Why the Matt Mercer Effect is a Good Thing for DMs and Players

[@HutchTheWolf]

To be fair, as a player, if you expect Mercer from your DM; don’t be surprised if your DM asks you to live up to the rest of the cast of CR.

[@mopdycke94]

this. Matt mercer is not the only person who makes critical role what it is. the entire cast brings their own personalities and skills to the table and make the show a production.

[@camiblack1]

As I like putting it, if you want me to be Matt Mercer, I want you to be Sam/Travis/Liam/Talesin/Marisha/Laura aor even just early S1 Orion and Ashley. Besides, I'm of the Skorkowsky School of, kinda unfair to call it "The Matt Mercer Effect" when it's always been "The Other GM Effect".

[@ferael0013]

@@camiblack1 tbh... I wouldnt want anyone to be Orion

[@camiblack1]

@@ferael0013 same really.

[@nevertoonate]

Love this comment

[@colefesler2880]

Forever DM here, I definitely have felt the effects of the Matt Mercer effect. The funny thing is, it’s me that was effected, not my players. As a DM, it’s hard to find five people who all want to be as invested in dnd as the CR team, and I had to step back and realize why my expectations were so high coming back the summer after I discovered CR. Once I knew how to have that conversation I was all set.

[@SupergeekMike]

I’m very glad you were able to do so!

[@stefansneden1957]

yeah preach. I've got a good table going but still some of them just don't invest as much as I would hope.

[@thelorax355]

I wouldn't call it the Mat Mercer effect for me, but I've found that part of the way I play the game requires highly engaged players. I am and will always be incredibly invested in my games and if my players aren't, I just pick up the slack and burn myself out. In the campaign I'm currently running, I've had two players that ended up leaving because they couldn't devote the energy to the game that I needed to be able to run it for them. It just wasn't a good fit in styles, but I told everyone what I needed to be able to run the game when we first started, and so when we've realized that someone maybe hasn't been the best fit for my game, they've moved on pretty amicably.

[@dwdillydally]

@ColeFesler I'm hooked! I'd love to hear more details about your conversation / expectations. Would you be willing to share more? - what was not meeting your expectations - did your players even realize this was happening - how'd you open the conversation - has this improved since

[@majorlazor5058]

I wouldn’t want my DM to make the game like CR. Way too silly and jokey for taste of a D&D game. It’s fine to watch CR, but all the fart jokes and sexual innuendo is not my taste.

[@AAAndrew]

To me, it's like watching professional athletes and expecting your company softball league to be the same kind of experience. These are professional actors who are highly trained to tell stories, to react to other actors to keep stories going for hundreds of hours. Few tables will be like CR's table, and that is not the right kind of table for all games, or what everyone wants. It's also very different to be running a game in a world invented by someone else, and running a game in a world you've invented and spent hundreds of hours to create. Matt is also highly interested in political intrigue. Not everyone likes this. Not everyone will react to a story built around politics like the CR players. And your comments on style is totally on-point. And as for equipment, I think if I had the new set, it would actually make my game worse, as it would be so distracting to me to try and keep track of. I think the biggest impact CR has had is that it has engaged tons more people and showed them what playing DnD looks like, even if it's at a very high level. It's like watching a sport will get more people engaged in trying that sport much more than someone explaining it or trying to read how to play it in a book. The wide exposure of DnD thanks to CR has done more to lower the bar for new players. Thanks for your analysis.

[@SupergeekMike]

Thank you for your thoughtful response! I’m very glad you enjoyed the video 😁

[@jameswilson2516]

I started to comment but you beat me to it AAAndrew. To take the analogy a next level, even amongst professional athletes there are different style of play. Homerun hitters vs on base specialists, one is not necessarily better then the other. You can not expect to go to your company softball league and expect a professional quality game to break out. Enjoy what you have and strive to make some of those moments happen.

[@SupergeekMike]

@@jameswilson2516 Honestly, somebody also should’ve told that to the person who put together our company softball games. He also had some unrealistic expectations lol

[@Helldog6]

I genuinely don't like the professional sports league as an example tbh. At the end of the day, the NFL is the end all be all to football. Everything else is lower tier, just objectively. Its a game with a goal and that goal must be met in order for it to still be football and they have objectively the best people attempting to achieve that goal in the world, playing for them. I prefer to use Professional Wrestling as an example as I feel its the most relevent to the type of media that Critical Role is (Not saying it's scripted, but it's definitely entertainment first). Comparing it to Football implies that there is a "right way" to play D&D, as there is a "right way" to play Hockey or Basketball, etc. But Pro-Wrestling is so free form. The WWE has the most money - they are the mecca of the Professional Wrestling world. BUT... that doesn't make them the "best", and they are far from the only company out there, there are actually countless other wrestling companies out there. Ring of Honor, New Japan Pro Wrestling, All Elite Pro Wrestling, National Wrestling Alliance, Combat Zone Wrestling, etc. And they all focus on completely different things. For the WWE, they're all about the specticle. They have the biggest fireworks, they go all out for their events to give you the most visually impressive product on the market. They have the biggest names, the biggest arenas, the best cameras, the largest reach, the biggest events, etc. They focus more on out of the ring story telling. Promos, and gimmicks, and betrayal, and factions, and characters, etc. - they focus on telling a story outside of the ring that is solved in the "matches". The matches are essentially a way to start and end fueds, with matches inbetween to give you some action. But the focus is story, a tele-novella with wrestling. For Ring of Honor, it's their high impact ring work that sets them apart from almost anywhere else. They perform in a very small arena with only a couple hundred people at most, and yet, they are widely regarded as having some of the best wrestling, and some of the best wrestlers in the world perform under their banner. They focus on high impact stunts and high flying moves, chain wrestling, technical matches - they're very in-ring focused, paying attention to how cool the matches look, with the outside of the ring "story telling" being an excuse to put on these spectacle matches. For New Japan Pro Wrestling, it's their in-ring story telling that sets them apart from most other companies. It's been around for *DECADES* and is one of the primier organizations in Japan, and despite most of their wrestlers never having stepped foot in the WWE or America at all - they are widely regarded as having some of the best wrestlers in history under their banner. They focus far more on Japanese wrestling tradition and good wrestling storytelling, and because they only have events every few months - they really hammer down on making sure the matches themselves tell the stories. It's very high impact, but also much slower and methodical in their matches, because they really try to tell a story with the wrestling matches, as opposed to telling a story outside of the ring. They treat the product like a sport, with pre-event press conferences and a tournament style format being the catalyst to probably their biggest event of the year (the G1 Climax). Combat Zone Wrestling focuses on pure carnage and specticle. Barbed wire baseball bats, steel cages being covered in broken glass, pizza slicers being used across other peoples bodies and heads, flaming tables, slamming each other on cinder blocks and blood.... lots and lots of blood. Storytelling exists, but it's selling point is all about how much damage the performers are willing to put themselves through. I know this is long winded, but the point I'm trying to make is that all of these things exist. They all exist, at the same time, and are all something people watch. The difference is that people - anyone - can start their own D&D games at home. So you can make a WWE style game, or you can make a CZW style game, or you can make a NJPW kind of game, the freedom is up to you. There is no "right way" to play D&D - just like there is no "right way" to make a wrestling show. Critical Role should be looked at as a style of game - not as the NFL, but as the WWE. They are not the "professional league" of D&D, they're just one of many types of ways to play the game.

[@alanweaver213]

A better comparison might be between watching sports and playing sports. Matt Colville has discussed the Mercer Effect--not with this analogy exactly--by comparing the fan experience with the player experience.

[@romxxii]

To be fair: the Matt Mercer effect was happening even when Matt was just drawing maps on graphing paper and marking off combatant positions with cheap minis. While the current set has elevated the show's presentation, the improvisational and acting talents of the cast and the DM, as well as their passion for storytelling, has always been there, even in the days of dinky microphones and iPhone-quality video feeds. It was like watching NBA all stars in a game of pick-up, and still hustling like it's game 7 of the finals.

[@AuntLoopy123]

Those first episodes were WONDERFUL. They were INSPIRING. They taught me SO MUCH about playing and DMing the game. Most importantly, they taught me that I do NOT have to invest my entire paycheck into this game. I could have fun with a hand-drawn map and some differently colored bottle caps, and taking time to pass around one Player's Handbook was OK.

[@danielmcgillis270]

@@AuntLoopy123 I was playing RPGs in the millinery for many years. We only had Minds eye theater and we had some of the funniest times in my life.

[@Maurcusj777]

To be fair the "Mercer Effect" has been happening in TTRPGs for years before Mat even rolled his first set of dice. Stories about "that one GM" or "That one group/player" that colored someone's expectations on how things should work, have been passed around since practically the beginning. Seth Skorkowsky has a great video called "The Story of Jeff" about this. All Mercer did was multiply the problem often enough that it had to be named, which I think is actually good because by giving it a name it makes it easier to discuss and break down in a way that will ultimately help the TTRPG community.

[@dudeist_priest]

I've DM'd two groups. One we play at my house with a chessex map and minis for things I have minis for and tokens for everything else. It's everyone's first time. The other I take some of my stuff to another DM's house and use his fancy table, with the inset TV and mix of terrain, virtual environments, surround sound, way more minis and experienced players... I love both my groups and neither needs what the other has.

[@0ddMan0ut]

As a podcast version listener, I like critical role entirely independent from the sets. He creates scenes through words that are immersive and easy to create a picture of in my mind.

[@dankdill8286]

Literally, I love listening to the show while at work.

[@Chestbridge]

For me, personally, the Matt Mercer Effect has been a blessing. If players tell me upfront they like Critical Role, chances are good that they'll be a good fit for my game. For those who have always preferred a more role-play and character focused game it's just awesome to get so many new people into the hobby who want a game like that! =)

[@oscarwilson7591]

I went through a Matt Mercer effect as the forever DM - putting all that unnecessary pressure on myself and being inevitably disappointed. Now, I’ve realised what I CAN take from Matt: his absolute, stone-cold poker face in tandem with his humbleness. DMs are people and people like boasting and when you are literally god (especially in a homebrew setting), every story pay off, every awesome session that you completely improvised you will want validation and you’ll want to spill all the awesome secrets you have. But Matt… just doesn’t do that… and my god does it pay off.

[@Drewcatmorris]

I have been playing RPGs since 1979 and as a DM have largely done theater of the mind for most combats. I have not really had the Matt Mercer Effect hit me, but have seen a resurgence of interest in RPGs that has made it much easier to find a table you might like to play/DM/GM/Storytell with. The one thing that I wish I had that Matt has in spades is patience. He has waited for years for storyline payoffs. That is a lesson that I really want to apply.

