In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave sit down with the other three players to review a campaign that had several adjustments made over the course of it – refining it from a completely open-world sandbox-style campaign to a Monster-of-the-Week style.
DMs always have to be adjusting dials, so listen in as we discuss how DM Tony had to adjust for vastly different play types to still create a fun and engaging campaign. DM Chris stated it best: “TTRPGs aren’t reliant on lore, backstory, and epic narratives… sometimes its just about getting together and having fun as a group.”
2:25 Player and character introductions.
7:20 Setting the characters in the world: Origins and Viking Clans!
18:35 How much backstory is enough or is it even required?
19:45 The real time adjustment to how you run the game with various types of gamers.
27:30 Refining a multitude of adventures, political brinksmanship, and storylines down to a Monster-of-the-Week tour of the Nine Realms.
29:20 How new and inexperienced players can help us evolve our DM style.
36:00 The players experience between two completely separate campaigns: completely open world and Monster-of-the-Week within the same campaign.
41:40 Forest for the trees: Seeing a character’s story arc in the macro.
161.Halls of Valhalla - 3WDs Player Review of Our D&D Viking Epic, Journey to Ragnarok
01:00:58
160.Conquer the Viking Saga! 3 Wise DMs Campaign Review and Wrap-up of Journey to Ragnarok
00:53:51
159.Master the Art of Non-Combat D&D Encounters with 16 Essential Tips!
00:47:34
158.I Don't Know: 9 Tips to Master D&D Settings That You're New to Running
00:49:46
157.Dragonlance Decoded: Your Front-Row Seat to Shadow of the Dragon Queen
01:08:59
156.The High Tale of the Dragonlance: What We Loved and 3 Things We Didn’t in Shadow of the Dragon Queen
00:55:13
155.The Great Pretender – How To Lean Into Metagaming To Enhance Your D&D Games
00:42:02
154.Can I Ask You A Question? When and How to Exert Your Unlimited Power as a DM in D&D
00:46:46
153.Misty Mountain Hop: Unleash Epic Adventures and Elevate Your Game with Middle-Earth's Magic
00:50:18
152.We’ve Only Just Begun: Kickstarting An Epic D&D Campaign With Expert Player Guides
00:38:31
151.The Time Warp – Mastering the Strange Way Time Flows in Your D&D Campaign
00:52:02
150.Don't Worry About A Thing: Essential Tips To Turn Your D&D Fails Into Wins
00:50:08
149.Signed, Sealed, Delivered – Revolutionize Your D&D Games With Digital Tools
00:49:12
148.Shipping Up To Boston – Uncovering The Secrets To Running An Epic Pirate D&D Campaign
00:46:59
147.Love the One You’re With – 3WD’s Top 7 Tips To Running Published D&D Adventures
00:43:54
146.It’s the End of the World: 3 Wise DMs Pro Tips to Ending Your D&D Campaign the Right Way
00:51:04
145.The Ties That Bind – Tying Together Characters, Backstories, And Adventures To Create The Most Immersive D&D Game Ever
00:48:36
144.Chill, Till The Next Episode – 3WD Answers The Question Of How Long An Adventure Should Be And How To Build Episodic Adventures For Your D&D Game
00:50:14
143.What I Like (And Hate) About You – 3 Wise DMs Reflect On A Decade of 5e and Share Tips That Will Make You Have Your Best D&D Game Ever
00:53:20
142.Go Go Godzilla! 3WD Brainstorms The Best Ways To Bring Unbeatable Monsters Like Godzilla Into Your D&D Campaign
00:45:33
141.Back in the Saddle Again: Our Best Tips and Tricks for Coming Out of DM Retirement and Running Your First D&D Game in Decades
00:43:51
140.Changes - 3 Wise DMs Absolutely Best Tips For The Player That Wants To Change Their D&D Character Class
00:42:22
139.RPG Mythbusters: The Tavern is the Best Place to Start Your D&D Adventure
00:50:54
138.I Just Dropped In To See What Condition My Condition Was In: 3 Wise DMs Discuss How Using Conditions Will Enhance Your D&D Game
00:56:47
137.She’s a Mystery to Me: How Long To Keep Secrets and Clues From Your Players In Your D&D Game
00:44:04
136.Whatcha Got Cookin’? – 3WDs Top 9 Tips To Homebrewing Magic and Magical Items From Pop Culture In Your D&D Campaign
00:49:20
135.You Say It’s Your Birthday – 3WD Reveals 7 Tips That Will Help You Build Your Own Very Special One-Shot D&D Game
00:43:48
134.Inspiration: How You Use It and 4 Ways You Can Improve It In Your D&D Game
00:46:42
133.Share and Share Alike: 3WDs Top Tips For Dealing With D&D Players Who Won’t Share The Spotlight
00:54:27
132.The Breakup Game – How Constant Splitting of the Party Can Lead to DM Burnout and What to Do About It
00:54:10
131.Damage, Inc. – 3WD Discuss What Hit Points Represent And How To Improve Your D&D Game By Changing Your Perspective.
