Mood Music [Archive] - Wizards Community - Pages Merged by Solauren

Mood Music [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Dawnspeaker
03-01-04, 12:31 PM This is the closest forum I could find for this topic. It does relate to char.development some cause when players are in the right mood they tend to get into the story and play their charaters the best they can.

What kinda of music does everyone use for their games, whether to help set the stage, or back certain scenes.

Right now I tend to use alot of
1.) Enya for calmer scenes
2.) Braveheart, Gladiator, Highlander: End Game, all the LotR; and Matrix Revolutions (specially the scene when Neo fights Smith for big battles)
3.) Fast techno with alot of bass for fights

What does everyone else use to pump up themselvse and their players for the gaming mood and to help get into character?

(I've also played games were the DM had us pick theme songs for characters to give a feel for them,.)
Staver
03-01-04, 03:45 PM Hi Dawnspeaker,

Before every combat, we all used to chant the chorus to Drowning Pool's "Bodies", but that got tired in a hurry. We play in gaming shops and bookstores where playing music is not allowed, so we've not done much in this area. The one time the DM ran a game at his house and played some BG music, he had it turned up so loud it was hard to hear him, and he's got a loud voice. So be careful with music and don't overdo it.

Picking a theme song for a character sounds cool. Reminds me of an old Dragon article where they ask which actor would play your character in a movie. Thinking through an actor portraying your character can obviously help you in your portrayal, and also help flesh out the character.

-Good luck,

Staver ;)
Dawnspeaker
03-01-04, 03:50 PM Yeah we did that for a Marvel game we played, all went through and picked out actors for our characters. Gamemaster then went and got pictures of the actors(which normal clothes work because secret identities and all that), and put together a Power Point pres. with them showing all the NPCs and us in it. Was really neat.

We always keep the BG music at a moderate to low volume, so you can hear it but it is just that...background music.
LiXinjian
03-01-04, 08:45 PM As a DM myself, I like to use background music whenever possible. It definetely adds to the experience.

Failing that, I can always put a DVD on (Gladiator, LoTR, anything sword and sorcery), but it tends to draw attention away from the game, obviously. Still, it's better than complete silence.

Another aspect you might want to play with is ligthing. I haven't had the chance to try it myself, but dimming the lights when the PCs are venturing underground (or better yet, lighting a few candles) would certainly help a lot in the flavour/atmospheric department.

I've been considering a Climactic Song, to be used only when the PCs are facing the bad guy at the very end of an adventure. Something like Navras (from the Matrix Revolutions soundtrack) or even Hispanola (from 1492: Conquest of Paradise). Just listening to the songs really gets my synapses jumping, and conjures forth glorious scenes. Best of all, instrumental tracks can be repeated over and over, and people don't tire of them quite as easily as they would of another "regular" song.

If you're using climactic music, though, just make sure you keep the combat moving at a rapid pace. Forget your books, don't check for rules, go for speed all the way. It would be nice if you could match the tempo of the track somehow, perhaps slowing down in your descriptions when the pace goes down, or having the least important actions performed when the beat is low. You know what I mean.

Just a few suggestions.
anders
03-02-04, 09:08 AM twin peaks - this cd is great!

Jethro Tull - Songs from the woods. Medival feeling on some of these songs

Theme from LOTR...
CS_Buddy
03-02-04, 09:59 AM One of the best gaming experiences I've had was where the DM had set up the CD player with a LOT of the Final Fantasy VII soundtrack and orchestral pieces. He'd even programmed it (or memorized the tracks) to switch to the "Fight Scene" music when we went into combat.

