Line #46 Webcomic/DMOfTheRings


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2	%%Zero-context examples have been commented out. It is also recommended that weblinks being used as examples be expanded.
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5	[[quoteright:330:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/4f561e3e_5b33_4050_8bda_9e1d8bba519b.png]]
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7	->''"[[Literature/TheLordOfTheRings 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 [[Creator/JRRTolkien Tolkien]] mythos, and then imagine taking those players and trying to introduce them to Tolkien via a ''D&D'' campaign."''
8	-->-- '''The Blurb for the first strip'''
9
10	According to ''[[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=612 DM of the Rings]]'', ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'' wouldn't make a good ''[[TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons Dungeons & Dragons]]'' [[TabletopGames campaign]].
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12	Think about it. Loads of {{Backstory}}, few [[HackAndSlash battles]], limited treasure (even if you aren't expecting a MontyHaul campaign), and lots and lots of talking (since many events are told to others after the fact).
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14	To a player whose rules are PlayTheGameSkipTheStory and RPGsEqualCombat, this would make for a frustrating game, and just as much or more for the DungeonMaster shepherding them through it. But it makes a great comic.
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16	''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, ''[[https://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?cat=14 Chainmail Bikini]]'' did). Instead, we see shots of the films as actions the players are taking.
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18	The comic doesn't really satirize ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' as much as it makes fun of the way [[TabletopGames roleplaying]] sessions tend to go, especially the struggle between the GameMaster and players. It's been described as an overall example of how ''not'' to conduct a campaign in general.
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20	Other works by the [[Creator/ShamusYoung author]] include ''Webcomic/ChainmailBikini'', ''Stolen Pixels'', ''LetsPlay/SpoilerWarning'' and the column [[https://www.escapistmagazine.com/?s=experienced+points "Experienced Points"]] at ''Website/TheEscapist''.
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22	This comic has inspired several FollowTheLeader comics applying the formula to other works, notably Website/TVTropes semi-favorite ''Webcomic/DarthsAndDroids''. It is the TropeMaker for the CampaignComic.
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24	In 2023, [[https://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=55070 the series began getting remastered]] by Young's children.
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26	As a completed work with Administrivia/SelfFulfillingSpoiler, '''all spoilers are off.'''
27	----
28	!!''DM of the Rings'' provides examples of the following tropes:
29
30	* AccidentalMisnaming:
31	** Players keep screwing up the names.
32	--->'''Gimli:''' My name is Gimli, son of Groin.
33	** Done on purpose when they first meet Legolass... Leggo of my ass... Legolas.
34	--->'''Aragorn:''' He should have named you Leggo of my ass, because you're going to be saying that a lot.
35	** And then getting the names ''right'', but ''referring'' to them wrong.
36	--->'''Aragorn:''' Hail to the king, baby! Aragorn, son of Andúril, is back!\
37	'''DM:''' Andúril is the name of your sword, dumbass.
38	** Frodo would like to remind you that his name is not Dave.
39	** They also confuse Saruman with Sauron, leading them to think the game is over when they kill ''Saruman''. (Granted, [[TruthInTelevision it was a common mistake in real life]].)
40	--->'''DM:''' This isn't the end of the campaign. You just killed ''Saruman.''\
41	'''Aragorn:''' Yeah. The evil guy who made the ring.\
42	'''DM:''' What? No, he didn't ''MAKE'' the ring, he ''WANTED'' the ring! Don't tell me all this time you've been confusing ''Sauron'' with ''Saruman!''\
43	'''Aragorn:''' Oh, yeah, I can't imagine how we could've confused ''those'' two names!\
44	'''Legolas:''' I thought Sauron was like a nickname.
45	* AggressiveNegotiations: The unnamed DM becomes rather upset at the heroes for killing Saruman, Wormtongue, and the Mouth of Sauron in parley.
46	-->'''Aragorn:''' Yeah, let's speed this up. (''kills the MouthOfSauron'')\
47	'''DM:''' What? You attack him? During parlay? What is wrong with you guys? This is the third time you've killed someone during negotiations!\
48	'''Legolas:''' And yet they keep falling for it! It's hilarious.\
49	'''DM:''' You're supposed to be a king! Can't you at least '''pretend''' to be one for a few seconds?\
50	'''Aragorn:''' If I hadn't shot him, Legolas would have.\
51	'''Legolas:''' He's right, too. I was just about to announce my attack.
