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@@theDMLair i have a question, do yo know a game system that is more dynamic than dnd? I mean, the things is, all that statistics and math delute all the dynamics, i don't mean "way to make combat more intresting" i mean: way to twist the rule to make it more fast, or totaly different systems
@@sulfuras1985 stop waiting to play and start playing. Make everyone make a character together in one night and start a basic combat; then try to meet up again same time next week or every two (whatever people can do). Even if you do dnd for one, you don’t need two years to build a campaign for session 1, you only need enough for session 1, you’ll get session 2 ready after session 1 is done. Otherwise, write a book.
@@sulfuras1985 i wanted to play and had no one, told 3 friends online “ hey if I run a game will you play?” I asked “ what kind of character u want skillwise?” And with their answer I made them a character sheet myself. Then just said “ based on these 3 nations and cultures give me a simple character backstory “ And whatever simple thing they said I just added their real life details into it and voila character done and chose a date to play 🤷🏼♂️ They played 2 sessions and they got invested
The last tip reminded me of an important bit of advice the owner of a local game store once gave me. He told me that once I make a world and I let other people (i.e. the players) interact with it it's no longer just my world. He then went on to give me a few examples of how his setting has changed over time due to the players in his games
If you want it to be just your world, become a writer. (Source: I'm a writer.) But DnD is, and has always been, a cooperative game. Sure, in the very beginning it was more DM vs players, but that's still cooperative world building, and it's much more pronounced now with modern mindsets.
It only interesting if they actually do stuff and not suffering from that Ganondorf plague of "hmmm going to take me -1 years to recover" Need more Majoras who will glass your mom for fun.
Yeah, I realized the same thing in my campaign. My players became a lot more interested in the Game if Thrones and political maneuvering of the gods and pantheons than the artifact fetch-quest I had planned out, so now my campaign revolves around the divine conspiracy instead
People who run games tend to think “oh I have to do all these other things I see other DMs do.” From worldbuilding, encounter design, terrain/mini crafting, etc etc. This hobby has so many facets to it, people should focus their time on what they enjoy doing and outsource the parts they don’t enjoy. The effort will make their game unique and special to them and their players (aka. The only people who matter in this case.)
Yeah, the spread of the internet has been both beneficial and toxic to the hobby. When I started in the 90's we didn't give a fig what other tables did. We got together and enjoyed ourselves. I fear that the internet has brought with it some helpful tools and resources, but also a whole load of expectations that limit people's freedom to do their own things.
That what i say. Do what you know is good, try to improve in things that are nice but you arent seeing me put in things I hate cuz "some boi told me to"
@@Subject_Keter for a person who constantly overthinks everything, and finds it hard to read people, surely we can see how some people might feel a pressure to 'improve' their games by working in things that 'everyone seems to be doing'?
@@MartinNelson I forget what usual bearbug gets me but it like "That a good idea, that a good idea, ooo that a ultra good idea" and i am running around like a Diablo 3 Treasure Goblin. But during the summer i was going to make a Board Game Prototype and it hit me "Just do what is good for the Project" Doe the only thing i wish most people would do is be willing to fix and adapt DnD for things that "dont work" over buying some goober stuff. Like I dont get it when you are mostly likely already spendi g 2 hours grafting everything together or more
@@Subject_Keter or using a pre-created version of that thing. I truly do not like making maps and there so many great looking maps out there rather than make my own. My players probably won’t ever run into a “stock” monster on those maps, however, because I enjoy crafting monsters and designing encounters. I also enjoy improvising and don’t enjoy “writing” NPC’s. So I find generators that work for me when making them.
I ran a kingdom building campaign with several factions and what helped me the most for making sure the world feels alive, it moves even without players and such is to have fleshed out KEY characters. Their backstory, goals, likes, dislikes, plans. Not only will the players notice and have the character be more believable, but it also takes away work from you the GM, cause you can always just ask: "What would this character do now with these changes?" and if you did the character well enough you can easily answer that. My prep was often just "Okay would that, that and that character do? And what are their next steps" and then the NPCs basically made the next sessions for me in a way. It sometimes felt like I myself was out of control what happened next, cause I just let the NPCs do their thing.
The biggest challenge I have is creating something interesting enough for players to be really invested in. Doesn't really matter the world setting, can be anything. Trying to get them to align to a specific important goal.
You might want to consider asking your players what they'd be interested in. Also, sometimes, you have to just run a few adventures and see what they respond to and then do more of that. Also also, some groups just want to dungeon-delve for treasure and killing monsters while other groups want to have grand, epic, world-saving campaigns! (And some just want to murderhobo.) What kind of group do you think your players are? Do you need to ask them? It might be a good time to call a Session 0 and ask these questions while also letting them know your expectations and wants. Assuming you want them to be stopping villages from being raided and the ultimate BBEG from destroying the world, you might want to request players put into their characters' backstories a reason why they're doing the first session's adventure and maybe why they'd care about the big story arc. This builds some engagement into everything. There's also what I call the "book blurb method." In it, you let the players know, in a vague way, what the overarching campaign goal is and the immediate adventure's goal is. It's a bit meta, admittedly, but no worse than the if a player reads the blurb on the back of a campaign book...or even the title! (Just the title "Curse of Strahd" tells you that you eventually want to confront Strahd, right?) This way, the players can choose to pursue those goals (or not, in any way they want!!! Important!!! Player agency!!!) without you having to railroad them. Just make sure the players know to act on character knowledge and not anything you've disclosed. Final word: It ultimately goes back to asking what the players are interested in and what kind of game they prefer AND whether you can be happy running that kind of game. If they want just simple dungeon crawling and you can enjoy running dungeon crawls, then do that.
Stealing is definitely the way to go. My current campaign is based on the 1970's tv show Land Of The Lost. Even though the PCs are NOT the characters from the show and the ultimate plot will be very different it gave me a framework to start adapting. For instance I've already used parts of several episodes as ideas for encounters (even though the outcomes were very different) and it gave me several NPCs I could use right off the bat.
Stealing is fun but I like to Adapt and Tinker. I like the 40k Admech but my friend cant watch half a luetin video so I will adapt them so he watches out of curiousity.
@@Subject_Keter I say "stealing" but it really is "adapt and tinker". You have a rough plot, then the players bring the PCs, then you grab a few influences and mash everything together, adapting to make it seem like a coherent whole.
There is one caveat which is the reason I try to limit stealing pop culture ideas as much as possible and instead focusing on a specific aspect, like for example instead of taking the whole of Code Geass, characters and all, I would use maybe just the Empire, or maybe just the Power and call it something else. The reason you have to be careful is if any player knows that franchise or show or whatever, they can effectively ruin the game if they’re so inclined. „Oh there’s Lelouche, lemme kill him“. Sure depends on players, but I’d be careful nevertheless. Also might be boring for that player because he already knows the story or aspects of it. And it’s always a gamble, unless you ask but then the cat‘s out the bag and nothing stops them from researching anyways.
TH-cam swallowed my reply apparently Fine… In short, I recommend being very careful with stealing ideas and entire worlds and characters. I try to limit it to stealing a certain interesting aspect. The reason is, you never know what your players know, if they’re familiar with the franchise you copy, they might ruin the game either purposefully or not. And if you ask them before, then the cat‘s out the bag and nothing stops them from researching anyway. Edit: wow thanks TH-cam for regurgitating my first reply…
@@kotzpenner I think it just depends cuz that cycle be turning, how many things are based off or adapted from something else so long it a thing now? Like people say Dune made "The Emperor of Mankind" but I know which Emperor i trust. Also for me, I rather have a some kernel of it be "Hey wait a minute!" Over like taking entire beats unless your players wanted that. Like I want to make a Sun King boss and just baseing him off Kael Sunstrider from WoW imo is good if you start with "angry fire mage who is trying to help his people" but you go on more.
2:00 Greatest mistake of the DMG is not telling aspiring dms that they shouldnt really care about anything besides tone and initial kingdom for a campaign start.
I’m am HYPED for this board game! Im a little burned out right now on learning new systems. But a board game?? Everything I’ve received from your team has been top notch so I can’t wait.
