Key Mechanics: Environmentalisticalation

In this poorly planned, hops-addled debacle, Hankerin gets all up in 6 ideas to build play mechanics that fit your environments. Spoiler: Snow is cold.
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#runehammer

[@WylochsArmory]

Oh man do I want to be a player at your table.

[@jf649]

Got your book some years ago through recommendation from the Professor Dungeon Master. Now seeing this video was a great pleasure to get into your thinking. Also very inspiring as my group is just entering the „howling ice cave“ to hunt down a frost druid in icewind dale. 😄

[@erho2967]

I like how your fireplace is Close Captioned. Thank you

[@PaladinMthe13th]

City Slickers! Curly , the wise, old grizzled cowboy, tells Billy Crystal's character the secret to life: "One thing." Billy's character asks, "That's great, but what's the one thing?" Curly responds, "That's what you've got to figure out." One of my favorite movie moments ever.

[@Spooky_rusty]

and then in the second movie Curly's brother said he was wrong and there are 2 things hahaha

[@Zutechugan]

Am I the only one hearing that small murmuring and 'hello?'s in the background audio, because its really super freaking me out while trying to watch this. ... Although thats not really fair to the vid itself, I just came from Markiplier playing fnaf directly to this. So, Im an easy target to unnerve right now

[@JustOneAsbesto]

+Zutechugan Yes, you are the only one. It's all in your *miiiiiiiiiiiiiiiind*.

[@Corvus-fw2hr]

Save vs madness. DC 15

[@Zutechugan]

Crap, with disadvantage no less. This game cheats.

[@Zutechugan]

Crap, with disadvantage no less. This game cheats.

[@Zutechugan]

Crap, with disadvantage no less. This game cheats.

[@paulh3892]

Amazing video about making a mechanic that really sells the tone of an environment! So cool!

[@hotdogthebarbarian6070]

"You know what the secret of life is? This. One thing; just one thing." ~Curly, City Slickers

[@geeboon669]

Did Curley ever tell you what that one thing was?

[@richardextall2002]

Loved the echo at 18:37

[@Unhacker]

In this episode, our hero pulls specificity out of his butt. +80 XP

[@ChristianSteinheimer]

Man this Background Music in your Videos just freakin' the sh.. outta me! :-) SKAL

[@johnwhite2412]

The one thing is great advice. Examples are fantastic. I can do without the burping. Despite that, these may be the best DM advice videos on the net.

[@Zhimbrain]

I think your Videos are the most interesting in the Hobby !!! Honestly i would buy a book about room design with ideas like thats (please make one :) ) because i feel that is what would make my games even better: key mechanics, Threat-timers-treats, with plenty of ideas of each maybe tables to randomize and then some sample of what it looks alike.... it seems you do that so naturally... Please continue your good work

[@VioletDeliriums]

So a biome is like a pimple on a strawberry. Got it. 2:29 Strawberry Pimple #1: Snow & Ice (“the coolest one” so to speak) with a blue six-sider as a counter that makes the DC of the room one more each round, which is like his “timers” in the Lizard Man encounter thingamabob video…I think we should call this adventure, “To the Peak of Ice Weasel Mountain.” 10:31 Forest freakshow crazy people and trees…It is another kind of strawberry pimple… Hankerin’ says: “Focus in on one thing and keep it coming because it will have much more tangible effect” such as “tangling vines” but give it a fancier name, like “The Baffling Strawberry Pimple Vines of Doom” or something…And then the guys go around in a circle while the DM does the three Ts (threat, timer, treat - see Lizard Man video)… And the pimple begoggles them. 16:40 Strawberry Pimple C: The Underdark… and you thought the forest was freakshow? Here, the freaks come out at night - and during the day and you have to faddle them without lOsiNg yOuR MiND (O_o) or, at a minimum, walking into walls… The echoing madness requires an electronic delay effect…If you play with knobs you can mess with the pitch too… They will really want to be quiet then so they don't totally freak out with the Kobold party noise upstairs… On top of that reptilian circus freakfest of sound, it goes totally tectonic on they azz… and the rocks move around on the dancefloor… Call this adventure "Echoes of Baffling Tectonic Madness" 23:56 Recap…totally baffling or maddening… I think that you are good at taking something basic like an encounter in a room, then add the “timer” which makes everything that much more fantastic… Also don’t type long things, just hand write simple ideas that give you the framework without a lot of details…

[@LoafyMolasses]

Well done sir, I enjoyed the elements of urgency you add to your games

[@mirandaburnett3248]

Fantastic, thanks! This was very helpful and exactly what I was looking for. It's so easy to want to try everything and do it all but I can see how one or two ideas can really keep players focused and the threat imminent. More key mechanics!!! Yay super helpful for a new DM like me 😀.