00:46:18
130.Everybody Was Kung-Fu Fighting – 3WD Reviews the Avatar Legends RPG and Reveals Tips on Running Brand-New Systems in Your D&D Group!
00:51:49
129.Stone Cold Crazy – How a First-Time DM Ran a Crazy One-Shot With Four Kurt Russell’s!
00:47:04
128.Tumbling Dice – Using Board Games in Your D&D Game To Create Unique And Fun Sessions
00:43:27
127.Strange Magic – The Best Ways To Adjudicate Spell Effects In Your D&D and TTRPG Campaigns
00:47:54
126.Let’s Give ‘Em Something To Talk About: Our Best Tips To Get Your Players Roleplaying And Talking Amongst Themselves In Your D&D Game
00:50:50
125.Tribute to the Greatest Game In The World: The 3 Wise DMs Share The Lessons Learned From Running A 12 Player D&D Game
01:07:34
124.To Roll or Not to Roll? The 7 Best Times To Roll The Dice In Your D&D Game And When Not To.
00:44:09
123.Cutscenes – How to Deliver Lore and Secrets in Your D&D Games and TTRPGs While Still Keeping Your Players Involved
00:50:33
122.Live and Let Die: Dealing with Anti-Murderhobos in Curse of Strahd and Players Who Don’t Want to Confront the Enemy in Your TTRPG Game
00:45:27
121.How Low Can You Go? The Things Every DM Needs To Know When Creating Low Magic Settings in Their D&D And TTRPG Campaigns
00:46:04
120.D&D Accounting: 11 Tips and Pitfalls to Tracking Treasure in your TTRPG
00:43:53
119.Come Together: 3 Wise DMs and Tabletop Journeys Come Together to Discuss the Best Tips to Running a Shared TTRPG Campaign World
01:08:47
118.Behind the Screens: 3 Wise DMs Reveal What They Want and Need Behind Their DM Screens and Offer Tips to Improve Your DM Set-Up
00:44:26
117.Glory Days: 3 Wise DMs Shares the Pros and Cons With Their Return to Basic D&D Through the Old School Renaissance
00:46:25
116.My Name’s the Teacher: Making Leveling with Character Abilities, Oaths, and Patrons Matter in your Dungeons & Dragons Campaign
00:41:34
115.It’s So Easy: 3 Wise DMs 18 Favorite Dungeon Master Hacks To Help Make Running Your TTRPG Game That Much Easier
00:53:50
114.When Good Gaming Groups Go Bad: 3 Wise DMs Tips On How To Continue Your TTRPG Campaign With Only One Player
00:40:50
113.Just Do It! 3 Wise DMs Interviews a Brand-New D&D Enthusiast About the 13 Tips and Tricks to Mastering the Dungeon
00:52:39
112.Terrain, Maps & Minis, Oh My! The Long Tradition of Using Terrain and Minis in D&D to Enhance Your Game
00:54:25
111.Back in Black: The Players Wrap-Up to the Absolutely Epic Curse of Strahd Finale with Vampyr, the Star of Blood
01:16:22
110.Finish Your Homebrew Campaign With a Bang: DMs’ Breakdown of the Epic Ending of the Woodstock Wanderers
01:16:32
109.Will Player Character Secrets Ruin Your Campaign?
