DM of the Rings: Difference between revisions
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{{quote|[[The Lord of the Rings]] ''is more or less the foundation of modern ''D&D''. The latter rose from the former, although the two are now so estranged that to reunite them would be an act of savage madness. Imagine a gaggle of modern hack-n-slash roleplayers who had somehow never been exposed to the original [[J. R. R. Tolkien|Tolkien]] mythos, and then imagine taking those players and trying to introduce them to Tolkien via a ''D&D'' campaign.''
|'''The Blurb for the first strip'''}}
According to this comic, ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'' wouldn't make a good ''[[
Think about it. Loads of [[Backstory]], few [[Hack and Slash|battles]], limited treasure (even if you aren't expecting a [[Monty Haul]] campaign), and lots and lots of talking (since many events are told to others after the fact).
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This would make for a frustrating game. But it makes a great comic.
''[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=612 DM of the Rings]'' uses screen captures of the films and places them in the format of a comic book. The comic never shows the faces of the players (although the short-lived original follow up, ''[
The comic doesn't really satirize ''[[The Lord of the Rings (film)|The Lord of the Rings]]'' as much as it makes fun of the the way [[Tabletop Games|roleplaying]] sessions tend to go, especially the struggle between the [[Game Master]] and players. It's been described as an overall example of how ''not'' to conduct a campaign in general.
Other works by the [[Shamus Young|author]] include ''[[Chainmail Bikini (webcomic)|Chainmail Bikini]]'', ''Stolen Pixels'', ''[[Spoiler Warning]]'' and the column [https://web.archive.org/web/20131110090907/http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/columns/experienced-points "Experienced Points"] at ''[[The Escapist]]''.
This comic has inspired a few [[Follow the Leader]] comics applying the formula to other works, notably [[TV Tropes]] semi-favorite ''[[Darths and Droids]]''.
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{{tropelist}}
* [[Aggressive Negotiations]]: The unnamed DM becomes rather upset at the heroes for {{spoiler|killing Saruman, Grima, and the Mouth of Sauron in parley.}}
▲* [[Aggressive Negotiations]]: The unnamed DM becomes rather upset at the heroes for {{spoiler|killing Saruman, Grima, and the Mouth of Sauron in parley.}}
{{quote|'''Aragorn:''' Yeah, let's speed this up. ''(kills the [[Mouth of Sauron]])''
'''DM:''' What? You attack him? During parlay? What is wrong with you guys? This is the third time you've killed someone during negotiations!
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** When they first meet the riders of Rohan, Gimli rolls a 1 on diplomacy and addresses them with "tell me your name, [[Curse Cut Short|horse f--" "GIMLI!"]]. What makes it even funnier is that Gimli's player said that on his own accord. He was [[The Roleplayer|role-playing]] his own critical failure.
** Then there's the time Aragorn rolls a 1 on ''falling off a Warg'', even though he was ''trying'' to. Although that was just the DM trying to kill him off after he was particularly annoying.
*** Actually this may be a somewhat convoluted example. The DM asked for a Ride roll, which you usually use to ''stay on'' an animal. Aragorn makes the roll, crit-fails, and naturally assumes this means he can fall off. The DM instead says he fails at falling off, [[Failure Is the Only Option|because he's a railroading dick who was going to make Aragorn fall off that cliff no matter what]].
** Also when Legolas tries to shoot Saruman. {{spoiler|Subverted in that the DM ends up raving about how he killed Saruman before realizing Legolas scored a 1, so he changed it into killing Grima instead.}}
*** Prompting Legolas to shoot Saruman again (and roll much better) during the ensuing shocked silence.
* [[Cutscene]]: This is basically how the DM wanted to run the game, and actually did it in a couple scenes, like when Gandalf freed Theoden.
* [[Cutting the Knot]]: The players come up with increasingly ludicrous (and hilarious) ways to do this to the entrance of the Mines Of Moria rather than come up with the password (which the DM ends up screaming at them in frustration).
* [[Deadpan Snarker]]: Everyone.
* [[Deep-Immersion Gaming]]
* [[Did Not Do the Research]]: The dungeon master is convinced that corsairs means sailing ship when it actually means pirate or privateer --- [http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1207 here].
* [[Discredited Meme]]: [[In-Universe]], [http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=673 here].
{{quote|"My own suggestion for the 4.0 edition rules: Anyone who quotes ''[[Monty Python and
* [[Dude Looks Like a Lady]]: Legolas gets this a lot from Aragorn... make that ''everyone''.
* [[Even Nerds Have Standards]]
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* [["Faux To" Guide]]: A lot of the blurbs present bad roleplaying as the proper thing to do.
{{quote|''Remember, nothing will spice up your campaign quicker than long descriptions of NPCs doing spectacular stuff while the players sit around and watch.
''The best way to keep players on the [[Railroading|railroads]] is to place large obvious landmines on either side of the tracks.'' }}
* [[Fire-Forged Friends]]: Not the characters, but the players. Legolas hates Aragorn for constantly hitting on him, Aragorn hates Gimli for being a filthy roleplayer, Gimli hates the other two for being disrespectful young punks. By the time they've gone through all the various crap leading up to Rohan, they've all banded together in friendship... or, at the least, united disdain for the DM and his crappy campaign.
* [[Follow the Leader]]: ''[[Darths and Droids]]'', ''[[Benders and Brawlers]]'', ''[[One Piece: Grand Line 3 Point 5]]''.
* [[Game Breaker]]: Gandalf. So much so, the first idea the party has when first meeting the Balrog is leave him behind to fight it alone. And he ''survives''!