[@SupergeekMike]

Same!

[@sarahraynore6713]

I'm of the firm opinion that the Critical Role effect is more due to the players than it is to Matt Mercer. It's how they get so invested in their own characters, how they go out of their way to say or do something without any prompt from the DM because "it's what the character would do", it's those sessions when Matt barely has to do anything because the players have the characters roleplay and simply talk expressing themselves and reflecting on recent events. Matt Mercer's dming simply enables that. This is not to say that Matt Mercer is without merit, far from that. But I usually get the feeling that people think that CR's success is maybe like 70-90% Matt's part and 10-30% the players', and I actually think it is the complete opposite! As you and other people have said in the comments, many one-shots that Matt has dmed have been completely unremarkable. Conversely, I found Aabria's Exandria Unlimited very much a CritRole experience even though her dming style is completely different; because the players were playing it the "CR style", taking their time to let the characters talk and act as they felt like and do their thing

[@simonwatkins3236]

A DM that can encourage this is ideal it's so easy to shut this down. But yes the players need that spark the best DM can't make you creative. Look at Pretty the troll. Matt not only lets them run with it he runs with them.

[@greendemon905]

@@simonwatkins3236 Just a shame Pretty turned them all down. I feel like he could've become the next Gilmore or Essek if Mercer had him reciprocate Fearne's feelings.

[@johnhenkel1828]

I have played under some really good DMs and have done some DMing myself. I have played with players that are very invested in their own characters and play their characters the way the character would react. What sets CR apart, in my opinion, is that their players and their characters are also invested in the other characters and those character's back stories, goals, emotions, and future. To me, that is the Critical Roll effect that people are hopeful for and don't realize that Matt has guided his players style to develop this way and if you want this style of play, it is up to every player at the table to contribute to give as much focus and attention to all the other characters as they do their own.

[@briannenurse4640]

@@johnhenkel1828 This is a HUGE part of it, yes! Plenty of D&D players get invested in their own characters but in CR, the players get invested in each other's characters and stories as well as their own characters and the campaign setting itself. Everyone buys in on everyone else, which brings the entire experience to life.

[@johnriverdavis3497]

The reason Matt Mercer is a great DM is how well he knows the idiosyncricies of his players. As far as the technical aspects of DMing, I find they're often so mystified people think Mercer is an impossible standard when DMing itself is so wide ranging and idiosyncratic it's not an unreasonable standard to even strive to be better than him.

[@Caitydid561]

I think the only time I've complained about a DM not being "like Matt Mercer"--and I never actually made that complaint to anyone--was because the DM I was playing with wasn't actually a good DM, in terms of making sure his players are actually having fun and okay with what's going on. You can actually see Matt checking in with the rest of the CR cast constantly, verbally and nonverbally. The DM I had was not like that. He didn't care that I was getting frustrated and upset because I felt unheard by everyone at the table. I stuck with it to the end of the campaign, but I wasn't satisfied with what I got, because of the issue I just mentioned. Luckily, the DM I play with now is much more consistent about making sure his players are actually enjoying the game, and by extension so is the rest of my party.

[@petek2832]

Mercer's effect on me, was that I realized that as a DM, and a s a player, I could have put more effort into backstory and details. Not to the extent he does, but more than I did. I wonder how much of a difference it would have made. You probably don't notice it as much at a smaller table, and with players that are less concerned with the "role playing " aspect. But if you have players who really like to get into role, it's like an additional reward for them.

[@SupergeekMike]

Agreed!

[@funforever1671]

I am really new to dnd, and I had in my opinion bad luck with the stile of the dm and the stile I would have liked more. For example I would have liked a basic understanding of the basic world setup…I know that sounds vague so I will provide a example: if I am a dwarf, then what is the basic in universe social structure, how ingrained are certain opinions in a society and what are the basics that every dwarf definitely knows (like who is the ruler of my lands and stuff) because sadly as I didn’t get that info I couldn’t add my character into a world

[@Dhorannis]

One thing is greatly overlooked when it comes to the Matt Mercer Effect: The other players. The best moments of CR are not Matts villain monologues or one of his thousand toothy maws. The best moments are interactions between the characters. Scanlan accusing his party of not being interested in him as a person. The aftermath of Mollymauk's death. The reveal that Laudna was one of the victims for the Briarwoods' welcome display. Matt is completely secondary in these moments. Of course, there are also great solo moments when Matt is playing a bigger role. One example is Fjord destroying his falchion and cutting his ties to Uk'otoa. But Matt is not the only one making the show great. I'm not playing with any professional voice actors or entertainers. I do a bit of voice acting, but mainly by recording audios as a hobby. I try to learn from Matt and the rest of the cast of CR, but I will not immitate his style. I just try to motivate my players to try acting out their characters, even if it feels a bit strange at first. And when I'm a player, I often ask the others if I am overdoing it because I really enjoy excessive roleplaying and method acting. But I also don't want to just hog the spotlight all the time. Long story short: I communicate what I like to do and see with the others at my table. I try to create an environment where everyone feels safe and can try intense roleplaying. Honestly? Many people are great once they overcome the initial hesitation of roleplaying emotions. And I absolutely love to see these moments.

[@SupergeekMike]

Very well said!

[@commandercaptain4664]

It's usually a good DM who sets it up for players to knock it down.

[@AuntLoopy123]

I don't do "voice acting." Last session, I described "The bards speak with a sort of European accent, not German, maybe kind of Hungarian-ish? I'm not going to do it, because remember that time in Munchkin, when I had that card placed on me, that meant I had to speak in a Spanish accent, and I studied Spanish for years in high school AND college, and then, during the game, I couldn't remember what a Spanish accent even sounded like? Or French? Yeah, I'm not doing that today." And my group were perfectly fine with that, because they knew that the SOUND wasn't necessary. It was what I said that mattered. Matt, and all the fine actors on CR, do the voice acting, BECAUSE THEY CAN, but it would still be excellent, even without voice acting, because they get INTO it, and you can get into it, even in third person. "My character does X, because that is totally something she would do," is a perfectly valid way to role play, and it can be just as engaging as first person.

[@knoxgordon9859]

I run my games with legos, no voice acting, and players with little to no experience, and I still have so much fun every session.

[@SupergeekMike]

Exactly!

[@stefansneden1957]

@@SupergeekMike what I wanted to say

[@oz_jones]

Oh, i have never thought using legos as minis and terrain. Neat!

[@louiseah7662]

Yes!!! We have kids, so we have legos. And surprisingly legos fits quite well thematically into DnD (wizards, knights, chests, doors). Love using it 😊

[@DocEJ]

As someone who loves CR and has played in a few campaigns after being introduced to D&D by CR: I do not want to play in the style of CR. I certainly tried when I started but as a player. But I do not have the concentration to roleplay that deep an entire session, I do not want DMs to explain the environment as detailed as Mercer does, except if it is specifically necessary for an encounter, I love to bent the rules more than Mercer allows (and encourage players to do so now that I've started DMing myself) I have realised my style of D&D is different than CR's, and that's OK :D

[@SupergeekMike]

I’m so glad you are enjoying D&D and that you’ve found your style!

[@vampirelogan]

Thanks for replying as those of us who have DM'ed long before Matt came along, we don't often hear from those who may have experienced the Effect first hand and worked their way through to find their own path. Congratulations on doing so and welcome to the crazy, wild and very rewarding world of DMing!

[@MrAskmannen]

My players and i mostly mess around, doing silly stuff that strikes our fancy in the immedeate moment. These long running and serious character development fantasy epics that CR play really aren't my vibe

[@pawsandpaperrpg]

14:00 What people tend to forget is that CR had it's fair share of "crappy equipment" at the start of their "streaming journey". I'm talking not only about their "microphone dropouts" during their G&S days, but more so about their "play tools" during aforementioned days. Maps hand drawn on paper with grey 3D printed figurines that bearly (pun intended for Trinkett) resembled their characters.... All of these things, these 3D models from Dwarvenforge, all those detailed stuff, is just to "boost" the imagination and has nothing to do with Matt Mercer or his style. Of course, our campaigns on stream would look TOTALLY different (and to be honest, we had a huge technical malfunction during our stream yesterday, caused by switching from Roll20 to foundry, and real....crappy preparation on my side). But there is also one thing people tend to forget, and that is how Critical Role started. During the early days, they had a very strict policy, and that is: the money they earned through donations would entirely be forwarded to their charity partners. Only the money they would get through subscription to the channel would - partly - be used for new models and set pieces and stuff. "Critical Role" was just one of many shows on Geek & Sundry (albeit one of the more successful ones). They didn't have the creative liberty to do stuff. They had to use an already built set to run their first games that was technologically not fitted for so much people on set. It was not until Ep. 37 that they had a "custom" set build to optically fit the "style" of the show, and not the "living room charme" they "had to deal with" until then. And it was not until the very end of campaign one (around ... I don't know, Ep. 102 or so), that they even had a custom built table.... So does equipment define "Critical Role"? Or was it awesome because the people really trusted each other?

[@MorningDusk7734]

I realized that I never wanted to end up with a wall full of minis I had to sort through to find out I only have 3 skeletons when I want 6. So, I took all of 20 minutes to make a 3D print of a 1" square token I can slide a picture into and printed like 8 of those in various colors. Now, all I need is to print out images, cut them up, assemble, and tell my party "The red zombie is going to attack you, Jane". Much cheaper than printing minis, and I can make a catalogue of cut-out squares much easier than a fleet of minis.

[@darrylhilbig6459]

When they talk about equipment, people should look at the first episodes in campaign one. I can remember Butcher's paper and hand drawn terrain being involved during the battles and encounters.

[@SupergeekMike]

Exactly!

