Cool Uses of Music During Gaming

[Atavar]

Hello Everyone,

I RARELY use music in the D&D sessions I DM. The one time I did, though, was pretty cool (although I doubt I'm the first to use it this way).

At the end of the Rod of Seven Parts I played a loop of the music that plays during the award ceremony at the end of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (you know, where Princess Leia gives medals to Luke and Han). The characters managed to complete the adventure without destroying and scattering the Rod, so I thought this warranted a cool award ceremony with appropriate music.

Anyway, I was wondering, what are the coolest ways you've used music in your campaigns?

Later,

Atavar

 

[Crothian]

Huh, I use Star Wars music once too. I used the music that introduced Darth Maul and the double lightsaber when they faced off against a Fire Giant with a Double sword that was literally made of fire. It was cool.

 

[Drawmack]

Unless I'm mistaken, which I'm sure someone will tell me if I am. When 3e first came out WOTC actually distributed a limited edition CD with one of the modules. When certain songs played during the game players got special powers.

 

[Prince of Happiness]

Unless I'm mistaken, which I'm sure someone will tell me if I am. When 3e first came out WOTC actually distributed a limited edition CD with one of the modules. When certain songs played during the game players got special powers.

??? I never heard of that. I got a CD (which never worked) with a Character Generation tool set, but nothing else. Nothing about any modules either. 2E had a series of modules for Mystara (and at least one for Raveloft) that had CDs, but that was mostly for the boxed text for the DM to read being read by voice actors instead.

 

[WhatGravitas]

Unless I'm mistaken, which I'm sure someone will tell me if I am. When 3e first came out WOTC actually distributed a limited edition CD with one of the modules. When certain songs played during the game players got special powers.

I only know of Midnight's Syndicate's "Dungeons & Dragons - Official Soundtrack" (which is not limited, AFAIK) - and it's pretty okayish.

Personally, I sometimes use the NWN music, since it's pretty cool, but... I never had something memorable tied to the music... it's just ambient stuff.

 

[dutorn]

We play the Anvil of Crom for every combat.
30-second clip

 

[Crothian]

We play the Anvil of Crom for every combat.
30-second clip

We used to do that way too often back in the day.

 

[BadMojo]

Our current campaign is more episodic and a bit less character-driven than the previous one. We had various tracks that are indelibly burned in to my brain in association with dramatic events in the previous games.

Since the game was very dramatic and frequently dark, the tracks really took on that weight and pretty much lost any ties to the original source material (movie, TV show, etc.).

So, yeah, linking certain well picked tracks to events or characters can be very effective. I think Quentin Tarantino's use of music in the Kill Bill movies is a great source of inspiration.

 

[ssampier]

I love music during games. I dislike lyrical music because then people hum or sing along.

Unless I'm mistaken, which I'm sure someone will tell me if I am. When 3e first came out WOTC actually distributed a limited edition CD with one of the modules. When certain songs played during the game players got special powers.

D&D 3.0 first printing had a demo of the character builder aspect of the doomed Master Tools. No audio music.

City of Sharn has an audio cd.

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=products/eberron/864200000
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/news/20040912news

 

[GwydapLlew]

I played the Mortal Kombat fight music (the Traci Lords version) when I first introduced Aokhet the mummy monk in Nightfang Spire. The PCs were suitably impressed...and then ran after he kicked their rears.