"Goal is to get away from the strangers as soon as possible"...it's always hilarious how Players forget what their Characters look like. "I was being polite and friendly! What's with the hate?" "You're two meters of scarred reptile-man packing armour and a sword that could cut a horse in half with a stroke."
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
Exactly!!! LOL
@grendelkhan3082
7 жыл бұрын
Murray Lindsay All I have to say, my players almost never bathe, one specifically never does, think of a woman holding a cudgel and wearing untreated rotting bear skins and coated in blood, matting the fur and her hair....WOW, BOY DO I WANT TO TALK TO THAT!
@whitetuxmafiaandfilms5042
7 жыл бұрын
Grendel Khan, You joke...but I'm into it
@Never_heart
7 жыл бұрын
Murray Lindsay I actually was that player except I was the token human... except I was the size of a full grown 5e Goliath in heavy full plate armor with an eyepatch hiding and sealing the eye of Demon Prince even the small sectiin that was unarmored, his head, was covered in dozens of brutal scars and despite carrying a greatsword only had a single arm which he adapted to learn to fight with 2 handed weapons with. Then I wondered why the 5 hear old halfling was afraid of me...
@oldscorp
6 жыл бұрын
one of my players leaves a captured evil witch with a couple of his fellow militiamen(2 npc guys) and says: im going to leave for a bit if i returned and find you've done anything stupid there will be hell to pay! so the npc guy asks "uhh...what do you mean?" and the player gets mad that my npc's dont respect him and defy him all the time and etc(a thing i actually hate in npcs which tend to be like that most games)."he is supposed to respect me, im his superior!" ME : Youre not his superior, you threatened him out of the blue and he really didnt understand what the heck you meant by that BECAUSE I DIDNT ! wth are you talking about?
@johnread-jones9846
6 жыл бұрын
"Now, tell me what you want! What you really really want!" "I wanna... I wanna.. I wanna...."
@sminksangsura277
8 жыл бұрын
Keep up the good work! I recently discovered your channel and have been pouring through the videos. I appreciate the conceptual approach and I very much enjoy your style. Subscribed! I eagerly await more help with being a DM (perhaps a great one someday).
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
My gratitude - I am only glad the videos may be of benefit to you! Welcome to the table and please feel free to ask questions, comment, and help grow our conversations!
@Daemus_TV
7 жыл бұрын
I hope youre still active on this channel, these videos are great. Just wish i found them sooner!
@MrBigCookieCrumble
6 жыл бұрын
This was perfect!
@Motavian
8 жыл бұрын
Do you have a Patreon? I think you should write a book of practical advice and useful references/tables to generate meaningful content.
@Motavian
8 жыл бұрын
HAHAHA, I just finished the video! Excellent to hear about the Patreon!
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
Hahaha - yeah 1st of October we launch. Super excited because of all the plans to advance the channel. Making the videos into notes with expanded copy is one of the many plans! Just glad you guys like these videos!
@eclairz9275
7 жыл бұрын
The salient point i got from this is that every NPC has something they would rather be doing than talking to the players.
@HowtobeaGreatGM
7 жыл бұрын
As in real life. In computer games the NPC's live for the PC's to come and talk to them. In role-playing I feel they should react like real people. If you've no value to me, why should I spend time with you.
@eclairz9275
7 жыл бұрын
I don't disagree at all, it's a very good point.
@MarvelX42
7 жыл бұрын
The NPC might be thinking: "If you've no value to me, why should I spend time with you." Well, maybe because that NPC isn't a horrible person?
@justatallguy
7 жыл бұрын
It's not about being a horrible person, and more about having important things to do. If an NPC is working to manage a group and fill in wagons to get food to the starving kids in town (a nice, charitable person) and some random, weird outsider comes talk to them and ask random questions about unrelated subjects they might be nice to the player for a couple minutes, but at some point they will be like "Why don't you come over later? I have important things to do!" or even "I don't know anything about that and I don't want to get involved, my work is important." In essence, one doesn't need to be a "horrible" person to not wanna talk to strangers who approach them in the street. They might just be a busy person, or a cautious person. Specially if the adventure is in medieval times, people were much more on their own than now, and thus more careful, even paranoid.
@MarvelX42
7 жыл бұрын
I said "maybe" and had a question mark at the end. Also, yes, just a simple short statement to let someone know that you are busy is great. I would expect that from any normal nonhorrible person.
@themarvin01
7 жыл бұрын
Once got stuck doing a Russian accent for four hours cause I made the Drow Merchant have one. I did not expect them to fall in love with the character so much. Mushanti you are my bane.
@moobles2998
7 жыл бұрын
oh my god I can almost picture the pain you went through. Mushanti I love you.
@theeristicwriter8280
6 жыл бұрын
Nebula Storm had the same thing happen when I made a gnome serial killer with the most ridiculous voice, that I fully planned for the party to kill and be done with when they discovered the truth but they instead held him prisoner and reformed him into a fellow party member for the rest of the campaign. I had to contort my voice for hours at a time for months all because they all liked the character too much XD I was both proud and so so angry lol
@Takapon218
5 жыл бұрын
I did the same with my sorceress NPC and her French accent. My players decided she was the best and they keep going to visit her whenever they have any questions about magic stuff
@falonsherrard6004
5 жыл бұрын
Mine was Bilfiz the gnomish tinkerer. He speaks in a high, slightly British accent that I hate but every time they're in town "oh we gotta go say hi to Bilfiz" who also hates them because they killed all his cows. Edit:oh. And they stole his crossbow.
@PalleRasmussen
4 жыл бұрын
Matthew Mercer as Victor.
