25 How epic, longform stories are the current zeitgeist and how that affects the adventures we create.10:15 Whether a longform campaign or a one-shot, every adventure needs to be self-contained with a beginning, a middle, and an end. 20:05 The issue of players remembering ALL the lore and information gleaned over longform adventures.22:45 The adventure should be as long as it needs to be to feel complete. 27:40 The level of prep needed between short and longform adventures.30:50 Creating episodic adventures even in longform adventures, like DM Tony's Storm Kings Thunder and Journey to Ragnarok campaigns.40:30 Final Thoughts.

On July 3rd of 2024, D&D 5e will turn 10! While it has taken some hits in those ten years, no one can deny the positive effect it has had on our TTRPG hobby, bringing in an entire generation of new players.With this anniversary, we started to reflect on what we have loved, what we've hated, what we would change, and what we look to for the future. And, as opposed to most of the posts we see on social media (like the DM who stated that a 1st level character could kill a Tarrasque?!?), this is coming from players and DMs who have been playing weekly, not just pontificating from their armchair.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave see where the rubber hit the road in 5e as they discuss how it has affected some of their campaigns over the last 10 years: Storm King's Thunder, Curse of Strahd, Tomb of Annihilation, Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen, and their homebrewed world of The Further!2:55 Bardic Inspiration as a Reaction from the One D&D Playtest.9:00 Counterspell… a DMs Bane!14:00 The UA Tunnel Fighter build… one man holding off the armies of Mordor!18:40 Leomund's Tiny Hut… 5e's “Save” Function.23:45 Looking to the future: Making Rests Better.29:50 We need to have some real talk about Find Familiar… 36:45 Looking to the Past for the Future: 3rd Editions Change to Magic Items.40:55 3WD Homebrew: Stacking Inspiration.43:45 Looking to the Future: Feats!45:00 Final Thoughts.

As we learned from the AD&D release, Deities & Demigods, “If you stat it, players will kill it.” So, what do you do if you want to place an unbeatable Kaiju-type monster, like Godzilla, into your game world? Something way more fearsome than a Tarrasque. A complete force of nature that shapes the entire world and every adventure in it. Something that you can't just “punch really hard.”In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave respond to a listener's question, “have you ever put a monster in your campaign that cannot be defeated?” and enter into a real time brainstorming session as we discuss how we've used it as DMs as well as played with it as players in our own games.1:45 DM Jim's Brainstorm Topic2:25 Are these the seeds of where the endgame of your campaign is or are you just hazing your players?3:50 Think less about defeating the unbeatable monster and more about foiling their plans.5:55 The Scroll of Tarrasque Summoning from Rime of the Frostmaiden and our tangent into the idea of WOTC playtesting adventures before they release them.8:10 “If you stat it, players will kill it.”8:55 Our return to the Woodstock Wanderers campaign and the unkillable, flying spaghetti monster that was Ghatanothoa.12:15 Be careful dropping this type of monster into your game if your players singular idea is “Frontal Assault!”17:45 The idea that this type of creature is not “good” or “evil” but just a force of nature. How do you fill this story and adventure out without it becoming monotonous?22:05 The trick of revealing the BBEG and their nefarious schemes early in the campaign… how do you do this with Godzilla who doesn't really have plans?29:00 The adventure is in realizing that this “oncoming storm” is coming and what are the heroes going to do about it.34:45 “Can you write a campaign for Superman?” Dealing with problems that you can't just punch in the nose.37:30 Final Thoughts.

We've done several episodes and articles about how to best onboard new DMs and GMs to the hobby, including episode 113: Just Do It, with DM Lenny, about running his first game ever. But what about all the Grognards and OG DMs that were playing it out of the White Boxes assembled by Gary Gygax in his own home? In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave sit down with our good friend, Scott Washburn of Paper Terrain, to discuss his recent return to the DM chair with his homebrewed campaign “World of the Five Gods.” True to form, Scott kitbashed together the original White Box D&D with some flair from 5e. For all the DMs who have thought that “Retirement Sucks,” whether its been 40 days or 40 years, this is the episode for you.2:15 Our very Special Guest DM, the Scott “Wizard” Washburn, from our Terrain, Maps, and Minis episode, who recently returned to the DM chair after a FORTY YEAR HIATUS, and a brief review of the recent game.9:10 What would Scott have done differently, or what would he have prepped more (or less) having finally ran a game again?14:25 Don't get lost in the worldbuilding and the introduction of the massive breadth of your setting, get the players rolling dice as soon as possible. 16:40 Make the adventure objective clear.17:10 How Scott made adventuring in dungeons a significant driver of the economy and commerce (including taxes!)19:45 Scott shares his thought process in how he approached running his first game back, as well as leaning into some of his skill sets from an unlikely source, and some of the changes he would make.27:15 Some of the things we enjoyed about the system, including the return to OD&D, 1e, and the OSR – including removing initiative as we know it!32:30 Final Thoughts.

