This is easily one of the best channels for learning how to dm. I went from running session 1 of 1 campaign a month ago to running 3 campaigns now, because people were so excited they invited their friends. Thanks for all of the tips man, it means a lot.
Sorry I missed this comment at the time mate, but it makes my day to see it now. So glad you and your players are getting some value from the channel, that's what this is all about. Really appreciate the support!
This gave me a good idea for the start of a campaign I've been trying to run. Connecting the players to the storyline was where I was finding trouble, but now I have something of an idea for what to do. A burning wagon, dead bodies, bandits in the mountains, political corruption, and an abandoned dwarf mine filled with kobolds and a few ettins should do the trick
That moment when you realize there whole campaign always matches the template. 😮 Also, and additional note: the “new information” step does not always have to be a Shyamalan-type of twist. I think the example of the venomous spiders was a good example of this. It was already suspected that there may have been a mole, just nobody knew who the mole was. The identity reveal can still be surprising and exciting without having to blow minds. The blown mind thing can be super fun… but if it is overused, then your stories can feel super contrived and incongruent with themselves, not to mention that your players will learn not to trust any of the information they get in the first two steps.
2 sessions ago the party rescued an owlbear in a hobgoblin camp that they used to destroy it from the inside. They befriended it before they parted ways, and now they are about to delve into a crypt, which is 2 days from the town, and the villain in the crypt has mind controlled and corrupted the local animalsn including the owlbear they rescued which shows up at the end of the fight. They are going to have a chance to save it but they need to drag it to the town within a week at a slower pace while risking exhaustion, and won't be guaranteed a long rest. This is my plan to really engage them at the end of the quest and drive up the tension, so I'm glad to see this video revealed that I was naturally following this formula and creating twists at the end of the main objective. I'll be referring to this template often because it really is the bread and butter of dnd engagement.
I appreciate these slightly longer-form videos. You're always straight to the point, but very concise with your explanations. Your content is super helpful to new DMs like myself
Incredible. I'm a beginning GM and I had been having trouble creating quests until now. I love the template and how straight forward it is. "...Work backward."
This is excellent and a great follow up to your short. I used the template for my mini campaign. It really helped me fill out quest hubs with something interesting for my players. Here’s an example of quest line I ended up not using. *Mini Campaign Background* My mini campaign was filling in for our regular DM who was away for 6 weeks. I ran a Sci-if, western styled D&D game based on a video-game called “Steamworld Heist”. The players were all Steam powered cowboy robots staging heists for gallons of water to fuel themselves and their ship, in a future where humans died out and the earth shattered into pieces a long time ago. *1. Setup the objective* Find out what happened to the "Wreck-limator" pilgrimage to "The Copper Titan (Ruined Statue of Liberty 🗽) and return any research or artefacts they might have discovered. *2. Initial Challenge* A Vectron monstronsity has taken up residence in the Copper Titan, there is evidence that the pilgrimage took shelter in the head of the Titan. They took most of the research up there with them. *3. Main Challenge* The statue of liberty is booby trapped on the way up and is infested with some level appropriate enemy. *4. New Information* The Pilgrims discovered a Voltbot core and have began worshipping to the point that they have now become a hive mind. They answer as one and have "upgraded" themselves, they become hostile if the Voltcore is removed from it's pedistal of worship. *5. Resolving The New Information* The Voltcore is obviously dangerous and would corrupt most cowbots that come into contact with it.
Like the way he says "... which was tied to one of the players tragic backstories" and every DM knows what he is talking about as it's completely normal thing to have in dnd
Love the longer format videos. I'm hoping you'll do more of them! Maybe even some original quests/adventures? :) The new information acquired in step 4 doesn't have to be a groundbreaking twist or even change the outcome of the quest itself. A plot hook for the next step of the campaign's overarching plot or even more information on the boss (battle tactics, spells, strengths & weaknesses) are good examples for this. It can also change the players secondary goals for the final challenge: instead of killing the villain, they might spare their life and try to extract critical information from them.
You are my favorite DM channel. I'm first time dm and im writing my own campaign from the ground up and your videos have helped me so oooooooo friggin much so thank you and keep up the great work. I love ya man.
I have been following along with the shorts you've provided for a while and always enjoyed them! This is the first time I watched the longer format and i love it even more! It's like you put words on things I've felt bad couldn't express! Just wanted to tell you to keep it up! Great stuff!!