@gtkall
8 жыл бұрын
My players ended up inside a mine, they had just gotten away from the goblin miners that were chasing them and... I needed to show them the way and fill time... but had nothing planned, cause they went at a direction I hadn't mapped. So I acted quicly and while they were searching, an ogre named Urduk showed up. I made him look like a fool with a mind of a 5 year old, he befriended them and showed them the way. I also made him stubborn and forgetful; and the tunnel he showed them lead to a fallen bridge. After that it was time for some action, so I made the goblins come chase the players down the bridge. Meanwhile, Urduk, who stayed behind cause he was distracted by some pretty rocks, finally remembered that he had showed the wrong way to the heroes, and came rushing down the bridge, shashing it down from his weight and taking the hordes of the goblins down to the abyss with him... Poor Urduk... My players really bonded with him in such a short period of time and it was all unscripted! One of my proudest moments as a newbie GM :D Thanks for that video, really helped me with the mentality I need to keep when playing an NPC.
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
That sounds wonderfully sad and awesome at the same time! Thank you for sharing! Those are often the moments that will stay with you forever!
@VuldarLeveL
7 жыл бұрын
I did not have your scene but when you mentioned bonding to a random npc I remembered Carl, our animated armor. We found him and decided to use him as an easy trap disposal unit. After we named him though it became nigh impossible for us to have him serve as our canary. He's still part of the group.
@Jeffk1
7 жыл бұрын
I did similar with an ogre named Gubgub. My players still remember gubgub even multiple campaigns later. They've said they hope to see him again in another life in my new campaigns
@Never_heart
7 жыл бұрын
gtkall A bit of a Witcher influence there it seems. I do love every interaction with ogres in that series.
@ArvelDreth
7 жыл бұрын
gtkall The scenario doesn't make any sense. The players went down a fallen bridge, the goblins chased them. How is it that the ogre causes a fallen bridge to fall and kill the goblins?
@deathunboundgaming85
7 жыл бұрын
Time Stamps, Summary, and Ramblings (0:00)-(0:40) Introduction (0:40)-(1:20) Imaginations is Key (Research, Association, Personal Experience, Inspiration) (1:20)-(3:17) The NPC needs a goal. As well as opposition to that goal to make it interesting. (3:17)-(4:08) Making the dialogue interesting by applying your personal experience. (4:09)-(6:10)The Education level of the NPC (6:11)-(7:43) The General Origin of the NPC (7:45)- (8:25) The Disposition of the NPC towards the party. (Indifferent, hostile, or friendly.) (8:26)-(10:18 )The personality or attitude of the NPC.Their approach to life. (10:18)-(11:10) What the NPC was doing and what they will do after the PCs leave. (11:11)- (14:22 ) The NPC's role. Do they provide information? Do they hinder the players? Help them? Are they just filler? (14:25)-(14:54) Put yourself in their shoes, with that goal and then limit yourself accoridng to their values. (14:54)-(22:28) More Examples of Quick NPC Interactions to help you to do it quickly. Also, his NPC wants everyone's money. Making compelling dialogue on the fly can be very difficult. However, putting yourself in the NPC's situation can make it much easier. 1.Give the NPC a Goal. Can be as simple as "Get away from the strangers as soon as possible" "Make enough money to move to the big city." 2. Think about how educated they are and how that would affect the way they speak and interact. 3. Think about a simple origin of the character. I.E. Born into slavery. 3. What is the NPC's disposition towards the party?(Hostile, Friendly, indifferent) 4.What was the NPC doing before the party met them and what will they do afterwards? 5. What is the role of the NPC? What will they do for the party? This one took a lot more time than I expected, and I feel like the structure of the video is very strange, because of how many examples you included. I personally think that the best piece of advice you gave today was putting yourself in the shoes of the NPC, and then pursue their goal in the most appropriate way. Twenty minutes of information on making dialogue on the fly is a lot to keep in mind 'on the fly', so that's a bit counter intuitive. One of these days I'll have to look through and define my NPC system and share some of my own personal experiences.
@HowtobeaGreatGM
7 жыл бұрын
These are amazing. And you are a true friend of this channel. The time it must have taken. I really thank you for this!
@deathunboundgaming85
7 жыл бұрын
Yeah i have a lot of time on my hands now a days. No problem.
@noahhillard
6 жыл бұрын
Thanks I have trouble keep these things on my mind in game. Love the List!
@braedonwatkins967
6 жыл бұрын
Bless your soul
@vladtheinhaler146
3 жыл бұрын
Screen shot.. Printer.. Slap that list on my dm screen✅
@kregorovillupo3625
7 жыл бұрын
NPCs are seldom found around alone, they may be with theyr friends, and they may want to have a word too. That could make interesting ways of dealing information and make it look more realistic. Like: PC at the city gate-Good morning mr guard, could you tell me where i can find the smith? GuardNPC1-Yeh sure, you have to... GuardNPC2 kicks 1on the leg-Shut up you idiot! Fang will give us another day of corvéé for speaking while on duty. (to the PC) Go in and stop bothering.
@thequalitycomedian7842
5 жыл бұрын
I can imagine the players talking to an NPC for ages and in the DM’s mind he’s just like “... he just wanted some coffee...”
@rogerwilco2
7 жыл бұрын
The differences between the two kings around 5:26 is that one is peaking in "lower class" Germanic origin words, while the latter one is speaking in "upper class" Romance words. I find one of the amazing things about English is that it's almost 2 separate languages, one Germanic (Anglo-Saxon) and one Romance (Norman/Latin).
@michaeldibden
8 жыл бұрын
Novice DM here, currently running my first game using 5e...I just discovered your vids and they're SO GOOD. Very insightful and helpful. Thanks a ton! Also, don't listen to that crusty comic book guy lol! XD I thought your american was pretty great!
