Why Villain Monologues Fail - RPG Philosophy

Seth Skorkowsky January 22, 2024
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Seth Skorkowsky

@sskorkowsky

About

Author. Game Master. Lover of nerdly things. My channel has won the 2019, 2023, and 2025 ENNIE Tabletop RPG Award. I mostly talk about Tabletop RPGs. My sidekick is Jack the NPC. MY REVIEW POLICY: I won't review a game until I've personally played it. I won't play it unless I believe it's a good fit for my group. In short — I review what we play, and we play what we enjoy. I will not do "sponsored reviews" (i.e. paid infomercials pretending to be reviews). Free product in no way guarantees a positive review, or even a review at all. If I read it and don't feel it's a good fit for us, we won't play it. Or it might not fit into our play schedule or current campaign. I already have more games and adventures I want to play than I have time. Most of them I purchased on my own and very much want to play. I'm not seeking new games to play. I'm not seeking submissions for reviews. Despite this, I receive an average of 5 review submissions a week. I accept less than 1 a year.

Video Description

Villain Monologues are a classic trope in films and books, but rarely work when a Game Master tries one in a TTRPG. Here's why? And why I don't use them. *SUPPORT ME ON PATREON* (Tip Jar): https://www.patreon.com/SSkorkowsky A heartfelt thank you to my 252 Patrons for their continued support in making this channel possible. ______ *CHECK OUT MY NOVELS* If you want to support my channel, or just want to read an action-packed Urban Fantasy about modern-day monster hunters and their sentient weapons, check out my four-novel Valducan series. They feature gun fights, sword fights, car chases, monsters, and a smattering of horror (except Book 2, which is mostly horror). Audio book editions narrated by the badass R.C. Bray: https://amzn.to/3rehNnJ I also write pulpy Sword & Sorcery thief adventures in my Tales of the Black Raven series. It's 21 short stories packed with action, intrigue, and daring heroics. Audio editions read by R.C. Bray. https://amzn.to/3faj4cX And if you want a kickass and dark revenge story about a modern-day sorceress hunting across the multiverse for lost Carcosa, my novel Ashes of Onyx is available in print, ebook, and audio book: https://amzn.to/3sfh1IA If you enjoyed my stories, please leave a rating or review on Amazon, Audible, and/or Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4088554.Seth_Skorkowsky __________ *MY PUBLISHED RPG ADVENTURES* A Mother's Love (Call of Cthulhu 7e). This collection of adventures won the 2020 Gold ENnie Award for Best Digital Adventure Book: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/299661/New-Tales-of-the-Miskatonic-Valley?affiliate_id=1017650 Mysteries on Arcturus Station (Mongoose Traveller 2e). This is two adventures. One is written by me, and the other is my update to J. Andrew Keith's brilliant Murder on Arcturus Station: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/350034/Solomani-Adventure-1-Mysteries-on-Arcturus-Station?affiliate_id=1017650 And while I didn't write it (Marc Miller has that distinction), I did greatly expand and update the classic Traveller adventure Death Station to Mongoose 2e, which is TOTALLY FREE: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/380659/Death-Station?affiliate_id=1017650 And while not an adventure, here's Mythos Artifacts I wrote with Jon Hook of some neat magic artifacts for Call of Cthulhu: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/390047/Mythos-Artifacts?affiliate_id=1017650 __________ *GOT DICE?* Check out the Q-Workshop Seth Skorkowsky RPG Icons Dice, a 10-die set that I designed with Q-Workshop: https://q-workshop.com/en/rpg-dice-sets/2046/rpg-icons-dice-set-seth-skorkowsky-copy?search_query=skorkowsky&results=10 For individuals of the 12-sided D6: https://q-workshop.com/en/search?controller=search&orderby=position&orderway=desc&search_query=seth&submit_search= __________ *SHIRTS!* Check out the Channel Store for some shirts: https://teespring.com/stores/seth-skorkowsky __________ *FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER* I mostly ramble about movies, tabletop roleplaying games, and random other things as they occur to me: https://twitter.com/SSkorkowsky __________ *I HAVE A PODCAST* Check out the Modern Mythos Podcast where veteran RPG writer Jon Hook and I discuss horror and gaming, especially Call of Cthulhu: https://modernmythos.libsyn.com/?fbclid=IwAR1_wArr3cKQhXj5GNv52s2Q-_gdM9yyq-0O-_dugpOYp3CsevyZiir5mBU You can find the podcast on YouTube as well (You should totally subscribe): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmk5Y_OheFJL7-Xgvx-REJA __________ Guest Starring The Gang As an Amazon, Humble Bundle, and DriveThru RPG Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases from those websites. #ttrpg 00:00 Intro 01:06 What is a Monologue 03:24 Why Monologues Fail 07:20 Assume They'll Attack 11:07 Dialogues 12:07 Closing Thoughts

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