Good video. As always. I change aspects of the story with what PCs do. I have a chart I roll off screen and keep track events that happen may or may not involve the PCs. Keeps things fresh. :)
These tips are so great. Been meaning to start a campaign for a long time. This and the other videos you mention are a great jumping off point to start. You don’t suck, Luke!
This is great advice! I'm currently world building for our group's next campaign, once we're done with the one currently running. I'll definitely be applying some of the advice here!
I have been doing something to get myself started lately that has been working for me. I create: 1 over-arching detail about the whole world (steam-punk hell-scape where machines are power by souls, a whimsical fey realm where gold and typical money is worthless, generic fantasy world, etc) 2 groups who drive the main conflict (could be kingdoms, families, rival dragons, etc) 3 broadly sketched locals (buildings, towns, sights on a map) 4 encounters that could happen in the first session of play 5 named NPCs who have five bullet points about who they are after that, I've been building from those block from session to session as needed.
I have never run a game before and I am learning a lot from you. It has always seemed intimidating to be a DM/GM but I think I can actually do it. Thank you!
All of these things are top tier advice. I have been playing since 1978 and generally do many of the things as you describe. It took me a long time as GM to learn the lessons that led there so I recommend listening to these. Best regards.
Hey, Luke! You don't suck! This wonderful advice illustrates why the game master is the hardest-working person at the table. I love it. This is amazing advice for games like D&D!
for those who want to know, it starts with an excessively long sells pitch, if you want to skip it, go to 1:52 i nearly clicked off because i came to get world building tips not be tried to sell something.
Seems too many prospective DMs die halfway up the hill of worldbuilding. I start this way: 1. What sort of game do my players want? (Fun, serious, dark, etc.) 2. Player Hook. What makes your world different to a generic fantasy world? (my current campaign, the world is shrouded in magical darkness, with all the consequences of that...) 3. Central tension. What is the big conflict in this world? (there can be more than one) 4. Scope. Saving the world, getting rich, or something else? 4. Character Hook. Why do the characters care about the central tension? (cheat here and let the players make that bit up) 5. Starting location. Where are they, and why are they there? 6. Adventure Hook. What causes the characters to sober up and leave the tavern? That's it. You can make up a pantheon if you want, but probably easier to just steal one you like and rename the gods.
Luke, you are the man! I appreciate both you & this video. You've given me some things to consider about building my next campaign. I already had an idea, but I was going in too much & you saying, "WHOAH, there!" gave me the kick I need to back off a bit. Thanks.
Cat!! I don't remember seeing that cat before. Big boi💕 You got me inspired to actually dig through some of the million and one resources I have to flesh out the city around the Nocturne Repository before my players get there next session...
I have delved into my first world-building experience with Waterdeep: Dragon Heist and it is SO empowering! Making connections between the various plot lines I've developed, creating new NPC's from my party's past, and thinking of new weekly horrors to throw at my players... I finally feel like a REAL DM!
Using a custom Pantheon, my group is a bunch of history and mythology nerds so I found there was a lot more engagement once I just adapted the Finnish, Baltic, and Celtic pantheons (with specific emphasis on Irish and Welsh mythology) as the deities of my world. Thats specific to my group though, not a mistake in general. Although even outside that group I do find players often get inspired qhen they can look up the deities on their own time instead of relying on you, so I highly advise using a published pantheon if you aren't directly adopting a real world pantheon.
Hey Luke, you don't suck! In fact, I bought the digital pack of the "Secret Art of..." books and it's greatly helping me with my worldbuilding, especially in preventing worldbuilder's disease and making my campaign PLAYABLE at the table within a month or two. Many thanks!
My friend/DMs world started out as a single fairly developed idea of a magically inclined city within a kingdom of mostly “basic” fantasy races. Every campaign we play in it something changes or gets added often from us as players. Now we’re doing a campaign that will change the timeline of what we already know and he took a 3 month break to develop maps of the world and add more descriptions to things.
I agree 100%...except I worry about one thing. I've been seeing on your discord that a lot of brand-new DMs are getting caught in the weeds and I think you're suggesting too much for them to do when world-building. I worry that they'll want to do everything you suggest *before* they can run an adventure despite you specifically telling them not to. Much in SUPREME and building the pantheon, while useful, can be developed in parallel with the adventuring--often being created as needed during a session's prep and, of course, in response to character actions. Brand-spanking-new DMs also tend to want their entire campaign's plot figured out to a T while they're world-building. And, rightfully, directing some of their worldbuilding. However, developing a detailed plot at that stage is also not a great idea. It can put off starting the first adventure, make worldbuilding even more unwieldy, and possibly lead to railroading. You may have a video on this already, but if not, could you make one? I'm generally of the mindset that noob DMs keep any overall plot to the most rough, general outline that they can. Then, similar to your suggestion, start with where the PCs are starting location-wise and what is needed for the first session.
I developed my own rule to decide if it's useful or not to develop some kind of details and info about the world. I think that any lore should serve one of the few main purposes for the game. 1. Providing basic information about the world. This may vary from names of the kingdoms and cities to some world-specific rectrictions for magic and races, general vibes of the setting, the most important NPCs and so on. This includes the most important, necessary information for your players to understand the world. 2. Serving as a plot hooks and resources for PCs, that may lead to adventure. I think it's important to make sure that new details are not here just to exist but for players to use them in some way. So, when in doubt, you can ask yourself: can the party use this information/place/NPC to progress the plot? Any part of the world is better when PCs can do something with it. For example, you can list all the rulers of the kingdom and years of their reign, but if your plot has nothing to do with scheming in the royal casle, you probably don't have to develop this. 3. Working for an atmosphere and immersion. Local legends and folklore, fashion, details of architecture and rituals, heraldry and basically any other stuff may not be connected to the plot or even intended to be used by PCs, but if it can enhance the immersion, breathe the life into the scene and the overall world - sure, why not to come up with something? Just don't be too crazy about it: save some time for the more "practical" campaign planning too.) So yeah. If possible new details are useful for one of these reasons, they are worth developing. But even if not - you can save them for later and still use them in the future.
Just starting a completely new campaign in my own world setting. Have given the characters the option of desining their own city or even nation as their point of oroigin in their backstory. Really hoping some of them take up the offer as it saves me some legwork and draws then in and gives them some investment of their own in the campaign and setting. Reassuring to hear the same advice in the vieo. Suspect I am on the right track!
a family member of mine recently released a role-playing game. The game is called Mythmaster rpg, he has a degree in creative writing and the world-building is spectacular
I started with my pantheon years ago and it’s slowly spiraled into a multiverse as I developed a story. I would world build constantly and should be a lot further along, my only hold up is not having enough feedback on the world to know if I’m going in the right direction so this is helpful. I started a campaign months ago but after the first major quest my players want to hop between different campaigns, so it’s slowed to a crawl in terms of developing one of my eras. My motivation to build is tied to my unrelenting need to constantly spill lore to others until their ears bleed, so it’s pretty slow going 😅.
I have a world, I keep adding notes to it, now if I only had players that our schedules would line up more than once every 4 months, we also end up playing something else half the time instead since its often just 3 of us that can meet instead of all 5 so that doesn't help . . . They are also chaotic something, very hard to plan anything ahead of them, but I suppose all roads lead to Rome if you want them too, just might be in a jungle instead of the plains and different enemy variety than planned.
When it comes to a conflict its important to note you don't need to start the campaign with it right in players face. You can very much start with a simple premise like "You are a bunch of adventurers looking for work" which through that work is where you can stumble onto conflict. The great part of this angle is that you can dangle multiple threads and allow your players to naturally gravity towards certain problems which from there it can help you build up a conflict the players are most drawn into. If you weave the threads in enough once one thread is done you can have players gravitate towards another you set up and with some planning you can even have seperate threads connect together in some way to create an even greater narrative.