[@CynDuby]

I love your channel! I came back to DnD after being exposed to it in the late 70s. There was no one close enough to me that played so I didn't get hooked. Now, decades later and two grown children at home because of the pandemic, this family of geeks decided to learn DnD and to play. It's been a journey! We are hooked on critical role and love Matt and everyone (we're halfway through the second campaign). I learn constantly from watching him and the players in many ways: how to run a game (ie, make them roll for it), how to drop hints (even as a writer, I'm notoriously bad at this), how to move the story along, how to be patient when they get into an RP situation and are running with it and how to pace the game. I learn from the players, too, just as much if not more: how to take bad rolls with a smile, how to attend to other folks' story lines, how to be a team in battle, how to draw out players who may be shy about RP, and how to celebrate other's victories and comfort their defeats. We play with each other, taking turns DMing, and I am now running Call of the Netherdeep for my two best friends, a newer online very experienced friend, and my daughter. I also play in two games. I would not have this outlet or at least this much fun playing and DMing if not for Critical Role. To me, that's the REAL Matt Mercer effect :-)

[@risperdude]

YES, YES, YES!! You are exactly right, IMHO. I, like you, first played in the 70's and because of relocating lost connection to gaming. I was reintroduced to 3.5 (In the era of 4e) but the group i played with was more in to other systems, and the DM for that game was a toxic man/child so I gave up on d&d. Come pandemic, I found critical role and Dimension 20. My granddaughter's fiancée was also a critter and Brennan fan. They asked me to DM for them and their friends I love it, we started with Wildemount and are still charging. Introducing and reintroducing the world to D&D is the effect and I'm generally thankful.

[@garthg1247]

as a DM, who started in 1982, with a solid knowledge of my own style and what I enjoy, I find in my interviews for new players that too many people are looking for an experience that doesn't match what I plan to run. I turn them away, and explain that to them. I know what I can give to my players. I have been doing these types of interviews for my home games ever since I had a player who totally ruined the game for a group because he had a different idea of the game than I had. In the past I would turn away one or two people who didn't seem to fit my playstyle and/or group and these days I seem to be turning away more people than I run for, because the style they want is just something I don't want to run. As someone who utterly dislikes in-character 'voices' and such in my games, and everyone wanting to be like critical roll with that level of role-playing, I am finding it harder and harder to find a solid group of players to game regularly with. That's my version of the Matt Mercer Effect. I'm the DM that sees too many people trying to be like critical roll.

[@SupergeekMike]

This is very common experience, and I am sorry that it’s happening. The goal of my video isn’t to minimize that, but to try to find the silver lining of it - because people can now reference Critical Role as an example of a certain style, hopefully it’s easier for you to sort them out in advance because they clearly want games that reflect CR, which isn’t the type of game you run. And while I’m sure it’s frustrating that it is happening more often, that does reflect the fact that a lot more people are interested in D&D these days (thanks at least in part to CR), and from my perspective that can only be a good thing for the hobby. But of course, that doesn’t make it any less frustrating for you, but I think you already have found the solution, because you are very clear about your style and your intentions before they sit down at the table. That clarity really does seem to be the only solution for people like yourself, who don’t run games anything like the style of Matt Mercer, and who know that players looking for that won’t have a good time/won’t fit in at the table.

[@neerGdyahS]

Is that a bad thing? Those people you've turned away for hunting for CR are probably people who would've responded most to CR-like play in the first place. They probably never would've been a good fit for your table.

[@Lathlaer]

Something I feel is not mentioned enough is that a key difference between the CR cast and many other home D&D games is that apart from the deep focus on player interaction, their style is very much "story-centric". You will see this in how they role play, in the decisions they make and how they take it - a good story takes precedence. Not everyone plays like that. Many play very much a "player-centric" game where - if you are a player - your own decisions, journey and growth takes precedence in your mind. It is mostly visible when Matt is able to pull off things that are sometimes referred to as "red-flags". Something like denying the warlock his powers because of his defiance towards the patron. Many players after a session like that would go screaming in reddit threads about how the unfair and bad DM treated them. And they would find sympathy with neverending line of people agreeing that it's a red flag and that they would never have done such a thing at their table. Matt can do that. First, because his players trust him. And second, because they collectively like choices that lead to an interesting story. A player is not interested in getting more powerful and doesn't mind if a choice cripples him if the choice leads to an epic moment in the story. Travis has this mentality and so does Sam when he embraces failures and flat out says that he likes to fail. Liam tries it too but I think sometimes the tactical powergamer surfaces for a moment or two if he's not careful :D

[@nomnomninja1]

I totally agree, it depends on the players. I myself have been heavily influenced in my dm style by matt over the years and the number one thing I care about is whether the players are having fun. My players all have vastly different play styles even within the one group and I know which ones would find that kind of thing fun and cool, and which ones would be frustrated. I don't treat them the same because they're not the same, and it might sometimes look like unfairness to an outsider, but I know them so well and they've all gotten really good at communicating over the years. The player who's chaotic and creative and loves to think outside the box loved it when I threatened her relationship with her warlock patron for the sake of the story. The player who's more insecure irl likes it when I give his characters the chance to be the cool one for once. It all depends.

[@lastbaumstanding1802]

If I understand that right D&D players go and whine of reddit because of the consequences of their actions? Jesus freaking christ.

[@Lathlaer]

@@lastbaumstanding1802 Yeah well, 5e, especially post Tasha's, is extremely liberal when it comes to the source of your arcane or divine power. I think it's the most liberal it has ever been in its history. As a DM, you are encouraged to bend over backwards in order to meet your player's expectations - wants to be a warlock without patron interaction? No problem, probably "leeching power without the patron knowing". Want to be a cleric without a deity? Sure thing, there is a paragraph or two about that as well. Paladin? As well, the power of your conviction gives you magic powers. So yea, something like "taking away player's powers" is quite often a no-no in the community's eyes. You are expected to change the circumstances in such manner that your player's decision is accommodated AND they get to keep their character's powers.

[@lastbaumstanding1802]

@@Lathlaer Sounds like it sucks to GM 5E. Especially in online groups. With this and other stories I heard about the 5E 'No-Nos' I am very glad my players don't insist on 5E or any OGL game. The GM is a player too and should not wipe the ass of the Player/Player Characters.

[@Lathlaer]

@@lastbaumstanding1802 I can't speak to online groups because I have been running a traditional "we meet every Friday" campaign since Nov 2020 but I like 5e. Not every part of it but that's I guess where the good philosophy of "rulings instead of rules" comes into play. I realize that I would've had much harder time getting my group to learn something else like 3e or 4e. But our group is very tight, my brother and his wife being a part of it and two other friends as well. Their online presence in D&D community is non-existent as well. But yea, I put my foot firmly in certain aspects because there is stuff I won't run and I was the one who gave them the pitch with a "if you wanna play this kind of campaign, let's go, otherwise someone else can try".

[@edxcal84]

As I DM I ran into the exact opposite problem, I was trying to be more detailed in the world and incorporate everyone's back story into the game we were playing, but half my players only wanted combat and the other half wanted a well-rounded game of RP and Combat, eventually my DMing drove those combat players away. I wasn't trying to, just one day they said they didn't want to play anymore and eventually they said my world felt like history class that they had to study to play. In my defense you didn't actually need to know anything, I was just trying to add flavor to the world to make it feel more real, but they didn't like it, which is totally fine.

[@GnarledStaff]

Yes, this is why a lot of people recommend having a session 0 and discussing the type of game you want to play with your players before starting. This sounds like a relatively good ending, where the people who didnt like your style left rather than the the game just breaking down. It can be very draining for a DM to try and fit theor game to a style that they don't enjoy by catering to those people. Its a common pitfall I've seen.

[@edxcal84]

@Geordin Soucie I know this now, this was years ago and only my second time DMing. I was also very new to 5e as I'd spent most of my years playing 3.5, DMing for that group was a learning experience for me.

[@Lykangroux]

The larger and more important part that was glossed over: chemistry. A game you can play with people you know as friends and peers for 2, 6, 10 years is going to be leagues better than any pick-up randos on roll20 or the LGS that wants the CritRole experience. That whole experience comes from trial and error, and a willingness to work with people as DM and player. Sometimes, this just doesn't mesh. D&D horror stories exist because of this disconnect, and there are channels aplenty dedicated to that. In that vein, the best sessions of tabletop, regardless of system, come with 1) players and GMs I understand and can communicate with 2) the ability to talk things through above and below table without bleed 3) the willingness to give and take. It's not perfect, and even with my troupe of 5 years, we still butt heads on occasion, but we can talk about it as adults, and we all met online.

[@SupergeekMike]

I have a video all about this coming soon… actually probably more than one video, it’s a rich vein.

[@joepersch6779]

I'll be honest, I found critical role because of a friend recommendation years ago (we're both DMs). After watching for a while, I really wanted to incorporate Matt's "How do you want to do it?" for the final blow on what is considered Big Bads or boss monsters. I absolutely love the agency it gives to the players and I feel it helps not only to build their creativity, but really feel like their characters are a force to be reckoned with. My players absolutely have loved it as well and I think it's a fun thing to throw in there. I think Matt has done a lot to inspire DMs (or GMs as well), and I love the fact that the show is bringing in new players even now.

[@impofstpete727]

I only got into Critical Role's content recently, as in the last year. It took some multiple views but I enjoy it. It's a prime example of how a cast blends on a show. Remember that these folks are all friends. Liam and Sam are basically brothers. You have 2 married couples. A man with a literal family in the theater. A woman who grew up on television. I think the part I enjoy the most is that after every session, on the drive home, Matt turns to Marisha and asks: "Did you have fun tonight?" That speaks volumes to how he views the game.

[@thadrin]

I didn't know Matt did that. I'm new to DMing after decades in front of the screen, and ALWAYS ask my players if they had fun as we tidy up. Its the number 1 priority.

[@jameswhitehead9697]

My main game is online these days due to distance. So there is a lot of messenger chatter leading up to the game - our own "Is it Thursday yet?" bit. Always say thanks afterwards in the chat & talk about what we liked! Our DM's biggest is question is "Did you all have fun?" All he wants, really.

[@mattewald9378]

I use to say “I will never DM” until I watched Critical Role and watched Matt do it and decided I want to do what he’s doing.

[@SupergeekMike]

I’m so glad!

[@lorenanderson5397]

Matt also made me want to DM again. He showed me that being extra is allowed! And I could go as hard as I want.

[@Gada101]

I have learned a lot about being a DM from watching Critical Role. The 3 things you pointed out are exactly what I took from him. I think if a player has a problem with the DM not being good enough, the player has way to high of expectations. Its like if you asked your friends to play basketball after watching a few NBA games, and expecting them to play as good as the pros. As long as the DM is doing their best, and everyone is having fun, that's all that matters.

[@SupergeekMike]

Indeed!

[@Xiatter]

The Mighty Nein is one of my favorite stories ever, with one of my favorite casts of all. It's almost X-men level for me. I can see how people loving Critical Role can be frustrating for people who don't like their style, or don't like how their presence affects others' expectations. But Critical Role has pushed me to actually play D&D. It has influenced or reinvigorated friends' passions for the game. And most of us don't expect our own games to be a 1:1 experience. But in my opinion, its infiuence is a resounding net good.

