What Writers Should Learn From Dan Harmon

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Dan Harmon is the writer behind several of my favourite shows. In this episode, I take a look at Harmonquest, where he puts his narrative instincts to work in an improvised setting. In short, practice may not make perfect, but it makes it hard to be bad.
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“I Can Move On” and “I Know Dan Harmon" from the “Harmontown” Original Motion Picture Soundtrack by Ryan Elder.
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“I’m Going for a Coffee” by Lee Rosevere. Music For Podcasts 3.
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Other music, “Clouds,” by Joakim Karud / joakimkarud
Interview with Spencer Crittenden on Uproxx:
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[@JustWrite]

Hey guys! Thanks for watching! If you've got any suggestions for future videos, let me know here :)

[@shadowsgate0]

I'd love to hear your thoughts on the anime Fate:Zero. I find that its character development is its strongest asset and how every character is a paragon of some form of philosophical ideology adds so much more to it. If you are also into games, I would like to hear what you have to say about the story writing in games. Things such as Last of Us and what not.

[@ChrisMcSweeney]

You've linked to the wrong Facebook page in the description ;)

[@JustWrite]

Fixed! Thank you!

[@Ptaku93]

it's not a suggestion really, but I miss the old Electric Mantis music your videos used to have. Any chance for their comeback?

[@LeftbrainGG]

Are you going to do a video on Attack on Titan?

[@jordansullivan5764]

"Your father left you when you were young, right?" "yeah but...I like to be the one to, to share that."

[@mik3y448]

What is this from?

[@LAYMN]

@@mik3y448 Harmonquest.. the first season I think

[@Barely_Here]

this story element is exactly what drew me into the game, and into critical role as well

[@CuriousMoth]

It's like when you make a pacifist character for a D&D session and you don't tell anyone, you just see how long you can get away with it before someone notices.

[@goodmorningandwelcometo7324]

By all means play a pacifist, but for gods sake tell people. Group storytelling works best when you are all on the same page. Dan Harmon doesn't seem to get this a lot of the time he often steamrolls and demands focus in the name of "character progression" which is fine for a show which literally has his name on it, but in a group role-play or imrpov situation it's at best just being a jerk.

[@dracocrusher]

+GoodMorning AndWelcomeTo No, don't tell anyone about it and see how long it takes them to notice. While good writing takes collaboration, if the people you're working with have so little interested in other characters that they literally can't stop trying to steal the scene to give focus to another character to specifically help improve the group, then that's not productive at all to forming an actually good group dynamic.

[@goodmorningandwelcometo7324]

Yes it is the group's job to listen and pay attention to other characters and people but that doesn't work if you are being deliberately evasive. If you are going to judge the members of your group for not paying attention to information you are intentionally withholding from them then you've misunderstood something basic about communication.

[@therocketboost]

CuriousMoth In bird culture this is considered a dick move

[@iisgray]

Pacifist characters can be alright, but for the love of God, make a character that's useful in combat for things other than fighting. I've seen plenty of Clerics that were pacifists, refusing to do anything to harm the enemy... but would gladly heal and buff the main party or create distractions as needed. There are systems where you can create a character wholely useless in combat, but D&D isn't balanced for it unless the DM doesn't acknowledge that character at all when generating adventures

[@theMoporter]

I hate it when D&D is mischaracterised as pure power fantasy. It's all based on how you roleplay. Some people roleplay more and some less, it's all about how the individual wants to play. Many times, a player in my current campaign has pondered the "best" thing they could do, but ultimately didn't do it because it would be out of character.

[@Tailed22]

Waiting for someone to say this!

[@ninjaboy191]

Need more comments like this. A lot of the statements this guy made reflect an antiquated, formulaic way of playing D and D. If you run with a seasoned tabletop crowd, most don't play that way and know how to make it fun. Haven't seen HarmonQuest bur ironically, as a tabletop fan, this vid makes it look less appealing.

[@themanofconstantsorrowelia1929]

I remember playing with some friends and I realised the weakness of the boss. Thing is my character was the worst fighter so I decided against hitting it to stay in character.