I do run my own setting and I love to world build but I do that on the side of prepping and running games. I never let it become the priority. Ideas hit me and I simply add them to the setting when I think they fit or when I have refined them enough. All the while I am running games not waiting for everything to be fleshed out. I do not need the entire world developed to run fun games. Heck, a lot of times something comes up in a game session that I had never thought about and that thing gets integrated into my setting notes/world building. So many good ideas from players or things they do or simply express interest in that I had never considered. And yes lore dumps are no good for players. they will remember things that are pertinent to the adventure. Rarely will they remember the date and name of some ancient despot that fell generations ago that never come up in their direct adventures. Don't dump ancient history on them unless they are organically discovering it and it is useful.
1:51 Worrying *too much* about Worldbuilding 2:49 Lack of *conflict* 3:31 Not understanding what Worldbuilding *is* 4:04 If the GM is using a *Premade* World, they don't need to World Build 5:00 Waiting to play until the world is *finished* 6:10 Creating, not Adapting 6:54 Lack of *depth* 8:15 Detail *Overload* 9:54 Not *evolving* the World (no realistic aftermath for what the PCs do) 11:22 Not starting at the *Beginning* 12:35 Overusing Tropes 13:24 Skimping on Monsters 14:24 Skimping on People 15:06 Negleting the *impact* of *magic* 15:55 Not involving your *players* in the *process*
"How many moons are there?" QI has an answer for that. As a writer, I'd say that a lot of this advice is applicable to story writing and world building as well. In particular about not creating too much before starting to write the actual story, and changing the world to suit the story and characters.
@@HappyNoob17YT Same for my world, actually. One's a water moon, which I'm not sure makes realistic sense, but it's fantasy so it can be justified somehow.
As someone who has been fleshing out my world for the past like 6 or 7 years, various iterations and versions of it changing over the course of multiple campaigns, don't be afraid to shake things up a little. Part of my world's lore is very caked into specific cleric domains existing as sort of the cosmic batteries of magic, existing in all life like the Rukh from the Magi anime, the prime deities being like Ego from GotG II for the planes they reside on. One example being my Asmodeus stand-in being the "Ego" for my Nine Hells and serves as the source of Death domain energies and what not. Well when they released Tasha's, I had to ask myself "do I just exclude these cleric options that don't fit the current domains or do I adapt my world?" I shook things up and altered my world, reworking the entire cosmology, pantheon, etc. to encompass basically every official domain except for Peace, along with the couple of non official ones I was already using. Granted, I am now happy enough with the setting that I do not plan to make any more mass changes like this, but if you're in a state of wondering if you should shake it up, try it, see if you like it, and you always have the prior version to revert to if you end up not liking it. Secondly, do not be afraid to quit worldbuilding. The INSTANT that worldbuilding starts feeling like a chore is the exact moment you start burnout and making bad decisions. I have so many choices in worldbuilding made in a "well I have to get this done" mindset that ended up being changed, altered, or removed later when I had a more clear head because they were just not good ideas. So if you feel like worldbuilding is beginning to feel like a job instead of fun, take a break. Go do something fun. Consume some media that might spark new ideas. Take a day or two, or however long you can reasonably break for, and then come back to it with a fresh set of eyes, especially if you've been deep in the worldbuilding sauce for multiple days or weeks in a row.
Me, new DM: I gotta flesh out everything! Every single character, map, enemy, encounter, dialogue, etc. Now: I just wing 75% of stuff, with 25% from the overarching plot driving the world events and faction movements
I’ve been doing some prep for a one shot I hope to run. I am also fleshing everything out, but I’m enjoying it all. It scratches that game-design itch I’ve always had
my world isn't super developed yet, but my tactic has been to take some areas I used to one-off / mini campaigns and adapting them to parts of a larger world, and then building onto that. Not all tied together properly yet, but it gives me starting points, and reuses some stuff I'd already done
Thats how I do it. I create “story arc’s” that have their own areas and then i find ways to bridge these arcs together. Whether its drop subtle hints to players to guide them or let them find the stories on their own
I really wish I had grabbed something other then the ebberon 53 book for me getting back into dming. I found it interesting but not great for getting them really started or for giving me content to use. I think for a returning gm books like golden vault, yawning portal, strahd would have been better for my game personally. Video is great thank you as always
Two world-building tips: "World-building NEVER ends." It literally doesn't matter how long you work on a world; the party's actions and how the campaign unfolds will create new lore (or should). Don't expect to be finished, just have enough to work with for each session. "Integrate backstories into the world." It's easier to immerse the party into the world by making their histories relevant. Does your Ranger call a specific forest home? Where is it in the world? Talk with your Ranger about what creatures live there, and how the seasons affect the land. Did the Rogue grow up on the streets? The streets of what which town? Talk with the Rogue about how cold society must have looked from their angle, and the politics that made it that way. I don't suggest free reign, but brainstorming together between sessions can really motivate both the DM and party.
I'm participating in a Fate game currently, and while the GM does build stories, the whole group participated in the world building for the setting over a few session zeroes before we even started to create characters. Further, throughout the game, we have the ability to add to the worldbuilding in the middle of the game by expending a resource to establish a neutral fact of the world/town/person/etc. If the group is looking for a vendor, and the GM had not put one in the town, expend the resource and wa-la, there was one, right around the corner. Meet some NPC and think your PC could have known that person, expend that resource and tell the story how you know that person. Yes, there are some back and forths over it, but that setting is really fascinating, and it has been some of the richest RP I've been apart of. So, while I'm not a fan of everything Fate does mechanically, I'm adapting that approach to collaborative worldbuilding to a new campaign I'm going to be running soon.
I did about a month's worth of prep work. Mostly to understand how to DM. Almost every character type that my PCs have picked (Human College of Lore Bard, Thri-Kreen Arcane Trickster Rogue, Goblin Conjuration Wizard, Human Monk, and Arakokora Monster Slayer Ranger) are types I've not played before (except College of Lore Bard). So I wanted to know how to run with them. We're about four sessions in and other than a few rocky RP spots and not quite finding a way to challenge them in combat, I think it's going pretty well.
I remember a campaign I ran back in college (almost 30 years ago now). One of the quests ended with the opportunity to acquire "Swords of Legend." These swords were lined up on a table, and as a character selected a blade and touched it, they were transported to the world from whence the weapon came. They became the person who owned the sword, without any of their own abilities, and would have to "solve" a situation as that person. The possible weapons included Sting, Glamdring, Callandor, Eirias, the Sword of Truth, the Sword of Shannara, and the Darksword (there may have been more). It was then that I learned that one of my best friends had never read the Hobbit, nor was he familiar with any of the riddles from the story. 🤣🤣🤣
I havent tried DMing yet but I do like creating worlds lol Im thinking of doing something small like 2-3 nations in a region on a continent where the main story will start. It would probably take me a few days to make the map and headcannon some ideas. I would probably start out with some sort of conflict between two of the 3 nations... imagine our group of hero's (levels 3-5) in a particular city (I would probably have to mandate they are from this region and to base their characters within the setting) and as they are going about their day a huge explosion is set off in some strategically important building within the city.. like a barracks or town hall. Thats were we would start, the idea being that they are going to get drawn into a major conflict that will spiral out of control and they have to... well I guess figure it out. The city would most likely be a border town military post, and its one of several points that the rival nation is attacking. If they can successfully ward off the attack that determines the next course of action. Will this town be a beacon of hope or the equivalent of the Alamo? I can headcannon the politics and some of the dynamics of the conflict's bigger picture. I think it would be cool to involve more friendly NPC's as allies.. to make it feel more like a war rather than an adventure. I can also have the group go on special missions to still have those adventure dungeon crawling moments as well. it's the middle to endgame that I wonder about and would probably have to leave on the back burner until they progress further. I could also flip the script and have them play the attacking force at the head of an invasion.. the tip of the spear so to speak. It could be pretty fun for the more combat oriented players. I guess Ill have to figure out DMing lol anyway yall have a good day.
9.1 there has to be an agent for that change. If the players are in a warlock tower, the nearby city isn't going to be affected by their decisions until they leave that tower, unless there's something reporting things going on
I'd add to let players help, let players specifically build their characters' expertise. Maybe their home village so they know the NPCs and favorite spots. Or maybe give that plane of fire to the wizard who researches the planes. As a player one thing that frustrates me is stuff like "Oh yes, I'm an expert on the shadow plane...so, uh, what is this?" You end up having to ask the DM to fill in your knowledge for you all the time (so you can't RP your knowledge), or else make stuff up as you go along for RP and accept being frequently wrong about this thing you're an expert in.