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
Welcome to the table! And thank you for the support - though I do welcome all comments if they are constructive and help us learn! Glad the videos are helping and feel free to ask questions and engage with this space!
@TheDryfus
8 жыл бұрын
WOW, The more I watch this channel, the more I like it. Keep up the great work.
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
My gratitude! We love people watching and sharing the channel!
@shallowsins64
6 жыл бұрын
Random npc rules -How do they feel -What are they doing or what do they want -where are they from
@OpposingReflection
6 жыл бұрын
I ran a pirate game recently. One of the Pc's was sitting on the ship rail not doing much and I thought it'd be fun to mess with him a bit. I just randomly looked at him and, with a badly pronounced Irish accent, challenged his character to an arm wrestle and then a drinking contest. Throughout the rest of the game the players LOVED this character. .. so much so that when it seems like he died I, in being nice for now, revealed at the end of the game he had survived! Thus Seamus the, now one armed, drunken, crazy, stereotype pirate was born. All because of a random arm wrestle challenge.
@harpymaslow
8 жыл бұрын
How many people are there in your head Guy ? xD Impressive :)
@harpymaslow
8 жыл бұрын
Anyway, it was really helpful ! Thanks
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
ERr... We don't talk about that... :)
@dragon-wolf9916
7 жыл бұрын
We do too!
@whiskeyfur
7 жыл бұрын
When I'm running? .... wow. Trying to think back to the largest group I've ran at once and.. I think I had the PC's interact with an another adventuring group... and each one was very different. Online has some advantages where I can change the label I speak with, but I've had 8 NPC's in a scene before... all active speakers.
@mischa2643
6 жыл бұрын
My group is on a sloop right now with Captain Saf, her first mate Dion, a ships boy called Sprog, and 10 distinct crew members. It's an adventure!
@GirlPainting
8 жыл бұрын
great tips, as always :)
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
Gratitude.
@willinnewhaven3285
7 жыл бұрын
Years ago, some characters in a friend's campaign were, where else, in a tavern. We were sitting near this scholarly NPC who was looking at a tattered old book and making notes. My character asked him politely what he was studying. He said "experience points" and someone asked him what they were and how to get them. We talked about it and decided we didn't want them.
@oz_jones
2 жыл бұрын
I love this
@LupusZockt
3 жыл бұрын
Great video :-) I monstly prepare 8-10 "blanko" NPCs before the session. I have a really bad short term memory, so it is hard to remember the relevant stuff in my head, while I talk to the players and take track of the conversation. These NPCs normally look like that: I write down the age, gender, alignment, 2 personality traits, an ideal, a bond and a flaw. Also I leave some room to write a name, a race and a motivation on the fly. Normally I create 2 old characters, 2 good ones, 2 bad ones and 2-4 "neighborhood guys" this way. At the session, when I need a NPC, I take a look at my notes and look for a matching age and alignment for this situation. I fill in a motivation (only 1-2 key points), a race and a name, that fits in the situation. This three notes I can write down, while talking to the players and maybe let the character introduce him or herself. This method helped me a lot, to create NPCs on the fly that feel kind of meaningful to the world.
@DomHart
3 жыл бұрын
Your videos always have a nice sense of organization that is displayed as headings. I wonder if you'd be willing to publish you bullet points as a link or as text in the read more.
@doomdoot6731
7 жыл бұрын
Sometimes I feel like the whole "npc creation" goes entirely above and beyond players' heads: If you taunt a guard, and then wonder (out of character) why the GM decides to have the guard charge you with drawn weapons, you as a player are doing something wrong. And considering that on my first time GMing I have quite a chunk of first time players as well (whom I try and help out with little tips and tricks for their characters here and there), it sometimes really frustrates me to see how my players seemingly get upset when the world doesn't bow to their characters - despite of being completely insignificant to the world as of now. Do you by any chance have any tips on how to handle that issue, and bring all of us down to a comfortable level again?
@xeltanni8999
6 жыл бұрын
GAWD YES! Do I ever know what you're talking about. I have players who, literally, kill people (NPCs) if they disagree with them or show any sort of freewill and personality other than bowing and lauding how amazing the PCs are... and THEN *I* get told I'm being a bad GM and picking on players for this outright murder in broad daylight in the middle of town actually having less-than-amazing consequences for the player. I have never given any indication that any NPCs the party runs into are just mouthpieces for the GM (if you try and ask Farmer Bill what the king's generals are planning, you're not going to get much more than local rumor at best) or that PCs enjoy some sort of legal immunity whenever they feel like killing someone for no reason in front of hundreds of witnesses. The only logical rationale I have been able to determine is that these players have been ruined by playing video games and expecting NPCs to just be "NotPCs" so they don't A) matter or B) count as other people in the setting. So basically I don't have "murder hobos" as players, I have full blown sociopaths. That is the only thing that makes sense. If Guy ever happens to see this (a 2 year old video and a comment not near the top makes it seem highly unlikely) I would *love* an answer for how to fix this issue. "Talk to them" won't work, btw, because after the second outright murder I did that and that was when they said I was being a bad GM and picking on them. So, if Guy or anybody out there has *something* helpful to say, you can't imagine how interested I'd be in hearing it.
@giorgoskanellopoulos3981
6 жыл бұрын
@Xel Tanni Your players are probably frustrated that their quest isn't progressing as they were expecting and are trying to have fun (aaand get back at you maybe?) by killing your "uncooperative" NPCs. First and foremost, try not to get discouraged by this and definitely don't show it to your players (it feels very bad seeing your DM sighing at your actions, whatever they may be). A piece of advice that comes to mind is to always "give" something to your players for their efforts at investigating (or trying to progress in any way). Farmer Bill doesn't know anything, but maybe his neighbor's son was just chosen to join the Royal Guard (and may have more useful info). Of course, I'm not saying you should be serving clues left and right, but it can really help new players if they have a faint sense of direction. Also, try to roleplay your NPCs (you may be doing this already:) to make players sympathize with them and not regard them as "just another farmer who refuses to be useful, lets kill him!" Finally, your players may just have entirely different expectations for the game. They may want to get right into the action and not bother with the process of figuring out what is happening step by step! Discuss what the want to play and try to build your story with that in mind!
