But the most important rule is, the players will always latch onto that one npc you made up on the spot and ignore the one you worked hard on. ;) I've watched my players travel miles and miles just to talk to the armourer guy again that I made up on a whim!
Simo That is so true, and amazingly they will latch on to the most random npcs possible. In my current campaign i made an epic Taskmaster with a rich background and story, and they didn't give a damn, but i throw one random bandit who doesn't immediately try to kill them and now he is a party member as far as their concerned.
This is a really good intro in preparing NPCs. One of my little tricks is to give an NPC a "quirk" so that they're more memorable; but then I'm not as good at accents as you. One example was a Professor in Call of Cthulhu who was very overweight and unfit so he kept puffing after the odd sentence. It was a simple quirk but helped give him life and some character.
+Andy Simmons Yes! Yes yes. As part of this series - spoiler! - I will be showing you guys how I do bad accents, and maybe helping you guys improve yours, but also on those little... moments of detail to help bring the character to life! I have however always found it easy to NPC a fat old professor... I wonder why :p
Enjoying all of the content! A video I would enjoy is ways of coaxing feedback out of your players. People are always too nice to say what they would like to change.
+Chris Schmidt It really is hard to get good info from your players. But I've worked out a few tricks over the years and I'll happily share my few thoughts on the subject as soon as I get to it as it's on the list! Glad you like the content!
Something I found. If the party is able to talk down a powerful potential adversary but still want to have a fight because the players want to do combat you can have things in character by just arranging so that the former enemy will now do a sparring session. High impact sparring with a cleric on standby to heal people but you can get the fun of rolling dice in combat and respect the players choices to talk through their problems rather then just hitting them.
Interesting point of view. I'd like to see how you DM, because I feel that i have a different approach to most of my NPCs. I give them a few traits good and bad, take a look at the political landscape so i have an idea how they would react to other npcs and what they want. lastly i take a few notes what they might and might not know from there i just role with the punches. Obviously there are moments when I introduce npcs that give advice or quests, but that, at least for somewhat important npcs is introduced to the characters after the groundwork is done
+DummyUrD www.baconrpg.com is my online RPG group. I often break my own rules/forget them/or wish I'd used them after the fact but generally speaking I use the types as a guide and ADD on layers such as you suggest.
○ Leads the PCs from point A to Point B. ○ Are used to give the PCs physical direction inside the world and to help present meaningful choices to the players. ○ Generally used to influence where the PCs go, and just as importantly, where they don't go. The Advancement NPC ○ Used primarily to advance the story or the PC's plans. ○ Provides important information or sets up an impending event. ○ Give this NPC a reason to provide information or aid to the PCs. They probably won't do it for free, either! The Antagonist NPC ○ Any NPC that offers opposition to the PCs. Their purpose is to cause temporary derailment of the PCs plans. ○ Provide opportunity for the PCs to befriend or effect the NPC and change their function. The Mentor NPC ○ The Advice-Giver. An NPC tool to make sure that the PCs have not forgotten anything important. ○ The Mentor helps prepare the PCs for the road ahead and pass information from the GM to the players. ○ Greatly used before or after a mission. Warning after a victory, support after a defeat. The 'Long-Term' NPC ○ They're recurring. In for the long haul. Can take on any NPC function as needed. The Support NPC ○ A background NPC used to spark up the setting and sell the illusion that the world is alive and continues around the characters. Here are my notes on the video. As this is one of your older videos, I am definitely appreciating how much this channel has grown and changed and how much your videos have improved. Thoughts: I am finding I do not like the way this structure is presented. I like the ideas behind the Guide, the Mentor, the Advancer and the Antagonists, but I feel that the role the NPC plays in the story, is independent from how important they are as characters. Typifying a character by that is much more helpful the less important and fleshed out the character is. As the last two types are to my understanding based on how central the character is to the story, classifying them alongside the functions of the other NPCs is weird. Knowing what you can do as a GM with your NPCs is important, and I think this might have been less confusing for me if it had been presented from the point of view of 'what you can do with your NPCs' as opposed to what they do changing exactly 'what' the NPC is. Cheers! Obviously I wouldn't take the time for all this if I didn't care about TTRPGs and the channel, and trying to make sense of using NPCs as tools in my own games. I'll have to check out more of your thoughts as you jump deeper into each 'type' of NPC in your other videos.
i love your videos, new required viewing for my players. up there with holy grail and spaceballs. You couldnt of chosen a thumbnail with your eyes open?
