“My character holds the blowgun carefully and inspects the stitched mouth of this assassin. With a curious look, he sniffs the end of the blowgun and wrinkles his brows in disgust as the truth is revealed...”
Just stumbled on to your site. Nice presentation! Are you doing D&D5e, Pathfinders, other, or all? I'm in the process of constructing a homebrew that uses the old Hommlett module as a springboard, and appreciated the tips on how to avoid making this a railroad. You earned yourself another subscribe!
Ted Oplinger I’m doing Village of Hommlet right now too!!! I run a Frankenstein combo of 5E, Index Card RPG, 5E Hardcore Mode, & Warhammer FRP. Thanks for the sub!
Bravo. I know it sounds strange, but I would love to see you do this a couple more times applying the concept to a variety of adventure types. It seemed like this was a hunt and recover mission, but what about A political intrigue? A mystery? A dungeon? Thank you for the awesome content. Already excited to see next week.
I'm in the middle of a political intrigue type adventure currently. My players were hired by the prince to investigate some shady dealings of another house. The PCs found out about some vampires in the area as well and a vigilante vampire slayer. They decided to find out more about these vampires instead of engaging the political rival. Little do the PCs know that they are connected. There were two very different paths and many subplots, but they all lead to the same discovery.
either the necromancer collects a new corpse or the paladin pays for his burrial and sends him away into the afterlife, 6feed under or with a fure burrial, depending on the region
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 C'mon, what band of murder hobos isn't going to at least loot the body? 😁 I mean, it CAN happen I suppose. That's when you improvise something like … a member of the Watch happened to see this go down and takes the players into custody for questioning. He'll be politely insistent since he saw that the players didn't actually kill Scabs, but the tavern is full of dangerous-looking men who turn menacing at this turn of events. The menace is directed at YOU, the players. The sooner YOU go with him, the sooner this lawman will be gone.
@@MixMastaShiz Strangely reviving doesn't work in this case. :) Interesting question of revivify and poison generally since it doesn't cure the poison would you just die again assuming a large enough dose?
I just ran this scenario for my 13 YO daughter and her friends last night. We've been playing since around October 2020, but only roughly once a month with a few hiatus periods around the holidays, so it was only our 16th session. They've been going through the Caves of Chaos using the "Caverns of Carnage" as a template but modifying some of the more gory parts for a younger crowd. I set-up Scabs way back around Session 3, and the Thief in the party runs into him almost every time they are at the Greased Goat tavern. She kept saying Scabs were her "bestie" so when she heard he was in trouble and needed her to come see him at the Dripping Dagger tavern, she didn't hesitate. After he was "killed" by the Green Scorpion Assassin, the party chased the Assassin briefly but all of them failed their Dex jumps while jumping across the roof, so the Assassin got away. They returned to Scabs' "body" and investigated, but then the Thief wanted to "give him a proper burial" because she felt bad he was just lying there in the tavern. They eventually decided there was no way to do that unnoticed, so they dumped his body into a wagon full of rotting vegetables (one that they had fallen into after falling during the rooftop chase) because they figured the rotting vegetables would cover the smell of his decaying body. When he showed up later to steal the Demon's Skull from the leader of the Swine Gang, they were really upset and now for the next session, they have decided to forgo going back to the Caves and instead spend the whole session searching for Scabs to take their revenge!
Well in Palladium books, they use I.Q. for Initiave. I believe the skill was called "Combat Initiative". Its a good skill and how its described makes perfect sense.
I think pathfinder has switched over to Perception/Stealth for initiative. Genesys/Star Wars uses vigilance (perception) and cool (will save). PDM is the first person I've seen it for "skill initiative"
@@FelipeBudinich Yep. You can get pretty wild with it if you like. Intimidation for a tense stand-off situation where the first one who flinches is at a disadvantage. Arcana/magic skill if the first warning of an impending fight is a spell being prepped or some dreadful Thing From Beyond that leaks evil magic as it starts to manifest. Nature/animal handling/monster lore to be ready when that wary-looking beastie suddenly attacks. That sort of thing.
I use a flow chart to map out where the story is going, but a lot of the details are fluid and sometime spontaneous. I also have a list of previous NPCs and future plot hooks I tend to sprinkle in when it makes sense. The end result looks like intricate planned out story. I tend to plan stories in broad strokes and let the details manifest during play. Great advice as always PDM!
DungeonWorld's Fronts are amazing for this. Every session, you'll have to update the Fronts in response to what the characters do. It allows you to minimize planning of paths not taken. Return of the lazy dungeon master has advice on how to use Fronts that I found effective.
Hey Prof, what would you think about giving the Green Scorpion Death Cult different colored rings to indicate their rank? Copper for low level, then Bronze, Silver, Gold and finally Platinum for the Cult master. I like to run E6 (Epic level 6) games, so with that the Cultist rank levels would line up pretty well. From a basic level 1 thug with no ring, up to Level 6 with a platinum ring. As to the PC's not knowing how to contact the Assassin Cult, in my most recent campaign (currently on a 'beer break') my group's PCs are working for the Mayor of a small growing town. He's a bit shady but seems on the up and up. One day one of the Players seemed to be in a bit of a mood and was giving off a lot of attitude and I thought she might kill the mayor. This lead me to realize that the mayor is a minor noble with connections to what is basically the mafia. So, if he's killed they would authorize a hit on his killer, and there would be a string of assassination attempts on that player's character (with the party in general getting caught up in the crossfire). Eventually the Assassins Guild would send out their 2 highest ranking assassins and it'd be a make it or break it attempt. Now, on the other hand, if the PC's are in good standing with the "Shady Mayor" and I ran this for them, if they talked to him about the Green Scorpions, I wouldn't have him let on that he knows how to get in contact with them, but would have him secretly arrange a meet-up with the PC's. Maybe he could provide them with the password if they haven't figured it out, and point them in the right direction. He could be the same Scorpion that shows up at the end. Anyhow, as always, love your ideas, keep 'em coming sir!
This is the best channel on RUclips for DMs looking to up their game IMHO. I made the mistake once of the fully open-ended sandbox game, nearly gave myself a nervous breakdown trying to account for the endless options. Matrix is where it's at. Thanks Professor, and props for keeping that OSE boxed set front and center...well kind of off-center, but you get it.
Is like designing a video game, all the scenarios are already planed and designed, they have freedom of choice but their choice you tweak the results to lead to one of the possible next resulting scenarios. Just don't tell your players that the scenarios are written, and don't write them on stone, you can edit them on the run, even recycle or combine some outcomes.
