And this is why we recommend practicing improv to new DMs

- Dude, it so fun. It plays like both a movie, and a bunch of players playing the adventure. I'm agoraphobic, and I went to the theater to see it, and I didn't regret it. That may not seem like much, but I rarely go to the movies because I almost always regret it, even if the movie is good.
  I've seen it a half dozen times now :)
- If you want a couple hours of good natured fun it's worth it. It's a movie I'm glad I watched.
  Edit: the jokes in it are so stupid you have to laugh with them. Like they knew how dumb they are and they play it perfectly.
- It’s Pirates of the Caribbean in the style of Lord of the Rings! It’s super fun!
- Try "druid escape scene" with the movie on youtube and check that out. Its an amazing camera shot with wild shapes
- It's pretty good. Not amazing, but pretty good.
It was a so much fun and made my family want to get into DnD.
I haven't watched it yet due to the whole OGL business that was going on at the time. Maybe i'll give it a try now.
Temberchaud was hilarious.

IMHO every campaign like this feels like Monty Python and the Holy Grail: The DM tries everything to keep the party on the right track.

The Stanley Parable

I have a secret guys : the bard is not a bard. It's a rogue with a bit of charisma and a music instrument proficiency!

In my last campaign my bard could out rogue our rogue. I tried to be chill about it and let the rogue do rogue things, since my character really made her character kind of obsolete outside of stabbing things.
I want a bard that is basically one of the two dudes from Kung Fu Hustle with the lap harp thing. Firing off invisible knife missiles from the harp.

This is why I prefer PbtA systems: I experience genuine joy whenever the PCs break my stuff.

Definitely need those improv skills though!

Boi, been there!

I spent quite a lot of time at university doing improv, and what I learned has come in useful in all walks of life, but also for roleplaying games. It doesn't matter whether your improvisation and storytelling skills are good or bad, everyone improves with practice and experience.

My players are starting a religion, with them as the centerpiece, could have expected it.

I kinda get what you are saying, but... for me improv is a skill that is hard to train or to master and relies a lot on luck. Will I think of something cool now and then ? Will I get ideas ? How will my brain interact with this exploration ? Its hard to say that improvisation isnt highly reliable on what you get at that moment between neurones.

How many times have I thought of better, cooler or more adapted ways to do what I had to improv days or weeks later ? Time is a finite resource, and when improvising time is your enemy. The longer or shorter you have to think, the better or worse it might end up with.