[@viktorbodnar7738]

You are correct, hell the original D&D games hosted by Gygax were anything but power fantasies. But you have to consider how outsiders view this hobby. After all,terms like powergamer, munchkin, etc originate from rpgs.

[@Mitchmeow]

My approach to playing dnd is usually to try my best to make the dm cry by tearing down everything they've built. Like using my ridiculously high charistma to convince the goblins to join me and then marching them back to raze the city where we got the quest in the first place.

[@Battleschnodder]

I love the analysis, but also consider: there are simply RPG players that play like that. The desire to develop your character is often the whole motivation behind playing, just as for others its the power trip and for others still its the sheer escapism. I know plenty players who would run in that situation, both because "it's what my character would do" and to just see what happens. There are whole systems where flaws are a central part of the mechanic to encourage just that behavior.

[@PhyreI3ird]

The Dresden Files game is a great example of that for any who are curious. In simpler terms (sorry if I don't explain very well) for one example there's a very core mechanic around what's called fate points, that every character gets at least one of, and they can be spent to change the flow of events or introduce a new narrative element or a number of other really interesting things _if_ the game runner and player can agree it fits (like having a random police patrol save you from getting killed by muggers in some downtown streets or being denied if you were out in a desert or something). It's a really strange idea to most table top players, especially those of us who mostly like to strap in for a narrative ride, but it's handled very well and encourages you (when run correctly) to play into your characters flaw or "trouble" written on the character sheet as one of your character aspects by tempting you by tempting you to follow through with it for one of those juicy fate points, and of course this leads to a lot of potential for interesting character moments. In general the Dresden game is a very character role-play/narratively driven system and is just really cool for those that love role-play and want character development in their games more.

[@gracefool]

Absolutely, I used to play like that. To me there's a difference between actual roleplaying and power-gaming.

[@6slade]

Battleschnodder yes everyone can do a thing, that’s the point, the video creator has decided to showcase the behaviors of one individually to teach a bunch of others about a certain concept. The same development in character (whether as players or story writers albeit I believe they are often the same thing).

[@theshamanite]

@@PhyreI3ird I've thought of something similar to modify my friends' D&D game. One of the ideas was to (on a certain roll) let the player choose from a stack of events, one of them being a betrayal.

[@vincentmuyo]

There are also whole systems where flaws are terribly executed ways to give players more points and encourage them to never bring them up in play.

[@iquemedia]

Human existence is a story by nature. Some are able to bring this into stories that they create beautifully, which is why I appreciate Harmon's work so much. Not just "haha pickle rick xd" but all of the content he creates is inspiring for story tellers

[@musclesglasses5790]

How is "story" the existence of a 6-year-old who got run over by a car a month ago? Or a couple on a motorcycle head-on crashed with another car, the guy died on the spot, the girl had a week in coma, then died? That's what new in Rick and Morty - they are not afraid to reveal the abruptly finite nature of our existence. Morty dies constantly, so does Rick, so almost every other character. First we're uncomfortable with it, after awhile almost hooked on it. There is no "story" in our lives, only in art.

[@iquemedia]

Muscles Glasses all those descriptions you just wrote were the short endings of those people's stories. Art is just one portrayal of a story.

[@stuv1996]

+Muscles Glasses Seriously? You don't see the irony in what you're saying?

[@musclesglasses5790]

I look at these things a bit grim because I work at a funeral agency. Mostly people don't see it, or choose not to see it, but there is actually so much death in our lives, we're surounded by it, walk on it, breath it. All these people now lying in fridges in our cities have pretended to have a "story" once, hoped for something, then it all abruptly ended. I see them everyday and do you know what they look like? I'm gonna tell you honestly - they look fooled. There were never any story. I still hold by this existential view. I know I'm wrong.

Muscles Glasses does it pay well? Do you get a lot of time off or just sitting around or is there a constant stream of "customers"?

[@adamsuniverse]

As a big Harmontown listener, I'm surprised you didn't mention the story circle. If you've ever heard Harmon improvise or craft a story from nothing you'd see him outline his simplified version of the hero's journey that just about every episode of his shows follow.