Hey Professor DM, I tried to show a friend your last video last night and in said: "video unavailable on this device." I was using my desktop. IS RUclips screwing with your uploads now? Hey, is my calendar wrong? I thought today was Wednesday.
I have to say, I DMed for the last 6-7 years and this channel really made me step up my games and improve. I even helped a few friends that want to dm with hints taken here.
I actually have so many encounters made that they are labeled A-Z. I have their bullet points on 5x7 index cards and "subroutine" flows as A-1, A-2, etc on each card as necessary. This was all built up over several years, so it's not like I sat down and wrote out all 26 cards before even starting the campaign.
I was flipping through the Village Of Hommlet. Sheesh there are very descriptive cottages and rooms with nothing. A flow chart would have kept the game on track better.
Hello Professor, I am trying to run a Low Fantasy Gaming campaign with only one player. Do you have any tips for running a game with only one player? Is it possible? Thanks.
Excellent advice. I will add this to my arsenal. BTW, as a side note, you don't have a connection from the blow gun being dropped back to search the body. I'm a software developer and the dead end jumped out at me. Love your channel.
What a great idea. I love how this channel is all about keeping your head our of the book/manual as much as possible so you can get on with more roleplaying Thanks for another great vid!
Player party loot Scabs and find the scroll. One of PCs decides they should take the body and dispose of it elsewhere and slit the throat so no one else can pick up the same breadcrumb trail as they did. DMs master plan foiled. Commence paniced DM improv session. Just the kind of luck I would have if I ran something like this I bet. As to the actual structure, this sounds just like most Video game RPGs are structured. Illusion of choice with a handfull of paths to take leeding to a fixed set of possible endings. When that NPC in Baldurs Gate/Mass Effect/Dragon Age/Other Game seems to respond in the same or almost the same when you click on 2-3 different dialogure choices, this is the method the game designers used.
Easy enough. Just do the same thing, but now it's just the assassins that show up at the end instead of Scabs. Now it was a plot by the assassins to get the demon skull. Maybe they set Scabs up to give the players info and then betrayed him. Maybe they planned to take it on their own and the players weren't meant to get involved. Either way, the story doesn't need to change much.
Twist of Events ! If the a PC makes a high enough roll Diplomacy skill check or Charisma roll. And tell the guards the " truth " as to what is happening or what they think is happening, they can make allies with the Butcher thieves guild and have side jobs or later contacts with " favors," for later campaign use. It is good to have " friends " in low places.
First off, AWESOME video. It was off the charts..pun intended. What sets you apart PDM, is your videos have such great value to them when helping inexperienced DM's like me that want to learn. I bought XDM on your recommendation and have never regretted it, in fact...thank you for that. I know you've mentioned this topic before in videos, but to give us a valuable lesson of one of Hickman's lessons and a great one shot to see how you applied the lesson is so cool. Speaking of cool, I love the idea of using the lemon juice for the note, I will be doing my extra credit, be assured. Between shooting, the time to think of the one shot and all your efforts of making this video, a sincere THANK YOU PDM. I'm gonna be a good DM yet. Cheers!!
I've been a long time fan of the channel, subscribed years ago, member of the Patreon and yet somehow I had never seen this video! It's great! How did I miss it? Thanks for all the resources you put out.
Glad to have another great adventure to potentially add to my own games. I hope we can expect more of these in the future. I've been missing adventures written by the professor since the campaign diaries ended.
Now that we're forced to play via VTT this advice is even better. It took me 2 sessions searching details in PDFs to realize how necessary having quick-access notes really is
Play something else or get someone else to run the game. I got burned out on D&D so I started running a Call of Cthulhu campaign and it's going so much better because I'm actually passionate about it.
All my campaigns are open-ended. I never plan 80% of my stuff and that's how it should be. It's called IMPROVISATION. The players have to improvise all the time... so should the GM. The player don't play my story... they play THEIR story... I am just there to bring THEIR world alive. I'm tired SO much of linear gaming: My Paladin create an order of Knights... fine, it will never impact the game... it's not in the campaign. Your thief create his own guild... fine, never comes into play because the PREMADE stuff hadn't planned that. I just totally hate that. When I'm a player I expect to let my mark on the world (or try to) I MUST be able to do that eventually. That's why IF we ever use premade stuff, we'll probably switch leveling progression to slow... so WHEN (not if) the players do their own stuff they won't out level the campaign too much (yes... I think about you King-Maker...). And you would be just fine doing it... not that hard and SO much fun :) I never know WHAT will be the story because It's never premade... I react to the players... that simple. // About the Demon's Skull - IF you can jump from roof to roof.. you can clearly use small weapons (also reward players for not always going for the biggest piece of steel in the book :P). O_O Much harder to jump from roof to roof in a WET FOG. A spell making wind would probably open line of sight for ranged guys... so ''no spell would be effective'': sorry but never underestimate magic... it always break the game :P I really like you little adventure :D (I'll steal it and drop that in one of my open-ended campaign :P) - like a semi random event in a town the players seems to hang in a lot. Nice video :D
I'm a bit slow (again) to the party, but this was a great idea. Thank you for the video; I should start using this flow chart suggestion. Question for PDM: any thoughts (or fond memoires, I hope) of the original World of Greyhawk D&D setting? It's a sort of "old friend" for me in the games I've run for years.
"Zoom drug enhancing speed and dexterity..." - Barry Allen sees what you did there an he is not amused. :D (Says the guy who gave the Shadow Sorcerers of Vecna the looks of MK1-2 shadow priests and their summoned Hound of Ill Omen the looks of Noob Saibot. ;) )
With apologies, what does the DM get from a flowchart? Safety. What do the players want from a DM? Crazy good. Stop hiding in algorithms. Shelly didn't write Frankenstein from a flowchart. Be a story teller. Work your audience. Some players may want exploration or puzzles and others combat. Your story keeps the game on target. You won't get heroic drama from a template. The skill you want to develop is story-telling, not program building.
Excellent insights! One more valuable entry for my PDM Bible! A quick observation: I wasn't able to read the story you made "Gallows Dance", the link you have given us does not have this story anymore for some reason. :(
Now I'm just imagining the players doing something insane, like decapitating Scabs' body to reap a reward from the town guard, or from a rival gang. Or they want to cast "Speak with Dead" on his corpse.
