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Run Summoning Stone on your Mac, join your Discord voice channel, and screen share the Summoning Stone window with audio turned on. Your players hear every scene. Use the built-in music, ambience and effects: Apple Music songs won’t come through Discord, because Apple Music plays through a separate system-level music engine, while the built-in tracks use the same engine as all of Summoning Stone’s other sounds.

What works and what doesn’t

	Over Discord
Built-in music	✓ Works
Ambience and sound effects	✓ Works
Apple Music songs	✕ Not captured. Use the built-in tracks for online games

Method 1: Discord screen share (simplest)

1. Use a Mac on macOS Ventura (13) or newer. Discord’s audio sharing on Mac needs it.
2. Open Summoning Stone and Discord on the same Mac.
3. Join your voice channel and choose to share your screen.
4. Pick the Summoning Stone window, not your whole screen, and make sure the option to share sound is on.
5. Go live, then start a scene. Players hear the scene, and they can adjust the stream’s volume on their side without touching your voice.

Bonus: because you’re sharing the window, players also see the scene’s artwork. Share only the Summoning Stone window so your notes stay private.

If there’s no sound: check that Discord has permission to record your screen in macOS Privacy & Security settings, restart Discord, and make sure players haven’t muted your stream.

Method 2: a virtual audio device (advanced)

If you want the scenes to play as a separate voice in the call, a free virtual audio driver such as BlackHole (macOS) can pass Summoning Stone’s audio to another app. Tools like Kenku FM, a free desktop app that plays into Discord as a bot you create, can then mix that audio in. Each tool has its own setup guide, so follow theirs. The upside is separate volume control for the scene audio. The downside is more setup.

On an iPad or iPhone

Discord on mobile can only share your entire screen, including all sounds and notifications. If you run Discord and Summoning Stone on the same iPad, turn on a Focus mode first so notifications don’t leak into the call. Because of this, a Mac is the smoother option for online play.

Tips for online games

• Build scenes before the session, and use built-in tracks. See how to prep D&D audio in 15 minutes.
• Keep the volume low so voices stay clear. See how loud.
• Use a Stream Deck to fire effects without leaving the call. See how.
• If you stream the game, the built-in audio is cleared for commercial use with attribution. See streaming with audio.

Frequently asked questions

Can I play D&D music over Discord?
Yes. Screen share Summoning Stone on a Mac with audio on, and players hear the built-in music, ambience and effects.

Why won’t my Apple Music songs play over Discord?
Apple Music plays through a separate system-level music engine, so it isn’t captured. Use Summoning Stone’s built-in tracks for online games.

Does this work on iPhone or iPad?
Discord on mobile shares the whole screen, including sounds and notifications, so it works, but a Mac is smoother.

Do I need a Discord bot?
No. Screen sharing needs no bot. Bots, such as Kenku FM, are an advanced option.

Will players see my screen?
If you share only the Summoning Stone window, they see the scene artwork and nothing else.

Get Summoning Stone on the App Store

Pick music that sets a mood rather than tells a story, keep it quiet enough to talk over, change it only at scene breaks, and prepare it in advance, so you never pause the game to hunt for a track. That’s most of the craft.

1. Choose mood, not melody

• Instrumental beats vocals. Lyrics compete with your voice and your players’.
• Avoid famous themes. A recognizable film score invites jokes or pulls attention away from the scene.
• Match intensity to pacing. Calm for exploration, tension for the unknown, driving rhythm for combat.

2. Keep it under the voices

If players have to raise their voices, the music is too loud. Set the level once for each scene and save it. See how loud background music should be.

3. Change at scene breaks

• One track, or at least one mood, per scene.
• Fade rather than hard-cut, so changes feel like part of the story.
• Use silence on purpose. Dropping the music for a reveal lands harder than any track.

4. Use music for feeling, not everything

Music carries emotion. Let ambience carry the place and sound effects carry the events. See how to set the mood with sound.

5. Prepare scenes instead of hunting for tracks

Build your scenes before the session, so each is one tap away. See how to prep D&D audio in 15 minutes.

How Summoning Stone helps

• Each scene saves its music, ambience levels, effects and reverb, so switching scenes is one tap and nothing needs adjusting mid-game.
• Built-in music has loop options and fades and is stream-safe. For more variety you can use Apple Music playlists, which need an Apple Music subscription and aren’t cleared for streaming.
• Free tier: free built-in music for all styles of game, plus up to five scenes. See free D&D music.

