Do you play music during your sessions?

As the audiophile of my group (and the only guy who brings a portable speaker), I put on background music. Usually there's nothing until the GM says that you can hear some sound, whereupon I scramble to find ambience. I don't like to push it in without context. For example, last session we encountered some warlocks chanting ominously, so I found some two-hour playlist of Tibetan throat singing, put it on really quietly, then innocuously increased the volume until one of the other players noticed.

Usually once the scene changes, I either switch it to general ambient music or to whatever I feel suits the atmosphere. I have virtually no lyrical music in my library, so I don't bother about that.

For battle scenes I pull up some psytrance, since THUMPING BASS is always dramatic enough. Otherwise, (dub) techno is repetitive and unobtrusive enough.

Last session the GM managed to somehow get to the cliffhanger of a horror-fantasy campaign just as the 'bass drop' of this track happened (2:50). Was rather surprising.
soundcloud.com/upscale-recordings/alon-mor-clockvice-the-fifth-collaje

The first time I tried music I got told it didn't work. Many attempts later and they actually ask me if I've prepared a playlist for the session (which I don't, because see above). Music can really add to the atmosphere, but it can be used so incorrectly that without care it may have the opposite effect.

I dislike music if it's not related to the current scene, but if it is the moment becomes so much more enriched.

Play bossa nova whilst you're having a break.

Honest question, how was the tiranosaurus from Jurasic Park voice sound made?

It looks like truly unique and one of the few made up sounds that actually sound realistic.

Atmospheric music is good.

No memebands like Blind guardian though, those are terrible and ruin the campaign.

>brings portable speaker to the game
>insists on playing "background music"
>subjects everyone else to tibetan throat singing, dubstep, and bossa nova
>instead of focusing on the game, would rather beg for attention by turning the volume up until someone tells him to quit

>self-describes as an audiophile
>listens to techno unapologetically

I tell most new DM's to at least try to use music during the session however they should use it as part of the sitting rather than just ambient noise (unless its theme appropriate)

Films do this, music is basically cheating in regards to setting the mood at the table.

There's a bunch of battle themes I like that I *extremely rarely* use when I feel like the music won't distract my players.

Then once I had Sun O))) as ambient music, not really to cater for the players but because it helped be get into the atmosphere I was going for.

>Then once I had Sun O))) as ambient music

>not a single player of mine has had any contact with japanese media
>I can blatantly 'steal' shit for inspiration
>Players enter campaign finale and the BBEG drowns them in the tsunami of pure evil and filth
> Sun O))) starts playing
youtube.com/watch?v=UYM2mm68_QQ

>As the audiophile of my group

And that's not even the worst of your obnoxious behaviors

Sometimes, but I worry that my players are distracted/bored with it and not telling me. I personally prefer to have a few different tracks to play on repeat, switching them when I think one has gotten old (players take forever in combat so tracks for, say, battle, tend to go on for longer than I'd like). Generally I prefer more ambient or orchestral tracks, so most of the stuff I crib from is arrangements from certain video games, preferably lacking a leitmotif connected with said game.

examples of my shit taste

youtube.com/watch?v=XOdqrWApC3Q

soundcloud.com/blaketothefuture/maridia-swampy-caverns

soundcloud.com/mickomoo/demons-crest-sunken-aqueduct

soundcloud.com/adalberto-fernandes-6/vtm-bloodlines-ost-dark-asia

that said i totally wanna play gtr attack for a giant robot boss fight like a huge fag

Our GM would put stuff like Darkspace when we played Dark Heresy..

>fantasy campaign
>techno music

WoW soundtracks on repeat.

what the fuck, that shit isn't music

DUDE BOOZE LMAO

It's called drone. It's been a thing for a long time now.

...and people listen to it? WHY?

Because it gets them into desirable mood, duh.

Always have something playing. Spotify, Mixlr, Jemp, Pandora, Youtube..

Last session was Prince at Loring Park in 1977. Time before that was 90's hip-hop. Tomorrow night Im thinking Rolling Stones station on Pandora.

We play Infinity, HoR Kill Team and tons of board games like Cthulhu Wars, Zombicide, CitOW, etc.

Usually, no. Of course, there are exceptions. Generally, is something like "no threats=music". It helps my players to stop behaving like murderhobos. When there's music playing, they're safe, so they relax.

>techno

Too broad of a genre to dismiss as 'techno'. The Chemical Brothers are good. Chick Ultra lounge shit is garbage. SCI and STS9 dabble in electronica in their live shows, and its sick. Basement Jaxx and sound effect shit like Prefuse 73 is garbage. Techno has too many variants to generalize it.

>this post
holy shit the shit taste

my taste
not enuf
slav m8

youtube.com/watch?v=8500u0nf2kA

youtube.com/watch?v=UENb3lLSQho

youtube.com/watch?v=fd9xrF9JSko

youtube.com/watch?v=vsGpeY8-DKc&index=32&list=PL_eztCDu33iFtgbVGHADQ6FI6mXkJpNhf

does roll20 support non-soundcloud media?

