Great GM - Creating plot twist ideas on the fly - RPG Storytelling GM Tips

[@azurastar3223]

While I don't role play I do write stories to amuse both myself and my son. And I find your advice for both DMs and PCs very helpful. Because I've come to the realization that when you write a story as an author YOU are the PCs AND the DM. You write to amuse yourself as you direct players of your own design through a story. And by extension my son, as the audience is also a player. The stories are for HIS amusement as well. Its a lot of fun and I enjoy listening to your advice.

[@Canadian_Zac]

I have a fun twist planned to come up at some point. At some point, if they're having trouble with an encounter. A kind of wizard known as a 'Mindbreaker' (Kind of like a telepath) will show up and save them, being all badass. Then, later on, at some point, they'll encounter the person again, and roll a Wisdom Saving throw. If they fail, nothing happens. If they pass... They never met that person before. When she saw them come towards her, she tried to insert a memory of her into their minds so they'd save her.

[@Jake007123]

That sounds amazing, I even want to try something similar once with my players!

[@Canadian_Zac]

Go for it. If they get into a prison later. You reveal your amazing twist.. If they don't... Well, you Ex Machina'd a potential accidental TPK.... And you could re-use the same person appearing to save their asses several times, the more you can have them love them the better, so it will completely fuck with them when you reveal 'You never met, she attempted to implant false memories. All those times you were going to get wrecked, it was a close run thing, but there were fewer enemies/they were weaker and you managed to win without dying'

[@magnusanderson6681]

Kharn The Betrayer The enemies were her illusions.

[@TenesAsylum]

I fuffed a roll as DM on my encounter table and the party ended up with a goat beating in the door they were residing behind, they tamed the goat and went on their way. So when the Sorcerer (who multiple times almost ended the adventure with wild magic surges) was left to guard the goat while the others raided side rooms. I forced him to the edge of a ruined floor with a drop into sheer abyss with a Minotaur skeleton (was a city overtaken by undead by some magical backlash from a cults rituals) and the Sorcerer fell, I kept dealing with the others in the group. The Sorcerer fell for a several rolls, and ended up face to face with a huge, giant sized man with a goats head and hooves ending in legs sitting atop a throne of skulls. He freaked out and I did the whole "You blink and as you open your eyes you see the face of a goat, chewing leisurely on your boot". He's now utterly terrified to end up with a wild magic surge so only casts in dire circumstances and the entire party has no idea why he's holding back. The player is now under the impression the Goat they tamed is actually some ancient god summoned by the rituals of the cult or his wild magic surges and is looking into it soooo much. Little does he know, the goat (names Dan) is just a goat, the twist will probably be to do with the Underdark passages they missed and the Drow Illusionists following them in the shadows.

[@axebane]

This is beautiful.

[@brianthegreat5994]

Honestly I like the goat god better

[@DFloyd84]

An important element of making a good plot twist is that it has to make sense. Once you make the reveal, if the players go over their notes (they *were* taking notes, right?), they should be able to connect the dots on their own and go "Oh, wow! That makes total sense now!" If the twist takes the plot in a completely different direction or relies on elements heretofore unrevealed or not foreshadowed, the players can feel alienated or even cheated if they feel like the decisions they made up to that point have been invalidated. There's also the chance that a badly-executed twist just raises *more* questions that will take more effort to answer satisfactorily.

[@89taklung]

yep so true! That is why the twist in the Sith sense (spoilerwarning) that BBruce Willis was dead the whole time is so amazing, because there were all that hints buut you interpreted them in the wrong way on the first watch! On the other hand shamalan has also a lot of stupid twists that make no sense like in "the devil" where (spoiler) people are trapped in an elevator and thget killed one after another and it once you find out it was the old lady who got exed very early on you are just like "whaaaat? Why?" because it was just a twist to be a twist... made no sense whatsoever.

