Taking 20 Podcast

Dive into the essential role of Session 0 in tabletop RPGs, where expectations are set and collaboration thrives. Discover key steps to prepare for a productive planning session, covering player preferences and house rules. Learn how to navigate disagreements, manage character creation, and address sensitive topics to create a positive environment. Plus, explore ways to enhance the experience with character secrets and narrative contributions, ensuring an engaging kickoff for the campaign.

You're a DM and you have a story you'd like to tell but the darn Player Characters won't follow the story.  What do you do?  How do you handle the campaign that's not going as planned?  Jeremy pulls a major piece of advice from a song from 1980s band 38 Special.

A lot of people dismiss D&D 4th Edition as a mistake but there were a lot of good aspects to that version of the game.  One of them was minions which were simplified monsters used in tandem with bosses and boss fights.  In this episode Jeremy suggests that bringing the concept back can spice up combat encounters.

It's almost Halloween in the U.S. and maybe you'd like to run a scary One Shot or Adventure.  How do you bring scary elements into your game?  What types of horror are there?  Jeremy waxes poetic about one of his favorite adventure types.

Want a Roc that can teleport giant rocks to drop on the players?  How about an alien with acid for blood found on a crash landed ship.  That's completely unique and no one else has ever thought of it.  In this episode Jeremy gives some tips for customizing monsters and mostly encourages you to be creative with your creatures!

In the finale of the 3-part interview, Johnn and Jeremy discuss garnering emotional responses from your players and a weird question about the Stone to Flesh spell.

Johnn Four, a role-playing game expert and contributor to RoleplayingTips.com, joins the conversation to share valuable insights. He discusses the art of treasure distribution, emphasizing alignment with player behavior for maximum impact. The dialogue delves into crafting compelling cultures, using relatable elements like dwarven society to enhance immersion. Johnn also highlights the importance of balancing loot with engaging gameplay, advocating for rich, believable cultural frameworks. Prepare for a deeper understanding of RPG dynamics!

Johnn Four, an expert in dungeon mastering and author at Roleplaying Tips, joins to tackle listener questions. He shares effective note-taking strategies to organize game sessions, enhancing engagement for both GMs and players. Johnn discusses methods for captivating casual players during long breaks, emphasizing cliffhangers and session recaps. He also highlights the importance of maintaining narrative mystery by withholding antagonist motives and setting clear adventure goals, ensuring players remain invested in the story.

RPG Gatekeeping is the practice of deciding someone isn't worthy of participating in our hobby or that because they look different, have different beliefs, or lead a different lifestyle, they can't participate in our hobby.  It's wrong.  In this episode Jeremy talks about the need to be accepting of everyone in the hobby, young/old, straight/gay/bi, cis/trans.  None of that matters.  What matters is can you sit at the table and have a good time together.

Random Encounters, some DMs love them, some hate them.  In this episode Jeremy discusses strategies for using Random Encounters that still make your world feel alive and active but won't derail your gaming session.