@damonhicks969
7 жыл бұрын
When I first started DMing I spent hours predetermining all the NPCs story and found that I wasted a lot of time because the players never ended up interacting with them in which case I would just roll them over to a later part of the game. Later on, I developed a random roll based method that was better received by the players. I had 3 dice that all got rolled to decide the general outcome when a player would ask an NPC a question. The first die was a modifier for how much the NPC likes the player on first glance (based on charisma and occasionally other modifiers like race/class differences). The second die was a persona roll for a preset list of characters from movies or books that I could mimic to some reasonable degree. The last die was a gender or sexuality preference adjustment. This method made for some wild combinations that were fun to play such as a sassy, and gay Willem Dafoe character as a barkeep in a tavern that the party regularly returned to so they could make me have to roll play that odd and fun character. Another fun character was a female spell reagent shop owner that seemed to experiment with the mushrooms a bit too much and talked like Matthew McConaughey (alright alright alright!). The important part was to make sure you documented the gist of the interaction so you could accurately remember and build the character for future interactions after the initial on-the-fly creation. It sucks for your players to love a character only to go looking for that NPC later and you have forgotten what happened in the initial run in. And if the combination flops and the character you rolled doesn't mesh well in the situation you can always kill them off in ironic and humorous ways such as a Sean Bean mayor of a town that was shot by orcs then drawn and quartered then ran off a cliff by a cattle stampede.
@xeltanni8999
6 жыл бұрын
It would have only been "ironic" if your Sean Bean mayor actually survived all of that. =P
@TriMarkC
5 жыл бұрын
Damon Hicks I love this idea!! Your players have some insight into the funny aspects this could create, you have some relief in creating NPCs on the fly down to a set of known variables, and yet it still allows for a good variety for named NPCs. I’d be interested in seeing your 3 die lists, please.
@brittanydavidson2516
5 жыл бұрын
I would love to see this list as well!!!! ♡♡♡♡ It would make it easier for me to feel confident enough to try and be a DM!
@kittyandtiny9159
6 жыл бұрын
Someone wants coffee really bad and is having trouble getting it.
@emmy4691
7 жыл бұрын
"...bow in front of this high knob." I lost my shit, right there.
@alexg7669
4 жыл бұрын
Your channel is gold. I'm using your channel for my first attempt as a GM with a total of two rpgs under my belt. It fantastically helpful. Thanks!
@denolaj
8 жыл бұрын
Maria Von Trapp as a GM: "The hills are alive... no for real guys, they are alive and try to eat you!" Also, gm-bias for bards :P
@dankatz5224
8 жыл бұрын
haha I lol'd!
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
So many times I've wish those hills ate that woman... so many times.... :p
@netghost07
8 жыл бұрын
Good afternoon, kind Sir. This is the moment i need to stop for a second, take a step back and give you all my gratitude. I am an RPG-enthusiast from Germany who constantly seeks ways to improve his game and i need to say, i love your channel. I love your lessons, the insight you provide, the way you structure your knowledge and opinions to pass them on to us. I really, really enjoy every last one of your videos. You should definitely give classes on GM'ing. I hope you keep going and going for us being able to learn all you know and implement them into our games. I am a big fan and let me tell you again, your work here is absolutely stunning, amazing and fantastic. (English isn't my native tongue, as you can see, but i hope my poor words can give you a glimpse of how thankful i am)
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
Can I say how deeply moved I am by your words - which are in perfect English. Mein Deutch ist err... terrible. My German is horrendous, so I cannot repay your compliment in your own language! Thank you for taking the time to send this message, you cannot know how much it encourages me and the team to continue doing these videos. As long as they are helpful to someone then it is worth it! Thank you mein herr.
@jiminyfatal
8 жыл бұрын
Thank you for the information. This is a 'weak' area of my DMing. I generally like to write down 2-3 'things' the character may say in their voice as a guide.
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
It's not a bad idea. But practice makes perfect.
@trenton6961
7 жыл бұрын
This was very helpful i paused several times during this video and took notes on a document which has 3 and a half pages! thanks so much this will help my caimpaign so much!
@HowtobeaGreatGM
7 жыл бұрын
Glad it will help! 3 pages, good grief!
@shannonzanzarella6759
4 жыл бұрын
Haha, your Spaceship captain sounded just like Kevin Spacey from house of cards...
@benvoliothefirst
3 жыл бұрын
I laughed at the differences between high and low British English. I LOST it when you did such a good Southern US impression|!
@ob_werm.forehead
8 жыл бұрын
Glad I found these videos. I am really enjoying the tips you have provided so far
@lindslea6011
4 жыл бұрын
Just wanted to say thank you for making these videos! I’m new to being a GM but your insight has been super helpful. I feel like I have the information to confidently run a good campaign now!
@CriticalEatsJapan
8 жыл бұрын
Another great video! If the NPC's are just random townsfolk I usually like to keep a short list of potential rumours on hand. They can either be selected or randomly rolled and depending on who they are, they may know more or less of the information. Of course many of the rumours will be pointing them towards their goal, but others may be side quests or, as you noted, open for further development later...
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
That's also a great idea - the pre-constructed rumours.
@Creaturefeatures
5 жыл бұрын
I do NPC’s on the fly all the time. This level of thinking will allow them to be even better. Great video. I love the background scenery in this video!