What do you do when your player is unhappy with the direction of their class and wants to change over into a new class mid-campaign, but with the same character?In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave answer a listener question about their player that wants to change their character's class from Paladin to Sorcerer at 5th level. We delve into not just the narrative components of a change like this, but also the mechanical effects that such a change would inevitably bring. Along the way, we offer tips, tricks, and questions you should ask yourself if you're planning on something like this in your own games.3:45 First questions: will this completely break immersion and is this an offer you're ready to make for all the players? 4:30 DM Chris fondly remembers Clyde from Every Which Way But Loose and discusses the “Buyer's Remorse” of character choices and how to work with it.7:00 The benefit of starting at lower levels and the character building that comes with it. How a 5th level character might feel a little more “pregen”, as DM Tony refers to it.8:45 The benefits of One-shots, Session Zeroes, and Playtests to understand better the choices you're making. What if Aragorn never leaves Bree?12:30 DM Tony's workaround for swapping power sets in 4th edition.13:14 Learning the rules of the class as you level… the kid who hates the elite sports car they just got.16:30 How we have and would narratively approach changes like this in our own games.18:00 How do you handle the mechanical changes that would come with such a change?28:50 DM Tony recounts how DM Thorin had narratively and mechanically done this very thing in a 4th edition game… the return of Cassidus, the wizard made of a pile of undead bugs!30:35 “It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to”.… the time needed to evolve the character and how to balance realism and fantasy.34:05 Final Thoughts

The tavern. It's the start of 23 different campaigns that DM Tony has been in over the last three decades. It's a fantasy adventure trope and gets a lot of hate out there for being basic and unimaginative, but is that necessarily a bad thing? In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave return to our RPG Mythbusters series and test the myth, “Is a tavern the best place to start an adventure?” Will it be confirmed, plausible, or busted?0:49 The return of RPG Mythbusters, all the way back to Episodes 39 and 42.1:56 Everyone knows what a tavern is as opposed to, let's say, a Paladin's Chapel.3:50 Taverns are a historically accurate meeting place; the true “town square.”6:45 DM Dave returns to the Lord of the Rings novel and reminds us that Gandalf drops lore in Bilbo's house for 25 pages. Taverns can be much more organic to reveal the plot.9:50 The tavern affords an easy, stress-free environment to introduce the players and their characters to the story and the world – which can be especially helpful with new players.14:15 Session Zero could be a “tavern” by providing an intro to introduce the adventure.15:40 The type of game can change whether a tavern is a good or a bad idea; in can be a phenomenal time sink.17:20 Our tangent into 7-11 and Denny's being modern-day taverns when we were teenagers.18:10 Implied consent: the unsaid agreement between DM and players that you're ready to go on an adventure for the session.24:55 What type of adventure/campaign are you running? That should guide how and where you're starting.33:08 Lore Tolerance: how Taverns and “In Media Res” starts allow you to control the flow of lore dumps.36:45 DM Chris' idea that combat is the best way to bring characters together: A Band of Brothers. And how DM Dave leaned into this for our Dragonlance campaign.43:15 Final Thoughts: Myth Confirmed, Plausible, or Busted?

With our recent Forged in Fire article series, DM Chris realized how many Conditions that monsters have resistance and immunity to, especially in 5e. With that, we began to discuss how much (or little) we play with Conditions in our home games, and how that might be limiting what we can do to craft engaging, thrilling, and challenging encounters.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave delve into the Conditions mechanic (both in and out of 5e), the issues we have with some of them, what ones we find to be somewhat limp, and the ones we would love to usemore. We also delve into what we have found is a Condition we often times inflict on ourselves as DMs: Expectations.3:00 DM Tony returns to his problem with Stun mechanics… all the way back from Episode #4!4:00 Making your game challenging without having them turn into “Gotcha” moments for your players.6:20 Developing encounters with certain Conditions in mind. DM Dave's Lair of Dragansalor from DM Chris' 12 person Birthday game.7:45 Seeing Advantage and Disadvantage as a Condition.8:35 The power of Conditions through multiple systems and editions.11:10 Using Conditions to control combat… more interesting than bags of hit points.13:15 How Conditions, like Stun, have the players control the combat. Should you change it?21:40 Skills, Saves, and the Rule of Cool article link.22:45 Expectations: Conditions we place on ourselves as DMs.32:45 Heroes of the Realm (including our Star Wars analogy): Be excited when the players mop the floor with the bad guys, regardless of the Conditions.42:05 Resource management, Short, and Long Rests as Conditions.46:15 Final Thoughts

One of the beauties of TTRPGs is the ability to not just watch or read an amazing story, but to experience it… to create it. The mystery, the action, the climactic battle between good and evil; D&D gives us the ability to create our favorite stories.One of the most important aspects of that, as the DM, is creating a level of mystery to the story that the players get the chance to uncover as they delve deeper into the adventure. In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss a listener question about the mystery that they're planning on having last for 10 levels and ask, “am I being cruel by leaving them in mystery so long?” 4:05 3 ways it can go: 1) your plot twist becomes campaign defining, 2) players will rage quit, or 3) it falls flat.4:55 Your campaign is not a novel.7:30 New players might not even understand what they're choosing when they're still trying to understand the game mechanics.9:40 If you have something to get through to the players: Repeat, Repeat, Repeat.11:00 The difficulties of conveying the story in a spoken medium.12:30 DM Tony discusses his difficulties in conveying lore-heavy campaigns.14:08 What will the player's choose? How this can affect the overarching campaign if its too set in stone.16:25 New players might not be as new as you think with the advent of live-play games. But, then again, they might not remember what all the different dice are either.19:05 DM Chris' analogy of trying to teach something to someone and the lessons we can learn for in-game use. Listen for when the players begin to “parrot back” your plot drops.23:50 The difference between YOUR reveal and THEIR reveal… tie the reveal to the characters. Matt Colville's “A Tale of Two Campaigns” video.28:40 For a campaign-defining mystery like “Mystara is dying,” there are infinite ways to create a breadcrumb trail for the players to pick up on.35:55 Final Thoughts

