Hello everyone!

After much deliberation my gaming group and I have decided to try recording our sessions, because they are awesome and we want to share them with the world!

My question is this - we're at session 31 of a campaign that has been running for just over a year. Lots of stuff has happened, and as the DM I try to make it relevant. I don't want the listeners to feel lost because of these plothooks bubbling back up to the surface!

As such, I want to figure out how to catch them up!

My first thought is a standalone podcast in which I describe what has happened, in as much detail as I can recall. This shouldn't take too long, as there will be no banter or rolling, and roleplay sequences can be described by their conclusions. I want to involve the players in this, as it might jog their memories somewhat as well!

My second thought is that me rambling for over an hour might be intolerable, so I thought I could highlight important information from previous sessions before the session. We're recording, editing, and then posting, rather than going live, so I can say "in a previous session they met this guy who sold them this thing" in a preamble to a session where the thing becomes relevant. That way people don't have to remember an hour or more's lore dump of the campaign!

My third thought is Both. I could do the big ramble then have the preamble as well to refresh listeners of the plot.

What is everyone's thoughts on this?

i bounced hard off critical role season 1 because the first youtube episode was far, far into the campaign already. i'd be curious what other people saw in it that kept them watching.

a recap makes a ton of sense, but requires significant visual aides. i'll always stop to watch a youtube short of Tales from the Stinky Dragon puppets or Acquisitions Inc animated. but it doesn't have to be a big production. i'd watch a comically brief fast-forward recap done in popsicle stick paper dolls or potter-puppet-pals if it was done well.

I think your best bet is starting out in medias res - in the middle of things.  Commonplace in epic poetry, like The Iliad, and still rarely seeing some use, such as the original Star Wars starting at Episode IV, an in medias res start allows you to get right to the action without bogging down your players with much in the way of exposition.  A very short - a couple of paragraphs at most - introduction is all you need (the Invocation at the beginning of classical epics; the main title crawl from Star Wars).

You do not need to invest much effort into catching up your viewers - not at first.  Their primary goal is initially going to be watching/listening to folks play D&D.  They are not, and will not be, super invested in your world - with so many options available to them, they care about “are these people fun to watch” first, and exposition is not the best way to show you are fun to watch. You can always catch people up later if things take off.

Notably, this is how Critical Role got its start also.  They jumped right into the action with little fanfare, and filled players in on the details later.  This worked really well for them - it was easy to begin watching, since there wasn’t that much in the way of a dull information dump, and it allowed viewers to instantly assess the playstyle of the main cast. 

Yeah, I agree with Caewrwyn... it makes the most sense to just start the first recorded session as though it's the first episode of a show that just happens to be starting in the middle of the adventure. Still treat it like a first session... have all the characters introduce themselves to the audience like they would describe their characters in session 1, give the audience just the information they need to enjoy this one adventure and let the rest of the story reveal itself over time. Stepping away from stuff like Critical Role, think of stuff like how in the MCU Hawkeye and Black Widow would regularly banter about other missions they've gone on in the past... it's almost never important to what's going on, but it helps establish that the two characters have known each other for a long time and know things about one another that no one else in the team does. So that's something for the players to keep in mind... I know from experience that how you play when you're just hanging out with friends and how you play when you know an audience is watching can feel quite different. 

Quote from Caerwyn_Glyndwr >>

I think your best bet is starting out in medias res ...

Notably, this is how Critical Role got its start also.  They jumped right into the action with little fanfare, and filled players in on the details later.  This worked really well for them - it was easy to begin watching, since there wasn’t that much in the way of a dull information dump, and it allowed viewers to instantly assess the playstyle of the main cast. 

 one thing that might have helped me for crit role S1 would have been if they'd invested in some additional video editing for the first recorded session. not the stream (if there was one at the time), but the youtube later. even just a helpful zoom in on the character that's talking and briefly pause to add their character's portrait, name, class/level/hp, and a little blurb like "twin brother to..." to introduce them without breaking the table's flow. just a one-time thing and thereafter you could stick the character portraits in the comments to remind everyone who these people are. the 'full' recap could absolutely be in a separate video.

Quote from rumloverum >>

Quote from Caerwyn_Glyndwr >>

I think your best bet is starting out in medias res ...

Notably, this is how Critical Role got its start also.  They jumped right into the action with little fanfare, and filled players in on the details later.  This worked really well for them - it was easy to begin watching, since there wasn’t that much in the way of a dull information dump, and it allowed viewers to instantly assess the playstyle of the main cast. 

 one thing that might have helped me for crit role S1 would have been if they'd invested in some additional video editing for the first recorded session. not the stream (if there was one at the time), but the youtube later. even just a helpful zoom in on the character that's talking and briefly pause to add their character's portrait, name, class/level/hp, and a little blurb like "twin brother to..." to introduce them without breaking the table's flow. just a one-time thing and thereafter you could stick the character portraits in the comments to remind everyone who these people are. the 'full' recap could absolutely be in a separate video.

 I don't remember if it was in the very first episode, but a lot of the early episodes of Crit Role actually had introductions by the players in-character summarizing who they are and some backstory. Actually, I'll go ahead and link a copy of the footage right here.

Yeah, no one really likes a lore dump, and it’s kind of considered bad writing when you do it in fiction. I agree about just go forward, and let people figure things out from context. 
If you really need something, and if you’re recording these, as opposed to live streaming them, you could play through the session, then add in little narrator-type snippets if it’s absolutely necessary. Just a quick voice-over to give context to something that might not make sense. “As everyone knows, wearing yellow in front of the king is a sign of great disrespect.” Or “It took them 3 days to get from A to B last time the party went there.” Just a sentence or two here and there.

I will back p the existing suggestion of just start going.

A suggestion: ask the players to reference things that have happened previously in the campaign as you go along, and allow them to reminisce on it, argue about it, and let the natural play happen with that in place.

Sort of a "hey, remember when we were in the woods outside of Abdigor, and doofus there tripped over an invisible unseen turtle and has his pants fall to his ankles? Good times, good times."

That's your lore dump & catch up moment. It shouldn't come from the DM, just from the Players.

This will allow them to begin building and defining the reality of their characters for outside people.

Thanks all for the feedback! I'll definitely consider the snippets interjected where things would otherwise make no sense, and character introductions are definitely a must!

Honestly, might consider the lollipop-puppets lore-dump too. I reckon I could pull that off!

If having the audience "caught up" is important after a few sessions and subscribers do a "one shot" that catches everyone up, or start a new campaign.

I like the idea of the one shot or a few of them sprinkled in-between sessions, kind of like a series of flash backs.

If you struggle with deciding what to say I suggest looking into the 'Previously on...' TV trope. It's a simple and solid way to get people going.

Looking into old radio serials from the pre-TV eara (Flash Gordon, etc.) is a great way to hear it and get examples that made people listen and stay vs. yawn through an info dump.