GM Tips

Come hither as Matt Mercer tells you how to be a better GM / DM. Today’s episode shows you how to build engaging encounters: everything from enemy creation and difficulty level to shaping battlefield terrain.

Come hither as Matt Mercer tells you how to be a better GM / DM. Today’s episode he teaches you how to create NPCs—both good and evil.

Come hither as Critical Role’s Matt Mercer tells you how to be a better GM / DM. Today’s episode shows you how to roll with the unexpected player choices!

Come hither as Critical Role’s Matt Mercer tells you how to be a better GM / DM. In today’s episode he shows you how to build social and other non-combat encounters!

Come hither as Critical Role’s Matt Mercer tells you how to be a better GM / DM. In today’s episode he shows you how to roll with the punches, and suspend player's disbelief.

Come hither as Critical Role’s Matt Mercer tells you how to be a better GM / DM. In today’s episode he has some word on RPG etiquette

Come hither as Critical Role’s Matt Mercer tells you how to be a better GM / DM. In today’s episode he has some word on how to reward your players!

Come hither as Critical Role’s Matt Mercer tells you how to be a better GM / DM. In today’s season finale, he answers some frequently asked questions.

Matthew Mercer takes us behind the scenes to see the screen. What goes on it? What goes behind it? How do you organize everything? You're about to find out.

Matthew Mercer shares insight on the importance of improv and how to effectively prepare for and react to the unexpected in this episode of GM Tips!

Matthew Mercer teaches us how to get your group to roleplay, because sometimes it doesn't come naturally. Character background stories, engaging conversation comfortably, and leaving your comfort zone are just a few ways to get started.

Customizing the creatures and characters in your campaign can add a nice flavor to the experience. How you customize is dependent on many factors: party size, mobility, recovery ability, story relevency, and more.

Part of any great campaign is having custom items in your arsenal, but before you do, you'll need to consider the enchantment levels, distribution rules, and more.

Game Masters create beautiful worlds, creatures, items and more, but mistakes can easily be made. One small mistake can throw everything off. Matt Mercer runs us through common mistakes and ways to resolve them!

Player death is inevitable in a campaign, and Matt Mercer gives us some tips to handle the event properly. Thematics, last words, mourning, and properly moving on are just a few ways to help soften the blow.

Are your adventurers making questionable decisions? Are they becoming evil? Do you want to run an evil campaign the right way? Matt Mercer shows us how to keep things on track even with Murder Hobos in this installment of GM Tips!

Homebrewing can be inspiring and fulfilling, though very challenging. Matt Mercer lays out a few tips and tricks for creating the best homebrew content you can.

One-shots can be fun and handy for trying out new characters, tactics, and more. Critical Role's Matthew Mercer outlines a basic structure to designing your own one-shot, and gives some tips to make them better.

Choosing personality archetypes can lead to fun characters, and the real meat comes from the backstory and the experience. Game Master Matt Mercer lays out a few tips for roleplaying against type in this episode of GM Tips!

Critical Role DM Matt Mercer lays out a few tips to help prevent roleplaying burnout, in GM Tips!

This week on GM Tips, we’re back in action with a brand new host! Satine Phoenix (Co-creator & GM on Maze Arcana and founder of Celebrity ChariD20) takes the reins and tells us all about the different styles of storytelling. Then, she’s joined by Ivan Van Norman who discusses how GMs are all different, how games are run, and more!

This week on GM Tips, Satine Phoenix (Co-creator & GM on Maze Arcana and founder of Celebrity ChariD20) talks with Maze Arcana co-founder Ruty Rutenberg about finding and cultivating a game community using different opportunities available to players in 2017.

All the previous episodes of GM Tips give you great tips on the various facets of running a campaign, but we’ve yet to talk about something you may not have thought about but may very well come across at some point: how to keep your cool and run a smooth campaign when you’re joined at the table by another experienced Game Master. It can be nerve-wracking to GM your own game but GMing for another experienced Game Master can be outright scary. Joined by Eric Campbell, Satine Phoenix teaches us a little bit about both sides of the GM screen.

Satine Phoenix brings in local GM TL Frasqueri-Molina to discuss GMing for kids, table etiquette, and the responsibility to the emotions of the players at the table. Because in any game, players can come in all shapes, sizes, and ages, and it’s important to learn how to be a good Game Master when you’ve got kids at the table. Do you have any tips for DMing with younger players?