+Glimprime I have to make the thumbnail tonight.. I was lazy last night :) And Holy Grail IS what roleplaying is all about! Spaceballs... you know there is a second one being planned. Will it succeed? Or will Yoghurt have to come and save the Swartz?
could you maybe have that support NPC also have as a mentor. as said the butler who is more friends with the PC than a servant and who offers a word of advice (wether he is asked to or not)? as in after a mission butler goes and talks and before each mission butlers helps with packing and could then suggest things like the mentor
I would love to sub at least 3 more times just for having the MTG white broaders background. Lmao great advice again >.< wish you would have a game for subs
+robert goodwin I really... really... really... hate to burst your bubble, but I feel I have to be honest: The background is actually Decipher's Star Trek CCG 1st edition. I have boxes of MTG cards, which I did contemplate using (and I mean form 1996 Ice Age expansion for 4th ed MTG when Mana meant something, and white sucked :)). As to your request for a game for Subscribers, I'm whipping the webgoblin daily as we will be launching a project hopefully within the month that may... just be what you're looking for :) Stay tuned!
+How to be a Great Game Master I remember those days, when they had to ban Memory jar decks from dci's..... sigh fetch lands killed those days. Either way yea cant wait to see what you got cooked up for us.
Thank you for the series, I plan to dm my first game some time soon with my friends who are also new. I also thought of an npc which transports the party to wherever it´s needed. The only thing that i am not prepared for and perhaps even afraid of, is that the players might not follow the path i have setup for them. I do not wish to give the players no options and i have decided to let them go about their way however they choose. But what do i do when the players do something completely unexpected such as going a complete different way or kill important npc´s randomly?
When they do something unexpected, which they most certainly will, call for a short break if you need it. Have a look through your notes and figure out what'll be awaiting them when they arrive. If they kill an NPC it's dead, unless your world works differently. I find being able to kill your darlings to be a good GM skill to possess. When in doubt grab a break.
+deadssquare Woodthorn is correct if you are a new GM ask for a little break (but not too often). However remember ONLY you know which is the path they should follow. If they go left instead of right, MOVE your dungeon to the left. If they kill an important NPC BEFORE the NPC gives them information... just make up another NPC to do the job who they may not kill. Part of your job as GM is to shift your story around the players choices, so it FEEL's like the players are driving it, but in fact, you're just letting them :) Good luck and just have fun! Let us know how it goes!
+Woodthorn I made an open world for my players but they complained of no direction so I introduced a story element and they complained about it being linear. so in short players don't know what they want. So just run the game you like and if they keep coming back it's a sign your doing something right.
huh, I guess I'm the first comment..... that's new.... great video btw, I generally go for a sillier tone with my npcs but it would be nice to have an idea of what to do for a serious one
Cool vid! Question, though...about something kinda related to NPC's. I'd like to know your thoughts on it. Could a DM run his own NPC/PC character along with a small party to fill up a missing role? Like a cleric or some such, who stays in the background most of the time (Cause the players need to play the game) but at times could fulfill the role of the mentor, or perhaps the guide when the party needs it. I was thinking about cooking up a few of these support roles to roll with the party. Some people who jump in a few sessions and then leave to do their own thing, mix things up a bit. I hear a lot of people who think this is some form of cheating. I'd like to know your opinion on this!
+ForeverTheEquinox I had this scenario when a party I DM'ed (Pathfinder) had no divine spell caster whatsoever. Essentially, I leveled a permanent NPC character on my own free time, using the same stat buys and wealth as the PCs did (So as to not over shadow their abilities) and, in essence, passed off the character sheet to the group. This way, I don't have a DMPC (Very bad) in game, but the PCs now have a backup healer/spell craft expert they can use outside of combat and serves as a mentor for the group. It works great for them so far! I hope yours goes great as well!
+ForeverTheEquinox What Julianne said is true. And yes you can. The challenge is not to use that DMPC as a railroad. When I was growing up it was expected that the GM would take on a PC role as well. We were only three players in a small little town. So we needed a third 'pc'. And mostly that character was there for support, not driving the plot. The players would sometimes turn to the DMPC and ask: What do you think? It was a great opportunity for the GM to drive home their story, but he didn't do it. Instead he played that PC without GM knowledge - so just as if he was a player. It worked well. But was a lot of work for the GM! I'm also nervous about the idea of a 'missing' role. If the party doesn't have a healer - you don't need to role-play a healer for them. If you look at the game I currently run (www.baconrpg.com) there is no healer. As a GM you just need to adjust and 'help' where you can. I don't think there is such a thing as a missing role - just a modified game experience.
But the most important rule is, the players will always latch onto that one npc you made up on the spot and ignore the one you worked hard on. ;)
I've watched my players travel miles and miles just to talk to the armourer guy again that I made up on a whim!
+Simo Oh yes. Absolutely! But it kinda also is cool that they do that!
Simo That is so true, and amazingly they will latch on to the most random npcs possible. In my current campaign i made an epic Taskmaster with a rich background and story, and they didn't give a damn, but i throw one random bandit who doesn't immediately try to kill them and now he is a party member as far as their concerned.