Gotta say - I am JEALOUS of your hair. Always looks so perfectly styled. D: Also - loving these helpful tips in the longer format. Immensely helpful to hear how another DM tackles the infinite prep work!❤
This helped me know I was going in the right direction! I'm running what i hope to be my first true dnd campaign and this gave me that little extra confidence I needed
Thank you for your videos! Always wanted to DM a campaign but never made it happen. Sitting with my newborn asleep on me, but your videos have inspired me to write anyway, with my free hand. Cheers man
for me and my party, the best quest/sidequest/adventure we had was the tower of storms in the dragon of icespire peak campaign. i modified it a bit and it was great. it was that moment i realised the truth that fear is a great emotion for feeling proud at the end. since moesko (half orc shapechanger spellcaster) had the lightning bolt spell they feared him with their life since they are level 3 with the following hp max: 21, 32, 23. it was also fun for me the dm
I get it! I like that you said to start at step 3 then work backwards and forwards. This is a good method. Together with the 5 step model, it makes for great building blocks of an overarching campaign. Last, thanks for suggesting how many sessions to split this model into 👍
I started last year to play dnd and at the same time, i joined this great game as a dm. Atm im planning a homebrew campaign, and im so glad that i found ur youtube channel! You're helping me a lot and you're also lowering my anxiety
Easy to follow along and with examples for reference, great recipe. Sidenote: Hope the algorithm brings in more eyes, it recommended me the "How to write a Dungeons and Dragons campaign | 5 steps" first :)
I can't tell you how helpful this was. I've been dming for a group for over a year now and I have never stopped struggling to get each session feeling full and fulfilling. There are so many videos on how to write a campaign but hardly any on writting session to session! Thank you so much! If I could make a request, I'd love to see how you layout your session prep. I jump between programs so much and never really feel like I have a good system for it
This is super helpful and really well explained! I really really love the challenge/homework you give at the end of the video as a way to encourage people to apply your lessons. I think you gave yourself three great ideas for next videos on sessions/quests focusing on Combat, Stealth/Investigation, and Roleplay, and how to prepare, balance, and run each of those! Making combat interesting and fairly balanced is always intimidating for me.
7:20 "i'm glad i pretended you asked" you're awesome, it's a shame your not more well known around the d&d communitues
This is easily one of the best channels for learning how to dm. I went from running session 1 of 1 campaign a month ago to running 3 campaigns now, because people were so excited they invited their friends. Thanks for all of the tips man, it means a lot.
Sorry I missed this comment at the time mate, but it makes my day to see it now. So glad you and your players are getting some value from the channel, that's what this is all about. Really appreciate the support!
woah!!!
This gave me a good idea for the start of a campaign I've been trying to run. Connecting the players to the storyline was where I was finding trouble, but now I have something of an idea for what to do. A burning wagon, dead bodies, bandits in the mountains, political corruption, and an abandoned dwarf mine filled with kobolds and a few ettins should do the trick
Well.... how'd your campaign go?
That moment when you realize there whole campaign always matches the template. 😮
Also, and additional note: the “new information” step does not always have to be a Shyamalan-type of twist. I think the example of the venomous spiders was a good example of this. It was already suspected that there may have been a mole, just nobody knew who the mole was. The identity reveal can still be surprising and exciting without having to blow minds. The blown mind thing can be super fun… but if it is overused, then your stories can feel super contrived and incongruent with themselves, not to mention that your players will learn not to trust any of the information they get in the first two steps.
2 sessions ago the party rescued an owlbear in a hobgoblin camp that they used to destroy it from the inside. They befriended it before they parted ways, and now they are about to delve into a crypt, which is 2 days from the town, and the villain in the crypt has mind controlled and corrupted the local animalsn including the owlbear they rescued which shows up at the end of the fight. They are going to have a chance to save it but they need to drag it to the town within a week at a slower pace while risking exhaustion, and won't be guaranteed a long rest. This is my plan to really engage them at the end of the quest and drive up the tension, so I'm glad to see this video revealed that I was naturally following this formula and creating twists at the end of the main objective. I'll be referring to this template often because it really is the bread and butter of dnd engagement.
Even the example ideas this guy has is gold that I wanna take 😂
I appreciate these slightly longer-form videos. You're always straight to the point, but very concise with your explanations. Your content is super helpful to new DMs like myself
As a new dnd player looking to DM these videos are real helpful
Incredible. I'm a beginning GM and I had been having trouble creating quests until now. I love the template and how straight forward it is. "...Work backward."
This is excellent and a great follow up to your short.
I used the template for my mini campaign. It really helped me fill out quest hubs with something interesting for my players.
Here’s an example of quest line I ended up not using.
*Mini Campaign Background*
My mini campaign was filling in for our regular DM who was away for 6 weeks. I ran a Sci-if, western styled D&D game based on a video-game called “Steamworld Heist”. The players were all Steam powered cowboy robots staging heists for gallons of water to fuel themselves and their ship, in a future where humans died out and the earth shattered into pieces a long time ago.
*1. Setup the objective*
Find out what happened to the "Wreck-limator" pilgrimage to "The Copper Titan (Ruined Statue of Liberty 🗽) and return any research or artefacts they might have discovered.
*2. Initial Challenge*
A Vectron monstronsity has taken up residence in the Copper Titan, there is evidence that the pilgrimage took shelter in the head of the Titan. They took most of the research up there with them.
*3. Main Challenge*
The statue of liberty is booby trapped on the way up and is infested with some level appropriate enemy.
*4. New Information*
The Pilgrims discovered a Voltbot core and have began worshipping to the point that they have now become a hive mind. They answer as one and have "upgraded" themselves, they become hostile if the Voltcore is removed from it's pedistal of worship.
*5. Resolving The New Information*
The Voltcore is obviously dangerous and would corrupt most cowbots that come into contact with it.
