Yesterday I had Twitch up for some music streams, and decided to take a dive down the rabbit hole of the live D&D streams.
Now, I'm aware that DM'ing for a stream and DM'ing for your friends and family around a table are going to have some real difference to adapt to the venue and audience.
Still - it struck me as a potentially good place to watch other DMs at work, and decide if there were aspects of their style, or techniques, that I might "crib" for my own style.
I certainly noted a number that I didn't think that were a good fit for my style, and it spurred me to think about why and what results I might be aiming for that they were not, and why I do things the way I do. I've always tried to think critically about my style, and what is the functional purpose behind rules and conventions ( and why I might value - or devalue - those purposes, and the ways I might adapt the "fit" to what I value ), but I don't know if I've ever had large scale opportunity for direct DM style/DM style comparison before. I've certainly played under more than a handful of different DMs in my gaming career, but this is a broader sample of styles, I think.
Anyone else tried "field studies" of Twitch to "sharpen their game" like this before?
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But I got a really good feel for how 5e plays before ever DMing a session by watching Crit Role and D&D with High School Students, and of course, listening to a whole lot of Matt Colville describing how his campaign at Turtle Rock studios was going.
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WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
It's a great idea. DMing involves a very broad range of skills and certain approaches are more suitable for different types of players and adventure genres so no doubt you'll learn something new when watching someone else work without the distraction of having to participate yourself.
Everything I know about D&D in general comes from YouTube and twitch. Definitely a great way to learn. I like to watch D&D for entertainment purposes but I’m constantly studying as I watch as well.
Cool - I'd say that 90% of what I learned, I learned as on-the-job training - but I've definitely put polish on the theoretical side of things reading The Angry GM ( don't always agree with his approach, since I think we're chasing different styles - but his discussions are always educational and well thought out, if not particularly well written :p ), and kicking around things in these forums.
YouTube and Twitch seem to fill in the practical side of that equation.
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
Yesterday I had Twitch up for some music streams, and decided to take a dive down the rabbit hole of the live D&D streams.
Now, I'm aware that DM'ing for a stream and DM'ing for your friends and family around a table are going to have some real difference to adapt to the venue and audience.
Still - it struck me as a potentially good place to watch other DMs at work, and decide if there were aspects of their style, or techniques, that I might "crib" for my own style.
I certainly noted a number that I didn't think that were a good fit for my style, and it spurred me to think about why and what results I might be aiming for that they were not, and why I do things the way I do. I've always tried to think critically about my style, and what is the functional purpose behind rules and conventions ( and why I might value - or devalue - those purposes, and the ways I might adapt the "fit" to what I value ), but I don't know if I've ever had large scale opportunity for direct DM style/DM style comparison before. I've certainly played under more than a handful of different DMs in my gaming career, but this is a broader sample of styles, I think.
Anyone else tried "field studies" of Twitch to "sharpen their game" like this before?
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
I watch YouTube, not twitch.
But I got a really good feel for how 5e plays before ever DMing a session by watching Crit Role and D&D with High School Students, and of course, listening to a whole lot of Matt Colville describing how his campaign at Turtle Rock studios was going.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
It's a great idea. DMing involves a very broad range of skills and certain approaches are more suitable for different types of players and adventure genres so no doubt you'll learn something new when watching someone else work without the distraction of having to participate yourself.
The Forum Infestation (TM)
Everything I know about D&D in general comes from YouTube and twitch. Definitely a great way to learn. I like to watch D&D for entertainment purposes but I’m constantly studying as I watch as well.
Cool - I'd say that 90% of what I learned, I learned as on-the-job training - but I've definitely put polish on the theoretical side of things reading The Angry GM ( don't always agree with his approach, since I think we're chasing different styles - but his discussions are always educational and well thought out, if not particularly well written :p ), and kicking around things in these forums.
YouTube and Twitch seem to fill in the practical side of that equation.
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
I’m a big fan of The Angry GM, I’ve found his articles to be very helpful.