Tabletop gamers have a…complicated relationship with death. For some, it’s a somber tragedy that means saying goodbye to beloved characters. To others, it’s a frustrating time brought on by poor planning and bad strategy. But for the goblins at Beadle & Grimm’s, it’s the most fun you can have at the table. Following the success of their hilariously lethal Dungeons & Dragons show Faster, Purple Worm! Kill! Kill!, the Pandemonium Warehouse has created a book that is both a celebration of the show as well as a chance for players at home to join in the fun of dying. Faster, Purple Worm! Everybody Dies Vol. 1 features adventures by Jasmine Bhullar, Kailey Bray, Jon Ciccolini, Matthew Lillard, Sarah Madsen, Bill Rehor, Charlie Rehor, Brian Suskind and Kate Welch that all end with players facing down death in the best way possible. We had a chat with Bill, Jon, and Charlie from Beadle & Grimm’s to see what went into the most lethal D&D anthology this side of Gygax.
What’s it been like getting to have a Beadle & Grimm’s tabletop TV show?
Charlie: Slightly unreal, honestly. It was a hell of a lot of fun to make the show and work with such a talented cast and crew, though it all seems like a bit of a blur now. We were shooting 3 episodes a day, and generally running around like loons trying to make everything come together, so basically all I remember of those 2 weeks is an unordered collection of things that went wrong, went unexpectedly well, or both at the same time. So when I get to actually see the show, like we did for a few watch parties recently, it is always vaguely surprising that all that running around actually produced something that works so damn well.
Why is it so much fun to die in a game?
Charlie: The same way that rolling a 1 can be more fun than a crit. The fun starts when things go off the rails.
How do you MAKE it fun to die on the tabletop?
Bill: A big part is making it a foregone conclusion. There’s no surprise or disappointment in Faster, Purple Worm! Kill! Kill!- you KNOW you’re doomed from the start, which takes all the pressure off. In a strange way, it’s a mirror image of what you see with a lot of celebrity live play. In those shows the players generally know there is no possible way the DM is going to kill them, so they roleplay with wild abandon. Similarly, if you accept that there’s no way you’re going to live, you’re free to be whatever kind of hero you want to be.
In practice, we see this leading to a lot of players creating characters that don’t make “strategic sense” in a normal D&D game – an elderly fighter, a goliath thief, or a party made up entirely of clerics. Min/Maxing isn’t going to help you in Purple Worm, so just play the character that inspires you and have fun while it lasts!
How do you translate the fun and chaos of Faster, Purple Worm! Kill! Kill! into a simple book?
Jon: First, it’s in the structure of each adventure. Yeah, sure, you know you’ve built in the big bad at the end to ensure an epic TPK, but it’s the challenges they will overcome on the way that will make it satisfying. The thresholds the players must cross are built to encourage roleplay, often asking the players to riff on some part of their character’s personality.
Secondly, we lean into random tables maybe more than usual – amping up the chaos. Finally, we include DM sidebars that provide suggestions for how to keep the game spontaneous. For example: Instead of giving the player the command word for a magic item, consider having the player make up the command word on the spot. Or go even further: Put 4 random (or not so random, if you know the character) command words in a hat, and have the player pick!
Improv is a big part of Faster, Purple Worm! Kill! Kill! and it’s clearly a big part of the book. How did you think of ways to encourage that for players?
Jon: First, provide plenty of opportunities in the written adventure. Also, don’t always require them to come up with everything on their own. If you have the player pick a personality quirk out of a hat, or you have a NPC ask a direct question, you take the pressure of coming up with something fun or funny off of them, and simply ask them to react. For some players, that’s a lot easier. Finally, if you have a shy player who is reluctant to improv, don’t force it. Allow them to passively enjoy the mayhem, chiming in when they’re ready.
Any tips for how GM’s can handle player improv?
Jon:
- Get out of the way and let them play. BUT, make sure everyone gets a voice. Don’t let one or two players dominate the whole game.
- Foster a “YES AND…” mentality at the table, both for you the DM and the players. When a player improvs, whenever possible, the best response is to accept their contribution and run with it. Try not to negate it. Y’know, age-old improv rules.
- Lastly, my personal preference is to have the improv inspired by in-game circumstances and character interactions, and less from anachronistic, out-of-game jokes from players. So I’ll encourage that at the start, but then… get out of the way and let them play.
How did you work to make this book feel different from other adventure anthologies?
Bill: We really encourage players and DMs to embrace the beautiful chaos of group storytelling. Each adventure has callout boxes titled “Keeping it Spontaneous” that offer suggestions for inserting unexpected, improvisational moments into your game. That could be anything from randomizing a magic item’s powers to requiring the players to write a song about a toad.
These are also very simple stories. Although facing mortality can certainly produce some poignant moments, for the most part these adventures are fast-paced and light-hearted, requiring very little prep for the DM and even less for the players. It’s a great way to have a genuine D&D experience in a short amount of time.
You can back Faster Purple Worm! Everybody Dies! Vol. 1 now through September 25th.
Images via Beadle & Grimm’s
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