8 Types of Ambushes to START your D&D adventures!

[@kaimulai5178]

I’m a little disappointed that you didn’t actually get ambushed in 10 minutes from the start of the video. That would have been fun

[@r0flgal0re]

Absolutely. I'd have simply loved AB bodychecking him out of frame xD Great Video though, as always.

[@thecurlylockes4069]

He deployed the false ambush. He knew we’re all neurodivergent and need that little *jingle jingle*

[@samfowler2073]

He was expecting it. Expect the ambush in ten videos time when he is not expecting it.

[@nicholasallen1388]

Yeah, where is that microphone mimic you were talking about a few episodes back?! Lol

[@Oilzins]

@@kaimulai5178 thanks for saying it! The end of the video was unexpected due to the lack of midpoint ambush!

[@PossiblyDuck]

"Hey, you. You're finally awake. You were trying to cross the border, right? Walked right into that Imperial ambush, same as us and that thief over there."

[@hjaltos]

It's not my fault I've fallen for the elaborate ambush twice! You're just too darn clever!

[@TheInfiniteGM]

"You cannot have extreme feelings about something without being invested"... my man out here not just laying down ttrpg advice, but how to find meaning in life advice too.

[@knighterrant1029]

Every single one of your videos really gets the creative juices flowing. I really appreciate the content!

[@dj_4point084]

seconding this

[@LukeStrife]

I adore the way you explain these concepts. They really get the noggin joggin'! Absolutely stealing the bartender moment.

[@reginaldtorres28]

"Sometimes, 'friend-shaped' doesn't always mean friend." "Beware the frog." 🐸 🏹 Truer words Dadi, truer words.

[@joshdaymusiced]

I swear, I hear "Don't lick the frog"...

[@BawssomeGaming]

"Friendly fire isn't."

[@dj_4point084]

10:36 Daði wasn't ambushed. disappointed

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

Sometimes the threat of an ambush is just as valuable to engage players as the actual ambush itself. - Daði

[@TK-421_66]

@@Mystic-Arts-DM This is your opportunity for an ambush in the next video when we least expect it.

[@Music_Engineering]

However, there was an ambush at 20:11!

[@MKzing]

Maybe the real ambush was the disappointment along the way.

[@adamduncton6054]

Hi there, I’ve just started playing DND at the youthful age of 40 something… got into it with my 11 year old son while watching some gameplay on another channel. I’m quickly becoming a first time DM using inspiration from starter sets to create my own world and adventures for my sons character to explore. Your channel has been a goldmine for advice, insight examples of “how to do!” Just wanted to say a huge thank you and keep up the great work. It’s so accessible for newbie’s and I can imagine more experienced players also get huge amounts out of it!

[@johncasebeer179]

It is a great channel! I have been playing and GM'ing for close to 40 years, and I pick up good information from every one of their videos.

[@ttibke]

That Hitchcock example is such a good explanation of Shock vs Tension 😢 Joytear. Really.

[@carolxs]

I half expected you to be ambushed at 10 minutes, but for me the "uh" on 20:12 was a nice touch lol 😂

[@finisterre2415]

That description of the ice cube in the glass before the big boom(tm). I definitely got to steal that, time for The Empire to strike back!

[@ChristopherRoss.]

I'm going to be starting a new campaign soon, and the beginning is going to read something like this: "You each slowly process the trauma of waking up, coming to consciousness in your Lord's barracks. Its a bit too warm to sleep; someone put a little too much fuel on the hearth. You're annoyed at the person blowing the horn and shouting indistinctly in the distance, as you swat at whatever is biting your leg. Legs. Your legs are on fire. The barracks is on fire. Before you can react, the master-at-arms bursts into the room, and can't quite get the word "Raid!" out of his mouth before cutting himself short, and falling forward with a green fletched arrow protruding from the back of his head. What do you do?"

