10 Tips to Make your Tabletop RPG Game More ADHD Friendly! (Ft - Elizabeth Kilmer)

Tabletop RPGs like DnD or Pathfinder are some great fun, but how often do we ever stop to think about how "ADHD Friendly" they are? In this episode we talk with Dr. Elizabeth Kilmer about just that! So here are 10 tips to make your tabletop rpg game more adhd friendly!

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[dungeonma]

I struggle with longer videos but wanted to piece meal this video. Loved the tips. I put the list and the times so you can move around and reference it accordingly.

1- Have a comprehensive session zero (3:00)
2- Include recaps at the beginning of your games sessions (4:00)
3- Find a character management system that works for your (5:39)
4- Ask the question (even if it seems silly) (7:24)
5- Be the Game Master (or Dungeon Master) (8:15)
6- Keep the game session short (10:45)
7- Seek out inspiration for your character (12:09)
8- Give yourself something to do (13:29)
9- Schedule the game sessions around your brain (14:32)
10- Allow your game to matter (15:25)

[khill]

Our tabletop group is a rogue's gallery of neurospicy, so I'll definitely be dropping this on them. Thanks a lot for this, it'll be wonderfully helpful.
And I'll second the comment about character memory -- in one Starfinder campaign, one of our funniest moments was completely taking the wind out of the sails of a recurring villain with a well-timed, bless-your-heart toned "I'm sorry, you're familiar but we've been traveling and are very tired...who are you again?"

[angelum]

As someone who been sitting on both sides of the game, I found that being the GM clicks well with my brain, as it definitively gets me hyperfocused. Being a player, especially if sessions run long, can make me lose concentration, but I found that being open with the group about the issue as well as letting them know I might multitask slightly (I like to do drawings while we play) is my way to stay somewhat invested. It made them simply say my name if I don't react and also give me short, simple recaps of the situation I'm in and what has been done to try and solve it, without it being an issue 😄

[AcePlaysTCGs]

I immediately sent this to my D&D group because 2 of them have been diagnosed with ADHD, they tell me I'm a textbook case, and the other player deserves to know what's going on if 3 of us start adapting our games to fit these ideas.

Thank you for covering so many topics through the lens of ADHD. Your tips and tricks and those from the people you've interviewed over the years have been really helpful. I look forward to implementing these at the gaming table.

[alexh]

Taking proper breaks for eating and drinking is a big one for us. That’s how we manage longer sessions - but I think I would need them in shorter ones too. I can’t eat while playing and I forget to drink. Both of those things are really important for my focus, and for other neurodivergents at the table.

[BocookGaming]

I am a professional GM with ADHD, and have found time and time again that GMing is the role I am most comfortable in. When I'm a player, I do tend to get easily bored and drift off, but having everything be important and dependant on me gives me the engagement that I need to keep focused and to keep on going. Modules are a fantastic help and having a note taker is a fantastic tool as well. This is a great list. Thank you for this great video. 😊

[BriWhoSaysNi]

My current dnd group has 3 ADHD-ers in it, including the DM, and it's been really fun playing together, and it's extra nice because it means everyone is really understanding of each other's needs and if someone is just having a bad brain day or something. Personally, one of the things I like to do to stay engaged and focused is I have a running list for each session of things people say that would be really funny out of context, and at the end of each session I send it to our group chat. Everyone loves to read over the quotes, and it means I really have to pay attention to what everyone is saying. Also, for recapping, my current DM asks us at the start of each session "So, what did you do last time?" Often people will remember different things, so it helps us get a fuller recap.
Side note, I'm currently in grad school for couple's and family counseling, and I'm absolutely going to look into Dr. Kilmer's work and pick up that book! It sounds right up my alley!

[matthewhughes]

As a Dnd and ttrpg DM who also has ADHD, this is helpful. Thanks other brains for putting this together!

[danielanderson]

I was part of Elizabeth Kilmer’s group a couple of years ago. It’s so cool seeing here get interviewed

[JoannaPiancastelli]

Roleplaying games have such a high crossover with neurodivergence - creative spaces with clear rules governing social interaction? Yes please! As a long time player and game designer, my top tip is to try games besides D&D if you haven't before. Games like Lady Blackbird or Monsterhearts are much simpler and more narrative, and have so much less player downtime and more reward for paying attention the whole way through.

