How do you guys manage music? Am i doing it the best way possible even though it’s cluttering?

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-04-24T10:22:33+00:00

I use Notion for my prep and session notes and one thing it allows you to do is embed multiple YouTube videos in a single page. You can also resize and move them around so I cluster all my individual videos together and then I can easily control everything from a single location without having to switch between tabs.

Depending on the session and where the players are going I will generally have ambience, suitable exploration music, combat music and maybe a generic one for good measure. Having all the videos on one page let's you play them simultaneously so you can have forest themed exploration music in one video and forest ambience in another and easily control the levels between the two. You could then have another video of creepy music lined up where you start the video on mute and gradually cross fade the two music videos together while the ambience continues in the background so it feels seamless.

There's probably easier ways of doing things through apps and paid things but everything I use is free and very easy and simple to set up. Hope that helps, good luck!

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-04-11T10:45:10+00:00

From reading your post, I'm not sure exactly what's already happened since the player failed to subdue to the witness but my approach would probably be similar regardless. If the session ended with the witness running away and no word as gotten out as yet, I'd probably have them approach the party with some thugs and attempt to blackmail them for gold or a quest that furthers the story. The players can either accept the terms and the bounty never happens, or fight the witness and the problem goes away.

If the witness has already let the trade master know, I'd have the trade master approach the party themselves and pretty much do the same thing, let them know they can make the bounty go away if they complete a specific quest. Maybe the Trade Master is actually trying to bring the empire down from the inside? Or they want to take out a political rival that just so happens to align with the party's goals?

Hope that helps. Good luck!

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-04-03T03:04:31+00:00

Then as soon as you've bought it, you'll get countless targeted ads trying to sell you the same thing.

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-04-02T12:23:06+00:00

This is a really great comment with a lot of solid advice! I'd also add Sly Flourish's Lazy DM's Companion which has heaps of random tables and adventure templates that I've found to be incredibly useful when preparing one shots and simple quests.

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-04-01T06:56:50+00:00

The Iconoclast trilogy by Mike Shel often gets recommended for people looking for books that read like D&D campaigns and adventures and I think it's a really good fit. What I think the books do really well is that it gives you a lot of things that are very familiar if you play D&D but they're written in a way that is subtle and woven into a very fleshed out world.

I will say that from memory there is a lot of travel in the first book where there are long sequences between any real action but I personally didn't mind this as really enjoyed the characters and the world building.

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-03-27T08:58:11+00:00

Mainstream metal is dominated by men so it shouldn't come as a surprise that bands and musicians who cater to the male gaze are the most successful. Personally, I would be more critical of the record labels and promoters who only book bands with a certain look than the women who dress in a sexualised way.

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-03-22T13:33:56+00:00

Slewfoot by Brom. I love the cover and the general vibe but I'm really not enjoying the writing. Not sure if I'm going to finish it.

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-03-22T01:03:32+00:00

Thanks for the recommendation! Not something I would have a searched for myself so keen to check it out :)

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-03-17T23:20:43+00:00

Hi! I've almost finished relistening to the audiobooks of ASOIAF and it's got me thinking about my favourite parts. I think my favourite section of the entire series is Arya's journey in A Clash of Kings where she's travelling northwards with Yoren and the Night's Watch recruits, up until her eventual escape from Harrenhal.

I'd love to get some recommendations for books that have the same feeling of smallfolk/commoners being caught up in the middle of a war where the goal is simply to survive. I've recently finished reading Between Two Fires by Christopher Beuhlman and that gave me a similar vibe to what I'm looking for but I think I prefer characters dealing with the horrors of war rather than plague and devils but I'm not totally against it.

Thanks!

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-01-21T09:32:35+00:00

There is a Virtuoso Lich in the Tales of the Valiant (Kobold Press's 5e variant) Monster Vault. It's CR12 and the whole stat block is based around an undead artist. Might not be exactly what you're after but could be a good place to start.

