Sean Merwin

And people raved about those at the time, how great they were, how amazing they were. And for me, I was just like, yeah, okay. But where my mind went was I could already visualize it based on what the DM read. And so I'm looking for like, okay, there's art here, so there must be a clue. There must be like in the corner, there's a mace on the floor, right? And that's the thing.

And people raved about those at the time, how great they were, how amazing they were. And for me, I was just like, yeah, okay. But where my mind went was I could already visualize it based on what the DM read. And so I'm looking for like, okay, there's art here, so there must be a clue. There must be like in the corner, there's a mace on the floor, right? And that's the thing.

That's the thing that will get us through this encounter. I was looking for that sort of stuff when it was really just, here's a picture of the sea, which for some people is everything. And for some people means absolutely nothing.

That's the thing that will get us through this encounter. I was looking for that sort of stuff when it was really just, here's a picture of the sea, which for some people is everything. And for some people means absolutely nothing.

is is obvious to the players right like we are better for the handout the handout was a reward to what we chose that kind of thing what i try to do if i make a handout is do have a payoff for myself as the game master sure which is what are the things that after i read the box text or describe the scene the players are going to keep asking me over and over again

is is obvious to the players right like we are better for the handout the handout was a reward to what we chose that kind of thing what i try to do if i make a handout is do have a payoff for myself as the game master sure which is what are the things that after i read the box text or describe the scene the players are going to keep asking me over and over again

If I know that, oh boy, every five minutes someone's going to say, what was that NPC's name again? Or how many pillars were there? Or what did the puzzle look like? If I can get a handout for that, then I am doing myself a favor by not being interrupted by the player asking over and over and over again when I'm trying to focus on something else. So I like to have, as you say, that payoff.

If I know that, oh boy, every five minutes someone's going to say, what was that NPC's name again? Or how many pillars were there? Or what did the puzzle look like? If I can get a handout for that, then I am doing myself a favor by not being interrupted by the player asking over and over and over again when I'm trying to focus on something else. So I like to have, as you say, that payoff.

But that payoff... both in terms of story, but just in terms of running the table more effectively.

But that payoff... both in terms of story, but just in terms of running the table more effectively.

And if you have a note taker at the table, someone who loves to take notes on NPCs and treasure, and they love that part of the game, giving out handouts sort of short circuits their fun. And by saying, here's a list of the NPCs that you've met in town,

And if you have a note taker at the table, someone who loves to take notes on NPCs and treasure, and they love that part of the game, giving out handouts sort of short circuits their fun. And by saying, here's a list of the NPCs that you've met in town,

You sort of take that person wants to make their own notes and wants to be the person that says three sessions later, oh, yes, we met that dwarf carpenter in town. And they were the ones that gave us that special vision that they had. And so it can be handy.

You sort of take that person wants to make their own notes and wants to be the person that says three sessions later, oh, yes, we met that dwarf carpenter in town. And they were the ones that gave us that special vision that they had. And so it can be handy.

Yeah. And same thing with sort of maps or tactical maps is if you're going to run a combat where it's going to last two rounds, you don't need a big detailed tactical map for that. But if you're running a combat where there are four different combats within this one location, you may want to take the time to make that map, which will save you time late down the road.

Yeah. And same thing with sort of maps or tactical maps is if you're going to run a combat where it's going to last two rounds, you don't need a big detailed tactical map for that. But if you're running a combat where there are four different combats within this one location, you may want to take the time to make that map, which will save you time late down the road.

So thank you for that question. We're going to take another question here from NorCalBowHunter3264 via YouTube. This is going back to the Shadow Dark shows, but makes a good point here. That's a good question. An issue I have, and this isn't just Shadow Dark. I've seen this advice in a lot of other spaces. It's just role when there is only role when there is a time restraint or danger.

So thank you for that question. We're going to take another question here from NorCalBowHunter3264 via YouTube. This is going back to the Shadow Dark shows, but makes a good point here. That's a good question. An issue I have, and this isn't just Shadow Dark. I've seen this advice in a lot of other spaces. It's just role when there is only role when there is a time restraint or danger.

Isn't this always true in a dungeon? You have rounds and every X rounds you do a random monster check. So theoretically there is a chance that while you are trying to pick a lock, a monster shows up. And isn't there danger of breaking your lock picks? And now you can't open the door or you accidentally trigger a trap. Which is a possible danger, right?

Isn't this always true in a dungeon? You have rounds and every X rounds you do a random monster check. So theoretically there is a chance that while you are trying to pick a lock, a monster shows up. And isn't there danger of breaking your lock picks? And now you can't open the door or you accidentally trigger a trap. Which is a possible danger, right?