DeepSummary
The episode features a conversation with Matthew Mercer, the creator of the world of Exandria, about his experience collaborating with other Dungeon Masters (DMs) to expand the lore and storytelling within his created world. Mercer discusses the joys of seeing his world grow beyond his own imagination through the contributions of other DMs running campaigns in Exandria, and the excitement of experiencing new narratives within his creation as a player himself.
George Primavera and Nick Williams, the co-DMs of the actual play podcast 'The Re-Slayer's Take' set in Exandria, share their experiences with co-DMing, including the collaborative worldbuilding process, the dynamic between them as a DM and an NPC character, and the benefits of having two perspectives to adapt to player choices and unexpected situations.
The conversation also delves into various aspects of DMing, such as embracing player failures as opportunities for storytelling, the importance of trust and communication in co-DMing, and the freedom of roleplaying low-intelligence characters as a player. Mercer offers insights and advice based on his extensive experience as a DM and a player in collaborative storytelling.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- Embracing player failures can lead to more interesting storytelling opportunities and character development.
- Trust and open communication are crucial for a successful co-DMing partnership.
- Roleplaying low-intelligence characters as a player can be a freeing experience and a way to create conflict and raise stakes.
- Collaboration in worldbuilding can lead to a creation growing beyond its original creator's vision.
- Having both a DM and an NPC-player in a co-DMing setup allows for different perspectives and creative solutions.
- Allowing players to make choices that contradict or challenge the DM's plans can lead to more engaging and organic storytelling.
- Sharing a created world with other DMs can be a joyful experience for the original creator, as they get to experience new narratives within their creation.
- Co-DMing requires a balance of leading the story while leaving room for player agency and unexpected directions.
Top Episodes Quotes
- “I'm filled with absolute pride and genuine excitement to be able to, like, live in the world that I started through other people in ways that I don't know what's gonna happen, you know, like. Like, it's cool to be like, yeah, I made this and I know everything that's happening in the world. I don't. I know a number of things in it and kind of overarching themes, but then to kind of hand that over, it's exciting to be a person that can experience the world from a place of excitement and mystery and being immersed and invested in stories that I have no control over in this World that I started is such a cool feeling.“ by Matthew Mercer
- “I think the Slayer's take in some ways as a. A way to trick dubious members of society into becoming less dubious members of society, you know, but the pot's slowly boiling until you realize, oh no, I'm a hero.“ by Matthew Mercer
- “If you've ever been in a forever GM and you have a chance to play, I cannot recommend enough making both of those your dump stat. It is a beautiful bit of freedom, but, yeah, like, to that point, it gives you also the permission to be that troublemaker within nature, the one that's always pushing the red button that the rest of the players are like, oh, that obviously is a trap. You're like, what? Press the butt clear? It's a wonderful way to not necessarily antagonize, but to drag them into conflict and thus make the story more interesting, to make the stakes climb higher, which is usually the GM's position, is to try and find ways to either trick them into doing that or push those sort of stakes into it to make them go, oh, no, how are we gonna get out of this one?“ by Matthew Mercer
Entities
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Person
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Episode Information
The Re-Slayer's Take
Critical Role
7/1/24
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