Frequently asked questions

What kind of music is best for D&D?
Instrumental music that sets a mood without competing with voices: ambient, orchestral and cinematic styles work well.

Should D&D music have lyrics?
Usually not. Lyrics compete with people speaking, so instrumental tracks work better.

When should I change the music in D&D?
At scene breaks, such as entering a new location or starting combat, and with a fade rather than a hard cut.

Can I use my own music for D&D?
Yes. Summoning Stone plays Apple Music playlists. See using Apple Music in your game.

Get Summoning Stone on the App Store

Layer three things: ambience for the place, music for the feeling and effects for events. Keep each one simple and change them on purpose. Add reverb for space, and use silence when you want players to lean in.

Place: ambience

Ambience tells players where they are before you say a word. A tavern is a crowd and a fire. A dungeon is dripping stone and distant groans. A ship is waves and creaking wood.

Free examples in Summoning Stone: Busy Restaurant and Hearth for a tavern, Dungeon for a crawl, Ocean Waves and Boat Creak for a ship. See free D&D ambience.

Feeling: music

Music tells players what to feel: warmth in town, dread in the crypt, urgency in a chase. Keep it low and choose mood over melody. See how to use music in D&D.

Events: sound effects

Effects punctuate moments: a door slamming, a sword drawn, a roar. Prepare three to five for the scene and fire them on cue. Don’t fire them constantly. See free D&D sound effects.

Space: reverb

The same sound feels different in a cave and a field. Add reverb to make a space feel large and empty, like a cavern or cathedral, and keep it low for small rooms.

Silence

Drop everything for a reveal, a decision, or a death. The return of sound is part of the effect.

Example: a haunted house

1. Place: Rain on Window and Metal Groans, both free.
2. Feeling: a low, tense track, kept quiet.
3. Events: Door Knock early, then hold Jump Scare for the first real fright.
4. Space: a little reverb on the effects.
5. Silence: cut everything before the reveal.

See more in free horror sounds.

Common mistakes

• Too many layers at once.
• Effects fired constantly, so none stand out.
• Music louder than voices.
• Changing the soundtrack every few minutes.

How Summoning Stone helps

• Layered scenes: combine music, ambience and effects in one scene, and save it.
• Reverb for room acoustics, saved with the scene, so a cave sounds like a cave.
• A TV display with rain, snow, fog, smoke or magic overlays to match. See how.
• One tap, played as saved, so setting the mood doesn’t need adjusting mid-game.

Frequently asked questions

How do I make D&D more immersive?
Layer ambience for the place, music for the feeling and effects for events, and use silence for key moments.

How many sounds should play at once?
Usually one music track, one or two ambience loops, and effects only on cue.

Do I need special equipment?
No. A phone or tablet and a Bluetooth speaker are enough. See AirPlay and Bluetooth.

Can I add reverb in Summoning Stone?
Yes. Add reverb to a scene’s ambience and effects, and it’s saved with the scene.

Get Summoning Stone on the App Store

Pick one base ambient loop, add a detail layer, set the levels once, choose three to five effects for known moments and trigger them on cue. Here’s the process.

Step by step

1. Choose a base loop for the place. Dungeon, tavern crowd, forest or ocean. This runs the whole scene.
2. Add one detail layer. A second loop that adds texture, such as a fire under a crowd, or groans over a dungeon.
3. Set the levels once. Ambience should sit below voices. Save the mix so you never adjust it mid-game.
4. Choose three to five effects for moments you already know will happen: a door, a sword draw, a spell, a roar.
5. Add reverb for space, more for caverns and halls, less for small rooms.
6. Trigger effects on cue, from a soundboard, with Siri, or with a Stream Deck. See how.
7. Save it as a scene, and group scenes by campaign so they’re ready next session.

How many layers is enough?

Usually one music track, one or two ambience loops and a handful of effects. More than that turns into noise.

Free sounds to start with

• Ambience: Dungeon, Busy Restaurant, Forest Campfire, Ocean Waves, Rain on Window. See free D&D ambience.
• Effects: doors, Draw Sword, Fireball, Lightning, Loud Roar. See free D&D sound effects.

Tips

• Prepare effects for the scene, not the whole campaign.
• Don’t fire effects constantly; the best ones are rare.
• Put speakers where players can hear them evenly, not behind you.
• Test everything before players arrive.

How Summoning Stone helps

Build a scene with music, layered ambience and effects. It saves the levels and reverb, and starts with one tap, exactly as you saved it. The soundboard has filters like reverb, and it’s free to download. See what’s free.

