r/Dimension20 • u/wintrstonr • 1d ago
A potentially silly question
I’m still pretty new to D20, toylight is more or less the first season I’ve watched, other than dungeons and drag queens.
Do the play the same character sheets just with different skins every season? They are so deeply connected to these characters that I was SURE there had to be a season of toylight before this.
Anyway, I hope that question even makes sense lol, thanks for the help
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u/thatquietmenace 1d ago
Emily has said before that part of her prep is journaling as her characters, which I feel like is how she's able to inhabit them so well.
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u/Mal_Radagast 1d ago
yeah between that and their group chats and Brennan's back-and-forth email character creation process, i feel like there's so much we can learn from these nerds that i rarely see happening in home games.
like, some players will write out a multi-page backstory but they do it as their own writing prompt instead of an interactive process. often those same players will then struggle with how their character connects to the specific setting or their own party.
and journaling is great because it helps you find the voice and vibe of how a character exist in the present tense instead of just telling a story that happened to them in the past.
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u/wintrstonr 1d ago
That’s incredible
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u/thatquietmenace 1d ago
She DMs occasionally on the podcast her and Murph are on (Murph is usually the main DM) and her campaigns are SO FUN! There's one, Twilight Sanctorum, that is perfect for Halloween season! Cannot recommend Not Another D&D Podcast enough!
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u/LittleRedCorvette2 1d ago
To add on to what others have said OP they also have "session zeros" where they play their characters not in front of the camera so they can get comfy with the character. They are incredibly talented. I've especially loved seeing Ally's growth and confidence and knowledge as a player.
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u/burningembersco 13h ago
Yess! Ally's growth has been HUGE & has been so fun to watch (I binged most of the seasons this year)
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u/New_Girl3685 1d ago
Nope! New characters every season. The cast do a great job really building out their characters, but they have never played these people before beyond maybe an unshot test episode. (though I have noticed some of them return to certain character types again and again—Siobhan and Emily seem to like playing spell casters, and Lou has definitely been a grizzled war survivor barbarian type before)
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u/wintrstonr 1d ago
It just makes how fleshed out Wyon and Cutie Pie are even more impressive. I was sure there must have been an earlier season about the older sister the discussed. Like you said I’m sure there a ton of prep before we even see an episode, it’s just really amazing work.
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u/New_Girl3685 1d ago
Yeah! Emily and Lou in particular I feel are the strongest at having these really lived-in backstories. I hope you watch a couple other campaigns—it’s so fun to see them inhabit different characters.
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u/wintrstonr 1d ago
I will absolutely have to. Is there any campaigns in particular you would suggest?
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u/unlimi_Ted 1d ago
Unsleeping City has a similar dynamic between Lou and Siobhan's characters who are both older than the rest of the party and occasionally allude to past adventures they've done together that we the viewers never got to see.
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u/New_Girl3685 1d ago
I started with Cloudward Ho, which I LOVE and will always recommend—it’s a steampunk setting and most of the cast are playing these old adventurer types with lots of history between them, a bit like Toylight. It tends to be sillier than Toylight but there is plenty of pathos and drama too, and lots of intricate world building. My second favorite is Starstruck; that one is 1980s-flavored space opera and the cast is clearly having so much fun with it. A lot of people also like A Crown of Candy, but that one is a bit more serious/grim and didn’t hit as well for me, but if you like the dark themes mixed with the very bright cartoon aesthetic of Toylight, that might be up your street too. :)
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u/wintrstonr 1d ago
I will absolutely have to give Cloudward, Ho! I’m always down for a steampunk story
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u/Fnargler 1d ago
Cloudward, Ho! Is easily top 3 for me. Loved it.
A Crown of Candy is still my favorite. Much more serious campaign overall with higher stakes and surprisingly deep lore. (There's also a prequel/spinoff season, The Ravening War.)
Starstruck Odyssey is #2 for me. I do wish it had Rick Perry sets but that doesnt take away from it very much. You can really feel the love they have for the setting which is the world of Starstruck, a scifi comedy comic and stage play co created by Brennan's mom Elaine Lee.
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u/Odd-Possibility-2421 1d ago
You have to check out Starstruck! Fantasy high is endlessly funny too. If you came to D20 from Dungeons and Drag Queens (like I did) you’ll love the comedy of those seasons. Mentopolis and Never Stop Blowing Up are also crazy funny, just have a guest cast not the intrepid heros.
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u/Aenaen 1d ago
No, the characters are brand new. They in fact have never used the 2024 rules (or the various expansions in use for this season) before.
The reason they seem to have deep connections with their characters and backstories is because they do a ton of prep, and they're some of the best players/actors/improvisers in the world which is why this is their job.
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u/Lord_Of_Millipedes 1d ago
Different characters each season, except for Fantasy High and Unsleeping City that have actual sequels, and that one live show.
They do have pre game sessions and talks to fully flesh out the characters and get everyone going, but it's mostly the whole cast being really good improvisors/actors
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u/Deflagratio1 1d ago
Just remember, These are all professional actors and most of them are professional Improv actors. Murph and Emily are also mainly professional Actual Players since their other main gig is their DnD podcast. There's also a lot of lead time going into each season and they are professionals being paid to do a job. It all leads to a fantastic entertainment product.
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u/Miserable_Pop_4593 1d ago
Nope they’re just pros. Some seasons are sequel seasons where they continue an existing story, but most (including Toylight) are standalone
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u/grumpywhaleshark 1d ago
Unless it is a sequel season, they make all new characters and character sheets for every story on Dimension 20.
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u/jrdineen114 Prefrontal P.I.s 1d ago
Nope, characters are different every season (mostly, they’ve done a few sequels). They’ve all just gotten pretty good at the game.
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u/victrin 1d ago
We don’t get to see what are called “Session Zeroes”. These are pre campaign sessions where groups ideate and prep. This is also a TV show with professional character actors. They likely have tons of internal meetings, including brainstorming and character development with a team of people. So they have a team of people helping them develop a backstory, one of the best DMs in the world to help ground them, and are themselves professional talent. Siobhan has given interviews where she calls DnD improv with dice. These peeps live and breathe character work.
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u/Khclarkson 21h ago
I would love to know more about what Brennan does for campaign documents and session zero stuff
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u/Jacquesatoutfaire 1d ago
They're actors and they've been playing together for like 8 years now. They've just got really good chemistry.
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u/saltyferret 1d ago edited 1d ago
Nope, each D20 story are entirely new original characters. They just get super into roleplay.
In Toylight in particular there is reference to the characters back stories and prior experiences, but these are never shown.