[@atyrannosaurusrex]

I think one of the key points to a plot twist is that they should all be used sparingly. A plot twist is successful because players get invested in the story and what is happening to their characters. When a player as expectations of a plot, they have plans. They begin tasting their victory and they see the light at the end of the tunnel. Sometimes that expectation of victory can be as sweet as the actual taste. Just Will Turner, you must wait for the opportune moment. The most important part of any plot twist is planning. Even if you're coming up with a plot twist on the fly, you ought to have a general idea of where that plot twist is going to lead and how it will effect the overall landscape of your story. As a rule of thumb, a plot twist should add something to the story that wasn't there before. Whether it be a motivation, a new conflict, or a villain, never just twist a plot for the sake of twisting it. If you overuse plot twists, players start to expect them at every turn. That makes it difficult to get them invested in characters that you create because they're always expecting a knife in the back. They expect the status quo to change so often that it diminishes their ability to enjoy the story. A well done plot twist may not be able to make a bad story great, but a poorly done plot twist can make a great story bad.

[@rachaelkramer9312]

As far as the plot twist, my GM tried to put one in for my character. To learn more about this council we had to infiltrate, we found out my character's mother was arrested in relation to her husband's death, and she wanted me to prove her innocent. Without batting an eye, my character spit on her (she abandoned my character as a child, and I was forced to become a ranger to survive) and let her be hanged. It was pretty cool.

[@gabriel300010]

I like your character.

[@RockstarRacc00n]

"I'm really enjoying Torchwood, I just started watching it the other day! It's so good so far, I can't wait to see the later seasons..." Oh you poor unfortunate soul.

[@RockstarRacc00n]

And then you continue to complain about how they always link the alien of the week to a specific character... Oh how innocent you are.

[@oboeshoesdd6113]

The on the fly twist I end up using most often is that a good guy was secretly working for the bad guys the whole time. This usually doesn't happen because I planned for the NPC to be secretly evil, but rather because the party hates the NPC for some unintended reason. Maybe he dissed them one time, or has an annoying accent, or maybe just is a genuinley nice guy that doesn't approve of murderhobos. I love making those NPCs into bad guys because the party usually hates Ronaldo the Paladin Who Called Them Heathens One Time waaaay more than they hate the intended BBEG.

[@nyankers]

I'm more into inter-character dynamics, so I actually prefer not getting along with all my allies (or vice versa getting along with some supposed enemies), but I could see that being satisfying for more adventure-focused types of players.

[@gentlemanwolfgang4152]

After watching your video I realized I has actually used the dark pack in my campaign recently. One of the PC's has been trying to find a cat (he is a ranger and has gotten to the level where he can acquire an animal companion). He ended up run through the city and out ran the rest of the group. A strange man in a dark black and red robe, that he had never seen before, asked him if he was looking for a cat and if he was willing to make a deal then he could get one for him. He said yes without thinking about why this random person knew what he wanted without him talking to any NPCs, at all. I originally just came up with this NPC as one of several possibilities to get a cat, but I have since started to turn him into a tempter of heroes to lead the players down a path they believe is good, but slowly corrupts them. A random twist made up on the fly has started to become more.

[@shinigamijack4208]

Good plot twists on the fly: The fly was the mastermind the whole time Jeff Goldblum killed the spider You aren't a fly, your a wasp!

[@redfeildre349]