Haahahahaha... love players!
i realize I am kinda randomly asking but do anybody know a good website to watch newly released series online?
@Matteo Justin i would suggest FlixZone. You can find it on google :)
This is a really good intro in preparing NPCs. One of my little tricks is to give an NPC a "quirk" so that they're more memorable; but then I'm not as good at accents as you. One example was a Professor in Call of Cthulhu who was very overweight and unfit so he kept puffing after the odd sentence. It was a simple quirk but helped give him life and some character.
+Andy Simmons Yes! Yes yes. As part of this series - spoiler! - I will be showing you guys how I do bad accents, and maybe helping you guys improve yours, but also on those little... moments of detail to help bring the character to life! I have however always found it easy to NPC a fat old professor... I wonder why :p
Yes, I need all the help I can get!! (-:
Enjoying all of the content! A video I would enjoy is ways of coaxing feedback out of your players. People are always too nice to say what they would like to change.
+Chris Schmidt It really is hard to get good info from your players. But I've worked out a few tricks over the years and I'll happily share my few thoughts on the subject as soon as I get to it as it's on the list! Glad you like the content!
Something I found. If the party is able to talk down a powerful potential adversary but still want to have a fight because the players want to do combat you can have things in character by just arranging so that the former enemy will now do a sparring session. High impact sparring with a cleric on standby to heal people but you can get the fun of rolling dice in combat and respect the players choices to talk through their problems rather then just hitting them.
Interesting point of view.
I'd like to see how you DM, because I feel that i have a different approach to most of my NPCs.
I give them a few traits good and bad, take a look at the political landscape so i have an idea how they would react to other npcs and what they want.
lastly i take a few notes what they might and might not know
from there i just role with the punches.
Obviously there are moments when I introduce npcs that give advice or quests, but that, at least for somewhat important npcs is introduced to the characters after the groundwork is done
+DummyUrD www.baconrpg.com is my online RPG group. I often break my own rules/forget them/or wish I'd used them after the fact but generally speaking I use the types as a guide and ADD on layers such as you suggest.
Very useful advice once again, so glad this got released well before April. Going to use this for my NPC's, cant wait for the rest of the NPC series.
+LucaBlight Glad to hear it!
very nice video, very informative! I'll use this advice in my next session
My brain is telling me those are Magic: the Gathering cards on the wall...
Roles of NPCs based on Function
The Guide NPC
○ Leads the PCs from point A to Point B.
○ Are used to give the PCs physical direction inside the world and to help present meaningful choices to the players.
○ Generally used to influence where the PCs go, and just as importantly, where they don't go.
The Advancement NPC
○ Used primarily to advance the story or the PC's plans.
○ Provides important information or sets up an impending event.
○ Give this NPC a reason to provide information or aid to the PCs. They probably won't do it for free, either!
The Antagonist NPC
○ Any NPC that offers opposition to the PCs. Their purpose is to cause temporary derailment of the PCs plans.
○ Provide opportunity for the PCs to befriend or effect the NPC and change their function.
The Mentor NPC
○ The Advice-Giver. An NPC tool to make sure that the PCs have not forgotten anything important.
○ The Mentor helps prepare the PCs for the road ahead and pass information from the GM to the players.
○ Greatly used before or after a mission. Warning after a victory, support after a defeat.
The 'Long-Term' NPC
○ They're recurring. In for the long haul. Can take on any NPC function as needed.
The Support NPC
○ A background NPC used to spark up the setting and sell the illusion that the world is alive and continues around the characters.
Here are my notes on the video. As this is one of your older videos, I am definitely appreciating how much this channel has grown and changed and how much your videos have improved.
Thoughts:
I am finding I do not like the way this structure is presented. I like the ideas behind the Guide, the Mentor, the Advancer and the Antagonists, but I feel that the role the NPC plays in the story, is independent from how important they are as characters. Typifying a character by that is much more helpful the less important and fleshed out the character is. As the last two types are to my understanding based on how central the character is to the story, classifying them alongside the functions of the other NPCs is weird.
Knowing what you can do as a GM with your NPCs is important, and I think this might have been less confusing for me if it had been presented from the point of view of 'what you can do with your NPCs' as opposed to what they do changing exactly 'what' the NPC is.
Cheers! Obviously I wouldn't take the time for all this if I didn't care about TTRPGs and the channel, and trying to make sense of using NPCs as tools in my own games. I'll have to check out more of your thoughts as you jump deeper into each 'type' of NPC in your other videos.
Great video as always!
+unforgeti Many thanks :)
i love your videos, new required viewing for my players. up there with holy grail and spaceballs. You couldnt of chosen a thumbnail with your eyes open?
