The Most Underappreciated DM in all of D&D 

Murph is the perfect mix of getting all the respect, while simultaneously getting no respect from the players.

What’s great about Murph is that he will give his players so much shit, not because he hates what they are doing, but because he LOVES IT. It’s, incredible

Murph is the DM embodiment of the phrase "When you do things right, people won't be sure you did anything at all". He's an excellent DM that really, truly, understands and embraces the role of rules arbiter/referee and narrator. He's very fun and engaging and with his characters/settings/rulings he makes the game vibrant, but also consistent and grounded I think in that way he's like a great tech crew for a play or a musical, when all the stagehands are working together and all the lighting and sound crew and music, you can sometimes forget the work that went into the production, but that's kind of the point, to highlight and spotlight what is happening on stage I've always vibed with his DMing style most and where I think Matt Mercer and Brennan Lee Mulligan feel sort of outside the players as a separate role, I think Murph with a smaller cast, a shorter run time, and his style lets him seamlessly meld with the story and action of the podcast

Murph also does foreshadowing really well- he drops just enough hints for his players to be interested, but not enough to ruin the surprise. Oh, an amulet of the greatest cleric the world has ever seen is cracked? I'm sure there's nothing to worry... GENOCIDE. Look, a comic relief Halfling fighter! Haha, he could be from World War 1! Now, who's Bobby? EMOTIONAL DAMAGE.

Murph is a good damned hero of viewer-followed encounter design. Making a single initiative encounter across three levels of hell could be very hard to make listenable, but Murph makes it work extremely well. And other encounters like fighting on the side of a literal collapsing mountain while chasing a hammer that's flying down the mountain are so mechanically tuned that they work. I also think Jake is really an underrated player! He's not a genius when it comes to mechanics, but he plays some of the most genuine characters and he always sticks to how the characters would act even when it means playing someone objectively lame. He's begun grasping all the rules, to the point where now he's played three characters who aren't fighters!

To add on to the "always having fun" part, I have recently been listening to all of the short rests. For those who may not know, short rest is the after show where the cast members talk about the episode and things they liked. One part (at least early on, I'm nearing the end of C1's short rests) of the show is where they give Roses and Thorns. Roses being things they liked and thorns being things they either didn't like or wished happened differently. Almost very thorn I hear from the cast has always been something that was a "I wish i did this", or the thorn is a rose. They never once put Murph down about the story, and I think that shows that they love what they are a part of. I hope Murph realizes just how good of a DM he is to his Two Crew and in the eyes of the NADDPOD viewers like me. I aspire to be able to mix that level of comedy and beautiful drama

And as it's been pointed out, even by Brennan, Murph is a fantastic encounter designer. It's never a one note fight.

Murph also does an incredible job keeping his combats fresh. It’s not just kill the bad guy then win, it’s fighting while falling down a mountain, or climbing one, or dragon mounted combat, or arena randomizers. It’s always fresh and exciting and he gives the players all the rules and details right at the beginning too so it’s always smooth

Murph has done more for me as a DM in terms of things and behaviours i can take to the table than many others. He keeps things flowing and punchy even before its edited down and it feels like quite a lot can happen in a much shorter span of time. Yes it can be good to play out long scenes and stuff, but as someone who mainly runs one shots currently, its been very helpful. The other dm I've taken lessons from is Cauldwell, strangely enough. He has this silly arcade game style with structured mini games and challenges which are very fun to apply to certain types of games.

Murph is the perfect balance of story, goofs, and actually playing actual DND of any and every podcast and youtube show.

I saw NADPOD live. One of the greatest live shows I have ever seen!! Murph is the man.

Murph is also the absolute best at the art of giving his players enough rope. He's very clever at baiting his players into making choices against their own interests, then suddenly taking the dagger they all pointed at their own heart and plunging it in DEEP. It makes the players feel like they're responsible for the negative outcomes after. (See the Dwarven Halls. He's *masterful* at quietly moving baiting Emily and Caldwell, and then he asks the armor piercing question. You can hear the horror in Emily and Caldwell's voice as they realise how badly they messed up.)