Homebrewing has been part of the game since its inception. Hell, the game itself is a homebrew of wargames! We've discussed homebrewing in previous episodes and articles, but a listener asks the question about how to homebrew magic items and monsters from well-known pop culture sources (like Brandon Sanderson's Cosmere Universe.)In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss their top nine tips to pulling in objects and ideas from existing beloved pop culture properties and making them have the same level of gravitas as the book, series, or movie that they come from.1:00 A Rock and Roll DM Tour Story.2:05 A listener question about homebrewing monsters and items from The Cosmere by Brandon Sanderson from longtime listener Dr. DM, Jason.4:30 Tip #1: Scaling homebrew to the tier that your campaign is in, for leveling systems like 5e.5:30 Tip #2: Kitbashing from existing items, spells, monsters, etc. (like a Balor that turns into a demonic Bob Ross…)8:10 Tip #3: Ask yourself 2 questions. 1) What is the world you're pulling from? and, 2) How does the object, magic, or idea work in that world? 9:45 Tip #4: Benchmarking the magic, items, spells, etc. to what your players have and what the enemies have access to.12:45 Our experience with this when we crafted He-Man's Sword of Power for our Curse of Strahd campaign. Click here for the stats on DM Dave's unique weapon for Strahd, Lament, the Impaler.16:35 Tip #5: You can have it… you just can't have it now.21:45 Tip #6: Powerful objects don't exist in a vacuum. The wars fought over Shardblades and the Spice Melange.24:40 A tangent into how DM Tony's famous barbarian, Hawk Morgan, has become “The Most Powerful Man in the Universe.”26:20 Tip #7: Take into account how the object affects the campaign world (i.e. the Sun Sword in Barovia).28:05 An example of Tip #5… the quest that needed to happen to craft Takal Aestar, the “Dragon's Union” (our Sword of Power.)30:50 Tip #8: Scaling up existing magic items and having them grow with the character (DM Chris' Sun Sword/Holy Avenger, Drakmar Venges, the “Dragon's Vengeance.”)36:45 DM Dave's Unique Paladin Longsword, Morthwyl O Duw.40:00 Tip #9: Give powerful items and weapons some history, legends, and gravitas.41:10 Final Thoughts

Birthday games. Several of our recent articles and episodesdiscuss our passion for running birthday games for our game group, whether itbe D&D, the OSR, Avatar Legends, or the classic Marvel Super Heroes system;it's become our thing.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss the recent BirthdayGame they ran where The Doctor teamed up with the Sensational She-Hulk andmembers of the Avengers and the Fantastic Four to stop the impending Cybermaninvasion orchestrated by the wielder of the Cosmic Control Rod, Annihilus, anddo battle against the Brood in a giant Space Whale (believe us…. It made waymore sense at the table!)We then discuss our 7 best tips to help you build your ownVery Special One-Shot for Birthdays or any other day!2:20 Finding the right type of setting and property toshowcase the gift of the Birthday Game. DM Tony revisits his love of theclassic AD&D adventure, Castle Greyhawk.4:30 Tip #1: Have a Solid Theme.5:30 DM Dave gives a brief overview of the impetus for the “LostEpisode of Doctor Who” that birthed this episode.8:25 Tip #2: Use Existing Properties: How we've builtexisting properties like Masters of the Universe into existing games, like our Curseof Strahd campaign. Shout-out to the team over at Nerdarchy!16:20 Tip #3: Choose the Best System for the Setting AND thePlayers.18:00 Tip #4: Go All Out. Terrain, minis, costumes… reallystretch your limits.19:00 We revisit DM Tony's Murder Mystery One-Shot that hebased off Clue.20:19 Tip #5: Use the Players Favorite Character/Campaign asthe Focus.22:28 Tip #6: Tie It into Your Existing Campaigns… and our overarchingMultiverse.24:50 Tip #7: The most obvious… Focus on the Special Player.30:45 DM Chris brainstorms planning a Birthday One-Shot inreal time.36:45 Final Thoughts.

Inspiration. Along with Advantage and Disadvantage, its oneof the most streamlined mechanics in 5e. However, we all love to try new oradjusted mechanics to continually improve our DMing. Fellow Wise DM Mike Sheaover at Sly Flourish shared an article discussing the Luck System from KoboldPress' Project Black Flag playtest. In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss Inspiration;how we use it in our games and the changes we have made and are thinking ofmaking to improve our games.For all those Inspiration dice, check out our affiliate linkat FanRoll Dice to get 10% off your entire order.3:00 Our recent Marvel FASERIP game that gave us some ideas.Check out Professor Bill at Comic Book University.4:15 Keeping track of Inspiration, both as a player and as aDM.5:20 How something like the Luck System evens out the powerdifferential between DM and players.7:25 Our first change… DM Dave allowing DM Inspiration tostack starting in our Curse of Strahd campaign.13:25 How the idea of karma from the FASERIP system is morethan Inspiration.14:16 We start to brainstorm, in real time, an idea to tiekarma and Inspiration together.15:25 Bards… the pros and cons of the quintessential buffand inspiration class.17:45 Our second change… DM Dave using Inspiration as areaction for the bard from the One D&D playtest in our Dragonlance: Shadowof the Dragon Queen campaign.20:38 Our third change… DM Tony's method of usingInspiration and other rewards that are active for a single session.24:08 Our fourth change… DM Chris' method of Inspiration inthe form of Blessings, single-use Magic Items, and Campfire Tales in our Tombof Annihilation campaign.34:30 Introducing the right amount of chaos into your gameand our return to the discussion about the location of the Sunsword in our Curseof Strahd campaign.38:50 A trip down memory lane when you could stack potions…in your belly.39:42 Final Thoughts.

