short form improv show pitch in life stuff and misc.

Dicey Propositions

(or Natural Ds) (or Roll for Inspiration)
(or Audiences & Idiots) (or Imps & Idiots)

A short-form improv show built around the conceit that the scenes and characters and locations and whatnot are half controlled by the audience and half by the character of The Improvmaster rolling dice to determine what’s going to happen.

Basically, the Improvmaster or “Imp” would be an emcee in a ridiculous wizard costume, fading in and out of wizardly characterizations, moving figures around a board in front of her/him from behind a DM screen (a camera pointed down at the table would be projected onto a larger screen behind for the audience to see the rolls and miniatures) to match who’s in what scenario, if there’s props being used, etcetra.

The projection could be augmented by a soundperson at a board hitting simple ren-faire style musical cues, thunder, lightning, spooky shit, etc… sometimes to fill the mood, sometimes to undermine it.

The extent to which the actors and actresses would be “into” the fantasy elements would be fluid, we could get some fun out of them not getting into it as much as the Imp, or hell one or two of the performers REALLY getting into it to try and be the teacher’s pet to the Imp, even to the extent where the Improvmaster is disgusted.

The short-form scenes and games themselves wouldn’t have to be D&D-y or fantasy at all in ideas from the audience or character or execution but the Imp would definitely like… flavour more basic short form ideas with trappings of fantasy bullshit…

A standard “Party Quirks” kind of scene could be set up as “an encounter called YOU ALL MEET IN A TAVERN” as a first bit, you know? Like that.

A “Doctor Know It All” type bit could be played off as “CONSULT THE ORACLE”, like that.

A musical comedy bit could be flavoured as “BARDIC INSPIRATION” a bit about death or funerals could be “DEATH SAVES” or “CRITICAL FAILURES” etc. It’d depend on that troupe’s prefered bits.

The Imp would refer to the rotating probably six performers by fantasy races and classes and whatnot, insultingly or adoringly depending on how it was all going.

Obviously, the Imp would award or detract “Experience Points” or award “Level Ups” at comic random, to sort of riff on the Whose Line Is It Anyway cliches in an even more absurd and hopefully fresher funnier way as a combining structure to the bit.

Basically a way to meet halfway between the burgeoning popularity of roleplaying games in nerd culture with the “classic” expectations of short-form stand-up that would mesh into a fresher more interesting structure to hang the staler elements of short form work.

Crowd pleasing (i.e. approachable to new audiences, mainstream people who might not “get” a long-form show, might not lose money) while still a fun challenge to the performers and hosts and crew and whatnot. Playing with cheap ren-fest costuming and props for the prop work, using them in “modern” sketches could be neat as hell as well.

Gags about telling Mountain Dew or Monster Energy / Cheetos / Doritos at the shows could be fun too. Merch would be easy to create if anything caught on, would be probably an interesting thing to take to a livestream or youtube if it built a following and the kinks got worked out. (Cross-over appeal? Is that too cynical/Machiavelian?)