D&D Myths: The Matt Mercer Effect & Quick Adventure Creation (2024)

One does not simply ‘whip’ something up

It can be fun, but plenty of DMs and players want more than that, which is where the ‘Matt Mercer Effect’ partly stems from.

There are many DMs on the internet with tips and methods, which is great because that’s how I gained a lot of my current DM’ing knowledge. Some DMs have such an impact, that they have an effect named after them, the ‘Matt Mercer Effect’. And some DMs, like Sly Flourish and his Lazy Dungeon Mastering method, are good for getting creative juices flowing, and setting up a working method. Sometimes that’s all you need to get going: a method, any method. But there’s an implicit and even explicit lie in these methods and effects. Like the great Bob Kelso once said: “Nothing in this world worth having, comes easy.”

Matt Mercer Effect, or ‘the storytelling potential of D&D’

Burgers VS fine dining

There are different ways of playing D&D. If all you want is to get together with friends and have random magical adventures in a Faerun-like setting, then ignore the remainder of this post. If that is all you want, you can indeed ‘whip up’ something quick, run it, and have fun. And there is nothing wrong with that. I mean it: sometimes you just want a burger, and when you get the burger you want, nothing is going to be tastier in that moment.

With that said: nowadays, D&D has become more and more about story and character. Older DMs tell stories of playing D&D in a basem*nt in the early 80s, simply to find exotic locations with loot. Many players who’ve only come into contact with D&D in the last ten years or so, are more driven by plot and the development of their character. Critical Role, a great source of D&D popularity influx, is a prime example of this. Every participant is a voice actor who came to the table with a willingness to create great characters. It started out as a home game, but it became a performance piece and (in my opinion) it probably became a better game for it. I’ll explain why.

“Why would you not want to be as good as someone who is regarded ‘a great DM’?”

Sing, instead of complaining

What’s the difference between singing under the shower and singing in a packed stadium? One performance is usually better than the other. Of course, Adele singing under the shower is going to be better than me singing in front of people, but there’s a reason she can pack stadiums and I cannot. The pressure of having to perform and entertain, pushes the bar. And you as a DM should want your bar to be pushed. “But the Matter Mercer Effect is bad because it puts pressure on the DM to be as good as a professional voice actor.” My advice: what’s wrong with that? Seriously. Why would you notwant to be as good as someone who is regarded ‘a great DM’?

For example:

I’ve created my own world, with several pantheons, cultures, an entire overview of the history of the world, bits and pieces of several languages, and more.
I’ve built a D&D tv table, to display virtual maps on.
Because I prefer creating virtual maps over physical maps. So I create custom virtual maps (with Wonderdraft and Dungeondraft).
I buy and test software, in order to create the ‘ultimate’ (meaning: “as good as I can make it”) D&D experience. (Wonderdraft, Dungeondraft, and Foundry VTT are my quick tips for virtually minded DMs, by the way.)
I ‘create’ custom soundtracks, by downloading game and movie soundtracks, and splicing them together.
Whenever I create something in-world (like a village), I do my best to make it congruent. Names must fit with the local culture, sources of income should make sense based on location, and all of that.
I create custom monsters with homebrew rules, in order to (hopefully) create tactical puzzles for them to solve.
I create quests and plot lines, and try to incorporate the players’ stories, in order to get them invested and make them feel like the main characters.
With every NPC that I deem important, I try to create unique voices, and I test them.
And there are things that I do that I don’t want to mention here because my players might read this. Unnecessary things that (I hope) will enhance our current campaign.

Just a little FYI:

I don’t paint mini’s and I don’t create practical maps, because I hate arts and crafts with a passion, so I try to make up for it through virtual maps. And that’s also a tip: you don’t have to do anything. I chose not do to anything practical because I hate it. So I chose to do the alternative as best I can.

Embrace the Matt Mercer Effect, be the D&D hero you want to be

I am not certain whether this is excess or insufficiency. In my opinion it’s nowhere near good enough to stream to an audience, but it’s as good as I can make it for my players. And yes, I have a full time job, a girlfriend, I’m a homeowner, and I have other hobbies next to D&D. So this is not me dedicating my entire life to one campaign or something improbable like that. The reason I mention this, is because this is a bar I have set for myself. And I pushed it further and further. Because, why not be better at something? Why not aim at something higher than the current situation, and try to make it a reality? Many players seem to enjoy the evocative and narrative-driven style that has created the Matt Mercer Effect. So why not learn from it?

“You will not learn or accomplish anything by simply pointing to the sky and saying you cannot predict the weather.”

And this is where ‘whipping something up’ doesn’t cut it. Of course, things can happen, players can make weird decisions, nothing is infallible. But even then, you can prepare ways of improvising better, you can prepare some seemingly random things that are still connected with the main story, or with stories of the players’ characters. Don’t blame the circ*mstance for not playing along with your preparation, think of ways you couldhave prepared for this, however unlikely it may seem. You will not learn or accomplish anything by simply pointing to the sky and saying you cannot predict the weather. Place a compact umbrella in the trunk of your car or in your backpack; that will help you much more in life. People cry ‘Matt Mercer Effect’ when players expect more from DMs, instead of investigating whether they might have a point.

Awesome campaigns require awesome work

DMs and players are in this together

So in reality, if you want to create ‘the best possible D&D experience possible’ (whatever this may mean to you), a lot of things are under your control. This of course could mean that you just want to have random adventures, and like I said, that’s perfectly valid. But I don’t think the odds of that are high, since I believe most people like to have genuine experiences that move them, in some manner. If you and your players want to create a deep and engaging story together, you will all have to work hard to do so.

Supply for the demand

In half an hour, I cannot create an entire village that is believable, fits into a certain culture, and contains several unique and engaging NPCs. Half an hour is maybe enough to create one custom monster (partly using Zee Bashew’s Witchery-system) and integrating it into a custom ‘monster hunting mini-game’ that I created for one of my players, if I already have the idea rolling around in my head. If I rush, I can create an encounter map with Dungeondraft in half an hour; ignoring the detail work. But imagine doing all this work, integrating it into a custom world, incorporating the stories of the player characters… there’s simply no way to do that by ‘whipping something up’. I’m not trying to make burgers. I’m trying to create a fulfilling seven course meal, and I’m pairing wines with it. Whether I do this successfully, is up to my players. But what I’m aiming for, is the highest bar possible.

Luckily, more and more content creators are putting out streams and podcasts of D&D sessions. By osmosis, people are becoming more familiar with storytelling through D&D, and it seems that the majority of players and DMs want some type of personal narrative to unfold. And that means DMs and players have to step it up, in order to achieve it. This doesn’t mean you can’t crack jokes, this doesn’t mean playing D&D isn’t about having fun together (it’s still the main reason why people play in the first place), but it means we’ve seen that D&D is capable of more than just “kill orcs, have fun,” and there is a demand for it. And that demand will not be met by ‘whipping something up’ in half an hour.

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