52	* AllohistoricalAllusion: Pippin's player asks if the group really wants to sit through an RPG made "for linguists or historians or whatever." Tolkien was both a linguist and a historian, whose hobby was inventing {{Con Lang}}s and writing a book series where those languages mapped to mythological peoples, such as elves and dwarves.
53	* AllThereInTheManual: The DM has most of the important story points in notes he wants the players to read, but of course they refuse. Late on, we discover that Aragon's player skipped his character's backstory. Under the comic, Shamus [[TheRant notes]] that role playing games are one of the few times when someone will need "the Cliff Notes of their own biography".
54	* AntiClimaxBoss: InUniverse. The party views Saruman as this, before the DM has to tell them that the campaign doesn't end with them killing him.
55	* AreYouPonderingWhatImPondering: Subverted. [[{{GMPC}} Gandalf]] states that the main characters have to go on the offensive against Sauron to keep his eye fixed on the West so the halflings can do their stuff. Aragorn, who's sick of Gandalf and isn't listening, overrules him out of hand and reveals his own plan... Which is to go on the offensive and "beat on [Sauron] ''until he cries like a little girl''".
56	-->'''TheRant:''' The best sort of player revolt is when they refuse to listen to your advice, but end up doing what you wanted them to do anyway.
57	* AutomatonHorses: [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1273 Discussed]] when Aragorn argues with the DM over whether their horses were brought with them since the Caves of the Dead.
58	* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: Aragorn wants to sleep with Éowyn. So the DM lets him... and then tells him to make a fortitude saving throw vs. disease. He fails and gets a nasty rash.
59	-->'''The Rant:''' Sometimes the most sadistic thing the DM can do to is to let the players have their own way.
60	* BloodKnight: Legolas goes immediately to Attack Mode whenever the party encounters something. He shoots at Gollum, Grima and Saruman (and kills them) when he's not supposed to, and would have picked a fight with the army of undead if Gimli didn't stop him.
61	* ButThouMust: A warped example. Aragorn is fine with Éowyn coming along with him leaving her people behind, which is clearly not what he's supposed to do. The DM is not prepared for this so she ends up having both sides of the argument about her duty vs her desire and Aragorn loses patience and leaves.
62	* ButtMonkey: Both Dave/Frodo and Legolas qualify, although in different ways. In-game, Frodo has comically bad luck with his die rolls and takes a lot of hits, while out-of-game, the other players keep making jokes about Legolas being either gay or a woman.
63	* CampaignComic: This is the TropeMaker for comics retelling other media as though they were RPG campaigns.
64	* CanonSue: InUniverse, that's how the players view Gandalf.
65	* CharacterAlignment: Invoked. [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1189 Gimli states that he is]] LawfulGood. Legolas is ''supposed'' to be as well, but his tendency to declare an attack first and think later kind of ruin it.
66	* ClicheStorm: InUniverse. Even the tropes that were [[TropeMaker made by the books]], and thus not cliches at the time, become {{RPG}} clichés in the hands of the DM. For instance, in regards to ''The Lord of the Rings'' influencing ''D&D'', Aragorn comments that the party has been fighting nothing but orcs (also, the blind pond squid being called Watcher):
67	-->'''Aragorn:''' Whoever wrote this story has no imagination at all!
68	* CriticalFailure
69	** Dave/Frodo rolls a 1 in the battle against the Moria orcs, which is how he gets speared.
70	** When they first meet the riders of Rohan, Gimli rolls a 1 on diplomacy and addresses them with "tell me your name, [[CurseCutShort horse f]]--" [[SpeechBubblesInterruption "GIMLI!"]]. What makes it even funnier is that Gimli's player said that on his own accord. He was [[TheRoleplayer role-playing]] his own critical failure.
71	** Then there's [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1017 the time]] Aragorn rolls a 1 on ''falling off a Warg'' and therefore he can't fall off, which means he rides it over the cliff instead.
72	*** Though there ''are'' indications of this being deliberate by the DM to get back at Aragorn for some bit of {{Jerkass}}ery earlier in the campaign. Especially when one remembers several strips earlier the [[BrickJoke DM making a note of forcing Aragorn over a cliff at some point]].
73	** Also when Legolas tries to shoot Saruman. 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 Gríma instead.
74	* CulturalTranslation: There is a French translation of the Webcomic in which [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=906 the 58th page "It is a silly place"]] has all the ''Film/MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail'' references replaced by references to ''Series/{{Kaamelott}}''.
75	* {{Cutscene}}: This is basically how the DM wanted to run the game, and actually did it in a couple scenes, like when Gandalf freed Théoden (which we do not see here due to the focus shifting to Aragorn trying to get laid with Éowyn - only Gimli mentions it later).
