DMs After Dark

State of the DMs 2022

Hello all you listeners of what we've been referring to as the After Dark Army (let us know if you like the term or not), join us for a little look behind the screen of our first 9 months of streaming and podcasting.  Christian, Jess, and Rene briefly discuss what we've learned so far, how we're doing our best to improve quality of our episodes both from a roleplaying game experience for you to watch and listen, but also all the technical stuff that goes into livestreaming, audio and video editing, and creating fun, engaging, interactive posts on our social media apps.
We have been loving every bit of playing games and hope that you are enjoying our efforts to put them out there on the interwebs, we would love for you to reach out to us, comment, like, subscribe, donate Jeff Bezos' money to our Twitch streams, tell your friends if you think they might enjoy us, honestly anything you do means the world to us.  We're not looking to make money off of this, but we do discuss the potential of a Patreon or monetization of our gaming, which would only go toward improving the quality of our streams, podcast episodes, and equipment.  If you think we should consider this, we need to reach more people and get the support to move on those ideas.
 
Anyway, enjoy the little glimpse into our daydreaming about bigger things, but otherwise just stay tuned for more great games and our silly shenanigans.
 

(Bonus!) Meet the DMs - Rene

Hello everyone, a quick little bonus episode for you to kick off this week, something we've been wanting to do since much, much earlier in our existence - an interview-style little blurb where we discuss our journeys as DMs/GMs and all things gaming.
 
In this first episode Troy sits down with Rene and asks him about what got him into the hobby (and who, because that just happened to be Troy) and what's taken him to where he is, why does he hate 5e so much, and a few little personal details sprinkled in there.
 
If you like, please consider reaching out to us on our social medias or emailing us directly at DMsAfterDark@gmail.com to suggest questions for future interviews!
 
Like, follow, and subscribe to our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram so you can comment & chat with us about all things RPGs.
 
Music in this Episode:
Current Affairs from www.Zapsplat.com 
SirensCeol - Nostalgia [NCS Release]Music provided by NoCopyrightSoundsFree Download/Stream: http://ncs.io/nostalgiaWatch: http://youtu.be/geW8xN7grpg

Our God Is Dead One-Shot

Come, all ye faithful, to the annual festival of the turning, a time of goodbyes and new beginnings, when our goddess The Hourglass is sure to renew all in our lives and nothing at all is wrong or anything... Seriously, we've been talking, she's good... She, uh, told me to enjoy the pope corn and pay the tithes and ... bless ... uh oh.
 
Welcome to another one-shot, this time playing Jordan Palmer & Murder Publishing's Our God Is Dead, a hilarious rules-light game with a built-in 3 act structure sure to go horribly, horribly wrong.  We play clerics, priests, otherwise faithfuls of a god who has suddenly gone unresponsive, but we've got to keep the people fooled by putting on the annual ritual like nothing's wrong.
Enjoy, please consider picking up the game, which is also available in the TTRPGs For Trans Rights in Texas Bundle over on itch.io, which is so incredibly worth the $5.  Great games, great cause, no reason not to pick it up.  There's only a few days left as of this episode going live, so get on it!
 
The DMs After Dark will actually, seriously, we promise, return to wholesomeness with the finale of Good Society Friday April 8th on our Twitch or catch up over on our YouTube channel.
Like, follow, and subscribe to our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram so you can comment & chat with us about all things RPGs.
 
Music in this Episode:
Ghost Dance by Kevin MacLeodLink: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3802-ghost-danceLicense: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
 
Song: Dirty Palm - Freakshow (feat. LexBlaze) [NCS Release]Music provided by NoCopyrightSoundsFree Download/Stream: http://ncs.io/Freakshow Watch: http://youtu.be/2jwj9wVx3mg 

Modified Rolls - How To Prep & Run One-Shots

On this week's Modified Rolls, the DMs After Dark go over one of their favorite things to do: run one-shots.  The less-stressful one-night-stands of RPGs are a great way to dip your toes into the DM's seat, offer up an alternative style game amidst a long-term campaign, or just goof on being ridiculous characters in a no-consequences zone.  From running published one-shots from the indie RPG community, writing your own one-shots based on your own ideas, or winging it with one-page or rules-light RPGs you get from bundles that you're buying every other week or so at this point (not pointing any fingers but it's Rene and Christian, they need an intervention), one-shots are a great way to have a laugh, explore new systems or settings within your favorite systems, you name it.
 