@PaulTheSkeptic
7 жыл бұрын
This man can make part of his glasses disappear. All hail,... How to be a Great Game Master! Bow before your new God!
@aurourus6894
7 жыл бұрын
Have a lot of swear words and a russian accent.
@HowtobeaGreatGM
7 жыл бұрын
Dah.
@timothynorman9170
6 жыл бұрын
Interesting listening to your country bumpkin accent. Your performance is great btw, I just mean to say hearing someone who's accent isn't native to American country bumpkin.
@mattalford3862
2 жыл бұрын
This is EXACTLY the video I've been looking for. Thank you!
@GuardianCitadel
4 жыл бұрын
Things to consider for a DM: In what condition are the players, and what is the 'respectability' of the NPC'. Nobles and those who exclusively provide service to them will likely abhor the presence of HEAVILY armed & unwashed thugs/mercs being in their presence. It may be fair that some places won't allow you in unless you're both unarmed and in expensive clothing, and if they do, only in the briefest of manners. I like to remind 'rules, laws, and customs' are as hard as stats & swords when it comes to civilized space.
@mikaangeli5765
Жыл бұрын
I'm so excited for my first time as GM. We got 2 groups at our discord Server and I'll be the GM of both. I'm watching sooo many GM videos and write random stuff ideas and some stuff I can read aloud
@SakutoNoSAI
4 жыл бұрын
As a proud Virginian, born and raised, you do and excellent Carolina style accent. For a foreigner of course, there a couple South African give aways, but very impressive. As a note, I can't do the same for your country.... yet! Lol
@cprn.
5 жыл бұрын
A save that you can use once, and only once (or at least weeks apart), but works damn funny well is passing players to the famous accent and a matching character, e.g. random NPC when chat up sends them to get information from "that Arnie boy" instead, gives players a few hints about how huge and strong he is and how they need to be cautious not to anger him, then when they finally meet him do the Arnold Schwarzenegger's accent. Same goes for Billy, that damn nobleman who stole the shopkeeper's daughter and Bill Clinton's accent. More where those came from: John Travolta, Barrack Obama, David Bowie, Peter Griffin, George Bush, Scooby Doo... Sky's the limit.
@WookieeRage
Жыл бұрын
Prepping for the weekend I'm glad to have resources like this!
@erixon2012
3 жыл бұрын
You can recognise your NPCs as bad when they are pretty much the same as randomly generated pedestrians in GTA 4. :)
@MW-ty5zw
8 жыл бұрын
A lot of the information I get in my university lectures is very applicable Dungeons and Dragons. I suppose being a teacher and a dungeon master are two very similar things. Fantastic videos man! I absolutely love your way of approaching things and how it all just comes to you that easily.
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
You are totally on the mark - a lot of what I use as material in these videos was done for my script-writing/acting/directing lecturers that I used to give. After all this is just another form of entertainment, just moderated with dice... Imagine Jurassic Park with a roll being made every time... now that would be a movie! LOL. Or the stage play - Phantom of the Opera -where the Phantom has to roll Stealth to hide his face... mwahahahaha.
@Chameleonxx3
7 жыл бұрын
His tips also are great for writing in general, books and other stories. But yes, a GM is basically the A.I. or God behind everything that guides everybody how it pleases while making it fun for everybody.
@coreyede1627
3 жыл бұрын
I like mixing up the accents of class. I like a king that sounds like a gruff pesent. And tibe of barbarian that sound regal.
@RottenMechGaming
4 жыл бұрын
Is it worth growing a beard to help with dialogue? Great content thanks :)
@mekkthemighty1962
4 жыл бұрын
when speaking orc, Mekk eliminates pronouns, simplifies sentence, limits words
@taintedmyth0s636
7 жыл бұрын
6:05 I feel like if the PCs randomly encounter a king in a game then there's something up xD
@brittanydavidson2516
5 жыл бұрын
well, it wouldnt be too out of the ball park, after all, you have Prince Thurnbottom who is tired of all the fops in the high society and all the fakeness of the people around him, and to de stress likes to sneak out of the palace and go in disguise as a hunched middle aged man all over the kingdom to interact with his people?
@bazzfromthebackground3696
3 жыл бұрын
For future ref for your Southern American accent. Remove your "g"s.
@Ky-Nas
6 жыл бұрын
I start with a voice, and that certainly helps.
@kanevsjolt
8 жыл бұрын
This video is what i NEEDED. I always love it when minor npc encounters are turned into plot points I can use. This is precisely the kind of advice that can facilitate it! Thanks for another super helpful video!
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
My pleasure! Let us know how it goes?
@kanevsjolt
8 жыл бұрын
Haha Definitely!
@kanevsjolt
8 жыл бұрын
How to be a Great Game Master Soooo update. It went pretty well. I fleshed out a cast of brothel characters hired by a PC and a vampire that wants a fast track to having a very large and fun feeding pool. Player said the world felt very lived in, so Im guessing thats a success???
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
Hell yes!
@bryanmstfu
4 жыл бұрын
Knowing the oranges of your NPCs is important.
@hawkeyes277
8 жыл бұрын
THIS is fantastic. All your videos are great, but I'm gonna need to study this, it's worth mastering.
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
I don't think I have mastered it either just yet. There are times when one is going to get thrown lol. But glad the video is of help!
@lysander1
8 жыл бұрын
Veyr handy advice. Will perhaps adopt on friday night,
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
Sweet! I love Friday night games. I think those are my best times!
@robbierobot9685
Жыл бұрын
You've got some great videos with great info, but this is one of the best for me.
@jakkos3346
5 жыл бұрын
God, I would be so fucked in my dming without youtube
@ijbindustries7923
5 жыл бұрын
I want to get coffee from this person, but I don't want to be with that person. Relatable.
