Author Topic: Ideas for New episodes  (Read 11960 times)

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Josh

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Ideas for New episodes
« on: January 23, 2008, 05:02:02 AM »
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Peaboo

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #1 on: January 27, 2008, 11:42:40 AM »
The one shot vs. long term campaign. (Or One Night Stand vs. Long Term Relationships.)

Let's face it, in a one shot game players don't have to worry about keeping their characters around or safe. Nor do they have to worry about continuity. For not so random example, the DM has the characters hired to recover an item that will lead to more quests, but the players do the douchebag thing and destroy said item if it's a one shot game. A long term game they might not smash the item to bits.

Then again... I could be wrong about that.


Putting it together:

It's easy to say "Yeah, I like games with combat, but another player likes more roleplaying", so how DOES a DM achieve that balance?


Playing with everything:

A show about using "pure" D&D (Or whatever game), vs using third party supplements and/or using totally unrelated material. (Running Forgotten Realms with Gurps rules.)


Peaboo

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #2 on: January 27, 2008, 11:57:10 AM »
Oh.... On a somewhat related note; a suggestion for the podcast.

It would be a good idea if you had a couple of breaks during the show. Drop in 30 second to 1 minute features every 20 minutes of show. People's attention spans aren't long, and you can get really creative with some "bonus" segments that don't necessarily have to relate to the show. It would be unexpected and fun.

Off the top of my head:
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Meg

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #3 on: January 27, 2008, 09:25:05 PM »
Awesome ideas Peaboo.  I LOVE the analogy to one-night stand vs. long term relationship.

And what group would EVER just smash the treasure??  Man, what douchebags!

;)
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fantomas

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #4 on: May 15, 2008, 01:09:58 AM »
I understand that you are currently trying out new systems. Something I'd like to hear would be a playtest recording of each of these. Hearing how other people find a game from a play session as opposed to just reading the book give myself (and I suspect others) a greater appreciation of how the game works out of the box and what issues people find when running/playing it.

Plus listening to other peoples gaming sessions is always fun. :) Since I started playing Heroic Cthulhu as a regular I have a very limited amount of games to listen to. :(

Josh

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #5 on: May 15, 2008, 04:58:19 AM »
A huge problem with that would be the recording.  As it stands we are having issues with getting the podcast sound quality up, getting everyone around the table would be even harder. 
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logan9a

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #6 on: May 15, 2008, 10:41:53 PM »
I'm using a cheap audio-technica ATR 97 mic http://tinyurl.com/6mp2hw that one of the fans bought for me (you might be able to find them cheaper than the one I did) and, with going through the steps I do http://tinyurl.com/58d3a9 it turns out OK - it's not wonderful, but OK.  (Yes, I've done it with all live groups as well - but that is something to discuss - what works, what doesn't) via skype if you are curious.
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« Reply #7 on: June 23, 2008, 11:56:55 PM »
I've been thinking about this more and more.

I think I have a player, a grognard like myself (25 years plus playing), a min/max'r (not that there is anything wrong with it), a "play-to-win-story teller" type that may very well have bought a campaign source book, not just to have it, but to know it. It produces the worse kind of feelings in me and the bile rises from my gut at the thought.

And while this is nothing new, I have prejudices, as a grognard and as "always the GM, rarely the player" that this is cheating of the worse form in RPG gaming. And while this prejudice of mine has made me a better GM that can ad lib and stitch a story together, I'm saddened, because the campaign is one that I would like to sincerely run, out-of-the-box.

So, I have some great threads that will steer the party into the plot, I just don't want the railroad to be so obvious. Me thinks this is going to require a "scrape off the serial numbers" approach, and yet, what are the experiences of other GMs like the BGs in this situation?

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #8 on: June 24, 2008, 12:32:04 AM »
Oo!!  The one we are recording this week may actually address that!  We're recording the episode "Settings and Scope" and how to work with a setting that there is a lot of information already produced, but I think this is a natural subtopic for the show.  It definitely led to our decision to do this topic- that annoys the crap out of us too!
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Smudgy

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #9 on: June 25, 2008, 03:26:25 PM »
Perhaps one on the hassles of DMPCs, and how to get your players so that they don't want to just kill him and take his stuff? NPCs in general have a tough time staying alive sometimes when they have loot to take or talk at all.

