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Plot Hooks (Extended) (Patreon)

Published:
2022-09-23 22:00:04
Imported:
2026-06
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Content

Practical advice for designing mysteries--and any RPG scenario.


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Files

Previews only

Hooks.mp4

Comments

Bagel-Man

Totally agree with you on your bonus content. I once ran a one shot with some friends that was gonna be our last game for awhile. Had to stop for about 25-30 minutes cause one of my friends wanted me to provide him a narrative reason for why he would want to go on the quest. Ended up not being able to finish the game before people had to leave.

Ray Case

If you get the "content can't be displayed' - you might have success by deleting the Vimeo app off of your phone.

Brian Leet

Great video as always and I audibly groaned at Deathbringer’s dad joke. My group recently had to do a reset for this issue. The characters were all pulling in different directions and so every decision was labored and resulted in grumbling characters. 30 minutes of OOC conversation about it aligned the players to supply their own reasons to go along and it’s much smoother now.

MrGunn

Hmmm... gonna offer some unsolicited feedback; this video comes across as very grumpy, probably the attic heat. Also you give away the plot of Cloque House with no spoilers warning. The Chinatown reference is awesome, fantastic movie; ironically you don't spoil the plot on that one. I would like the video to be less grumpy and spend a bit more time talking about types of hooks, and don't ruin the Cloque House Plot. Time for some B-Roll Professor... Next, I am holding up my red X card of uncomfortableness. How dare you ask us to drop the pretense and remember my RPG is just a game and not a serious life defining drama, with my entire psyche bound to my character sheet like the One Ring, and that my character must have all the agency in the universe, lest I suffer a psychotic break. Further, I am offended that I should be asked to respect that the DM's job of entertaining me is work and I should have some respect for that, it's supposed to be all about me: I AM THE HERO! I am so traumatized Professor, I am headed straight to the Dean's office to report your terrible behavior. :/ Sarcasm aside, you hit the nail on the head, I think it is time for a video where you point out to players, how much work it is to be a DM, and players should recognize the social contract of the game and do more to actively participate and to make the game better rather than just be a passive whinging consumer. Oh, and if you have not DMd a game, STFU and don't offer unsolicited advice on how it should be done. As usual, the Bonus Content is the best content and why I am a Patron. Keep up the great work PDM! PS. DB I do not see you in that dress, Mercer wussed and brought a PC back, you lost our bet, don't be a welcher.

MrGunn
>>92223954

Interesting, I don't use Vimeo on my phone, I only have the Patreon app. Good tip.

Brian Leet
>>92226020

Out of character. We had to step outside the role play and just discuss what was happening as players if a game. Once we agreed on the big picture of what they wanted to do the players stepped back into character and each invented their own rationalization for why their character was willing to take that course.

Andrew

PDM---good video and as for the bonus content. Laughs. I hear you chief. Just to commiserate, I recently had a new adventure lined up with two possible directions, and no one could chose which path to take. Sometimes it seems like players just deliberately want to chase their own tails, even when the adventure paths are obvious.

Filippo Bettoschi

That's pure gold. Some players just seem to dislike the smell of adventure (hey, do we want to investigate the rumor about the disappearing villagers? Nah, we don't) and do their best to avoid it (and to forget that we are all playing a game and trying to have fun together: players and GM alike). Thanks for your wise words, PDM!

Mighty Zeus

Great vid, even better rant. You should put some version of the extended cut on YT- you've touched on it in other videos, but a dedicated video on how to handle players who won't engage the plot would be a good one (with perhaps a bit more tact, haha). Not the "wallflower" or "audience member" player types (although their inclusion would pad the runtime), but the players who just won't take the bait. Have you already done one of those? Idk, that's a lot of videos to search through, haha.

john seddon

That was Brilliant PDM. Thanks for sharing the story

Drago Russo

Yes, and thank you. Now hopefully players will watch. I run DDAL games like on the Yawning Portal, and we have to condense so much into a 4 hour window. Yesterday, I told the group, yes I will use Roll20 but I will NOT show you a map until there is combat. Therefore, I can present to them the path they need to take to tick off all the boxes and keep the game moving towards its conclusion. If you show a map with corridors and doors then they will always explore. Nice alliteration there. I love the bonus content.

Lee Caddick

I am learning that a good DM needs to be a bit of a bully sometimes. I am often quite blunt with my players - they're boisterous personalities and we wouldn't get anywhere if I didn't say 'enough, move on!' now and again. If someone doesn't want to go with the group then they get a surprise bunch of enemies to deal with on their own. If they're spending too much time discussing something of negligible importance I say 'vote!' and give them each two choices based on their discussion. A lot of my players are more experienced than me with DnD and a number of them are DMs for their own groups so they make cases for why they should be able to do this and that - I am very comfortable with saying 'I've made my ruling.'. I'm happy to accept feedback after the session, I'm not going to ignore the advice of more experienced players, but we're not having a rules discussion mid-session - we're here to play! Loved this one, PDM, keep it up!

Hosidax Hosidax

I've learned to say "Don't come to the table with reasons your character wouldn't go up those stairs. If you want to play in this game, come with reasons they would..." It actually seems to help players get over the "I'm just playing my character" syndrome.

MrGunn
>>92370794

I am just playing my character, if I had a nickel ..SLAP... Snap out if IT! :D

baldrage
>>92370794

Yeah, that's pretty good advice. My players are nervous Nellies and I'm going to steal this line to get them moving.

Skyhammer

If they're spending too much time discussing something of negligible importance I say 'vote!' and give them each two choices based on their discussion. ----- I've learned to say "Don't come to the table with reasons your character wouldn't go up those stairs. If you want to play in this game, come with reasons they would..." Oooh, I really like these thoughts. Writing this down!