[@raphaelmorasch4179]

It's also interesting to note, that everyone has a different idea of what it means to "DM like Matt Mercer" I reacently found out, that me and my best friend both have Matt as their leading influence on our DM-style. But both us were really surprised by that and went "you don't DM like Matt...?!" because it means something totally different for both of us.

[@Dalladon]

I think we often tend to call upon the 'Matt Mercer effect' when trying to explain something that has existed in internet culture way before Critical Role first emerged. Something that was prevalent in MMORPGs long before the prevalance of Roll20, The Foundry, Dndbeyond (2012 and onwards) and so many other online media that enabled people to play with eachother online. But because these two not necessarily overlap, it came as a shock to people in the D&D community. Matt Mercer or CR is just another popular type of consumerist focal point that people decided to look into - There was a GoT (2011) expanding in MMORPG roleplay, around the time of the first seasons, where people tried to immulate the writing and clever characters playing this throne'ish kind of political scheme (Similar to @AAAndrew 's comment of how intrigue might not be everyone's cup of tea). And while people were not good at it, let's be honest the characters written in GoT far supercedes the average player's ability, it does not stop us from wanting to be that and make characters like that, dream of participating in stories like that. To be something awesome that we have found inspiration in. (Naturally - the CR characters came after 2015) And the mimicry of CR is not a bad thing - it is just what it is, mimicry. The amount of Legolas and Gimli impersonators were also high at the prime of Lord of the Rings in local games (at least from my experience). Some people want something familiar, some people want something unique. And who knows, maybe it instills the little bit of bravery into players and DMs, to sing like Scanlan when they are Bard'ing - or immitate a myriad of voices that the cast of CR does. Let them be an inspiration, rather than the set of rules, we must follow. I am glad someone finally tackled the other side of this coin - In the way that we often hear that the effect either does not exists or is the fault of bad/toxic community people. My thanks for (like with the Tiberius video) to giving us a much more pleasant and less 'outragey' sort of perspective that allows us to talk about something that just 'is' in many ways. And how to move on from that, rather to stew in it forever.

[@joenap17]

I honestly believe Critical Role and the subsequent Mercer Effect has done more good than harm to the hobby. It's showed the world that what was considered a dorky, niece hobby can be "elevated" to a higher level of entertainment and produce some really engaging content. While it's unfair, obviously, to show up at a table and expect elaborate sets and pro voice actors, I feel it's inspired a lot of people to take their game to the next level and get more invested in making the best game possible. While the people with stupidly high expectations are real, there's and equally high number of people who are disorganized, rude, and downright lazy with their DMing/play, who when pressed go "I don't know why you take this game seriously, this isn't Critical Role". Even if you don't expect to become super famous from it, if you're not trying to put on the best game possible for your friends, why are you even playing?

[@UncleMerlin]

I disagree with this sentiment that you have to bring your A+ game to a session. I have DM'd sessions in campaigns where everyone is intimately interested in their characters which is great to see even if everyone isn't really well versed in expressing themselves. But most of my sessions after that campaign are done with a variety of different players who just show up to have a good time. A sort of "beer and prezels" game of D&D where everyone is chilling and not too into the game as we roll dice and have fun. I know specifically I love to run things like Rise or Tiamat and a module from Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage since we're all just chilling and killing monsters/doing a dungeon crawl.

[@geoffdewitt6845]

Once again, the answer is, "TALK TO YOUR PLAYERS!"

[@SupergeekMike]

👆👆👆👆👆THIS

[@katrinapoorman987]

and hear your players! when they talk to you!

[@jimmullenax2872]

I’m about to run my first game. CR is what interested them in D&D. They know it’s my first time and we will be strictly using theater if the mind. They’re hyped, I’m stressed prepping, and I can’t wait to get started. I’m thankful for the Mercer effect. I may never get a chance to step out of the player role and try my hand at running a game

[@steadfastscout4606]

I have a DnD group and we normally cycle Campaigns monthly. One month we run mine, The next is someone else's, so on and so forth. By doing this I've learned as a Player and a DM as well what styles I prefer playing in. I learned that I really want RP and an interactive environment more than I want a Diablo style dungeon crawl. I hate being shoved into a dungeon with crap loot and long drawn out combat for no reason.

[@PS-yi7nz]

i also think the music analogy can work in another way: Playing and listening to music is completly different. I love listening to jazz being played at a level i doubt i will ever reach, yet i absolutely love playing jazz with friends, at a much more mediocre level. These are two completely different experiences, and both are very enjoyable in different ways. This is also my experience with watching critical role vs playing dnd, i love watching the improvisation, the voices, the complex stories being told by Critical Role, but being with friends at the table, discussing and laughing about what happened during the session, being there with people you know, is so rewarding. So my point is yes, its good that people that want to play dnd have a point of reference to draw from, but its important to acknowledge that it doesnt need to be the same to be fun, and that its a good thing if it ends up being different from what you were expecting!

[@steegen101]

"I hope you understand the point I'm trying to get at. And if you don't, that's okay, let's discuss it below." I admire this so much. This is such a good energy to bring into these videos. (lol I commented Mike's quote on the wrong video bc I let the playlist keep going, my bad!!)

[@Feetareleghands]

I would like to bring up any of the "one shot" campaigns that have been ran by other CR cast members, and how vastly different their DM style is. Each DM in any game will bring their own flair and play style.

[@norikaks9644]

Just last year I started my friends’ and mine’s first ever dnd game… and also my first time dming. No one in my friend group wanted to do it so I took it upon myself since I write as a hobby. Just around when we began, I also started watching CR (super late, ik). The CR effect that’s happened to me personally is trying to incorporate my players’ stories into the game since many of them are similar to the CR players who are invested into their and other PCs stories. I also noticed that my normal writing/storytelling style is similar to Matt’s which is why I ended up becoming a fan of the show. As someone just starting out, CR rly helped me get more comfortable with RPing and immersing the players in the story, but also because their style of play was compatible w/ how I liked running the game. Also feel like watching them play rly helped me learn the rules for Dnd without reading all the books (I’m in college and barely have time for that). But I think I’ve benefitted sm from CR and Matt is because my friends and I ended up having a playing style similar to the show’s but in an online game with none of fancy stuff, but just the RP and them giving me feedback and us keeping in touch about what they have fun with, and what both sides can work on. I think as long as players and DM communicate their needs and you check in if they’re having fun, that’s enough for me. I don’t know all the rules, our sessions end up short because of school and timezones, but I think what matters is everyone having fun, and being excited enough to look forward to the next game. CR is a good introduction to dnd and can help you learn some of the rules for people who might not be able to read the PHB and DMG, but the show shouldn’t be your bible of how Dnd should look like. idk just some thoughts from someone who’s been playing for less than 6 months because I was only able to find other dnd fans in college lol

[@MRdaBakkle]

I'm not a critrole fan but I agree. The blame lands squarely on these ultra fans of the show unfairly putting up their expectations as gospel. And the blame also lands with critics who blame Matt.

[@jtmcailin4522]

Matt Mercer and Brennan Lee Mulligan are the reason why I wanted to become a DM. They made it look so fun, so I wanted to try running games like they do

[@tableslam]

Every single time I've heard a player say they want to be in a game like CR, they weren't talking about the DM's style or the lore or the story. They were talking about the closeness and fun that is super obvious and apparent between the cast of CR. They're looking for a group of best friends to build & tell a story with. Of course, building relationships like those takes time and a lot of trial & error, but it's 100% possible to achieve. Unfortunately, a lot of those players fail to realize this (about what they're *really* after AND that it's not an overnight process), and it becomes very difficult for them to enjoy games until they do

[@aidenpruitt1256]

I appreciate that you brought up the dwarven forge thing. People don't realize how expensive that stuff is and Matt has been a advocate from before they were big. It wouldn't surprise me if they send him promos because everytime he uses it on set that's free advertising and because of the "Matt Mercer effect" People will want to replicate it and purchase them.

[@velvanae]

way back, when I started playing (Haven't played in over 20 years since I moved) my dm used several map types 1) graph paper maps for the dungeons that he handed out to the players and he had the master map. At the end of the night, he marked how far we got on his map and then take all of ours to fill in where we had been, traps we tripped or disarmed, doors we unlocked or found and couldn't unlock, and so on omitting what we would miss. 2) as far as outdoor maps everything from cardboard boxes, popsicle sticks, cardboard tubes, clay, gravel, rocks, twigs sand, and tons of glue, toothpicks, and imagination. were used to make the buildings, paths, and such 3) lego maps, these were reserved for silly or fun things like a small side quest that may take a very short amount of time, carnival settings, or just something to break the tension and game stress. He would also cut up old shirts for tents and use pipe cleaners or dowel rods for tent poles and string for the ropes. So to me, all this fancy stuff they have now is taking away from the fun a bit. As far as minis went we used minis, lego people and monsters, or whatever his sick demented DM mind would think of! another thing that happened often is things got literally burnt, blown up, and so on, in a controlled manner outside of course. we were a destructive bunch in and out of the game lol That would leave pieces that could be used in the future for places that were attacked such as villages by those pesky kobolds (Back when they were thought to be kangaroo foxes) I think I would still use these methods instead of all the fancy stuff they have now, lord knows my son has enough legos, I have access to tons of cardboard , pallets, rocks etc to do all this. I even have a bunch of plywood that I can make a table just to set maps up on. Sure Matt Mercer has a lot of fancy things, but that is not why I watch. I watch to see people have fun and play, and the stories. Matt has taught me quite a lot with the 5th edition rules, rule of cool and so much more that can be implemented in my games. He is like you said an example to get inspiration from, just as much as Matt Coville, Monty Martin, Kelly McLaughlin, and many others are.

[@Beth-cj7ip]

Ty for using a female when referring to a DM. As a female DM,I appreciate the representation

[@Tooopper]

One of Matt’s best responses to the MME involved him actually challenging players to bring it like his if they wish to emulate the arc they have. He doesn’t essentialize his success to himself. He has a deep respect for his players as essential components and sees focusing on him as missing the bigger picture. This is probably because of their profession. He knows what it takes to make a creative project and is aware of what others contribute to the whole. I think we all need that perspective.

[@cdleming]

For a KZbinr that just started, I love your format & the fact you use the Chapter feature. Well done.

[@SupergeekMike]

Thanks!