76	* CuttingTheKnot: 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).
77	* DeadpanSnarker: Often the players use this tone when calling out the dumb aspects of the campaign.
78	* DeathOfAThousandCuts: Not shown, but it's implied that this is how they get rid of the Mûmak, as everyone keeps stabbing its toes instead of going with Legolas' idea of climbing up the creature and stab it in the eyes.
79	** Shamus justifies this in [[https://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1235 the comic's comment]], as climbing up on it just means you take a lot of extra turns to do the climbing, with lots of extra rolling and calculating, and even if you do get up on it, the damage you do isn't any different than at the toes.
80	* DeepImmersionGaming: All of the scenes are done as scenes of the movie so all of the players are being shown only as their fictional counterparts.
81	* DiscreditedMeme: [[invoked]]
82	** InUniverse, the blurb for [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=673 comic XIII]].
83	--->''My own suggestion for the 4.0 edition rules: Anyone who quotes ''[[Film/MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail Holy Grail]]'' during a session should be made to eat their own character sheet.''
84	** After readers started doing the "first!" thing, Shamus started preemptively posting "first" in a variety of snarky ways. Like an image of Steven Furst.
85	* DullSurprise: [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=962 Strip LXIV]]
86	-->'''Aragorn:''' What a total surprise. [[SarcasmMode We never saw that one coming.]]
87	* DwindlingParty: Thanks to the DM being such a killjoy, the players for the Hobbits get fed up and quit, and Boromir chooses not to get resurrected when he dies. Very soon it's just Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli. Deliberately invoked so that the story can follow the adventures of the trio and ignore the two Hobbit storylines.
88	* {{Elfeminate}}:
89	** Legolas gets this a lot from... just about everyone, really, but ''especially'' Aragorn.
90	** It seems Aragorn has this problem with elves in general. When Haldir comes to Rohan's help, Aragorn accuses him of being a Saruman's spy, calling Haldir "smouldering temptress" and "she-devil".
91	* ExactWords: Aragorn agreed to lift the Dead Army's curse in exchange for their aid in battle and, of course treasure. The Dead King agrees. However, a giant pile of skulls and rocks falls on Aragorn's treasure. Hey, no one promised ''access'' to the treasure.
92	-->'''[[HeroWithAnFInGood Aragorn]]:''' So how am I supposed to...\
93	'''Dead King:''' Not our problem.
94	* ExtremeOmnisexual:
95	** Sometimes, Aragorn's tendency to mistake elves for women is taken as this.
96	--->'''Théoden:''' Aragorn, we are in no position to turn away friends, no matter how disturbingly attractive you find them.
97	** Then later:
98	---> '''Aragorn:''' [Dryads are] like sexy tree ladies.\
99	'''Legolas:''' Sexy? I thought they had leaves for hair. And bark skin.\
100	'''Aragorn:''' Yeah, but they're ''all'' chicks. '''Naked''' chicks. Leafy, naked tree chicks.\
101	'''Gimli:''' Ye need help lad. Ye really do. Keep this up and you'll end up with Dutch elm disease.
102	* FacePalm: [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=653 Frodo in strip X.]]
103	-->'''Frodo:''' Oh no. Who let {{the roleplayer}} into the group?
104	* FauxToGuide: A lot of the blurbs present bad roleplaying as the proper thing to do.
105	-->''Remember, nothing will spice up your campaign quicker than long descriptions of [=NPCs=] doing spectacular stuff while the players sit around and watch.\
106	Players tend to stay on the [[{{Railroading}} rails]] better when you place obvious landmines on either side of the tracks.''
107	* FlatScare: {{Defied}} when Gimli is ([[{{Railroading}} said by the DM to be]]) gripped by fear from the threshold of the Paths of the Dead. He claims that a dark cave entrance really isn't that scary, and [[https://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1168 goes on to describe in great detail]] an EldritchAbomination he encountered in a horror-themed campaign.
108	-->Never try to scare a ''TabletopGame/CallOfCthulhu'' player. [[NervesOfSteel Those guys are insane.]]
109	* GenreSavvy: Well... kind of the whole point really. For extra comedy, the characters get occasional WrongGenreSavvy moments.
110	* GiveAManAFish: In the blurb beneath [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1147 this comic]], where Aragorn is given something, the Palantír, and complains how hard it will be to sell.
