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No APPs Needed! (Extended) (Patreon)

Published:
2023-02-11 20:38:28
Imported:
2026-06
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Videos

Content

PDM elucidates on why you don't need Apps, VTTs or tablets to run RPGs.

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Files

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D&D Beyond.mp4

Comments

James M Spahn

As a professional game designer, I can confirm what he's saying is (by and large) true.

Marvin Diem

Hey Professor, will you be at GenCon this year?

Bagel-Man

Another great video as always PDM

Lee Caddick

A great reminder of how simple the game actually is, thank you PDM!

Andrew

Very good video and very true.

Patrick Lee

Best videos ever - they’ve changed my understanding of the game and how I play it.

Graham Kane

Excellent! Your concepts on how the D20 really works has helped bring my own games to a new level so thank you. Like yourself I was shocked when I saw the Tweet by Kelly from the Dungeon Dudes about how his game night was cancelled because DnDBeyond had an outage. For me D&D is the perfect pastime you turn to when you're PC or Broadband go down! When the hell did that change?!!!

Spencer Wright

Another winner! PDM, can we get a .pdf of these charts? I could just pause and copy them down but I am lazy...

Elated Muse

I really enjoy the simplicity of concept d20 thinking! that makes it really easy to understand that even on the fly you can just toss and guesstimate. YAY Goodman Games!!! as you hear in the background chanting (DCC! DCC! DCC! DCC!) lol. greatly appreciate it professor!

Brent Norton

Apps …We don’t need no strinkin’ Apps.

Jay

Back the basics of BX and Tracy Hickman's XDM. The GM simply sets the target number and there you go. This video merely re-enforces why we need real GM's rather than AI who can keep the enjoyment of the game going by making rulings based on the totality of circumstances coupled with a cinematic experience that is tailored to what a specific group enjoys. Picking a target number on the fly or making up a ruling on an unusual situation is the embodiment of many OSR games. Ben Milton (Questing Beast) did a video some time ago regarding how military officers used to wargame using complicated rules that were difficult to keep track of and seemed inconsistent with other rules until they finally just allowed the most experienced officers to make rulings on the fly as to how the battle would go. Essentially the same thing with TTRPG's and they saying, “Rulings not Rules.”

Scott Spears

So what is the to hit bonus with that carbon fiber pan when Mrs. Professor Dungeon Master gets angry with you?

samurguybri

I’m going to share this with some of my new players and up and coming GM’s. Very helpful. I’m super excited about the DCC thing as well.

David Nelson
>>101703267

Same. Thinking like this saves so much time (prep time and time with the players). It's great because it becomes really easy to just steal cool ideas from any system at all.

MrGunn
>>101718951

Great comment Jay! ICRPG is very open about target numbers. The GM sets the target# to beat and it is often visible to the players. Target, Treat, Timer, it does not get much simpler.

Frank Matthews

Great video. This is the kind of content I would have loved when just starting out.

MrGunn

Great video, love the charts, PDM. I am really glad you discussed how the D20 works, I just wish you had addressed it in the main video. Perhaps a suggestion for a future video. The lack of a bell curve makes a huge difference and influences how people perceive the game. The D20 has no bell curve, the probability of rolling a 1 or a 20 is always the same, 1 out of 20 or a 5% chance of rolling any single number. Rolling a single die makes no difference to the average probability of rolling any other number, it is like a slot machine, you pull the handle and the get a random result each time; it is probably why people love rolling D20s and playing slots, because of the excitement of rolling a 20 or winning! When you introduce two dice you begin to see a bell curve and that's when statistics, probabilities, and the law of averages kick in. The probability of rolling a 7 on 2d6 is, on average, a little over 16%, the probability of rolling a 6, 7 or 8 is about 44%. This change in probabilities changes the game mechanics significantly. So when you home brew or select a game to play, understanding a little about probabilities, averages, and statistics will not only make you dangerous, it will help you better understand how your game's mechanics work.

MrGunn

PDM, refresh my memory, does your, All of D&D Reduced to Two Charts, document contain the details of the multi-colour stat charts you displayed on screen, if not can you update the charts?

MrGunn
>>101761801

Before the interdweeb rees start; yes I know slot machines are rigged not to pay out and yes, I am bad at maths so please be gentle correcting any errors. :)

MrGunn
>>101708988

I think the Dungeon Dudes are Canadian, could explain a lot eh? :D

MrGunn
>>101709439

Just update your All of D&D Reduced to Two Charts if you would pretty please.

MrGunn
>>101734411

Scott you must not be married. No, Spouses have this special way of letting you know you done messed up A-a-ron! So I think it is worse, much worse. Spousal anger is a Legendary ability: psychological terror of an angry spouse is an automatic to hit, character is in Frightened state, Charisma bonus temporarily reduced to -3 with with the possibility permanent loss of Charisma. The only save possible is the use of second most powerful words in the English language, I'm sorry dear, followed by copious amounts of obsequious groveling until forgiveness is granted and character is returned to state of 'Good Graces'. Note, depending on the spousal disposition and depth of screw up return to state of 'Good Graces' may take a very long time or be impossible.

