DnD Tricks DMs Use To Engage Their Players

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Protip - remember these are actors in these online videos, not everyday friends and family. Don't expect performances or instant brilliant creativity - even from you, the GM. Your home game is for fun, not for show.

Ah yes, my personal tricks: - Talk less - Smile more - Don't let them know what you're against or what you're for

For me, Brennan's biggest quality ("trick") is his "Yes, and..." attitude towards whatever the players ask of him. Whatever they come up with, he'll interact with it.

Abria: Roll a perception check. Player: 3 Abria: What you don't see... I stole this immediately.

Yo I legit got my players to just start chatting in character. The veteran at the table looked up at me after 30 minutes and gave me a look of sudden realisation that was just amazing to behold. That session was one of the most fun he’d ever had in game and I barely lifted a finger lol

i notice this how brennan won’t interrupt the playera to move along the story. if they’re laughing and having a good time he’ll let them run out of steam before continuing. so amazing

Another thing Murph does so well in Naddpod as a theatre of the mind podcast to have incredibly dymanic battles is that there's frequently lots of movement involved, like encounters that take place while falling down a mountain, or jumping between cablecars. For boss battles, he also makes great use of mid-battle flashabcks. It makes for some incredibly cinematic encounters and is definitely a different experience.

The DM silence bit is definitely real. I have many times when I fall silent after exposition or setting up a scene, and players look at me waiting for me to essentially tell them what to do. What I have learned to circumvent that is to either outright ask "what do you do?" or simply end with an expression on my face that beckons them to provide a response. It's a simple physical trick, but it does wonders.

That final tip about "draw attention to the game, not yourself. your players are there to play, not to be entertained by you" hit actually

Out of the millions of ‘Tips’ and ‘you’re not DMing right’ videos infecting YouTube, this was actually, genuinely helpful to me. Thanks!

I love Aabrias "... and here is what you don't see"

Hey man I appreciate how you don't beat around the bush and go straight into the tips. Its awesome! Great video

Another that I love about Matt is that he creates spicy NPCs that keep things exciting for everyone. For instance, Travis hates shopping, so Matt creates a kooky shopkeeper or a hidden nugget that brings energy to it that would make everyone surprised and excited for what strange thing comes next.

Honorable mention: Monty from Dungeon Dudes is good with storytelling and flawless with the voices of multiple NPCs in a single conversation.

I do a lot of Mercer's strategy. I'll let my players talk and sometimes they indirectly give me ideas to throw their way (not always bad).

Interesting video. I like Murph's way of just leaving things in the room for players to interact with. You're right, it's something to keep you engaged and trying to figure out if/how that might turn the tide of an otherwise potentially drawn-out combat. Just noticed your wee countdown timer in the upper left corner - that's such a great idea!

I’m glad you pointed out that they are doing a lot of that for the audience. These are good tips, especially considering it’s focused on live play DMs, which are not the same as DMs for regular tables where being an actor is not only irrelevant, but usually a drag for those that are there to play a game.

I'm very pleased to see that a lot of these tips are things I've already been doing, and recommending to my newer DM friends. I think my biggest one is knowing when to start/stop narrating. I have a newish DM friend that often finds himself monologuing for way too long, or leaving pauses for player interaction when there is no desire for it. Finding the pulse of when your party needs freedom vs when they need guidance and narration is tricky, but incredibly rewarding to master

I think what makes people like Matthew and Brennan so good at what they do is they let DnD be what everyone imagines it to be when theyre told about it. They arent telling a story, theyre propping the world and letting the players tell it. Matt sets up his plots in a way where without the people he does his campaigns with it wouldnt be as good, his campaigns are always done with such imaginative creative people and its fantastic. Brennan on the other hand (and what makes him easily, my favorite DM) doesnt have his players tell stories, he has them tell adventures and creates this wonderful dymanic relationship between DM and Player where he doesnt restrict them to the linear story because he wants to tell stories in a living world and lets his players go off track constantly for the dumbest stuff.