While combat encounters are fun, there are two other pillars to tabletop RPGs that can turn a good game into a great one.  In this episode I talk about social encounters and how DMs can get better at running them.

#dnd #pf2e #DMTips #SocialEncounters

Resources:

Matt Mercer:  Building RPG Social Encounters - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNoR-CcOtqI

Preparing to run an entire adventure out of or inside a city can appear to be a daunting task.  With a little preparation and some thought ahead of time, you can run an adventure that never has to leave the city walls.

#dnd #pf2e #DMTips #Pathfinder #CityAdventures #AdventureDesign

Resources:

Drop Dice Build Cities - https://arcaneeye.com/all/dnd-cities-guide/

Dael Kingsmill’s SPERM principle - https://youtu.be/sJd6g--Ok_A?si=G-PsffcBYYpTLRNl

More city design goodness:  https://makeaskillcheck.com/creating-towns-for-dms/

Top Tips for creating towns and cities:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJd6g--Ok_A

Description

Even preparing cities that the party will pass through or only stay at temporarily requires some thought on the DM’s part. In this episode I’ll give you some tips for creating quick-use cities that can help ground your cities in a touch of realism.

#dnd #pf2e #DMTips #RPG #citydesign

Resources:

Dael Kingsmill’s SPERM principle - https://youtu.be/sJd6g--Ok_A?si=G-PsffcBYYpTLRNl

Preparing your overarching campaign using smaller situational pieces has a number of benefits to preparing the entire adventure as a whole.  In this episode, I talk about the benefits of preparing your game in manageable chunks and give you some tips for doing so.

#dnd #pf2e #DMTips

Resources:

The Alexandrian:  Don’t Prep Plots - https://thealexandrian.net/wordpress/4147/roleplaying-games/dont-prep-plots

https://www.reddit.com/r/DMAcademy/comments/16y30hc/can_we_clarify_what_we_mean_when_we_say_dms/

Building Situations in D&D https://slyflourish.com/letting_go_of_defined_encounters.html

There are two problems I’ve seen regarding interest level:  characters who don’t seem to be buying in to the story and players who don’t seem to be interested in the game.  These situations have multiple possible solutions but require a little nuance to address.  In this episode, I talk about the symptoms of these problems and ways you can possibly address them.

#dnd #Pathfinder2e #DMTips #5e #PleasePayAttention

Resources:

https://www.reddit.com/r/DMAcademy/comments/11wmccd/uninterested_character_problem/

https://youtu.be/LQsJSqn71Fw

We all love making characters but one of the most common challenges I’ve heard in talking to players is how to make a memorable character; one that stands out from the crowd.  In this episode, I’m going to give you 10 tips for making characters that can grow, evolve, and be easier to tie in to the campaign at large, beyond the numbers on the character sheet.

#dnd #Pathfinder2e #charactercreation #chracterdesign #roleplaying

Resources:

Character Creation Tips - https://lockhouse.co.uk/character-creation-tips-ttrpgs/

How to Create Great RPG Characters - https://hobbylark.com/tabletop-gaming/Creating-Characters-for-Role-Playing-Games

12 Tips to Make the Most Memorable RPG Character Ever - https://cardboardmountain.com/12-tips-to-make-the-most-memorable-rpg-character-ever/

Backstory Tips - https://mistymountaingaming.com/blogs/dungeon-feed/crafting-a-backstory-tips-for-creating-your-dungeons-and-dragons-original-character

Immortal creatures will sometimes make deals with mortals for power and you can sometimes include these situations in your game.  Warlocks have this mechanic built into the class but should you even include the good and bad of these contracts in your game?  In this episode I talk about the different types of beings who will deal with mortals, examples of why they would and tips for your campaign.

#dmtips #pathfinder2e #dnd #dnd5e #devils #fey

Resources:

3 Line NPCs

https://www.roleplayingtips.com/rptn/the-3-line-npc-method-how-to-create-story-full-npcs-fast/

Phistophilus:  https://2e.aonprd.com/Monsters.aspx?ID=112

https://halflinghobbies.com/making-deals-with-devils-in-dd-5e/

https://www.reddit.com/r/DescentintoAvernus/comments/hjfrkf/devil_contract_ideas/

Doppelgangers are terrifying shapeshifters that are in the game solely to make an already paranoid group of players even more so.  After all, how can you trust anyone if anyone could be lying about who and what they are?  In this episode, I give you some common motivations for these monsters and tips for introducing them into your game.

#dmtips #doppelgangers #dnd #pathfinder #pathfinder2e

Resources:

The Monsters Know What They’re Doing:  Doppelgangers:  https://www.themonstersknow.com/doppelganger-tactics/

Doppelganger Origin:  https://www.britannica.com/art/doppelganger

Psychology of the Doppelganger:  https://annarchive.com/files/Drmg080.pdf

Baldur's Gate 3 is an amazing game and even though it doesn't have a Dungeon Master per se, it does have some good advice and lessons that all of us can use to improve our DM style.  In this episode I give 8 tips I learned about DMing from Baldur's Gate 3

#dmtips #baldursgate3 #dnd #pathfinder

Resources:

https://www.hipstersanddragons.com/difficulty-classes-for-ability-checks-5e/

Larian Studios:  https://larian.com/

A very special thank you to Rick Sandidge of Find the Path Ventures who was kind enough to come on the episode to discuss integrating character backstories into your game.  Please give their amazing podcasts a listen at find-path.com. 

Resources:

Find the Path Ventures:  https://find-path.com/

Find the Path Podcasts:  https://find-path.com/podcasts/ 

Find the Path Twitch:  https://www.twitch.tv/findthepathpod