@anathema1828
2 жыл бұрын
Nice work on the video- thanks for sharing!
@kevinmason1310
7 жыл бұрын
Fantastic!! I have been GMing for years and this advice is something I will have to appy on my next game!!!
@HowtobeaGreatGM
7 жыл бұрын
That's great! I hope it helps improve the fun at the table!
@kevinmason1310
7 жыл бұрын
I am sure it will. I have been vety lucky by having some awesome players who complement my p GM style. .but one can always improve the craft
@astra8325
5 жыл бұрын
Duolingo: You missed your accent lesson today. Family: *unidentifiable mumbles inaudible by cloth*
@RaidenHeaven
3 жыл бұрын
I make everyone a robot and just say bip boop bip.
@rogerwilco2
7 жыл бұрын
I like to have my NPCs to have a quirk. It sometimes makes them really memorable to the players. For example, I had these two captains of the guard that the players were helping, but one was a neat freak while the other was very sloppy and disorganized.
@Anachronism91
6 жыл бұрын
I love this, as somebody who struggles with NPC dialog regularly. I think a good way to remember it is figure out the NPC’s big before and after, and their small before and after: - big before - what is their origin/story/education - big after - what is their big goal - small before - what were they just doing before you interrupted them - small after - what are they going to go do after they’re done talking to you
@egorpetrovic8301
7 жыл бұрын
lost my shit at 4:49 onwards, so funny
@HowtobeaGreatGM
7 жыл бұрын
Glad you were entertained :)
@squattingheads
7 жыл бұрын
oh man, thats next level dming tips
@HowtobeaGreatGM
7 жыл бұрын
One I'm sure you're ready to use!
@capitanodisseo429
5 жыл бұрын
What when you need to GM in a language that is not your mother tongue?
@gawby
5 жыл бұрын
I sat with a friend with a few ideas. We then started to roll randomly on the character creation tables. It worked like magic.
@billpowell6131
5 жыл бұрын
I came here to listen to the plane fly over.
@SSNewberry
5 жыл бұрын
Good topic and excellently done.
@adrianmiroco6577
6 жыл бұрын
That starship captain had 3 different accents
@GregTom2
7 жыл бұрын
Ah, thanks, very helpful advice; I'll keep that in mind.
@padalan2504
8 жыл бұрын
Just 2 weeks ago I found myself unable to quickly make a npc response. and my players rushed the whole quest and I didn't prepared the plot twist. Aaaaaaand I tried to save it with railroading. A BAD thing. That quest introduced a character, that was supposed to be long lasting. (but because I had no plot twist I unfortunately used his house as a "crime scene" and my players automatically blamed him) my player tried to kill him, I tried to save him, but I had no luck. But the story actually became way better than how I planned it. Yet the experience was kind of Sh*t. So I want to ask you. 1. how do I make good plot twist "on the fly"? (I am aware you don't always need it.) 2. how do you keep npcs alive? :D I also have a problem with my GM (i am just a secondary GM). he wants to change the setting as soon as possible but we like the current setting.(World of Gothic > Dragon Age. HUGE contrast) I think he burned all his creativity and now he thinks changing our setting will save him.(I think this will last for 2 sessions and then it will be the same). we don't want to be rude to him. he also owns the rule books. and he is a friend. but he disrespects my GMing often joking about it as being lesser. (in other words, he is kind of a d*ck) I want to persuade him to change his mind, or persuade him to play as a PC for a bit. Unfortunatelly it is not as easy as it is in RPGs. And you seem like guy who could help me with this, well help us.
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
That is a series of really tough questions right there! So for 1 and 2 I have added them to the list because I think they are common problems we all face. The next question bout the GM being a dick - you need to confront him on it. Just say how his belittlement of your attempts isn't constructive. If he focused on helping rather than sneering he might get a better experience. If you can't face him, get one of the other guys at the table to talk to him about it. But just make sure the rest of the players agree with you. Also something to do is have a frank discussion with the WHOLE table at your next session, and explain your feelings and that you love the campaign world.
@AlexBermann
8 жыл бұрын
If you want to keep NPCs alive, your tools really depend on the system you're playing with. If your NPCs have things like invisibility or teleportation to their disposal, they have good chances at fleeing. Another way is if they avoid direct confrontation to begin with. Your NPC could have just called the guards and insisted on a trial. A trial the players would lose because their accusations had no basis. I don't think that you should ever make up the plot on the fly. Furthermore, it helps if the players aren't directly related to the plot twist. Otherwise, you need a twist which is so good that they can't normally avoid it. A typical twist would be that the actual murderer was the first victim which faked their death. If you mean that you need a twist to save your NPC, I would like to inquire a bit further: do you really need this NPC? Most DMs don't clearly differentiate between what's necessary and what isn't. If your NPC is essential, it's always nice having them run away. Most settings have magic items which make escaping such situations easy, but there are mundane ways as well. Maybe they call the guard and put the blame on the player characters in court. Maybe an obstactle gets between the NPC and the players during the chase. Maybe the NPC just hides and the players just catch someone who looks similar on first glance. You literally have omnipotent powers to put everything in the scene which makes some sense as long as the players didn't already check everything. If you have problems improvising things like that, you can write down cop outs for common situations in advance. When you get into a tricky situation, just ask for a short break to sort your thoughts.