All of the Final Fantasy game series music are great for D&D IMHO.
Dawnspeaker
03-02-04, 10:53 AM Ahh good ol'Final Fantasy Music, I can't believe I forgot that. The video game tunes we use are generally
Final Fantasy VI, VIII, IX, X (don't have VII)
Chrono Cross
Xenogears
Parasite Eve 1 and 2
NZCardinal
03-02-04, 07:24 PM I second the Twin Peaks soundtrack.
Some Tom Waits songs sound good for bar room/drunk dwarf/drunk romantic dwarf music. Recommend "Rain Dogs" and "Singapore":cool:
Mondo Exotica from the Ultralounge collection is terrific voodoo jungle music
And just about anything by Mike Oldfield
Daniel _the_Zodiac
03-02-04, 08:02 PM usually for ambience like in a tavern or such I play medieval music or those Landscape CD's that you can get at Target (I like Scotland the best) For combat I had thought of just playing some black metal or power metal but then I decided to use instrumental music which was more in the 'mood' of things.

For combat I like to use songs that are epic and that aren't very well known to my PC's. I'd rather have them say 'this song is awesome' then 'oh, isn't that from Batman?'
Anyways favorite combat songs of mine:

O Fortuna
Mozart's Requiem
The Final Battle/Mordred confronts Arthur (from Mists of Avalon)
O Verona (from Romeo and Juliet)
In Tenebris, Lux Triumphans, Ira Tenex (symphonic songs from the power metal band Rhapsody)
Last of the Mohicans
Bram Stoker's Dracula
MindLord
03-02-04, 10:40 PM Originally posted by LiXinjian
Another aspect you might want to play with is ligthing. I haven't had the chance to try it myself, but dimming the lights when the PCs are venturing underground (or better yet, lighting a few candles) would certainly help a lot in the flavour/atmospheric department.
[/B]

I used to play by candle light. For my group, it was pretty much a failure. You see, they're easily distracted. They play with dices all the times. So having a flame near them was pretty fun for them and kept the attention out of the game. Throwing cooled melted wax too was kind of a popular thing to do. Another problem was that candle light doesn't provide much if you need to read details on your character sheets.

We now play with ordinary light, just a bit lower than normal. Perhaps I will try later, around 20, since for now at 16 we don't seem to be mature enough...
Dawnspeaker
03-03-04, 11:46 AM Yeah..candles can be a problem. Was an issue in my group because two of the players were dating, and would end up using a dark corner to entertain themselves when other people were rolling etc.