[@InVaderDeM]

You're aboard the Drunken Dragon currently, the captain, Hankerin Fernell, is a dwarven barkeep, with a knack for engineering. He runs the vessel with a ragtag crew and the help of his brother, priest of Cayden Calien, Jeeri Fernell. The ship is unlike any you've ever seen- but holds a reputation for neutrality as it is a business. A floating brothel. They found you floating in a rowboat, brought you aboard and allow you to stay by working the ship until you find another you'd like to leave with. Most every ship passing the Drunken Dragon docks to enjoy its spenders, and few dare to threaten the vessel. After all, what ship would dare temper with Hankerin's two bronze dragons? - And this is how you came to be in my 8 man campaign of Skull and Shackles, thanks for some inspiration man and keep on keeping on!

[@Runehammer1]

awesome! I am now an npc in 4 campaigns!

[@janehuskmann1914]

When I heard you bring up the cold biomes, I immediately thought of that "coated in ice" mechanic.

[@toprak3479]

Would like to hear more environmental challenge ideas with something like a desert biome(?) added.

[@thecraftshaft1869]

As a player, I'll be linking this to DM ASAP. Thanks, Hankerin'. Love the echo madness and moving terrain.

[@elizanix]

I just recently started a Survival themed campaign, started them in the Tundra. A few nights in, they noticed the wind and snows were picking up. Thought nothing of it. Every night afterwards, more. Eventually, they're just in constant blizzards, noticing they're constantly on a level of exhaustion. Once they found "The Heart of the North!" temple, they found a few cloaks that help against that. They only took 2....instead of all 6 for each of them. Now 4 of my players are upset they didn't bother grabbing theirs. Next session, they head into the Great Plains! with dinosaurs and bandits galore!

[@benjaminfrost2780]

Darkvision makes everything a shade of grey. So if they can't see the colors of things like say a liquid...things can become interesting. Making light important still.

[@riddledhat4099]

this channel is like the funniest and most helpful channel of all time lmao

[@UnderArea51]

"One thing" - from movie "City Slickers"

[@allendunwoody3505]

every...single...video... on point ma man! so glad I found this channel!

[@trentonmaloney3280]

environmental hazards are an old standard.swamp sludge slowing movement ect.good to see the application done so well.rock on hankerin!

[@jimbojones9813]

Love the Key Mechanics series, can't wait for the next one

[@ROYBGP]

I have no idea what you're doing. But it's great!

[@Penz0id]

I love the closed captions on the fireplace. Adds to the realism!

[@ImaginationHobbies]

these let few videos have helped me so much as I don't have the time to right hours of campaign. spitballing ideas comes more naturally and Im using a journal which helps to keep concepts concise. Im using your ideas for character creation and giving the room a challenge rating to teach new players as ive been wanting to start DM`ing again. you couldn't have posted these videos at a better time Hankrin‘!!

[@ImaginationHobbies]

last**

[@Heffalord]

Best arrow sound effects award

[@TheRyanMeredith]

Hankerin, there's some great environmental hazards ideas you have there. Also, I like you're circular game board.

[@samchafin4623]

It has been a long weary age since I first heard the wisdom of these ancient oracles... I fear I've not headed their counsel.

[@boltimuss]

ROFL.. Love the Closed Captioning on the fire!

[@idbrown937]

Along with echoes in the underdark, the players can also "chase shadows." random perception checks that cause them to see drow at every turn and make the party take off and become reckless leading to...

[@Runehammer1]

+Id Brown Hook Horrors...a sea of them...

[@WylochsArmory]

Great message on "one thing." ....think it was Gary Sinise though...

[@odirex]

"that one thing" is from the movie City Slickers. Curly the cowboy says it.

[@derekcutsinger3511]

I just found your channel, and I really dig these ideas. I'm going to start using some of these in my Labyrinth Lord games, so thanks!

[@DarkOneCFH]

You are still doing awesome!

[@Corvus-fw2hr]

I can't wait to push the timer effect. I will be using madness in Eberron when they go to Kyhber.

[@titojdavis8374]

Would love a video all about time constraints you put on every room. I'm starting up my very first campaign soon and feel like time constraints to each room/area would really take the d&d experience to the next level

[@Runehammer1]

+Tyler Davis ah yes devious timers...noted!

[@whatstdiggn]

Tyler Davis yes! I have a player who complains the game is too slow AND HES THE ONE SLOWING THE GAME DOWN! It's maddening.

[@cedricantunes4600]

Loving your videos, will be watching more tomorrow :)!

[@ASeventhSign]

I love the subtitles on the fireplace :)

[@MrBrad9]

begoggled? naw.... maybe beer-goggled. Thanks for the vids! keep bein' a big ol' D&D badass

[@Hazz3r95]

How have I been watching these videos and only just now noticed the subtitles on the fireplace?