Sounds better than some of the modern classical stuff I've heard. Kinda reminds me of some tracks from Quake. I'd take it as ambience if the party went into hell or something.

And speaking of quake, I used some music from there for a while. Great for dark evil dungeons.

Witcher 3 is my jam.

You also forgot the best song.
youtube.com/watch?v=CiSeoX_4nzU

Honestly it's probably a fog horn through some poly pipe layered with a down pitched lion roar and some other stuff.

Sound engineering is awesome fun, like the sound of bones breaking is made by snapping celery and the sound of Asmodan's fire ball is a basketball being held against a treadmill

Also no sounds are ever realistic, because what a thing sounds like it's not what we expect it to sound like. For example the click clack noise guns make in movies. If a real fun made that noise you'd throw it the hell out, real guns are oiled and smooth and acustically boring.

I played the doom soundtrack for a beer-and-pretzels meat-grinder dungeon crawl. Worked out pretty well.

>general
2 steps from hell
Celtic
Norse
>combat
sabaton
>steam punk
abney park

This may be pleb tier taste but I prefer using music from video games more often than not. It's already designed to be played on a loop,theres some to fit almost any scene or mood, and its kinda nostalgic for me and some of the players who recognize the music. My favorite to use for fantasy games is the Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles soundtrack.

Only if you play songs with vocals or well known movie themes.

the bloodborne soundtrack is excellent boss battle/epic combat music

Been using the Bravely Default soundtrack a lot recently. Works great for my high fantasy games.

>examples of my shit taste
On the contrary. I actually like your music, and I hate most of the shit people post in threads like these.

Anyway, you can't go wrong with a good Dead Can Dance track. youtube.com/watch?v=aj9V4ZwDlT8

As someone who uses the FFCC ost a ton, i recommend the Xenoblade Chronicles soundtrack as well

Pretty much anything by Two Steps From Hell, audiomachine, or Veigar Margeirsson.

March to the grave-point of no return is perfect for the drunk guardsmen my party

No, because I get ridiculously distracted by thoughts of the music not fitting well enough. I get as nervous as if I had written and performed this music myself and was putting it on display for everyone to judge

also I can just make the guy who always plays with his phone do it, so he has to leave his phone on the table while it plays music from youtube

Absolutely not. A couple members in my group are metal elitists and passive aggressively skip or remove songs that they don't like or aren't metal. Plus I'm not willing to put in the effort to put on ambient stuff.

Your taste is absolute garbage.

Beyond that, I didn't make the generalisation, you water-headed autist. Read that post. He refers to it as "techno" himself, idiot.

>it's not music
you are a /mu/ meme, how does it feel?

>...and people listen to it? WHY?

It was made by combining several real life animal cries together, they did this for all of the dinosaurs.

There's a whole behind the scenes featurette about it on the dvd, and you can probably find it on Youtube or something.

Yes but it always takes a background to the game. If a player or I are getting distracted by the music I'll change it.

One thing I learned running games is that Soundtracks from video games, movies, and TV shows are your friends. You can find almost anything for any setting.

The number of people absolutely triggered by certain posts here is highly entertaining.

Yep. I am just a player but I pull up 3+ hour compilations on youtube, usually generic fantasy ambiance and adjust accordingly. If we are playing CoC I will either throw on some cool jazz, swing, or even the amnesia soundtracks depending on the mood

No
They are literal trash because they want another proxy to handle the legal problems of us hosting music

I'd say either
A) make an Icecast server or external streaming service
B) use MapTool's derivative "Mote" in place of Roll20

I tried it and it was too much of a hassle.
But I did have good success with a 2-hour storm/rain sfx youtube video.

only using music that is simple and/or low-pitched . i often use zelda soundtracks , and often DaS majula/firelink shrine for default background.
once when the party was invading a fort , i played FORCES to boost morale.

however , i once made a cyberpunk setting and shamelessly used MGSr soundtracks, it entirely depends on the tone you want to achieve , and if players like some music

I'm afraid to listen to that with headphones on, because it's already doing something weird to my ears.

I use mostly ambient tracks, and some basic combat tracks from video games. We play weekly, so my players get used to the routine of it, so when I put something like the Pacifc Rim theme on, they instantly know it's about to get intense. I like to write out an elaborate description to with the opening of the song before the dice start rolling. Last week we just wrapped up an 8 month campaign, and at the start of the climactic encounter with a reincarnated I played youtube.com/watch?v=Z9aS9bH8f9Q

My BBEGs army marches to this song:

youtube.com/watch?v=cJRgnvR7l0I

IMO people use music wrong. They make elaborate playlist and then fiddle during game to select the right song to play at the right moment.

What suggests is IMHO the best option. Personally I do like that way:
I select some long ambient tracks that will fit my setting. It could be either sounds from the jungle for a 'Nam 68 game (ex. youtube.com/watch?v=QE_jOCqKE3w), sounds from space for sci-fi (youtube.com/watch?v=ePLzbNCWljg), industrial ambient for cyberpunk (ex. youtube.com/watch?v=Tn2-3BlZGBE) or some dark ambient for any horror game (ex. youtube.com/watch?v=ppiGTLqfaWc). Those tracks are long so one or two are enough. I put the track on repeat. Volume will be kept low, I want the players to hear me should I whisper.