I highly recommend SCAPPLE for this. It is a program from the makers of Scrivener. I made a flow chart like this for Curse of Strahd, I could import the maps from DnDbeyond, pictures for NPCs (speeds up descriptions), I set the flow chart in the same shape as the Borovian map and could link information gained at one location to another location with arrows. Flow charts for the win. Of course, converting an entire module into a Scapple flowchart took HOURS but it makes it so that a book never be opened after that. Also, you can do it in pieces. Obviously, you don't have to have the final scene mapped out or every location if there isn't a chance for the PCs to jump directly there. Much of a flow chart can and should be done between sessions. 1. this increases player agency and 2. keeps you from making a bunch of details that the PCs will never see. Another great video PDM!
Yes, but what do you do if something goes awry and the players become CONVINCED that one of the other toughs in the tavern must've killed Scabs and start wasting time hovering over Scabs? Also, you're going to have to stamp out a whole lot of magic to make certain that they don't end up interrogating the assassin OR the totally-not-dead Scabs. Cure Poison? Speak with Dead? The Fighter has been playing Red Dead Redemption a lot since last session and captures the assassin by turning his (expensive, fortified spider silk) rope into a lasso so the assassin CAN'T fall to his death? What if Scabs ends up dying for real somehow while he's playing possum? You treat illusionism as a magic bullet, but the trouble with putting your faith in illusions is that they are powerless before the blind, the thoughtful, and the fool who wasn't paying attention in the first place. Ask any 2nd edition gnome. So, rely on real things instead of illusions. Conjurers are illusionists, but better. All these problems go away if you go one level deeper while you are planning and ask yourself "what are the VILLAIN'S backup plans?" or "What was the NPC in question even trying to accomplish in this situation?" or to put it another way "What's my motivation?"
"Railroading" is only really bad because you are FORCED to follow the tracks. (taking away your control over our own character) I tend to use a more open ended DMing method. (halfway point between railroad & open world. . . . .is that the Matrix?) I don't think players should have the "ILLUSION" of choice, but actual choice! Most of the time I find when presented with a rather Linear plot, even with open options, alternatives & the freedom to choose, players will tend to stick pretty close to the Railroad tracks. (in order to see where it leads) Mostly because that tends to be the most optimal choice & usually garners the best results.
Professor, I love this BUT, my players are thinkers. I would imagine they would say, “how did this green scorpion assassin shoot a blowgun with his mouth sewn shut and how does he eat anyway?” Did I miss something? Otherwise, brilliant.
Professor, I love this BUT, my players are thinkers. I would imagine they would say, “how did this green scorpion assassin shoot a blowgun with his mouth sewn shut and how does he eat anyway?” Did I miss something? Otherwise, brilliant.
What program or method did you use to make your flow chart look so clean and organized? I've been looking into using smart art in Microsoft word to mimic it... but it's overly colorful and stylized and just not working for me. Did you just use straight text boxes? While this video did an excellent job of demonstrating the benefits of using a flow chart in adventure design and presented an engaging adventure, it did not go into detail on the process of making one yourself. Personally, I found your other older videos, especially 'DungeonCraft #45: Campaign Session 1', more helpful for that. Watching you physically draw the flowchart of the firstadventure on a white board helped it click for me and I'd love to see more of that. Cheers, thanks for all the effort you put into these videos!
So I have a question. I like the idea of giving the players the illusion of making choices, so in your example, when they can search the body or chase the assassin, do you actually say that? "So what would you like to do, search the body or chase the assassin?" Technically giving them two choices, but making them feel like they are choosing their own fate by picking one of them? I think the mistake I make is simply asking them "What would you like to do?" which leaves it super open-ended and then I'm scrambling to put story together. Kinda like laying track down while riding the front of a train. Thoughts?
This is great! Thank you. I've been DMing for 30 years and I learn something new every time I watch a video. I usually use an outline, but I think the flow chart is better in terms of conceptualizing the adventure and where it is going.
Hi, I just wanted to say I love your videos. They have transformed my game sessions, and I think my players are enjoying our games a lot more nowadays. Are you planning on any further campaign videos, or has Covid put the metaphorical arrow in that metaphorical knee?
I’ve seen DMs try to do the Improve method, letting players go where ever they want. It sucks. The DM is just lazy, they never did so much work that they have things prepared for you to go anywhere. Hour one table chatter, hour two that one player hijacks the game interacting with some npc for waaaaaaaay too long. Hour three long pauses, snacks, people staring at each other wondering why nothing is happening. Hour four the dm throws in a combat encounter. For the longest time I only had Friday night to play, and it was awful, week after week of this before I finally quit to stay home and play video games, or watch movies.
Not to toot my own horn, but being one of those DMs that play their campaigns once a month, I tend to go over (mentally) pretty much every single type of scenario about every encounter i put into my campaign. I'm pretty good at guessing what my players will do, and so I'm able to have an alternate scenario figured out ahead of time. I've only ever been stumped one time with what a Player came at me with, and really, I should've just killed the idiot right there on the spot. You just don't try to start a fight with a high level NPC when you're only lvl 3!
LOL by anticipate where they may go , he mean make a small map of every house the rogue might burglarize, and which dressers have something worth stealing , even if only some candles.... ;)
I prefer to run sadbox type games. Sand BOX games. As in theres a boundary to the players world. Currently Im running a campaign on an island that has a handful of villages, a lords keep and a town with a harbour. And whenever the players go to the harbour its either: A. Closed down due to weather, disease or winter. B. There was a ship but you missed it. C. The ships captain wont allow passengers for "whatever" reason. On the island itself theres a bunch of recyclable locations: an abandoned mine, a gloomy forest, a natural cave system, an ancient abandoned temple and a bunch of other creepy places. And between game sessions I just make new small events so the players have a constant backlog of crap that needs dealing with. A creepy lair wont stay empty for long. Some new tennant will eventually move in allowing me to use the same lotations again later. It takes some work setting up but the reward is it doesnt matter where the players go you got a single page with all the intel needed to throw an event at the players when they get there.
I listened to Tracy at a school fantasy and Sci-Fi symposium where he discussed this concept - it wasn;t this flushed out (it was 1991) but lead from point a through choices 1,2,3 ... then funneled back down to the endpoint - boss fight. It's ctually a concept I'm investigation for some Choose Your Own Adventure style assessments for by EDD.
I have always run open world games. I'm not one-in-a million, or all that impressive actually, I just like to rollplay the commoners and shopkeeps. I would always leave a few hooks that could be followed or not, but those storylines will advance regardless of players willingness to follow them. If you lean into the player backstories it adds a little more draw to the hooks. After these fronts mount and begin to trouble the PCs they begin to look for and follow story hooks sooner so as not to get overwhelmed by them. And there's always the mysterious old man at the tavern looking to hire a group for this or that. Its an RPG, choice is the most distinctive component of the game. But I do love your channel and many of your house rules too.