[@sylendraws1249]

His writing is in complete HARMONy

[@pirateKaiser]

get out.

[@oof-rr5nf]

pirateKaiser Aww, come on. Puns are hard.

[@sa_1304]

*SylenDraw* I see you everywhere!

[@enigma19833]

Some people find his ideas DANgerous

[@user-ev5gj8xe2b]

STOP APPEARING EVERYWHERE

[@FilledCircle]

Great DnD players will always play to their characters first. It's awesome! When people start playing they do try and min/max everything, or they play to their character's too much, a good GM will do their best to balance RP and combat. Harmon mixes both.

[@maxg971]

Well.... Now I'm gonna watch HarmonQuest!

[@lukeskywalkerthe2nd773]

Kommentator-T3rminator Me too! :)

[@barkevk5295]

Kommentator-T3rminator where is it available?

[@vilotarian]

VRV.co

[@elbroder995]

believe me you might think its a good idea, but dan harmon gets really weird sometimes and not in a good way.

[@ManjMau]

Get a VPN. I use www.privateinternetaccess.com/

[@TheRealFlyingMonkey]

I just starred watching Community and i love every second of it. Honestly one of my favorite shows

[@WDSimp]

I love that people can record themselves playing DnD and it becomes a popular thing now. Harmonquest, The Adventure Zone, Heroes and Halfwits; all great times to be had.

[@JayEyedWolf]

Teckniphobia I don't know if you've heard of Critical Role, but it's a relatively popular tabletop podcast as well!

[@themadichib0d]

Now theres also TFS at The Table just in case you wanted to watch the DBZ Abridged guys play DnD

[@dracocrusher]

Yeah. I mean, at the end of the day, I feel like that makes sense. DnD is really just collaborative impromptu storytelling and, as a writer myself, I feel like RPing has honestly helped me improve quite a bit because you have to be able to come up with a plot and then work around unexpected situations, which is a good skill to have in general, I think....

[@diegoacosta8550]

Woo

[@shivankarmohan5603]

yeah but critical role is quite an investment. their episodes are long. not complaining(or comparing) but for a casual watcher harmonquest is better.

[@drawing-with-eva]

I've discovered this channel recently and i want to thank the creator of it. You put so much in such simple words. It's amazing. Even though I'm a drawing instructor I use many of your observations during my explanations. It's amazing how much drawing, creating music and storytelling have in common. So thank you so much for doing this!

[@swish007]

i think playing a lot of table-top games like D&D actually help you become a better writer (and improviser probably). it's just kind of built that way.

[@Nionivek]

It really depends on your mentality. FAR too many players become too attached to their characters.

[@gracekim25]

swish007 I guess I have to play it then

[@mechajay3358]

Fact

[@brookygamesvr]

I'm glad you're featuring Harmonquest. I listen to Dan Harmon's podcast and he didn't even promote season 1 properly. I'm enjoying season two on VRV. Giving Harmon all of the credit when Spencer writes the story, and citing an author instead of Harmon's own talks on the subject is a bit of a tangled web, but somehow it didn't feel cheated. Thanks!

[@grzegorzuberman2516]

Your narrowing down of RPGs to just power fantasies is, well, very narrowing. I've been a player and DM for about two decades, playing campaigns spanning over multiple years of very regular sessions and character arcs were always the thing that made us want to continue. Emerging character developpment and relations both within and outside the party are just priceless. But anyway, thanks a lot for introducing me to Harmon Quest, I'll definitely dig into it :)

[@alexp.4270]

Wow. Dan Harmon is a genius because he decided to play a role in a role playing game. Many D&D games are narratively focused, and the people who run them purposefully structure their games to mirror a three act structure. You can praise Harmon for writing capabilities, but what is being praised here is a combination of basic writing skills and modern D&D.

[@MiaTyrnfae]

Not sure if this has been said before, but the game they play in HarmonQuest (and on the podcast Harmontown) is Pathfinder. It's not a knock off of D&D, it's an entirely different game that branched out when players didn't like 4th ed.