00:48:29
108.The Epic-Tier Divide: Bringing Your DnD Campaign Into the Wild World of High-Level Play
01:06:10
107.11 Quirky Dungeon Master Habits of the 3 Wise DMs
00:55:58
106.DMing All-Ranged Parties in Dungeons and Dragons 5E
00:51:44
105.When Is It OK to Kill a Player Character and What Do You Do Next?
01:12:57
104.Creating Fantastic RPG Factions: How to Use Groups, Guilds, Criminals, Guards, and More Organizations in Your TTRPG Campaigns
00:52:46
103.Playing With the Future: How to DM Foreshadowing in Dungeons and Dragons and other TTRPG Campaigns
00:47:23
102.DMing Advantage and Disadvantage: How and When to Play With D&D 5E’s Most Elegant Tool
00:52:41
101.The Pregnant PC: Handling Odd Character Creation Requests in Dungeons and Dragons and Other RPGs
01:00:18
100.100 Episodes of Dungeon Master Advice: The 22 Most Important DM Lessons From 2 Years of Gaming and Recording 3 Wise DMs
01:04:15
99.A Dark Sun Rising: The Allure and Compromises of Using Pre-Made Settings
01:01:42
98.Ending the Campaign: Bringing Your Dungeons & Dragons Story to a Satisfying Conclusion
00:50:21
97.DMPCs vs. Sidekicks: What’s the Better Way to Give Your Dungeons and Dragons PCs a DM Avatar?
00:52:42
96.Is ‘Don’t Over-Prepare’ the Worst Advice for New DMs?
01:12:31
95.Are Red Herrings Derailing Your D&D Game? Here’s What to Do About It
00:50:20
94.DM Hacks and Tricks to Make Running D&D Less Tedious and More Fun
01:09:32
93.How Many Players Are Too Many for One D&D Game? What About Other RPG Systems?
00:55:33
92.Putting PCs In Charge: How Do You Handle RPG Players Characters Moving Up to Become Kings, Queens and Leaders of Powerful Organizations In Your World?
01:09:58
91.When Should You Bend RPG Rules? Handling Players Who Want to Adjust Game Mechanics They Don’t Like
01:07:30
90.How Do You Make New DMs?
00:51:37
89.No Rest for the Weary: How the Rest Cadence of D&D 5E Can Completely Change Your Game
00:59:20
88.The Sinister 7: How to Run 7 Iconic D&D Monsters for Maximum Mystique
01:05:04
87.Do D&D Magic Item Limits Crimp Your DM Style?
01:03:54
86.The Fetch Quest: Are They Fun? Are They Worth It? Are They Just Filler for the Big Story?
01:02:56
85.Getting the “Face” Player to Shut Up and Let Other Players Share the Spotlight
01:09:07
84.9 Alternate D&D Rules to Try: Our Favorite Optional Mechanics From the DMG, Homebrew and Other Games
01:17:35
83.How to Handle a Backseat DM: 11 Things to Know
01:14:47
82.Sharing RPG Worlds: Balancing PC Power Levels and NPC Portrayals Across Shared Campaigns With Multiple DMs
01:25:03
81.Does D&D 5E Need Character Levels? Radical (Heretical?) Ideas About D&D Advancement
01:37:50
80.How to DM PC Builds and Abilities That Piss You Off
01:16:58
79.How Hard Is Too Hard for Your RPG Campaign and Players?