Take a break, give your GM a break, experiment, run a one-shot (but be safe, wrap it up... the story, you know what we mean).
 
Please rate us on your podcast app of choice and catch our live streams alternating Friday nights over on Twitch or catch up on our games over on our YouTube.
Like, follow, and subscribe to our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Feel free to email us with questions, comments, or just to tell us how awful our ideas are at DMsAfterDark@gmail.com
 
Music in the episode:
Neon Laser Horizon by Kevin MacLeodLink: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/7015-neon-laser-horizonLicense: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
 
The Grid by Over Efficient
Link: https://pixabay.com/music/synthwave-the-grid-8245/ 

One-Page One-Shot - Grandma Club

Welcome to Pineapple Falls  - a nice, relaxing retirement community in sunny Florida, where absolutely nothing ever gets weird or flipped upside down (if you know what we mean).  At least, not under the reign of Homeowner's Association President Carol, who's turned this place from its rowdy past to a respectable retreat for senior citizens.  However, Carol's recent decisions are rubbing some of the grandmas the wrong way, and you know how those Floridians get when they're worked up - they make some wild headlines.
 
In this little one-shot we play Third Country Press' one-page RPG Grandma Club, which is supposed to be a relatively innocent game of grandmother's doing what they must to make sure their village wins the best little village award.  Unfortunately, the DMs put the After Dark into this one-shot and it go full on "Florida Man."  Enjoy our messed up minds as we take on Grandma Club.
 
Content Warning:  Marv's many nieces & nephews, drugging old folks with sexytime medication (again), and I'm sure much, much more.
 
The DMs After Dark will return to wholesomeness with the finale of Good Society Friday March 25th on our Twitch or catch up over on our YouTube channel.
Like, follow, and subscribe to our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram so you can comment & chat with us about all things RPGs.
 
Music in this Episode:
Song: Dirty Palm - Freakshow (feat. LexBlaze) [NCS Release]Music provided by NoCopyrightSoundsFree Download/Stream: http://ncs.io/FreakshowWatch: http://youtu.be/2jwj9wVx3mg

Modified Rolls - Play. More. Games. (Please)

On this week's Modified Rolls, the DMs After Dark finally talk about what is, essentially, our mission statement as a gaming group putting things on the interwebz - Why you should PLAY. MORE. GAMES.  And by that we mean play different RPG systems.  Every new game you play offers an opportunity to experience a new kind of story, to learn other methods of storytelling, understand different resolution mechanics, play characters you can't normally play because of genre-defined roles, you name it!  We firmly believe that roleplaying games are way more than just games, they are places to experiment with your worldview, attempt to understand other points of views, experiment with morality and do mental gymnastics to more thoroughly explore ideas and ideals.
 
So go play some damn games.  What games made you realize there's more to games than power fantasy?
 
Games Mentioned in this Episode: D&D; Pathfinder; Call of Cthulhu, Mutants & Masterminds, Dungeon World, Titansgrave: Ashes of Valkana, Fantasy AGE, Modern AGE, The Expanse RPG, Paranoia, Fiasco, Mistborn Adventure Game, Masks: A New Generation, Good Society: A Jane Austen RPG, Three Raccoons in a Trench Coat, probably a lot more.  
 
Please rate us on your podcast app of choice and catch our live streams alternating Friday nights over on Twitch or catch up on our games over on our YouTube.
Like, follow, and subscribe to our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Feel free to email us with questions, comments, or just to tell us how awful our ideas are at DMsAfterDark@gmail.com
 
Music in the episode:
Call to Adventure by Kevin MacLeodLink: https://filmmusic.io/song/3470-call-to-adventureLicense: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Good Society Episode 2 - Everything’s Coming Up Paul

Good day and salutations, my fine fellow members of Good Society, and welcome to the visitation episode before the grand finale.  In this episode, the DMs pay visits (make calls in the parlance of the era) to one another and scheme, sleaze, and schmooze their way deeper into drama as the Harvest Festival ramps up to a climactic finish.
 