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

Awesome! That whiplash to start us in medias res. I love it!, it's immediately got me wanting to know what's next! 10/10 - Daði

[@rachelpope8663]

YES, I love it!! Awesome writing, friend

[@agilemonk6305]

This is a 10 out of 10 for the writing. I too want to know what happens next? Great job. ❤

[@AgentAndor]

I love this channel so much. This channel isn’t just about DnD, it’s about story telling. You make me reignite my passion for it, which I have lost over time. I am starting my first DM (and DnD session) in two weeks! You have been incredible helpful in my preparation.

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

I'm so happy to hear that! - Daði

[@jackrobinson5861]

Been watching your content for about 2 weeks whilst preparing a new setting for a stand alone adventure I ran yesterday, with a group I have been DM'ng for years. And the session went so well that they thought it was the best we have done in a very long time. No short part thanks to your advice, delivered in a incredibly digestible manner. Keep it up bro! Easy to see why you're doing so well!

[@Jindorek]

I already respected you, you didnt have to butter me up with Shane Black trivia. That man is the god of banter. I love his movies.

[@Jindorek]

on a side note, have you ever heard of Chronos. He is the Lord of time and he "possesses" an old man and then lives thru time backwards, getting younger and younger until he finds a new vessel and does it again. he remembers the future. so when the party meets him the first time, it means that is the last time he will ever see them. he knows who they are cos he remembers them but they have no idea who he is. it is a great way to foreshadow events in their future. his past.

[@634n5]

I love the fact you incorporate film into the video!!!

[@marcelwenting1982]

You just made me rethink my session one, thank you for basically making me throw away all the prep... just kidding, it isnt that drastic, but I am going to spin things a little different and I am sure it's for the better. Thank you!

[@ScrivenerofDoom]

Well done, Dadi. You're the first RPGer who spelt "medias" correctly.

[@timstabletoptime6708]

Great video! I had a long break between campaign arcs and started the next arc in media res. It was great way to remind the players that they'd been operating as a team in the time between arcs. I also tailored the combat to their specific strengths so they would start the arc feeling like a very powerful, proficient team.

[@rowansjet]

13:00 "This guy stabs me, I stab him, hugh!" got me to subscribe.

[@jamesripley8031]

I had a really fun ambush once... the players were following a trail of clues about some sort of a necromancer, vampire, something along those lines. The trail led them to the old cemetery. Everything I did as they approached and entered the area was all scene setting. They didn't fight, or even see, any monsters. But there was mist, gloom, darkness... they found the crypt entrance, they walked through the place, lined with old dusty coffins and reliquaries, going further... and further... and further in. Until they finally met the Boss. A negotiation followed, the players (shockingly) did not choose the immortality of unlife, and the first combat of the adventure was the boss battle. As the boss was a vampire, "killing him" just meant he turned into a misty cloud and escaped. Then the players hear the scrabbling claws of an immense number of undead rising to fight them. The ambush! Following the ambush was a high stakes chase back to the vampire's manor, and a tense search through the manor until they found the vampire recovering in its coffin. The denouement was them finally ending the vampire. The part I liked the best of this was the growing sense of unease as the players kinda new they were sticking their heads waaaaaay into the bear trap as they searched through the crypts. Oh.. that, and the players spent like.. 3 rounds as the zombies rose trying to break open the back door so they could escape, only to find that the back door was just a broom closet! No escape there!! Too bad you didn't spend those rounds running!

[@jorisboonekamp9038]

Basically you inspired me to let my players live the experience of the characters they played in the last campaign we never finished (alternate mind-controlled reality). Suddenly they're in a battle against powerful foes, and halfway through I'll suddenly call them by their old names, which should lead to mindfckery. Things go sideways, they're close to dying, they all wake up... and so curiously they've all been dreaming about the unknown fate of their friends they've heard rumors about: the definite buyin for the rescue mission adventure to come :) Thanks!

[@davidarcesolano8375]

MCDM's influence is strong, but It still feels like he has a unique style. Great job.

[@grizzlednerd4521]

In the last campaign I ran I teed up the standard "meet in a tavern" but one of the PCs were mugged on the way there. The other's, also on their way to the same tavern, saw and intervened. This allowed some combat right away as well as the PCs having a shared experience; kick starting the PCs bonding.