Everything made sense except stitching a mouth shut. How does this guy eat? Breathing enough for heavy exercise is almost impossible. If the goal is to make him unable to spill secrets then you could cut out his tongue but can't he still write? How does he communicate with other scorpions?
"Matrix" method really is the best of all worlds. You don't have to spend time killing yourself trying to think of every stupid thing your players could possibly contrive of doing, and your players feel brilliant when the plot thread they decided to pursue inevitably leads them to the climactic finish. A lot of video games have employed this method of false free will such as Mass effects choice system to great success. The only thing that I would warn new dungeon masters or people playing with a new group is to make sure to never tell your players what's going on. I've run entire sessions where I was simply using a bullet point list of every room they were going to encounter in the dungeon and just making small notes as to which way they turned to get there. My players told me post session how it was a really good time and I could tell at the table that they never felt like they were floundering or struggling to figure out what to do next because no matter what they chose they always seem to be right. I know that if I had told them that none of their choices mattered it would have robbed them of the experience completely and they probably would have never trusted me again.
Bonus Tip: For everyone doing the password hand out, if you can have a few more cool passwords on the slip all crossed out or stricken through, not too many mind you, this is just for flavor to imply this same slip has been used multiple times for previous passwords. Suggesting that the only reason this assassin has the slip, is due their faulty memory.
This mini-story idea is fun! And so is the one you told about the daughter who gets kidnapped but is actually just running away with her bandit-lover! I know you are using these quests as examples to illustrate a point you're trying to make, but please give us more! Please start a series of your most interesting side quests. This is the best part of RPGs, and even these two ideas are more fun than most published adventures. BONUS: Please launch a Kickstarter project that lays out your top 13 quests in hardcover. I'm a definite backer.
1:16 Open Ended = Sandbox, and I think it is the way to go. I see the current WOTC adventure books as a railroad because they give you a few endings and your job as a DM is to get the players on one of the railroads to that ending. Players have very little influence over the story arc because it is pre-fabricated...Here is the basic toolkit you need to run a sandbox: (1) You need some "random" encounters ready to go in case they get off track (maybe introduce them to some goblin clan or a gang of bandits that can come into play later), (2) as captaincorajus says, instead of waiting for them to go where you want, have the map be open enough that you can place your "dungeon" (or "room" as Hankerin says) where the PCs go -- so wherever they are, that's where the dungeon is, and (3) if you do make them go to the dungeon, then make sure you create some sort of time pressure to stay on task -- like if you don't do this soon, something bad will happen, and there is some sort of doom countdown so they can't just screw around all the time. You do have those three tools, and you are ready to sandbox. (I am sure others are helpful -- such as your flowcharts -- but that's my two cents.) PS...I made a flow chart for Tomb of Horrors so I could see the key points to solving it before I DMed it -- definitely can be a useful technique. Also love the roof chase mechanics! I am always making stuff like that for overland/overwater/over mountain/etc. travel. You move a hex, you roll dice to see what happens (if anything).
One of my favorite video so far! (note: I might have said that already in an earlier video lol). Reasons : nice visuals with terrain and minis, usable content at the table and teaches a GM lesson! Constructive crictism: Prof, dunno if you had a though week, but you sounded a bit like you were lacking energy? Usually, you are a bit more dynamic in your vids (voice and body language. Anyway, thanks again for the vid!
@dungeoncraft Hi Prof. Dungeon Master, So what happens if half of my group wants to chase after the assassin on the rooftops but then the other half of the group would rather search Scabs dead body? Now the whole party is split up, just wanted some clarification on a what if situation thank you :)
I would run it in the same way you have in the past whenever the party has split. Maybe the assassin doubles back to the inn and they hear him on the roof, maybe someone else in the inn spies on the party as they check the body, just go with what works for you. Sometimes the players make the best suggestions when put in a stressful situation.
“My character holds the blowgun carefully and inspects the stitched mouth of this assassin. With a curious look, he sniffs the end of the blowgun and wrinkles his brows in disgust as the truth is revealed...”
Hoisted by the assassin's petard
@@chadsmith8966 Perfect.
THANK YOU
Oh Jesus.... 😂😂😂
That’s how he used the blowgun with his lips stitched shut 😂😂
Just stumbled on to your site. Nice presentation! Are you doing D&D5e, Pathfinders, other, or all?
I'm in the process of constructing a homebrew that uses the old Hommlett module as a springboard, and appreciated the tips on how to avoid making this a railroad. You earned yourself another subscribe!
Ted Oplinger I’m doing Village of Hommlet right now too!!! I run a Frankenstein combo of 5E, Index Card RPG, 5E Hardcore Mode, & Warhammer FRP. Thanks for the sub!
Bravo. I know it sounds strange, but I would love to see you do this a couple more times applying the concept to a variety of adventure types. It seemed like this was a hunt and recover mission, but what about A political intrigue? A mystery? A dungeon? Thank you for the awesome content. Already excited to see next week.
I'm in the middle of a political intrigue type adventure currently. My players were hired by the prince to investigate some shady dealings of another house. The PCs found out about some vampires in the area as well and a vigilante vampire slayer. They decided to find out more about these vampires instead of engaging the political rival. Little do the PCs know that they are connected.
There were two very different paths and many subplots, but they all lead to the same discovery.
Yes
I WILL do it. Thanks for the great ideas.
@@linus4d1 A big yes.
PCS: "Oh damn, Scab is dead! Let's have a drink and pretend nothing happened"
DM: *sigh*
Richard LaBrie That can happen. I described a similar situation last week.
Or the cleric casts revivify on Scab and he tells them everything!
either the necromancer collects a new corpse
or the paladin pays for his burrial and sends him away into the afterlife, 6feed under or with a fure burrial, depending on the region
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 C'mon, what band of murder hobos isn't going to at least loot the body? 😁 I mean, it CAN happen I suppose.
That's when you improvise something like … a member of the Watch happened to see this go down and takes the players into custody for questioning. He'll be politely insistent since he saw that the players didn't actually kill Scabs, but the tavern is full of dangerous-looking men who turn menacing at this turn of events. The menace is directed at YOU, the players. The sooner YOU go with him, the sooner this lawman will be gone.
@@MixMastaShiz Strangely reviving doesn't work in this case. :)
Interesting question of revivify and poison generally since it doesn't cure the poison would you just die again assuming a large enough dose?
I just ran this scenario for my 13 YO daughter and her friends last night. We've been playing since around October 2020, but only roughly once a month with a few hiatus periods around the holidays, so it was only our 16th session. They've been going through the Caves of Chaos using the "Caverns of Carnage" as a template but modifying some of the more gory parts for a younger crowd.
