🎲🐲The Alexandrian's "So You Want to Be a Game Master" Review

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@stevefugatt7075 10 ай бұрын

This sounds like an excellent source for advice! I've been playing/running since the early 80s and one thing I've learned....There is always something else to learn

@daddyrolleda1 10 ай бұрын

We've been playing for roughly the same amount of time! (I started in 1981). Thank you so much for watching and commenting!

@willydstyle 10 ай бұрын

Your history videos are so amazing I'm sad they're not doing well. They're what got me hooked on your channel FWIW.

@KabukiKid 10 ай бұрын

Indeed. I love the history videos, as well. I hope future ones get better traffic because he definitely deserves it.

@andrewhallock2548 10 ай бұрын

I found The Alexandrian blog a few years ago and I agree his advice is great advice for any game system a person might use. Thank you for a thoughtful review on this book.

@daddyrolleda1 10 ай бұрын

I appreciate you letting me know, and I'm really glad you found the review helpful. Thank you very much for watching and commenting!

@josephpurdy8390 10 ай бұрын

I find using a keyboard to type notes during a session helps. A record of combat logs allows you to prep future encounters. This is much better method than using Challenge Ratings. If you keep track of economic transactions. You can use this to formulate plot hooks involving paid contracts. If you take notes on NPC dialogue. You may be able to suprise players with a long forgotten NPC. That reminds a player of an incident, and what has happened with them because of player involvement. Good note taking keeps players engaged. They know that their actions are contributing. That goes even for simple spreadsheet ledgers.

@daddyrolleda1 10 ай бұрын

I used to be really good at taking notes, even stopping the action to pause so I could write stuff down. However, I found that doing that kind of thing just kills any tension that's built up, so now I do two things during a session: 1) During breaks when my players (for my daughter's game) are checking their phones, getting snacks, using the bathroom, etc., I jot down notes of what happened since the last break 2) I ask one of my players to write a recap in the "voice" of their character, and use that as my notes. They often focus on different things than I would have, and I use that to guide me. They all take turns, so I can learn what parts of the session appealed to which player, so I can mix things up and make sure I'm creating scenarios that appeal to each player (not all at once, but on a rotating basis). I can't really use a keyboard because we're playing in person and I don't bring a laptop or anything, but that is a good suggestion! Thank you very much for watching and commenting and giving these great suggestions! I really appreciate it!

@michaelwest4325 10 ай бұрын

I enjoy the history and deep delves very much, but I watch all your content because it is good...make what you make, I will watch it. Thumbs up!

@davemills7717 10 ай бұрын

Cool video. I was on the Smirnoff.

@daddyrolleda1 10 ай бұрын

Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it, and appreciate the comment (for the algorithm!). I'm not much of a Vodka drinker myself, but as I understand it, Smirnoff is a good choice. Cheers!

@MemphiStig 9 ай бұрын

To me, the 1e PHB and DMG are fundamental reading for any rpg player, not just because they were the "originals" but because they were so well written and so comprehensive. This book looks to me like it will join them among the most essential parts of a gamer's library. And like you I much prefer books to pdf's, but these days I'm sort of limited space-wise, so pdf's have become my go-to. I still use pen and paper tho.

@pscaglione3 10 ай бұрын

The book looks great. And I love classic Christmas music!

@daddyrolleda1 10 ай бұрын

Thank you so much for watching and commenting, and especially for watching all the way to the end for the drinking and listening! I really appreciate it, as I enjoy making that part of the video and feel it helps provide a bit of a personal touch. I cannot recommend this book enough, especially for people looking to start DMing but it's also great for a refresher or providing new ideas for old-timers like me!

@shadomain7918 10 ай бұрын

thanks, I have this but haven't read it yet. probably next week

@paavohirn3728 10 ай бұрын

Got the book yesterday. A lot of attention at least early on is given to applying 5e game mechanic. I hope the solid advice in the mix doesn't get buried underneath. Ofc I'm not really the target audience as I'm not completely new to GMing 😅 I can see this being really helpful especially to those who are just getting their feet wet. Interesting read in any case. Merry Christmas and a happy New Year!

@jarrodjanuary5486 10 ай бұрын

Excellent review. Love to hear what you’re drinking!

@daddyrolleda1 10 ай бұрын

Thank you so much! I started adding that section of "drinking and listening" back in mid-June and so far, about half the folks love it, and about half the folks skip it! But, I still enjoy doing it to help break of the monotony of my old hands showing old (or sometimes new) books!