[@finalizarproceso]

Wouldn't call it a knock off, but neither an entirely different game. It is, at it's roots, basically D&D 3.5, only with improved rules and a new setting. Still d20 system as a base.

Yeah because 4th ed sucked

[@auto9520]

but 5e is out now so why play it. unless you have a developed campaign with pcs that you care about. which in that case keep questing :D

5e sucks too, in some ways more than 4th, though mostly it's better. But 3.5 and pathfinder are better and we already know the rules for those quite good so no need to waste time mastering the 5e system which is worse anyway.

[@auto9520]

saying 5e sucks is your opinion, but it is the most played and most accessible to new players not to mention the expanded manuals for even more classes and races.Not liking it is one thing. But calling it trash is a bit much and wrong.

[@Alesmai]

Great video, but damn the streaming ('online tv') market is becoming saturated as hell. How many $10 video subscriptions can we be expected to have?

[@thegoldencaulk2742]

The next one is gonna be helmed by Dan Harmon himself, and he's gonna call it HarmonStream

[@rolanddeschain6089]

Yeah! And even the big services split up more and more. Disney (Star Wars, Pirates, Animation, Marvel, Indiana Jones - Franchises) splits off Netflix. CBS is launching its own service with the new Star Trek series... and so on. i started asking myself, if not the big media bosses met 10 years ago, looked at the entire market, the whole television program, and asked themselves: How do we get people to pay for every shit individually? But slowly, you know. So, when they realize it, it's too late.

[@Kevin_Street]

I doubt anyone planned for market fragmentation, but the big content creation companies know it's in their best interest so they keep doing it.

[@Sellipsis]

Eventually when I finish the first season of Harmonquest I will sub to VRV for one month, watch the rest of harmonquest, and cancel my subscription. It's the only way to operate at this point.

[@ATizzle08]

EXACTLY

[@fozzibab]

Sooooo pretty much all of Harmon Quest is actually written by Spencer. Maybe revisit this to address that.

[@DaNwUzHeRe]

Harmonquest looks awesome. Love your analysis on Harmon’s understanding of a character!

[@kayrupe125]

That last line really spoke to me. No wonder I dig Harmon's work so much

[@hazelrm157]

I'm from Mexico, and there's no information and videos like this in spanish. Thank you! Very good work!

[@Kaylx3]

Hi man! Thank you soooo much for this video. I have discovered this writer (know his shows but not the guy) and i immediatly research his storytelling advice. And hid adaptation of a Hero's journey helped me a lot to modify and have a better story for my final project of my bachelor's degree in 3D Graphics. So thanks a lot man you inderectly save my life! I learn lots of things with you so keep going you doing great :D

[@madeofmarble8514]

I think what you miss is that modern TTRPGs aren't power fantasy. Maybe AD&D was just focused on slaying some orcs and getting through the barebones adventure, but now people want characters to have depth. They want to feel like they're creating a story. Even the ones that still have a strong focus on combat like D&D or Shadowrun have changed to support advanced storytelling. If you want to play some more story-focused RPGs, try a Powered by the Apocalypse RPG or the GM-less Fiasco.

[@ploff9921]

Think I've seen like half a dozen videos on KZbin about Harmon's obsession with the hero's journey so was a bit suspicious of clicking this video, but wasn't disappointed. Thank you Just Write for consistently adding nuance to your content!

[@callumjohnston858]

I actually just came across a tabletop game that makes you include a character flaw in your character creation. On the one hand, it can give you a negative effect on certain rolls, but now I can see it also helps create a more compelling story for the players, and gives the GM more to work with. The games called Lancer btw, I think the creator also does Kill Six Billion Demons. Put that here because I think it's pretty good, but it's still being developed, and it could probably use some support.

[@drewdowdeyshow]

Number one writing lesson: WRITE

[@rickym1081]

When I clicked on this video I really thought you were going to talk about Harmon's take on the Hero's Journey and his "Story Circle" as it relates to Rick and Morty, Community and other stories.