Unfortunately, it will be a month before we finish the story, as Sara is a professional and has a conference to attend.  Good Society will conclude on March 25th live on our Twitch and be uploaded to our YouTube and podcast feeds shortly thereafter.  Fret not, however!  We will be playing a surprise one-shot that (at the moment, no spoilers) may involve some grandmas getting their groove back.  Join us next Friday, March 11th for a septuagenarian social extravaganza!
 
You can find out more about Good Society and other Storybrewers games on their website. 
 
As always, come hang out and catch our live streams on our Twitch or catch up on our YouTube.
Like, follow, and subscribe to our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram so you can comment & chat with us about all things RPGs.
 
Music in the Episode:
Sonata 17 by Kevin MacLeodLink: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4392-sonata-17 License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license 

1d6 | 1d4 (New Show!) - Favorite PCs So Far!

Welcome to a new mini-show idea from the mind of our own DM Sara, a short little podcast where [[1d6]] members of the DMs After Dark crew talk about a chosen topic for [[1d4]] minutes each.  These episodes will be brief little informal discussions mostly just us chatting about random things in our experiences as fledgling streamers, podcasters, and long-time gamers.  Hopefully, if we're any good at what we do, there may be some nuggets of wisdom in there, too!
This first episode of 1d6 | 1d4 was recorded with Sara, Christian, Jess, and Rene, and we discussed some of our favorite characters we've played so far on stream!  If you've listened to our actual play episodes or caught them live on Twitch or later on our YouTube, you may be able to guess who chose which of their PCs!
 
If you like what we're doing, please consider rating us on Apple Podcasts to boost our reach and please don't hesitate to reach out to us on our social medias or email us with ideas for games you want to see us play, topics you'd like us to discuss on Modified Rolls, or even just ways we can improve quality for your enjoyment!
 
As always, come hang out and catch our live streams every other Friday on our Twitch or catch up on our YouTube. 
Like, follow, and subscribe to our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram so you can comment & chat with us about all things RPGs.
 
Music in the Episode:
Happy Happy Game Show by Kevin MacLeodLink: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3856-happy-happy-game-show License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license 

Good Society Episode 1 - Frivolity & Foolery

Sirs, Madams, and all other gentlefolk, we are please to have you joining us for another episode of the Jane Austen RPG Good Society.  We here at the DMs After Dark are loving the system, the story that is coming together under the expert guidance of our Storyteller Sara, and hope that you'll enjoy listening as the people of our small English village come together to celebrate the harvest.  Romance, drama, tension, and a circus are all sure to grab you by your lapels and lace for a wild ride.  We are honored to be your very humble servants.
 
You can find out more about Good Society and other Storybrewers games on their website.  I know that Rene plans to run their recently funded Fight With Spirit! sports anime RPG in the future!
 
As always, come hang out and catch our live streams on our Twitch or catch up on our YouTube.
Like, follow, and subscribe to our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram so you can comment & chat with us about all things RPGs.
 
Music in the Episode:
Sonata 17 by Kevin MacLeodLink: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4392-sonata-17 License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license 

Modified Rolls - How To Be A Better Player Than Any Of Us

In this episode of Modified Rolls, the DMs discuss what makes a good player in an RPG group despite none of us really being qualified if you've listened to any of our Twitch streams. But, as we are all DMs, we do know what we like in players at our tables, so we attempt to offer up some advice to people looking to get into roleplaying games, newer or inexperienced players, or even veterans who may not have thought of what our crazy brains cook up when we start rambling.  Key take-away points include leaning into your flaws, biting the hook your DM desperately wants you to follow, and just being a good person and friend to your group.  Crazy concepts, really.
 
As for us DMs, we affectionately split ourselves into Chaos Crew and Team Wholesome, let us know which DMs fit into which group!
 
Games Mentioned in this Episode: Electric Bastionland 
 
Please rate us on your podcast app of choice and catch our live streams alternating Friday nights over on Twitch or catch up on our games over on our YouTube.
Like, follow, and subscribe to our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Feel free to email us with questions, comments, or just to tell us how awful our ideas are at DMsAfterDark@gmail.com
 
Music in the episode:
Newer Wave by Kevin MacLeodLink: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/7016-newer-waveLicense: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license