When players deal fatal damage to an enemy, I tell them, "give us a kill cam," and allow them to describe the final blow. They love it as it gives them a chance to make their character more awesome and be an even greater part of the story telling.
Actual advice on how to move a game forward WITHOUT fudging rolls instead of just saying Don'T Fudge it. Excellent video. Too many GM vids say not to fudge thigns without giving help on how to do it. Thank you :)
Take the lesson from the GUMSHOE system, if they have the skill, they have found it. What they make of it, that you can have fun with. Yes, they've found the right key, only it's on a key ring, with seven, eight other keys there. How do they know they've found the key? They have the key ring, do they know which key it is? Nope. Make them work out which key is the right one and which one..... sets off the traps.
My GM would roll certain rolls for us in secrecy, especially ones to do with observation. And sometimes he'd roll the dice just to make us apprehensive for no reason. One if his rules was "Lying is a completely valid storytelling technique." And he'd also encourage us to come up with creative ways to bypass rolling dice. He'd say "Roleplay over rollplay."
GuerillaBunny there are so many things you roll for that you would have no clue if it worked or not before it is just to late. Like a perception check when looking for traps. The rouge rolls a one so someone else also wants to check. But why your scout just looked for traps and is confident in his skills, and so is the rest of the party. But knowing the roll changes the actions that happens far to often. You will see it when even Matt Mercer is DMing. It is hard to just play with the characters knowledge. I got tied of saying you know that, but your character doesn't. So I make some rolls and then tell the story without telling them their roll. Sometimes after the outcome I tell them just for fun.
@@hyserbomb For sure...PER rolls for surprise or traps definitely need to be done behind the screen. Usually, though, one character has it maxed...so if the 'passive' is good enough, I'll give it. It's odd though...."I check for traps" (rolls 2). again (rolls 3), again rolls 19. OK!" Not great. In those cases, I like the old take 10/20 rules from 3.5. Time is the penalty. So, they can spend 10 minutes looking for traps/secret doors...and be really confident in the answer (as if they rolled a 20)....but it costs them time or some other resource. Wandering monster chance goes up, enemies are more prepared (maybe a bonus to INIT)...something like that. I would communicate that as well. (Taking your time searching the room thoroughly, yields no traps or secret doors. A worthless rusted dagger was underneath a false board in the floor. You sure made a lot of noise in your search!)
Some of my favorite moments in Dungeons & Dragons has been when my players role in natural one or a natural 20 I call it a cinematic moment that's when I described to my players or myself how bad or good something happened in normally it has quite the flourish
If the World/Adventure is well designed enough, if your players fail their role to get information they can still go on, but probably in a worse (harder) path or with worse odds.
I think when a villain fails a lot that just becomes a characteristic of the character. As such the randomness can even create an inside joke rather than just actively changing the roll when they don't come across as intended. If they, based on the rolls, don't seem like that then they don't seem like that. And then you can try to figure out WHY they may be appearing this inadequately. Maybe the major bad guy is failing to fight well because of something going on in their life or because they have become so powerful that they are no longer used to fighting.
1. Nat 1 on a skill check doesn’t mean automatic fail. 2. You can give information even on a bad roll, but add also some fake or straight up wrong info with the correct one.
Problem.. story narrative vs. inflexibility.. stories might be the better choice.. so if a lock is not picked then the story changes direction. More preparation (many routes to the same outcome) vs. less GM stress with fewer options.
Or rather, the illusion of choice, they could try the hidden tunnel from the tavern into the monster lair, or they could try the overland route, through the woods. Or even perhaps even try the rivers, because the monsters need to drink as well. Only they all lead to the same place, just the route appears to be different.
Ah, try just quietly roll a couple of times behind the GM's screen, and then chuckle evilly to yourself and grin. It is a very effective way to creep out your players in a horror game :p
Hmmm. I typically roll behind the screen especially in combat...I was DM'ing 4E and found my players were just too good at tactics, gear, maxing, etc. I needed my baddies to last a bit longer for dramatic sense. And sometimes, when the crit from the boss would hit for 60HP (and therefore auto kill)...yeah, I'd make that a normal hit. I don't want the plot of my story hinging on a perception roll either, so narratively - some things just need to happen.