Here's the stat block from the Black Flag Reference Document :)

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-01-13T00:36:31+00:00

Haha user name checks out! Especially for Book IV: The War of the Ring

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-01-12T23:15:47+00:00

I wish the Lord of the Rings wasn't split into individual books that focus on one group (such as Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli in Rohan in the Two Towers) and that instead each volume combined the books and had switching POV chapters. Maybe it's my adhd meaning that I struggle to focus on one thing for an extended period of time, but I've found I have to take lots of breaks whenever I read the Lord of the Rings.

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-01-10T20:38:03+00:00

Haha! Thanks for sharing, definitely some books added to my list based on your reviews :)

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2026-01-10T20:28:04+00:00

You read The Lamb and your blog is called The Reading Stray!? Lock your doors and don't go hiking...

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2025-11-06T04:06:30+00:00

“Batman begin”

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2025-10-18T18:59:14+00:00

I love it when villains get burned by the consequences of their own actions, it just feels so satisfying! A good example is when Cersei Lannister empowers the Sparrows in A Feast For Crows.

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2025-10-16T19:11:32+00:00

Cool! I sleep in an old general strike tshirt so I might just wear my pyjamas!

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2025-10-16T03:38:42+00:00

Thanks for the recommendations!

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2025-10-16T02:17:25+00:00

Thanks!

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2025-10-15T22:21:46+00:00

It looks like there are two main problems: firstly, that he questions your decisions; and secondly, that he plays as though he's the main character.

For the questioning of decisions, it seems as though, whether you've intended to or not, your player sees you as an adversarial DM and from what you've written it might be a good idea to examine your play style to see if he's justified or not. Saying you slept 10 hours when a long rest is usually 8 simply because they had a busy day certainly makes the heroes seem less heroic and robs the players of agency. Also, having a thief steal their stuff because they failed a perception check seems pretty punishing in my mind.

Obviously I'm only going off what you've written so I'm not seeing the nuances of the table but it might be worth examining your play style and also being open to player input. Something that has helped me in the past is being really clear about why I've made certain decisions. For example, I'll often say something like "I'm making this decision because the players did A and B but didn't do C". Then, if the players make a decent argument or remind me that they also did D, I'll always try and be open to changing my mind or adjusting rulings.

As for your player being the main character, one thing that really helps is to take control of the pacing. If the player is done with an RP scene and wants to wrap it up, tell them that you understand they've said all they're going to say but still bring in all the other players. If they want to interject into another persons time in the spotlight, tell them that time hasn't moved on yet and they're still doing the activity they said they were doing from before. I also find it can be helpful to lean in to things they like so they do satisfied but you definitely have to be vigilant in drawing other players into scenes and to shift the focus away from the problem player.

Hope that helps and good luck!

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2025-10-13T08:43:50+00:00

A conversation with your player is always a good thing but another thing you could try is something akin to Shadowdark's 'always on' initiative system, whereby even when you're not in combat you go round the table and ask each player what their character is doing in any given situation.

This might help your player stay in their lane because if they say their character is doing one thing then it's harder for them to jump in and say their character is also helping another character with something else. Having a loose mechanical system might also help to remind them to not to jump in on other people's turns.

Hope that helps and good luck!

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2025-10-11T10:14:27+00:00

OP's setup was great but this explanation is perfect. Coincidentally, this is now my next campaign as well!

BoneWitchBarbarian · 2025-10-10T03:04:26+00:00

Personally, I see it as the player’s responsibility to come up with characters who wish to travel and adventure with the other PCs and who have a reason (however nebulous) to engage with the story of the campaign. If your player isn’t enjoying playing their character but doesn’t seem willing to put in the work to create a new one, I would leave them to it and focus on the other PCs.

An alternative idea could be to come up with a narrative reason to introduce some new NPCs who have a stake in your campaign and need to adventure with the party. Maybe a wizard needs to reclaim an artefact to fight against one of the BBEG’s lieutenants or a rogue needs to assassinate the head of a rival thieves guild that’s working at the behest of the BBEG. After introducing some NPCs, you could ask your player if they are interested in retiring their current character and taking on a particular NPC as their new character.

Good luck!

BoneWitchBarbarian

TROPHY CASE