* [[Genre Savvy]]: Well... kind of the whole point really. For extra comedy, the characters get occasional [[Wrong Genre Savvy]] moments.
* [[GMPC]]: Gandalf
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* [[Imagine Spot]]
** Legolas [http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1235 killing the Mumak] is presented entirely as a player suggestion for fighting, which is immediately shot down.
{{quote|''([[Beat Panel|beat]])''
'''Aragorn:''' That's the [[Stupidest Thing I've Ever Heard]]. }}
** [http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=905 This bit] is Gimli's player's suggestion of how to make Gandalf much, much cooler.
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'''DM:''' And Gandalf.
'''Gimli:''' Right. And Gandalf. }}
* [[My Name Is Not Durwood]]: Players keep screwing up the names.
{{quote|'''Gimli:''' My name is Gimli, son of Groin.}}
** Done on purpose when they first meet Legolass.. Leggo of my ass... Legolas.
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** The "parley" with Saruman can also be seen as this, seeing as in the books Saruman doesn't die until the very end of the story.
* [[Nothing but Skulls]]: Skewered a scene from the movie showing the Paths of the Dead.
{{quote|'''DM:''' ''[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p{{=}}1203 The walls crack open,] and [[Nothing but Skulls|thousands of skulls]] are released!''
'''Legolas:''' [[Oh Crap]].
'''DM:''' ''They tumble down from above, forming a great avalanche of death. The horrid sight is-''
'''Aragorn:''' Skulls? Like, ''only'' skulls?
'''DM:''' ''Yeah.''
'''Aragorn:''' But that makes no sense! [...]
'''Gimli:''' I'll bet this was a [[Deadpan Snarker|robust culture]]. Imagine their funerals... "Oops, Granny's dead, let's lop off her head and chuck it into the big bin to be dropped on adventurers."[...]
'''DM:''' ''The skulls continue to pour in, filling the room and threatening to crush your nitpicking, over-analyzing characters.''
'''Aragorn:''' No problem, I'll just roll my saving throw vs. ridiculous contrivances. }}
* [[Off the Rails]]: Brutally [[Defied Trope|defied by the DM]] most of the time, save for when the players get the drop on him. Like when {{spoiler|Legolas gets a critical/max damage and ends up [[One Hit KO|OHKO]]-ing Gollum.}}
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** The DM rambling on while the players talk amongst themselves.
* [[Rules Lawyer]]: Happens a ''lot''. The DM will do it [[Railroading|to keep everyone]] [[But Thou Must!|buckled up in the campaign]] and the players to either annoy the DM (such as an instance Gimli argued against disturbing the army of the dead because [[Lawful Good|it was against his and Legolas's in-character morals]]), or to cheat like a bandit (such as Aragorn convincing the DM that they took their horses through the caves, onto a boat and throughout Gondor, despite never using or riding them the entire way from there to Gondor).
* [[
* [[Screw This, I'm Outta Here]]: The game has eight players at one point, and by the end only three remain.
** The comic was originally supposed to end with all but one player leaving the campaign, [[Brick Joke|so he then goes off to play]] ''[[Mechwarrior]]''.
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* [[Screw You, Elves]]: After a long rant about how the elves' town sucks in [http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=762 this comic,] the following
{{quote|'''Aragorn:''' Know what I'm thinking?
'''Boromir:''' [[Kill It with Fire|Only you can promote forest fires?]]
'''Aragorn:''' Exactly. }}
* [[Seinfeld Is Unfunny]]: In regards to ''The Lord of the Rings'' influencing ''D
{{quote|"Whoever wrote this story has no imagination at all!"}}
** Of course, invoking this and using it for humor is sort of the entire point of the comic. The writer explains in the beginning that though ''Dungeons & Dragons'' sprang from ''Lord of the Rings'', they've diverged so far and the old classics that the original tales introduced have become such cliches that any attempt to reunite ''Lord of the Rings'' and ''D&D'' at this point would be a trainwreck. And it is... a glorious, hilarious trainwreck.
* [[Shaggy Dog Story]]: After everything the players have gone through, nothing they do in the end matters and the story is determined by Frodo (who at that point is an [[NPC]]) succeeding at a will save. Aragorn and Gimli are not amused, but Legolas think it's hardcore.
* [[Shout-Out]]
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** ''[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=984 Doctor Who]''.
** A movie tie-in one to ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean]]'' [http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1183 here].
** ''[[
** ''[[Star Wars]]'' [http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1249 here]. Legolas [[Don't Explain the Joke|pointed it out]].
** [http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=759 A brief one] to [[The Spock|Spock]].
** [http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=922 One of the strips] is titled "[[The Order of the Stick|Disorder of the Stick]]".
* [[
* [[Stupid Sexy Flanders]]: Aragorn thinks all elf chicks are hot. Even when he knows [[Dude Looks Like a Lady|they're male]].
* [[Take Your Time]]: Three days after the armies left Minas Tirith for Mordor, the DM reminds Aragorn that he forgot to heal Eowyn and the hobbits that were wounded in the previous battle. So, instead of leaving them to their fate, he decides to go all the way back, heal them and come back, leaving the army waiting on the road for six in-game days without any consequences.
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** ''"Conan's Codpiece!"''
** Don't forget his "well-oiled nipples."
* [[What Do You Mean It's Not Awesome?]]: The DM decides to make the highlight of the game a single D20 roll of Frodo making a Will save to throw the Ring in the lava. Legolas is the only one who agrees that this is suitably climactic.
* [[You All Meet in An Inn]]: One of the major divergences from the book is that this campaign starts out at the Prancing Pony.
{{quote|'''Frodo:''' Please, please don't say we meet in a tavern.
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