Sharing. It's one of the first skills that we have to learnas kids and, as anyone who has gamed for long enough, some kids never quitelearned how to do it. Our longtime listener, Jim Laubacker, posed a questionregarding how to best deal with players that won't share the spotlight. As abonus, Jim is also trying to balance a group that is a hybrid of in-person and virtualplayers!In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss the ways inwhich they've adjusted to turn the dominant and passive players weaknesses atthe table into strengths. Additionally, they delve more into the difficultiesthey've experienced in running hybrid games and some tips and tricks withdealing with a very new issue in TTRPGs.As always, if you're in the market for dice (who isn't?)make sure to check out our affiliate link at FanRoll Dice to receive 10% offyour entire order.1:33 Our listener question – How to deal with players thatwon't share the spotlight with a bonus wrinkle… the group in question is ahybrid of in-person AND virtual.3:05 Players that are so excited that they want to beinvolved in every scene.4:44 The very heavy lift when dealing with a hybrid table ofpart in-person, part virtual.10:36 The difference between players who are actors andthose who are audience members.15:45 The player that is involved with Every. Single.Activity. And my example that pushes DM Tony's buttons about spell componentsand wizards…21:00 Narrative side scenes: an easy way to give everyplayer their spotlight.25:45 Review the characters in your session prep: Find thespots in the session for their moments.28:00 There's no “I” in team (think Avengers over IndianaJones) and how sharing the spotlight can keep the campaign together instead of ending.35:50 Curating your group and turning player weaknesses intostrengths.37:37 Giving players a “power position” to balance out thedominant players(s) – the birth of Little One.43:02 The spectrum of passive vs. dominant players – kind oflike railroads vs. sandboxes.46:20 Final Thoughts.

Happy New Year! Just in time for our 2024 Season, Johnny at For Monster Kids has designed our newest logo, a beautiful homage to the legendary Dave Trampier… let us know what you think!And for our first episode of 2024, we delve into a listener question regarding the players constantly Splitting the Party in their Curse of Strahd campaign and how that's leading to DM Burnout. But, Splitting the Party is a gift to a DM, isn't it? I mean, now you can really dial up the tension, right? In a dungeon, or a mansion, or a Keep, sure. But what about when the party is split up into three sections of the campaign world?!In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss strategies for dealing with players who constantly want to run, in essence, three separate games within a single session. Further, we delve again into the very real topic of DM Burnout and finish our Final Thoughts with some prescient wisdom from DM Thorin.As always, check out our affiliate link at FanRoll Dice and receive 10% off your entire order!1:25 Our shout out to Johnny Ott at For Monster Kids for our brand-new logo!2:20 A listener question regarding the constant splitting of the party over the whole map is leading to DM burnout.4:57 Splitting the Party leads to splitting the table into multiple 15-minute blocks. Is that fun?6:10 It's a Trap! The greatest Fantasy movies, novels, and TV series Split the Party but D&D is a game first and foremost.12:50 D&D is a team sport.13:45 A constantly split party? How running multiple side quest missions can help, if time permits. Also, have you Layeth the Smacketh Down, as The Rock would say?16:00 Tying important details and clues to certain characters can entice the players to stick together.18:20 The difference between being a player at the table and being an audience member.19:40 Don't even split up in Boston. Our experiences with Call of Cthulhu.22:20 The power curve and the loss of fear in players. “We can take this!”26:00 DM Burnout: The place where player agency and Expectations on your DM meet.32:50 Putting it back to the players. Emotional Intelligence and Empathy at the table.34:25 Encounter Charts that can warn players off certain plans.35:45 Session Zeroes and consistent communication. Making sure everyone has the opportunity for fun, including the DM.37:15 Things are going to happen: Strategies for dealing with side quests.42:18 Final Thoughts, with a flashback to some prescient Final Thoughts wisdom from DM Thorin.

What do Hit Points represent? Who knew that this was a controversial question on par with asking about Alignment? Following our episode reviewing the Avatar Legends RPG and their use of Fatigue and Conditions, we posed the question regarding what hit points represent on our socials and the response was impressive. In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave take a deeper dive into what Hit Points represent in their games, how they describe the loss of them, and how other systems approach one of the oldest traditions of D&D.1:10 DM Dave's article on Fatigue and Conditions from Avatar Legends.1:45 What do Hit Points represent?4:00 The history of hit points and armor class and the evolution towards 5e.7:50 5e's “Big Bag of Hit Points” and how DM Tony adjusted for his Journey to Ragnarok campaign.12:30 When the “Big Bag of Hit Points” still doesn't matter, even in 5e.13:00 DM Dave's article on Vampyr and the Dark Powers.14:35 Should severe hit point losses carry additional consequences?21:05 The simplicity of hit points to dial up the tension at the table.23:30 How do we envision hit points and how do we ideally like to describe the loss of them.32:48 How 4th edition handled this in a player-centric way through the Bloodied condition.35:45 Lingering Wounds and additional consequences… are they right for YOUR table?39:20 Final Thoughts.

The 3 Wise DMs just played through the new Avatar Legends RPG Starter Set from Magpie Games. Based off the Powered by the Apocalypse system, Avatar Legends is about as different from D&D and Pathfinder as can be. In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave review the Avatar Legends system, the one-shot that we played as well as discuss tips, tricks, and pitfalls to playing completely new systems – how to prepare, how to run, and how to play – for new and experienced DMs and GMs alike.1:00 Yet ANOTHER birthday game playing the new Avatar Legends RPG from Magpie Games.4:30 Running a game that's so based on a specific pop culture world.7:30 DM Tony LIKED the pre-generated characters?!?9:25 An even easier way of ending single-point failures and having the characters fail forward.14:25 The difference between wargames turned RPG like D&D and roleplay/story-focused games.15:45 How much do players need to be onboarded for lore-heavy systems like Avatar?21:10 The difficulties with running a new system like Avatar Legends for even an experienced DM.23:45 An interesting and cinematic way of approaching hit points through Fatigue and Conditions.32:45 How your preconceptions of RPGs will affect how you play new systems.35:20 How the Avatar Legends Starter Set could help better onboard GMs unfamiliar with the system.42:25 The possibilities of the Powered by the Apocalypse mechanics.43:30 Final Thoughts.Check out our affiliate link at FanRoll Dice to get 10% off your entire order!