[@francescospuntarelli7369]

I'm a fellow alcholism an dragon from Italy. .. Drink whiskey rum and vodka :for they make the shadows in our minds even longer.

[@noxure]

lol, the campfire has subtitles

[@Thebignasty00]

another awesome video

[@ZayneLantz]

Id use a d8 since that's a typical compass for a direction dice

[@radelc]

Come back hank! too much talent to not be on camera.

[@tylerurian]

Anyone else hear a kid say "uhhh hello?" Around 3:18

[@cameronf5893]

This is such good advice that I need to give you some! Call the Ghost Busters! Your videos are haunted!

[@diskgiant5060]

"confusing gays ... paralysed with fear, run in a random direction, or like stab your friend ..." lol context is key here

[@PenandBlade]

this was great dude, well done! My wife is getting into playing dnd with me and stuff like this will be fun. We're mostly just playing just us 2. Have you done a video on 2 player dnd?

[@Runehammer1]

fun idea..lots of folks find themselves there as gatheringa group can be tough...

[@TheKodiak72]

2 player as in 1 player 1 DM or 2 players and 1 DM.. If just 1 player 1 DM, AD&D and 3rd edition have a number of single PC adventures if you can find the PDFs online.

[@spaceflows]

Brrrrrilliant stuff!

[@sargondp69]

Frozen swamp of man-eating lava pits that erupt upwards is furious bursts of plasma, engulfing any in its unyielding path of destruction, baby! Randomly occurring each turn (possibly once in combat, roll to decide), no save, just a horribly swift demise. Worse still, it is lava, all equipment lost! Ducks: immune to effect. Muahaha. / From wench be thee creature card standees?

[@ah1785]

What if I suck at making cool names? Loving the Key Mechanics series, btw. It's all the best of Room Design without the specifics that won't apply to my game. Maybe you could do Key Mechanics for specific classes and think about how best to befuddle the level 8 op rogue or give the fighter something other to do than stand there and hack and slash...

[@Runehammer1]

+ah1785 I could IF I HAD FIGURED THAT OUT lol

[@chrisnagy377]

City slickers is the one thing movie

[@edheldude]

Just to be contrary: Single biome adventures - In D&D it's often way too easy to get resistances against a specific element. Once the spellcasters reach a certain level (and this is always true in the case of high level adventurers), they can just ignore or negate your campaign's main threat. In this case cold. Progressive room DC for the coldness: I would make the effect progressive instead. Fifth edition has a great fatigue mechanics which could be used here. It'd give a feeling of getting colder and number.

[@Runehammer1]

+edheldude agree on both! as for high level casters.. I stand by my earlier rants that they ruin the game for others in many ways...

[@edheldude]

Drunkens & Dragons: Play D&D Like a Badass Btw, are you familiar with Robert Schwalb's Shadow of the Demon Lord? It's a d&d clone which might be up your alley.

[@Runehammer1]

no! wha...more to absorb!

[@NemoOhd20]

Pretty sure that isn't just hops he is on. Ingrid Burnall.

[@beartube93]

City Clickers- Finding Your One Thing

[@jonathanbrouwer8795]

Those voices in the background were trippin me out haha!

[@loganholmberg2295]

I like the forest idea but instead of vines how about they walk into an area that has been logged or even clear cut? The terrain will be difficult and they have to save vs sinking a leg through a rotted log or a hole in the ground covered by rotted foliage that could arrest their movement for a turn and if they fail they roll 1d6 or 1d4 to see how many squares they moved. Or is that too complicated?

[@Runehammer1]

+logan holmberg great! anything to avoid parking lot battlefields///

[@rogerfarley7823]

Great vid Hankerin! I think you went into detail on the threat/timer/treat concept in one of your room design vids, but can't find it. Any chance you could do a short vid specifically on the concept? Or at least point us to the original...? Thanks again for all of your great work. You, sir, play D&D like a badass!

[@Runehammer1]

+Roger Farley ha thanks for watching! The three T's are ina few videos. but most recently cavern of the lizard men...

[@leebaigaming]

Last time we played I had my players tasked with capturing a gnoll pack Lord at level 2 and because they have a habit or running in and killing everything I threw 20 regular gnolls in there and because there is only two of them they didn't stand a chance they had the opera unity to challenge the leader to a duel but hi had him use a champion which was a ogre and my level 2 barbarian absolutely destroyed him so I had the gnolls try and kill the leader after he had been disgraced and because they were in a battle pit as soon as the pc tryed to stop the attack the 18 other gnolls unleashed hell with a volley of arrows and after one if them they quickly realised that they had to get out of there sharpish

[@Chickasho]

[POPPING]

[@michaelbradley9559]

[ crackling noises ]

[@michaelbradley9559]

I'm I hearing little kids talking...?