Frequently asked questions

How do I add sound effects to D&D?
Use a soundboard app, prepare three to five effects per scene, and fire them on cue.

How do I play ambience during D&D?
Choose a base ambient loop for the location, add a second layer for detail, and set the volume below voices.

Should I use sound effects in every scene?
No. Use them for key moments so they keep their impact.

What’s the easiest way to add ambience and effects to D&D?
Build a scene in Summoning Stone before the session, then start it with one tap. See how to prep audio in 15 minutes.

Get Summoning Stone on the App Store

Give every scene one base ambience, one mood of music, and three to five effects for the beats you know are coming. Here are four recipes you can build today, using sounds that are free in Summoning Stone.

Scene	Ambience	Music mood	Effects
Tavern	Busy Restaurant, Hearth, Bar Crowd	Warm and light, kept very low	Wood Door, Beer Pour, Door Knock
Dungeon crawl	Dungeon, Metal Groans	Sparse, tense	Stone Door, Tension, Knife Stab
Boss fight	Dungeon or Rain on Window	Driving, high intensity	Loud Roar, Metal Hit, Draw Sword, Deep Drum
Storm at sea	Ocean Waves, Boat Creak, Sail Flapping	Urgent, rising	Lightning, Rain on Window

Tavern

Start with Busy Restaurant for the crowd and Hearth under it. Keep the music low enough that players can banter. Save Door Knock for a mysterious stranger, and Beer Pour for the barkeep. Add a little reverb so the room feels like wood and stone.

Dungeon crawl

Dungeon as the base, Metal Groans as the detail layer. Raise the reverb for echo. Use Stone Door when the party opens something heavy, and hold Tension for the moment before a reveal.

Boss fight

Raise the music intensity when initiative starts. Keep Loud Roar for the entrance, then use Metal Hit and Draw Sword as the fight moves. A Deep Drum marks a turning point. See free combat sound effects.

Storm at sea

Layer Ocean Waves, Boat Creak and Sail Flapping. Add Rain on Window for weather and fire Lightning at key moments. Show the artwork on a TV with a rain overlay. See how.

Save each one as a scene

In Summoning Stone, each scene saves its music, ambience levels, effects and reverb. Group scenes by campaign and start any of them with one tap, playing exactly as you built it. Prepping a whole session takes minutes. See how to prep D&D audio in 15 minutes.

Frequently asked questions

What sounds should I use for a tavern scene in D&D?
Busy Restaurant, Hearth and Bar Crowd for ambience, plus doors and a Beer Pour effect.

What sounds work for a dungeon?
Dungeon ambience with Metal Groans, reverb for echo and Stone Door effects.

How do I do boss fight audio in D&D?
Raise music intensity at initiative, save a roar for the entrance and fire hits on cue.

Are these sounds free?
Yes, all of the sounds named here are free in Summoning Stone. See what’s free.

Get Summoning Stone on the App Store

List the scenes you expect, give each one a mood, build each scene once, test the levels and group them by campaign. With a tool that saves scenes, prep stays quick and running the game is one tap per scene.

A 15-minute plan

1. List your scenes (2 minutes). Three to six, in the order you expect them. Skip scenes you can improvise.
2. Give each a mood (2 minutes). One word each: warm, tense, dread, chase, awe.
3. Build the scenes (8 minutes). For each: one music track, one or two ambience loops, and two or three effects for beats you know.
4. Test the levels (2 minutes). Play each for ten seconds at table volume. Ambience and music below voices.
5. Group by campaign (1 minute). Keep each group’s scenes together so you can switch fast.

Prep less, not more

• Don’t build a scene for every possible room.
• Keep two or three generic scenes, such as “Wilderness” and “Tavern”, for the unexpected.
• Skip effects you won’t fire.

Reuse between sessions

Scenes you build once can be reused and tweaked. A tavern scene works for many campaigns. See scene recipes.

Skip the setup entirely

Start from a community-made campaign, such as Death House, and customize what you want. Downloading community campaigns needs a subscription.

How Summoning Stone helps

• Scenes save music, ambience levels, effects and reverb.
• Group scenes by campaign, and start any with one tap.
• Free tier: free sounds, music for all styles and up to five scenes. See what’s free.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to prep D&D audio?
About 15 minutes for a typical session if you build three to six scenes once.

How many scenes do I need per session?
Three to six, plus a few generic ones for surprises.

Do I have to prep everything in advance?
No. Prepare the scenes you expect and improvise the rest with a generic scene.

Can I reuse scenes between campaigns?
Yes. Scenes you build can be reused and adjusted.