111	-->'''Creator/ShamusYoung:''' Give a player a fish, and he’ll probably try to sell it to an NPC fisherman... Teach a player to fish, and next week he’ll show up with the book, “The Complete Adventuring Fisherman”. He’ll start hunting for some monstrous leviathan to catch and enslave, and he’ll be dual-wielding two fishing poles.
112	* {{GMPC}}: Gandalf is run by the GM and is sometimes ignored in-character.
113	* GrapplingWithGrapplingRules: The blurb to [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=691 this comic]] shows that he was going to make a joke about the players being gung-ho to fight the Watcher, but ''terrified'' of having to figure out how to wade through the (admittedly ''very'' complex) grappling system while fighting a creature with dozens of tentacles. Unfortunately, he couldn't make the joke pay off, and just skipped over the scene.
114	* GraveRobbing: Of course. Gimli even tries to bust open the tombs of his ancestors with his axe.
115	* HyperspaceArsenal: [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=984 Aragorn's Backpack.]]
116	-->'''Gimli:''' You don't have a backpack. What you have there is an invisible leather [[Series/DoctorWho TARDIS]].
117	* HypocriticalHumor: When Gimli invokes LoopholeAbuse so the players can perform a FastballSpecial...
118	-->'''Aragorn:''' Good one, Gimli. Nice to get a fair ruling once in a while.\
119	'''Gimli:''' Fair? Ha! Back when I was a DM, I never would have let my players get away with something like this.
120	* IDieFree: Boromir, because Frank refuses to roll a new character on the grounds that he's finally not being railroaded any more.
121	* IfYouDieICallYourStuff: Discussed when Gimli is searching the dead orcs for loot.
122	-->'''Gimli:''' Because our little halfling buddies are in here somewhere, and I ''know'' they had some good stuff.\
123	'''Legolas:''' Dibs on their cloaks!
124	* ImagineSpot:
125	** Legolas [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1235 killing the Mûmak]] is presented entirely as a player suggestion for fighting, [[TakeThat which is immediately shot down.]]
126	--->(''[[BeatPanel beat]]'')\
127	'''Aragorn:''' That's the [[StupidestThingIveEverHeard stupidest thing I've ever heard]].
128	** The [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=905 Unused (Unusable) Strip]] is Gimli's player's suggestion of how to make Gandalf much, much cooler.
129	* ImpliedDeathThreat: The King of the Dead to Aragorn makes a fairly convincing case for why Aragorn should release him from his oath after Pelennor Field.
130	-->"You know, of all the kings on the battlefield today, you're the only one who's not dead. Yet."
131	* InexplicableTreasureChests: Defied and justified when the party asks whether there's any loot at Weathertop:
132	-->''It was a watchtower for crying out loud. Thousands of years ago when this place was '''brand new''' it had nothing of value. Nobody has come along '''since then''' and added treasure for you.''
133	* InSpiteOfANail: Despite Legolas killing Gollum during the events of ''Fellowship of the Ring'', Frodo and Sam still make it through Mordor and into Mount Doom though it's partially because their players quit and the DM turned them into [=NPCs=].
134	* ItWasADarkAndStormyNight: The DM explains how the four hobbits met Aragorn in an inn, on a dark and stormy night. The four of them immediately decry how clichéd this set-up is.
135	* {{Jerkass}}: ''Everyone'' is this in one way or another, but the DM takes the cake. Everyone else's tendencies can essentially be blamed on him anyway, as most of their own jerkass moments are provoked by his railroading.
136	* JerkassHasAPoint: The players can be quite [[DeadpanSnarker snarky]] bastards. But many of their nitpicks and pot shots towards the campaign do have valid points of criticism, as does their view towards The DM’s railroading.
137	* MistakenIdentity:
138	** The players frequently confuse the two pairs of hobbits, the two wizards, and almost anything else.
139	--->'''DM:''' Don't tell me all this time you've been confusing '''SAURON''' and '''SARUMAN'''!\
140	'''Aragorn:''' Oh yeah, [[SarcasmMode I can't imagine how we could have confused]] ''[[SarcasmMode those]]'' [[SarcasmMode two names]].\
141	'''Legolas:''' You mean those are two different people? I thought Sauron was like, a nickname or whatever.
142	** "I am Aragorn, [[IAmXSonOfY son of Anduril.]]" "Anduril is your ''sword'', dumbass."
143	* {{Munchkin}}: Legolas.
144	-->'''Legolas:''' Side? Man, I'll follow whoever can score us some loot and a fair fight.