@Gaurelin 10 ай бұрын

I'll definitely look into this. I've been running games for 40 years, and I never want to stop learning new things, trying different approaches, and growing as a GM. Every time I start a new game, I always go out of my way to try and expand my skill set by doing something different, or working on something I feel I could improve.

@captainpazuzu 10 ай бұрын

I'm with ya on doing positive reviews. Definitely gonna check this one out and maybe do my own review. I believe in supporting the little guy as well. And commenting. :)

@agilemonk6305 10 ай бұрын

It’s a great book. Got it on the day it was released, as I had pre-ordered it. ❤

@daddyrolleda1 10 ай бұрын

Excellent! Thank you for watching and commenting even though you already have it! I appreciate it!

@kuriboh635 10 ай бұрын

I will say I'm 25, but I'm with you on the reading pdf vs. physical. I try to get everything on both because I like having my books anywhere or shareable, but I'd rather read physically if possible because I do a lot of work on the computer

@WikiSnapper 10 ай бұрын

Great video. I might have to pick this book up.

@knghtbrd 9 ай бұрын

I appreciate the positive. There's been a lot going on and a lot for people to be negative about, but these games are what we do to get away from the things that are negative-or should be able to be. I have only started looking into this book TBH, but I really love what I'm seeing so far. I will be gifting it to a couple of folks. I most appreciated your videos on adapting the game for young players or maybe folks with different needs/expectations for a game. I'm obviously thinking kids and maybe folks with disabilities (teacher background, so ensuring there's something for everyone to the greatest extent possible is both a natural inclination and important to me.) I also enjoyed some of your history stuff because, well, because I'm a nerd. 🤓 I can tell you I'm always looking for tips that can help me run a game more easily, because I have a couple complications to doing so. First, I have to go to the game, since the game cannot come to me. That's an issue for two reasons (and I hope I haven't already written about them in a video 10 months ago…) The first is that I'm legally blind. Can't read tables off a DM screen. Either I need to know it or have it printed on an index card big enough I can read it. The second issue is that I'm taking chemotherapy drugs that sometimes drastically reduce what I can carry. So not only do I need things big, I need them extremely lightweight. Digital can be a plus, but the less reliance on that the better because I still have to get pretty close to my face to read text, and that's distracting. What I've been doing is keeping paper maps with numbered spaces along with an index card stack. Each card has a number and a few keywords printed flashcard-size large on them. These are a mnemonic for describing the space, along with the map. I've gotta be able to read this side of the card without holding it up to my face and these words may be visible to players when I read the back of the card. The back of the card is smaller print. The details. who might be here, treasure, etc. This is stuff I have to bring the card up to my face to read, so while I'm doing that the players will see the other side of the card if they're looking. There might be a few other cards for random encounters, etc as well as a few misc tables and the like. That's mostly it. I have a digital device and a pile of dice, but that's all. This has been all theater of the mind because anything else I carry would need to be both very light and public transit neigh indestructible.

@neutraljump 10 ай бұрын

Just keep doing content, and surely the views will keep coming.

@justinblocker730 10 ай бұрын

Game Master Commandments I: Run your game nothing else. II: Talk to your players. III: Write down rules only you use. IV: Know Your Monsters. V: Player decisions must have character consequences. VI: Once in character, stay in character. VII: Keep descriptions simple, then stay silent. VIII: Failure should be interesting. IX: All players drive the game forward. X: Have fun or get paid, sometimes both, never neither.

@daddyrolleda1 10 ай бұрын

Some great advice here! I particularly like II and VIII but it's all good stuff. Thanks for watching and commenting!

@paavohirn3728 10 ай бұрын

I sometimes learn even from stuff I don't agree with based on personal preferences. Even that stuff can highlight and clarify my own preferences helping me run games in a way that's meaningful for me. That said, I have a lot to learn and I feel I've learnt the most in the last few years of GMing after over 30 years of doing it. Of course despite a relatively long time in the hobby, I don't have extensive GMing experience so I know there are newer GMs with more experience and those who are much more talented.

@jaybakata5566 8 ай бұрын

Where did you get a pdf of this? I only see a physical copy for sale.

@daddyrolleda1 8 ай бұрын

It's an "Alpha" version sent to me by Justin Alexander for review purposes. 00:11 I mentioned at the beginning of the video that it's an early version without a lot of the art and such. I'm not sure why a PDF version isn't available commercially, but there's a list of all the places where you can buy a physical version on the Alexandrian website.