[@Seemfly]

The things I respect Matt most for as a DM is his story planning/writing and descriptive abilities. I find story hooks and climaxes to be easy to write up, but the middle parts are where I struggle the most to come up with cohesive and interesting structure for holding onto their focus and give them hints as to the ending. The voices he can do are just icing on the cake and entertainment energy, and I know they are beyond the abilities of my partially damaged vocal cords, so i dont even try to minic that fully

[@manaworkshop]

There is a table for everyone but communication is how you find your table

[@GarredHATES]

only the negative stories are being whispered around. the good stories of people being inspired by Matt are silent.

[@FedericoVetencourt]

I have another comparison/analogy I think is always good to consider and it's my go-to answer to the Matt Mercer Effect complaints: a few years ago a certain masked magician started broadcasting and revealing all of the famous magic tricks in TV and showing how all of them were done. I was always into trying to understand these tricks and I found it an interesting show but I had a friend back then who was learning magic and saw his tricks blown by the fact that now a lot of people knew how they were done. Yes he got angry, yes he complained, but eventually he told me something interesting: the Masked Magician forced all of the stage magicians worldwide to create and develop new tricks to keep their shows going on. Yes the Matt Mercer Effect may be an unfair comparison, but as one of its victims, I realized that watching Matt Mercer actually gave me a lot of awesome tools to improve my DMing skills and I managed to improve a lot by watching him, Matt Coleville, the Dungeon Dudes, Dungeon Craft and a whole bunch of awesome streamers and youtube D&D content creators.

[@sinisterplank3113]

Whenever I think about what people call “the Matt mercer effect” I have two anecdotes that come to mind. In the 90s I played a lot of soccer, at an amateur level, and for most of us that’s all there was to it, fun times with friends, kicking some ball. But we always had to deal with those guys who joined expecting FC Barcelona, or telling people to be Maradona. Not apples to apples, but the same basic concept. The next one is, back in 2004, I joined the marine core, and something that I always struggled with during that year, was dealing with Those Guys, who you instantly knew loved war movies just a little too much. I know there are slightly different circumstances, but the basic principle is the same, misaligned expectations.

[@sinisterplank3113]

Also, anyone can be Matt Mercer. You just need to practice for a few decades.

[@mirandakeigher819]

I've had two DMs before finally watching CR. They were both fantastic; I saw elements of them in Matt (which I'm sure they've picked up from him) and I cannot wait to start another campaign with them. The one I'm starting up again with soon takes Mercer's leniency to a level that's great for our group of theater kids who are more interested in the story than the numbers. Watching CR made me appreciate my DMs so much more. Love you John and Henry :)

[@EmB856]

Looking forward to this series on this channel! My introduction to d&d was through Fantasy High and the Oxventurers, and didn't start watching Critical Role until I had been playing for almost a year. The groups and DMs are very different and I like picking and choosing my favorite aspects. My own DMing style is s mix of those two and early VM era of CR with the hand drawn maps. My playstyle is more Oxventurers, with some serious backstory elements like CR.

[@ruffboimags]

Between Matt Mercer and Griffin McElroy (both WILDLY different kinds of DMs on the surface), I feel like I was prepped to be the best DM I can be. Because the things that they taught me was stuff like "have fun with random NPCs", and "tell stories that matter to the characters and the players bc they'll get even more invested", and "try to give your players a voice in shaping the world". Maybe I played fast and loose with combat, maybe I let my players make a case for things they shouldn't be able to do and go "you know what fuck yeah that sounds dope and vaguely plausible!", but I still learned from Matt. My players got pitched the game they got and we loved it from tip to toe. If someone had been expecting Mercer or Mulligan from me, I would've disappointed. But when I pitched it, I pitched it as "casual, rules-wise, and taking a LOT of inspiration from The Adventure Zone", so if they ended up in my game and didn't like it, that would've been on them.

[@solelysium]

Hi! Great video! ❤️ My first experience with D&D was watching Exandria Unlimited as I was preparing for my first game. Then I started to watch Campaign 3 also. So when I went to a few games just as an observer so I can get a better idea of the group and the dynamics, i founded myself disappointed because it was far more chaotic and people talking over each other that what I had watched. Then looking for D&D content I found about this effect and everything made sense again. I relaxed, and understand that is unjust to compare both groups. We are a bunch of 30’s regular people with regular jobs just trying to have a fun night.

[@thekitchenchikens]

One thing that has worked great in my group is making the table from a big screen and making animated maps with unity with sounds effects, fog of war and all. Very inmersive and way cheaper than actual terrain in the long term.

[@Texmex386]

As many have said in the comments, sometimes it's not Mercer but the players that give the show that intense sense of, "I wish my game was like this." As several people also pointed out, it's bc they care so much for their characters. Our table had a realization about how much both those factors matter when our DM had us do three sessions fighting in a war our characters were participating in. However, it played like a grand strategy game with us commanding units of soldiers, turns were 3 min instead of 6 seconds and our characters would have a turn within the 3 min if they were in that unit. Problem was that most of a character's features go away in a minute so stuff like rage or concentration magic was less efficient than just racking up as much damage. Distance was also a factor. By the end of the second session, both the players and the DM wanted the battle to be over as we were just crunching numbers and barely role-playing. Our DM gave us an immediate level up for going through it and said never again. If he had handled it differently, like make the players fight in a small but critical to the war battle or have special features for players to use within the grand battle that would let them shine as a character, then it wouldn't have been as bad of a time. He learned from it and I wouldn't mind another large battle like that, but players need to be able to play their characters and have moments instead of being quick rolls for a small amount of damage in a battle that could've happened in the background. I'm curious, let me know if y'all have had a neat large scale battle system that fixes the issue we had.

[@captainofdisaster]

watching critical role gave me insight of what to expect as a DM, particularly in terms of the wild agency DnD has. I didn't expect the characters to spare the assassin NPC! But they did, and because I had experience watching a good DM handle what could have been extreme derailing in a way that progressed the story in a beautiful way. I got a lot of help by watching Matt Mercer not because I wanted to be just like him, but because it familiarized me with what its like playing behind the screen.

[@heresjonny666]

I definitely think the Matt Mercer Effect is a good thing. I played one dnd campaign to leve l 7 some years ago, as a player for about 6 months or something like that. That was my only experience of DnD. However, I got into Critical Role in the past few years and started listening to it all the time while commuting, and during lockdown I powered through all of campaign 1. I started feeling like playing DnD again, but didn't have anyone to play with who could DM. So I decided I would DM! And I can tell you, if I hadn't listened to so much CR and paid attention to how Matt conducts himself I don't think I would have been able to deliver nearly as good a campaign as I have so far. Apart from learning so much about the rules from listening to CR, I picked up the ideas such as describing character actions in combat to make it feel epic, giving lively descriptions of the world you're trying to create, managing player expectations and asserting yourself as the arbiter of the game, being fair and trying to allow people to do what they're asking to do, as long as they can justify it, and many more. They may seem like obvious things to some DMs, but it would be easy to just mechanically describe actions and results, which wouldn't feel as interesting to me. I don't do voices, I don't narrate every single sound in the environment and I would certainly say that my world isn't as extensive as Matt's, but he has definitely made me a better DM than I would've been. If I would have even DM'd in the first place without that exposure! I think the Matt Mercer Effect is a pretty unfair name to be honest. The phenomena it describes should really be called the Critical Role Effect. Matt is a great DM, but as you said, in other games outside of CR, the games just look like an 'average' dnd game. What makes CR so great as entertainment is the players and their interactions with Matt. They are so engrossed and engaged in his world, and they try to become their characters. It creates a positive feedback loop that accentuates the effect on both sides. I started off my current campaign trying to push some space in for social interaction and players RPing with each other, but my players didn't seem to respond to that with much enthusiasm besides sort of mechanical matter-of-fact conversations about what to do next / in a certain situation. I realised this and so I've modified how the game plays to have less emphasis on that sort of thing (though still allowing for it.) If they had been really into that part of the game, then I would've given it more emphasis. The point that I'm trying to get at is that the deep character development, the interactions that genuinely ellicit emotional responses in some of the audience - that's from Matt + the Players. Which is why if I were to ever be compared to Matt Mercer, I would say the increasingly common adage, 'I'll DM like Matt Mercer, if you play like the cast of Critical Role.' Also, final point on equipment: I was enchanted by CR while listening to it only as a podcast, and even when I listen to it now it sits on my tablet to the side of my computer and I only glance at it now and then. It's not the visuals that do it for me. My favourite parts are actually the theatre of the mind bits in fact.

[@commandercaptain4664]

#criticalroleeffect

[@Karanagi]

Excellent take! Putting more effort into good communication improves the quality of most games.

[@Ty-Inari]

This is always how I've looked at it, Matt isn't some unobtainable goal he's an inspiration and he's human just like everyone else so if you and your players want to strive for exactly that or something very similar you can and it'll be very similar if everyone wants that. Perfect video!

[@crypticPk]

I just started playing and I'm a first time DM. I like to use Matt mercer style to know what can be done helps broaden my mind.

[@rorycollins3351]

I enjoy CR and enjoy watching Matt Mercer sit back and watch his players interact with each other. I have never seen anything like that before. He lets the players carry the story and is probably mentally taking notes on things they say for future ideas. I agree that it isn't probably for everyone the way their team does it, but he has set the bar real high and I wish I could DM like him. Hell, I stumble over descriptions and just getting over the initial butterflies is a pain. My major jealousy comes more from not having some of the funny announcements they have. I also want an opening theme.