I’d strongly recommend making your first homebrew campaign in a “forgotten realms” and even “Sword Coast” multiverse reality to just take the premade landmass and town names. Then you can easily drop in any of all the ample premade content as you please while you invent your own. I’ve seen a lot of custom campaign DM getting stuck up on very basic terrain/town/road/deity fill. It helps players build a backstory with some preunderstood context. It still allows for any ideas you’d like to add or cut. Renaming the gods of luck and magic just to be unique is not clever or fun. It’s just clutter for players to get confused with. All the zillion official and unofficial map points which exist can inspire you. Accidentally building an illogical map of missing empty space on your own can be a major trap of time which just backfires.
Re: Change aspects of your world, and not skimping on people I like to make it clear to the characters that the world doesn't just change because of them... but because of other people. Especially when the PCs are lower level. Let them be aware of powerful adventurers. They don't need to meet them, but they hear about them, and how they change the world. Maybe there was a dangerous trail full of bandits they had to make it through at level one... they fought some bandits and made it to their destination. But a while later they have reason to go that way again, and there isn't a single bandit, and villagers are happily walking along the path without fear. The PCs ask a NPC, "I thought this was a dangerous route", and the NPC responds "some heroes came and slayed the bandit king and made it safe for all of us again!" I think it is important to remind the players that the world doesn't revolve around them. But when they reach higher level, they can take pride in the fact that THEY are the ones that the villagers throughout the kingdom are talking about.
Number 2: I would say it's better to find problems rather than make them. When you build problems into your world it has a nasty habit of making truck sized plot holes, or trivializing stakes. However, if problems are more holistic it's a lot harder to run into this problem. Number 9: Disagree about the degree of change. Change should be relative to context. At level 1, you'll be clearing out things that the local government considers "not a threat", so your actions won't really see much of broader change. Even at level 18, if you kill a lich in the mountains hell bent on world domination, that no one really knew about, what change are you really going to see on a broader scale? If you make character actions have observable affects on things, no matter what, what happens is that rather than connect the characters you disconnect them from the world, at least in certain aspects. They are now above the world, they are "the ones", they are no longer a holistic part of what is happening. They are simply the plot device that is needed to make everything ok again. Their presence is no longer apart of the world on anything but a narrative level. In this way you disconnect them more than you connect them.
World build to your heart's content; it can be fun, and it can make DMing much easier. You do not need to share most of it with your players, if they are interested in why something is happening the way it is, they will ask. Don't try to develop the whole campaign before session 0. Only build what you need. You don't need to flesh out anything you don't need now, except as background. A static world is a dead world.
Technically, adventure design is world-building. Customizing pre-made adventures is too. Even "just" DM'ing is, if you think about it. You can't really avoid it. Embrace it, control how much you do based on your wants/likes/needs, and enjoy it. Or get back on the other side of the screen. I mean, you could just throw random haphazard adventures at your table with no extant world required, I guess. ymmv. Also, I think the Scottish Dwarf may have come from the Riftwar Saga by Raymond Feist, which has dwarf-like miners who speak with a thick brogue. Or maybe that came from how he played Dwarves in D&D, I don't know. That's where I got it tho, iirc -- it's been ages.
Wait, so in regards to subverting tropes, I just put the party’s Forge Domain Cleric on alert with my Texan Wood Elf? *furiously prepares amended notes for tomorrow night’s session*
Hey Luke! You don’t suck! Except you only worry about 5e and pf2. Those systems suck. Okay, they don’t suck, they are popular for a reason, but I absolutely hate them. I hate the gameplay style they promote. 3.5 had problems, but it is still closer to what I want from a system than any other system even gurps. And plenty of other systems are great at what they do.
To me, it feel like no actual evolution has happened, no smoking gun kinda advancement that utterly slay all before it. It feels like everyone in a standoff each bluffing they could totally claim the crown with zero bullets in their guns
The most important thing in worldbuilding is the question "Why?" - Why are the nations placed like this on the map, and what makes up their borders? Why are the kingdom of Rinstguart and the republic of Farrania allied against the Quartz Empire? Are there specific reasons why the Elves are only found above 1500 ft elevation, and dwarves only below 300 ft? Why should the king raise so many taxes that the populace forms a resistance? Why are the gold coins called Unicorni? Why don't magic users just take over the world, what hampers them from doing so?
I can't tell you how much some of these AI programs help. They are great sounding boards, they offer suggestions. They can help you format a stat block for a new creature. So useful in building worlds.
#5 is very important, never forget that your players are going to do a good amount of world building in the campaign through the actions they take in game.
If you add lore to an official world and aren’t aware that the lore already exists in that world (like you saying magic came from a god ‘s blessing when the actual lore says magic came from another dimension), you can just ignore the latter and tell any players who question your lore that your world is a slightly different version of the official world.
The most important idea of world building to me is start small. You are better off building a small town or city that you know every nook and cranny like shops and people all the way to law enforcement and economics and society then an entire world that you kinda know who lives there.
I’m literally just starting to look into how to be a DM. What would be the best books to use? Google gives me several different answers and I know everyone has a different way of doing things. Plus, I’ve only been playing just over a year. Is there anything else I need to start my journey?
Game Mastering books I recommend. (First one my team and I made.) The Secret Art of Game Mastery - thedmlair.com/collections/the-secret-art-of-game-mastery So You Want to Be a Game Master - amzn.to/4cyGXFe Arbiter of Worlds - amzn.to/3Xc4lE3
🔥 DM LAIR PATREON | Get loads of 5e and PF2e adventures, traps, puzzles, monsters, and Foundry VTT modules to help you reduce your prep time and run amazing games! www.patreon.com/thedmlair
@@theDMLair i have a question, do yo know a game system that is more dynamic than dnd? I mean, the things is, all that statistics and math delute all the dynamics, i don't mean "way to make combat more intresting" i mean: way to twist the rule to make it more fast, or totaly different systems
@theDMLair What are your favorite prebuilt campaigns that aren't WOTC created?
The saddest thing to see is posts like “got snacks, music, atmosphere,… ready for session 1. Nobody showed up, two years of planning gone”.
I'm on 1 year 4 months... one person has made a character so far. 😢
@@sulfuras1985 stop waiting to play and start playing. Make everyone make a character together in one night and start a basic combat; then try to meet up again same time next week or every two (whatever people can do). Even if you do dnd for one, you don’t need two years to build a campaign for session 1, you only need enough for session 1, you’ll get session 2 ready after session 1 is done. Otherwise, write a book.
My group has been meeting weekly and it’s been epic
@@jacobnewby5391 same! I’m lucky enough to DM weekly games for 5. A scheduling miracle!
@@sulfuras1985 i wanted to play and had no one, told 3 friends online “ hey if I run a game will you play?”
I asked “ what kind of character u want skillwise?” And with their answer I made them a character sheet myself. Then just said “ based on these 3 nations and cultures give me a simple character backstory “
And whatever simple thing they said I just added their real life details into it and voila character done and chose a date to play 🤷🏼♂️
They played 2 sessions and they got invested
The last tip reminded me of an important bit of advice the owner of a local game store once gave me. He told me that once I make a world and I let other people (i.e. the players) interact with it it's no longer just my world. He then went on to give me a few examples of how his setting has changed over time due to the players in his games
If you want it to be just your world, become a writer. (Source: I'm a writer.)
But DnD is, and has always been, a cooperative game. Sure, in the very beginning it was more DM vs players, but that's still cooperative world building, and it's much more pronounced now with modern mindsets.
Your world, their story.
But there should always be things happening in the background.
I think if anything, that would make a bettef story then most people could make.
Or you get "Why didnt Gandalf and his bois poke Sauron in his eye"
Hey Luke! You don't suck!
I agree!
