Taking 20 Podcast

A few weeks ago I mentioned how rare I think class levels are in your world and promised a longer discussion on the topic.  As threatened, here it is.  I make my case that class levels should be relatively rare in your world and give some benefits to designing your world that way.   #dmtips #dnd #pathfinder #starfinder #npcs Resources: Pathfinder 2e Core Preview:  https://paizo.com/pathfinder/core...

In this episode I use a bit of lore about the Vast to expand on a concept important to your game world - unexplored areas with the potential to have anything you can think of.   #DMtips #dnd #Pathfinder #Starfinder #TheVast   Resources: Paizo forums - What is the Vast?  https://paizo.com/threads/rzs2v1by? What-is-the-Vast  

Robert Nores wrote in asking how I prepare one shot adventures so in this episode I give you some general tips and walk you through how I would prepare the free adventure A Fistful of Flowers published by Paizo. #DMtips #dnd #Pathfinder #OneShot Resources: A Fistful of Flowers at the Paizo Store:  https://paizo.com/products/btq02d8f? Pathfinder-Adventure-A-Fistful-of-Flowers Taking 20 Podcast Epis...

RPG players depend on we DMs to effectively describe the combat, the encounter areas, and the world at large during exploration activities.  The words we use and the quality of our narration has a direct effect on the quality of our game and the potential immersion into our game world.  Narration is a skill that all GMs, including and especially me, need to practice and improve.  In this episode I...

Sometimes it's nice to remind players that not everything in the world revolves around them and they don't have the ability to control everything going on in the world.  If you want the players to realize that sometimes they are small fish in a big pond, run a campaign centered around a war, cataclysm, revolution, or other world-shaping event where the PCs play a small but important role in the ou...

Your PCs tend to stroll through life like everything is great.  They're walking through the Underdark, not a care in the world, oblivious to everything down here that wants to eat you.  It's time to remind them that they may not be the apex predators in the dark places of the world.  In this episode I talk about using ambush predators in your game, including one strong caution about how they can m...

There is something refreshing about not having to worry about nuance about the big bad's plans or fighting to find a reason for their actions.  Sometimes, when you're designing an adventure, it's fun to just let the big bad be bad.  In this episode, I encourage you to throw caution to the wind and give you reasons why a villain could be an irredeemable monster. #dmtips #dnd #pathfinder #gmtips #or...

In this episode I talk about good opportunities for DMs to introduce PC-NPC and PC-PC roleplaying opportunities.   #dnd #rpgtips #Pathfinder #orc #DMtips Resources: https://www.reddit.com/r/DMAcademy/comments/xe1j4l/campfire_stories_to_deepen_players_backstories/   https://www.thegamer.com/dungeons-and-dragons-dnd-encourage-roleplay-tips-tricks/#social-interaction-is-more-than-talking

DMs, what should you do when the players derail your entire adventure plan, reveal a secret or short circuit the story that you had planned for the group?  How can you recover from this?  Tune in and find out   #DMTips #dnd #Pathfinder #ORClicense   Resources: Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster Project:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiYCs0fPFnM&t=50s   Twitch stream of “Pathfinder Remastered” a...

I have been guilty of trying to craft stories from an overview, a 50,000 foot view, if you will, and neglecting the individual encounters, scenes and scenarios.  In this episode I encourage you to do the opposite of this, focus on crafting these individual scenes to give you the flexibility to allow the PCs to take the story whatever direction they would like.   #dmtips #dnd #pathfinder #learnfrom...

There are a few common tips and tricks that DMs can use to make monsters scarier or merely seem that they are.  In this episode I discuss ways that you can get rid of that same-old-same-old feeling with your monsters and keep your players on their toes.   #dnd #Pathfinder #opendnd #dungeonsanddragons #dmtips

I've given the WOTC Pinkerton issue a couple of weeks to marinate and I wanted to give my thoughts on the matter.  Also, I wanted to give my wonderful GMs out there a useful tool:  one question you can ask your players to keep them from making a preventable mistake. #DMTips #Dnd #OpenDnd #Pathfinder #WOTC #Pinkerton

In this episode I point out how to find inspiration in a book that is 125 years old and use the building blocks to make quests and backstories that are just as compelling today as they were then.   #dnd #opendnd #Pathfinder #DMTips #StoryDesign  Resources: https://www.storyanddrama.com/the-36-dramatic-situations-of-georges-polti/   https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Thirty-Six_Dramatic_Situations...