We recently shared a post about our Halloween one-shot adventure that we started referring to as the “Kurt Russell Campaign.” Four players, all playing one of the legendary roles made famous by your favorite, and ours, Mr. Kurt Russell. The response was fantastic, so we thought we'd do a deeper dive.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave are joined by return guests Bonnie and the Monster Wrangler himself, and now official DM, Matt, who decided that for his first official session behind the screen, he was going to do something that might even challenge even seasoned DMs.For all the dice that a character like Jack Burton is probably gonna need, make sure to check out our affiliate link at Fanroll Dice to get 10% off your entire order.1:48 Player Introductions and The Kurt Russell One-Shot.7:40 DM Matt shares the high overview of his homebrew concept for the Kurt Russell One-Shot.11:21 The players experiences with a first-time DM running an incredibly customized homebrew game and lessons learned as a first-time DM.27:20 Preparing for the adventure knowing that nothing will go as you expect it.29:25 Timing a one-shot game to run in the time allotted.31:15 The pros and cons of running a one-shot in a new vs. familiar system. Click here for our episode on D&D as Therapy.34:10 The pros and cons of running your first game as a homebrew vs. published adventure.37:25 Kitbashing to ease your preparation in a homebrew adventure.38:53 Final Thoughts.

Most of us who enjoy TTRPGs like D&D also love board games… classic board games, strategy games, resource management games, and the list goes on. It won't take long until you as a DM start thinking of implementing some of your favorite board games or board game mechanics into your D&D sessions.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss the ways that they have utilized their favorite board games and board game mechanics to create some incredibly unique, innovative, and fun game sessions, or in the case of our Dragonlance game, the entire campaign.For all the tumbling dice you need, check out our affiliate link at FanRoll Dice to get 10% off your entire order.3:15 A Christmas “Board” Game in our Curse of Strahd campaign. Click here for the article.8:45 Using a physical board during the session.11:30 Mini games in your session for races, fair games, festivals, and card games.14:00 Using skill challenges and existing game mechanics to build out something completely different: DM Tony's Murder Mystery game (spoilers: think Clue)17:50 Meeting Sir Miltonus of Bradley… playing through classic Milton Bradley board games in 5e.21:00 A deeper dive into the Murder Mystery game and the difficulties with managing different, high-level skills and abilities.25:00 Our experiences using the Warriors of Krynn strategy game in our Shadow of the Dragon Queen campaign.29:45 Getting ideas from your favorite board games to add to your D&D game.37:00 Final Thoughts.

Spell effects in Fantasy TTRPGs are easily the times when we as DMs and GMs have to respond on the fly to changing parameters. In systems like 5e, we've discussed how they've crafted a system that does some of the heavy lifting for you when it comes to rulings. But, no matter how many rules exist, you are going to have times that interesting uses of spells make you have to adjudicate in a completely new way.In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss ruling on how spell effects change the landscape and/or battlefield that we ran into in one of our most recent games. Regardless of your newness or your experience, this discussion helps us realize that the old adage of artists is true… “if you want to learn to paint great bricks. Paint one thousand bricks.” As always, please visit our affiliate link at Fanroll Dice to receive 10% off your entire order!1:14 Our listener question… from DM Chris?!?3:15 The difference between Game-Changing and Game-Breaking.8:00 Basing your adjudications on how the NPCs would react in a real-life situation.9:40 Some of the same disadvantages to the NPCs will affect the PCs too.12:50 Shout-out to Sly Flourish's Fantastic Locations13:30 Incentivize your players into using the environment to their advantage.16:50 The importance of spells and mechanics that change the environment vs. pure damage-dealing.21:45 The Earthquake Incident: managing spells that have incredibly far-reaching effects. 28:20 The DM-Player Agreement: Every adjudication is a prototype and can change.33:15 When to lean into the players intent and when to corral them in.37:45 For every time your players own the bosses, there'll be times that they get their teeth kicked in.40:40 Final Thoughts.

Roleplay. It's commonly understood to be one of the three pillars that make up the game of D&D. But, roleplaying between the DM and player is one thing… how do you get your players roleplaying amongst themselves?In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss their best tips in getting players to roleplay amongst themselves, drawing from their games in Tomb of Annihilation, Shadow of the Dragon Queen, Journey to Ragnarok, and their homebrew world of The Further.A game full of great roleplay can get you super jazzed… so how do you get to bed when it's a school night? Dovetailing into a listener question from Dr. DM, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss strategies to deal with late night games during the week and how to decompress and “turn your brain off”, so that it doesn't lead to DM burnout.As always, check out our affiliate link at Fanroll Dice to get 10% off your entire order!1:05 Will Ferrell Scene from Stepbrothers.2:20 Giving the player some stakes or secrets to approach their fellow adventurers with.4:25 What to do when the players will only engage with the DM.5:25 Fireside chats, campfire tales, and other story prompts to assist your players.10:30 Using story prompts and roleplay to create more immersive Hexcrawls.14:00 Prompting a player who's not engaging with more concrete examples other than abstract roleplay.16:25 Supporting players and teaching them how your game works.17:45 Ending roleplay scenes that have gone too long.26:20 A listener question.28:50 Find an activity to decompress from the session and reset.31:00 Not the best advice: don't run late games on weeknights.33:00 Lean into your strengths to focus your prep and not overwhelm yourself.34:00 Plot is a couple of paragraphs. The story is what happens when your players meet it.39:15 If your players are interacting amongst themselves, you don't have to be the battery all the time.44:00 Final Thoughts.

