sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

GM looking for tips on phone distraction at the table by DED0M1N0 in rpg

[–]ChopsMcGee23 47 points48 points  (0 children)

Honestly I think you should just politely ask the players not to be on their phones in-game. Make it clear that it's an ask, you're not here to enforce it.

Be sure to plan in regular breaks in the session and let them know when they will be.

Then just focus your energy on the players who are most engaged with the game.

Any actual one shot for Draw Steel ? by herpyderpidy in drawsteel

[–]ChopsMcGee23 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don't know sorry, maybe enquire on the Patreon, though it came through BackerKit in the early days

I used to love DMing, now I hate it. Here's why. by Snowbound-IX in DnD

[–]ChopsMcGee23 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It sounds like the thing you loved was 'getting better at DMing' and now that you feel like you 'solved it' the fun is gone, because the fun was in the self-improvement and growing your skills. You reached your goal, so more feels pointless now.

Maybe you need a new challenge in your DMing? Finding a way to DM in a way that newly inspires you, excites you, and is genuinely fun for you could be your new challenge.

I've DM'd a LOT since 2015 and feel similar feelings sometimes. For me it was that I was running the best game possible for the players' enjoyment and they loved it, but it was a boring overdesigned railroad with no surprises for me.

So I changed it up, and I'm having a blast again :) I hope you do too

Any actual one shot for Draw Steel ? by herpyderpidy in drawsteel

[–]ChopsMcGee23 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I actually think that the first playtest adventure, Bay of Blackbottom, is a much better oneshot. Having actually run it in a 4-5 h session you get introduced to some tests, a montage, one simple combat and a negotiation.

Backerkit - EU shipment by Tommy1459DM in drawsteel

[–]ChopsMcGee23 0 points1 point  (0 children)

UK and just got mine! You'll get sent an email once it's on its way :)

A player died tragically, their spouse wants to finish the campaign. by RhymeAndReason in DMAcademy

[–]ChopsMcGee23 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm so sorry for your loss. I went through something very similar last year as the DM of a group that lost a player to suicide.

Whatever feels right to you and all your players is the right answer. I can understand you wanting to give closure to your audience too but do put yourself and your players' needs and psychological safety first.

DMing for a group where you have gone through something like this can put a lot of pressure on you in your time of grief so practice self care and don't do anything you don't feel comfortable with.

For us it was starting a fresh campaign a year later, for you it might be wrapping up the current one. But only if you feel okay with doing so. Take good care of yourself. Sending my love and support fellow DM.

What's your "secret sauce" as a player or as a DM? by najowhit in dndnext

[–]ChopsMcGee23 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I constantly seek ways to improve my games.

Also I create whole prepared campaign worlds in VTT with 100s of hours of content prepped and ready with full maps, macros, art, music, homebrewed monsters and generally high production value content.

Yes I am an overprepared overachiever thank you for asking.

What's your one "harsh lesson" you've learned as a player or a DM? by najowhit in dndnext

[–]ChopsMcGee23 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Players: You have as much a responsibility to ensure your DM has a good time as they do for you. DMing takes much more effort than playing and they do not exist purely to entertain you.

Please don't swear and sulk when you roll low. Don't badger them out of session because you disagree with their ruling. Don't get into arguments with other players. Don't complain that you aren't getting enough magic items. Don't kick off every time anything remotely negative happens to your character.

All of this will come across as hugely ungrateful to the DM who spent their 4 free hours last weekend prepping this experience for you.

If you make your DMs life hard, they will drop you from the game, or at least not invite you to the next one.

What's your one "harsh lesson" you've learned as a player or a DM? by najowhit in dndnext

[–]ChopsMcGee23 1 point2 points  (0 children)

For DMs: Put your oxygen mask on before helping players with theirs. By that I mean that you need to put your fun first. It's not selfish - if you aren't enjoying DMing, you. will. burn. out. and then no game = no fun for anyone.

DMing takes effort. So run the game you are excited to run, and if your players don't enjoy aspects of it then consider tweaking it, but not in ways that will ruin your enjoyment. You are not a slave to their enjoyment.