[@Pokemon4WoT]

What could be a cool mechanic for generalist magician's tower that he used to study the stars

[@Runehammer1]

crazy lenses and scopes that are harnessing beams of starlight!

[@GDaddyChina]

All very good ideas! What are you drinking?

[@Runehammer1]

blood wine?

[@wilsonsantosdsouza2517]

How about a maze of tunnels? If any of the players dont start mapping from the start they will easily get lost.

[@PureInsanity025]

Haha, it reminds me of a Labyrinth my players were in. The basics of it was that there were a few walls that looked like they went on normally, but actually teleported you to another section of the Labyrinth. Watching people try to map to perfection only to hit walls in their drawing was hilarious

[@dowyacht]

The ending!!! Ha!

[@multimateco]

these vids make me sad I cant use so awesome terrain.

[@whatstdiggn]

multimateco you can make it! It's super easy. Seriously. All you need is cardboard a glue gun sponges and 99¢ craft paint.

[@joeyrozee4451]

the movie was city slickers

[@AlexRaEU]

19:29 confusing gays

[@IsraelTorres949]

Confusing Gaze. When a creature starts its turn within 30 feet of the umber hulk and is able to see the umber hulk’s eyes, the umber hulk can magically force it to make a DC 15 Charisma saving throw, unless the umber hulk is incapacitated.... MM,p292

[@AlexRaEU]

Israel Torres i know. i was just kidding because i was perplexed for a moment and had to rewind that part a few times before i got it.

[@jennareynolds1403]

i am the confusing gay

[@aureliomanalo]

@@jennareynolds1403 Does that mean bisexual?

[@Rabbott3565]

How can we play in your campaigns? How much money do you demand for this!! I command it!

[@Runehammer1]

every january, I run a few dozen games for all my immortal supporters on patreon!

[@oliverkemp7747]

how do you create an echoeffect like this during the game, I mean not with voice acting?

[@Runehammer1]

Buy that plastic robot voice toy at dollar store

[@LuminousFigurePainters]

! Where do you live where you got a growler like that? I live in Yakima!

[@marcusg5665]

Anyone have any great ideas about desert/sand? I'm sure there is a heat thing.. but that's not a ton of fun.. at elast I can't think of a fun way to do it.

[@Runehammer1]

sinking sands, weird monster underneath, gnarly gusts, dust cloud

[@royalairships3008]

There’s a game called Forbidden Desert that has some great mechanics like “sun beats down”, you lose water and add exhaustion, or “storm picks up” and tiles get buried in sand. The storm changes direction every turn constantly burying tiles and players and you have to dig yourself and adjacent tiles out before moving through them or excavating for objects in them

[@Kevin-Peter]

What's up with the voices in the background?? Or am I the only one hearing them...?

[@MaedayMisfit]

Key mechanics character creation?

[@idbrown937]

Is that a hoffbrau house mug?

[@Runehammer1]

+Id Brown aw yeah!

[@passworddenied123]

where you playing sad machine in the background

[@Runehammer1]

original runehammer musics!

[@CriticalEatsJapan]

Ice weasels...

[@Gamesquad8889]

the music is awesome and so is the content but wearing a headset and listening is disturbing as every so often you can hear what sounds like little girls saying hello? and talking and what sounds like a baby crying. Really hope that it is just voices caught in the audio file. LMAO

[@Runehammer1]

Twigs talkin to Jim

[@MWepex]

Hey Hankerin, how can one use encumbrance as a key mechanic to good effect?

[@Runehammer1]

+MWepex Only for EXTREME encumbrance, like in Dungeon World...like when Link has to move blocks across a map area...

[@MWepex]

+Drunkens & Dragons: Play D&D Like a Badass I was thinking about 50-100lb copper statues that would be worth 10-20 times more if the party brings them back whole and intact.

[@rogerfarley7823]

+MWepex Maybe an environmental condition that alters gravity.. .even the slightest bit of increase will typically put them over the point of movement penalties and even to the point of non-movement... Could also use a cavern with a floor of pure iron ferrite with high magnetic properties... only heavy armor and weapons affected..? A spinning rock vortex could increase g-forces in a centrifuge...

[@Runehammer1]

magnetics are soooo fun..just ask ICP

[@MWepex]

+Roger Farley I love it! :-D

[@wbbartlett]

Fun fact: Ice Weasel is the name of my ex-wife

[@st0rm4g3dd0n]

Biome=Minecraft

[@GoDLik3Darion]

u say (Baium)? i dont understand this word can u type it? for i wanna learn better english :P

[@Runehammer1]

+Chris Pandaz biomes are environmental categories

[@GoDLik3Darion]

oh biomes :D lol i feel so stupid thanks dude