As a GM I sometimes fudge my rolls... For the benefit of the story. Like the big bad crits a player and would usually deal enough damage to outright kill one of them... So I'll split the effect instead. I'll have the player get knocked down or knocked out without dying. They may even get badly injured and it will have effects farther down the road for the whole party. I personally tend to take 'raise dead' type effects out of my games, so if I do kill them there is no coming back. So I do what I can to avoid deaths when I can provide another option.
First thought, bear in mind I've only run Fate and Trail of Cthulhu in a con game/demo game. I've also run Star Wars by Fantasy Flight Games for a while now, a little over two years from memory. Allow people with the skill to find the clue, find the thing, work things out. What they can make of it, that's the nature of the roll. Roll well, and things are more precise, more interesting, more exact. Roll poorly, it's hard to work things out, either they were really really good and left no evidence, or perhaps so badly done, there's no way to work out what's intended and what wasn't. You don't use a crowbar as a screw driver, right? The other part is I think to step away from absolute pass/fail mechanisms. Really, just stop using them. It doesn't matter what the system is, what the genre is, what the story want to tell is, choose a better engine for the game you want to run. Fate, when I run it as the demo game is constrained, sure, but the aspects, I give the players something obvious to grasp on it and allows me to grasp onto as well. If they really want to succeed, I'll give them as aspect lie Tired/Weary/Stressed, that I can play on later. Or perhaps, I've gone and talked with them about the aspects they're trying to invoke, letting them think about other ways to solve it. The way their character would solve it. Also, GUMSHOE system is brilliant at just plain not getting in the way. If you have the skill, you've found the clue, worked it out. If you're an archivist, you'd just innately spot the hidden book of dead names, cough cough, among all of the other tomes. You'd just not be able to not notice it. On the other hand, trying to make sense of why it's there, who put it there and what it actually means, that's where the rolls come in. It encourages the use of red herrings, offering possibilities, never outright answers. It's makes it about the player's ability to guess what is going on, to put the clues together. Which is one of the reasons I'm a fan of it. Also, more fundamentally flexible than Call of Cthulhu. I also feel I can better do the human-horror element here, than in Call of Cthulhu. If people want to know what I mean, leave a reply. At the end of the day, an engine is an engine is an engine. Some of the time, it's hard to choose one. Some of the time, it's easy. However, if you can step into the mindset, place that you choose the engine to support the story, it can change how you see things. At least, it did for me. I'm not going to choose a reskin D&D for the hard science fiction, hard military campaign I want to run. In fact, I chose the only system I can think of that actually talks about microgravity. Additionally, it as the advantage of the ground and space vehicle rules being quite similar. Yet, when I think about my espionage game, the one that needs two separate groups to cover both of its storylines, I'm not going to use the system I chose for my space game, am I? Choose your engine carefully. Choose it well and you don't have these issues. Choose it poorly and you spend half your time making sure things are going forward, you're losing focus on the group what they're doing, you're not supporting them, not getting in their way when you need to. You're already in your own way from the first step.
Yeah, as an experienced DM, NEVER make an necessary plot point dependent on a roll of the dice. Die rolls are for the players attempting to solve a problem, not find necessary information for the plot.
When players deal fatal damage to an enemy, I tell them, "give us a kill cam," and allow them to describe the final blow. They love it as it gives them a chance to make their character more awesome and be an even greater part of the story telling.
Actual advice on how to move a game forward WITHOUT fudging rolls instead of just saying Don'T Fudge it. Excellent video. Too many GM vids say not to fudge thigns without giving help on how to do it. Thank you :)
Kill them and roll a new character?
Take the lesson from the GUMSHOE system, if they have the skill, they have found it. What they make of it, that you can have fun with.
Yes, they've found the right key, only it's on a key ring, with seven, eight other keys there. How do they know they've found the key? They have the key ring, do they know which key it is? Nope.
Make them work out which key is the right one and which one..... sets off the traps.
If you need them to find something don't roll for it, don't create a pass or stuck situation.
I agree. I usually just require a skill level high enough for it to make sense....only dice roll when you have to
Becca's explanation about the "dopey character" opened my eyes about Becca's entire on-screen persona (probably off-screen, too).