I used the reveal twist but it was planed. I don't mind sharing. The galactic civil war is over. The Empire is on the rise and the rebels are just beginning to form an alliance. Several encounters lead the players to a long forgotten Separatist space station far out on the edge of the galaxy. The space station is not in any strategic position. It seems to have been a platform to launch expeditions outside the galaxy! So the players manage to sneak on board this space station. It is in bad shape. Many of the droids were cannibalizing deactivated droids for parts. During the adventure the characters hear announcements over the intercom of the base commander. Sometimes they get glimpses of him speaking to his droid subservients via hologram. Twice they attempt to locate the mysterious commander and twice it turns out to be a ruse. But finally the player locate the exact location of the station commander behind reinforced doors and guarded by aging antique battle droid guardians. What they found instead was the long dead commander of a literally forgotten star base. In his dying days he had set up automated protocols to give the illusion that the base was active to dissuade the enemy from attempting to board the station. But the enemy never came. The war was vast and resources had to be sent elsewhere. Soon, most anyone who had knowledge of the secret base had died in combat. And since no expedition that was sent outside the galaxy had ever returned from wherever it was they had went then no one ever discovered exactly what the separatists had in mind out on the edge of nowhere. It was what I called an anti-climax. The players had charged in loaded for bear only to find the bear had died of illness long ago. It did leave some questions unanswered. Why would the separatists even waste resources way out in deep space? What did they hope to find? And where did the expedition go? Questions that unfortunately never got answered. But it was one of my most memorable games and caused many of the players to start their own games. Good times. I really should revisit that some day.

[@awaytoanywhere699]

Redfeild RE I want to see that movie! 😀

[@mikesands4681]

This is pure gold for campaign steering

[@LinkMorganM]

Very helpful for the mystery-focused game I'm running. Thank you.

[@Kreed360]

In a recent campaign my friend held that I played in they managed to make a pretty decent reveal and an incredibly annoying twist at the same time. Like the good half of the reveal was that it turned out that for us to defeat some evil dracolich or suchever we needed to get these three specific people who were in some way "descendants" of the being that stopped it last time. The clever part of it was that the people for the most part were all people we've met before, which was interesting as the requirements were all simple qualities like (paraphrasing) "incredibly kind heart", "explosive breath", and "vast intellect". And for two out of the three we were able to deduce who it was and had a fun time using what we knew to find and get them together before time ran out. The annoying issue we all had became obvious once the situation was resolved. We got the two together and one who we presumed was the third, but lo and behold, it failed. We didn't get told until afterwards that we had picked the wrong person as the third. Now I wouldn't have been so upset if it was one of the other people we thought of, because that third person sparked some debate in our party on who qualifies. Turns out, it was no one we knew! We hadn't even met the person? Like even in passing. Now I love the trope of reality ensues but come on, there was _no way_ we would've known that, especially seeing as the other people we knew and we had ideas of the third person. I guess this sorta crosses over with the riddle episode, but it just very much annoyed me that we had pretty much 0 chance in and out of character to consider we never met the plot critical npc.

[@marksbarra99]

hey, i was wondering, what is the best way to handle npcs like merchants, i'm always in a weird spot when i have to decide what should be and not be in the shop etc...

[@CABerlitz]

For me the worst part is to decide if I should give them names and a huge background or be simplistic and use them like in video-games. It appears that my players sense if I have something prepared for them and act the other way around.

[@oboeshoesdd6113]

As far as making shop inventories, I usually just make the blacksmith sell all basic and some martial weapons, the general store sells the contents of the various packs (explorers pack for example). Making a lot of shop inventories is a waste of time for the GM imo. If the players want to spend half an hour browsing shop inventories then let them, but it doesn't have to be terribly exciting. Instead, ask them specifically what they are looking to buy. A cool way to handle this that I got from the book "Vornheim" is to ask the players what they want to buy and then decide how much the item costs based on how many syllables are in the item name. So if a player wants a torch, that's 5 sp. If they want a lantern, 10 sp. A Heavily Armored Warhorse? 70sp. It's a quick and easy way to give things varying prices. You can add or remove a coin from the price here and there so it's less obvious you are just counting by fives or tens. The logic behind this is that common items are cheap, and the more specific of an item the players want the harder it is to find them and thus they cost more.