Yo, nice seeing you here. I love your top 10 videos
Damn it. Someone have already done it
I dont get bored of good medieval fantasy geopolitics.
boredbuilding
It only interesting if they actually do stuff and not suffering from that Ganondorf plague of "hmmm going to take me -1 years to recover"
Need more Majoras who will glass your mom for fun.
That boring, They have to pose a threat and not he afflicted with "I can only get you if you cross this line" boring.
@@ademile_0973 same
Sir, Bearrington's shenanigans intensifies.
2:50 I concur, my players were more interested in the halfling-dwarf civil war going on than the heroes guild lore.
@@solouno2280 to be fair, I think a civil war is far more interesting than working gigs for the medieval version of a Union + Corporation
Yeah, I realized the same thing in my campaign. My players became a lot more interested in the Game if Thrones and political maneuvering of the gods and pantheons than the artifact fetch-quest I had planned out, so now my campaign revolves around the divine conspiracy instead
People who run games tend to think “oh I have to do all these other things I see other DMs do.” From worldbuilding, encounter design, terrain/mini crafting, etc etc.
This hobby has so many facets to it, people should focus their time on what they enjoy doing and outsource the parts they don’t enjoy. The effort will make their game unique and special to them and their players (aka. The only people who matter in this case.)
Yeah, the spread of the internet has been both beneficial and toxic to the hobby. When I started in the 90's we didn't give a fig what other tables did. We got together and enjoyed ourselves. I fear that the internet has brought with it some helpful tools and resources, but also a whole load of expectations that limit people's freedom to do their own things.
That what i say. Do what you know is good, try to improve in things that are nice but you arent seeing me put in things I hate cuz "some boi told me to"
@@Subject_Keter for a person who constantly overthinks everything, and finds it hard to read people, surely we can see how some people might feel a pressure to 'improve' their games by working in things that 'everyone seems to be doing'?
@@MartinNelson I forget what usual bearbug gets me but it like "That a good idea, that a good idea, ooo that a ultra good idea" and i am running around like a Diablo 3 Treasure Goblin.
But during the summer i was going to make a Board Game Prototype and it hit me "Just do what is good for the Project"
Doe the only thing i wish most people would do is be willing to fix and adapt DnD for things that "dont work" over buying some goober stuff.
Like I dont get it when you are mostly likely already spendi g 2 hours grafting everything together or more
@@Subject_Keter or using a pre-created version of that thing. I truly do not like making maps and there so many great looking maps out there rather than make my own. My players probably won’t ever run into a “stock” monster on those maps, however, because I enjoy crafting monsters and designing encounters. I also enjoy improvising and don’t enjoy “writing” NPC’s. So I find generators that work for me when making them.
I ran a kingdom building campaign with several factions and what helped me the most for making sure the world feels alive, it moves even without players and such is to have fleshed out KEY characters. Their backstory, goals, likes, dislikes, plans. Not only will the players notice and have the character be more believable, but it also takes away work from you the GM, cause you can always just ask: "What would this character do now with these changes?" and if you did the character well enough you can easily answer that. My prep was often just "Okay would that, that and that character do? And what are their next steps" and then the NPCs basically made the next sessions for me in a way. It sometimes felt like I myself was out of control what happened next, cause I just let the NPCs do their thing.
The biggest challenge I have is creating something interesting enough for players to be really invested in. Doesn't really matter the world setting, can be anything. Trying to get them to align to a specific important goal.
You might want to consider asking your players what they'd be interested in. Also, sometimes, you have to just run a few adventures and see what they respond to and then do more of that.
Also also, some groups just want to dungeon-delve for treasure and killing monsters while other groups want to have grand, epic, world-saving campaigns! (And some just want to murderhobo.) What kind of group do you think your players are? Do you need to ask them?
It might be a good time to call a Session 0 and ask these questions while also letting them know your expectations and wants.
Assuming you want them to be stopping villages from being raided and the ultimate BBEG from destroying the world, you might want to request players put into their characters' backstories a reason why they're doing the first session's adventure and maybe why they'd care about the big story arc. This builds some engagement into everything.
There's also what I call the "book blurb method." In it, you let the players know, in a vague way, what the overarching campaign goal is and the immediate adventure's goal is. It's a bit meta, admittedly, but no worse than the if a player reads the blurb on the back of a campaign book...or even the title! (Just the title "Curse of Strahd" tells you that you eventually want to confront Strahd, right?) This way, the players can choose to pursue those goals (or not, in any way they want!!! Important!!! Player agency!!!) without you having to railroad them. Just make sure the players know to act on character knowledge and not anything you've disclosed.
Final word: It ultimately goes back to asking what the players are interested in and what kind of game they prefer AND whether you can be happy running that kind of game. If they want just simple dungeon crawling and you can enjoy running dungeon crawls, then do that.
Stealing is definitely the way to go. My current campaign is based on the 1970's tv show Land Of The Lost. Even though the PCs are NOT the characters from the show and the ultimate plot will be very different it gave me a framework to start adapting. For instance I've already used parts of several episodes as ideas for encounters (even though the outcomes were very different) and it gave me several NPCs I could use right off the bat.
Stealing is fun but I like to Adapt and Tinker. I like the 40k Admech but my friend cant watch half a luetin video so I will adapt them so he watches out of curiousity.
@@Subject_Keter I say "stealing" but it really is "adapt and tinker". You have a rough plot, then the players bring the PCs, then you grab a few influences and mash everything together, adapting to make it seem like a coherent whole.
There is one caveat which is the reason I try to limit stealing pop culture ideas as much as possible and instead focusing on a specific aspect, like for example instead of taking the whole of Code Geass, characters and all, I would use maybe just the Empire, or maybe just the Power and call it something else. The reason you have to be careful is if any player knows that franchise or show or whatever, they can effectively ruin the game if they’re so inclined. „Oh there’s Lelouche, lemme kill him“.
Sure depends on players, but I’d be careful nevertheless. Also might be boring for that player because he already knows the story or aspects of it. And it’s always a gamble, unless you ask but then the cat‘s out the bag and nothing stops them from researching anyways.
TH-cam swallowed my reply apparently
Fine…
In short, I recommend being very careful with stealing ideas and entire worlds and characters. I try to limit it to stealing a certain interesting aspect. The reason is, you never know what your players know, if they’re familiar with the franchise you copy, they might ruin the game either purposefully or not. And if you ask them before, then the cat‘s out the bag and nothing stops them from researching anyway.
Edit: wow thanks TH-cam for regurgitating my first reply…
@@kotzpenner I think it just depends cuz that cycle be turning, how many things are based off or adapted from something else so long it a thing now?
Like people say Dune made "The Emperor of Mankind" but I know which Emperor i trust.
Also for me, I rather have a some kernel of it be "Hey wait a minute!" Over like taking entire beats unless your players wanted that.
Like I want to make a Sun King boss and just baseing him off Kael Sunstrider from WoW imo is good if you start with "angry fire mage who is trying to help his people" but you go on more.
The cat showing up after “the best is yet to come” fulfilled that promise immediately
2:00 Greatest mistake of the DMG is not telling aspiring dms that they shouldnt really care about anything besides tone and initial kingdom for a campaign start.
I’m am HYPED for this board game! Im a little burned out right now on learning new systems. But a board game?? Everything I’ve received from your team has been top notch so I can’t wait.
Good video. As always. I change aspects of the story with what PCs do. I have a chart I roll off screen and keep track events that happen may or may not involve the PCs. Keeps things fresh. :)
These tips are so great. Been meaning to start a campaign for a long time. This and the other videos you mention are a great jumping off point to start. You don’t suck, Luke!
Thank you!!!!
This is great advice! I'm currently world building for our group's next campaign, once we're done with the one currently running. I'll definitely be applying some of the advice here!
I have been doing something to get myself started lately that has been working for me. I create:
1 over-arching detail about the whole world (steam-punk hell-scape where machines are power by souls, a whimsical fey realm where gold and typical money is worthless, generic fantasy world, etc)
2 groups who drive the main conflict (could be kingdoms, families, rival dragons, etc)
3 broadly sketched locals (buildings, towns, sights on a map)
4 encounters that could happen in the first session of play
5 named NPCs who have five bullet points about who they are
after that, I've been building from those block from session to session as needed.