Suffice to say lights quickly were used in full.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Dawnspeaker 03-01-04, 12:31 PM	This is the closest forum I could find for this topic. It does relate to char.development some cause when players are in the right mood they tend to get into the story and play their charaters the best they can. What kinda of music does everyone use for their games, whether to help set the stage, or back certain scenes. Right now I tend to use alot of 1.) Enya for calmer scenes 2.) Braveheart, Gladiator, Highlander: End Game, all the LotR; and Matrix Revolutions (specially the scene when Neo fights Smith for big battles) 3.) Fast techno with alot of bass for fights What does everyone else use to pump up themselvse and their players for the gaming mood and to help get into character? (I've also played games were the DM had us pick theme songs for characters to give a feel for them,.)
Staver 03-01-04, 03:45 PM	Hi Dawnspeaker, Before every combat, we all used to chant the chorus to Drowning Pool's "Bodies", but that got tired in a hurry. We play in gaming shops and bookstores where playing music is not allowed, so we've not done much in this area. The one time the DM ran a game at his house and played some BG music, he had it turned up so loud it was hard to hear him, and he's got a loud voice. So be careful with music and don't overdo it. Picking a theme song for a character sounds cool. Reminds me of an old Dragon article where they ask which actor would play your character in a movie. Thinking through an actor portraying your character can obviously help you in your portrayal, and also help flesh out the character. -Good luck, Staver ;)
Dawnspeaker 03-01-04, 03:50 PM	Yeah we did that for a Marvel game we played, all went through and picked out actors for our characters. Gamemaster then went and got pictures of the actors(which normal clothes work because secret identities and all that), and put together a Power Point pres. with them showing all the NPCs and us in it. Was really neat. We always keep the BG music at a moderate to low volume, so you can hear it but it is just that...background music.
LiXinjian 03-01-04, 08:45 PM	As a DM myself, I like to use background music whenever possible. It definetely adds to the experience. Failing that, I can always put a DVD on (Gladiator, LoTR, anything sword and sorcery), but it tends to draw attention away from the game, obviously. Still, it's better than complete silence. Another aspect you might want to play with is ligthing. I haven't had the chance to try it myself, but dimming the lights when the PCs are venturing underground (or better yet, lighting a few candles) would certainly help a lot in the flavour/atmospheric department. I've been considering a Climactic Song, to be used only when the PCs are facing the bad guy at the very end of an adventure. Something like Navras (from the Matrix Revolutions soundtrack) or even Hispanola (from 1492: Conquest of Paradise). Just listening to the songs really gets my synapses jumping, and conjures forth glorious scenes. Best of all, instrumental tracks can be repeated over and over, and people don't tire of them quite as easily as they would of another "regular" song. If you're using climactic music, though, just make sure you keep the combat moving at a rapid pace. Forget your books, don't check for rules, go for speed all the way. It would be nice if you could match the tempo of the track somehow, perhaps slowing down in your descriptions when the pace goes down, or having the least important actions performed when the beat is low. You know what I mean. Just a few suggestions.
anders 03-02-04, 09:08 AM	twin peaks - this cd is great! Jethro Tull - Songs from the woods. Medival feeling on some of these songs Theme from LOTR...
CS_Buddy 03-02-04, 09:59 AM	One of the best gaming experiences I've had was where the DM had set up the CD player with a LOT of the Final Fantasy VII soundtrack and orchestral pieces. He'd even programmed it (or memorized the tracks) to switch to the "Fight Scene" music when we went into combat. All of the Final Fantasy game series music are great for D&D IMHO.
Dawnspeaker 03-02-04, 10:53 AM	Ahh good ol'Final Fantasy Music, I can't believe I forgot that. The video game tunes we use are generally Final Fantasy VI, VIII, IX, X (don't have VII) Chrono Cross Xenogears Parasite Eve 1 and 2
NZCardinal 03-02-04, 07:24 PM	I second the Twin Peaks soundtrack. Some Tom Waits songs sound good for bar room/drunk dwarf/drunk romantic dwarf music. Recommend "Rain Dogs" and "Singapore":cool: Mondo Exotica from the Ultralounge collection is terrific voodoo jungle music And just about anything by Mike Oldfield
Daniel _the_Zodiac 03-02-04, 08:02 PM	usually for ambience like in a tavern or such I play medieval music or those Landscape CD's that you can get at Target (I like Scotland the best) For combat I had thought of just playing some black metal or power metal but then I decided to use instrumental music which was more in the 'mood' of things. For combat I like to use songs that are epic and that aren't very well known to my PC's. I'd rather have them say 'this song is awesome' then 'oh, isn't that from Batman?' Anyways favorite combat songs of mine: O Fortuna Mozart's Requiem The Final Battle/Mordred confronts Arthur (from Mists of Avalon) O Verona (from Romeo and Juliet) In Tenebris, Lux Triumphans, Ira Tenex (symphonic songs from the power metal band Rhapsody) Last of the Mohicans Bram Stoker's Dracula
MindLord 03-02-04, 10:40 PM	Originally posted by LiXinjian Another aspect you might want to play with is ligthing. I haven't had the chance to try it myself, but dimming the lights when the PCs are venturing underground (or better yet, lighting a few candles) would certainly help a lot in the flavour/atmospheric department. [/B] I used to play by candle light. For my group, it was pretty much a failure. You see, they're easily distracted. They play with dices all the times. So having a flame near them was pretty fun for them and kept the attention out of the game. Throwing cooled melted wax too was kind of a popular thing to do. Another problem was that candle light doesn't provide much if you need to read details on your character sheets. We now play with ordinary light, just a bit lower than normal. Perhaps I will try later, around 20, since for now at 16 we don't seem to be mature enough...
Dawnspeaker 03-03-04, 11:46 AM	Yeah..candles can be a problem. Was an issue in my group because two of the players were dating, and would end up using a dark corner to entertain themselves when other people were rolling etc. Suffice to say lights quickly were used in full.