@jaybakata5566 8 ай бұрын

@@daddyrolleda1 PDF I can zoom to make the font bigger. Although I would like to buy physical with a digital copy. Don't see that as an option. Not sure how to contact Mr. Alexander to ask if that can be an option.

@andyduvall7090 10 ай бұрын

Nice vid as usual

@paavohirn3728 10 ай бұрын

I totally agree on having the player decisions and character actions drive the game if the players are immersed and coming up with ideas that make sense. Then, if needed we roll reactions or search checks. What I am thinking of trying out is doing as at least BECMI has it, that when encountering someone and if neither side is surprised, is to first roll initiative and if the "monsters" go first, roll reaction unmodified by charisma. Based on that and what the PC's do, we roll another reaction or resolve it through role-playing. BECMI, I recently realized has this 2-3 tier reaction system, where the later rolls are modified also by the initial reaction. I'm fascinated by this rediscovery so I want to give it a go. I still want to give primacy to RPing but I think this might be a cool basis instead of just deciding that a particular encounter starts with the NPC being hostile for example, making it harder for PCs to pull the right strings. Maybe by rolling it happens that the NPC is friendly (even if easily offended) because they could really use the PCs help with something.

@lexington476 10 ай бұрын

30:35 how about a review or comparison of 1st edition to 2nd edition AD&D?

@davemills7717 10 ай бұрын

When you work in the service industry you have to listen to Christmas playlists over and over and over again, thats why people hate them.

@daddyrolleda1 10 ай бұрын

That totally makes sense. Hearing the same of *anything* over and over can make you dislike something. I worked at a factory job (in the typing pool) right out of high school and they played the "love songs" soft rock station, which I despised, and I grew to hate a great number of those songs. So, I get your point and can empathize. Every year, I create a new Playlist on Spotify featuring "new" or "obscure" Christmas songs (like a lot of old 1930s blues songs that don't get played on the radio) to play in the house so my wife and daughter don't get sick of the music. My daughter really loves the music, at least currently. My wife is ready to listen to pretty much anything else after about 3 or 4 days, so I always have something ready that's new. Not just a new cover of an old song, but a completely new (or "new to her") song. There are thousands of them! Cheers, and thank you so much for watching (especially all the way to the end!) and commenting. I really appreciate it.

@tomkerruish2982 10 ай бұрын

I've seen a meme of Jack Nicholson breaking through the door in The Shining, only its Mariah Carey with a microphone.

@chiblast100x 10 ай бұрын

Yep, service industry and retail both get way too much of it. I'm lucky that the restaurant where I work is a corporate mandated no X-mas music establishment, "doesn't fit the image we want", but any time I eat out or go to buy anything for the next five to six weeks it's gonna be there and be there as the most overplayed versions of every bloody seasonal standard (including _Santa Baby_, _Last Christmas_, and _Christmas Shoes_). Add ttoo that I spent over a decade before here working places that did do X-mas music and bloody pumped it into the kitchen so I couldn't escape. For myself I just have a curated list of less played ones and interesting versions of standards which I'll listen to the week before the holiday (HP Lovecraft Historical Society included).

@daddyrolleda1 10 ай бұрын

I like this approach, that you have your own curated list. That's what I do, but I have dozens of different lists in Spotify depending on my mood, etc.

@jacobstein9549 8 ай бұрын

I once visited a Halloween costume store that played Monster Mash on a continuous loop. I was there for only a half hour and still I . . . I . . .

@ericgranata6664 10 ай бұрын

Good video! As its coming up on Christmas, for the bonus content, what rum, brandy, or other drink would you suggest for an eggnog?

@shadomain7918 10 ай бұрын

@nicklarocco4178 10 ай бұрын

This is the kind of book I find personally to be least useful to me. A lot of the advise in new GM advise, which the hobby desperately needs more of to be sure, but rarely is there anything in such a book that I haven't at least heard of. This is a worthy replacement of the tutelage of another GM if none can be found to teach you.

@dungeonmaster16 10 ай бұрын

It’s good for new “gms” for sure. My gripe with the book is why I put the quotation marks there. The book is labeled and game master with heading of pathfinder and later other rpgs, but 90% of the book references and uses dnd terminology and always the term dungeon master then game master. I don’t know if either A. At time of book being made this is before the whole dnd ogl issue back in Jan of 2023 and the author focus on dnd, of B. Not trying to assume but they used gm and such to boost sales to get various ppl to look into and buy the book without realizing it’s more favored to dnd.