Theme music for Bosses

[brainstorm]

I'm thinking about starting a new tradition in my games. Whenever a Boss encounter starts, I'm going to play the Boss' theme music. I'm thinking this will help add a little drama to the encounter, give the players a heads-up that they are getting ready to start a major encounter and to solidfy the Boss in the player's memories.

Anyone do anything like this? If so, how does it work and what kind of theme music do you use?

 

[avin]

I don't use music for D&D... but if I'm playing and boss' music is Godfather's I will run.

 

[fba827]

darth vader/death star music.
dum dum dadum, dumtee dum, dumtee dum...

 

[Sammael]

I usually play generic ambiental music or soundtracks in the background. However, in my last campaign, I had one session which was entirely devoted to music - the party bard had to go through a "musical maze" to locate a source of the True Song (q.v. Seeker of the Song prestige class); each twist in the maze was represented by a different sound-based creature (harpies, sirines, abeils, etc.) and he had to find a way to suppress the creatures' sound effects to be able to better hear the background music of the maze and locate its source. I hand-picked each creature's theme song and played it during the encounter (IIRC, he resolved all but two of the encounters, and he only resolved one through combat).

To make the session fun for everyone, I handed over control of the creatures to the other players, who had fun trying to deter the bard from his quest.

Here are the themes I used:

DESTRACHAN
Michael Hoenig - Baldur's Gate, The Last Battle

HARPY
E.S. Posthumus - Ebla

SATYR
Greensleeves

SIRINE
Heroes of Might & Magic 2, Ocean Theme

MUD SLAAD
Mark Morgan - Planescape: Torment, Ravel’s Maze

LILLEND
Debussy - Clair de Lune

CRYPT CHANTER
Saint-Saens - Danse Macabre

GALEB DUHR
Jeremy Soule - Icewind Dale, Kuldahar Valley Theme

FIRRE
Heroes of Might & Magic 2, Sorceress Theme

ABEIL QUEEN
Rimsky-Korsakov - Flight of the Bumblebee

TRUMPET ARCHON
Wagner - Ride of the Valkyries

WIND GHOST
Ennio Morricone - Le Vent, Le Cri

SONG DRAGON
Beethoven - Ode to Joy

DEATH KNIGHT
Heroes of Might & Magic 2, Necropolis Theme

 

[ppaladin123]

Have you played Chrono Cross? The boss battle music in that game is simply amazing. It is called, "The Brink of Death." Here it is:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grOpBbEO0lQ]YouTube - Chrono Cross OST - The Brink of Death[/ame]

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I'm thinking about starting a new tradition in my games. Whenever a Boss encounter starts, I'm going to play the Boss' theme music. I'm thinking this will help add a little drama to the encounter, give the players a heads-up that they are getting ready to start a major encounter and to solidfy the Boss in the player's memories.

Anyone do anything like this? If so, how does it work and what kind of theme music do you use?

I haven't ever done it for bosses per se, but I have used music to help set a mood.

When I had a party stripped naked and sent into the jungle with a headstart before they would be hunted as prey by some anthro-great cats from another dimension, I used Kodo's "The Hunted" (the main theme to the movie by that name) to indicate the start of the hunters' beginning to follow them.

Kodo – The Hunted – Listen free and discover music at Last.fm

Another evening, the group wanted to listen to some hard rock music in the background, so I obliged. As pure coincidence, Black Sabbath's "Children of the Grave" started blaring out of the speaker just as the DM asked for us to roll initiative while the party wandered through a graveyard. For just a few seconds, everyone froze, bug-eyed and hair on end.

(While the song's lyrics aren't about Undead per se, EVERYONE in the room knew the song and its title...)

 

[ppaladin123]

When I had a party stripped naked and sent into the jungle with a headstart before they would be hunted as prey by some anthro-great cats from another dimension, I used Kodo's "The Hunted" (the main theme to the movie by that name) to indicate the start of the hunters' beginning to follow them.

This is amazing. I salute you.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

This is amazing. I salute you.

I forgot to add that when "The Hunted" played, one player asked "Waitaminit...do we here that?" pointing at my stereo speakers. "Yes." and I smiled.

After that, the players acted as if they were actually their PCs! They got agitated, their voices got higher pitched and harsher, and actually acted as if they were under time pressure. Players even barked at each other for "doing things wrong," or said things like "you're gonna die if you do that!"

I wasn't putting them on the clock or anything, and yet they acted as if they were!

THAT, my friends, is the power of suggestion in action.

However, I've never tried to do something like that since then...it was a bit scary, to be honest. Plus, once you do something that well, it kind of makes it hard to repeat.

 

[caudor]

Ever seen the Flash Gordon movie? Music is by Queen. The music they play to intro Ming the Merciless is just perfect for any boss.

 

[Minigiant]

The only boss I did theme music is a soul dancing hobgoblin based of James Brown. I played a differentl song when his abilities triggered. He mostly healed and ressurected himself all fight due to an item it had. After I played "Get Up", it ressurected back to full HP and much swearing followed. They knew it had another life when I didn't play "Please Please Please" (too bad he had no allies left to do a cape routine when he finally fell).

"I feel good"
"It healed again."