[@Kootify17]

This is GD brilliant! Exactly what I needed for the 3.5e Gestalt campaign I'm planning. Thanks Dadi.

[@MossyAntler]

11:57 "ORCS ATTACK!" has saved me so many times. I love this video's framing of "ambushes keep the game going". My player's will now be ambushed shortly

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

Yeah! As the DM you've got the power to step on the accelerator! :D - Daði

[@sbmasonator]

Dadi, weirdly I could listen to you all day. Your voice has a therapeutic quality. I bet you’re an awesome DM.

[@nBasedAce]

I have been reading Keep On The Borderlands and I think that it started with an ambush. It also had a good point where the heroes completed the quest and they were hooked into a further quest because they needed the Keep friendly to them.❤😊

[@TulkOrkan]

Master piece. Masterpiece! Such a good video!

[@dobbelmoral]

Your very first video popped up on my feed a while back when you released it, and I believe I have watched every video you have released since then. I really enjoy your content, and it's very nice to have found someone who have the same mentality towards DM'ing as I do. I often find myself pointing at the screen going "Thats what I do!" (You know the whole Leonardo DiCaprio pointing meme from Once Upon A Time in Hollywood. I think a lot of it has to do with the both of us DMing with a lot of techniques from movies and scenes. Its refreshing to watch something that kind of expands and improves what I'm already doing rather than someone trying to "teach" me how to do something different as they have a very different DM style and mentality. Anyways, just wanted to say that I appriciate your videos, and keep up the good work both you and your girlfriend!

[@cookiedudegaming]

Dadi, your timing is uncanny. I'm righting an in medias res start as I watch this video! They've gone and done it againagainagainagainagainagainagainagainagainagainagainagainagainagainagainagainagain

[@barge489]

Orcs attack is by far my favorite Colville-ism. I used it to completely level my overcomplicated town and take the shackles off of my game.

[@necronsplayer]

"i'm not gonna name names" is the best example in the video lmao

[@Aelanna]

My favorite ambush as a DM was when my party camped for the night along a forested road. The barbarian selected a tree that he was going to sleep beside and set up his bedroll, then sat on it with his back against the tree while he sharpened his axe. That's when the mimic tree reached out and grabbed him! Now said barbarian is paranoid and looking for mimics everywhere he goes.

[@bluesteve124]

You've just helped me set up the first scene in a new campaign I'm starting! Thank you! 🙏 Excellent vid 👍

[@nathancorso4067]

About the advice of starting with the big boss fight: One of my notes for future campaigns is precisely about that. Each player starts the final battle with two characters at max level (for us, it will be 30th, because we use the 4th edition rules). Then, when the battle reaches its climax, time travel will occur. If the forces of good are winning, the time travel will be the villain's backup resort; if the forces of evil are winning, the time travel will be a desperately last try by one of their allies. However, time should not just rewind: the reason for two hero characters per player is that, after the time travel, they will be left with only one, because something changed and half the heroes are now part of the forces of evil. In that way, not only will the campaign start in medias res, but the players will have shaped their own nemeses.

[@JynksterDM]

this all makes me want to PLAY!!! thanks man!

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

That's the goal! Thanks for watching!

[@IonicEnder]

Banger video after banger video , don’t get burnt out ! We need you

[@ttibke]

Great video. Great tips. En medias res. I’ve even done it with damage already on the characters and mid initiative.

[@azuthyra5590]

Excellent video. Lots of great pieces of wisdom. Quickly becoming one of my go-to channels that I’m excited to watch each video that comes out.

[@tonysladky8925]

Man, rolling Initiative when coming upon the scene of a crime for the "ambush that's not an ambush" ambush is a great call. That's definitely going on my to-do list.

