As much as I enjoy writing sometimes a video is worth a thousand words. With that in mind I bring you the pilot episode of what may become a new series here at Gnome Stew: Video Gnoments!
Episode 1 is all about props. What to look for in a prop, how to acquire them for cheap, and how to use them in your games to immerse the players deeper into the game world. Enjoy!
Update: We gnomes have tinkered with the site and in true gnomish tradition we have resolved the embedded video issue.  From now on Video Gnoments will be available straight from the stew!  🙂
Click here if the video does not appear below.
Do we get a linkey?
Yeah, I’m afraid I’m not seeing anything but the Share This plug-in button.
Well that sucks.
Seems that the beautiful embedded video the appeared in Windows Live Writer did not show up once uploaded to WordPress. Luckily the video itself is hosted on YouTube here:
http://www.youtube.com/user/gnomestewvideos#p/u/0/2TEpMHwHW8o
I’ve added the link, but I’ll continue to work on fixing this post.
I liked the video. Although you talked a little fast and seemed like you weren’t breathing. Well done, the stuff was organized, you covered a few genres, and you didn’t get bogged down. Very well done, I look forward ot the next video.
@Razjah – Thanks. The videos will get better with practice I am sure.
Hmmm… I had no issue with the speed. Might want to use a different background, though, and somehow up the clarity/quality of the video, if possible. I thought someone was taking a shower just off-camera. 🙂
Overall, great presentation, tone and pace, Patrick! You came across quite well. From one Patrick to another, I give it the stamp of approval. Carry on, sir!
Absolutely loved both the content and delivery!
@Nevynxxx, @Rafe – Seems that the issue is WordPress related, but we’re not quite sure what is causing the issue just yet. I and the other gnomes are working on ways to fix this and hopefully the video will be embedded for this episode and future ones.
@Rafe – Yeah, that off screen showering was more likely my off screen dishwasher. We can’t hear it in the house, but apparently my external mic tuned into it just fine.
Production issues aside, which I will work to improve upon, I’m glad that you like dthe delivery and the content. That is what matters the most.
@Matthew J. Neagley – Thanks! I hope that they get better from this point forward.
Pretty good for a first attempt. Your delivery will improve as you go, but you may want future videos to show the table or whatever you’re working off of, as well as not centering yourself in the shot the whole time. Motion can be as important as the words in presentations like this, especially once they top five minutes.
While I use very few props in my games, you’ve offered some nice suggestions, too.
@evil – Thank you for the tips. I’m glad that you like the suggestions.
If any of you out there on the Interwebs do video blogging please feel free to share links to your sites with me and I’ll review them for ideas. I am already working on improvements for the next episode, and I’m all for more experienced people sharing their advice with me.
Very nicely done. I didn’t have any problems with the delivery or that you were alone mid shot the whole way through, as it kept some mystery about what your props were until they came out (which would be what the players would be feeling, so it was useful to see from their point of view as it were.)
I enjoyed your prop ideas and might just steal a few.
Eagerly awaiting the next video!
@Ben Scerri – Thank you! I already have an idea for the next video. I expect to have it up in about a month’s time.