Then I select two or three music tracks for combat (ex. youtube.com/watch?v=f86IdEbmmWE or youtube.com/watch?v=EWruBwPNBOs for medieval settings, something like youtube.com/watch?v=QAf9meJExK0 for cyberpunk). Here too, I put the track on repeat, I don't like to have two different tracks play during the same scene. Volume will get louder because combat is furious and I will speak loud anyway and I don't mind having vocals as I'm louder than the music.

Whoever said Bloodborne. Thanks.

Mergo's Lullaby is actually a specific theme for a specific character in my setting. My player's always get uncomfortable at the mere mention of the track.

Depressive Silence, FlyByNo, game sountracks, other things that don't attract too much attention. Two Steps From Hell, Rhapsody of Fire, Sabaton are brought in when there's EPIC SCALE SHIT GOING ON

I've only used music once in my games, as an intro for my Modern Fantasy police game when we start sessions.

soundcloud.com/wiz-cops/wizard-cops

I'm a sucker for using Drakengard's OST for horror campaigns/chaotic battles.

Only time I ever tried it was with pic related.

how'd that play out, user?

As often as it is appropriate, although it can really eschew the mood if the wrong music is playing.

This, however, was the perfect soundtrack for when the party discovered how the two orc chiefs resolved their dispute:
youtube.com/watch?v=UwsR5LC0mII

Spaghetti western themes are ideal for all sorts of adventure.

Ennio Morricone - The Ecstacy of Gold
youtube.com/watch?v=nOr0na6mKJQ

Francesco De Masi - Sartana Does Not Forgive
youtube.com/watch?v=djM7EB4EkRk

I find it best to use instrumentals or foreign language tracks so players stay focused on the game easier.

Sunn O))) Are from Seattle.

I mean, I get what you mean, there are some freaky Japanese noise acts though.

Were you thinking of stuff like Incapacitants when you said Japanese?

youtube.com/watch?v=VUzHNKHh1mk

I had forgotten how fucking awesome that soundtrack was

my first session I played tavern music as ambiance

youtube.com/watch?v=Cm7SgPxEKWA

Started a campaign with some dude-bros and its their first time playing an RP. One of them rolled as a bard and in order to make some money he played for the tavern. While all of our characters were in the tavern talking he picked up his guitar in Real life and started playing nice music. I got goosebumps, I was immersed. The stuff he played was soft and relaxing and just set the mood perfectly without being distracting Probably the greatest RP moment I've had.

I scour the bottom pits of Soundcloud to find theme relevant music.
Running EoTE now so finding SW music is a pain in the left nut but it does help a lot with the whole immersion, even if I find it kinda repetitive since there's not 30 original good SW songs on Soundcloud.

Last session I scraped throught some heist movies soundtracks (Snatch, Ocean's Eleven, ect) and it kinda worked a bit but since Soundcloud cracks down harder than the Gestapo it's annoying.

Sound is good, it helps a lot with long combat scenes.

Yes. Once upon a time I heard Larry Fast's 'Ancestors' and decided to incorporate music for the first time, I liked it so much. I used it as an anthem, and that was that.

The campaign was short-lived, but the music struck a chord. From that point onward, it became standard to throw together a thematic soundtrack for our campaigns. Usually with a template like:

>Warmup/anthem
>Walking around
>Quaint as fuck
>Oh shit!
>Combat
>Can't see shit, captain
>Boss battle
>Ambiance

And so forth. On one hand, we take pains to ensure that the music isn't too blatant or distracting--but on the other it seems like we sometimes focus overmuch on aesthetics and not the game.

All in all, I'd say it's a win.

I don't know how people play without music.

It's a key element to creating emotion and atmosphere, especially if timed right. Makes everything feel less awkward too.

But I swear to god if you lazily put on the Adrian Von Ziegler 2 hour fantasy compilation or play shit no way related to the setting and consider that effort to atmosphere, you are garbage.

Always. I find its better to use music with little to no lyrics, because lyrics can take people out of the game sometimes.

DnD we will play lord of the rings/Conan (original movie) soundtracks

Star Wars we play Miles Davis

Call of Cthulhu we would play old 1920's Jazz

>Star Wars we play Miles Davis
That's a good idea. Star Wars would've been a good movie if it had only had some decent music.

I personally love the idea of putting on music for DND as a DM.
Unfortunately, it hasn't gone over too well with my players and they claim its distracting since the noise comes out louder on their systems than on mine. They're probably right.

I'm slowly transitioning to only playing music or some background ambience when its explicit/obvious. Other than that the occasional explosion sfx is a great way to get the fuckers to pay attention.

How does it feel being this much hipster?

I do this a lot. It helps that my players aren't into the same games as me so I can bust out FF14 multi-phase boss songs for different parts of the same huge action scenes, NieR for drama, and the Witcher for ambience. And none of them ever recognize the music.

It feels so good to play music and not have my resident weeb make references for the next 20 minutes.