3 Wise DMs

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