[@gam3cub349]

For point number 2 making sure they can spot the ambush, how do you go about that? I'm new to DMing and typically when I describe a scene of the player's traversing I describe the scene all the way until the point they arrive, for example: "the adventuring party weaves through the bustling streets of Waterdeep, the vibrant chatter of merchants and clinking of wagon wheels echoing around them. Turning into a shadowed alley, their journey ends at a quaint pie shop, its warm, buttery aroma cutting through the city's chaos like a promise of comfort." If the ambush is meant to happen in the alley how do I give them a chance to spot the ambush without giving it away? If I were to stop anytime prior to them arriving at the pie shop they would know something is up since they already told me they wanted to go to the pie shop.

[@couver73]

I've definitely considered ambushes already in some shape or form as I go through the important moments that I wish to have in my campaign (still in the prep phase as a noob DM). But I think one of the best ways to do them is to have them all interwoven into an elaborate scheme. Make it clear to your players that they have stumbled on to a huge mystery. Literally ANYTHING can happen to get in the way of their attempts to unravel it or outright solve it. I think that's an interesting way to do it to make it all feel like it matters.

[@VitoWolf-me3tq]

Thank you for sharing your ideas

[@Moon2Mars2030]

Your best video yet!

[@jackrobinson5861]

Bro the Han Solo ambush happened in my campaign without me planning it 😂, 1 character died and another only just made it, I loved it. So did they, was so pure and they absolutely rinsed them post session

[@TheDoranMaster]

Amazing 🤩 Im loving all of your videos

[@GabeTetrault]

This is great advice! Loving your videos!

[@aueZlZane]

Solid content again, thanks

[@MossyAntler]

The distinction between "player agency" mattering in gameplay but not nearly as much during setup is HUGE

[@charlesrowntree3346]

Another outstanding video. Absolutely loving everything you do!

[@hoxton_hummingbird]

Ive not even seen the video yet and theres an idea that I had for some time and I really have to share! Im planning on running a investigation/noir game and my idea for the first session zero is to basically start the players off without any sheets and dice, playing not their characters but basically a patron of the character. They are brought together to assemble a group and everyone has to offer a fitting candidate for the investigation party. Then they have to tell the rest of the group why this character would benefit the investigation and once everyone has offered a character, well build said character with stats and thats who theyll play as next session! Good idea?

[@negative6442]

This video came at the perfect time, about to plan for todays adventure in which the players will be reenacting The Magnificent 7 in a small plains village. They've got a long way to go to get the adventuring location, so I was thinking of ways to spice up the session.

[@Bralor89]

Listen abd watching your videos while doing houshold chores is an awesome combination! One question after watching your live streams: what kind of Headset did you wear and would you recommend it?

[@ShhadowYT]

wake up babe, new Mystic Arts just dropped!

[@ardenthebibliophile]

@1:45 ALL HAIL THE SCREAMING MASS

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

We did it for you, Arden!

[@ardenthebibliophile]

​@@Mystic-Arts-DM and that's why I love your channel. The S-tier content is great, sure, but the passion is why I return.

[@Custos43]

I'm working on a campaign where the party starts on a ship that's current being attacked by pirates. not exactly an ambush, but it definitely fits this theme imo. another thing I've seen in games is that there is no reason the PC's are together. "Everyone starts in a tavern, and it gets attacked" Sure, but if i help break up a bar fight, i don't start month long adventures with the other patron that stepped in. I also don't really care about the dreams or aspirations of this random stranger. I would love to hear your take on this, maybe other creative ways to increase party adhesion, other then "We are all sitting at the same table so we have to group up"

[@rachelpope8663]

A good way to get past this is to think about why your characters are at the same table in the first place. Are they being hired by someone to do something when the ambush happens? Are they old friends just grabbing a drink together, and this has been their local haunt for years? Did they already fight something in town square together last night, and they just woke up and came down for breakfast? Are they at breakfast because they're traveling together for a different reason, like an archaeology trip, cultural pilgrimage, or recon mission? When players struggle with interpersonal RP, it's common advice for them to make their PCs together, and have them know each other beforehand. Makes it a little easier!

[@YawdroGaming]

My greatest campaign start was in the middle of an ambush! Couldn't agree more!

[@johncasebeer179]

Great video!