[@DaveTpletsch]

I agree that the "Matt Mercer Effect" is used too often to reverse gatekeep D&D. It's been odd to me to hear people complain about that type of game not being accessible, because I DO run Critical Role style games, and it takes a little work and a fair amount of preparation, sure, but it's not that hard. Now I'm NOT saying I'm anything like Matt Mercer, I'm not as experienced as he is, but I do all right. I really appreciate your point at the end that the Matt Mercer effect gives people new rhetoric to help them find the game they're looking for. It reminded me of what Matt Coleville's been saying for years: that if you want to be successful as a DM, you have to communicate with your players. For anyone who wants to make their tabletop experience feel like CR, here's how I do it. My method might not work for you, but maybe my list will give you some insight. 1: Communicate! tell everyone you intend to run a more RP heavy type game BEFORE they make their characters, before they even agree to be part of the table! And make sure that if they're not interested in that type of game you're not going to make them feel bad for turning down the invitation. Also FYI, you should do this for EVERY type of game you DM, let everyone know how you intend to run the game, and be VERY clear about it. 2: Know the rules, know your players characters, know the world. It takes a lot of work. I spend 3 to 6 months figuring all that out before I'll even run a session 0 for a longterm campaign. It's hard to know what information you're going to need to know and what you won't, that that understanding will come with experience. You don't need to have every spell memorized, but you should know all the basic mechanics of the game. You don't need to have a name and back story for every NPC who will appear in the world, but you do need that for at least 10 NPC's, 20 would be better. You don't need to know every step the party will take along the way as they explore your world and your story, but you do need to have an idea of where it's gong to end and how stuff outside of your party's control is going to factor into it. You don't have to be perfect at it right away either, I wasn't. It took me a couple campaigns to figure out what I needed to know and how much I needed planned. I guarantee it was the same for Mercer, it'll be the same for you too. 3: Play your NPC's as if you weren't the DM, play them like they're your PC's and you're just another player at the table. If you treat your NPC's like nothing more than a video game quest start point or a nameless shopkeep with only 3 lines of preprogramed dialogue, your players will too. If you want your players to become invested in the world (the biggest factor that makes a CR style game IMO) then you will have to get them invested in the PEOPLE of that world. 4: Make sure EVERYONE gets time in the spotlight. If crosstalk is a problem, you're the DM, you're allowed to call people out on that. Don't let that power gamer at your table interrupt or talk over anyone else, and don't let the rules lawyer waste everyone's time with arguments, make a ruling, remind them that you as the DM aren't the oposing lawyer, you're the judge, and your ruling stands. And when someone has a big moment, make sure they get the chance to get everything they want out of it. Matt's "How do you want to do this" is a really great starting point for that, but make sure it happens out of combat too. That's really it. Everything else is literally just set dressing.

[@SupergeekMike]

This is excellent, thank you so much for sharing your process!

[@paulevans4905]

Played D&D in the middle 80's as a high schooler. It was a fun time. All "theatre of mind" for the majority of it, some pictures. All we had was our dice, some graph paper, regular paper and the basic rule books. My group was the 'nerdy" intellectual group. It really was a way for us nerds to escape the "real" world of being excluded from all the other activities and things that the "regular" kids did. When it comes down to it......you make your own fun. Seeing the "regular" people play D&D amuses me a bit.....I guess us nerds were ahead of our time.

[@stephens347]

I have had a very interesting entrance into the actual play podcasts. I found The Adventure Zone first. Griffin McElroy was the first DM I listened to in an actual play podcast. I still love and listen to The Adventure Zone, but I listened to them and found Greetings Adventurers early in it's life. I listened to episode 1 and boy was that different. Michael DiMauro was not what I would have considered a good DM, but I stuck with the podcast and quickly learned that DM's grow with their players. I think that it is unfair to say "this is not the table for you". In some, maybe even most, this may be true, but the relationship between the DM and the Players seems to make the biggest difference in how the DM runs campaigns. They learn what is fun for their players or what makes a good story for everyone involved. I can appreciate what Matt does for CR, with the sounds and the voice acting, however, that is not what I learned to love the in the actual play world. I think he is a skilled DM, and adds a lot for his players, but I think the other DMs I mentioned deserve credit for the worlds they have created and stories they have told. They may not have the voices and sound effects Matt can bring, but they show that those are not what makes a good game, a good game. (from someone who has never played DND, not because he isn't interested, but because he is too introverted to try something with people he doesn't know!)

[@RobKinneySouthpaw]

I enjoyed being a player in Pathfinder back in the day. There was some stuff stylistically I didn't enjoy from the DM, but mostly good. The system as I tried to prep a session myself required too much precision. I saw CR and got back into the hobby. I thought "I can do this." Or sometimes "he could have done this instead ." It showed me what a game could be, and the 5e rules intrigued me. Advantage/Disadvantage and Bounded Accuracy made it easier to prep, so I could spend less of my time calculating monster AC and hit chance to make the foes relevant. I had missteps. I struggled with the stealth, sneak attack, and surprise rules so bad I frustrated the rogue for the first 3 or 4 sessions. But I run 2 groups now, plus my kids game and a solo game. 8 people that wouldn't have a DM right now without the dreaded Mercer effect.

[@0heck]

I think at the root of this...is envy. Matt does a great job, and brings years of experience and a comfort level with acting out NPC's that intersects with his experience as a voice actor. Matt and his crew have played together for years, so there is a level of trust between friends like that where you can let it all out with their roleplay.

[@terbear5120]

Heh, I have to say that Critical Role has more influenced my skills as a player than it has as a DM. I used to do voicework many, many moons ago for student animation shorts (we're talking back in the 80s) and have been rather shy at using voice acting skills at any games where I've been a player or a DM. Now, I'm not shy at all about it. And the great thing is, several other players at the game I'm currently playing (as a player) enjoy it a lot. I find that encouraging. As for GMing/DMing, many years ago, I ran a game where I lost two players because I was more focused on the story and characters involved, not the dice rolls or the battles...the majority of the players stayed on board and told me they liked the exploring and finding out information to further their goals in the game and less about the hard numbers or who had the best stats. We had a very touching moment when one player's character died and another strange plot where several characters in the party conspired to kill off one of their number for reasons. There was a party at a Dwarven Inn called "The Red Dwarf" where an elven party member bragged about how tasty his pancakes were and was told to prove it (they were a hit), the joy of the party taking down a dragon without anyone dying and when they finally made their final goal, we celebrated as a group as well as in game. I've started playing regularly again and I continue to take some inspiration from Critical Role, but definitely do not expect any of the games to be the same.

[@morrielewin1554]

Gilmore, Pumat, Henry Crabgrass; these are wonderful NPCs that Matt has created and struck a chord with the players and Critters. This is an ability that every DM can learn. I don't do voices very well, but; I can improvise well. This skill was forced on me by my players who, being somewhat Chaotic in real life, would choose to divert the adventure in a direction I hadn't anticipated (like this is unique to my campaign, right?). My planning was not wasted (maybe postponed to later) but the base for my plans was still sound since I had a fully developed world in which to play. I had picked Kingdoms of Kalmar (v3.0, with online adaptations to v3.5) which is very rich in detail. This gave me a safety net against which I could improvise to provide my players with interesting "consequences" to thwarting my plans (MWAH-HA-Ha-ha!). I didn't plan any TPK, although it came close a few times, and some characters managed to find themselves "waking up dead" due to unfortunate choices or situations (necklace of fireballs failing saving throws for EACH gem - I tried but the dice gods were determined). I would try to balance the play for challenges and fun and hopefully memorable events, but not everything will get the "10" rating. I see Matt having a similar setup where he has a fully developed world, pantheons, NPCs, cities, and rich and deep history. He is superb at swinging with the punches when his players thwart his Boss battle crowning spell or get into the weeds with a character he probably sketched together on the spot (Henry Crabgrass, perhaps?). My takeaway for the Matt Mercer effect is not focused on his voice acting and chameleon-like mannerisms (he really becomes the character, with facial and body affectations), but on the preparedness that is evident in how he can react and improvise to the flow of the scenes. This to me is the real basis of the Matt Mercer effect; anyone can learn these skills. The voice acting and mannerisms take dedication and training and are not essential to a great campaign. Yes; it does add to the flair of the streaming show and can be seen in the early short videos Liam posted, but the Theater of the Mind can be affected by any group willing to make-believe. Let us not forget the players at the table have a great deal to do with making Matt shine; he is not operating in a vacuum. It is a joint effort to create characters that are memorable and lovable. That the gang have re-invented themselves completely 3 times in the world of Taldore and drawn the viewers in without alienating the Critters is amazing. Again this is a group effort that any table of players can achieve with intent. Yes; this is a group of talented voice actors, with all the skills and work experience to back them up. They are real people who are enjoying being together; isn't that what we are seeking as well? Party on and forward!

[@SupergeekMike]

Exactly! I definitely have future videos breaking down exactly what makes some of these NPCs as memorable and beloved as they are, and how any one of us can accomplish that, whether or not we are a DM who “does the voices.”

[@victorballard5298]

I discovered CR almost 2 years before I played my very 1st game of dnd and only started playing because it looked so fun! My DM has some similarities to Mercer but not completely, we do A LOT LESS role playing than on CR which I actually like! But... I think it should be called the CR Effect because they are all top notch players and I think what they have done is what Tiger Woods did for golf, you had a bunch of fat old men who drank beer and played golf "professionally" and then Tiger came in and said "I'm actually going to take this seriously, train like other professional athletes train, and raise my level of gameplay!" Sure he dominated everyone for a long time but now everyone has raised their level of gameplay and it's an overall better experience. And I think that is what CR is doing. Look, I will never be able to RP my Dwarf Barbarian to the level that Travis RP's Grog or now Chetney... But I can be a better player for my DM!

[@willn9568]

“Professional athletes vs us regular folks” doesn’t quite capture it either. Mike’s point is not skill level/execution or even effort, but style. It’s more like different ways of playing volleyball. Do you want to have switching, running plays, coordination? You can attempt that even at modest or low levels of ability. Or do you want to just knock it around, keep it moving? Is it totally cool if one good player always hits it back over? How important is winning, scoring points? Is it just an occasion for drinking beer and socializing? Should all teammates get equal time on the ball? How important is playing “optimally” or “tactically” or “chill” or “approachably”? Is my highest priority winning the smack-talking with my friends? Making sure my teammate’s love interest is enjoying themself? It’s more particular priorities, especially because of the different pillars of play, so you can’t even just consider how “seriously” or “optimally” one plays, because there are different and even divergent vectors of optimization and seriousness.

[@SupergeekMike]

Very well-said!!

[@BloodsireArchitectGM]

Forever The DM ive had the habit of comparing myself to mathew mercer and my games to the CR players, but i was running a sub par game in my eyes and i was not prepared as much as i felt i should have when my players openly said after that session that it was such a fun session and this is all they wait an entire week for to play, it made me cry and to apreciate my players so much that even if theres no Mathew mercer effect i know im still gonna have fun and honestly not worrying about comparing myself to CR has actually improved my Dming and made me closer to the CR show i adore. i still have very different styles and its ok to feel inspired and use ideas CR uses, i certainly have used some in the sense of house rules and such but its important to know that if you are having fun and your players are having fun, theres nothing wrong with your game.