I set-up Scabs way back around Session 3, and the Thief in the party runs into him almost every time they are at the Greased Goat tavern. She kept saying Scabs were her "bestie" so when she heard he was in trouble and needed her to come see him at the Dripping Dagger tavern, she didn't hesitate. After he was "killed" by the Green Scorpion Assassin, the party chased the Assassin briefly but all of them failed their Dex jumps while jumping across the roof, so the Assassin got away. They returned to Scabs' "body" and investigated, but then the Thief wanted to "give him a proper burial" because she felt bad he was just lying there in the tavern. They eventually decided there was no way to do that unnoticed, so they dumped his body into a wagon full of rotting vegetables (one that they had fallen into after falling during the rooftop chase) because they figured the rotting vegetables would cover the smell of his decaying body.
When he showed up later to steal the Demon's Skull from the leader of the Swine Gang, they were really upset and now for the next session, they have decided to forgo going back to the Caves and instead spend the whole session searching for Scabs to take their revenge!
Cool! This made my day.
Broadcasting to my office tv. I have never heard of using perception as initiative - love this idea.
Well in Palladium books, they use I.Q. for Initiave.
I believe the skill was called "Combat Initiative". Its a good skill and how its described makes perfect sense.
thanks for commenting!
I think pathfinder has switched over to Perception/Stealth for initiative. Genesys/Star Wars uses vigilance (perception) and cool (will save).
PDM is the first person I've seen it for "skill initiative"
The idea has interesting ramifications;
When designing encounters use different skills to decide initiative.
@@FelipeBudinich Yep. You can get pretty wild with it if you like. Intimidation for a tense stand-off situation where the first one who flinches is at a disadvantage. Arcana/magic skill if the first warning of an impending fight is a spell being prepped or some dreadful Thing From Beyond that leaks evil magic as it starts to manifest. Nature/animal handling/monster lore to be ready when that wary-looking beastie suddenly attacks. That sort of thing.
I use a flow chart to map out where the story is going, but a lot of the details are fluid and sometime spontaneous. I also have a list of previous NPCs and future plot hooks I tend to sprinkle in when it makes sense. The end result looks like intricate planned out story. I tend to plan stories in broad strokes and let the details manifest during play. Great advice as always PDM!
Wow, Grizzled Geek listens to my favorite Dungeon Master! Great video Prof, I just found your channel recently.
@@jonathanvaldez6273 Absolutely, love me some Dungeon Craft!
Very, very good advice.
DungeonWorld's Fronts are amazing for this. Every session, you'll have to update the Fronts in response to what the characters do. It allows you to minimize planning of paths not taken. Return of the lazy dungeon master has advice on how to use Fronts that I found effective.
Love Retruns of the Lazy DungeonMaster & Dungeonworld!
Deathbringer for President 2020
Let's have him In 2024. But he can get started in as the Secretary of Defense 2020.
Trump, let this man in!!!!!
I hope everyone on all sides can enjoy that video. Not sure jokes are a thing in 2020.
Kevyn Hansyn ... ... ...
Hey Prof, what would you think about giving the Green Scorpion Death Cult different colored rings to indicate their rank?
Copper for low level, then Bronze, Silver, Gold and finally Platinum for the Cult master.
I like to run E6 (Epic level 6) games, so with that the Cultist rank levels would line up pretty well. From a basic level 1 thug with no ring, up to Level 6 with a platinum ring.
As to the PC's not knowing how to contact the Assassin Cult, in my most recent campaign (currently on a 'beer break') my group's PCs are working for the Mayor of a small growing town. He's a bit shady but seems on the up and up.
One day one of the Players seemed to be in a bit of a mood and was giving off a lot of attitude and I thought she might kill the mayor.
This lead me to realize that the mayor is a minor noble with connections to what is basically the mafia. So, if he's killed they would authorize a hit on his killer, and there would be a string of assassination attempts on that player's character (with the party in general getting caught up in the crossfire).
Eventually the Assassins Guild would send out their 2 highest ranking assassins and it'd be a make it or break it attempt.
Now, on the other hand, if the PC's are in good standing with the "Shady Mayor" and I ran this for them, if they talked to him about the Green Scorpions, I wouldn't have him let on that he knows how to get in contact with them, but would have him secretly arrange a meet-up with the PC's. Maybe he could provide them with the password if they haven't figured it out, and point them in the right direction.
He could be the same Scorpion that shows up at the end.
Anyhow, as always, love your ideas, keep 'em coming sir!
I think it's awesome. Make the Scorpion cult yours!
This is the best channel on RUclips for DMs looking to up their game IMHO.
I made the mistake once of the fully open-ended sandbox game, nearly gave myself a nervous breakdown trying to account for the endless options. Matrix is where it's at.
Thanks Professor, and props for keeping that OSE boxed set front and center...well kind of off-center, but you get it.
Flowcharts are the best charts!
Is like designing a video game, all the scenarios are already planed and designed, they have freedom of choice but their choice you tweak the results to lead to one of the possible next resulting scenarios.
Just don't tell your players that the scenarios are written, and don't write them on stone, you can edit them on the run, even recycle or combine some outcomes.
just commenting to help the channel
Thank you!
Great video! A quick one shot game with structure, interesting characters and a plot!
Thanks! If you want them, I will make more.
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 we want more! ( Or I do). Very excellent
Prof DM's videos are always good, but all I ever take away is "I hope I have hair as thick and lush as his when I am his age"
Yeah but he’s only 32. All that DMing takes its toll!
@@kev_whatev oh. Bad news for me then, lol, I'm 32 and my hair is already on the way out
Excellent! And best of all USABLE at the table!
Agreed, I love these sorts of vids!
Hey Professor DM, I tried to show a friend your last video last night and in said: "video unavailable on this device." I was using my desktop. IS RUclips screwing with your uploads now?
Hey, is my calendar wrong? I thought today was Wednesday.
I have to say, I DMed for the last 6-7 years and this channel really made me step up my games and improve. I even helped a few friends that want to dm with hints taken here.
Thank you for taking the time to say so.
WOOPWOOP, the Prof is BACK.
I actually have so many encounters made that they are labeled A-Z. I have their bullet points on 5x7 index cards and "subroutine" flows as A-1, A-2, etc on each card as necessary.
This was all built up over several years, so it's not like I sat down and wrote out all 26 cards before even starting the campaign.