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

Thanks!

[@HWORD-xg6hi]

Ah, a man of culture I see. I too refer to Matt Colville as the GOAT. 😂

[@cthomashand]

I genuinely enjoy the style of your channel. Focusing on the structure of story as opposed to something more...concrete to a system. Much of this is repeated from other individuals. You reference Mr. Colville to great effect. But repeating something doesn't make it less valuable. Instead, you appear to work to repackage into a different, palatable format. The two of you do a remarkable (let's say, professional) job with the videos themselves. And we all know that either your natural voice, or whatever you have done to alter it, is Sex. I hear it and I think "This guy knows what the fuck he's talking about" and "This guy fucks." keep up the great work

[@Gmorktron]

Your Ranger remembers it has Hunters Mark? Ours always forgets

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

I just barely hit level 3, it's basically my only ability - AB

[@dj_4point084]

17:37 I know it's a metaphor, but I wanna do something like this now. Have characters going about their day whilst showing the players a ticking time bomb.

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

Hmm, you could always start your next shopping session with a cutscene about what the bad guys are doing... - Daði

[@ericgonzales419]

One of my favorite things to do is lead a session with calling for a saving throw with no context

[@laef5642]

I would appreciate if the description told us where the movie clips are from

[@Frolmaster]

A tried-and-tested classic (for me, anyway): You kill your ambushers and one of them had a map that leads to the adventure site; a note written on it sais: “ Memorize this map and then burn it this time, you idiot!”

[@BioMetatader]

Nice

[@Eisenbrei]

Great video! Can you tell me what the miniature at 3:40 of the winged woman is? This looks exactly how i imagine a faerie in one of my games looks like!

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

That's a Pathfinder mini, the goddess Desna. She came in a box of pre-painted minis that we got from our LGS.

[@Eisenbrei]

@@Mystic-Arts-DM Cool, thanks!

[@levelupblacksmith3555]

New video idea, topic irrelevant: AB in the background, pillow in hand, slowly moving towards you. You fail your perception check. Minutes go by without anything happening. Then BAM! pillow to the head

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

That promised ambush comes around!

[@sub-jec-tiv]

World's End kills me. (partly cus I was in uni in England in 1991, and all that music was on the radio)

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

Underrated film, tbh. - Daði

[@pdubb9754]

I just missed an opportunity to do this. Session 1 was in fact an ambush but I spent too much time covering stuff that might have been better addressed in our session zero. New campaign world - I over explained stuff because it is what the characters would know. Sort of lost some of the excitement about starting a new game. In hindsight, would have been better for that to come out more gradually in the context of adventuring

[@dustinspires8096]

I would like your input! I am creating a game which is low-magic, uses a custom D6 system similar to candela obscura and has resource management mechanics. The content of my campaign is designed to give a feeling of mortality to the players and provide a compelling story, but allow the players to create ANY "class" they want through the college which is one of the main focal points of the game. How could I create a "in the middle of things" experience if the only really important combat I can think of is at the end of the game, and everything else is designed to be fluid since the villain also deploys creatures at a cost. I realize that this is a bit of a different concept, but I am eager to hear what you think. (You could think dark souls vibes in terms of symbolism when it comes to important magic items in the game, additionally there are easter eggs/hidden mechanics in my game since I made the system almost completely from scratch)

[@VerluxUA]

Dadi? More like da- (The writer of this comment has been brutally ambushed by the skeleton inside them, rioting against the awful joke.)

[@swbrett]

My last game, I ran a combat, and one of the bad guys ran off at the end. My players figured this was the end and started to talk and bicker amongst themselves. This stopped abruptly when the magi-tech grenade containing the cloudkill spell, and the reinforcement squad of undead that were immune to poison came down the corridor, nearly killing all of them since none of them had attempted to heal up, take cover, or do much of anything in the five minute window between combats.

[@GoobaDooba]

Thank you for this video. My players are going to hate me now. ;)

[@i-make-robots]

I upvote on "and the bar explodes".