My GM would roll certain rolls for us in secrecy, especially ones to do with observation. And sometimes he'd roll the dice just to make us apprehensive for no reason. One if his rules was "Lying is a completely valid storytelling technique." And he'd also encourage us to come up with creative ways to bypass rolling dice. He'd say "Roleplay over rollplay."
GuerillaBunny that is a DM that knows how to really cut down on meta gaming
@@hyserbomb Heh, funny you see it that way. To me it felt like he was taking metagaming to another level :D
GuerillaBunny there are so many things you roll for that you would have no clue if it worked or not before it is just to late. Like a perception check when looking for traps. The rouge rolls a one so someone else also wants to check. But why your scout just looked for traps and is confident in his skills, and so is the rest of the party. But knowing the roll changes the actions that happens far to often. You will see it when even Matt Mercer is DMing. It is hard to just play with the characters knowledge. I got tied of saying you know that, but your character doesn't. So I make some rolls and then tell the story without telling them their roll. Sometimes after the outcome I tell them just for fun.
@@hyserbomb Yeah, that's true.
@@hyserbomb For sure...PER rolls for surprise or traps definitely need to be done behind the screen. Usually, though, one character has it maxed...so if the 'passive' is good enough, I'll give it. It's odd though...."I check for traps" (rolls 2). again (rolls 3), again rolls 19. OK!" Not great. In those cases, I like the old take 10/20 rules from 3.5. Time is the penalty. So, they can spend 10 minutes looking for traps/secret doors...and be really confident in the answer (as if they rolled a 20)....but it costs them time or some other resource. Wandering monster chance goes up, enemies are more prepared (maybe a bonus to INIT)...something like that. I would communicate that as well. (Taking your time searching the room thoroughly, yields no traps or secret doors. A worthless rusted dagger was underneath a false board in the floor. You sure made a lot of noise in your search!)
Some of my favorite moments in Dungeons & Dragons has been when my players role in natural one or a natural 20 I call it a cinematic moment that's when I described to my players or myself how bad or good something happened in normally it has quite the flourish
Don't make them roll for things they NEED to find.
If the World/Adventure is well designed enough, if your players fail their role to get information they can still go on, but probably in a worse (harder) path or with worse odds.
I think when a villain fails a lot that just becomes a characteristic of the character. As such the randomness can even create an inside joke rather than just actively changing the roll when they don't come across as intended. If they, based on the rolls, don't seem like that then they don't seem like that. And then you can try to figure out WHY they may be appearing this inadequately. Maybe the major bad guy is failing to fight well because of something going on in their life or because they have become so powerful that they are no longer used to fighting.
If Becca came to one of my game nights I could die happy. 😊
First time discovering Becca Scott. WHOA! 😳
I thought it was Ruby Rose
this was a great discussion, thanks!
Her energy is dope.
if you need them to find out information but they roll 1 instead use sucess with a twist
Like for example there are 2 paths to their objective but 1 is guarded by a dangerous beast but then the box confuses which path is the safer one?
*why did my phone autocorrect npc to box?
1. Nat 1 on a skill check doesn’t mean automatic fail.
2. You can give information even on a bad roll, but add also some fake or straight up wrong info with the correct one.
Where can I see Becca DMing?
Pornhub
TBD RPG (formerly Weave Society) on G&S twitch.
don't tease me like that, my dagger is readying itself already
I hate the mentality of fudging dye rolls so much so thank you for talking about it!
Problem.. story narrative vs. inflexibility.. stories might be the better choice.. so if a lock is not picked then the story changes direction. More preparation (many routes to the same outcome) vs. less GM stress with fewer options.
Or rather, the illusion of choice, they could try the hidden tunnel from the tavern into the monster lair, or they could try the overland route, through the woods. Or even perhaps even try the rivers, because the monsters need to drink as well.
Only they all lead to the same place, just the route appears to be different.