Redirecting is a powerful GMing tool. Encourage your players to communicate what they want _to do_ not just what they want _to roll._

I too think he is underappreciated. I'm glad someone made a video about it.

This video got me listening to their campaign and I can't thank you enough

Great video! Naddpod is one of the few podcasts I can routinely re-listen to and still enjoy (especially Eldermourne). Murph is genuinely fantastic at pacing both in terms of narrative buildups and payoffs and also in encounter design. He is a master of coming up with mechanics on the fly when things go off the rails, and plays things very fairly - often telling his players what's at stake before a big roll. What I think is most impressive about his style is that he has a way of keeping every encounter incredibly unique which is particularly difficult without the aid of visuals. All that aside, he's a true legend for keeping the Two Crew in line and not going completely insane.

I was not aware of this campaign, and I just tried it out because of this video. You're right, the tempo is nice and quick, and I'm already in love. Thanks for bringing this into my awareness!

Great points! I've learned so much from Murph. He's a master at pacing and getting in jokes while not letting the tone stray too far from what he's intending.

FINALLY SOMEONE ACKNOWLEDGES MURPH!!

On saying “no” - “yes, and…” is a rule of improv, not D&D. Improv is not a “game,” despite the word “game” used to describe improv sketch activities. And D&D is not an entertainment for an audience - it’s recreation. A DM is first and foremost a referee, and a referee’s job is to say “no” - to enforce rules ie: “boundaries” of play. Love that you noticed this and recognize its value. Great vid.

wait is Jake part of the cast? I've heard he might make a guest appearance soon. excited to see him make an appearance some day.

I feel very similarly to Just Roll With It, especially Riptide and Grizzly as a DM At the start, Grizz wasn't great at pacing, but he got so good at his job around episode 30 or 40. He also says no, but lets them do a LOT of weird things, and even leans into that with the world building. overall JRWI has such a great dynamic and really works with having only 4 cast members. This has been your friendly JRWI advertisement brought to you by my hyperfixation

As soon as I saw this I clicked. Murph is an AMAZING DM. And consequently NADDPOD is the only DnD actual play show I’ve ever been able to get into (I have a feeling I’d like some of D20 but I just haven’t checked it out yet). NADDPOD should honestly be more popular than it is in general.

I love nadpod and Brian Murphy. Another dm that I like is Mark Hulmes from high rollers. To me, his dm style feels kind of like Murph’s and the general feel of their podcast is very casual, like a game you’d play with your friends every couple weeks. They’re fresh into a new campaign with great characters, and they’re exploring new custom mechanics as well as some very good narrative moments. I encourage you to give it a shot because I love it and think it’s amazing.

I admit I dont have a lot of experience with a lot of DMs, especially when it comes to listening/watching another group play a campaign, but what I can say is that listening to Not Another D&D Podcast has me hooked in a way no other media really has in a long time, and I think a large part of that is due to Murph and his ability to make sense out of the chaos of 3 very talented (but probably exhausting for a DM) creative individuals who try to break the rules every chance they get. I havent yet listened to the whole campaign but I have been entertained in so many ways so far thatI can't imagine anyone else being able to wrangle all the craziness into something cohesive and consistent the way he does. As for being "grumpy" I only ever got that vibe in a tongue in cheek sort of way and I love his improv on various NPCs

Totally agree that Brian Murphy is one of the best to ever do it.

Murph, not a rules lawyer so much as a grumpy rules sheriff!

Thank you for this video! I'm only just seeing it now, but I'd never have considered it (as I don't usually listen D&D without visuals) until this video! Which is a shame because there's clearly a lot I can learn as a DM from him!

I've never found him particularly grouchy but you can guarantee that if he backed off even a little those three would run roughshod over him.

MY DM I LOVE THE 2 CREW NO ONE COULD EVER MAKE ME HATE THE NADDPOD BABES

Regarding Critical Role, they've started releasing edited/abridged versions of earlier episodes. These are much easier to consume and I highly recommend them.

Brother! Testify!

Naddpod absolutely rocks

Does Tucker still let Jake play d&d?

Five seconds in. Answer: yes

The answer is yes. Murph is AMAZING.

Murph freakin rules