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
Some good advice there. I'll differ slightly on some points, but those remain for the videos :)
@AlexBermann
8 жыл бұрын
I'm looking forward to it
@Nibilli
8 жыл бұрын
I usually just choose a name and a goal. All the rest comes along. The name of an NPC really gives me all the info on the personality and the story, education and so on. The goal gives me the Before and After, the skillset of the NPC (and what he can do for the players) and the Before/After context of it. Honestly when i have to improvise a Name and a Goal is all i need. The name gives a ton of information, even without giving the name directly to the players. So for example my group asks a guard. If he is Bjorn, he certainly feels quite though and perhaps is a stranger. And that is enough to play it out. If the guard is Sophia, she'll be soft and helpful, of perhaps even timid, and other guards will come defend her. If she is Jane, perhaps she is more adamant and commanding that small outpost. The goals for me are somewhat simple and this video really helped me getting more out of my npc ! Just a question, how do you deal with a crowd or a multi NPC dialog? I often have problems with this since i have way less time to think, and usually players get confused between my voices impressions. I try to punctuate, describing the characters, or turning my head to a different direction, but i really struggle to get it done well most of the time when, when in reality it would make a great story. Any tips?
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
You raise a valid point and I love the idea of the name helping to shape the character. The question you ask about handling groups of NPC's talking to one another is a challenge. One of the most effective ways of doing it that I've seen is to physically stand in different places around the table. This helps slow things down, makes the PC's turn their heads to look around (which helps with immersion) and gives you time to change 'accents' and gears.
@Nibilli
8 жыл бұрын
Doesn't that slow the pace of the dialog? I'll try it with two chairs then seems fun ! Thoses kinds of issues are the prime example of the limitations you encounter while playing on Skype/Roll20, where as a GM you lack many tools to work with.
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
I does slow the pace a bit, but if you watch something like Dinner for One or maybe simply stand a few feet apart each time it may not be a huge factor. And yes Skype and Roll 20 for all their glory do totally lack physicality. For now. Soon though... it'll be 3D and room projection.
@Nibilli
8 жыл бұрын
Already really enjoyed the 360 vid, really appropriate for roleplaying ! Feels like your part of the table ! I'll try that tip this week end then, thanks !
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
Let us know how it goes! We love hearing about others stories and experiences!
@couchyrick6300
5 жыл бұрын
heavy hitting facts
@willnash7907
7 жыл бұрын
Hello, I have a question and would love an answer. I am an author and use one my book-worlds for the DnD games, either I set the events of the DnD adventure in the context of my stories as an alternative course of my book's history (although they often fit the narrative well enough and some times have even given me inspiration for developing more canon story) or in a different time period of the same world. I often find myself in disagreement on matters concerning the game rules. For example I adamantly refuse to roll intelligent rolls regarding the actions of npc, they are my characters after all and I don't see how the scheming mastermind would act against his best interest or how the honorable knight would pull down his pants and shake his bum in front of the queen just because they rolled a 1. Similarly, I never roll for player intelligence, if you are smart enough to make a decision then so is your character. Other cases that lead to similar controversy are when my players complain about the difficulty of the game after making ridiculous mistakes. "House X is sworn to house Y and their heir apparent is betrothed to house Z" the players have just evaded the knights of house Y after long chase, having just stolen from them and are openly hostile towards house Z "We ask for refuge from house X" "Their lord refuses and calls his men-at-arms to arrest you" "You didn't even role my persuasion" "The lord of house X is a very deliberate man and you turn up at his door with his liege lord's heirlooms bursting out of your pocket, he is facing charges for treason and a death penalty if he let's you go. Do you think there is any chance he will do so just because you have a witty character with a hat of "suretalksnice" In other words I find the use of randomness absurd on matters that have clearly more to do with character motivation. Do you think I'm right at that? Would love to hear your feedback.
@Olivia-bs7wk
7 жыл бұрын
Billy Hatzi If you are using one of your books as a setting, that is great! You seem to have wonderful insparation for your books. When using your books however, you must have the understanding that players do the unexpected, and thus, need to be flexibe. I would say only keep using your books as a setting if you are willing to let the PCs change them. Or you could have them in an alternate timeline where everyhing is the same but the PCs wouldn't change anything and you'd be comfortable with them changing things. Having the "these at my characters and nothing that the PCs can do can change the characters that I've created" isn't fun for he players. If you don't want them to affect your universe, have them play in another one. ( I will probably mess this part up a bit since I find " rolling for intelligence" to be weird, and I have a vague understanding of it from your comment, so take this with a grain of salt) I disagree with what you describe as "rolling intelligence." From your comment it seems like a roll that you make when you want to see if it seems like someone would do based on their intelligence. Everyone has brain farts once in a while. But I do think that should be a rare roll. Intelligence is one of those ability scores that really comes through in role paying the most. Dumber characters are less likely to make the best plan or outwit the witty. That being said doing totally out of character things like a mastermind working against his own best interest and the knight waving his bum at the queen shouldn't happen because they rolled a 1. A mastermind might accidentally send the wrong person to do the errand, so he might be set back a couple steps, and maybe the knight was to brash when talking to the queen, or maybe the court jester (who may be of little intelligence ) thought the queen would like it when he made a joke that included shaking his bum at her. The reason you have skills like persuasion is to see if you can talk that very dileberate NPC into doing something that he normally wouldn't. It is fun to do the immpossible. Granted, the skill check would probably have a high D.C. (that is what I'd do) and his general impression of the characters would also influence the DC. But I'm sure that everyone is very dileberate about something, but that doesn't mean that people can't talk him into things once in a while. He is mortal after all. Maybe the Lord of house X has some reason that he'd let the players stay. The PCs could maybe bribe him. And a successful check doesn't even mean that the characters are go in to stay at the house. They may only be able to persuade him to let them go into another house's territory. Now if the PCs knew that the Lord of house X would turn them in, they could have taken another route such as disgusting themselves as refugees and they are hiding from another house, or only talk to a guard (or someone else within the house) to let them hideout there and bribe them not to tell anybody. Those are things that the PCs could have done instead of going strait to the Lord of the house. However, if those failed, it is unfair to the players to not let them roll a skill check when a skill check would be warrented, such as making a persuasion roll to see if the players can hide out at House X. It makes the game less fun for the players If they can only do so much. Hope th I helped!