12 players. 2 DMs. 6 dragons. Tiamat. 2 birthday cakes… and a whole hell of a lot of fun! As a companion piece to DM Tony's recent article, the 3 Wise DMs are joined by some special guests to discuss and detail the lessons learned from running our largest endeavor yet – a massive, multiple-campaign ending game that required 2 DMs to pull off. If you've ever thought of running a massive Endgame-style game, or toyed with the idea of co-DMing, this is the episode for you!As always, please visit our affiliate link at FanRoll Dice to receive 10% off your entire dice and dice accessories order!2:20 DM Tony's concept to create our own Avengers: Endgame style 12-person game tying up loose threads from multiple campaigns.4:10 Our special guest DMs: DM Lenny and the Monster Wrangler himself, Matt!7:50 The epic, blockbuster, action movie-style terrain builds from multiple crafters and how they can add to encounter building. Check out some great tips in our Terrain episode with Scott at Paper Terrain.19:08 How we handled newer players as well as characters that weren't as tied to the campaign-length storylines we were tying up.21:25 Pro tip: make the adventure hook for a massive game as simple and straightforward as you can: Rescue Baby Walter! Special Add-on - DM Dave finally reveals the mystery of Baby Walter that started in session 1 of our Curse of Strahd campaign!26:00 How to build an adventure that 2 DMs have to run pieces of… including DM Dave's BIG blunder.28:45 The experience of the newest players at the table and how to provide them enough hook that they have reasons to join the adventure.33:20 Monster Wrangler Matt describes the issues surrounding leveling a character from 7th to 19th, and the adventures missed… as well as a happy accident surrounding Barovia.36:55 The possible pitfalls to look out for that we learned as we rolled out this prototype. 44:10 A deeper dive into the epic climax… the battle with 1 DM running 12 players and Tiamat.46:25 DM Dave's Rant on the defenses of some Legendary builds (“Bullshitium/Unobtainium”), and thoughts to consider when developing the ultimate BBEG.50:45 The bittersweet nature of high-level play.52:25 The completely unknown nature of Legendary BBEGs when you unload them on your party.56:50 Final Thoughts.

In the immortal words of The Bard… “To roll or not to roll, that is the question…” Rolling dice is the cornerstone of TTRPGs, because without them, as DM Chris says, we're just telling a story as we play with our GI Joe's in the backyard. So, when you're running a session, when do you decide to haventhe players, and yourself, pick up the dice? In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave springboard off a listener question that deals with trying to speed the game up in a homebrewed superhero campaign. From here, the 3 Wise DMs delve deeper into the big question of when to roll and when not to roll.And when you are rolling dice… head over to our affiliate link at FanRoll Dice and receive 10% off your entire order!2:45 Static Damage: The difference between players and DMs.9:30 The “DM Decision Helper”: Using dice to decide who's attacking who.13:00 Using dice to bring characters back into the action.15:00 When too much rolling can lead to inevitable failure.17:20 Using dice to avoid “Roleplay Slog.”18:30 “Dungeon Crawl Lubricant”: Easing decisions in a dungeon crawl to move the session forward.19:40 The Return of Castle Greyhawk!23:30 Our tangent into the issues with Hexcrawls within 5e.25:40 Rolling dice to affect the Slog Trinity: Combat, Roleplay, or Exploration.32:50 Rolling dice to avoid the DM soliloquy: An example from our Dragonlance campaign.36:30 The time not to roll: Random Treasure.37:40 Final Thoughts – Capes and Crooks from Crit Academy.

Cutscene. In a video game, it's a scene shown to the player when they reach a particular point in the game, such as at the end of a level or when the player's character dies. The immense popularity of videogaming and the similarities between them and TTRPGs begs the question: Can you, or should you, utilize cutscenes in your game?In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave respond to a listener's question regarding the idea of “cutscenes” in your TTRPG sessions and how best to deliver narrative, lore, secrets, and clues in a way that keeps your players engaged and doesn't remove agency from them.And, while keeping your players engaged in your “cutscenes,” and they have to roll some dice, visit our affiliate link at Fanroll Dice to receive 10% off your entire order!3:14 The similarities and differences between RPG video games and TTRPGs and the use of cutscenes.8:10 Using “cutscenes” to deliver narrative and building the scene but NEVER to let the villain get away.10:10 How to deliver lore, secrets, and clues about the game and your world.12:00 The confusion over what “cutscenes” are in a TTRPG.14:50 Your worldbuilding and lore will not all be discovered, but that doesn't mean you can't have it ready for when players want to engage with something.17:20 Dreams, Visions, and NPCs – easy ways to deliver your narrative, secrets, and clues.19:55 The lesson to learn from Brandon Sanderson: Be Patient.21:15 DM Dave's example of Being Patient from our current Dragonlance campaign.27:30 The dirty little D&D secret: players are selfish and want to know how things are affecting them.31:45 Ballad for the Bartender – NPC info hubs for your players.35:00 The use of monologues and cutscenes when dealing with an audience (not players). The MCU Alpha Flight episode.43:48 Final ThoughtsRunning Scenes Outside Your D&D Games

Murderhobos. It's one of the most discussed issues in any TTRPG discussion. Players who don't feel like there's no encounter that can't be solved by casting “Sword.” But what happens when your party turns out to be what we refer to as “Anti-Murderhobos”? What if the party isn't motivated to engage and/or end the evil machinations of the Bad Guys? In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss a listener question regarding their Curse of Strahd group who wants to let the evil NPCs in Barovia “Live and Let Live.” When your players finally want to engage with the enemy, make sure to roll some Fanroll Dice, and click on our affiliate link to receive 10% off your entire order!1:50 Batman and Raphael: Cowabummer!3:55 The First Question: Are your characters heroes?5:03 The importance of Session Zero.6:05 Enemies not dead? No problem. The idea of returning villains.7:45 The Second Question: Are your players engaged?10:25 Neutral Superheroes and bringing the fight to your players.15:55 The consequences of inaction.18:55 The importance of player buy-in and understanding player motivations.28:50 If the players don't care about the NPCs, they probably still care about themselves.33:40 Session Zero as a State of Mind: Reevaluating your campaign.37:50 Final Thoughts.