145	* MyFriendsAndZoidberg: Gimli's introduction of the party to Théoden has this. This is as much because Gimli just doesn't care enough to remember Gandalf (as he is an NPC).
146	-->'''Gimli:''' Greetings, wise King Théogan. I am Gimli and these are my companions Aragorn and Legolas.\
147	'''DM:''' And Gandalf.\
148	'''Gimli:''' Right. And Gandalf.
149	* MythologyGag:
150	** The DM asks why Aragorn isn't using Andúril (the reforged sword of his ancestor). Aragorn asks when he got that and the DM realizes he forgot to give it to him at Rivendell, leading to a hasty visit from Elrond at the Rohirrim camp. This is a reference to the differences between the books (where Aragorn got Andúril at Rivendell) and the movie (where they had to have Elrond visit him at the camp).
151	---> '''DM:''' Suddenly, Lord Elrond appears at your camp.\
152	'''Elrond:''' Hi.\
153	'''DM:''' He gives you the sword.\
154	'''Elrond:''' Here is the sword. And keep your hands off my daughter.\
155	'''DM:''' Then he leaves.
156	** In general, the comic follows the idea that the book represents the DM's original script for the campaign, and movie changes represent instances where the players go OffTheRails.
157	* NoGearLevel: The party is forced to get their weapons confiscated before they meet Théoden. Unfortunately, the players know what's coming next.
158	-->'''Legolas:''' Anytime they want you to disarm before meeting the King, it means somebody's going to start something once you get inside. \
159	'''Gimli:''' I wouldn't worry about it. He already agreed to let Gandalf in [[TheGuardsMustBeCrazy with his staff]], so it doesn't matter if we're armed or not.
160	* NothingButSkulls: Skewered a scene from the movie showing the Paths of the Dead.
161	-->'''DM:''' ''[[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1203 The walls crack open,]] and [[NothingButSkulls thousands of skulls]] are released!''\
162	'''Legolas:''' OhCrap.\
163	'''DM:''' ''They tumble down from above, forming a great avalanche of death. The horrid sight is--''\
164	'''Aragorn:''' Skulls? Like, ''only'' skulls?\
165	'''DM:''' ''Yeah.''\
166	'''Aragorn:''' But that makes no sense! [...]\
167	'''Gimli:''' I'll bet this was a [[DeadpanSnarker 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."[...]\
168	'''DM:''' ''The skulls continue to pour in, filling the room and threatening to crush your nitpicking, over-analyzing characters.''\
169	'''Aragorn:''' No problem, I'll just roll my saving throw vs. ridiculous contrivances.
170	* NotSoAboveItAll:
171	** Twice in as many strips! In ''[[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=673 XIII: Let's Not go There]]'', after the Fellowship ''inevitably'' devolves into nonstop Monty Python quotes, the exasperated DM finally shouts, [[Film/MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail "Bloody peasants!"]] at them.
172	** The very next strip, (''[[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=675 XIV: Boring Distractions]]'') involves Legolas and Boromir's players [[MoodDissonance ruining the tension of their perilous climb up Mt. Cahadras]] by talking about whether they should upgrade their web servers to [[http://php.net PHP 5]]. Aragorn, ''of all people'' tries to get them back on track, only for the DM to join in on the PHP discussion.
173	* OffTheRails: {{Defied\|Trope}} by the DM most of the time, save for when the players get the drop on him. Like when Legolas gets a critical/max damage and ends up scoring a OneHitKO on Gollum, removing him from the story before he really enters. All of the Hobbit players leaving the game also put something of a crimp on things; he ends up just declaring they made it to Mount Doom off-screen.
174	* OnlySaneMan: The DM ''tries'' to be this, but is so railroady and incompetent that it becomes closer to TheComicallySerious and SurroundedByIdiots instead. Gimli is a straighter example, as he's the only player who seems to care at all about roleplaying or the DM's story (he even suggests the DM should try it again sometime, since he now has more experience, though this might be just to get out of having to do it himself), at least until he realizes how much of a dumpster fire the game already is and stops bothering so much, and even then he's still the most experienced and serious player. He's also usually the most successful in changing the campaign, due to the player's GenreSavvy nature after playing (and DM-ing) these types of games for 20 years.
175	* OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame: [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1189 Spoofed in strip CX.]] The defining characteristic of dwarves is that they are lawful. Well, it's actually the ''fourth'' defining characteristic, after low charisma, bearded women, and rampant alcoholism.
176	* PerpetualPoverty: The party is really unlucky when it comes to looting. [[https://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1032 And really frustrated about it]].
