This one actually hurts my brain to a small extent.
What started on X (Twitter) as a fairly intellectual discussion amongst several players and Dungeon Masters spilled over onto YouTube and then spilled even further onto an overly negative commenter. I almost needed a score card to keep track of all of the positively ridiculous comments flying around. I almost wonder what game we’re even discussing any more. I think it’s Dungeons & Dragons, but it’s all over the place.
“If you tell the players to bring backup characters, then you’re a ‘bad’ Dungeon Master,” was probably one of the worst takeaways from this whole discussion.
This player/DM went onto express that characters shouldn’t be disposable. We should seriously mourn the death of every single character with a little out of game ceremony and tears for the fallen. All the surviving characters should pour one out for their dead homie. Every character death in 5E should be super dramatic like on Critical Role.
Then the voice of reason kicked in from other commenters. First, don’t take the game so damned seriously. Second, sitting at the table making a new character eats time at the table. Last, one of the absolutely most respected and intelligent DMs on YouTube who encourages backup characters said, “crit happens.”
Disclaimer: Statements expressed in this article are strictly my opinion. If you disagree or have a different opinion, that’s okay. I’m not an expert on everything. I’m not always right. I’m just writing from my experience as I know it. Your mileage may vary.
Crying, “You’re a bad Dungeon Master!” does not help anyone.
I’m not a fan of a certain YouTuber whose entire content line is dedicated to mocking other Content Creators. It’s sad when said YouTuber acts like God’s gift to TTRPGs. I have love in my heart for all humans, but sometimes it’s difficult. I prefer to keep some #ttrpgfamily at arm’s length.
I think telling someone they’re a “bad DM” is ignorant and insensitive at best, especially if the person saying it has never played in that DM’s game. I feel bad for [REDACTED] because I’ve seen his YouTube content and I think he’s a talented writer, game designer and Game Master. I can’t believe he was dragged into this argument. I would definitely play with [REDACTED] as a GM. (I love long game sessions, btw.)
“If you tell players to bring backup characters, IMHO you’re a bad Dungeon Master,” echoed across X (Twitter) and YouTube from a guy who I think might need some mental health care.
What really makes a “bad” DM? I think telling players to bring a backup character means they need to consider their character’s actions carefully because the character could very possibly die. At least the DM was nice enough to say something up front.
I’ve said it before, “Everyone’s play style is a little different.”
What goes on at your table probably looks different than what goes on at my table. No two GMs are exactly alike. What I allow to go on or not go on in my game is between me and my table. We set expectations at Session Zero and that’s how we play. If people want to bring a second character in case something happens to their PC in game, that’s okay.
Just because someone allows backup characters to be on the ready or doesn’t have an emotional meltdown if one of the characters dies, doesn’t mean they’re a bad GM/DM. They’re just thinking ahead for the players. Bad things can happen to good characters. They’re probably not getting rezzed, so that just leaves the player with just one option and it’s not cry for an hour or have a funeral out back.
There are some TTRPGs where character death is a given.
Anyone who has played Dungeon Crawl Classics probably knows of the character funnel, the wizard’s critical fail chart, and what happens when a natural 20 is rolled in combat. Likewise Warhammer Fantasy RPG characters can fall victim to an exceptionally brutal critical hit table. Rolemaster characters- you wanna talk about a crit table or several?
The guy who was originally referred to as a “bad Dungeon Master” is actually a big Call of Cthulhu game master on his channel. CoC characters sometimes have lives that are painful, horror-filled, and insanely ended. Hope your character lives long enough to go bonkers. (Isn’t that half the point of CoC, though?)
If I’m running DCC, the funnel for 0 Level characters is going to be a meatgrinder. Even characters who make it to a character class successfully can expect bad things to happen to them in dungeons. Ever heard of Grimtooth’s Traps? I’ve been known to use some of the real gnarly ones. I’ll be up front with everyone. Don’t get too attached to a DCC character in my game.
Getting overly attached to your TTRPG character in any game is cause for concern.
Okay, I get a little worked up over some of my PCs that I’ve played, or at least I used to. Now? I’d just say, “good show” to the GM and pull out another character or put one together. Why? Because I learned the joy of bringing the character’s personality back in other games, perhaps even other systems and genres. No fictional character ever truly stays dead forever.
When I hear a YouTuber getting weepy and bent out of shape over one of his “Dragon Master’s” characters dying, and utterly freaking out about it, I get a little worried about that particular TTRPG family member. (“Dragon Master” is what this guy calls his players. Long story.) In ye olden days, we’ve have told that guy to step back from the game for a while. The kids say, “Go touch grass,” nowadays. It meant someone was getting way too caught up in something fictional that we do for fun.
It’s not just D&D that people can get too emotionally and mentally wrapped up in. I see it in the Law of Attraction/manifestation community. It happens to dangerous effect in the spiritual community. (We’re talking about a cult in that case, usually.) I see it with fans of any given musician, actor, or movie character. It’s even more obvious than ever with the advent of social media.
If you know someone like this and you feel comfortable doing so, it might be best to kindly steer them toward seeking out some therapy or talking to a mental health professional. I don’t think it’s unreasonable to tell someone that you care about their well being and maybe describe a little of what they’re doing. I think it’s especially a concern in the younger gaming community than the older adults, (but it still happens to us, too.)
How do I handle backup characters?
We have no shortage of characters for any given game around here. Any time I start a campaign, especially D&D or Shadowdark RPG for instance, we have plenty of characters made without even my having to ask. Bear in mind that my players don’t have a separate binder, journal, pen, ink color, special dice and costume for every character they play like a certain influencer on Instagram does. I’m not saying you should never do those things, but it’s kind of a yellow flag for some of us old guys. It’d be pretty sad to have that character die after a big investment. On the other hand, if the campaign turns out to be less lethal and the character lives on forever as a Tiefling barista, it’s cool to have all the extras I guess.
My players voluntarily make backup characters, and I don’t have to say anything. I’ve had players come to me before the game and ask if I could whack, err… write off their current character so they could bring in this new one they made. Usually I can make it work in a non-lethal way just in case they want to come back. Otherwise it’s just like writing a character out of a novel or TV series. Maybe they return someday, or maybe they have adventures somewhere else. We may never know.
If someone’s character meets their unfortunate demise from falling 120’ down a well because they tried to use a rotten 50’ rope and wooden bucket to descend, we try to work their new character in as soon as a break in the action or non-critical juncture would let us do so. Maybe the characters find the new PC tied up by some goblins or the group just goes back to town to buy some more rope. There’s always a way to make sure some poor player isn’t sitting on their hands for hours waiting for their new character to come in.
Before we go, I will also remind everyone who saw this debate online- Please be kind.
I’m especially peeved at one particular individual on YouTube who does hit piece videos on practically everyone and anyone. I would love it if he would stop picking on another YouTuber who might be going through some mental health struggles. I just think there are better ways to run a YouTube channel than to attack other TTRPG community members. Maybe make some original content about something you do enjoy instead of constantly tearing others down?
I don’t think it’s cool for this dude to jump on the Internet, particularly YouTube, and act like he’s the best thing that’s ever happened to the TTRPG community. We’ve all got room to grow. No one knows it all. We can all learn and contribute something positive. Please, be humble and be a part of the growing TTRPG community.
Thank you for being here today with me. I appreciate you. Please embrace the things that bring you the most joy.
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