How did he use a blowgun if his lips were sewn shut? Lol
Edit: was it foreshadowing :O
there are two holes in ypur body that can erupt wind - i am impressed with his skill in the ancient art of killer farting
I found this video super informative! Thank you for sharing. Quality tips and content.
1,400 people approve... 2 disapprove... that's a good video!
Wednesday totally works for me!!
I was flipping through the Village Of Hommlet. Sheesh there are very descriptive cottages and rooms with nothing. A flow chart would have kept the game on track better.
Hello Professor, I am trying to run a Low Fantasy Gaming campaign with only one player. Do you have any tips for running a game with only one player? Is it possible? Thanks.
Excellent advice. I will add this to my arsenal. BTW, as a side note, you don't have a connection from the blow gun being dropped back to search the body. I'm a software developer and the dead end jumped out at me.
Love your channel.
Great advice. I should try this instead of winging it so much.
Great video
That book adds a ton to a GM's toolbox
You have the coolest ideas! I use flowcharts too but I tend to over prepare and sometimes I realize that less is more. Great video!
What a great idea.
I love how this channel is all about keeping your head our of the book/manual as much as possible so you can get on with more roleplaying
Thanks for another great vid!
Player party loot Scabs and find the scroll. One of PCs decides they should take the body and dispose of it elsewhere and slit the throat so no one else can pick up the same breadcrumb trail as they did. DMs master plan foiled. Commence paniced DM improv session. Just the kind of luck I would have if I ran something like this I bet.
As to the actual structure, this sounds just like most Video game RPGs are structured. Illusion of choice with a handfull of paths to take leeding to a fixed set of possible endings. When that NPC in Baldurs Gate/Mass Effect/Dragon Age/Other Game seems to respond in the same or almost the same when you click on 2-3 different dialogure choices, this is the method the game designers used.
Easy enough. Just do the same thing, but now it's just the assassins that show up at the end instead of Scabs. Now it was a plot by the assassins to get the demon skull. Maybe they set Scabs up to give the players info and then betrayed him. Maybe they planned to take it on their own and the players weren't meant to get involved. Either way, the story doesn't need to change much.
Twist of Events !
If the a PC makes a high enough roll Diplomacy skill check or Charisma roll. And tell the guards the
" truth " as to what is happening or what they think is happening, they can make allies with the Butcher thieves guild and have side jobs or later contacts with " favors," for later campaign use.
It is good to have " friends " in low places.
6:58
So he was just a bait for the real Assassin to escape? Otherwise I have to believe xThrottleGeek's version of events...
Dunno. Can't remember. But thanks for watching so closely! I remember those model shots taking days!
First off, AWESOME video. It was off the charts..pun intended. What sets you apart PDM, is your videos have such great value to them when helping inexperienced DM's like me that want to learn. I bought XDM on your recommendation and have never regretted it, in fact...thank you for that. I know you've mentioned this topic before in videos, but to give us a valuable lesson of one of Hickman's lessons and a great one shot to see how you applied the lesson is so cool. Speaking of cool, I love the idea of using the lemon juice for the note, I will be doing my extra credit, be assured. Between shooting, the time to think of the one shot and all your efforts of making this video, a sincere THANK YOU PDM. I'm gonna be a good DM yet. Cheers!!
Is it Thursday?
Philip Reimer i was just typing that!
Every day is Thursday!
You never disappoint. Excellent video and many thanks for your continued efforts to help aspiring DM’s like myself.
Freaking brilliant. I wish more people taught this stuff to new GMs. Thank you!
Really would like to see more content like this from you.
Erik Martin Thanks. Making content as fast as I can.
I've been a long time fan of the channel, subscribed years ago, member of the Patreon and yet somehow I had never seen this video! It's great! How did I miss it? Thanks for all the resources you put out.
Glad to have another great adventure to potentially add to my own games. I hope we can expect more of these in the future. I've been missing adventures written by the professor since the campaign diaries ended.
“If” I enjoyed this video. LOL. ... Once again great work! XDM is a lifesaver for DMing!
I'm going to be running Curse of Strahd soon, so I will need this to be highly specific.
Lol... This adventure rings a bell... WHFRP intro adventure anyone! Great work, really enjoying it
Great video, speaking of skulls, where did you get the skull statue with the outstretched arm and hands holding the D20?
Wes Maass Walgreens. On sale after Halloween. The d20 I had.
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 Great, thank you.
Now that we're forced to play via VTT this advice is even better. It took me 2 sessions searching details in PDFs to realize how necessary having quick-access notes really is
How do you deal with DM burn out?
Play something else or get someone else to run the game. I got burned out on D&D so I started running a Call of Cthulhu campaign and it's going so much better because I'm actually passionate about it.
Great video and concept I'll have to explore. Would the concept be any different for starting a campaign?
All my campaigns are open-ended. I never plan 80% of my stuff and that's how it should be. It's called IMPROVISATION. The players have to improvise all the time... so should the GM. The player don't play my story... they play THEIR story... I am just there to bring THEIR world alive. I'm tired SO much of linear gaming: My Paladin create an order of Knights... fine, it will never impact the game... it's not in the campaign. Your thief create his own guild... fine, never comes into play because the PREMADE stuff hadn't planned that. I just totally hate that. When I'm a player I expect to let my mark on the world (or try to) I MUST be able to do that eventually. That's why IF we ever use premade stuff, we'll probably switch leveling progression to slow... so WHEN (not if) the players do their own stuff they won't out level the campaign too much (yes... I think about you King-Maker...). And you would be just fine doing it... not that hard and SO much fun :) I never know WHAT will be the story because It's never premade... I react to the players... that simple. // About the Demon's Skull - IF you can jump from roof to roof.. you can clearly use small weapons (also reward players for not always going for the biggest piece of steel in the book :P). O_O Much harder to jump from roof to roof in a WET FOG. A spell making wind would probably open line of sight for ranged guys... so ''no spell would be effective'': sorry but never underestimate magic... it always break the game :P I really like you little adventure :D (I'll steal it and drop that in one of my open-ended campaign :P) - like a semi random event in a town the players seems to hang in a lot. Nice video :D
I'm a bit slow (again) to the party, but this was a great idea. Thank you for the video; I should start using this flow chart suggestion. Question for PDM: any thoughts (or fond memoires, I hope) of the original World of Greyhawk D&D setting? It's a sort of "old friend" for me in the games I've run for years.
Cattle skulls, goat skulls, ... Human skulls though, you're fucked.
