On the Shoulders of Dwarves

### Yossi’s email (2:10) > Dear long-bearded dwarves, > I need you to forge me an advice, please. I have two main problems with the group I'm currently playing in as a player (Tactical D&D 5e group). > 1. Analysis paralysis - My party tends to overthink their actions, meaning before each decision fork or a door, they talk a lot in real time, plan and plan and plan... And I think - it's ok to plan but let's move on.. let's go with the adventure, we came here to experience new things and to...

We’ve all been there: It’s game night and you can’t be bothered with playing. Maybe you’re exhausted, maybe you’ve had a hard day, maybe you just can’t find the energy. There is always the option to cancel. That is totally valid option often but it still sucks. ### Getting some energy (2:30) Uri teaches “Improv for GMs” and “Improv for Roleplayers” workshops. Improv and GMing have a lot in common. Here are a few basic tips from the workshops: - Warming up to a session. Both physical and...

*“Everything doesn’t have to be about fear. There’s room in our line of work for hope, too.” — Batgirl* **The seventh episode of Forging Ahead with Aviv Manoach, a show about tabletop roleplaying games where Aviv discusses the shenanigans of his home group and prepare their next adventures. Aviv and his group are playing Wonders: Heroes of Tomorrow, the Hebrew adaptation for Masks: a New Generation, in a world were superpowered people are a new phenomenon.** You can join live each week on...

### Why? As the name of the episode suggests “Empowering Fellow players” means that you empower other players and they will empower you. But, on a more pragmatic note, empowering other players makes the game more fun for all participants, it makes events more memorable, increases immersion, and let players feel the impact of their actions. The improv game “15 minutes of fame”. ### The Seven Secret Techniques for Empowering Fellow Players (as handed down by the Dragon Bard): 1 : **Be...

### From the GM's perspective (11:25) [Personal Plotlines](https://dwarves.podiant.co/e/361e1967b5d5c4/) ### Unexpected transitions (14:20) With mechanical implementations. [City of Mist](http://cityofmist.co) [Dungeon World](http://www.dungeon-world.com/) [Masks](http://www.magpiegames.com/masks/) ### Zamlofia (20:12) The moment wasn’t concrete, it was conceptual. ### Our new song (25:55) By the [Cliches Duo](https://www.facebook.com/klishaot/)! ----- Email us at show@dwarfcast.net with...

We got this short and to the point email from Peter: *Hello,* *I'm not saying that my players are not smart, but... How do you make your players feel smart when you're running a game?* *Thanks for your answers in advance,* *Peter* Good question! ## Uri’s suggestions (02:46) There is a difference between making players feel smart and making players actually act smarter. This of course is also true for any other emotion that you want your players to experience. - **Target characters, not...

### Grammatical person (2:45) Point of view: First person vs Third person. There is no right way/wrong way to describe your character's actions using first person/third person. But each creates a different effect: I draw my sword/He draws his sword/Kriger draws his sword. ### Internal action vs external action (5:50) In order to show, instead of telling. Manifest the internal emotion using an external action. ### Make strong emotional choices and express them (10:34) Backstories and internal...

This will be the last episode of the year 2019 as well as the last episode of the decade so it is only fitting that we will use it to talk about the most important issue of the roleplaying game: Snacks! We will be discussing off play food - meaning actual food eaten by actual players. Uri’s session usually includes full meals before the sessions, in Eran’s sessions usually have light snacks. ### What to eat? (between snacks and a meal) (01:30) You might want to decide on this ahead of time....

In today's episode we talk about two very different aspects of information management. I have good news and bad news: the bad news is that most game systems have some really iffy bits that somehow managed to get past the playtest phase or just not suited to your game and that sucks, the good news is that you don’t have to use them. Sometimes a part of the game mechanics does not suit your game. **There are several ways to deal with this issue, you can:** - Remove a mechanic from the system -...

What's the point of having random encounters? How to create them, how to utilize them, and why. [Xanathar's Guide to Everything](http://dnd.wizards.com/products/tabletop-games/rpg-products/xanathars-guide-everything), D&D's latest sourcebook, does random encounters right, mostly. **4:30 Why have random encounters?** Deliver information about the world: There are dragons in the mountains to the north. Sustain the illusion of a consistent world: Things are happening even when the characters...