01:28:05
78.Characters Over Combat: What We Learned From Gaming in 2021
01:18:21
77.What to do With a Bored D&D Player? A DM’s Dilemma
01:10:12
76.The Curse of Strahd Postmortem: Our Players Talk About What They Thought of D&D 5E’s Barovia, the Things They Loved, and a Few Things They Didn’t
01:43:44
75.Strahd, Dead and Loving It? The 3 Wise DM’s Review of D&D 5E’s Curse of Strahd and DM Dave’s Campaign Through Ravenloft
01:11:26
74.All Eyes on the Game: 12 Tips to Keep Your RPG Players Involved and Focused on Playing
01:15:23
73.Motivating Your Players: How to Get Your TTRPG Player Characters to Take the Hook and Get On With the Adventure
01:17:28
72.It Takes a Village: 19 Tips for Building Towns and Cities for Your RPG Campaigns
00:51:30
71.D&D 5E for Old Fogeys: What Old-School DMs Like Us Should Know About How this Edition Compares to Earlier Versions of Dungeons & Dragons
01:11:15
70.Horror Gaming for Halloween: How We Squeeze Scares Out of Players Around the RPG Table
01:12:17
69.Teaching Your Wife to Play RPGs: How to Bring a Non-Gamer — and Perhaps Shy or Unmotivated Player — Into the Game You Love Without Making Them Hate It
01:07:56
68.WotC Changing D&D 5E Monsters and More – Are These the Updates the Game Needs?
01:14:04
67.29 DM Ideas for Spicing Up D&D 5E: New Twists for Campaigns, Combat, Equipment, Magic and More!
01:31:53
66.Patrons, Powers and Punishments in D&D 5E: So Many Classes Get Their Powers From a Higher Power … But at What Price?
01:11:58
65.RPG Weather, Puzzles and Ritual Challenges: 3 Ways to Make Your Campaign World More Immersive
01:08:16
64.Keeping Your Story Straight: How We Manage All the DM Details of Our RPG Campaigns
01:21:13
63.I’m on a Boat! Running Sea-Faring, Space-Faring and Other Ship-Based RPG Campaigns
00:57:13
62.Dragons: Why We Love Them and How We Run Them
01:08:00
61.How to Bring WrestleMania to Barovia: DM Dave’s Curse of Strahd Goes WAY Off Book With a Homebrew Wrestling PPV
01:06:34
60.Strange D&D Homebrew: Knowing When, Where and How to Make Your RPG Campaign Weird Without Losing Your Players
01:16:44
59.When DMs Go to War: How to Run Mass Combat in D&D (and similar RPGs) and Not Bore Your Players
00:57:38
58.When Your Game Goes Hollywood: How to Adapt Jurassic Park, Jumanji, and Any Other Movie Into an RPG Adventure or Campaign
00:54:02
57.Surrender Like a Boss: When RPG Monsters and NPCs Should Give Up and How to Get PCs to Accept Their Submission
01:11:37
56.21 Tips to Master D&D Combat: How to Run RPG Fights That Balance Fun, Challenge and Time Investment
01:38:25
55.Powering Up! Bringing D&D Monsters, Villains and Campaigns Up to Your Party’s Level
01:11:22
54.13 Tips for DMing Across the Multiverse: How to Bring Different RPG Genres to Life, From Fantasy to Steampunk, Intrigue, Horror and More
01:07:30
53.Superhero Roleplaying: How to Run Comic Book RPG Campaigns That Feel Super
01:15:59
52.11 Ways to Be a Better Dungeon Master: Lessons Learned in Our First Year Recording 3 Wise DMs
01:19:23
51.Bringing RPGs Back From COVID: How Do We Get Back to In-Person Gaming After More Than a Year of Roll20 and Quarantine?
01:19:01
50.21 Things Wise DMs Want From Their Best RPG Players
01:20:02
49.DMing Big Character Changes: How to Handle PCs Shifting Alignments, Races, Classes, and More Without Ruining the Game or That Player’s Fun
01:03:24
48.14 Tips for DMing First-Time RPG Players
01:14:46
47.15 Tips for Running RPG Villains: Playing BBEGs Your PCs Will Love to Hate
01:23:02
46.D&D Alignment: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly for Your TTRPG Campaigns — RPG MythBusters
01:33:38
45.The Players’ Review of Storm King’s Thunder: The Whole Party Spills the Tea on Tony’s Version of #SKT
01:47:57
44.Storm King’s Thunder DM Review: The 9 Deviations DM Tony Used to Make D&D’s Giant Globetrot His Own
01:27:15
43.Bringing Your RPG Campaign World to Life: 37 Tricks to Give Your Setting a Soul
01:35:36
42.RPG MythBusters: PC Party Balance Is Essential! … Maybe Not as Much as You Think?
