Wizards of the Coast launches official Dungeons & Dragons Actual Play show

Wizards of the Coast is getting back into the Actual Play game. Today, Wizards announced via Variety that they are launching a new Actual Play show called Dungeon Masters, starring Jasmine Bhullar as the Dungeon Master along with players Mayanna Berrin, Christian Navarro, Neil Newbon and Devora Wilde. Wilde and Newbon are veterans of Baldur's Gate 3, a smash hit for the Dungeons & Dragons IP. However, both actors will be playing new characters and not their Baldur's Gate 3 characters.

Of note is that the show will feature "official, unreleased D&D content" which will be put up for sale on D&D Beyond following every episode. The first arc takes place in Ravenloft and will feature content from Ravenloft: The Horrors Within. New episodes will be released weekly on YouTube, starting on April 22nd.

Wizards of the Coast previously produced several official D&D Actual Play series, including Dice, Camera, Action and Force Grey. Dice, Camera, Action was their flagship D&D program for years until it unceremoniously ended due to a scandal involving two of its players.

 

[mamba]

5E's success is not due to its rules, at least not completely. I would argue even 4E would have taken off if it had landed when 5E did. The driver was the world, from nerdstalgia to the pandemic.

it’s not completely due to the rules, but I doubt 4e would have been able to profit from the moment in anywhere near the same way

 

[mamba]

Ok, on to the show...

I have a few questions I can't find answers to:

• How long are the episodes?
• How long is the total series?
• Is it PG-13ish?

there are 12 play-along packs, one a week from 4/23 to 7/2

Dungeon Masters | The Official D&D Actual Play

Dungeon Masters is the official D&D actual play series, bringing official adventures to life, with each episode followed by a playable encounter.

www.dungeonsanddragons.com

 

[Dire Bare]

So this is what information I could gather from DDB:

1. The show is free to watch
2. The “hook” and the “Quickplay map” are only accessible to those who pre-ordered the book through DDB. The first one is free though!
3. The monster is the same, but will also show up in the book.

It is unlcear to me whether the “hook” and map will become available any other way at a later date.

Anyone who has more info, please share with the source.

I was really excited when I heard the announcement. However, the more I heard, the less excited I have become.

What I was hoping for was a show that, yes, did show off new products. I just hoped that they also took the advantage of teaching people how to use the new tools and mechanics. Get the DM to do a post-mortem about how they felt the session went and how they used the new content. Hell, do the same for the players talking about new player options. This would give new DMs and players some solid info on what the product is and to use it.

Sadly, it seems too slick and overproduced for me. I don’t think we will get anything but marketing speak out of these sessions.

I wish them all the best, but as someone who tries not to use DDB, it’s not for me.

Unless I'm missing something, you do not need to have pre-ordered the Ravenloft book for these "play-along packs". First one is free for everybody, later ones will have a cost.

Having said that . . . these don't seem to be very exciting releases. I'll certainly "claim" the first one, and we'll see about the rest.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Theyre performing for an audience. Its the WWE of TTRPG. If I was a wrestling coach I wouldn't train the team through WWE matches. Same with teaching people games.

No, it objectively is not. WWE literally isnt wrestling. There isnt anything to learn about actual wrestling in "professional wrestling".

Actual plays are playing the game. They are more polished than your home game, that is the only difference.

Yeah, it's a WoTC actual play, they're going to play the newest iteration of the newest edition!

I just really hope it has a fun "game night" feel. And not an actors doing improv dinner theater feel.

That is entirely something viewers bring to the experience. Even dimension20 is a game night ap show. Some people watched CR C1 and thought it was literally scripted.

The only actual difference is how good the people playing the game are at improv (building on eachother's cues, naturally sharing spotlight by spotlighting eachother and giving eachother an 'alley-oop' for a cool character moment), voices, being a fan of eachother, and staying in the game for a truly heroic 4+ hours! Yikes! I need a break in a short session!

So tbh if CR campaign 4 is "bad" and campaign 1 is "good" (to wildly oversimplify), i hope the new show from wotc is close to bad than to good.

A word of warning. The first several episodes of season 4 (like the first 4 or so) are all about Brennan Lee Mulligan moving the players where he wants them to be. While not scripted, they are very, VERY, guided. I couldn't keep watching them.

Keep planning to drop into at least the soldiers table (groups are split into different tables by theme), but haven't yet

Eh they aren't super sandbox, but you are exagerating how "guided" they are.

 

[AlViking]

No, it objectively is not. WWE literally isnt wrestling. There isnt anything to learn about actual wrestling in "professional wrestling".

Actual plays are playing the game. They are more polished than your home game, that is the only difference.

Most of the people are literally actors who do improv on a regular basis. Of course they're going to be more polished, but to me they still hit many of the same beats and tone of a home game.

That is entirely something viewers bring to the experience. Even dimension20 is a game night ap show. Some people watched CR C1 and thought it was literally scripted.

The only actual difference is how good the people playing the game are at improv (building on eachother's cues, naturally sharing spotlight by spotlighting eachother and giving eachother an 'alley-oop' for a cool character moment), voices, being a fan of eachother, and staying in the game for a truly heroic 4+ hours! Yikes! I need a break in a short session!

So tbh if CR campaign 4 is "bad" and campaign 1 is "good" (to wildly oversimplify), i hope the new show from wotc is close to bad than to good.

Eh they aren't super sandbox, but you are exagerating how "guided" they are.

I haven't started on campaign 4 but I have listened to a couple of BLM's campaigns and his style is a less free form at times. It's just a different style and preference of how to run the game. Matt is obviously an amazing DM but sometimes his games could meander and at points didn't really seem to go much of anywhere, but there is no such thing as a perfect balance. I think it's something every good DM has to figure out what works for them and their group.

