Friday 9 August 2019

#RPGaDAY 2019 9: CRITICAL

RPGaDAY 2019

9: CRITICAL

Critical Role and critical rolls.

Critical Role wasn’t the first Actual Play stream or podcast but it’s by far the biggest, with its own fandom, merchandise, live tours, and a Kickstarter-funded animated special which is now going to be a series instead.

I like a lot about it, as entertainment and as a source of ideas, but my favourite thing is that Matthew Mercer always reminds gamers that his is just one style of GMing.

The title is a pun on the idea of critical successes and failures in dice rolls, like natural 20s and 1s in d20-based games. These can be a lot of fun, though you have to keep them in mind when considering if the results of success and failure are both interesting before making a roll, particularly in a system where the randomisation is already swingy. On the whole, I prefer options to pick a few in a session.

And an addition from Dave Chapman, to be complimentary. It’s always cheering to see the thought and energy in gaming, which something like RPGaDAY highlights.

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