+Glimprime I have to make the thumbnail tonight.. I was lazy last night :) And Holy Grail IS what roleplaying is all about! Spaceballs... you know there is a second one being planned. Will it succeed? Or will Yoghurt have to come and save the Swartz?
could you maybe have that support NPC also have as a mentor. as said the butler who is more friends with the PC than a servant and who offers a word of advice (wether he is asked to or not)? as in after a mission butler goes and talks and before each mission butlers helps with packing and could then suggest things like the mentor
I would love to sub at least 3 more times just for having the MTG white broaders background. Lmao great advice again >.< wish you would have a game for subs
+robert goodwin I really... really... really... hate to burst your bubble, but I feel I have to be honest: The background is actually Decipher's Star Trek CCG 1st edition. I have boxes of MTG cards, which I did contemplate using (and I mean form 1996 Ice Age expansion for 4th ed MTG when Mana meant something, and white sucked :)). As to your request for a game for Subscribers, I'm whipping the webgoblin daily as we will be launching a project hopefully within the month that may... just be what you're looking for :) Stay tuned!
+How to be a Great Game Master I remember those days, when they had to ban Memory jar decks from dci's..... sigh fetch lands killed those days. Either way yea cant wait to see what you got cooked up for us.
Hehehehe...sooooo long ago!
Thank you for the series, I plan to dm my first game some time soon with my friends who are also new. I also thought of an npc which transports the party to wherever it´s needed. The only thing that i am not prepared for and perhaps even afraid of, is that the players might not follow the path i have setup for them. I do not wish to give the players no options and i have decided to let them go about their way however they choose. But what do i do when the players do something completely unexpected such as going a complete different way or kill important npc´s randomly?
When they do something unexpected, which they most certainly will, call for a short break if you need it. Have a look through your notes and figure out what'll be awaiting them when they arrive. If they kill an NPC it's dead, unless your world works differently. I find being able to kill your darlings to be a good GM skill to possess.
When in doubt grab a break.
+deadssquare Woodthorn is correct if you are a new GM ask for a little break (but not too often). However remember ONLY you know which is the path they should follow. If they go left instead of right, MOVE your dungeon to the left. If they kill an important NPC BEFORE the NPC gives them information... just make up another NPC to do the job who they may not kill. Part of your job as GM is to shift your story around the players choices, so it FEEL's like the players are driving it, but in fact, you're just letting them :) Good luck and just have fun! Let us know how it goes!
How to be a Great Game Master I usually just let my players drive the story, but whatever floats your boat.
+Woodthorn I made an open world for my players but they complained of no direction so I introduced a story element and they complained about it being linear. so in short players don't know what they want.
So just run the game you like and if they keep coming back it's a sign your doing something right.
Agreed!
huh, I guess I'm the first comment..... that's new.... great video btw, I generally go for a sillier tone with my npcs but it would be nice to have an idea of what to do for a serious one
+Pe Wee Panda Silly is always a matter of perspective. A Guide NPC can still be silly... :) But 10 points for being first to comment!
Cool vid! Question, though...about something kinda related to NPC's. I'd like to know your thoughts on it.
Could a DM run his own NPC/PC character along with a small party to fill up a missing role? Like a cleric or some such, who stays in the background most of the time (Cause the players need to play the game) but at times could fulfill the role of the mentor, or perhaps the guide when the party needs it. I was thinking about cooking up a few of these support roles to roll with the party. Some people who jump in a few sessions and then leave to do their own thing, mix things up a bit.
I hear a lot of people who think this is some form of cheating. I'd like to know your opinion on this!
+ForeverTheEquinox I had this scenario when a party I DM'ed (Pathfinder) had no divine spell caster whatsoever. Essentially, I leveled a permanent NPC character on my own free time, using the same stat buys and wealth as the PCs did (So as to not over shadow their abilities) and, in essence, passed off the character sheet to the group. This way, I don't have a DMPC (Very bad) in game, but the PCs now have a backup healer/spell craft expert they can use outside of combat and serves as a mentor for the group. It works great for them so far! I hope yours goes great as well!
+ForeverTheEquinox What Julianne said is true. And yes you can. The challenge is not to use that DMPC as a railroad. When I was growing up it was expected that the GM would take on a PC role as well. We were only three players in a small little town. So we needed a third 'pc'. And mostly that character was there for support, not driving the plot. The players would sometimes turn to the DMPC and ask: What do you think? It was a great opportunity for the GM to drive home their story, but he didn't do it. Instead he played that PC without GM knowledge - so just as if he was a player. It worked well. But was a lot of work for the GM! I'm also nervous about the idea of a 'missing' role. If the party doesn't have a healer - you don't need to role-play a healer for them. If you look at the game I currently run (www.baconrpg.com) there is no healer. As a GM you just need to adjust and 'help' where you can. I don't think there is such a thing as a missing role - just a modified game experience.
magic cards in the background that get a like!!
I always end up killing my Guide npcs, players just say i follow.
So in short, once your players get attached to an NPC, kill them off to make them sad. Got it XD