Magic. It's the thing that separates Fantasy RPGs from all others. Every other TTRPG can have combat, exploration, social situations… but magic is the secret sauce that makes fantasy special. Many DMs and GMs toss around the idea of “low magic” worlds, but what does that mean exactly? In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss the definitions and parameters of low magic and how we've implemented it into our games. Along the way, we share several tips and tricks to limit access to god-like powers in your game!As always, when rolling for any magical effects in your games, make sure to check out our affiliate link at FanRoll Dice and receive 10% off your entire order!2:08 What is the advantage of running a low magic world?3:15 What does low magic mean exactly?6:40 Class abilities and features are oftentimes just asmagical feeling as magic.7:30 Lord of the Rings. The most well-known example of lowmagic?11:30 Limiting spellcasting abilities in Dragonlance toreflect the setting.12:50 Lessons learned from Diablo IV and how too much magicmakes it mundane.14:15 Low Fantasy and making magic cost a lot.17:00 What system are you using? That changes what low magicmight mean.17:45 How much can you curtail what characters can do beforeit's punitive?23:00 The importance of Session Zero and Campaign Pitches togain player buy-in.26:30 The best DM Hack to Named Magical Items from J.R.R.Tolkien himself.32:25 Low magic can make the world seem more dangerous bykeeping tension high.36:30 If you're curtailing magic, get player buy-in and workwith your players to create something new.40:40 Final Thoughts

Gold. It's the perfect representation of the reward mechanic from the earliest days of the White Box. Hell, it even used to represent experience! As a companion piece to our 19th episode on RPG Economics, Tony, Chris, and Dave delve into not just how to make things worth using the gold for, but also the idea of how you, or DO you, account for the treasure that the party finds? And please visit our affiliate link at FanRoll Dice for all your dice and dice accessories and get 10% off your entire order!1:19 Will Ferrell as Neil Diamond.1:30 Episode 19: RPG Economics.2:40 Getting players to agree to how much gold they've amassed.5:31 A quick gold tangent: How much gold did Smaug have in The Lonely Mountain?6:40 The party accountant, appraisal, and the endless dividing of coins and gems.9:55 Is it worth it to add the crunchiness of appraising and haggling for the sale of gems?11:50 Is 100 gold pieces a lot? What does it cost to live in your world16:33 Gold needs to be able to purchase things that are important or it's just a number on a sheet.18:05 How much magic should you be able to purchase before it loses its uniqueness?22:10 The pitfall of trying to account for all the gold of your world.25:35 “Treasure shouldn't feel like accounting”: Play into the rush of finding treasure.27:15 The cost of upkeep: Strongholds, Followers, Kingdoms, and Warfare!29:18 A shop in the middle of the Underdark… Finding AND moving the treasure you find.31:50 Hirelings in the OSR vs. 5e.34:30 A quick tangent on using Sidekick mechanic from Tasha's in our Dragonlance campaign.37:09 Final Thoughts

At some point, most DMs pursue the idea of a world and/or a campaign where multiple DMs are running the game. This is an audacious and exciting project, so in this week's episode, 3 Wise DMs teamed up with our friends, Lewanika, Josh, and Glen at Tabletop Journeys (www.TTJourneys.com), to discuss shared worlds, shared campaigns, and shared universes… as well as all the other discussions that happen when you try to corral six DMs into a conversation.1:33 The first ever DM Duet In history?3:00 Our first tangent… we discuss Dragonlance!7:25 Our second tangent… do things we loved as kids hold up when we grow up?11:25 We revisit the mission of 3 Wise DMs and learn the mission of Tabletop Journeys.17:00 We start the discussion based on our previous episode about sharing worlds (https://3wisedms.com/sharing-rpg-worlds-balancing-pc-power-levels-and-npc-portrayals-across-shared-campaigns-with-multiple-dms/)22:30 Former characters from other games become the most immersive and real NPCs in your world (https://3wisedms.com/ballad-for-the-bartender-3-quick-tips-to-make-npcs-more-interactive-and-meaningful-in-your-dd-game/)24:16 Our third tangent… bringing our parents into our games.26:23 Reconciling mechanics between different games within the same world, like DM Tony's updated Wand of Wonder (https://3wisedms.com/magic-item-workshop-supercharging-your-wand-of-wonder/)30:40 Some big benefits of a shared world… massive worlds and generational heroes!36:30 Trust your co-DMs to collaborate for the benefit of the entire campaign.40:40 Our fourth tangent… Beatles history.41:50 Using the shared world to ease the transition of players into DMs. 51:00 Digital tools that we've used to assist in thecohesion of information in shared campaigns.59:45 We delve again into the benefits of the “Monster Wrangler” from our Curse of Strahd finale (https://3wisedms.com/back-in-black-the-players-wrap-up-to-the-absolutely-epic-curse-of-strahd-finale-with-vampyr-the-star-of-blood/)1:03:29 Our fifth and final tangent… we still haven'treceived the GI Joe USS Flagg!1:07:17 The first-ever outro DM chorus!