[@Jake007123]

My way of handling merchants is to give them personality and good names only if the players try to really talk with them and asking them questions besides their basic needs of buying/selling. If they don't interact too much with them, they only get regular personality and maybe a normal looking name. Also, a fancy shop will very likely be explored sooner or later and, if they just won't do it anyway and you want it because of your plot, just make something happening there that causes a lot of noise when the PCs are near. For the stock they have, I just think logically from the world perspective I have as a DM: if they are in a desert area, there is very few wood and it's more expensive, so more lanterns and oil but less torches, and if there is new mines discovered near the town, the corresponding metal is cheaper. But if the mines are closed because of a random evil thing, then metal things rises up in price and there is less of them, and so on. Also, the bigger the town, the best the stock they can buy, with the main capitals of the world having almost everything they want (with more or less problems to obtain it). Besides that, very well connected towns should have better stock regardless of their size, and bad connected ones should have worst. This makes your world more appealing to explore and players to want to ask questions about things that are happening, where roads lead, can they do something to change it...

[@jewishfox6580]

GM-"You see ruins of a fort in the distance... Bronze gilded towers rise from the rubble of stone that once was the walls of the fort, they shine, but not because of the bronze... On the top of the tower... A strange cyan tinted glow emerges..." PC-"WHATS UP WITH THAT BROKEN TREE BRANCH OVER THERE, GUYS!?"

[@RoryStarr]

+jewishfox hahaha Oh my god, I'm not alone in this. Actual moment: DM: "You are out in the frozen mountains with a hunting group to feed the refugees in the torn down castle. The lead hunter eyes a snow lily, then crouches down. His eyes are distant. 'you know, I was a wretched man and it was a mere flower that saved me from myself. Now when I see them I think to my lost family, and all I could have down to have prevented the woes in this land should I have acted the day I first knew them.'" Player: "Do I see squirrels or deer prints in this snow?" Player 2: "Is his back to me? I roll sleight of hand on advantage then, right? To pick his pocket?"

[@whiskeyfur]

I have found one key source for plot twists that hasn't failed me yet. my ears! If some player makes a comment, a quote, does something that's noteworthy or hooks me, I look at how to use that. Case in point, new game, old players so we have a rapport built already. One of the guys is playing a hybrid, a relative new creation in the world which still faces discrimination, so he makes some comment about being the only hybrid on the ship the PC's were on... Bam, I throw a hybrid reporter who basically took offense to being excluded and demanded an interview from everyone to make up for that slight. A few reasons for me doing that... a: forces PC's to go further into their backgrounds a bit, even if they're only thinking about it... which helps to make the characters all the more real. And to do this in the first game session, I think it helps set things in the right tone as it's more RP based than rules based. b: she DOES have a role to play in a future plot (which I won't reveal here, since my players read my comments too!) c. a little after that, character's hybrid got teased about cats and dogs being actually able to get along... he made the comment in game about being drunk one night so, yea, there is now history. :) And partly why she's so focused on him... I'm kinda notorious for picking up on stray comments and weaving whole side threads based on them. My players love it. I would say, based on all that... it's fairly normal for me. I'm fairly certain I'm not a simulationist GM.. nor am I a strict rules GM either. (in fact I'm arguably rules light) I see the game has a balance of four things. The world, the story, the system, and player agency. - World = Players don't matter, the world continues with or without them. They died? So what. World/NPC's goes on. Time IS a factor. Spend too much time HERE, and you'll miss something else over THERE... - Story is the overriding factor that can make events in game seems disjoined, since the story demands X happens at Y... regardless of what happens. - System= RULES RULES RULES... bah. It's like a dictatorship where you are only allowed to do what the rules say you can. Nope, pass. - Player agency is me sitting back and saying, "YOU have the power to destroy/shortcut/change my intended story/world/rules themselves. Have fun!" To this end I've had players figure out in advance where a villain needed to go.. and leveled the place long before he got there. In pure-story terms that's a dead end because now that villain is just screwed. Players won, module could not continue. For me though, I look at that as a springboard. Players destroyed the stone circle.. ok, now what? Villain throws a fit, destroys a town or two looking for the players, stumbles on the means to recreate it.. and finds out the players are already well on their path to claiming it. Now the race is on! And... now it's no longer the players chasing the villain's lead, it's the other way around. And he's one very, very mad M-F'er...