177	-->'''Legolas:''' How's the looting going?\
178	'''Gimli:''' I've searched all the bodies (''read: a pile of scorched orcs''), and we got just enough gold to buy an ale.\
179	(''beat'')\
180	'''Legolas:''' You mean one for each of--\
181	'''Gimli:''' To share.
182	* PlayTheGameSkipTheStory: InUniverse. The players have virtually no interest in the story or roleplaying whatsoever. Even the actual roleplayer of the group find the story too railroaded to be of any interest.
183	* PlotArmor: [[https://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1245 Aragorn uses this trope]] to justify not wasting time helping Merry and Eowyn when they're wounded.
184	--> I think those two are central to the plot. I'm sure they'll live.
185	* PrecisionFStrike: The "[[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=850 Horsefucker]]" joke.
186	* PunctuatedForEmphasis
187	** Done with a rather [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1098 deadpan sense of hatred]].
188	--->'''Aragorn:''' So I'm just saving time: I. Kill. An. Orc.
189	** And [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1207 later by the DM]].
190	--->'''DM:''' '''ATTENTION!''' Corsairs. Are. Sailing. Ships. OKAY?
191	* RadialAsskicking: The [[HollywoodTactics tactical... originality]] of this maneuver in RealLife is lampshaded.
192	* {{Railroading}}: A really blatant case. Justified in that (according to the first strip) the DM has read Tolkien, the players haven't, and the DM is trying to introduce it to them through the medium of an RPG. A good idea ''in theory''. This early premise, however, is quickly abandoned in favor of the suggestion that the DM wrote the story himself; apparently, LOTR does not exist as a book in the world of the comic, despite being the precursor to D&D and a major TropeCodifier for modern fantasy.
193	** [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=937 One of the most obvious examples]]. The DM clearly has a big conversation planned between [[{{NPC}} Gandalf]] and [[{{NPC}} Wormtongue]]. After Wormtongue's first line, Gimli's player steps forward, interrupts Gandalf's response, and introduces the party. The DM ''repeats Wormtongue's line'' and continues with Gandalf's response as if that simply didn't happen.
194	--->'''Legolas:''' Oh no. It looks like we've entered a non-interactive cutscene.\
195	'''Aragon:''' Entered? We've been in one since Rivendell.\
196	'''Gimli:''' I don't suppose we can hit X to skip? (''Gandalf keeps talking to Théoden'') I guess not.
197	** Gimli [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1168 resists one attempt by metagaming]].
198	** One amusing version comes at the scene where Éowyn asks to join the group. Aragorn is totally okay with it, but the GM keeps on acting like he followed the novel and said no. After a few attempts at straightening things out, he eventually just writes her off as a nut and leaves.
199	* ReadingAheadInTheScript: Turned into a pretzel in [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=753 strip XXIX]] when the DM reads the "Gandalf Returns" script instead of Galadriel's. Upon realizing his mistake, he tells the players to forget what they heard, but they weren't listening anyway.
200	* TheRealMan: Aragorn prefers to fight over roleplaying, unless he's sure he'll get something out of the latter.
201	* RocksFallEveryoneDies: Used as the punchline in [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1165 strip CV]].
202	* TheRoleplayer: Gimli is one. Frodo even mocks him for being one when they first meet. Gimli does use this to stop the DM from trying to hijack his character.
203	* RunningGag: Lots.
204	** Aragorn pretending male elves are chicks.
205	** Legolas' name and gender.
206	** [-"I hate this campaign!"-]
207	** The lack of brothels in all the towns. Also, the fact that they all suck.
208	** The DM rambling on while the players talk amongst themselves.
209	** Looting.
210	* RulesLawyer: Happens a ''lot''. The DM will do it [[{{Railroading}} to keep everyone]] [[ButThouMust 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 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).
211	* SchrodingersGun: Gimli in [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1014 strip LXXIII]], wonders if he is both alive and dead when the dice fall off the table and they can't see the results for a minute.
212	-->"Have I become some sort of UNCERTAINTY LICH?"
213	* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: The game has eight players at one point, and by the end only three remain.
214	** Boromir quits because he's dead and wants to stay that way; see IDieFree.
215	** Dave (Frodo's player) loses his patience shortly later and go DM'ing a ''Franchise/StarWars'' campaign, taking Sam, Merry, and Pippin with him. The hobbits eventually return late in the game, but at that point they are [=NPCs=].
216	** Even Aragorn almost does this at the very end, before he learns of his AwesomeMomentOfCrowning.
