Are we just rehashing the same Game Master advice over and over?

The easy answer is, of course, yes. Yes we are. I found it fascinating when I first really got into watching TableTop RolePlaying Game content on YouTube that I was hearing pretty much the same questions and answers that we used to hear/give at conventions back in the ancient days of the 1990s. Much of the same advice that has been given by even my own Grognard predecessors and peers. Much of this advice appeared in Dragon Magazine and early Internet forums before YouTube was even a thing.

I think it bears repeating every time a new version of Dungeons & Dragons comes out. There’s always going to be a fresh crop of players and Dungeon Masters who will ask many of the same questions we all did back in the 1980s (when we weren’t competing with the velociraptors for food.) New players and DMs always want to know the best approaches to dealing with the various stats, skills, each other, etc. I feel it’s our sworn duty as D&D/TTRPG veterans to be there for them.

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.

With all of the lurv and respukt to Wizards of the Coast, their D&D Beyond and Jeremy Crawford, Chris Perkins, etc advice just looks like a commercial to me. I think new players are far and away better off in the capable hands of various DungeonTubers and veteran players/Game Masters. The sad thing is even then, some of those advice videos or articles are getting to be a decade old or older. That advice has to come back around with a new coat of paint and some fresh polish.

One person I look to for giving that advice is Knigobi on YouTube. She’s going to be bringing out more advice videos and help for new D&D players/DMs. Is it going to be the same as my game convention panel back in 1993? If I had to guess, there would be some definitely overlap between what we said then and what she says now. It’s good advice.

Plus, these new “kids” have the advantage of learning from all our screwups in bygone years and they can convey things that have changed in the last 15 years ago. We didn’t have a Session Zero or Safety Tools back then. These new folx are used to it. Cool.

We old folx all have the advantage of coming up with creative solutions to old situations appearing as new. We’ve been there, done that and possibly wrote the book on it. Literally in some cases. I’m not even kidding. Look at Justin Alexander’s So You Want To Be A Game Master. Same old advice. Shiny new cover.

I’m here for this community. If we want the #ttrpgcommunity to thrive, then we have to bring in fresh, young recruits to carry the banner. Yes, every single one of us is valuable. But right now we might want to shift our focus to the new generation that will carry us to year 60, 70, and so on in the hobby.

Thank you for being here with me today. I appreciate you. Keep it real, but please strive for positivity, too. Please embrace the things that bring you the most joy in your life.