**Note: **We say the word "indie" a lot in this episode, and bring up mostly indie-adjcant games, but that's only a force of habit; this advice works just as well for big names and big companies. [The chart that is not recommended](http://inkwellideas.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/rpgchart1.gif) ### What makes a system good (or bad) (2:30) ### Ask yourself (6:55) Use these questions to guide yourself, or to help others guide you. * What is the genre of game you enjoy the most? * What is the...

### Eran and Uri have different KPIs (1:45) KPI stands for Key Performance Indexes and it literally means how do you measure if you have done something well or not. Or “what is the key by which you determine how well you performed”. ### Uri’s method (7:00) The full article: [How Uri runs an Introduction Game](https://dwarves.podiant.co/how-uri-run-intro-games/) ### Designing your own format (23:10) [Eran's full article](https://www.eranaviram.me/introducing-new-people-to-our-hobby/). Dig...

"Folk vs Medicine" charity event, this Sunday! [icel.me/wish](http://icel.me/wish) [Facebook event](https://www.facebook.com/events/419128882065377/) ### Player perspective (1:55) Talk with your GM: to make sure you're not going to focus your attention on anything that might not be of value Build your character concept: based on what's available in the system, and fits the campaign. Rulebook: read all the basic sections and then the sections relevant to my character. Read guides and forum...

Different types of Dice Mechanic - Exploding dice - What are they? And the effects they generate? (01:05) - The Wild Die ([Savage Worlds RPG](https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/261539/Savage-Worlds-Adventure-Edition?affiliate_id=2966)) (03:50) - Min-max-mid die ([Sentinel comics the RPG](https://store.greaterthangames.com/sentinel-comics-the-roleplaying-game-starter-kit.html)) (06:30) - Escalation Die ([13th age...

A recurring event is something that the players can learn about, use, or be influenced by. How is society changed during this event? What is now permitted or expected? **3:00 Creating events quickly** Make any event special: It's not just any ball, it’s the princess’s birthday or an anniversary of some important battle. An implementation of the “Specific beats generic” rule. Have a list of types of things that people commemorate: [The Queen’s official...

[Class Close-up: Cleric](https://dwarves.podiant.co/e/36b2cb69bbed4c/) (episode 43) ### What is a class? (1:50) A place in the world (a “job”), a role in the party, and mechanics to match. “Relationship”, the main *connection* that the class is about, what their personal conflicts usually revolve around. ### Classes as relationships (3:30) > Barbarian: Their own emotions > Bard: The audience > Cleric: The divine > Druid: Nature > Fighter: Prowess > Monk: Discipline > Paladin: Duty > Ranger:...

### The obvious (1:40) Official rulebooks and expansions. Miniatures and boards, and other paraphernalia. Dice, dice holder, dice bags, dice towers, rounder dice, dice of unusual size/material or shape. Personalised dice trays; foldable or wooden. [Crystal Heart's foldable dice trays](https://leisuregames.com/products/crystal-heart-up-to-4-players-dice-folding-dice-tray-all-rolled-up?variant=12102479118409). ### Enhancing your game experience (2:30) Special software: [Hero...

Epistolary Richard, aka Richard Williams. ### The Playmaker Awards (1:00) [The website](https://playmakerawards.blogspot.com/). To shine a spotlight on those whose efforts are often overlooked: not amazing designers, GMs or even players, but for those who have worked hard during the year to make the space in which other play. They might organise a convention, a gaming meetup, an online space or do any other of the admin or scutwork that enables others to play roleplaying games. ### Richard’s...

**1:20 The importance of pacing** **3:40 What IS pacing?** Timing scenes vs. timing within scenes. A player’s responsibility as well - be aware, things need to end. **6:35 The basic structure** Opening , complication, climax and denouement. More on dramatic structures: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dramatic_structure **10:15 Planning ahead** Uri’s example of planning by pace: * Slow opening scene for character introduction * Quick action scene to make everyone work together * Slow horror...

### Work on your character (3:30) Here are a dozen development ideas that might help: 1. What is your strongest childhood memory? 2. Describe one event that you're ashamed of. 3. Who was your best friend when you were younger? 4. Describe one feature of the prettiest person you’ve ever seen. 5. Describe the worst failure you’ve had in your field of expertise. 6. Who among the party doesn’t know how you really think about them. 7. Name one attribute about you that your parent really liked. 8....