No Accent? No Problem!

• Example phrase for Tools “I am always watching” 

THINGS THAT CAN AFFECT VOICE CHOICES 

• Character’s Background / Culture / Subculture / Personality  

• Top stat? 

• 3 adjectives to describe them 

• Archetypes: Hero, Sage, Intelectual, Lover, Fool

TOOLS (don’t have to use all, but can use some)

• Body language/gestures (narrating ok: no visual, neurodivergent, etc) *example

• Facial expressions/eye gaze *example

• Pacing (it’s not about the speed of the words, it’s the length of the pauses) 

• How much they talk (pauses can be “dialogue.” Be aware & don’t step on them. Silent characters, feel free to narrate) *example - also for dm narration not just PCs & NPCs

• How they say it (emphasis) *example

• Tone/pitch (Jo & Shawna explain physical difference) *example 

• Texture/placement (gravel, breathy, smooth, nasal, lisp, stutter) Don't over-spice! *example  

• Vocabulary (high class, low class, subculture)

• Catch phrase (best developed naturally in game, but can be planned ahead with intention)

Go back & apply “TOOLS” to “Things that Affect”

MORE THOUGHTS

• How do the tools change when the character’s emotions change? 

• Why do we use these tools? So you as character & you as player are distinct “I wanna see what’s over there around that corner” (prevents confusion & conflict) 

• Warning: can you sustain this? Or will it hurt after a while? Also, if it ends up changing, that’s ok. 

• If you didn’t intend for something to be funny, but it gets laughs or eye rolls, lean into it - It can become celebrated. 

• If you intend for something to be funny, use caution, read the room, is it the right time? (the higher your insight, the funnier you get)

• If it crosses another player’s comfort boundary, stop. If something crosses your comfort boundary, communicate.

• Q&A TIME

Castle Ravenloft Map w/ color-coded arrows (D&D5e Curse of Strahd resource)

Anyone who’s DM’d Curse of Strahd (CoS) knows that Castle Ravenloft is a BEAST. Not only is it a dangerous hellscape for your party of PCs, but it can be a nightmare for any DM to try and navigate this epic and confusing castle.

I was blessed (er…cursed) enough last November to run a weekend-long marathon Castle-Only campaign, and I needed a map that I could UNDERSTAND. Unfortunately, there was no such map, so I made one myself. I took the map illustrations in the book, and then added notes and color-coded arrows to show how one stairwell leads to another. It helped me SO much, and I hope it helps you too!

Castle Ravenloft map edited by Joanna S Dunlap

Appearance at RAGEcon!

We are SO excited to be headed to Ragecon (Reno Area Gaming Expo) this June 24-26 (2022)! We will be selling original merch, hosting a panel on adding more narrative storytelling to your Role Playing Games, and demoing our NEW TTRPG (table top role playing game)! Come say hello and roll some dice with us!