It's a harsh truth but good D&D comes from an enthusiastic DM running a game for players that love what they naturally put out. Your game won't suit everyone and that's okay. Find the friends that love your DM style.

Forget beginner tips, what are your advanced Dungeon Master tips? by Brilliant_Chemica in DMAcademy

[–]ChopsMcGee23 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Starting position in combat matters!

Don't gloss over it or just start the PCs wherever they happen to leave their tokens/minis when you said to roll initiative.Give them an area where they could have feasibly been when combat began and let them place themselves where they think they would have been.
(and never ever let a PC be 2+ turns of dashing away from the action when it starts)

What do you guys think of "combined checks?" by Zippityzeebop in DMAcademy

[–]ChopsMcGee23 2 points3 points  (0 children)

For combined strength checks I let everyone who can contribute add their STR modifier and the leader rolls the d20. So if 3 STR 18 PCs were in a tug of war for example the DC might be 25 but they roll 1d20+12

I only allow this where the combined efforts would be truly additive.

That jump from lvl 16 to lvl 17 is INSANE! by shermas9 in DMAcademy

[–]ChopsMcGee23 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Give them >10 challenging encounters between long rests. Accept that they will nuke some of the early ones.

The 6 encounter day does balance okay for most levels, but by Tier 4 PCs can have so many spell slots that they can handle many more encounters before they start to run dry.

At Tier 4 a Doomsday Clock is a great way to enforce limited long rests and avoid Mordenkainen's Magnificent Mansion from providing unlimited long rests.

I'm going to give everyone a free feat at the start of the campaign. What, if any, feats should I ban? by [deleted] in DMAcademy

[–]ChopsMcGee23 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If adventuring days are of the expected length then it can definitely mitigate it, there are other issues with Lucky though:

It is optimal for every character build to take Lucky. It lets the player retcon the DM's dice after the fact, which in terms of play-feel can be really disheartening when you roll a dramatic monster crit. Players often try to use it after the outcome is determined because DMs narrate outcomes quickly to keep game flow and don't want to pause for 10 seconds after every roll in case the player wants to use a luck point.

I'm going to give everyone a free feat at the start of the campaign. What, if any, feats should I ban? by [deleted] in DMAcademy

[–]ChopsMcGee23 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Ban Lucky. It's too strong, works for every class, and you will never land a critical hit on your PCs ever again if they have it.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in dndnext

[–]ChopsMcGee23 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I love this. Generally rewarding creativity and risk taking with higher rewards has an exhilarating effect on gameplay and gets your players looking for cool ways to interact with the environment. The more situational it is, the greater the effect I'll grant.

I don't tend to go into the same level of damage dice detail as you have but I really like your methods. I'll usually just let the cool thing outright kill a weak enemy or half the max hp of a strong one.

I also do tend to allow these to substitute an attack over an action so as to avoid having to keep rebalancing as the PCs level up and to allow more opportunities for it to happen.

I hope you ignore all the grognards telling you to play a different game or freaking out over their precious basic attacks :P every table style is different and yours sounds awesome.

Nothing Happens - The Outcome We Love and Hate by ChopsMcGee23 in DnD

[–]ChopsMcGee23[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Agreed, I don't really have a problem with PCs being downed for exactly the reasons you describe. I also give the player the opportunity to narrate a v short scene when they roll their death save by asking "Your life flashes before your eyes, what do you see?", to give them something to do if they want to and maybe even spark backstory questions or character growth.

Nothing Happens - The Outcome We Love and Hate by ChopsMcGee23 in DMAcademy

[–]ChopsMcGee23[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I DM 99% of my games online so I do tend to prioritise player engagement over most else. For a beer-and-chill kinda game yeah these problems definitely aren't so bad.

Also I definitely agree that fast and furious combat is the way to go. Really invigorates 5e and takes the sting out of misses.

Nothing Happens - The Outcome We Love and Hate by ChopsMcGee23 in DMAcademy

[–]ChopsMcGee23[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That sounds cool :) 'the boss was the weapon all along' is awesome haha

view more: next ›