[@WolfGr33d]

The weakness of creators is we almost always inherently love our creations, and when our creations face criticism it can feel like our baby is getting punched by the real world. Personally I think the best thing to do as a writer is learn about three things. Story Structure, Character Arc, and Theme. Story Structure basically keeps things evenly paced, Character Arc helps us to invest in the story by making us empathize with a character learning to search for what he needs rather than what he wants, and Theme gives a purpose or 'truth(s)' to take from the story.

[@timothymclean]

Whenever you have one player who is roleplaying way more than anyone else, the story tends to bend around them, with the rest of the party almost acting merely to further their story. I'm in a campaign where I'm actively trying to roleplay my heart out (it's the first campaign I've been able to play in a while where things other than combat are emphasized), while the other players are: Someone who's new to RPGs and still learning the ropes, someone who doesn't think of roleplaying a character, someone who doesn't want to roleplay character traits other than "badass," and someone who _can_ roleplay but is currently roleplaying half of a bumbling, comic-relief ettin. (It doesn't help that my character's backstory and other characters' factions just about automatically make me the party leader.)

[@Rhysman30]

Some of the genius of Dan and Justins' writing can be seen in Rick and Morty. For brief moments in some episodes there will be these fleshed out characters, organizations, or situations that are so intriguing. They make you think, "Oh yeah. I want to see how they/this develops" and then they'll be killed seconds to minutes later. They write better settings and characters than Hollywood or I could could write as a center piece for a whole story... then discard them immediately. It's a huge flex.

[@maskeddave]

I found this when playing Edge of The Empire, the Star Wars RPG. When you're creating the character you can take on additional abilities/XP but get a randomly assigned "flaw" in exchange. Almost every player does this, because you want a stronger character, in fact I did it twice. My second flaw was that my character had a need to betray, the first flaw was that a had a large debt to pay off. You don't have to share these flaws with the other characters. Those two things combined to allow me to come up a "unique" backstory for my character, let me give him a bit more life and importantly completely changed how I played the game. I was now not really in the same party as everyone else, I was out for myself with my own goals. I made decisions not based on "how do we progress" but "what would my character do". For example, in the first "mission" this meant that while everyone else explored the map fully and got into lots of fights, I just went where the safe probably was, spent every round cracking it until I got in, took all the money and ran. The GM only told me how much money was in the safe. So I payed off the boss who'd sent us, gave the players a token reward that let them think I was sharing, and spent the rest of the ridiculously large some on getting a cybernetic implant that made me like a living wireless R2 unit which I then had disguised so I could keep it a secret from everyone else. I hacked everything from that point onwards. I would never have done that without those pre-assigned flaws that I had to role play. It's quite an easy thing to bodge to any pen & paper RPG system, so I definitely recommend it.

[@jamietodd2560]

"Demonic version of Chelsea Peretti." Isn't that redundant?

[@evanmorkert9109]

rude

[@Moemartins]

Awesome video, man. Seriously. It touched a lot of topics that are "sensitve" for writers, like being overwhelmed by aaaaaaall the information that there is out there.

[@felixa5095]

Hi, I'm a huge fan of your videos, I've seen them since last year and I love them. Thanks to you I can improve better my writing and work out my storytelling. Thank you so much and I wish you good luck from Chile❤

[@Dynamitejason]

There’s a pretty big misconception here. Spencer wrote harmonquest. Dan has said several times that he had no creative control.

[@cristiadu]

If it's a dnd doesn't it mean that the character interpreted by Harmon was indeed his creation? It's his decisions and his lines or it's not dnd, but just a pre-existing story

[@memicoot]

"What is entertaining for a creator may not be entertaining for an audience" - my issue with improv.

[@munkdev]

Thanks for introducing me to this show. I've watched every available episode in the last two days.

[@TheBrockwellBroadcastNetwork]

Great insight! Harmon is an amazing storyteller, as he completely gets the structure and needs within story, but also subverts them for effect.

[@TheMindofRa]

Also a thing Writers should learn from Dan Harmon is his simplified version of the hero's journey known as the Harmon Story Circle.

[@ninjaboy191]

Yeah, if they want to come off in the most cliche way possible. Stop treating Harmon like a god, he is incredibly mundane and predictable.

[@JamesGalloway27]

@@ninjaboy191 and you aren't?