"Zoom drug enhancing speed and dexterity..." - Barry Allen sees what you did there an he is not amused. :D
(Says the guy who gave the Shadow Sorcerers of Vecna the looks of MK1-2 shadow priests and their summoned Hound of Ill Omen the looks of Noob Saibot. ;) )
With apologies, what does the DM get from a flowchart? Safety. What do the players want from a DM? Crazy good. Stop hiding in algorithms. Shelly didn't write Frankenstein from a flowchart. Be a story teller. Work your audience. Some players may want exploration or puzzles and others combat. Your story keeps the game on target. You won't get heroic drama from a template. The skill you want to develop is story-telling, not program building.
Excellent insights! One more valuable entry for my PDM Bible!
A quick observation: I wasn't able to read the story you made "Gallows Dance", the link you have given us does not have this story anymore for some reason. :(
Now I'm just imagining the players doing something insane, like decapitating Scabs' body to reap a reward from the town guard, or from a rival gang. Or they want to cast "Speak with Dead" on his corpse.
I highly recommend SCAPPLE for this. It is a program from the makers of Scrivener. I made a flow chart like this for Curse of Strahd, I could import the maps from DnDbeyond, pictures for NPCs (speeds up descriptions), I set the flow chart in the same shape as the Borovian map and could link information gained at one location to another location with arrows. Flow charts for the win. Of course, converting an entire module into a Scapple flowchart took HOURS but it makes it so that a book never be opened after that. Also, you can do it in pieces. Obviously, you don't have to have the final scene mapped out or every location if there isn't a chance for the PCs to jump directly there. Much of a flow chart can and should be done between sessions. 1. this increases player agency and 2. keeps you from making a bunch of details that the PCs will never see. Another great video PDM!
Yes, but what do you do if something goes awry and the players become CONVINCED that one of the other toughs in the tavern must've killed Scabs and start wasting time hovering over Scabs? Also, you're going to have to stamp out a whole lot of magic to make certain that they don't end up interrogating the assassin OR the totally-not-dead Scabs. Cure Poison? Speak with Dead? The Fighter has been playing Red Dead Redemption a lot since last session and captures the assassin by turning his (expensive, fortified spider silk) rope into a lasso so the assassin CAN'T fall to his death? What if Scabs ends up dying for real somehow while he's playing possum? You treat illusionism as a magic bullet, but the trouble with putting your faith in illusions is that they are powerless before the blind, the thoughtful, and the fool who wasn't paying attention in the first place. Ask any 2nd edition gnome.
So, rely on real things instead of illusions. Conjurers are illusionists, but better. All these problems go away if you go one level deeper while you are planning and ask yourself "what are the VILLAIN'S backup plans?" or "What was the NPC in question even trying to accomplish in this situation?" or to put it another way "What's my motivation?"
"Railroading" is only really bad because you are FORCED to follow the tracks. (taking away your control over our own character)
I tend to use a more open ended DMing method. (halfway point between railroad & open world. . . . .is that the Matrix?)
I don't think players should have the "ILLUSION" of choice, but actual choice!
Most of the time I find when presented with a rather Linear plot, even with open options, alternatives & the freedom to choose, players will tend to stick pretty close to the Railroad tracks. (in order to see where it leads) Mostly because that tends to be the most optimal choice & usually garners the best results.
Professor, I love this BUT, my players are thinkers. I would imagine they would say, “how did this green scorpion assassin shoot a blowgun with his mouth sewn shut and how does he eat anyway?” Did I miss something? Otherwise, brilliant.
Professor, I love this BUT, my players are thinkers. I would imagine they would say, “how did this green scorpion assassin shoot a blowgun with his mouth sewn shut and how does he eat anyway?” Did I miss something? Otherwise, brilliant.
What program or method did you use to make your flow chart look so clean and organized? I've been looking into using smart art in Microsoft word to mimic it... but it's overly colorful and stylized and just not working for me. Did you just use straight text boxes?
While this video did an excellent job of demonstrating the benefits of using a flow chart in adventure design and presented an engaging adventure, it did not go into detail on the process of making one yourself. Personally, I found your other older videos, especially 'DungeonCraft #45: Campaign Session 1', more helpful for that. Watching you physically draw the flowchart of the firstadventure on a white board helped it click for me and I'd love to see more of that.
Cheers, thanks for all the effort you put into these videos!
So I have a question. I like the idea of giving the players the illusion of making choices, so in your example, when they can search the body or chase the assassin, do you actually say that? "So what would you like to do, search the body or chase the assassin?" Technically giving them two choices, but making them feel like they are choosing their own fate by picking one of them?
I think the mistake I make is simply asking them "What would you like to do?" which leaves it super open-ended and then I'm scrambling to put story together. Kinda like laying track down while riding the front of a train.
Thoughts?
This is great! Thank you. I've been DMing for 30 years and I learn something new every time I watch a video. I usually use an outline, but I think the flow chart is better in terms of conceptualizing the adventure and where it is going.
Hi, I just wanted to say I love your videos. They have transformed my game sessions, and I think my players are enjoying our games a lot more nowadays.
Are you planning on any further campaign videos, or has Covid put the metaphorical arrow in that metaphorical knee?
I’ve seen DMs try to do the Improve method, letting players go where ever they want. It sucks. The DM is just lazy, they never did so much work that they have things prepared for you to go anywhere. Hour one table chatter, hour two that one player hijacks the game interacting with some npc for waaaaaaaay too long. Hour three long pauses, snacks, people staring at each other wondering why nothing is happening. Hour four the dm throws in a combat encounter. For the longest time I only had Friday night to play, and it was awful, week after week of this before I finally quit to stay home and play video games, or watch movies.
Not to toot my own horn, but being one of those DMs that play their campaigns once a month, I tend to go over (mentally) pretty much every single type of scenario about every encounter i put into my campaign. I'm pretty good at guessing what my players will do, and so I'm able to have an alternate scenario figured out ahead of time. I've only ever been stumped one time with what a Player came at me with, and really, I should've just killed the idiot right there on the spot. You just don't try to start a fight with a high level NPC when you're only lvl 3!
LOL by anticipate where they may go , he mean make a small map of every house the rogue might burglarize, and which dressers have something worth stealing , even if only some candles.... ;)
I prefer to run sadbox type games.
Sand BOX games. As in theres a boundary to the players world.
Currently Im running a campaign on an island that has a handful of villages, a lords keep and a town with a harbour. And whenever the players go to the harbour its either:
A. Closed down due to weather, disease or winter.
B. There was a ship but you missed it.
C. The ships captain wont allow passengers for "whatever" reason.
On the island itself theres a bunch of recyclable locations: an abandoned mine, a gloomy forest, a natural cave system, an ancient abandoned temple and a bunch of other creepy places. And between game sessions I just make new small events so the players have a constant backlog of crap that needs dealing with.
