Taking 20 Podcast Taking 20 Podcast

We GMs have to generate a lot about the world from the grand multiverse and pantheons of gods to what Typhon the baker looks like and their foibles.  Sometimes players will have great ideas about their character, the world they live in and maybe even larger topics like names of towns and nations.  In this episode I encourage my DMs to listen to player ideas about the game and how it’s played and incorporate them whenever possible.
 
#dnd #5e #pf2e #dmtips #gmtips #RPGplayers

DMs, whether we realize it or not manipulate our players sometimes multiple times a session.  What does that mean, though to manipulate the players?  Is it a good thing?  Tune in to find out.
#dnd #5e #pf2e #dmtips #gmtips #manipulation
Resources:
Bonus Action - Hacks DMs Use to Manipulate Players - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bokYGJPyKlI

There’s nothing wrong with an adventuring party full of humans, gnomes, dwarves, and the like.  But sometimes the campaign calls for or the player wants to play something a little different like a hobgoblin, merfolk, or even a troll.  How do you handle these situations?  In this episode I give you some tips as well as briefly review the new Paizo book Howl of the Wild.
 
Resources:
Rules Lawyer Howl of the Wild Review - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olNDUmF_41o
5e Trolls - https://www.dndbeyond.com/monsters/17040-troll 
Ron Lundeen - Pathfinder 2e ancestry build tips - https://www.runamokgames.com/design-diary/the-pathfinder-ancestry-checklist

Lore can be doled out in small measures any number of ways at your table from dreams to treasure, holidays to PC backstories.  I hope the last two weeks have made you think about how you use lore in your worlds.
 
#dmtips #gmtips #dnd #pf2e #5e #lore
 
Resources:
Matt Colville - Lore Delivery Systems - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tBXnD9g0XY 
Sly Flourish - Bathe Your World in Lore - https://slyflourish.com/bathe_your_world_in_lore.html
Alphastream - Make Lore Actionable - https://alphastream.org/index.php/2022/06/02/your-games-lore-make-it-actionable/

Lore, like so many other aspects to our game can be as present or absent as you would like it to be.  Lore makes your world richer and deeper but how do you reveal it to your players?  Tune in and find out.
 
#dnd #pf2e #dmtips #gmtips #lore
Resources:
Matt Colville - Lore Delivery Systems - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tBXnD9g0XY 
Sly Flourish - Bathe Your World in Lore - https://slyflourish.com/bathe_your_world_in_lore.html
Alphastream - Make Lore Actionable - https://alphastream.org/index.php/2022/06/02/your-games-lore-make-it-actionable/

Aboleths and Algholthu are amphibious creatures who feel they are gods whose domains have been wrongfully stolen from them by those who they feel should be their slaves.  They are extremely savvy fighters who remember eons of combats and use those lessons when the PCs show up to try to kill them.  In this episode we talk about these huge aberrations and how to use them in your game.
 
#dnd #5e #pf2e #aboleths #algholthu #aberrations
Resources:
D&D 2025 - Creative Commons - https://www.wargamer.com/dnd/edition-2024-sourcebooks-srd-creative-commons
Riches and Liches - D&D Lore: Monster Lab - Aboleth https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwHRDlgi5QI&t=298s
The Monsters Know What They’re Doing - Aboleths by Keith Amman - https://www.themonstersknow.com/aboleth-tactics/
The Lords of Madness - The Book of Aberrations