[@DummyUrD]

I think this is a good summary and introduction of plot twists. As a player and GM a cohesive story is my main focus and I pay much attention that it makes sense. In my opinion aside from smaller twists you should not do them on the fly, if you do they are not foreshadowed and might jeopardize your entire build-up with plotholes. Take your time, plan ahead, seed the idea and then execute it. There is not much that is better then blowing your players mind.

[@scomae5445]

Very interresting video! I'm currently creating a chronicle for Vampire: The Masquerade and it needs drama and plot twists, my master plot is kinda defined (The baddys wants to find the sleeping body of the chief vampire of my city that no one has seen for decades to absorb its power, in order to take over the country) and i've got several plot running. Your last tips helped me linking everything together, thanks!

[@Creaturefeatures]

Great video! The plot twist is very important. I like to use the various types to cause my players to be “stunned” upon the reveal. Most of the time these happen on the fly and have made for some very memorable games!

[@mikesands4681]

“If you are particularly devious”.... my ears perk up and smiles....

[@MrRobertHerron]

First video from this channel i have seen. I like how well broken down this was. Very well structured and easy to digest. Each of these plot twists in of themselves could probably use a video just on variations of these plot types.

[@Multiklaaas]

excellent vid, as usual! recently I used a kind of "dark pact" twist. the players were out to save 2 children from an evil cult. after much bloodshed, the leader of the cult decides to offer them 2 kids to be left alone. but: they had to choose WHICH 2 kids, forcing them to abandon 1 other child to its fate. the players and the characters really struggled with that one. and of course the abandoned child is now a great seed for a later foe..

[@Ponyroth]

I haven't seen all of his videos but I notice he doesn't fix anything in post like when he misspeaks. I don't know if its intended but I like it. Sometimes I misspeak or say something the wrong way too and it just makes me happy that someone else, especially a GM, does this too.

[@jakobdickson8012]

i really enjoyed this I am currently trying to run a cyberpunk campaign and Ive been needing some help with writing this story. I believe that this channel is extremely helpful for gms and players alike.

[@andysimmons2648]

Another excellent video. Just listening to it helped me refine an idea for my ongoing Traveller game.

[@gidkath]

Another take on the Sudden Reversal: what tvtropes calls the "Xanatos Gambit," named after a major character from Disney's Gargoyles, who did indeed love this sort of plot twist. The gist of the twist is that the efforts of the PCs in the course of their normal adventuring actually end up helping the Big Bad in the master plot. Perhaps surprisingly, this isn't really all that hard to pull off on the fly: just reveal at some point that an apparently uninvolved baddie the PCs took down in the past was actually a hindrance to the Big Bad in some way; or that an action they took (such as restoring a trade route, retrieving an ancient artifact for a patron, or negotiating peace between warring factions) actually helped to forward that master plot. The Xanatos Gambit is great because you can let the PCs actually make real progress, and get to do what they like, while the Big Bad still gets to advance the master plot. And it's pretty easy to shove into the plot after-the-fact, often by dropping hints along the way followed by a big reveal at an appropriate moment.

[@Shelf_Help_ca]

Wow, I really enjoyed this video. It had already sparked ideas of campaign twists in my imagination!

[@Jaeger_Bishop]

Yes please do continue this topic.

[@jonathanmcdermott25]

Your videos just keep getting better. :) I found this one extremely useful.

[@ToastyPatchey]

Great job, very knowledgeable content as always. Best Dark pact twist in my opinion. Arthas Menethil accepting the cursed blade Frostmourne Anakkin Skywalker pedging allegiance to the sith to save his wife.