A creepy lair wont stay empty for long. Some new tennant will eventually move in allowing me to use the same lotations again later.
It takes some work setting up but the reward is it doesnt matter where the players go you got a single page with all the intel needed to throw an event at the players when they get there.
This is a cool scenario. It reminds me of the Oldenhaller Contract in Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay.
I listened to Tracy at a school fantasy and Sci-Fi symposium where he discussed this concept - it wasn;t this flushed out (it was 1991) but lead from point a through choices 1,2,3 ... then funneled back down to the endpoint - boss fight. It's ctually a concept I'm investigation for some Choose Your Own Adventure style assessments for by EDD.
I have always run open world games. I'm not one-in-a million, or all that impressive actually, I just like to rollplay the commoners and shopkeeps. I would always leave a few hooks that could be followed or not, but those storylines will advance regardless of players willingness to follow them. If you lean into the player backstories it adds a little more draw to the hooks. After these fronts mount and begin to trouble the PCs they begin to look for and follow story hooks sooner so as not to get overwhelmed by them. And there's always the mysterious old man at the tavern looking to hire a group for this or that. Its an RPG, choice is the most distinctive component of the game. But I do love your channel and many of your house rules too.
The flowchart may generally be a good idea, but Your players will allmost allways do somthing your chart can't account for.
Everything made sense except stitching a mouth shut. How does this guy eat? Breathing enough for heavy exercise is almost impossible. If the goal is to make him unable to spill secrets then you could cut out his tongue but can't he still write? How does he communicate with other scorpions?
"Matrix" method really is the best of all worlds. You don't have to spend time killing yourself trying to think of every stupid thing your players could possibly contrive of doing, and your players feel brilliant when the plot thread they decided to pursue inevitably leads them to the climactic finish. A lot of video games have employed this method of false free will such as Mass effects choice system to great success. The only thing that I would warn new dungeon masters or people playing with a new group is to make sure to never tell your players what's going on. I've run entire sessions where I was simply using a bullet point list of every room they were going to encounter in the dungeon and just making small notes as to which way they turned to get there. My players told me post session how it was a really good time and I could tell at the table that they never felt like they were floundering or struggling to figure out what to do next because no matter what they chose they always seem to be right. I know that if I had told them that none of their choices mattered it would have robbed them of the experience completely and they probably would have never trusted me again.
Bonus Tip: For everyone doing the password hand out, if you can have a few more cool passwords on the slip all crossed out or stricken through, not too many mind you, this is just for flavor to imply this same slip has been used multiple times for previous passwords. Suggesting that the only reason this assassin has the slip, is due their faulty memory.
This mini-story idea is fun! And so is the one you told about the daughter who gets kidnapped but is actually just running away with her bandit-lover! I know you are using these quests as examples to illustrate a point you're trying to make, but please give us more! Please start a series of your most interesting side quests. This is the best part of RPGs, and even these two ideas are more fun than most published adventures.
BONUS: Please launch a Kickstarter project that lays out your top 13 quests in hardcover. I'm a definite backer.
PDM I would love to hear your opinions on Basic Fantasy RPG.
1:16 Open Ended = Sandbox, and I think it is the way to go. I see the current WOTC adventure books as a railroad because they give you a few endings and your job as a DM is to get the players on one of the railroads to that ending. Players have very little influence over the story arc because it is pre-fabricated...Here is the basic toolkit you need to run a sandbox: (1) You need some "random" encounters ready to go in case they get off track (maybe introduce them to some goblin clan or a gang of bandits that can come into play later), (2) as captaincorajus says, instead of waiting for them to go where you want, have the map be open enough that you can place your "dungeon" (or "room" as Hankerin says) where the PCs go -- so wherever they are, that's where the dungeon is, and (3) if you do make them go to the dungeon, then make sure you create some sort of time pressure to stay on task -- like if you don't do this soon, something bad will happen, and there is some sort of doom countdown so they can't just screw around all the time. You do have those three tools, and you are ready to sandbox. (I am sure others are helpful -- such as your flowcharts -- but that's my two cents.) PS...I made a flow chart for Tomb of Horrors so I could see the key points to solving it before I DMed it -- definitely can be a useful technique. Also love the roof chase mechanics! I am always making stuff like that for overland/overwater/over mountain/etc. travel. You move a hex, you roll dice to see what happens (if anything).
Awesome as always, been using this since the stop flipping through rulebooks episode and its works great! keep up the good work Prof! :)
So I love this episode but wouldn’t it be difficult to use a blowgun if your lips are sewn shut with black thread?
One of my favorite video so far! (note: I might have said that already in an earlier video lol).
Reasons : nice visuals with terrain and minis, usable content at the table and teaches a GM lesson!
Constructive crictism: Prof, dunno if you had a though week, but you sounded a bit like you were lacking energy? Usually, you are a bit more dynamic in your vids (voice and body language.
Anyway, thanks again for the vid!
Have you... have you watched the news lately?
@@benvoliothefirst no? Nie toi worry me 😔
I like this stuff. 19 % likes shows I'm not alone. How about a lengthier follow up or elaboration.
I love when advice comes with a practical example. Not only is it two for one but helps keep the concepts from being so generic as to be meaningless.
I'd like to borrow that Tracey Hickman book from you. I think it'd be a fun read.
It's not really a matrix. Technically, it's a graph.
Wow .
XDM X-Treme Dungeon mastery at the cheapest price on Amazon is $800+ dollars .
The book is super expensive on Amazon, is there any place else we can find it?
What happens if the players fail the jumps or loose the duel against the assassin?
What type of miniature is The Butcher in this video? Where can I get one?
I love how easily all of this DM’s concepts transfer to 1e
Never trust the quest giver
What miniatures company is Scabs from?
Professor have you upgraded to a +2 vest of protection yet?
Love watching your videos. Carry on
If the Assassins lips are sewn shut, how does he use the blowgun?
@dungeoncraft Hi Prof. Dungeon Master, So what happens if half of my group wants to chase after the assassin on the rooftops but then the other half of the group would rather search Scabs dead body? Now the whole party is split up, just wanted some clarification on a what if situation thank you :)
I would run it in the same way you have in the past whenever the party has split. Maybe the assassin doubles back to the inn and they hear him on the roof, maybe someone else in the inn spies on the party as they check the body, just go with what works for you. Sometimes the players make the best suggestions when put in a stressful situation.
For a rando thief Scabs is pretty smart and tactical
Never used a flow chart but I like it!!!
Thanks Prof you ARE the man.