Becca you have to join jasmine and deborah and the rest and do a D&D series,would love to see you as an adventurer ;-)
would like to have Becca as a GM
or not, would be too distracted
Ah, try just quietly roll a couple of times behind the GM's screen, and then chuckle evilly to yourself and grin. It is a very effective way to creep out your players in a horror game :p
Hmmm. I typically roll behind the screen especially in combat...I was DM'ing 4E and found my players were just too good at tactics, gear, maxing, etc. I needed my baddies to last a bit longer for dramatic sense. And sometimes, when the crit from the boss would hit for 60HP (and therefore auto kill)...yeah, I'd make that a normal hit. I don't want the plot of my story hinging on a perception roll either, so narratively - some things just need to happen.
As a GM I sometimes fudge my rolls... For the benefit of the story. Like the big bad crits a player and would usually deal enough damage to outright kill one of them... So I'll split the effect instead. I'll have the player get knocked down or knocked out without dying. They may even get badly injured and it will have effects farther down the road for the whole party. I personally tend to take 'raise dead' type effects out of my games, so if I do kill them there is no coming back. So I do what I can to avoid deaths when I can provide another option.
If you don't trust the dice, stop using them.
First thought, bear in mind I've only run Fate and Trail of Cthulhu in a con game/demo game. I've also run Star Wars by Fantasy Flight Games for a while now, a little over two years from memory.
Allow people with the skill to find the clue, find the thing, work things out. What they can make of it, that's the nature of the roll. Roll well, and things are more precise, more interesting, more exact. Roll poorly, it's hard to work things out, either they were really really good and left no evidence, or perhaps so badly done, there's no way to work out what's intended and what wasn't. You don't use a crowbar as a screw driver, right?
The other part is I think to step away from absolute pass/fail mechanisms. Really, just stop using them. It doesn't matter what the system is, what the genre is, what the story want to tell is, choose a better engine for the game you want to run. Fate, when I run it as the demo game is constrained, sure, but the aspects, I give the players something obvious to grasp on it and allows me to grasp onto as well. If they really want to succeed, I'll give them as aspect lie Tired/Weary/Stressed, that I can play on later. Or perhaps, I've gone and talked with them about the aspects they're trying to invoke, letting them think about other ways to solve it. The way their character would solve it.
Also, GUMSHOE system is brilliant at just plain not getting in the way. If you have the skill, you've found the clue, worked it out. If you're an archivist, you'd just innately spot the hidden book of dead names, cough cough, among all of the other tomes. You'd just not be able to not notice it.
On the other hand, trying to make sense of why it's there, who put it there and what it actually means, that's where the rolls come in. It encourages the use of red herrings, offering possibilities, never outright answers. It's makes it about the player's ability to guess what is going on, to put the clues together. Which is one of the reasons I'm a fan of it. Also, more fundamentally flexible than Call of Cthulhu. I also feel I can better do the human-horror element here, than in Call of Cthulhu.
If people want to know what I mean, leave a reply.
At the end of the day, an engine is an engine is an engine. Some of the time, it's hard to choose one. Some of the time, it's easy. However, if you can step into the mindset, place that you choose the engine to support the story, it can change how you see things. At least, it did for me.
I'm not going to choose a reskin D&D for the hard science fiction, hard military campaign I want to run. In fact, I chose the only system I can think of that actually talks about microgravity. Additionally, it as the advantage of the ground and space vehicle rules being quite similar.
Yet, when I think about my espionage game, the one that needs two separate groups to cover both of its storylines, I'm not going to use the system I chose for my space game, am I?
Choose your engine carefully. Choose it well and you don't have these issues. Choose it poorly and you spend half your time making sure things are going forward, you're losing focus on the group what they're doing, you're not supporting them, not getting in their way when you need to. You're already in your own way from the first step.
I wish my old DM could did that... i mean, in my old table, the only way was sucess or fail...
I need relic and rarities season 2 asap
I think any character should be written with both the ability to win or fail in mind
Hi Beka!
Hair like fire 😍
Yeah, as an experienced DM, NEVER make an necessary plot point dependent on a roll of the dice.
Die rolls are for the players attempting to solve a problem, not find necessary information for the plot.
Is this just an interesting topic or did the host kill it? This episode seemed much less cringy than usual -- Great job Jasmine.
That's so cool that you get to work with your partner. LOL
That girl is gorgeous...
Kiss.
Those eyebrows....
I'll never understand why...
Wow this channel really died
i love both of you but this did not feel like an interview. idk if it was the jump cuts but this felt entirely scripted. idk but it felt weird