Jay
>>101718951

That in itself is the brilliance of ICRPG. Too often the language at the DnD game table is numbers. Target numbers, modifier numbers, ect. ICRPG clearly displays these. I sometimes use a small table easel that is a dry erase board or dry erase cards on stands to make numbers visible. I prefer the language at the table be more common speak rather than numbers or rules jargon.

Chad Wilkerson

I ban all electronics in our program (in the middle school library), but I encourage use of the books. Being the librarian, it is a bit self-serving, I admit. However, we're 1-to-1 with laptops in our district, so most kids will never even crack a book in class. They need to get used to using the books as a reference, especially when the alternative is to ask me for any and everything.

MrGunn
>>101773246

I thought they invented Google to put reference librarians out of work 😢. Seriously, it never ceases to amaze me how often folks ask for an answer a simple Google search can provide or how bad folks are at using Google.

Jay
>>101761801

In my opinion, game mechanics are one of the main things I look for in a good TTRPG. The rest is up to the GM. These mechanics must be simple and make sense. This is one of the main reasons I moved away from D20 based systems. Games that use multiple dice and/or dice pools create a bell curve the peak of which is the Mean or Average. It is this Average that demonstrates competency in a skill or talent. You don’t get that with a flat distribution of 5% across the board. Dice pools show variation in probability in each individual number. That is what gives them meaning. In a flat 5% distribution attempting to roll a 15 but achieving a 14 some might say is a near miss yet statistically that is a common fallacy. A 14 has the same 5% chance of being rolled as a 1. Therefore, a miss is as good as a mile. For this very reason I don’t really like the idea of a 20 being a critical success or always succeeding or a roll of a 1 being a critical failure. Think of a the peak of the bell curve (Average) the front sight on a rifle shooting at a circular target with 5 rings. The 5 being the center and each ring going outward 4, 3, 2, 1. If the average is a 4, while aiming center mass at the 5 your shots are pulled drawn away to the 4 but sometimes striking the 5 or the 3. Even less likely the 2 or the 1. Through practice (adding static modifiers in some games or more dice in others) your competency increases and you realize that trigger control, stance, and controlled breathing have improved your skill and are now hitting the 5 at 25 yards. Increase the range and that affects competency or your average. DnD can’t simulate this without increasing static modifiers making it impossible to roll get a result of a 2. Anyway, you were completely accurate in describing it as a slot machine. I prefer a game where the rogue can pick the lock, the ranger can track the footprints, the wizard can cast the spells he has mastered, and the barbarian can lift the heavy object. No rolls necessary if time and conditions permit. I prefer to only roll dice when it is interesting or there are time constraints or complications. Lest you run into situations where the D20’s random chance gamble gives you results that may not make sense. For instance, a rogue picking the lock to the treasure vault, but it outwitted by the lock on a kitchen pantry because of random bad dice rolls. That doesn’t make sense to me. Then there is the real-life concept of keep trying until you succeed but the GM won’t let you because of made up reasons. Then there is the fighter making bad attack rolls but the Gnome everyone hates has only just picked up a sword getting great rolls and out performing the fighter. How does that make sense. Not an issue on a bell curve. The more dice you add for dice pools or the more modifiers you add increase the average (Competency). Some games even rule that if a task is at or below the average of a skill and there are not time or conditions affecting the outcome. The Character can do the thing as it is at or below their competency. Imagine if Gandalf or Dr Strange cast spells based on D20 dice rolls. They would at times be seen and incompetent bumbling fools not masters of magic. For example, if a spell caster is casting a fire bolt any dice rolled should determine if it was a hit. Just as if it were directed much like a gun or bow. Mind affecting spells would be contested rolls against will power or wisdom. Not to see if they jacked up casting a simple cantrip or a spell far below their skill or level depending on they type of game you are playing. I am not a fan of artificial restrictions put into games either. Yet, in the case of spell casting, I can see the use of power points or mana points for spell use just as bullets are for a gun. The GM can make rulings on how they might be used to increase duration, damage, or effect. This also provides incentive for spell casters to seek out items or knowledge that will increase these points. They usually recover over a short time anyway. Here. This guy sums up much of what I find wrong with D20 games. Kristian’s Brain (YouTube) – 7 Tips to Unlearning D&D – Start at 14:09 Chapter “The Dice Can’t Save You” Link - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foA1OoJlFu4 Just my long-winded opinion but much like probability of hitting a specific number on a D20 it is no better than any other.

Graham Kane
>>101708988

Ooh! Harsh! Having said that there’s always the chance it was hyperbole on their part to illustrate a point.