These next few episodes of GM Tips dive deeper into creating your adventures, and today is all about story structure. Whether it's a novel, a screenplay, or an RPG campaign, proper story structure is key for your campaign and is more than just a beginning, middle, and end. Satine Phoenix discusses storytelling basics, asking the right questions, and more. Then, Amy Vorpahl joins to share her secrets and add her perspective to the discussion.

A character's backstory is necessary to give them reasons for taking certain actions. Do they have fears? Relationships? A nemesis? It can be valuable as a game master to incorporate each character's backstory into the game. Satine Phoenix is joined by Keith Baker (Eberron, Phoenix Dawn Command, and more) to share some ways on getting players to buy in.

So, you've found a group of friends to join you on an adventure. It's all good now - you'll play every week without an issue. Wrong! Over time, things can become stale in an RPG, so Satine Phoenix and guest TJ Storm share some tips on keeping things fresh.

Note: This episode was taken down from YouTube by the network, after allegations of sexual were uncovered against the episode guest, Zak Sabbath. The following is the original episode blurb by the network: "As stories are passed down through generations, they often evolve into something bigger and better, being supplemented with new ideas. Satine Phoenix is joined by Zak Sabbath to discuss using other stories as inspiration and more!"

Every story needs conflict to satisfy basic player needs. One of the ways is to introduce villains, whether they're a school bully or a dictator. Satine Phoenix is joined by Peter Kyle to discuss his 18-year campaign, villains, and more.

We've discussed structure and preparation, but sometimes your adventurers want to go in a different direction. Satine Phoenix is joined by David Nett to discuss how to resolve the situation when you're thrown a curveball!

We've been asked this question often: How do you get your players to roleplay? Well, Satine Phoenix has a few tips in mind and is joined by the one and only Taliesin Jaffe to help share some of his own!

Have you ever played a battle royale, aka a PVP RPG? Encounters with many participants can be difficult, so you might need an assistant. Bruce and Keith Monach, the two game masters of Storm, join to share their tips!

Each player sits at your table for a reason but not all adventurers are created equal. Satine Phoenix is joined by Liam O'Brien to share his tips on knowing your audience.

Generally, the word "encounter" means to get your dice out and prepare to fight. However, encounters are really the moments when players get to use their stats to effectively traverse a situation. Satine Phoenix is joined by guest Ruty Rutenberg to talk encounters. What are your GM tips? Share in the comments below!

In part 1 of this two-part episode, Satine Phoenix is joined by Matthew Colville to discuss the intricacies of designing encounters in your campaigns!

In part 2 of this two-part episode, Satine Phoenix is joined by Matthew Colville to discuss the intricacies of designing encounters in your campaigns!

When Satine Phoenix played games as a kid, RPGs were played theater of the mind style. Now, there are many ways to visually engage your players. Jennifer Kretchmer joins to discuss the best ways to visually upgrade your campaign!

How do you get players to do that thing you want them to do? Satine Phoenix is joined by Stephen Chenault of Troll Lord Games to discuss ways to keep pace in games.

Alignment has been a key part of roleplay forever. Good, neutral, or evil? Satine Phoenix is joined by Jason Charles Miller to talk all about alignments!

There are so many different games available now, all with different styles, rules, and character sheets. Thus, starting a new campaign can be daunting. Satine Phoenix is joined by Chris Bramante to discuss bringing new players into the fold.

The heart and soul of roleplaying is imagining things with your friends. Many roleplaying games have similar mechanics and getting permission to remove those mechanics can create a whole new adventure. Satine Phoenix is joined by Ryan Green to discuss permissions!

We want games to excite us, scare us, and make us feeling something more! Today Satine Phoenix discusses creating mood and suspense with guest Ivan Van Norman!

Prepare! Research! Notes! It's time to forget all of that and learn how to make a campaign on the spot! Satine Phoenix is joined by Dave & Tedd of Nerdarchy to talk all about off-the-cuff home brew games!

Satine Phoenix is joined by Chris Lindsay from Wizards of the Coast to discuss Epic Home Brews.

Satine Phoenix and guest, John Wick, come together to discuss ways to manipulate and customize your game for a more personalized experience.

Satine Phoenix and guest Sax Carr talk about how limitations can make your game more focused and efficient.

Satine Phoenix and guest Luke Gygax delve into player fatigue and how to keep the possibilities alive even if you’re an experienced player. Master the art of being a Game Master by implementing essential GM Tips from veterans. Because every roleplaying campaign needs a Game Master, and a good Game Master can turn a regular campaign into a legendary one.

By limiting the combat and raising the danger levels when the action happens, players are more invested in their characters and thus the story is better enjoyed by everyone. Consider fighting like you do in real life. Have some hesitation before starting combat.