[@htasul]

@@JamesGalloway27 oof gottem

[@yumyum3599]

YES! Someone finally acknowledges my favorite show! (Harmonquest) good to see it getting more attention

[@pow8408]

Yo! I think I had a mini breakthrough watching this 6:10-6:30. This is exactly how I feel around studying and creating things in general. I feel overwhelmed and snowed under by the endless amounts of information and creative opportunities. It causes me great anxiety and depression. But anything that is purely manual I can do without fear. I was a pretty big jock in high school because of it. Anyway, Imma try to chunk things from now on so I don't feel so DAMN overwhelmed. Thanks again for this vid.

[@jaketaz2848]

This is a great Channel, I don't know anything about this writer and you still made it interesting

[@GenGaara]

Maybe you could do a video on how to do a proper homage to a genre? If an 'homage' goes too far it becomes a parody, yet to subtle it becomes unnoticed or doesn't feel like it's meant to. Directors like Matthew Vaughn can do it expertly, in his films Kick-Ass and Kingsman: The Secret Service homage their genres perfectly during the first to acts by referencing and subverting classic tropes, but by the last act fully embrace them and become legitimate superhero and spy movies respectively. They move the genre forward but honoured what came before.

[@victorwainaina2584]

Thanks for bringing to light other works of Dan Harmon instead of riding on Rick and Morty. I honestly didn't know of Harmon Quest so thanks for that too.

[@drewevans3054]

I started watching Harmonquest because of this video, I was not disappointed

[@elainascott7496]

My husband almost got to be an art director on this show. We were so disappointed when his friend's studio didn't get the show, lol

[@greenirez2798]

Because of this video I started watching Harmonquest and damn I'm loving it. Thanks.

[@savsci87]

Harmon talks about one of his main influences, Joseph Campbell, and his theory of the monomyth or "heroes journey" a lot on harmontown. That's the origin of the clip at 1:15 and harmon's "refusal of the call" character development

[@MasterAppels]

Community's first season was so good, but I didn't feel the same fire after that.

[@tiagoguerreiro5937]

Master I think both the third and (especially) the second season were better than the first

[@Rossy167]

Ok so your idea about how D&D is a power fantasy and how Dan plays it differently from others on the show is total bullshit. I don't think I've ever played D&D as a flawless character who does everything right because it's boring as shit otherwise, the characters are what makes it compelling. Tbf our DM is an English lit student so I guess that helps.

[@inversiold1751]

When it comes to personality I find Dan Harmon to be extremely eccentric, but damn he knows how to put a compelling story together on the spot

[@spockrates7980]

D&D is only a power fantasy if you make it that way. I mean, I've only ever played one campaign of D&D and I did plenty of things to weaken my character because it made narrative sense. I am not alone in this.

[@cecilia7932]

This resonated so much with me, I feel bubbly inside now, thank you.

[@ChrisMcSweeney]

I was very confused for a moment when Spencer Crittenden was in the thumbnail.

[@myth86715]

really nice video. lately I've been trying to write more often but, like you described at the end, I often feel overwhelmed. this definitely gave me a boost. I'll definitely check out both community and harmon quest, because I love rick and morty

[@mangaluver1231]

I so needed this video today. Thank you. Can't wait for the next one.

[@omarkayall]

"it's really a difference of degrees." I like how you take care to cater for nuance

[@PurpleFreezerPage]

Thanks a lot for connecting this to advice for all creative practices.

[@Quincy_Morris]

Strengths make plot interesting. Weaknesses make characters interesting.

[@TokisanGames]

Thank you for your phenomenal videos. They are truly incredible. Also thanks for turning me on to another Harmon TV show that I didn't know about! Very excited!

[@Potpotpotter]

Community is my all time favourite show. I love this

[@SpenceSoundsGood]

Fuck, that was an absolutely amazing video. I've been in the film industry for a couple years now, making a name for myself as a sound person, but ever since about 3rd year of University I realized it was my true passion to write for comedy. I really think I can do it, it might take me a while but I think I'll get there. I can tell you must be one hell of a creator, and I hope that whatever you're aspiring for beyond KZbin works out for you man, you deserve it.