I have never run a game before and I am learning a lot from you. It has always seemed intimidating to be a DM/GM but I think I can actually do it. Thank you!
Basically write all the notes and what the frame of the adventure should be but be ready to adapt.
All of these things are top tier advice. I have been playing since 1978 and generally do many of the things as you describe. It took me a long time as GM to learn the lessons that led there so I recommend listening to these. Best regards.
Thank you!
Hey, Luke! You don't suck! This wonderful advice illustrates why the game master is the hardest-working person at the table. I love it. This is amazing advice for games like D&D!
for those who want to know, it starts with an excessively long sells pitch, if you want to skip it, go to 1:52 i nearly clicked off because i came to get world building tips not be tried to sell something.
Seems too many prospective DMs die halfway up the hill of worldbuilding. I start this way:
1. What sort of game do my players want? (Fun, serious, dark, etc.)
2. Player Hook. What makes your world different to a generic fantasy world? (my current campaign, the world is shrouded in magical darkness, with all the consequences of that...)
3. Central tension. What is the big conflict in this world? (there can be more than one)
4. Scope. Saving the world, getting rich, or something else?
4. Character Hook. Why do the characters care about the central tension? (cheat here and let the players make that bit up)
5. Starting location. Where are they, and why are they there?
6. Adventure Hook. What causes the characters to sober up and leave the tavern?
That's it. You can make up a pantheon if you want, but probably easier to just steal one you like and rename the gods.
"The very best is yet to come"
Brings out cat
Yes, sir, the best did indeed come
Luke, you are the man! I appreciate both you & this video. You've given me some things to consider about building my next campaign. I already had an idea, but I was going in too much & you saying, "WHOAH, there!" gave me the kick I need to back off a bit. Thanks.
Happy to help!
Cat!! I don't remember seeing that cat before. Big boi💕
You got me inspired to actually dig through some of the million and one resources I have to flesh out the city around the Nocturne Repository before my players get there next session...
That's Twitch! :D
I have delved into my first world-building experience with Waterdeep: Dragon Heist and it is SO empowering! Making connections between the various plot lines I've developed, creating new NPC's from my party's past, and thinking of new weekly horrors to throw at my players... I finally feel like a REAL DM!
Using a custom Pantheon, my group is a bunch of history and mythology nerds so I found there was a lot more engagement once I just adapted the Finnish, Baltic, and Celtic pantheons (with specific emphasis on Irish and Welsh mythology) as the deities of my world.
Thats specific to my group though, not a mistake in general. Although even outside that group I do find players often get inspired qhen they can look up the deities on their own time instead of relying on you, so I highly advise using a published pantheon if you aren't directly adopting a real world pantheon.
Hey Luke, you don't suck! In fact, I bought the digital pack of the "Secret Art of..." books and it's greatly helping me with my worldbuilding, especially in preventing worldbuilder's disease and making my campaign PLAYABLE at the table within a month or two. Many thanks!
Hey Luke, you don't suck! I consider supporting your Patreon etc. But the ads... they. are. so. painful.
My friend/DMs world started out as a single fairly developed idea of a magically inclined city within a kingdom of mostly “basic” fantasy races. Every campaign we play in it something changes or gets added often from us as players. Now we’re doing a campaign that will change the timeline of what we already know and he took a 3 month break to develop maps of the world and add more descriptions to things.
I agree 100%...except I worry about one thing.
I've been seeing on your discord that a lot of brand-new DMs are getting caught in the weeds and I think you're suggesting too much for them to do when world-building. I worry that they'll want to do everything you suggest *before* they can run an adventure despite you specifically telling them not to. Much in SUPREME and building the pantheon, while useful, can be developed in parallel with the adventuring--often being created as needed during a session's prep and, of course, in response to character actions.
Brand-spanking-new DMs also tend to want their entire campaign's plot figured out to a T while they're world-building. And, rightfully, directing some of their worldbuilding. However, developing a detailed plot at that stage is also not a great idea. It can put off starting the first adventure, make worldbuilding even more unwieldy, and possibly lead to railroading. You may have a video on this already, but if not, could you make one?
I'm generally of the mindset that noob DMs keep any overall plot to the most rough, general outline that they can. Then, similar to your suggestion, start with where the PCs are starting location-wise and what is needed for the first session.
I developed my own rule to decide if it's useful or not to develop some kind of details and info about the world. I think that any lore should serve one of the few main purposes for the game.
1. Providing basic information about the world. This may vary from names of the kingdoms and cities to some world-specific rectrictions for magic and races, general vibes of the setting, the most important NPCs and so on. This includes the most important, necessary information for your players to understand the world.
2. Serving as a plot hooks and resources for PCs, that may lead to adventure. I think it's important to make sure that new details are not here just to exist but for players to use them in some way. So, when in doubt, you can ask yourself: can the party use this information/place/NPC to progress the plot? Any part of the world is better when PCs can do something with it.
For example, you can list all the rulers of the kingdom and years of their reign, but if your plot has nothing to do with scheming in the royal casle, you probably don't have to develop this.
3. Working for an atmosphere and immersion. Local legends and folklore, fashion, details of architecture and rituals, heraldry and basically any other stuff may not be connected to the plot or even intended to be used by PCs, but if it can enhance the immersion, breathe the life into the scene and the overall world - sure, why not to come up with something? Just don't be too crazy about it: save some time for the more "practical" campaign planning too.)
So yeah. If possible new details are useful for one of these reasons, they are worth developing. But even if not - you can save them for later and still use them in the future.
Just starting a completely new campaign in my own world setting. Have given the characters the option of desining their own city or even nation as their point of oroigin in their backstory. Really hoping some of them take up the offer as it saves me some legwork and draws then in and gives them some investment of their own in the campaign and setting. Reassuring to hear the same advice in the vieo. Suspect I am on the right track!
This was really useful, some parts more so than others yet still neat to know.
So many NPCs that you are losing the overview and cannot tell which character did what, and has this trait which makes them react like this
Im currently rebuilding my setting from the ground up after a times of trouble esque campaign. This is excellent advice.
a family member of mine recently released a role-playing game. The game is called Mythmaster rpg, he has a degree in creative writing and the world-building is spectacular
I started with my pantheon years ago and it’s slowly spiraled into a multiverse as I developed a story.
I would world build constantly and should be a lot further along, my only hold up is not having enough feedback on the world to know if I’m going in the right direction so this is helpful.
I started a campaign months ago but after the first major quest my players want to hop between different campaigns, so it’s slowed to a crawl in terms of developing one of my eras.
My motivation to build is tied to my unrelenting need to constantly spill lore to others until their ears bleed, so it’s pretty slow going 😅.
5:01 you need to quiet down when you’re calling me out like that 😂😂
Sorry... :D
Hey Luke, you don’t suck!
8:05 the real star of this video.
Although the advice given in this video is very solid.
I have a world, I keep adding notes to it, now if I only had players that our schedules would line up more than once every 4 months, we also end up playing something else half the time instead since its often just 3 of us that can meet instead of all 5 so that doesn't help . . . They are also chaotic something, very hard to plan anything ahead of them, but I suppose all roads lead to Rome if you want them too, just might be in a jungle instead of the plains and different enemy variety than planned.
When it comes to a conflict its important to note you don't need to start the campaign with it right in players face. You can very much start with a simple premise like "You are a bunch of adventurers looking for work" which through that work is where you can stumble onto conflict. The great part of this angle is that you can dangle multiple threads and allow your players to naturally gravity towards certain problems which from there it can help you build up a conflict the players are most drawn into.
If you weave the threads in enough once one thread is done you can have players gravitate towards another you set up and with some planning you can even have seperate threads connect together in some way to create an even greater narrative.
I do run my own setting and I love to world build but I do that on the side of prepping and running games. I never let it become the priority. Ideas hit me and I simply add them to the setting when I think they fit or when I have refined them enough. All the while I am running games not waiting for everything to be fleshed out. I do not need the entire world developed to run fun games. Heck, a lot of times something comes up in a game session that I had never thought about and that thing gets integrated into my setting notes/world building. So many good ideas from players or things they do or simply express interest in that I had never considered. And yes lore dumps are no good for players. they will remember things that are pertinent to the adventure. Rarely will they remember the date and name of some ancient despot that fell generations ago that never come up in their direct adventures. Don't dump ancient history on them unless they are organically discovering it and it is useful.