217	** The comic was originally supposed to end with all but one player leaving the campaign, [[BrickJoke so he then goes off to play]] ''VideoGame/MechWarrior''.
218	* ScrewYouElves: After a long rant about how the elves' town sucks in [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=762 comic XXXII,]] the following occurs:
219	-->'''Aragorn:''' Know what I'm thinking?\
220	'''Boromir:''' [[KillItWithFire Only you can promote forest fires?]]\
221	'''Aragorn:''' Exactly.
222	* ShaggyDogStory: 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. When they aren't amused at this, he informs them that said roll will have "special modifiers."
223	* ShallIRepeatThat: Actually defied once. When none of the players were paying attention when Elrond was giving them the backstory at the Council of Elrond. When they're asked what to do with the One Ring, no-one even has a clue where the conversation went, and Aragorn makes the mistake of asking the DM to repeat...
224	-->'''Elrond:''' As you wish. I shall repeat my tale.\
225	'''Gimli:''' '''[[BigNo NO!]]''' I mean... Heh.
226	* ShoutOut:
227	** Creator/MontyPython, from [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=673 this comic]] to various others. Which the DM absolutely abhors.
228	** To ''Film/ThePrincessBride'' in [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1023 strip LXXV]].
229	** ''Mario'' in [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1140 strip XCIX]].
230	** ''[[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=984 Doctor Who]]''.
231	** A movie tie-in one to ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean'' in [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1183 strip CIX]].
232	** ''{{VideoGame/Starcraft}}'' in [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1207 CXV]]
233	** ''Franchise/StarWars'' in [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1249 CXXVI]]. Legolas [[DontExplainTheJoke pointed it out]].
234	** [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=759 A brief one]] to [[TheSpock Spock]].
235	** [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=922 One of the strips]] is titled "[[Webcomic/TheOrderoftheStick Disorder of the Stick]]".
236	** [[https://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=729 In the Halloween strip]] when trying to come up with a name for the group, one of the suggestions is [[Music/{{Helloween}} "The Seven Keepers of the Ring"]].
237	* SpeechBubblesInterruption: Happens almost every time to the DM when he attempts to tell the story, and it all starts in the first panel of the comic.
238	* SpotlightStealingSquad: Gandalf, of course, as a GMPC, to the point where Aragon's player [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1108 complains about it in-universe]].
239	* TheStoner: According to Young, much of Aragorn's characterization came from the unusual number of screenshots of Viggo Mortensen staring off looking baked out of his mind.
240	* StupidSexyFlanders: Aragorn thinks all elf chicks are hot. Even when he knows [[DudeLooksLikeALady they're male]].
241	* StylisticSuck: The game the guys are playing just flat-out sucks, largely because the DM is terrible at telling it. The players hate it, hate the DM for forcing them through it, and hate each other for good measure. The entire appeal of the strip is how they snark their way through it regardless.
242	* SuddenlyAlwaysKnewThat: The solution to the corsair problem? Aragorn knows how to sail ships, despite being nominally a ranger. Not that he cared to know it in the first place.
243	-->'''DM:''' If you ever read your backstory you'd see it makes perfect sense.\
244	'''Aragorn:''' Nice try, but I'm not quite desperate enough to read that thing just yet.
245	** That strip also lampshades an AdaptationInducedPlotHole in the movies, since in the book, there were far more people sailing the ships than just Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli.
246	* SupportingProtagonist: After all of the Hobbit players quit the game, the focus is put entirely on Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas... but the DM's refusal to tweak his story to account for this means the heroes are now effectively a decoy party, while a few NPC are solving the main plot entirely offscreen. The players do not take it well when the outcome of the whole campaign boils down to a character who's not even in the scene succeeding at a single dice roll.
247	* SuspiciouslySpecificDenial: Éomer [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=854 says]] he hasn't seen the two hobbits... right after reciting their names, which even the players have forgotten, and which he couldn't possibly know except if the [=PCs=] told him. Of course, this is an unintended example, speaking more of the DM's ineptude than anything, because he lets the players assume they told him rather than giving them the names and telling them to ask again.
248	* TakeYourTime: Three days after the armies left Minas Tirith for Mordor, the DM reminds Aragorn that he forgot to heal Éowyn 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.
249	* TalkingIsAFreeAction: Subverted and defied by Legolas, who manages to kill Wormtongue while Saruman was trying to make a speech, and then kills Saruman himself after the wizard spends a combat round's worth of time (six seconds) gawking speechlessly at the act.
