Home
Artists
Search Recent Random
Posts
Search DMs Popular Hash Lookup Tags Random
Importer
Import FAQ
Register
Partychan Telegram Live Sex ThePornDude
Home Artists Posts Import Register

[This Old Lair] Give Us Them Questions (Patreon)

Published:
2020-02-12 21:03:13
Imported:
2021-09

Content

We're soon to see the return of The Notorious EJB to our podcasting world, and our existing questions are old, and, indeed, busted. Submit your latest questions on everything dungeon master related in the comments!

Comments

Zack Rhodes

This one is more so geared towards Jerry: A while back I had the idea spawn of trying my hand at DM’ing a Precipice of Darkness themed adventure, taking place in New Arcadia with the theme of a murder mystery. The problem is, I don’t fully know where to take the story from there, so I was hoping I could pick your brain via this question for some ideas to make it a fun and compelling tale?

Anonymous

Jerry, in your c-team there doesn’t seem to be a lot of random encounters. I think there was a displaced beast way back in season one? Do you/cohosts find that those bog a game down? My new DM is having trouble moving the game forward/keeping player attention and I wonder if that’s hurting it.

Anonymous

Hey guys -- I get quite anxious before phone calls, so when I was a player in my first D&D campaign, that evening I'd treat myself to a beer beforehand and then drink some throughout the play session. Fast-forward a couple of years, and I'm now playing two nights a week and DMing another, and I know it shouldn't be sustainable health-wise to manage my nerves that often by drinking. This question was originally going to ask if pregame nerves ever relaxed over time for you, but writing it out it's clear that that just won't happen for me. I'm going to look into alternative methods for managing this so I guess I'll just ask if you have any pregame ritual that helps you both calm down and prepare you for that level of social play?

Anonymous

I have been a sort of de-facto GM for my groups for decades now. I've got a toddler who'll be 2 in May. That might be just a little young to get him started on TTRPGs... But then again, Patrick Rothfuss has a beautiful ancedote that he tells about how he engaged his child through interactive storytelling. I would love to hear you expound on how old your kids were when they took interest in the hobby, and what shape that took initially, and what sort of concerns need to be addressed when prepping for a session with young players that one might not nessessarily consider when planning for adults.

Anonymous

I recently saw a post about having one-offs to explore the history of the world of your main campaign world to give players investment and even agency in the world building. I don't know if I ever would have come up with this idea on my own. Do you ever use online communities (subreddits, discords, forums) to hunt for fresh ideas? If so, what is the coolest find you think everyone should hear? If not, is there a home brew thing you've done in the past that you are especially proud of (other than the ultimates and cauldron)?

Tom Manhart

I know you have both run games from many different systems. Which would you say was the most challenging to run? Did this extra complexity add to the experience, or have you found that rules-lite systems better suit your style?

Core Flux

I would love to get some more insight into how Kris conceptualizes his monsters for horror settings. I'm planning a Cthulhu campaign and have some rough ideas, but my Unknownable needs some work. Perhaps one of the next Old Lairs we can have him as a guest?

Anonymous

After solid recommendations of the FFG Star Wars system from the PA gang, I've over committed and invested in the Genesys corebook (same rules and dice as SW without the setting for those unfamiliar) and am planning my own hard sci-fi setting. Think more Martian, BSG reboot, less Star Trek. To the questions, have you ever created your own setting and what suggestions would you have for someone climbing out on that limb?

Stephen Wells

I'm running a group of six players through the Acq Inc starter adventure. They just liberated Oppal from the Neverwinter dungeons using the potion of gaseous form that they found in the Tressendar Manor cellars. I'm curious - was it your intention

Stephen Wells
>>32432327

Oops. Was it your intention when placing those items for them to feed forward so specifically, or is this just an example of a D&D sandbox world?

Stephen Wells

Also in Acq Inc - Gorkoh just fled the party after spending several days stored inside a crystal staff with six and a half ponies. Have you any suggestions for what class he might be when he comes back for revenge in a few level's time?

Stephen Wells

Do you have any system you reach for - either homebrew or published - if you need to run a quick adventure at short notice with e.g. just a few d6s on hand? I have had some success with the Adjective Noun who Verbs style of character creation, and letting players roll more dice for each descriptor that works with what they're doing, but I worry I'm missing something more elegant.

Anonymous

At the Anc Inc show at PAX Unplugged this year, there was a moment where Viari implored Omin to take the opportunity to "be better." Can you talk about your reaction to that in the moment? Watching it, it felt like you were taking some time to collect yourself before you reacted, and then a while later Gabe did his thing with Galdur's Tower and I feel like an equally important, revealing character (player?) moment maybe was lost in the shuffle. How did you react in the moment to Pat's character sort of calling you out?

Anonymous

I am in the beginning sessions of my 3rd season of 5e with my current group. My group is usually 8 players. Two of them Skype in from the West Coast. I love my players, and I hate nothing more than when they have to wait a while for their turn to do the thing their character is built for only to waste their time with a lousy roll. So, inspired by some of the mechanics you use in the C Team games I have a new house rule I refer to as Narrative Forces. The concept is that for any skill check or attack roll a player may roll with advantage using a Narrative Die - representing a hero’s ability to alter fate. That has been going pretty well, but many of my players are hesitant to use this amazing new gift. They are, of course, afraid of the Narrative Forces that I am allowed to manipulate once they hit 10 collective uses of the Narrative Die, which rolls over session to session. Obviously the Narrative Forces are a complete rip off of the Cauldron. With that preamble out of the way I have two questions - How can I encourage them to take advantage of “free” advantage? I think I’m a benevolent DM. Heck, in the past two decades I can’t think of a single time I’ve killed a player. Wait… maybe I should be meaner… maybe they all deserve to die… Sorry, back on task… I have yet to put the Narrative Forces to use. I am a little nervous, and would love to hear from you how the Cauldron works? Please be as specific, or nebulous as you feel you need to, but I love the results I see in the C Team. I’m just not sure how it impacts the game every time it hits. Thank you so much!