01:12:10
41.TTRPG Party Dynamics: How We Want Players to Work Together and What We Do When They Don’t
01:19:10
40.Missing in Action: How to Handle Players Skipping Games and Scheduling Conflicts
01:02:50
39.RPG MythBusters: Never Split the Party! … Or Should You?
01:32:42
38.How to DM Epic-Tier Games: 19 Tips for Running – and Ending – High-Level TTRPG Campaigns
01:16:55
37.Party Downtime: When, How and Should You Let the Players Pursue Their Own Character Goals?
01:24:18
36.When the DM Isn’t Having Fun: How to Fix a Game That Feels Like a Chore
01:02:58
35.When Metagaming Goes Wrong: How Do You Stop Out-of-Character Knowledge From Ruining Your Game?
01:20:16
34.Bringing NPCs to Life: How to Build Legendary Characters Your Players Will Talk About for Decades
01:20:12
33.How to Move a Stalled RPG Campaign Forward
01:08:38
32.DMing Large Groups: 19 Tips for Running Games With 6 or More Players
01:23:10
31.Our Favorite DMing Inspirations and Influences
01:41:32
30.DM Burnout: 6 Things That Cause It, and How We Recover From It
01:23:33
29.The Bootstrap Guide to DMing Your First Role Playing Game
01:10:36
28.2020: A Year in the TTRPG Lab
01:37:35
27.How to Set Traps in D&D: Causing Chaos, Mayhem and Problems for Your Players
01:17:29
26.D&D and Mental Health: Therapy, Autism and Exploring the Things We Can't Just Say
01:22:36
25.RPG Communication Breakdowns
01:32:11
24.D&D Errata: Love It or Hate It, Here’s How We DM It
01:32:20
23.Theater of the Mind: Is It a Better Way to Play D&D?
01:08:27
22.Rolling the Dice: How to Balance Randomness, Story and PC Agency in TTRPGs
01:25:01
21.Famous Fictional PCs: Should You Let Players Run Pop-Culture Clones in Your RPG Campaigns?
01:29:59
20.3 Ways to Design RPG Campaigns: Railroad vs. Open World vs. Dave
01:32:59
19.RPG Economics: What Can Players Do With All That Gold?
01:32:37
18.Digging Into Character Backstories for Fun and Pathos
01:18:27
17.19 Crazy Player Characters’ Stunts and How We DMed Them
01:38:42
16.9 Things D&D 5E Does Really Well, and 10 Things It Doesn’t
01:35:51
15.Adventure Time: 15 Tips to Build and DM Great Adventures, and the Ways We Fail at Them
01:20:57
14.7 Questions Dungeon Masters Ask and Our ‘Wisest’ Answers
01:40:09
13.3 Styles of RPG Campaign Storytelling
01:44:09
12.The Tao of D&D Encounters: How We Build Fights That Fit Our Games
01:30:18
11.39 Tips for New Dungeon Masters — and a Few for Veteran DMs, Too
01:18:04
10.13 Crazy DM Stunts You Won't Believe We Pulled
01:38:44
9.3 Ways to Pace D&D Encounters, Sessions and Games
01:23:37
8.What’s Fun for the Dungeon Master?
01:28:25
7.The 8 D&D Player Types and How to DM Them
01:21:44
6.What Makes Good Players and Problem Players?
01:21:15
5.The Biggest DM Mistakes We’ve Made
01:09:03
4.Rules vs. Continuity: Managing the Verisimilitude of Your Game
01:07:52
3.WotC's Racism Fix: Can Good DMs Help D&D's Stereotypes Problems?
01:00:58
2.Roll20 DM Newbs: Tips and Tricks From the Wise DMs' First Online Campaigns
01:17:24
1.Introductions: Traumatized Players, Improv Tricks and Our Biggest Struggles