Hey Luke, ya don't completely suck!
1:51 Worrying *too much* about Worldbuilding
2:49 Lack of *conflict*
3:31 Not understanding what Worldbuilding *is*
4:04 If the GM is using a *Premade* World, they don't need to World Build
5:00 Waiting to play until the world is *finished*
6:10 Creating, not Adapting
6:54 Lack of *depth*
8:15 Detail *Overload*
9:54 Not *evolving* the World (no realistic aftermath for what the PCs do)
11:22 Not starting at the *Beginning*
12:35 Overusing Tropes
13:24 Skimping on Monsters
14:24 Skimping on People
15:06 Negleting the *impact* of *magic*
15:55 Not involving your *players* in the *process*
Thank you!
"How many moons are there?" QI has an answer for that.
As a writer, I'd say that a lot of this advice is applicable to story writing and world building as well. In particular about not creating too much before starting to write the actual story, and changing the world to suit the story and characters.
2 my world has two. and i named them but i forgot the names.
@@HappyNoob17YT Same for my world, actually. One's a water moon, which I'm not sure makes realistic sense, but it's fantasy so it can be justified somehow.
As someone who has been fleshing out my world for the past like 6 or 7 years, various iterations and versions of it changing over the course of multiple campaigns, don't be afraid to shake things up a little. Part of my world's lore is very caked into specific cleric domains existing as sort of the cosmic batteries of magic, existing in all life like the Rukh from the Magi anime, the prime deities being like Ego from GotG II for the planes they reside on. One example being my Asmodeus stand-in being the "Ego" for my Nine Hells and serves as the source of Death domain energies and what not.
Well when they released Tasha's, I had to ask myself "do I just exclude these cleric options that don't fit the current domains or do I adapt my world?"
I shook things up and altered my world, reworking the entire cosmology, pantheon, etc. to encompass basically every official domain except for Peace, along with the couple of non official ones I was already using. Granted, I am now happy enough with the setting that I do not plan to make any more mass changes like this, but if you're in a state of wondering if you should shake it up, try it, see if you like it, and you always have the prior version to revert to if you end up not liking it.
Secondly, do not be afraid to quit worldbuilding. The INSTANT that worldbuilding starts feeling like a chore is the exact moment you start burnout and making bad decisions. I have so many choices in worldbuilding made in a "well I have to get this done" mindset that ended up being changed, altered, or removed later when I had a more clear head because they were just not good ideas. So if you feel like worldbuilding is beginning to feel like a job instead of fun, take a break. Go do something fun. Consume some media that might spark new ideas. Take a day or two, or however long you can reasonably break for, and then come back to it with a fresh set of eyes, especially if you've been deep in the worldbuilding sauce for multiple days or weeks in a row.
Your vids are always direct and practical. Much love, Sir.
Happy to help!!!
I Gm Cyberpunk Red and I enjoy these videos. You give a lot of good advice that can easy translate to the world of cyberpunk
Thank you!. Happy to hear they are useful!
Me, new DM: I gotta flesh out everything! Every single character, map, enemy, encounter, dialogue, etc.
Now: I just wing 75% of stuff, with 25% from the overarching plot driving the world events and faction movements
I love it. This.
@@prmLBlss tbh i do one of these depending on my mood
I’ve been doing some prep for a one shot I hope to run. I am also fleshing everything out, but I’m enjoying it all. It scratches that game-design itch I’ve always had
Maybe I'm first. Maybe I just quest my party the destruction of a rat kingdom.......maybe both
my world isn't super developed yet, but my tactic has been to take some areas I used to one-off / mini campaigns and adapting them to parts of a larger world, and then building onto that. Not all tied together properly yet, but it gives me starting points, and reuses some stuff I'd already done
Thats how I do it. I create “story arc’s” that have their own areas and then i find ways to bridge these arcs together. Whether its drop subtle hints to players to guide them or let them find the stories on their own
I really wish I had grabbed something other then the ebberon 53 book for me getting back into dming. I found it interesting but not great for getting them really started or for giving me content to use. I think for a returning gm books like golden vault, yawning portal, strahd would have been better for my game personally. Video is great thank you as always
Hey Luke! Now I have your attention...
Hey Luke, you don't totally suck!
Two world-building tips:
"World-building NEVER ends." It literally doesn't matter how long you work on a world; the party's actions and how the campaign unfolds will create new lore (or should). Don't expect to be finished, just have enough to work with for each session.
"Integrate backstories into the world."
It's easier to immerse the party into the world by making their histories relevant. Does your Ranger call a specific forest home? Where is it in the world? Talk with your Ranger about what creatures live there, and how the seasons affect the land.
Did the Rogue grow up on the streets? The streets of what which town? Talk with the Rogue about how cold society must have looked from their angle, and the politics that made it that way.
I don't suggest free reign, but brainstorming together between sessions can really motivate both the DM and party.
I'm participating in a Fate game currently, and while the GM does build stories, the whole group participated in the world building for the setting over a few session zeroes before we even started to create characters. Further, throughout the game, we have the ability to add to the worldbuilding in the middle of the game by expending a resource to establish a neutral fact of the world/town/person/etc. If the group is looking for a vendor, and the GM had not put one in the town, expend the resource and wa-la, there was one, right around the corner. Meet some NPC and think your PC could have known that person, expend that resource and tell the story how you know that person. Yes, there are some back and forths over it, but that setting is really fascinating, and it has been some of the richest RP I've been apart of. So, while I'm not a fan of everything Fate does mechanically, I'm adapting that approach to collaborative worldbuilding to a new campaign I'm going to be running soon.
I did about a month's worth of prep work. Mostly to understand how to DM. Almost every character type that my PCs have picked (Human College of Lore Bard, Thri-Kreen Arcane Trickster Rogue, Goblin Conjuration Wizard, Human Monk, and Arakokora Monster Slayer Ranger) are types I've not played before (except College of Lore Bard). So I wanted to know how to run with them.
We're about four sessions in and other than a few rocky RP spots and not quite finding a way to challenge them in combat, I think it's going pretty well.
I remember a campaign I ran back in college (almost 30 years ago now). One of the quests ended with the opportunity to acquire "Swords of Legend." These swords were lined up on a table, and as a character selected a blade and touched it, they were transported to the world from whence the weapon came. They became the person who owned the sword, without any of their own abilities, and would have to "solve" a situation as that person. The possible weapons included Sting, Glamdring, Callandor, Eirias, the Sword of Truth, the Sword of Shannara, and the Darksword (there may have been more).
It was then that I learned that one of my best friends had never read the Hobbit, nor was he familiar with any of the riddles from the story. 🤣🤣🤣
I havent tried DMing yet but I do like creating worlds lol Im thinking of doing something small like 2-3 nations in a region on a continent where the main story will start. It would probably take me a few days to make the map and headcannon some ideas. I would probably start out with some sort of conflict between two of the 3 nations... imagine our group of hero's (levels 3-5) in a particular city (I would probably have to mandate they are from this region and to base their characters within the setting) and as they are going about their day a huge explosion is set off in some strategically important building within the city.. like a barracks or town hall. Thats were we would start, the idea being that they are going to get drawn into a major conflict that will spiral out of control and they have to... well I guess figure it out.
The city would most likely be a border town military post, and its one of several points that the rival nation is attacking. If they can successfully ward off the attack that determines the next course of action. Will this town be a beacon of hope or the equivalent of the Alamo? I can headcannon the politics and some of the dynamics of the conflict's bigger picture. I think it would be cool to involve more friendly NPC's as allies.. to make it feel more like a war rather than an adventure. I can also have the group go on special missions to still have those adventure dungeon crawling moments as well. it's the middle to endgame that I wonder about and would probably have to leave on the back burner until they progress further.