[@ehsanrahee7411]

Dadi is Daddy. Your videos are awesome dude

[@axelz4316]

SNEAK ATTACK!

[@agilemonk6305]

You have such a cool voice for Video. ❤.

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

They say I have a voice for video and a face for radio! - Daði

[@BensRightBrain]

Dear diary, Daði got a haircut

[@diego1544]

This guy is the Mathew Colville of the newer generations

[@kayleighalvarez5271]

Does anyone else get Jonathan Frakes vibes from Daði's voice?

[@ErkIsEpic]

I was starting to think I was the only person to ever see Kiss-Kiss Bang-Bang

[@mononcrick9208]

"You might be wondering how we got here..."

[@lady_l974]

Time to procrastinate my studies with an amazing video! 😆

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

We live to serve.

[@felixrivera895]

13:14 he's about to show that monster what police brutality looks like

[@ChadRobb]

You announced the ambush, creating tension. Where's the payoff? Otherwise excellent video. 👌

[@johncasebeer179]

Chekhov's Gun states that if there is a gun in Scene 1, it has to be fired in Scene 2 (paraphrasing). Now we wait...

[@ryanmichael1298]

Cheers from Ohio!

[@joancanario6377]

can you make a video how to Run big Cities? Pls

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

It's on our ideas board, but we won't get to it for a while.

[@joancanario6377]

@@Mystic-Arts-DM Thank you, I will be waiting for it, here

[@FireallyXTheories]

I feel like you just need to treat it like a world map. Put POIs on it and set times it takes to get around with a few faster, but set destination, travel options like canals, carriages, or trams. But make sure that it takes at least a few hours between POIs and somewhere around 8 if you go all the way across the city by foot. It really sets the scale up when timing and distance come into play, and then with POIs, it brings in that wonder factor of "I can't wait to go here!" with even a little bit of flavor like "Your mentor spoke of this mage tower and how it was the birthplace of Enchantment". I'm no Daði, but hopefully you'll find some use in this until that video drops.

[@joancanario6377]

@@FireallyXTheories thank you so much bro, that’s a good idea 😄

[@BG-bm3sn]

For the algorithms!

[@sub-jec-tiv]

I'm getting the distinct impression you're not the type to beat around the ambush

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

Quality joke, now get outta here!

[@RidderRust]

Do you speak English when you play? My group is all Danish, and I sometimes find that role-playing in a classic fantasy setting-heavily influenced by Hollywood and English-written fantasy books-clashes a little with my own language. Danish names sound weird when playing D&D.

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

We play in English, many of my players tends to cringe when Icelandic is used in a fantasy context. But I know loads of Icelandic nerds who feel differently. - Daði

[@cadenceclearwater4340]

😊

[@yvindheilo229]

Hehe! It always make me giggle when players complain how I put obstacles into the game. Without obstales there is no game.

[@imangriebeler3643]

Pls next time put an advertise for spider fear =x

[@ClassicThermite]

Had a beginner DM write his own campaign and I didnt want to give him too much advice as not to overwhelm him or write it for him… I should probably have done more, as the session starten in a tavern and it lasted 3 hours with no major happenings, no (real) player decisions made and NO COMBAT. (Also the main quest lead us to a huge basement with nothing in it, which took an hour to explore) The campaign basically died after the first session lol Edit: I should have told him to start with an ambush

[@Mystic-Arts-DM]

There's something to be said about that, right? Put your best ideas right up front! That's what good TV does, the Pilot is usually a banger. - Daði

[@FlynnTaggartGuy]

This makes me feel a bit better as a beginner DM… Hopefully you land in a fun game!

[@FireallyXTheories]

An important first step though. Every GM will at some point do "The Session Nothing Happened That Was Boring" before "The Session Nothing Happened That Was Amazing" or the "Session with Videogame Puzzle No One Can Understand" before getting a pulse on how to do puzzles. There are also many a failed campaign before the successful one. I hope he GMs again and continues to hone his craft. The early sessions are hardest, but the most important.

[@ClassicThermite]

@@FireallyXTheories This is very true also!