The DM Screen. It's one of the quintessential D&D visuals. But what goes behind it? What lurks behind that foot-high barrier between the characters and the gods? In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave delve into how they use the DM screen, what they want to have behind it, and what they need to have behind it. One thing you do need behind your screen though is dice… so check out our affiliate link with FanRoll dice for all your dice and dice accessories. Go to www.Fanrolldice.com/ref/2871 to get 10% off your entire purchase!1:40 DM Dave's vitamin-induced fever dream that led to thistopic.3:00 First things first: Session Notes.3:58 The most important thing behind the screen? Yourimagination!4:30 The DM Screen. 6:05 A little D&D History tangent about the DM screen.6:45 What's behind depends on what game you're running: terrain,maps, and minis, oh my!8:45 Even with a DM screen, you don't have to hide the dicerolls.9:15 A laptop/tablet as a DM screen.12:06 Even without terrain, maps, minis – still prepare somegood visuals.15:10 How to easily introduce music into the session – also,check out Matt Mercer's DM Screen Gamemaster Tips https://youtu.be/YRMVTmbe-Is17:45 No one sees the NPCs or landscapes the same way… setit in their mind.23:15 Take a lesson from block text: have some preppeddescriptors for important scenes and NPCs.24:45 How Roll20 and VTT's make the entire internet your DMscreen.26:30 Think like a “Road DM.” What are the essentials?32:10 Putting up the DM screen for one character – Character-specificnarrative outside of the game.33:50 The Campaign 3-Ring Binder.34:30 Fodder for another episode – the sequel to RPG Economics https://3wisedms.com/the-3-wise-dms-podcast/rpg-economics-what-can-payers-do-with-all-that-gold/36:50 High Fantasy=Low Magic – another aside.40:18 Final Thoughts

We've talked about it many times on the podcast. We've been waiting for a chance to run it. We finally did! DM Dave ran us through an old-school dungeon crawl for our friend Scott's birthday with the Basic Fantasy Roleplaying RPG. In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave review the pros and cons of returning to Basic Moldvay-era D&D with the OSR. Final verdict: More pros than cons… try it out!For any Dice and Dice Accessories, visit our affiliate link at www.FanRollDice.com/ref/2871 for 10% off your entire purchase!2:16 D&D meets Call of Cthulhu – Everything Will KillYou!4:50 The ease of character creation and how weak that makesyou.6:50 When Intelligence Mattered! The shift in stats.8:40 Limited abilities and resources can streamline the playexperience.10:20 When Fighters were the most boss class.13:45 The ease of running an adventure, especially the basicstat block.16:20 Back when Wizards were just weak, old dudes.17:00 But… spells were REALLY powerful.19:45 DM Chris' biggest con? Dying.21:00 Constant death works against long-arc stories – optionsfor dealing with death because we only care about Ned Stark because he lastedfor all of Season 1.27:50 The soul-crushing experience of old school ExperiencePoints.30:00 Our Dragonlance Campaign tangent about making NPCsmatter to the players.34:40 Basic D&D makes waves of enemy monsters feasibleto run in a single encounter that doesn't take all night.38:40 Why go into a dungeon? MAGIC and TREASURE!40:22 Final Thoughts.

Sleep takes you as you wrap yourself into your bedroll in your campsite in the forest. Your slumber is surprisingly restful this night. As you wake in the morning, you find yourself having taken an Oath to a God and possessing several new spells… Not very satisfying, right? We can all understand that Fighters and Rogues just get better at doing the things they do, but what about Paladins, Warlocks, Clerics, etc… characters that gain incredibly powerful class abilities that are not of this world? In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss how they make character choices in leveling matter more when it comes to BIG class changes.1:00 Check out our affiliate link at www.FanRollDice.com/ref/2871for 10% off your entire dice and accessories order!2:40 Easiest way to start making these choices matter?Backstories!4:00 Using narrative outside the session to help fill outthe big character changes… Oaths, Patrons, etc.5:30 Not just for the DM – taking the initiative as a playerwith your character development.7:10 Have a story reason for big character changes withabilities, feats, etc.9:00 How we handle players that play classic archetypes in unconventionalways.11:30 Making Oaths to Gods and Deities carry the weight theyrequire.12:40 Are Warlocks inherently evil?15:10 What do Warlock patrons want? 18:45 DM-Player Communication to fit mechanical choices intothe overall story.23:45 An Aside: DM Tony's new method of multiclassing thatwe're using in Journey to Ragnarök.26:40 Believable Character progression is the spice in yourcampaign stew.27:50 Let the players help you plant the seeds for theirchoices that create the story.34:50 Final Thoughts.

Running a game is a lesson in balance. There are so many dials and mechanics that you need to manage while also focusing on being what Gary Gygax referred to as “the Shaper of the Cosmos.” Anyone who has started running games or been running for decades has found hacks to make running the game that much easier and streamlined. In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave discuss their favorite DM hacks that we've employed in our games.1 :30 Hack# 1: Where are we going next? Focusing your prep.2:30 Hack# 2: Session Prep Notes 5:20 Hack# 3: Create a Session Prep Template7:00 Hack# 4: Outline your session – create scenes8:15 Hack# 5: Write down your recap – Previously On…10:00 Hack# 6: Players recapping the adventure – taking thecampaign's temperature12:00 Hack# 7: Recording your recap – cranking up the drama15:40 Hack# 8: Google Docs17:00 Hack# 9: Secrets, Clues, Scenes & Encounters – TheQuantum Ogre Campaign19:00 Hack# 10: Streamline your Stat Blocks20:50 Hack# 11: Static Damage… who wants to add up 40d6 damage?!?23:10 Hack# 12: Delegate the DM duties – Return of theMonster Wrangler!25:00 Hack# 13: Static Initiative? 27:20 Hack# 14: There's an app for that – using technologyto your advantage28:30 Hack# 15: Spell crib notes when running yourspellcasters31:30 Hack# 16: Scripting Monster Tactics – Monster Shorthand38:10 Hack# 17: Adjusting the hit point dial… start with maximumhit points42:20 Hack# 18: Get a sense of your party's Damage per Round50:00 Final Thoughts