"How do I beat the Matt Mercer effect?"

Jharet · Dec 31, 2018

I've never seen Critical Role or Matt Mercer, but some of my younger players talk about it. They also say my game is better, so there's that.

Myrdin Potter · Dec 31, 2018

I DM a fair amount of AL in a store and a decent number of new players have only watched CR and that is how they think D&D should be played. I tip my hat to Matt Mercer, I have only partially watched a few episodes but I think he is a good DM.

I am not him and I don’t run my game the way he does, and instead of dismissing the new players wish to play how they think it should be done, I just mention that every DM and group has their own style and they add to it by the way they play as well.

Matt seems to get this question pretty often and he is often out at events and meeting fans. I have never seen him being anything but gracious and supportive of other DMs and DMing styles. I have been DMing for over 40 years and I learn a few things from watching him, he is particularly good in painting the scenes and drawing his players out to add their own details.

I am glad that Matt and his game are there, just like I am glad my 21 year old daughter is coming into her own as a DM her way and style which is not the same as mine.

VengerSatanis · Dec 31, 2018

Umbran said:
I hope you don't mind the following.

It is ironic that a couple people here are talking about how it is all about communication... but there are severe flaws in how they communicate their points about communication. The showcase that this isn't as easy as it looks matters for this discussion.

Example: jmucciello here, closed his piece with "To me this isn't even a molehill." And note how Morrus responds to this, rather than the real meat of the post? That's because such an addition, especially at the impactful start or end of a piece, makes it about the speaker, and trivializes the issue for anyone for whom it is *not* a molehill: "This is about communication, and I, of course, don't have any issues with communication..."

I mean, it is great for you that this isn't a major issue. But also... so what? Other people are not you. Their groups are not yours. Its status as a non-problem for you is not, itself, useful to anyone else.

To wit - if you are going to help someone out, don't make it about you. Make it about them.

Similarly, there was a poster up-thread who said, "Maybe grow thicker skin, and be open to improving." Because, if their skin isn't think enough, stabbing them is supposed to be *helpful*?

Making a ton of assumptions, misstating a need (they need to be open to *criticism* - whether the changes the players think they want count as improvements for all concerned is a separate question) and positioning it as a statement of how bad the recipient is are all great ways to make sure your message doesn't get across. Communication is a two-person process, and criticism is unlikely to be taken well if it is not given well.

Yep - you are dealing with a human being. It is not sufficient to deliver information. To be helpful, it ought to be delivered in a way that does not negatively engage the recipient's emotions, because that dong so keeps their analytical mind from engaging on the matter.

To some, your response might come across as condescending. However, I didn't take it that way. I took it as a sign of the times. Dialog has to be comforting, polite, and considerate of the reader's feelings... that must be guessed at because they're strangers.

That's cool if you enjoy that style of communication. It's not for me, though.

As author of a bestselling book on GMing, I have an opinion that may or may not be worthwhile to you. But I usually don't sugarcoat my dark wisdom.

VS

Mistwell · Dec 31, 2018

VengerSatanis said:
As author of a bestselling book on GMing, I have an opinion that may or may not be worthwhile to you. But I usually don't sugarcoat my dark wisdom.

VS

Mind if I ask what your book title is? Not looking to bash you just genuinely interested. Might pick it up.

Myrdin Potter · Dec 31, 2018

Go to drivethru and search for “like a

ing boss” and Venger’s various guides will show up.

Yardiff · Jan 1, 2019

Charlaquin said:
I do find it a little annoying, however, when their Handbooker Helper series does a video on character creation that presents rolling stats as the default and doesn’t even mention that array or point buy are options that exist.

To be fair to Hamburger Helper videos, rolling stats is the first method mentioned (and the one they use) in the players hand book, followed by the standard array and the point buy system is a variant method.

Charlaquin · Jan 1, 2019

Yardiff said:
To be fair to Hamburger Helper videos, rolling stats is the first method mentioned (and the one they use) in the players hand book, followed by the standard array and the point buy system is a variant method.

And I don’t object to them presenting it as the standard option. I only object to them not even mentioning that other options exist.

jgsugden · Jan 1, 2019

Just to point it out: This is not a new phenomena, and Matt's game is not the only thing imitated. A player in my 1988 high shool group named his character Inigo Montoya and repeated the catch phrase over and over and over.... It was a bit tired, but we went with it and that ended up eing a great campaign.

The imitation of Matt's world may be one of the first times that we've seen people imitating a D&D game, but there have been countless imitations of Lord of the Rings, Princess Bride, John Wayne, and a thousand other pop culture icons.

The Crimson Binome · Jan 1, 2019

Charlaquin said:
And I don’t object to them presenting it as the standard option. I only object to them not even mentioning that other options exist.

To look around these forums, someone might be led to believe that point-buy is the consensus default method, rather than it being one of two secondary alternatives that exist for those too squeamish to use the actual default.

If one source gives unequal coverage in favor of rolling, then I consider that more than fair, given how far others seem biased against it.

Rhenny · Jan 1, 2019

I love what Matt Mercer and the players in his game do and it has certainly contributed to the growth of D&D. I enjoy watching when I can and it has made me so much more conscious of the role playing potential in game sessions.

That said, I’ve stopped watching because his ability to use voices and develop npcs is based on his talent and training as an actor. Since I don’t have the same talent and training, I don’t want to compare myself with him. I just want to be me and enjoy what I bring to the table.

I think it is important to see how others run D&D games, but ultimately each DM has to embrace their own style, quirks, techniques. Owning your game and being true to yourself and your players is more important than emulating the style of a well known DM.

As for players, I don’t really care if a player emulates someone else’s character/role playing style. I’d rather have a player borrow from an existing movie or Critical Role and immerse himself or herself into the game than have a player that plays a flat, mechanical, gamey character that just executes actions without role playing. To me, emulating archetypes is a gateway to creating and developing unique, individualized characters to play.

"How do I beat the Matt Mercer effect?"

Jharet

Explorer

Myrdin Potter

Hero

VengerSatanis

High Priest of Kort'thalis Publishing

Mistwell

Crusty Old Meatwad (he/him)

Myrdin Potter

Hero

Yardiff

Adventurer

Charlaquin

Goblin Queen (She/Her/Hers)

jgsugden

Legend

The Crimson Binome

Hero

Rhenny

Adventurer

Similar Threads

Related Articles