When Good Gaming Groups Go Bad: 3 Wise DMs Tips On How To Continue Your TTRPG Campaign With Only One Player

Game groups fall apart. It’s as inevitable as the rain. What do you do when your current group goes south, but you still have a player who wants to continue? Do you continue with the current campaign? Do you now run the entire rest of the party, the monsters, and all the NPCs? The 3 Wise DMs answer long-time listener Jared’s question about his Rime of the Frostmaiden campaign and delve deeper into utilizing Sidekicks, DMPCs, and other tips with one-on-one gaming.0:51 Co-host introduction… whom could it be?1:48 Long-time listener Jared asks for our wisdom3:23 How do you approach running a game for one person?5:10 In a duet experience, how do you run all of themonsters, sidekicks, and NPCs?6:05 Introduction of DM Chris, DM Tony, and DM Dave’s sharedhomebrewed world of The Further.8:05 A proactive player is key when running a solo player.9:45 Adjusting encounter difficulty when you have fewer than4 players.11:45 Where the Sidekick mechanic from TCoE comes in handy.14:14 When using Sidekicks or DMPCs, make sure they don’tsteal the spotlight from your players.16:50 How far are you willing to go to not steal thespotlight from your players?19:20 The DM Tax…22:20 Using the Sidekick or DMPC as a classic “Gandalf”mechanic.24:00 What if your “Gandalf” ally doesn’t seem to knowanything? 27:00 What if Gandalf reveals the secret, but Frodo wasn’tfreaking listening?31:10 Riddles… DM Dave is kind of over them.33:50 When campaigns fall apart… what to do?37:30 Final Thoughts