[@CABerlitz]

I agree, most of the times that I try to plan a plot twist beforehand it looks to be forced or the players already figure it out ahead of time. I'll try to avoid the overplanning and use some of this on the fly options and see how they react.

[@Timelydino]

What a great video. Thank you for some wonderful insight in to the art of the plot twist.

[@althechicken9597]

Something ive heard brandon sanderson say in his writing class is to throw yourself footballs. You know where the story is going, so every so often throw a football in that direction. The football being potential forshoadowing or charicter introductions and if later down the line that comes up, you catch the football. Your party will not notice most of the footballs you dont catch, but they will appreciate the ones you do, especially if they saw you throw it. The party will sonetimes pick up on the footballs and sometimes they wont, keep an eye out for what they notice and it can affect what you try and catch later in the story.

[@CriticalEatsJapan]

Surprises, when things are not what they first seem, are always fun ;)

[@matrinoxe7439]

YES! THIS HAS GIVEN ME THE PERFECT TWIST FOR THE BBEG THANK YOU

[@Chadok89]

My players really quickly found out that the guard captain of a city was behind some kidnapping occurring around the city. I didn't knew how to stop them to realise that the local noble was behind... But you just gave me the idea... The guard captain will be "arrested" by the lord real soon! ;D

[@jonskowitz]

That very last one reminds me of Season 3 of Aggretsuko when Retsuko accidentally runs into Hyodo's minivan XD

[@joshhaworth2155]

I'm always a fan of the "you've been chasing a minion" twist where the supposed big bad is defeated seemingly easily only to have a sudden display of power from the true villain.

[@johnbrogan7455]

yes please, your tips videos are a great help

[@marka7759]

cool video! tonns of inspiration!

[@karmakaze9240]

I'm a new GM/DM that's currently doing sessions in my home-brew world. I would like to know what you guys think about a couple ideas I have in mind with the master plot and twist. The plot is a mortal working for an organization that goes into ruins of an ancient civilization is secretly trying to ascend to godhood to wipe out the existing gods. The plot twist I have in mind is that mortal is the only surviving member of the ancient civilization. Is the master plot and twist cliché and need some tweaks?

[@SignoreZane]

Ive been running a game for almost the entire year and ive found since my first game my players like to build factions in the world and im not sure how to approach it what ways could i hinder them and should i even allow them to in the first place.

[@silentshadow1292]

Question for the group. I am a new DM. (SciFi campaign ). I am moving my PC from one shot style to open world. Open world is a prision planet. three factions are racing to leave planet. I go back and forth on if the Master Plot of that nature is strong enough to stand up. How do you know if the Master Plot is strong enough to hold thaw campaign. or does knowing that just come with time, experience. and practice?

[@lordilluminati5836]

well, you could have a plot device, such as a spacecraft to escape the planet and then give it a big BUT, such as there is a spacecraft that allows the prisoners to escape atop this mountain BUT it's a trap put in place by the wardens and they arrive to ambush the players perhaps they can obtain that information somehow prior and trick another faction into going there and remove them that way.

[@ddickson1167]

What is your opinion of PC's as BBEG's?

[@mikesands4681]

You could also do a Harry Potter flashback where you have to relive a scene of a hopeless battle caused by the villain through a ghost’s memory.

[@Napominis]

I didn't quite get the name of the serie you talked about,would you mind repeating it?(fell free to add some good ones you founded,you story telling background gives you notoriety on the subject;)

[@HowtobeaGreatGM]

Torchwood BBC series

[@nyankers]

It wasn't on the fly, but a few sessions in, I talked to my GM about my character, and we were in agreement that my character was most likely actually a villain all along. I almost got the party to kill the wizard (who caught on first) before it was finally revealed.

[@mikesands4681]

The choice is another. Do this or do that, not both. The one you cannot save becomes a revenge mission later. For hindrance, have an npc that is crucial be kidnapped or killed. Then there is the bbeg who was really working for a bigger bbeg if you want to expand a story arc.