Oozes may seem like boring combatants at first, mindless blobs of acidic gels that don't exactly have complex motivations or rich histories but they can be so much more than that.  In this episode I talk about how DMs can use oozes and a couple of particularly nasty encounters that include them.   #dnd #pathfinder #opendnd #DMTips #oozes

On a very special super-sized edition of the Taking 20 Podcast I interview David Carter of the competitive D&D 5e tournament on Youtube called Crucible of Fate.  We talk about running PvP and the challenges of running a 5e competitive game show.  Thank you David for being so generous with your time and your expertise!   #CrucibleofFate #dnd #PvP #DMinterview #DMTips   Resources Crucible of Fate Yo...

In this episode I talk about giving life to your campaigns by making your quest givers more dynamic and how you can use quest givers to steer the campaign the directions you'd like.   #dnd #Pathfinder #opendnd #orc #DMTips

This week I'm picking a fight and a lot of DMs will disagree with me.  I talk about what Armor Class and Hit Points really mean and how that can affect narrative combat.   NOTE:  Fixed the audio edit error about 11 minutes in.  Sorry about that.   #dnd #opendnd #pathfinder #narrative #combat

In this episode I give a brief review of the new D&D movie Honor Among Thieves and talk about how DMs should not use social skills like persuasion, diplomacy, and intimidation to rob a player of agency over their character. #dnd #opendnd #Pathfinder #DMTips #persuasion #diplomacy #intimidation   Resources: Dungeons and Dragons:  Honor Among Thieves Startplaying.games Warhorn.net Looking for Player...

In an episode idea from generous donor Tim McKenzie, this week we talk about hags, especially their penchant for deals and their lethal abilities.  What makes hags tick?  What are their motivations and how can GMs use them in their campaign?  Tune in and find out.   #dnd #Pathfinder #opendnd #DMTips #hags   Resources: Monsters Know What They’re Doing - Hag Tactics - https://www.themonstersknow.com...

This week's topic comes courtesy of listener Daniel Mehefko who wanted me to discuss immersive roleplaying.  What is immersive roleplaying?  How can players and DMs encourage their fellow players to engage in more immersive roleplay?  Tune in and find out.   #dnd #pathfinder #opendnd #roleplay #roleplaying   Resources: Venture Forth - 10 Rules to Improve Immersion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v...

Sometimes your adventuring parties just aren't ready for an encounter, a trap, or maybe an entire adventure.  What should you do as a DM?  Throw your hands up and walk away?  Throw hands at your players?  Throw a rave instead of gaming that night?  In this episode look at the different ways parties can be ill prepared for what lies ahead. and talk about multiple options for how to handle this situ...

After watching a session at my Friendly Local Game Store I watched a DM put players through a meat grinder of encounters, not even pausing when the PCs accomplished something impressive.  In this episode I talk about the importance of giving players the opportunity to celebrate character victories and rewarding the characters appropriately.   #dnd #dungeonsanddragons #pathfinder #openRPG #DMTips

In a lot of game worlds, deities can't die.  They always existed, exist, and will always exist.  But what if that wasn't true.  What if one or more deities in your game world died, left, or otherwise weren't available?  What would happen to their followers and your world as a whole?   Resources: Pathfinder Wiki (Aroden) - https://pathfinderwiki.com/wiki/Aroden   #pathfinder #deities #openrpg #open...

Answering a question posed by Adrian from the Age of Adventure RPG, how do you find the balance between realism and fun.  His table devolved into lengthy debates involving fire, oil flammability, and fire spread mechanics. Tune in to the episode that probably put Jeremy on a federal government watch list. #dnd #pathfinder #dungeonsanddragons  #realism #fun  Resources: Resigned:  How to Know When I...

GMs, are the gods in your game worlds present or absent?  Big and powerful or quiet and reserved?  In this episode we talk about ways you can use deities in your game and Jeremy talks way too long about the comic book series Spawn. #pathfinder #dnd #dungeonsanddragons #deities Resources: Resigned:  How to Know When It’s Time to Go :    https://gnomestew.com/making-the-gods-matter-in-fantasy-rpgs/