250	* TookTheBadFilmSeriously:
251	** InUniverse example. Well, took the bad ''campaign'' seriously. [[TheRoleplayer Gimli]] is the only player who pays attention to the plot, even if he claims he hates it.
252	** Most of all the DM. Much of the general low quality of the campaign is a direct result of him doing this.
253	* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1062 Strip LXXXIII]]. Elicits an OhCrap from Legolas.
254	* TravelingAtTheSpeedOfPlot: [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=889 Lampshaded here]] in the author's notes.
255	-->“A player is never late, Dave. Nor is he early. He arrives precisly when the plot dictates he should.”
256	* UnbuiltTrope: This comic is considered the TropeMaker for the CampaignComic, but it doesn't make use of the tropes a campaign comic is usually known for. Usually in a CampaignComic, the players have identities and distinct personalities that affect how they play their characters, and the game tries to parse the distinctions of the setting into gaming terms that become a theme (for example, the over-the-top ''Manga/OnePiece'' fighting antics and idiocy of the protagonists turns into a theme of absurd MinMaxing and LethalJokeCharacter builds). ''DM of the Rings'' is largely built around how the setting is an awful choice for traditional gaming and how dysfunctional the group is. Even Gimli's initial introduction as TheRoleplayer is quickly forgotten.
257	* UnusualEuphemism
258	** ''"Conan's Codpiece!"''
259	** Don't forget his "well-oiled nipples."
260	* TheUsualAdversaries: The players become increasingly frustrated that the DM refuses to use anything but orcs as enemies.
261	* VillainousBreakdown: [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=824 The DM has one]] when Dave/Frodo [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere abandons the game:]]
262	-->'''DM:''' No! You're ruining everything! You didn't visit Amon Hen yet! You're not supposed to leave for a couple more pages...\
263	'''Frodo:''' Piss off, Casey Jones.
264	* WallOfBlather: Whenever the DM engages in narrative. Much of it is obscured by the players' ranting, because they don't give a damn. Including in the very first page, which (tries to) establish the setting.
265	* WhatsUpKingDude: Sam attempts to greet Celeborn and Galadriel this way, but is stopped by Frodo. Later, Aragorn does this by walking the streets of Minas Tirith and trying to have friendly chit-chat with the citizens.
266	* WhileYouWereInDiapers: When Frodo complains about Gimli being TheRoleplayer, Gimli snipes the he'd been playing these games when the hobbits' players were just playing NES games.
267	* WontTakeYesForAnAnswer: When Éowyn asks to join the Fellowship, the DM obviously expected the players to [[RailRoading follow his script]] and say no, but Aragorn's player says "Sure, as long as you can fight." Obviously unable to deal with this, the DM continues to read Éowyn's scripted dialog, causing her to act like they rejected her despite Aragorn's increasingly frustrated attempts to say otherwise. Eventually the players have had enough and just walk away, muttering about her being a lunatic.
268	* WorldOfSnark: Every character gets a one-liner or two in this comic.
269	* YeOldeButcheredeEnglishe:
270	** Parodied, as seen above.
271	--->'''Éomer:''' ''(played by the DM)'' My company are those loyal to Rohan, and for that we were banished.\
272	'''Legolas:''' Oh man, sucks to be you.\
273	'''DM:''' Oh, come on. You're not even trying [to stay in character]. I know you can do better than that.\
274	'''Legolas:''' Hark, thy fate sucketh?\
275	'''DM:''' That is... much worse.
276	** Also when Aragorn lifts the curse upon the King of the Dead and his legion:
277	--->'''Aragorn:''' Pleasure doing business with you.\
278	'''DM:''' Ahem.\
279	'''Aragorn:''' I mean... I cancel your curse.\
280	'''DM:''' Come on! You're a king! Roleplaying! Middle Ages!\
281	'''Aragorn:''' I hereby... proclaimate... thy curse?\
282	'''DM:''' Oh forget it.\
283	'''Aragorn:''' I excommunicate your curse?\
284	'''DM:''' I really need you to stop trying now.
285	* YouAllMeetInAnInn: One of the major divergences from the book is that this campaign starts out at the Prancing Pony.
286	-->'''Frodo:''' Please, please don't say we meet in a tavern.\
287	'''DM:''' In a tavern called the Prancing Pony, an age-old meeting place...\
288	'''Frodo:''' Arg!
289	* YourPrincessIsInAnotherCastle: Done [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=1140 here]] when the players mistake Sauron for Saruman, and thus mistakenly think killing him means they've completed the quest.

Context Webcomic / DMOfTheRings