[@rogerwilco2]

This is gold.

[@DawnsonRPGs]

Why did I laugh so hard at the “dark pact” deal or no deal joke?

[@Briansgate]

Great tips!

[@timtomtv8956]

are cliffhangers bad and why?

[@Never_heart]

I actually like the use the unknown help as a tie in to the overarching villian. By aiding the heroes for no reason and lying as to why they received the help but in truth the villian is raising the heroes up to use them as a toll against his greater enemies and later I can reveal there actions were not so morally sound

[@RIVERSRPGChannel]

Good list Just catching up

[@RoryStarr]

The surprise link has worn out its welcome for me. I reached exhaustion with it after Game of Thrones. It had never occurred to me before, but why should I care that two people are related? It's a cheap secret you could throw into almost any plot. The best plot twists are the ones that play on themes. If the theme is good vs. evil, it's a hell of a plot twist to realize you are evil (not new, but more timeless I think). Or if the characters serve a god, it's more of a plot twist to realize they have been fooled by an opposing god. Or if they are aiming to save the princess from a dragon and discovering after slaughtering that the princess was the dragon (cursed to appear as one, anyways). Those play on themes in D&D that challenge assumptions. I don't get the deeper meaning of a familial connection (except in star wars, since an individual's power in the force is tied to their lineage).

[@mehmetdurmaz007]

It might be a bit too specific but I usually have a war going on and want to have my PCs lead the besiegers etc. But I really am a newbie and don't know how to handle great battles without making players bored. Could you handle this issue one day? (You are the best, thanks for everything)

[@nemoy7267]

Mehmet Durmaz So I don't know what system you're using, but here's my two sense from a narrativist perspective. The best way to make an interesting battle is to make it an interesting STORY. Describe, describe, describe, and encourage your players to do the same. Emphasize the roaring voices of the charging line of spearmen, so loud it hurts your hears. Talk about how the dark muck of the rain-wetted soil squelches and squishes against the bottoms of your adventurer's boots. Whether you're in a grid or 'theatre of the mind' system, create fun and interesting architecture, and a feeling of real PROGRESS, of meaning to each individual action. Maybe your players lead a band of men on a daring raid to capture a key fort/tower in the city. So you'd take down a makeshift barricade the enemy has set up, and go down a long road with missile fire raining up from the rooftops, and then reach the men guarding the fort. Then, you enter and fight through the inside of the fort - maybe have a fight up a flight of stairs until you reach the top and can claim the fort as your own. A battle isn't really about the act of fighting, the rolling of dice. It's the players fighting to reach an objective in a tense, exciting atmosphere. And use historical information to inform your ideas! If you're fighting in a city, expect lots of makeshift barricades blocking off alleys, hit-and-run tactics, people ducking through side doors and buildings! In a mountainous area, expect slow movement, perilous terrain, and a lack of communication - the land itself is nearly as threatening as the fight! Again: it's about the battle, not the act of battling. The rest is just knowing the rules and playing deviously. Use real military tactics, and give your enemies the intelligence due to them - a group of spearmen in a cramped alley won't run up one by one, they'd advance in a line. Maybe some fast, weaker enemies will run up and throw some javelins before falling back, having given their heavier fighters a chance to get up close. Skirmishers and bashers. And don't have them fight to the last man! More often than not, people will either run away or surrender if they believe it's not worth the risk, or they have a better chance of survival.

[@mehmetdurmaz007]

You can't even imagine how great your contribution to me is, thanks!

[@jonathanlautre489]

Icon next month:D So excited

[@timgreen6384]

I would suggest either beard oil and/or beard moisturizer!

[@glaslackjxe3447]

Love torchwood

[@ude4225]

Thanks a lot for your work, my friends and I have improved a lot thanks to your videos!! I have a request if you or anyone here can help me. When I want to show a couple of friends the great world of rol playing games I struggle a lot as GM. I mean, when I'm the only one at the table with rpg experience. They don't commit, I'm not able to control them, they try to jeopardize the plot breaking out of character, the story moves too quickly because they get bored easily and... idk. If someone can help me with any tips or a piece of advice I'd be filled with joy Thanks for your time!!