[@piecewise286]

Decently new DM here, and before I started DMing, the only experience I had of DnD was with a friend from college where she ran a one-shot. It was a quirky non-serious game where it was all about the laughs and the journey more so than the goal or quest. I had fun, but just felt like it didn't satisfy that itch that I had. I had started watching critical role shortly after playing in that one-shot at the behest of my DM friend. Instantly fell in love with that style of game where it was role-play heavy and combat was very tactical and in game decisions had in game consequences. (Keyleth jumping off a cliff for example) Fast forward a few months and my friends and I all wanted to try doing a campaign, but no one wanted to DM, so I decided to try it. I very much enjoyed it, and honestly, a lot of my inspiration came from Critical role. Though I don't have the budget, experience, nor skills of Matt Mercer, there are still many things that I have learned from him and have been introduced to because of Critical Role. My friends and I, who previously had zero Role-play experience, dove in head first and it has been seriously fun, and other times, seriously challenging. A group that started with 5 players turned into 4, which then gained 2 more members, then dropped down a member again because of differences of ideas. There was no session zero, and one of the people that joined later was a die-hard Critter, who was new to roleplaying but had watched every episode of CR to date. The difference in style was very apparent between that member and some of the other members. Thanks to some other video's that I had seen on other youtube channels, and some of the interviews of Matt and his interactions outside of the game with his players, a lot of that was able to be ironed out pretty early on, and our almost 8 months long campaign is still trucking along. Thankful for CR, and for your channel of which I watch frequently, in allowing me to learn more about the game, and about DMing to make the game the best I can for those at my table!

[@Juancultcha]

amazing channel! it is indeed a problematic thing in campaigns I've played but I agree its so wrong to blame Mercer for the expectations one might have of our DMs, I've played with good rookie DMs and with BAD experienced DMs and even though it were different experiences and nothing like CR, I had quite a lot of fun and helped me understand things of the game in different aspects! amazing content handsome keep it up!

[@ilmari1452]

I really like how you've explained this, you do it so well! I have a rather unusual history with Critical Role as a DM. For many years, my players were telling me about Critical Role, but I always brushed it off and privately refused to engage with it: because I had only siezed on the idea that it was "a bunch of american celebrities playing D&D" (yea I missed that they were a bunch of VA nerds). I assumed, with no justification, that it would be a really shallow, lighthearted show playing D&D for laughs like many games I'd tried to join but didn't fit with. Finally I had a long time with nothing to do and thought I'd give it a try. And it blew my mind: not because it was so much better than the D&D I knew, but because it was _almost identical_ to the D&D I knew and loved. And I began to realise that the reason I had in the last few years finally started finding an abundance of players who liked my style of D&D was because Matt Mercer was out there pushing the brand in the way I'd always wanted. Now, I gollow Critical Role very closely and very much enjoy it. I think it's great, but not perfect; but while I chuckle at Matt's bizzare/corny naming conventions and compulive malaproprisms; and some of his maximalist setting gets an eyeroll from the writer in me; I really admire his dedication and identify with him Which is all to say - to me the "Matt Mercer effect" has only ever been a positive. It has brought me more players who understand the style I am comfortable in. He's been an overwhelmingly positive force for my kind of D&D.

[@Mars34582]

This video has helped me greatly so! And that is because I am one of those "CR fans" that is still looking for a game akin to the style I prefer, if with a more intricate story. I started developing a passion for stories, and particularly writing, at a young age and it's been more of a decade now that I've been doing so. I did lots of worldbuilding, created and impersonated many characters and such, and eventually, this passion of mine brought me to stumble in CR a few years ago. And mind you, this happened after I already started playing D&D, if only slightly so. Now, being a writer and having played in GDR forums for years at that point, I knew D&D would be cool, but CR showed me the absolute potential it could achieve. So whilst I turned into a big fan of theirs, my D&D group disbanded and I went looking for something that would in some capacity emulate CR online. Needless to say, I was basically barrated left and right by daring to request such "unplausible standards", but what people failed to understand, and maybe too, what I failed to express correctly, was that I wasn't asking for a newfound Matthew Mercer to DM me, but just somebody that would be akin to his style. As a storyteller I wasn't interested as much in "KILL SHIT, TAKE LOOT, GAIN EXPERIENCE" but more in having a collective story with other people with the same desire. Even more, now that I've sidestepped my career in voice acting, I crave to satisfy that itch to develop a story together with people. But nowadays I may be right out wasted if I dared mention the name "Matt Mercer" when looking for a D&D group. But Mike, you explained it perfectly: use character voices + take into account the character's backstory + strategic combat. I could also swap out combat for "world description", because I like to be immersed in a scene, instead of receiving 5 words for the description of an entire capital city. It's not only about skills it's about how people are gonna DM. Thank you for enlightening me!

[@loganlima6864]

I wish I could send this video to my 2017 self, so I wouldn't feel like crap when my players started saying that I should be more like Matthew Mercer. On the other hand, that was precisely what led me to develop my own style, occasionally implementing something I liked from Matt's (with my own twists), but mostly not, from my second-ever campaign and forth. I still play with the same group to this very day, and have managed to hook them up to every one of my following campaigns.

[@marabergman2304]

The entire cast of CR motivated me to get back into D&D. My DM is definitely not the same but I feel inspired often to play like the cast plays. Also, my DM loves Matt Mercer so that probably helps. Lol

[@fredstauffer1331]

Similar effect in the martial arts community when people go into a a new school expecting their teacher to be a young Jean Claude Van Dam.

[@DjediVibrations]

I wanted to be a dm before seeing Matt but being a huge fan of his before knowing that I started my campaigns after watching critical role I love trying to reach Matt Mercer levels of amazing but I also love acting and have a brain that focuses on the details that make that easy. Matt inspired me to try and copy him and realize I can't and refine and define a style that I enjoy and so far I have had nothing but happy players. In the end passion trumps all and it will shine thru.

[@ArchlordCevic]

Over the years my table has gone from no voices, very "by the book" play. And leaned more and more towards actual play like Critical Role and Glass Cannon. What I've found is my players are more excited about the story and their characters development over "dude at lvl 10 I get ______". I get ideas thrown at me for backgrounds and motivations much more often. It's really cool. Imo as a DM you are the story teller, not just the rules lawyer.

[@ryanthomasjones]

In my personal experience, I find the Matt Mercer Effect more with the DMs than the players. When I DM, I am hard on myself that my NPCs do not come to life like Matt's do, even though no one at my table has ever said a thing. I have DM friends that I sometimes think do things like Matt does just because that's how he does them, even if I don't think they add to the game. We put these pressures on ourselves. I started watching with campaign 2. I was inspired to go out and buy a couple packs of Dwarven Forge. So I was actually relieved when I went back to start campaign 1 to see Matt using hand-drawn maps. I love your quote from Mike Shae, and those early episodes reminded me of the truth. The important part is the story, not the bits and bobs at the table.

[@SupergeekMike]

I'm glad you enjoyed it, and I hope this video helps!

[@Pumpky_the_kobold]

he's good, but non of his charm would work of the table wasn't participating and invested. if you can't be that players, don't expect it from your dm.

[@n.ludemann9199]

Thank you for your great videos! I am a DM since 1988 and I have been playing Pen and Paper RPGs even longer. I have played every edition of the game (but I have to admit I've never DMed OD&D yet - something I wanna change soon...) I totally agree with you - not everyone fits ones table, and this is OK... I encountered that "you're not doing the thing like Matt Mercer" thingy a few years ago when I started a new game for a group of younger students. At first I did not understand why one of those guys was after playing kind of a gunslinger - and why he was very disappointed firearms would not work in my game like he expected... (my standard edition is 2e so there is a chance guns blow up... why 2e? because I know it and I cannot and will not buy everything new for every edition... Lucky him - there are Campaign Settings where gunpowder just doesn't work...) I offered the player a kit (subclass in 2e) which we could tweek to fit his needs (an Archer, but with an arquebus instead of a bow...) and it did what he intended (higher rate of fire, more precision etc) . But I knew I had lost the player somehow. Because he could not play "Percy"... like he intended. *sigh* I had never ever heard the name "Mercer" before because - I never watched any actual plays besides introductory games of new systems I was curious about. All of the party was flabbergasted I had never heard about him or Critical Role. Well, I am openminded and I watched a few episodes. After that I knew that there is nothing innovative about Matts style... voices, sound effects, exaggerated/overacting, speaking in character/ as the person instead of telling how the person talks etc. and much more... Of course this is D&D, tbh, it has always been for me and my parties throughout more than 3 decades... All this is what has been happening at our tables since the 80s (what was before I cannot tell, I haven't been there) What Matt and I have in common is the question "How do you do it", and this is a very vital question, esp. if it comes to marching order in a dungeon. Even a non-thief can search for traps... the iconical 10foot Pole. The question is a very old school one. :) I am not sure if I have comparable skills, but without doubt I have 1 1/2 times more experience than Matt. And there is nothing outstandingly good or bad about his style. I still don't know why people watch so many hours of actual plays instead of playing themselves and doing the thing (maybe I am just an odd old stubborn grognard... ;) ) - but sometimes it seems to me many people are more sort of D&D-fans instead of gamers. This was a thing I encountered in the 90s - there were people who wanted to watch me and my party playing our weekly game. Well yes, ok I said. But you can roll up your own Character and join in when you are ready for it, just do it... No, those people wanted to watch the game, but not participate in it. Streaming and KZbin satisfied those audiences needs it seems. To their big disappointment I told them they could join next time. No, but they would pay for it. Well, the party and me rejected this because... it seemed like ... don't know. We were 7 to 12 people, friends of each other, and this was our "good time" together. It felt strange. We had hoped we could seed new groups of active d&d players, but this was not "it". As a DM I felt like the main attraction in a carnival, and so did my players... This is the reason why I do not like lets plays/actual plays beyond introductions to new systems or "classics revisited" (how long well we survive the Tomb of Horrors for example). Yes, I understand those people produce those shows to be watched. I still do not like imagining people watching my weekly game on the screen. Many words... - sort of a conclusion: I am sure CR is real, it is real D&D, neither scripted or fake. It is fun to watch it, but... it is not my cup of tea. Matt Mercer ... is just the DM, the "leader of the pack", the most prominent figure among hosts of this sort of show (Wil Wheaton was another some time ago...) To me it is just not ... interesting enough to watch it. What the people are doing at the table is playing D&D in a very sophisticated way, but watching it is not being a gamer oneself. Everyone shall do what they like, but my experience with "Critical Role audiences" in Forums is not the best... and I do not think it is a "Matt Mercer Effect", it is something different, already disconnected from the show and its own dynamics. A Fandom of its own.. To me it seems like a trending cult of exaggerated fandom, comparable to a Beatlemania or other phenomena of that kind. And any critizism - even questions - are viewed as heresy. (this is how it feels to me...) This is not Critical Roles fault, it is in those peoples responsibility. I do not want to do any gatekeeping, let them watch it, let people enjoy their hobby. But to me the whole thing has grown into sort of a secondary and even tertiary community (1st: D&D/P&P gamers 2nd: CR fans playing D&D and 3rd: Fans watching CR and reenacting it) Those fandom driven communities have developed their very own dynamics, codes, conventions, I'd even say: dogma what D&D has to be like. I think the mission primary is reconciling those to get beyond those categories and be one community again. Where nobody puts an anathema on those who just do not share this or that special field of interest (like the show CR...) There will always be different views, preferred styles, minimalism, powergaming, storytelling, hacknslay-dungeoncrawlers, hexcrawl-afficionados, political games etc. But this does not have to cause rifts in the community or even tear it apart. We should talk to each other, not about the others... lets find a via media (oh no... did I just give away my denomination? :D)

[@waskupie]

When I realized setting expectations for my 4-8 year Olds before entering a restaurant was life changing

[@malcolmrowe9003]

If Matt Mercer was to get an epic hero appellation, would it be Matt the Immerser?