Like the way he says "... which was tied to one of the players tragic backstories" and every DM knows what he is talking about as it's completely normal thing to have in dnd
Love the longer format videos. I'm hoping you'll do more of them! Maybe even some original quests/adventures? :)
The new information acquired in step 4 doesn't have to be a groundbreaking twist or even change the outcome of the quest itself. A plot hook for the next step of the campaign's overarching plot or even more information on the boss (battle tactics, spells, strengths & weaknesses) are good examples for this. It can also change the players secondary goals for the final challenge: instead of killing the villain, they might spare their life and try to extract critical information from them.
"Im glad I pretended you asked" 🤣🤣🤣
*Also this video is amazing thank you!
Great as usual. Sent this to my player that is gonna start DM-ing aswell :D
Once again really happy your doing these longer videos! They are always a treat!
He is the chosen one! As it was foretold in the scrolls...
Great video sir very helpful! 👍
You are my favorite DM channel. I'm first time dm and im writing my own campaign from the ground up and your videos have helped me so oooooooo friggin much so thank you and keep up the great work. I love ya man.
Love this! Whenever I try and format a session to come I always find myself coming back to the video!
This was so helpful for a first time DM and I am so grateful that you made this video!
I have been following along with the shorts you've provided for a while and always enjoyed them! This is the first time I watched the longer format and i love it even more! It's like you put words on things I've felt bad couldn't express! Just wanted to tell you to keep it up! Great stuff!!
Not to mention you can use step 4 to plant info that leads into or is the step 1 of another adventure...
I just discovered your channel. Excellent content you do mate, keep it up. Also, nice beard, very distinguished👌
Agreed, he has a nice beard
Well written, presented, and reasoned. Fantastic stuff man :D
Gotta say - I am JEALOUS of your hair. Always looks so perfectly styled. D:
Also - loving these helpful tips in the longer format. Immensely helpful to hear how another DM tackles the infinite prep work!❤
Definitely gonna try this, thanks a ton!
i loved your videos btw, i trully hope you keep posting some
This helped me know I was going in the right direction! I'm running what i hope to be my first true dnd campaign and this gave me that little extra confidence I needed
"I'm glad I pretended you asked." 😂
Day 1 patreon sub & terrible dm; I needed this video thanks you lmfao
“Think of the outcome you want to see, and work backward.” Very helpful!
Thank you for your videos! Always wanted to DM a campaign but never made it happen. Sitting with my newborn asleep on me, but your videos have inspired me to write anyway, with my free hand. Cheers man
for me and my party, the best quest/sidequest/adventure we had was the tower of storms in the dragon of icespire peak campaign. i modified it a bit and it was great. it was that moment i realised the truth that fear is a great emotion for feeling proud at the end. since moesko (half orc shapechanger spellcaster) had the lightning bolt spell they feared him with their life since they are level 3 with the following hp max: 21, 32, 23. it was also fun for me the dm
I get it! I like that you said to start at step 3 then work backwards and forwards. This is a good method. Together with the 5 step model, it makes for great building blocks of an overarching campaign. Last, thanks for suggesting how many sessions to split this model into 👍
I start watching these videos and instantly get a surge of inspiration to flush out my homebrew
Thanks for all the help dude
This is an incredibly hekpful framework!
Perfect timing, I'm planning on adding an extra side quest into the Dragon of Icespire Peak module I'm running and that game is today lol
"I'm glad I pretended you asked..." 😂
I started last year to play dnd and at the same time, i joined this great game as a dm. Atm im planning a homebrew campaign, and im so glad that i found ur youtube channel! You're helping me a lot and you're also lowering my anxiety
Nice video !
Easy to follow along and with examples for reference, great recipe. Sidenote: Hope the algorithm brings in more eyes, it recommended me the "How to write a Dungeons and Dragons campaign | 5 steps" first :)
I can't tell you how helpful this was. I've been dming for a group for over a year now and I have never stopped struggling to get each session feeling full and fulfilling. There are so many videos on how to write a campaign but hardly any on writting session to session! Thank you so much! If I could make a request, I'd love to see how you layout your session prep. I jump between programs so much and never really feel like I have a good system for it
Fantastic. Love the long vids. I'll be back with what I've made out of your skeleton 😄
This is super helpful and really well explained! I really really love the challenge/homework you give at the end of the video as a way to encourage people to apply your lessons.
I think you gave yourself three great ideas for next videos on sessions/quests focusing on Combat, Stealth/Investigation, and Roleplay, and how to prepare, balance, and run each of those! Making combat interesting and fairly balanced is always intimidating for me.
Thanks for the tips! I will definitely be using them for my Dream Heist
I find this video a lot more helpful than most of what How To Be A Great GM makes.
This guy's voice is so soothing and nice to listen to. Really helps me focus on what he's saying
I really like your content, especially the longer format. You have great, useful info to share
Thank you for the vid. You and other creators are inspiring me to create my own story.
I like this quick ten minute video format
Phenomenal video, really helped me to plan my own game!
Definitely going to use this tonight