Two-Headed Game Master

Sometimes it is ok to kill your players. I mean player characters. However much your players frustrate you, you shouldn’t kill them. But seriously, player characters can die and we think it shouldn’t be taken lightly. From why and when to how and where, we discuss. DON”T MISS THIS EPISODE, IT WILL BE ON THE TEST. www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

A new adventurer starts out at level one, goes on an adventure and is the exact same person they were before the adventure? That doesn’t seem right, characters should grow over time. Hence leveling systems in a lot of TTRPGs, characters refine their skills or develop new ones. But don't worry, you know we can't resist talking about the roleplay side of anything and this episode is not an exception...

Scheduling can be a real downer sometimes, we discuss strategies to still get your TTRPG fix even when the group can’t get together. One-on-one roleplaying has its nuances, it also just hits different. We’ve done a fair bit of one-on-one, because, well, we are addicted sickos. Hopefully our experiences have lessons in them, just not sure what they are. www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The...

If you are a Game Master and you hate running a town session, this episode is for you. If you are a player and you never know what to do in a town, this episode is for you. Towns can be tricky, making it believable can be quite the task but remember SPERM! No that sperm you nasty child, it stands for: Social, Political, Economic, Religious, and Military.  www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, T...

WITNESS ME!!! Learn what we think it takes to run an adrenaline soaked, action packed, Mad Max: Fury Road TTRPG session. Of course we have to break down the movie in order to build back a road map…See what I did there? www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

Performance rolls are a big part of the TTRPG experience, and they are not just lying to a guard or tricking a dragon. Performance rolls can be anything that has the player acting out their character’s action. We discuss when to call for such a performance and the effects the roleplaying can have on the dice roll.  www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

Tricks and tricks, I mean tips and ticks, alright I’m giving up. Bosses are important, we talk about how to bring the drama and nail the boss fight. Interesting mechanics, and set up, and loot of course.  www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

TTRPGs are so hot right now! Which is good, also it can get twisted. We talk about how we stay in our lane and enjoy the professional content for what it is, entertainment. If you’re bummed out about your sessions not being the same caliber as the professionals, listen to this episode! Then talk to you group and work to make it fun for everyone. Or just listen to the episode, cuz real talk we coul...

We chat about difficulty settings, and the difficulty of rpgs. We thought the issue of how to balance out an adventure as the players grow was interesting. Mainly, we just talk about video games… www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

Basically the best advice on organizing your ide…Wait, what? That’s not what this episode is about? Why is the episode called ‘Session Prep’? I guess this episode is just two goofballs talking about how they prep for a session, could be entertaining…  www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

Getting ready for a long campaign can seem like an impossible task. Don’t worry though, prep harder not smarter! With these patented strategies you’ll be banging your head against the wall in no time. Best tip of course is to make it a one shot, then you won’t have to prep. www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

There are so many TTRPG systems out there it can be hard to choose one, and we are here to help. JK! Gotcha nerd, we aren’t that helpful…But we did make a whole episode talking about getting into a new system. www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

Player backstories are fun times, but they can go unused and that is a shame. This week on 2HGM! We discuss the usefulness of player backstory, spoiler: backstories aren’t just for the mindscape, they can be a gold mind for the Game-Master. www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

Another tips and tricks episode, this one is all about starting and ending your sessions. Hot tips about the quickest way to jump back into the game, juicy tricks to find good stopping points and leave the party wanting more. Better sharpen your pencils and bust out that note pad…JK, we all know everyone takes digital notes these days!! www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

Novel mechanics don’t have to be a one time only thing, whole campaigns have been built around novel mechanics. We discuss theory about how to set up lasting mechanics to make your sessions and campaigns unique. Tone and Setting are keywords and there will be several questions on the test about them, so better take notes. www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

We are talking about One Shots again, because honestly we could never talk about them enough. One shots are not just for when your group wants to do an adventure in a novel setting never to return again, they can also be fit inside a campaign! Crazy right. www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

Finally, we put in action everything we talked about over the last few episodes and torture our long time player Taylor. He talks to all the NPCs, fights through all the enemies, and experiences all the encounters.  www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

Bonus Content! We recorded our live discord event in case you missed it, and spoilers it was great. Ever wonder what monster a Mountain Dew flavor would be, wonder no longer. Giving you a front row seat to our creative process, we select Mountain Dew flavors, make them monsters, and then make them fight. Well the epsiode turned out ok, but considering how dumb the base concept was? We're counting...

Who knew there were so many components to RPGs, man we gotta really give our GM a hug…Oh wait…Well anyways this episode is about creating encounters to run your players through. And remember, everything is an encounter so I’m surprised this episode is not 100 hours. www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

An TTPRG world would be pretty lame if the players only navigated difficult environmental challenges and talked to NPCs. Where’s the danger? Enemies, that’s who! And if you listened to the last episode, that dumb thought in you head about how enemies are NPCs wouldn’t exist, cuz we covered that.    www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

Non-Player Characters, NPCs, are an essential part of a GM’s tool kit. It would be almost impossible to play a role-playing game without them, there are a lot of NPCs out there, from shopkeepers to companions.  www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

Tabletop RPGs are collaborative stories, which can be tricky. As a GM, it is easy to get wrapped up in the story you want to tell…But what about the players? WHAT ABOUT THE PLAYERS!? Listen to this episode of our discussion about boundaries, cuz boundaries are good. www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

We conclude the nightmare at the fair, and of course do a little debrief. There is no point in doing anything if you didn’t learn anything and don’t talk about it after….or at least that’s how our school worked, anyone else learn that or is it just us? www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

With 3 characters each, Sharif and Dane have a happy night at the fair, right?... They have a happy night at the fair right?! Wrong! www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours

We welcome Sharif for a conversation about character creation. Basically a discussion of our personal preferences and process for character creation.  www.2HGM.com Music: Pondhillow's Finest, The Burning Saviours