[@HxH2011DRA]

Thanks for the VRV link

[@MasterAppels]

Aubrey Plaza looks better every time I see her.

[@CuriousMoth]

She's like a fine wine.

[@kathiravanganesh5618]

Master yes and she is amazing performance these days. Legion series one of her Best. She should deserves Emmy nomination for her role legion

[@meserbet]

God do i love her.

Kathiravan Ganesh Legion was amazing and I don't like super hero stuff usually. Only sophisticated ones like Watchmen or V for Vendetta and similar.

[@zyaicob]

Damn I love Aubrey Plaza

[@RubenNeil]

I find Jeff Davis is always the one that gets the crew back on track when they get carried away improving. He's really good at keeping the story going forward.

[@a_monayyyyyy]

Brother I'm just finding this channel and I'm honestly so thankful and impressed. I've never really written anything before, but I have a story to tell. These videos are incredible and compelling and I'm literally taking notes on this stuff. Thanks for your work. Amazing content keep it up.

[@stuv1996]

Dan Harmon is my biggest inspiration, he is a creative genius. Also I'm glad you have cupofste's animation in this video. It's absolutely perfect and I hope he/she makes some more of them eventually.

[@temperedtantrum1610]

i dont really comment on any videos, but this was so interesting to watch, thanks for posting, i always find great content when i load your channel, good day and keep on keepin on.

[@OwenTuson02]

The story of Spencer is so heartwarming

[@DMKleinArts]

The new d&d has elements of this baked into the base rules when you make characters. Each charcter has role play beats, a main trait, ideal, bond, and flaw. Players playing to these and making sub-optimal decisions can get favors in form of inspiration dice by the GM by being interesting storybuilders rather than playing to win.

[@johnlong8952]

I really want them to do a second season. The show was how I got my casual friends into playing D&D

[@bretts8070]

What everyone should learn from Dan Harmon: Don't call a bunch of people who aren't Nazis, Nazis.

[@udbhavseth799]

Finally making it instinct. So happy.

[@SignedDiamond]

Writers can learn that no matter what success they find through their efforts everything can be undone if you clung to crude shock early on.

[@benlink202forever]

Isn't D&D suppose to be you telling a story and not playing a game? For some reason everyone makes it out to be that D&D is suppose to be leveling up and looking to find more dungeons. When most of the time it's you making your own character in order to insert yourself into the world and make a story out of it. Projared's D&D videos have sorta taught me that when it comes to playing D&D. So when Dan Harmon does it, I don't really find it innovative for what he is doing. but he sure can make interesting stories out of a D&D session.

[@OddCreative]

Hey man, love these videos - really helpful, will be sharing with our writers. Can I offer a criticism? Sometimes when you cut-away to an interview or audio that isn't your voiceover, (noticed this in your Game of Thrones vid as well as this one), the volumes vary quite a lot. Enough to adjust my speaker volume, but then be deafened when your voice comes back in. Consider using something like a limiter on the master audio which will bring the lowest audio up, or a compressor which will bring the highest volumes down... Or you could spend ages staring at an audio level meter I guess. Hope that's helpful and not intrusive or unwelcome!

[@hayleyhistorynerd2211]

Hi'a Sage! I love your video essay I'm always really stoked when you when I see you have a new upload. You inspire me. You mention of if a storyteller tried to keep in mind all the nuances of storytelling they'd never get a word written. I feel like this is so true and I've lost time to it. The idea that holding on to all these tools can become instinctual is really comforting. Thank-you! That's really cool you like Rick and Morty. I really dig it myself. It's so irreverent that I feel like it would offend a lot of people, so I can never guess at who might like it. If you haven't done an video on Rick and Morty it might be a real treasure trove of stuff. The way, on first glance it looks like a hot mess, but it's used to explore some really heartfelt stuff and super interesting Science fiction concepts in a way that's relentless and a riot of color. The Unity episode, or the the Toxic Rick and Morty, or even just having a character whose an asshole, but you root for him anyway. Just little suggestions, I will watch all the videos to you post. Hayley ^_^

[@cashicahooni9100]

Not gonna lie that last quote made me smile

[@tiax_m]

the "off-brand" version of D&D they play is called Pathfinder

[@divinull]

This show Harmon Quest sounds a lot like Thrilling Intent, by the guys down at the youtube channel "The Third Wheel", it's a web show with 4 actors, 3 are players and 1 GM. If you like one, then the other will prove to be just as fun/funny.