[@Rocker7773]

i love this guy

[@owentaylor9777]

i just realized i actually started my story with a dark pact.

[@draftemmtg7733]

Couldmyou post you campaign online just like criticsl role?

[@GreatGMLive]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/aYCkiIKEmdFsq8U here you go!

[@lilith1073]

I had a pilgrim sat by a church in my campaign when they completed the quest the players went back to the pilgrim next the pilgrim went into the church the church was consumed in a blinding flash of white light and then disappeared.

[@ZakJames]

Notification Squad!

[@ZakJames]

You always answer questions that I don't know to ask yet.

[@NuggetStickJones]

i like this

[@quantumlolliepop5472]

The villain is a PC's father? Nah. The players rescue a person, who was imprisoned inside the gem in the King's crown by the villain, because they think that person is the father of a PC but they actually turn out to be the villain who imprisoned themselves in the gem as a last ditch effort to stay alive but forgot to tell any of their underlings the secret word to free them? That's better.

[@sammysgoldenhour]

Plot twist: The Unknown Hindrance is actually the Unknown Helper, and they were trying to stop them from doing the wrong thing unknowingly

[@JTeenmining]

how my campaign started was the pcs found an object in their yard, they were akin to farmhands, and so they left home to find out about it, yadda yadda yadda, they listen to a evil merchant instead of an evil God, and place the object inside the temple of the good God, and when they do so the evil God says I told you so, and all hell breaks loose... almost literally, because they didn't live in the d&d world anymore, however after the temple the trickle becomes a flood and I was sort of hinting at it, the evil God was saying it was a bad idea, he's lawful evil and the dnd world entering his is too chaotic for his tastes, a dragon had appeared in the clouds, but specifics didn't appear because they did it too soon, the evil God didn't have enough time to gather enough power to break in to explain

[@rank666]

A classic plot twist after creating a world is to wreck it and randomly kill off most of it

[@spicyflour7748]

i like your beard

[@tamarap13]

In this video your hair says "middle management" but your beard says "IT guy".

[@orionphalynx6192]

This guy reminds me of Shadiversity.

[@siobahnviner-sedgwick4271]

It’s not EXACTLY a plot twist, but the annoying bumbling half orc that my party met at a bar is actually going to be a fence for the local thieves guild. I’m going to wait till the very last day and they decide to leave the city, before Glendale starts speaking thieves cant to the rogue. XD

[@KBash]

I listen to this stuff at x1.5 speed

[@magnusanderson6681]

1k likes, 1 downvote. Beautiful.

[@ragingraven2746]

when the player is the father lmao, and even better the son is older than you

[@snarklogheckermin4140]

apparently I'm the 666 viewer

[@snarklogheckermin4140]

666th

[@NefariousKoel]

Airline pilot praying before imminent crash: "Dear almighty one, I turn to you now in my moment of need. I call upon ... all the powers of your dark forces. To deliver me into the fires of hell, where I was born; my father a demon, my mother a jackal. Sweet sweet satan, now is the time for your reign of death & terror to begin! Wooooo-ooo!" (as plane descends, waving sacrificial knife around cockpit) Some old Upright Citizens Brigade was called for, here. ;-)

[@snarklogheckermin4140]

Listen friendo my name is steve, the big guy downstairs, that ain't me. I just work here. Even if he wanted to do anything, he is bogged down with paperwork. That's what this is by the by, a lot o' paperwork.

[@watermelondreams5883]

Now, do how to create a good plot twist on a fly (literally on a fly/penis)

[@jonathanwells223]

Your princess is in another castle

[@marvinjoosten8295]

Fashion says a neckbeard is ugly, this guy only has a neckbeard