I could also flip the script and have them play the attacking force at the head of an invasion.. the tip of the spear so to speak. It could be pretty fun for the more combat oriented players. I guess Ill have to figure out DMing lol anyway yall have a good day.
I once added feral halflings to my world. These little bastards weren’t about to serve you a second breakfast, they’d serve you as second breakfast.
9.1 there has to be an agent for that change. If the players are in a warlock tower, the nearby city isn't going to be affected by their decisions until they leave that tower, unless there's something reporting things going on
thanks for the weekly tips and tricks, they're super appreciated.
Very happy to help!!! :D
In addition to not sucking, the SUPREME world building method is super useful to me. Thanks Luke!
Hey Luke, you don't suck.
Also, thanks for the reminders of the SUPREME method.
Are you making a HeroQuest clone?!?! That would be AWESOME!
No, it's different from Hero Quest...though I love that game!
I'd add to let players help, let players specifically build their characters' expertise. Maybe their home village so they know the NPCs and favorite spots. Or maybe give that plane of fire to the wizard who researches the planes. As a player one thing that frustrates me is stuff like "Oh yes, I'm an expert on the shadow plane...so, uh, what is this?" You end up having to ask the DM to fill in your knowledge for you all the time (so you can't RP your knowledge), or else make stuff up as you go along for RP and accept being frequently wrong about this thing you're an expert in.
Hey Luke! You do not completely suck. Thanks for these thoughts, keeping them in mind can save hours of heartache later!
I’d strongly recommend making your first homebrew campaign in a “forgotten realms” and even “Sword Coast” multiverse reality to just take the premade landmass and town names.
Then you can easily drop in any of all the ample premade content as you please while you invent your own.
I’ve seen a lot of custom campaign DM getting stuck up on very basic terrain/town/road/deity fill.
It helps players build a backstory with some preunderstood context.
It still allows for any ideas you’d like to add or cut.
Renaming the gods of luck and magic just to be unique is not clever or fun. It’s just clutter for players to get confused with.
All the zillion official and unofficial map points which exist can inspire you. Accidentally building an illogical map of missing empty space on your own can be a major trap of time which just backfires.
Re: Change aspects of your world, and not skimping on people
I like to make it clear to the characters that the world doesn't just change because of them... but because of other people. Especially when the PCs are lower level. Let them be aware of powerful adventurers. They don't need to meet them, but they hear about them, and how they change the world.
Maybe there was a dangerous trail full of bandits they had to make it through at level one... they fought some bandits and made it to their destination. But a while later they have reason to go that way again, and there isn't a single bandit, and villagers are happily walking along the path without fear. The PCs ask a NPC, "I thought this was a dangerous route", and the NPC responds "some heroes came and slayed the bandit king and made it safe for all of us again!"
I think it is important to remind the players that the world doesn't revolve around them. But when they reach higher level, they can take pride in the fact that THEY are the ones that the villagers throughout the kingdom are talking about.
Number 2: I would say it's better to find problems rather than make them. When you build problems into your world it has a nasty habit of making truck sized plot holes, or trivializing stakes. However, if problems are more holistic it's a lot harder to run into this problem.
Number 9: Disagree about the degree of change. Change should be relative to context. At level 1, you'll be clearing out things that the local government considers "not a threat", so your actions won't really see much of broader change. Even at level 18, if you kill a lich in the mountains hell bent on world domination, that no one really knew about, what change are you really going to see on a broader scale?
If you make character actions have observable affects on things, no matter what, what happens is that rather than connect the characters you disconnect them from the world, at least in certain aspects. They are now above the world, they are "the ones", they are no longer a holistic part of what is happening. They are simply the plot device that is needed to make everything ok again. Their presence is no longer apart of the world on anything but a narrative level. In this way you disconnect them more than you connect them.
You're doing a good job and I appreciate the hard work.
World build to your heart's content; it can be fun, and it can make DMing much easier. You do not need to share most of it with your players, if they are interested in why something is happening the way it is, they will ask.
Don't try to develop the whole campaign before session 0. Only build what you need. You don't need to flesh out anything you don't need now, except as background.
A static world is a dead world.
Hey! Thanks for the points in world building. And you don't suck!
Thanks for the video, Luke!
Technically, adventure design is world-building. Customizing pre-made adventures is too. Even "just" DM'ing is, if you think about it. You can't really avoid it. Embrace it, control how much you do based on your wants/likes/needs, and enjoy it. Or get back on the other side of the screen. I mean, you could just throw random haphazard adventures at your table with no extant world required, I guess. ymmv. Also, I think the Scottish Dwarf may have come from the Riftwar Saga by Raymond Feist, which has dwarf-like miners who speak with a thick brogue. Or maybe that came from how he played Dwarves in D&D, I don't know. That's where I got it tho, iirc -- it's been ages.
Wait, so in regards to subverting tropes, I just put the party’s Forge Domain Cleric on alert with my Texan Wood Elf?
*furiously prepares amended notes for tomorrow night’s session*
Hay Luke. You are the driving force to allow me to DM as well. My players appreciate it I’m sure.
Awesome, I'm so happy I can help! Best of wishes with your game!!! :D
I love ALL the DM Lair videos!!!! ❤
Hey Luke. You don't suck. - a fan.
Thanks for the well-presented content sir.
Hey Luke! You don’t suck!
Except you only worry about 5e and pf2. Those systems suck. Okay, they don’t suck, they are popular for a reason, but I absolutely hate them. I hate the gameplay style they promote. 3.5 had problems, but it is still closer to what I want from a system than any other system even gurps. And plenty of other systems are great at what they do.
To me, it feel like no actual evolution has happened, no smoking gun kinda advancement that utterly slay all before it.
It feels like everyone in a standoff each bluffing they could totally claim the crown with zero bullets in their guns
The most important thing in worldbuilding is the question "Why?" - Why are the nations placed like this on the map, and what makes up their borders? Why are the kingdom of Rinstguart and the republic of Farrania allied against the Quartz Empire? Are there specific reasons why the Elves are only found above 1500 ft elevation, and dwarves only below 300 ft? Why should the king raise so many taxes that the populace forms a resistance? Why are the gold coins called Unicorni? Why don't magic users just take over the world, what hampers them from doing so?
I just see a lack of commitment to the group. Both as a player and dm. If you agree to join a dnd group, be committed to it please.
Love the video Luke!
I tend to hear that I dont give enough information about the world when I run games
I can't tell you how much some of these AI programs help. They are great sounding boards, they offer suggestions. They can help you format a stat block for a new creature. So useful in building worlds.
hey luke! i didnt know you are luke somehow
#5 is very important, never forget that your players are going to do a good amount of world building in the campaign through the actions they take in game.
love all your stuff, but esp. the big black cat!
thank you!!! Twitch is adorable!
Very useful tips. Thank you
No Luke, you don't suck.
I wonder, will Bob receive any royalties for this video?
Anyway, great video and great tips, thanks!
My starting is screwed.
But every islands have hope to not be like that!
(It’s a lot of islands in my campaign)
Hey, Luke, you don't COMPLETELY suck. 😉 I don't agree with everything, but most of this is good stuff. Thank You for your content.
If you add lore to an official world and aren’t aware that the lore already exists in that world (like you saying magic came from a god ‘s blessing when the actual lore says magic came from another dimension), you can just ignore the latter and tell any players who question your lore that your world is a slightly different version of the official world.
The most important idea of world building to me is start small. You are better off building a small town or city that you know every nook and cranny like shops and people all the way to law enforcement and economics and society then an entire world that you kinda know who lives there.
Hey Luke, not only do you not suck but you are helping me to be less sucky too ❤
I’m literally just starting to look into how to be a DM. What would be the best books to use? Google gives me several different answers and I know everyone has a different way of doing things. Plus, I’ve only been playing just over a year. Is there anything else I need to start my journey?
Game Mastering books I recommend. (First one my team and I made.)
The Secret Art of Game Mastery - thedmlair.com/collections/the-secret-art-of-game-mastery
So You Want to Be a Game Master - amzn.to/4cyGXFe
Arbiter of Worlds - amzn.to/3Xc4lE3
Thank you so much!
Hey Luke! You definitely don't suck! (Also I love bacon)