 

[Mort]

No, it objectively is not. WWE literally isnt wrestling. There isnt anything to learn about actual wrestling in "professional wrestling".

Actual plays are playing the game. They are more polished than your home game, that is the only difference.

No it isn't. The current season of Critical Role for instance. Many of the "players" really come across as playing to the camera/audience as opposed to each other or the DM. It is a huge contrast to the really seasons.

That is entirely something viewers bring to the experience. Even dimension20 is a game night ap show. Some people watched CR C1 and thought it was literally scripted.

The only actual difference is how good the people playing the game are at improv (building on eachother's cues, naturally sharing spotlight by spotlighting eachother and giving eachother an 'alley-oop' for a cool character moment), voices, being a fan of eachother, and staying in the game for a truly heroic 4+ hours! Yikes! I need a break in a short session!

So tbh if CR campaign 4 is "bad" and campaign 1 is "good" (to wildly oversimplify), i hope the new show from wotc is close to bad than to good.

No it's not just how "good" the players are, it's about who they are playing for - themselves or an audience.

The early seasons, the group really felt like they were playing for themselves at a home game, the cameras just happened to be there (it that's what the vibe was). IMO, the current crop are clearly playing for an audience and it REALLY hurts the vibe.

Eh they aren't super sandbox, but you are exagerating how "guided" they are.

I don't think so, an example:

Spoiler

There was a whole scenario where there was a big fight and one of the PCs "died." But it was actually just setup for the character's actual background.

The scenario wasn't scripted but the DM and the players knew exactly what was happening and had a direction in mind - the beats were set.

The whole thing came off as for the benefit of the audience not the people at the table. Which links to what I was saying above.

 

[Mort]

No, it objectively is not. WWE literally isnt wrestling. There isnt anything to learn about actual wrestling in "professional wrestling".

Actual plays are playing the game. They are more polished than your home game, that is the only difference.

No it isn't. The current season of Critical Role for instance. Many of the "players" really come across as playing to the camera/audience as opposed to each other or the DM. It is a huge contrast to the early seasons.

That is entirely something viewers bring to the experience. Even dimension20 is a game night ap show. Some people watched CR C1 and thought it was literally scripted.

The only actual difference is how good the people playing the game are at improv (building on eachother's cues, naturally sharing spotlight by spotlighting eachother and giving eachother an 'alley-oop' for a cool character moment), voices, being a fan of eachother, and staying in the game for a truly heroic 4+ hours! Yikes! I need a break in a short session!

So tbh if CR campaign 4 is "bad" and campaign 1 is "good" (to wildly oversimplify), i hope the new show from wotc is close to bad than to good.

No it's not just how "good" the players are, it's about who they are playing for - themselves or an audience.

The early seasons, the group really felt like they were playing for themselves at a home game, the cameras just happened to be there (at least that'st what the vibe was, imo). IMO, the current crop are clearly playing for an audience and it REALLY hurts the vibe.

Eh they aren't super sandbox, but you are exagerating how "guided" they are.

I don't think so, an example:

Spoiler

There was a whole scenario where there was a big fight and one of the PCs "died." But it was actually just setup for the character's actual background.

The scenario wasn't scripted but the DM and the players knew exactly what was happening and had a direction in mind - the beats were set.

The whole thing came off as for the benefit of the audience not the people at the table. Which links to what I was saying above

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Most of the people are literally actors who do improv on a regular basis. Of course they're going to be more polished, but to me they still hit many of the same beats and tone of a home game.

Yep. they often remind me of my own game, they are just using music and minis and terrain and voices and etc to a much higher degree than i can without having someone to help me with those things.
They +100% are playing the same game i play.

I haven't started on campaign 4 but I have listened to a couple of BLM's campaigns and his style is a less free form at times. It's just a different style and preference of how to run the game. Matt is obviously an amazing DM but sometimes his games could meander and at points didn't really seem to go much of anywhere, but there is no such thing as a perfect balance. I think it's something every good DM has to figure out what works for them and their group.

Yeah i prefer BLeeM's DMing overall but they are both great, as is Aabria.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Many of the "players" really come across as playing to the camera/audience

It’s normal for the players to play for the audience, it’s just usually limited to the other players. And as DM I’m always playing to the audience of players. D&D is inherently performative.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

No it isn't. The current season of Critical Role for instance. Many of the "players" really come across as playing to the camera/audience as opposed to each other or the DM. It is a huge contrast to the really seasons.

No, they don't. (Or we could both admit that it is a wholly subjective thing where our own biases and experiences shape how we experience the show)

No it's not just how "good" the players are, it's about who they are playing for - themselves or an audience.

The early seasons, the group really felt like they were playing for themselves at a home game, the cameras just happened to be there (it that's what the vibe was). IMO, the current crop are clearly playing for an audience and it REALLY hurts the vibe.

To you perhaps. To others, season one was "obviously scripted". To me and many others, season 4 is just a well organized game with players who are drama/theater kids and great maps and terrain and the coolest gaming room ever.

I don't think so, an example:

Spoiler

There was a whole scenario where there was a big fight and one of the PCs "died." But it was actually just setup for the character's actual background.

False. The character 100% had the opportunity to either become a revenant or die completely instead of just starting as a revenant. No loss of player agency or dice base determination.

The scenario wasn't scripted but the DM and the players knew exactly what was happening and had a direction in mind - the beats were set.

No, the game was transparent about stakes. Which is a good way to run the game at home.

The whole thing came off as for the benefit of the audience not the people at the table. Which links to what I was saying above.

You are bringing that to the experience, it isnt actually part of the show.