@DearthXalex
5 жыл бұрын
Love your intro
@TheOnlyToblin
7 жыл бұрын
How long does it generally take you to come up with a completely unplanned, random NPC in this way? Does it "hitch" the pacing in any way as you jot down the list of things you need?
@WisdomThumbs
6 жыл бұрын
This will probably help my friends more than me, but I enjoyed the entire presentation. It got me thinking about the rare filler characters who have everything they want, and how most of those folks would be very unhelpful.
@rcautela7405
8 жыл бұрын
1st thing to remember NPCs are vessels for information, even if they don't give any.
@HowtobeaGreatGM
8 жыл бұрын
True enough!
@Frittefrizz2935
Жыл бұрын
Awsome.
@VilleHalonen
3 жыл бұрын
Excellent stuff, thank you! I don't suppose a comment on an old video gets through very easily, but just in case: do you have more examples of attitude and disposition? Most NPC advice tends to just stick with "attitude", and maybe go from friendly to hostile or something similarly straightforward. Your approach is more nuanced and I'm definitely looking into how I could expand this.
@whade62000
6 жыл бұрын
I'd totally buy a book just filled with a few lines of dialouge for NPC types and how you might deliver them. I'd have much more use for a "GM's Handbook" that'dfocus on stuff like this. xD
@robertnett9793
6 жыл бұрын
Less for goals, but good for attitude, education and disposition, I think of actors, movie-characters, book characters and so on. Like: Players: "Ok - we want to talk to the harbor-master" GM (thinking): "First name comes to mind: Tyvin Lannister". So. You mustn't carbon copy the role. Especially if you take a well known character. But getting the gist, of how he would act in this situation helps a lot. You still have to add goals, what he is doing right now, what he really wants to do and what kind of information the NPC should present. But actors and characters help a lot. You even can mix and match different characters.
@tiggerdyret
3 жыл бұрын
This is an amazing video. It's so frustrating that I am danish and that accents and dialects don't have the same connotations as they do in English. If you use a dialect in danish the players are just gonna think, "Ah he is from this part of Denmark". :P
@timbuktu8069
5 жыл бұрын
Entertainingly depressing! I've found most players to be either A) incredibly dim or 2) taking every single phrase as a subtle clew to the adventure. ( You're out of coffee? What *can* that mean?)
@TheSwamper
6 жыл бұрын
I would never write down specific dialogue for an NPC. However, I might make notes of important information they might convey.
@thezoloyouno3091
3 жыл бұрын
👍
@jadamgreen
5 жыл бұрын
I love your videos, but the irony of the back-to-back mispronunciation of loquacious as loqucious and erudite as eriudite in order to show off your vocabulary while describing someone who doesn't have a very expansive vocabulary made me chuckle.
@QFGlenn
7 жыл бұрын
This was amazingly informative. Thanks for this video!!!
@Rimpala
6 жыл бұрын
Can an NPC act like anyone would if they were suddenly and unexpectedly asked to give the history of their town just then and there , that is to say, their mind just completely draws a blank and the only thing they're able to respond with is "uh...what?"
@themk4982
7 жыл бұрын
I'm not sure if you've ever played it or if if you play video games but you really sound like the Narrator from the Stanly Parable.
@whiskeyfur
7 жыл бұрын
Need to answer one more question based on what they are doing. Is it worth being interrupted? That tech who is doing the diagnostic.. he might just ignore the PC's, or hold up a finger to ask for a moment as he watches that diagnostic display as he's at a key point. if the PC's outrank the tech, that's one thing. But if there's no reasonable expectation for the NPC to pay heed to the characters, then they won't. At the most in those cases, "I'm sorry but I can't be interrupted right now." and goes right back to what they were doing.
@sesquame9527
7 жыл бұрын
I like to browse pixiv for character art for npc's of middling importance. There's hundreds of fantasy/scifi character arts. Find a cool piece of art that fits and it's hugely useful for getting a roster of characters going. Plus it really jogs the imagination. >look for a pink haired noblewoman because the Empress has red hair and she's descended. >the picture has a downcast and kind of sad and lonely looking. >Bam a personality I wasn't planning on but works really well. Also there will often be a prop or a second character in the picture that ends up creating entirely new plotlines or npcs.
@jonathanpeck5743
5 жыл бұрын
I gave a goblin warlord an Elmer Fudd voice and made a PC spit his drink over half the room.
@christophergritti9873
6 жыл бұрын
Love these videos. Very helpful in building my first Starfinder homebrew. thank you!
@foxavo
6 жыл бұрын
At about 7:50 I just got an idea! Friendly NPC is someone they were supposed to meet in town, but they have no idea who they look like. They're greeted, shown their rooms and sent out to do whatever it is they do, all the while the friendly NPC has actually killed their contact and found their instructions. They quickly stash the body and take his place to try and line their pockets. Maybe sending them to a gold mine taken over by 'corrupt' guards and miners and he tries to run off with the spoils they bring back. Maybe when he goes missing, they find his room and find the body of the original guy stuffed in a trunk and they've just attacked innocent people and have to chase after him so they can clear their name... Doesn't take much to set off an idea, but once it starts, it snowballs! Love these videos because they help spark lots of little ideas I can weave into a story if only to give it a little pep or maybe turn into an epic adventure that sends them halfway across the world trying to track down the gentleman (gentlelady) who wronged them.
@Gladdig
7 жыл бұрын
Could I get a few (or perhaps many?) more examples of what attitude could entail? I have a hard time coming up with it myself.
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