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #10 on: June 25, 2008, 03:31:37 PM »
Hm, that could be interesting.  Our perspective is extremely different- most NPCs/ DMPC's in our games have ended up sleeping with or marrying one of the PCs. 

Maybe we're just a make love not war group?

Though actually-- thinking of that... It wasn't always like that.  There was a pretty major shift that came when we started playing 3.0 where we stopped working against each other and were forced to work together and that mentality carried through to other games as well, so perhaps the main topic could be a DM episode about "Getting your party to play together" with DMPC's being a subcategory off that?
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Smudgy

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #11 on: June 25, 2008, 03:46:02 PM »
That could definetly work. Include stuff about division of loot, sharing the spotlight, resolving arguements, etc...

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #12 on: June 25, 2008, 09:30:28 PM »
I second the "getting your party to play together" idea for an episode. I'd make my entire gaming group listen to that the next time we gathered to play. :D
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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #13 on: June 26, 2008, 12:12:17 AM »

Homebrews vs Published material, taking into account things like humour, RP and maybe other things might be easier to inject into homebrew.

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #14 on: July 11, 2008, 11:49:50 AM »
What about an ep on how outsiders view RPGs, and how to explain to them what they are? (I do not recommend the "sarcastically tell them about sacrifing goats" strategy which seems so popular)
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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #15 on: July 14, 2008, 04:59:37 PM »
I think you guys could probably improve on the ideas in the DMG (4E) about how to design your game for different types of people.

You could pick up on things like which types of people are most and least likely to get along; better suggestions for involving players.

Really, I'd just like to have you guys' opinions on the ideas and solutions in the DMG.

Alternate Idea: You guys could cover what games re-create (or fail to re-create) the feel of tabletop gaming.

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« Last Edit: July 14, 2008, 05:02:26 PM by Dan2 »

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #16 on: July 14, 2008, 08:43:43 PM »
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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #17 on: October 05, 2008, 10:19:08 AM »
Elegance. In today's day of expandable game design, it's a tricky creature to keep character creation elegant. To point at the worst offender that I know, D&D 3.0 had a deluge of splatbooks that were basically mandatory to achieve parity with some classes, and which let other classes screma on ahead.

Versimillitude. This is one for GMs - how do you keep games feeling alive? How do you give players the feeling that when they aren't around, things are still happening? Then, how do you maintain that feeling without making it feel like their actions aren't important?

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MilwaukeeJoe

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #18 on: October 13, 2008, 04:07:10 PM »
The one shot vs. long term campaign. (Or One Night Stand vs. Long Term Relationships.)

I would love to see a GM-oriented episode (or part of one) devoted to how to GM differently when running one-shots vs. an ongoing week-to-week campaign.

I pretty much run just one-shot "con style" games, at Gencon and other conventions.

(I'm working my way through the episodes, I'm a BG newbie - if they cover this topic in an episode somewhere, just tell me.)

Thanks,
MilwaukeeJoe

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Re: Ideas for New episodes
« Reply #19 on: October 13, 2008, 04:38:14 PM »
Elegance. In today's day of expandable game design, it's a tricky creature to keep character creation elegant. To point at the worst offender that I know, D&D 3.0 had a deluge of splatbooks that were basically mandatory to achieve parity with some classes, and which let other classes screma on ahead.

Versimillitude. This is one for GMs - how do you keep games feeling alive? How do you give players the feeling that when they aren't around, things are still happening? Then, how do you maintain that feeling without making it feel like their actions aren't important?

Wielding Cliches. It's so easy to complain about cliches, but they become cliches for a reason. Cliches are the screwdrivers and hammers of the narrative toolbox.

I love these-- especially the first and second.  I could see us really delving into these issues.  Thanks for the suggestions!

The one shot vs. long term campaign. (Or One Night Stand vs. Long Term Relationships.)

I would love to see a GM-oriented episode (or part of one) devoted to how to GM differently when running one-shots vs. an ongoing week-to-week campaign.

I pretty much run just one-shot "con style" games, at Gencon and other conventions.

(I'm working my way through the episodes, I'm a BG newbie - if they cover this topic in an episode somewhere, just tell me.)

Thanks,
MilwaukeeJoe

We haven't done this- we've talked about it a bit on the boards here, but I never thought of doing it as an episode.  Good idea!  There is a ton to be said about it as well.  Thanks!
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