[@BigBadWolframio]

I loved Harmon's Quest! But I must say that you're not completely right about roleplaying games tending to be power fantasies, because, yes, the most marketable aspect of it it is (D&D focuses A LOT in the combat and dungeoneering aspects), but there's a great deal of us who focus more in the storytelling :)

[@armokgodofblood2504]

Calling Pathfinder an off-brand version of Dungeons and Dragons isn't entirely incorrect but it still hurts.

[@deadlytriforce3914]

So, great video. Question. Do you play D&D or any other tabletop RPG? Because respectful disagreement. It's not power fantasy if you play it by the design of the books themselves -- it can be, and often is, but is not meant to be. Weakness is what keeps people playing, not strength. The Critical Role DM makes really good points on how playing weak characters is the most fun. And, interestingly, the acquiring of power doesn't erase weakness, it more often than not reinforces weakness.

[@PhyreI3ird]

You make really good points and I totally agree, but at the same time you could totally argue that it's power fantasy through the means of overcoming and managing weaknesses. Those tend to make for the most powerful, or at the least most memorable, moments of games imo.

[@deadlytriforce3914]

I can see that. It kinda follows from the "new strength reinforces old weaknesses" idea I'd mentioned (not my idea, can't find source), and the DM is kinda only doing half of their job if weaknesses are never given opportunities to be overcome. Which, to me, is antithetical to power fantasy, where it's basically Shadow of Wardor or The Wheel of Time or something, entire worlds based on the subject/audience getting to feel empowered without asking them to do anything.

[@jenihudson2757]

Have you considered looking at the McElroy Brothers' Adventure Zone? Specifically, the ability of Griffin McElroy's overarching plot and things that lead his players into a more interesting show, ultimately making it a rare success for D&D podcasts.

[@thefellowshipreforged8901]

My friends and I personally try to make whichever decision suits our characters best, but I get that some people just play for power increase.

[@MrDrummerDeluxe]

Man I love your Videos I can learn so much from them, thank you for making these. btw I would like to see you making an What Writers Should Learn From Naoki Urasawa, since he one one the best in his genre

[@PrincessScrivener]

I feel so inspired, honestly. I'm gonna go finish that script. -S

[@puglosipher1666]

Oh shit, forgott that a season 2 of Harmonquest had coming! gonna watch it

[@Awesomepedia]

Despite Harmon's veneer of character development, HarmonQuest still felt a lot more like comedy improv than it felt like a story, or even a role playing game. Not that it was bad, but something like The Adventure Zone, with just a tiny shift towards compelling, manages to be silly and story-tastic at the same time. Granted, The Adventure Zone had a lot more time to do it while everything in HarmonQuest felt disposable, a sense that was doubled by the guest players. The characters played on Harmontown also grew in more interesting and natural ways, in my opinion.

[@MultiSiffi]

Finally someone talks about harmonquest

[@movierates247]

Well made videos I'll definitely have to give this show a watch

[@memyopinionsche6610]

having never seen Rick and Morty to this point. and seeing community a few times. Dan Harmon is on his own level. and I respect that. now I will watch Rick and Morty because I got dialed in. and have been watching his D & D show I am sooo curious.

[@lisssner]

love Harmon Quest, i wish there were more shows like that

[@TheBoomamatic]

Sometimes i come back to this video just so i can hear Spencer say "I'm a Dungeon MASTER"

[@hauntedholiday4250]

Shadowrun is really good for this, with its "negative qualities" things that force your character to act a certain way, at the benefit of additional experience points at the start of the game.

[@endrankluvsda4loko172]

By far my favorite writer!

[@Dominickudo]

I saw the first episode it was so good.