8bitAttorney

I’ve been dming an amazingly consistent online game that manages to play about 2 1/2 hours once a week, with 8 total humans, and it’s great. I started out homebrewing from scratch, then later started adapting published campaigns because of all the ready-made maps and assets for roll20 and the tremendous time-suck of making every encounter and location out of whole cloth. Trouble is those adventures don’t seem to break down into 2 hour chunks, and we spend sometimes literal months on each dungeon or “episode.” I’ve taken to montages and cutting combat encounters to keep the pace up, but I’m still trying to calibrate and I don’t want to short-change my players out of challenge and exploration. Any advice based on your experiences running a game in a seasonal and episodic style?

Anonymous

Hey guys, I know you’re both huge fans of war games generally and Warhammer 40k specifically. I played tons of the classics in my youth: 40k, Necromunda, Gorka Morka, Mordheim etc. Now that I’m older and have a family, I don’t have time for full on army collecting. We have a monthly group that gets together to play various role playing games and I’d like to try something from the 40k universe. What RPGs have you played in this vein? Which would you recommend for moderately experienced role players?

Anonymous

Hi, I want to run a Torchbearer campaign influenced by the mood and setting of Dark Souls. How do I nurture an air of despair and despondency while at the same time keeping my players motivated?

Stephen Wells
>>32413238

Just as a data point, we've involved our elder daughter in rules-light RPGs since she was about 7, and now she's 9 and comes with me to a weekly D&D session at the local library. I built her character numerically, based on discussing the character concept with her. After the first session she insisted on getting her own set of polyhedral dice :) doubtless the first of many...

Anonymous

I’ve been running my first campaign,* and my group is almost entirely first-time players. It seems like every time the team needs to interrogate a captured enemy, or even question an otherwise neutral NPC, they immediately resort to torture, like waterboarding or slowly freezing limbs one at a time. After chatting with some other DMs, this seems to be a very common occurrence with newbie groups. My question is twofold: a) What is the deal with all this Jack Bauer nonsense? Does it signal a discomfort with RP? Or have I as DM perhaps failed to make other choices more obvious or desirable? b) Any tips for how I can gently encourage these mongrels to broaden their horizons beyond physical intimidation? Or should I simply embrace the direction they’ve taken, and have characters in the world treat them with fear and mistrust because of their deeds? *Mostly Lost Mine of Phandelver/Dragon of Icespire Peak, with some one-off adventures I have shamelessly ripped off from episodes The C-Team

Nick Grugin

As strange as it sounds I've always wanted to play the character of a Beholder in a D&D game, the problem is I want to play it against it's est alignment and play the character at best lawful good, at worse chaotic good. I've been referring to Kamstra's guide which outlines playing a monster as your character but wanted to know if you all had any additional advice ? Best I can figure is playing as a Spectator Beholder, whose summoner has either died or released the Beholder from it's duty.

Allison Stewart

Well, I’m on my third character now. Garth, after his death and resurrection, had decided to return to his father’s forrest and submit to training as a Druid. He did take the Lightning Glave with him. Now I am Daisy Thistletuft, halfling “locksmith”-ranger trying to track down her missing father, Ringo Thistletuft (of the Thistleford Thistletufts), who left to help a party of adventurers and should have been back months ago. My son IRL is playing an enterprising merchant type/Sorcerer thinks I’m just trying to steal their stuff and doesn’t trust me. (I’m just really good at unlocking things and finding stuff and Thieves Cant is just a funny word game she played with her father (and many of his patrons) in their locksmith (and security) shop in Waterdeep or whatever the big town is in this quasi home brewed continent that includes much of the Sword Coast (before the hasty relocation to his mother-in-law’s house in the halfling lands). I’m kind of wondering how much of this backstory does my DM really need to know?

Allison Stewart
>>34161642

Thistletuft Locks and Security “Securing you valuables is our Specialty! Ask about special rates for Humans!”

Allison Stewart

Is aThorpe called Maple too much? I don’t think so, but would like another opinion. Also can you suggest some creatures that might have slipped through a rift between this world and the fey realms that would not utterly destroy a low level party. I’m kind of thinking of a flock of pixies with a focus on managing as much mischief as possible before they are rounded up and sent home, but I’m not sure what sort of mischief they would be up to. Any suggestions?

Allison Stewart

I just have to say again how much I look forward to these. I hope all is well with you and yours and there will be a new episode soon by the miracle of technology. Is anticipation its own reward??

Allison Stewart
>>32445356

I feel like the Narrative Die should be made of tungsten. Have you felt those things? Heavy falls short as a descriptor.

Allison Stewart

You should totally have a “stump the GMs” episode where you check in with people you gave advice to and see if they took it or how things worked out!!

Allison Stewart
>>32410144

I have the opposite issue. I can't imagine myself trying to play and drink at the same time. I'm too nervous I'd make a stupid mistake and get the party killed. I have a subtle control-freak-streak that won't allow me to imbibe and enjoy playing. Weird, eh?

Allison Stewart
>>32429516

This is the best idea ever. Kris's monsters were horrifying. I haven't played CoC in, like, 30ish years. But I still remember my character: Michael Valentine, paranormal scientist/investigator.

Allison Stewart

Well, with no new TOL's recently (Hope this changes before Christmas) I've been thinking about old RPGs and Characters I've never played. Does anyone remember Top Secret? Gurps? What are some of your favorite characters then never saw game play? Is there a way to change their fate?