[@oddlycalm4452]

It is already hard enough to BE a DM then add the weight of someone attempting to compare you to Mercer, the DM God, himself. I personally do mostly homebrew and like to ramp up the chaos as much as possible. My group loves it, for the most part. We had a Campaign called the Fighters Guild where we did basic stuff that ramped into a world ending crisis fueled by a vampire court and a mysterious Time Leaper who is linked to an ancient knighthood of the main hub city. Then we had an incident where I got burnt out because there was far more expected than I could deliver so I took a break. Recently, I rebooted the campaign as a sequel to the original which hosts a dimensional break that causes three worlds to collide and I have been having fun. Sometimes, running a goofy campaign that is as whacky and chaotic as can be is what's best. You don't have to be Matt and be grounded. I am also super crazy and lenient with my gameplay and have no bans on literally anything. If DND has it then you can get it, along with homebrew stuff that is very op. I love DND, I love being whacky, and I love keeping that as far away from my love of Critical Role as humanly possible.

[@AuntLoopy123]

I don't have minis. I have colored cardstock cut-outs (I literally cut up the cardboard from soda 12-packs and cereal boxes), with numbers and letters on them, and my niece had fun drawing the characters or symbols for the characters on the (green) cut-outs. Red is enemies, yellow is NPC companions, and blue is innocent bystanders. Sometimes, the red is more of a maroon, and sometimes the yellow is more of an orange, but you know what? It gets the job done. I don't have an expensive tower to keep track of initiative. I have wooden clothespins with PC names, and numbers/letters for the enemies and NPC companions. That's it. I clip them to the top of the DM screen, and it shows me who's up next, and the players can see it, too, so it's good for everyone, especially someone who wants to coordinate moves with another player. I spent, like, a hundred dollars on books of maps I can use for my game, and I've used a random forest scene once. For the rest, I have drawn my own maps, because I like the specificity of it, but I'll use those maps soon, just because I BOUGHT THEM, DARNIT! But I have to PLAN to use them, rather than just saying, "Hmmm, I need such and such. I'll just draw something simple on the graph paper. Done." Background music? Sometimes I use it, and sometimes I don't. Usually I forget all about it, until the playlist moves on to BATTLE MUSIC, while I'm pouring drinks in the tavern. However, I DO love using my laptop, because I found some cool story-time videos on KZbin (Widogast's Web of Words, for example) and some cool songs, and "The bards will tell you a story, or sing you a song for a gold piece. I put it on the laptop, and show it to the group, and they agreed they want more of that. It's fun, and immersive, and high quality (higher than me singing a capella or reading the story off a script). After the story/song, I ask the bard to make a Performance check, and if she rolls medium, she learns the chorus, or can give a very basic retelling of the story (which I have typed out to give her), or if the rolls high, she gets the entire lyrics, or a link to the story video, and she "has learned the story/song, and can perform it again, whenever she wants to." She really seemed to like that for her character, and it cost me NOTHING. I DO record my sessions, just so that I can go back and listen later, when I inevitably forget stuff. However, even that is iffy, because about half of them failed to record properly, so ... SIGH. I can only relive The Chocopocalypse in my memories. But now, the cleric has paid the bards 50 gp to write an epic ballad about The Chocolateers and Barthen's Chocolate (which he can then use to advertise his goods), and my niece is going to write it and I LOOK FORWARD TO IT, SO MUCH! I may be the DM, but I have no instrument, so I'm not writing a song for them. She wants it so much. SHE can write it. And she's OK with that. In fact, she had ALREADY STARTED TO WRITE ONE, before it came up in game! I believe that a good DM doesn't take on EVERYTHING, and allows the players to contribute. In fact, I have THEM take the notes. I take my own (simple hour-by-hour spells run out at X o'clock) but they have a party journal, and it's something else. My niece draws pictures of stuff, along the way, and it's AWESOME! This is a cooperative game, and half the time, it's completely off-the-track of what I had prepared that week, because my players throw me for a loop, so preparing pricy stuff is just a waste, anyway. Sometimes, it's just Theater of the Mind, because "I can't do a map that big," or "You wanna go WHERE?! TODAY?! OK." I'm not that good at it, yet, but I'm getting better. My brother was able to just improvise NEVERWINTER (yes, the entire city), and we spent days just shopping, because we were having a blast with all the improvised shops. My favorite was "What's the latest location of The House of Bam-Boom apothecary?" and my second favorite was when he sent us to a brothel to buy the gear my character wanted to restrain a wizard, when we finally tracked him down. "It's the best place to buy bondage gear. But take the back entrance, if you're looking to buy STUFF. The front entrance is for ... other things." All of that off the top of his head. He's so good! And there were no maps or minis. Just Theater of the Mind. In short, you can have an ABSOLUTE BLAST with just one Player's Handbook, one Dungeon Master Guide, one Monster Manual (or the internet, actually, to look up the stat blocs you need, or just make them up, yourself!), some dice, a lot of paper, and pencils for everyone. The set that CR has is great! But the set is not what makes the game. The early episodes, where he drew out the maps, and they had their paper character sheets and passed around the Player's Handbook, were LOADS of fun! Just as much fun! The new set and gear and lighting and sound effects add to the immersion, but the FUN is all in the GAME and the people playing it.

[@mikeybe206]

I am very excited for this journey.

[@Almightyshwa]

I really liked this video, especially the star wars crack at like 6:30. Well said as a whole I think. I've not ran into this with my players as of yet, but I've caught myself on more than one occasion trying to make my game measure up to CR when it's not CR. Like you said, CR isn't the be all, end all for everyone but it is what works good for that group. I really appreciate your thoughts and I look forward to watching more.

[@SupergeekMike]

Thank you!

[@daarka-]

Just stumbled into your content and can I just say, you are so charismatic. At least twice I actually burst out laughing, which I rarely do when watching videos. Informative, great takes, and just generally nice to listen to, take +1 subscriber c:

[@criticalmassreviews135]

I've been introduced to DnD by Critical Role and started to play with some of my friends. When I started DMing I definitely thought that I had to do everything to a standard as high as Matt, but the more I play, the more I realise that this was a terrible mindset. If you get together with the right group of people, you can craft a fun and engaging experience for everyone and you don't need any kind of expensive equipment or acting expertise to do so.

[@actuallyerik1623]

about the "If I had his equipment" argument, im just picturing Aladdin imprisoning Jafar in the lamp. You want his power well now your group have to sit not just across the table from eacother but like 15 feet apart, with 8 cameras in a hot studio. Keeping snacking to a minimum. Yeah sure that will make your home game better

[@atinybard6594]

Pre-game prep should always involve telling the PCs how you DM your game, this solves so many issues

[@therandomshow_]

How do u not have more subs? U deserve more, ur videos are great and informative

[@SupergeekMike]

Thank you so much, I appreciate that!

[@therandomshow_]

@@SupergeekMike of course! I only just noticed how many u had and was surprised. I had to make sure I was subbed cause u truly deserve it. 😌 Hope u have a great day.

[@SupergeekMike]

Thank you!

[@GoofyGE3K]

Good point! Fixed that

[@thomasrobbins7935]

I feel like the one time I experienced someone expecting a critical role game and getting upset because they weren't getting it, it was from a player that thought the entirety of the play experience was set by the GM and nothing was expected from him; that if his experience wasn't what he saw on the show it was my fault. He completely discounted the contributions of the players and rejected the notion that if you want your GM to be Matt Mercer you need to be willing to be Laura Bailey or Liam O'Brien or at least try to. I encountered this mindset before critical role, so while it might get called the Matt Mercer effect now, it's just this type of player has something to point at now. The player skipped our collaborative world building session (and regularly skipped sessions without notice) and declined my offers to contribute to the setting later. His backstory was that he was an orphan from a far off realm that didn't know anyone or have any connections. He regularly rejected opportunities to interact with NPCs or engage with the story while talking about how great it would be if the game was like critical role and to play in a game run by Matt Mercer. And this was a story heavy game, other players built alliances, uncovered conspiracies, had arcs based on their backstories, developed relationships with NPCs and each other, one player got married, another fathered a child, all of them achieved personal character goals, etc. He mostly just sat and waited for combat and wanted more powerful magic items for his character. Which is a fine play style, just not what was on offer and not what he kept asking for. He also regularly cheated, regularly tried to gaslight other players claiming they had said or did things they did not that would justify his behavior, and was trying to play some min-maxed build he found online that didn't fit the world at all, but that's a separate problem. He quit playing with the group and cut all communication with all of us when I left a voicemail for him that I wanted to talk about the problems we were having. I don't think this is in any way Matt Mercer's fault.

[@ladyprussia3618]

So I run fairly story heavy campaigns with a lot of roleplay, I am writer by trade so people know what to expect from me as a DM, but one of the biggest effects I found from Critcal Role is people actually wanting to be DM's. It's people actually coming up to me and asking to learn how to DM. Of course, there has been more problem players, but genuinely, the biggest effect I see is people actually wanting to DM

[@LeeRilude]

I like your star trek / Star Wars comparison. GG

[@SupergeekMike]

Thank you!

[@alexandrafletcher7853]

As a newish player, jumping in trying to role play left me almost dumbfounded because I honestly had no idea what I was doing. The cast members of CR are PROFESSIONAL actors. They are used to immersing themselves in a character. And I’ve learned that it takes practice to “be good” at dnd meaning knowing what kind of questions to ask or how to use spells creatively let along role playing. Bottom line, it takes practice and time to be comfortable and knowledgeable