[BlackWolfCosplay]

I recently stumbled on a free pdf online where someone has made some adjustments and mechanics to actually make a character that has ADHD, it includes things like when your character is doing something they don't like/find boring they roll with disadvantage, but when it's something they love the get advantage. When they're hyperfocused it's like a good/bad thing, they get advantage on that thing but they won't be aware of things like survival checks. It's obviously a lot more in depth than that! But that's the general idea :)

Although I haven't actively made any of my recent character neurodiverse (outside of my personality rubbing off on them I guess!) I love that someone has done this!

[miriambailey]

5:16 I’ve experienced the same thing! I’m playing an outlander barbarian in a largely-urban campaign, and it is incredibly freeing to have a character with a ready excuse for not understanding what’s going on (“this is some townie bulls***“ is her catchphrase 😂). I also gave her an idle animation, so to speak: whenever I’m having trouble paying attention, I post “Brin starts whittling”.

[Lordgrayson]

What I do with recaps at my table, is I'll put it to the players who were there to recap the session and then i will only ever add or clarify things if it's important they have the correct details, that's so i can see what stuck out to the players and felt the most relevant, it helps me to build on those moments going forward and ends up with alot less wasted planning

[katherineberger]

My current D&D group has 4 people with ADHD & 1 autistic person. :) TTRPGs are so good, I think, for ADHDers because it takes skills that we are innately not good at - taking turns, paying passive attention, math if it's not one of your hyperfocuses, staying on task - and gamifies them so that we're rewarded over the short term for exercising them.

[NilsHansen]

As a DM of a group with 2, 5 neurodivergent players, I love that you give some information about "how to make everyone feel better". Thanks a lot! We includet most of the tips without knowing them, but it's nice to see that we do a lot right 😊

[lyndabethcave]

I played my first DnD game last weekend! Another helpful tip is using maps, diagrams or minis to keep track of things in space. When someone just describes directions to me (like "the hallway is ten feet long, on the left you see a locked door, on the right is an open archway into darkness. 30 feet behind you is a corridor that turns to the left") there is no way I'm gonna remember that. But if I see a rough sketch or a map, it's much easier to remember.

[marxmeesterlijk]

here are my ADhD friendly ADnD tips:

1) ask for help/divide the responsibility. It's often kind of assumed that the DM also hosts the game. But if I have to schedule the game, prepare and also make sure there's food, there's never going to be a game. So in my game one of the players is responsible for session planning, the others plan meals/snacks together. So I can just focus on preparing the game itself and not get overwhelmed at the table.

2) find a game/style of play that suits you. DnD5th is an awesome game but is relatively complex and prep heavy. With encounter balance, statblocks ets. So i've personally been looking at different games that are more improvisation and story telling focussed or just have simpler rules. That really helped me.

[piotrnudny]

My ADHD brain: hyperfixates on tRPG since the beginning of this year

How to ADHD: makes a video about ADHD and tRPG

My ADHD brain: FINALLY. MY HYPERFIXATIONS GOT SO POWERFUL THAT THEY BEND REALITY ITSELF.

[intentionallymadi]

If you're interested in dipping your toes into TTRPG's but the idea of having to remember a bunch of stuff between sessions, doing a short one-shot like Honey Heist can be really good! They're super fun and the whole story is generally wrapped up in one session that's just two-ish hours long! Also this can be a good way to test the waters with a new group because one of the potential problems new players can run into in a session zero is that you just don't know what your comfort levels are, or what tone you like! Doing a one-shot beforehand can give you a bit more info about yourself and your needs and preferences to be able to use the session zero super effectively. Also, I think it's super helpful for GMs to regularly ask for feedback at the ends of sessions and can help contribute to a culture where everyone feels comfy saying "this didn't work for me" or "can you explain this again"

[broke_af_games]

Life IS easier when you have someone to guide you through this journey.
I got my diagnosis less than a year and it's been difficult seeing how life could have been.

I'm so thankful for you tube and channels like yours for being there to help guide me through this journey.

And thanks for the dnd tips ;)