Get Summoning Stone on the App Store

Quiet enough that nobody has to raise their voice. Music should be felt more than noticed. If players are talking louder than usual, turn it down.

A simple test

1. Play the scene at table volume.
2. Talk to someone across the table in your normal voice.
3. If you have to raise it, the music is too loud. Lower it until you don’t.

Rough balance

• Voices come first. Everything else sits below them.
• Music and ambience stay in the background, with ambience a touch lower than music if you use both.
• Sound effects can briefly rise above the mix, then stop. That’s what makes them land.

Why it matters

Loud music wears people out, hides quiet roleplay and makes shy players speak less. Quiet music lets players hear nuance and keeps the scene focused on people.

Set it once

Rather than adjusting every few minutes, set each scene’s levels before the session and save them. Then each scene starts at the right level every time.

Tips

• Check levels at your table’s real distance from the speaker.
• Test with the room’s real noise, such as snacks and chatter.
• Use a speaker in a corner, pointing across the room, not at the players.
• Lower the music during dramatic speeches.

How Summoning Stone helps

Each scene saves its music volume, ambience levels, effects level and reverb. Switching scenes is one tap, and nothing needs adjusting. See how to use music in D&D.

Frequently asked questions

How loud should D&D music be?
Low enough that people can talk at a normal volume over it.

Should ambience be louder than music?
Usually not. Keep ambience at or just below the music level.

Should sound effects be louder than music?
Briefly, yes. They punctuate a moment and then stop.

How do I stop having to adjust volume all the time?
Save levels per scene, as Summoning Stone does.

Get Summoning Stone on the App Store

Often, yes, if it’s quiet and prepared. Music sets mood, signals pacing and gives scenes shape. It’s optional, and skipping it for some scenes is fine.

When music helps

• Setting the tone. A shift in music tells players the mood has changed.
• Combat. A change in intensity marks the start of a fight.
• Exploration. Light ambience makes empty rooms feel alive.
• Horror and tension. Dread builds with sound.
• Streaming and recording. Audio makes the experience richer for viewers.

When to skip it

• Heavy roleplay. Let voices carry intense character moments.
• Rules-heavy moments. Skip the music while people think.
• If it becomes a chore. If audio management distracts you from running the game, simplify.

How to make it painless

1. Prepare scenes in advance so you aren’t searching for tracks.
2. Keep it low so conversation stays easy. See how loud.
3. Use one tap per scene so audio doesn’t pull focus from the table.
4. Use silence on purpose for reveals.

Does music improve D&D?

For many groups it does: it can make scenes more memorable and give you a way to steer mood without extra words. For other groups, a quiet table is part of the fun. Try it for one session and ask your players.

How Summoning Stone helps

It’s built to get out of the way: prepare scenes once, then start each with a single tap, and they play exactly as you saved them. Try it free. See what’s free and how to use music in D&D.

Frequently asked questions

Do you need music for D&D?
No, but it helps set mood and pacing for many groups.

Is music distracting in D&D?
It can be if it’s loud or constantly changing. Keep it low and change it at scene breaks.

When shouldn’t a DM use music?
During heavy roleplay or rules discussions, when voices should carry the scene.

What’s the easiest way to try music in D&D?
Build one scene in an app like Summoning Stone and run it for a session.

Get Summoning Stone on the App Store

Use audio you’re allowed to broadcast, credit it, send it into your stream as its own source, and balance it against your microphone. Do those four things and your game sounds better and stays safe.

1. Use audio you’re allowed to broadcast

Streaming copyrighted commercial music can lead to muted videos or takedowns. – Summoning Stone’s built-in music, ambience and effects are cleared for commercial use with attribution and a link to the app. – Apple Music tracks aren’t covered. Keep them for private games. – Read the terms of any other source before you go live. See stream-safe music.

2. Credit it

Say your audio comes from Summoning Stone, and link to summoningstone.app or the App Store listing in your video description or stream panel.

3. Send it to the stream as its own source

Keep game audio separate from your mic in your streaming software so you can change one without touching the other. How you capture it depends on your setup, such as the computer running the app or a virtual audio device.

4. Balance it against your voice

Voices first, then music and ambience below, with effects punching through briefly. Test with a recording before going live. See how loud.

Tips for streamers

• Build your scenes before you go live. One tap per scene keeps your hands free.
• Use a Stream Deck so effects are one press. See how.
• Show artwork or maps on screen, with weather overlays.
• Keep sudden loud effects for key moments so viewers aren’t startled.

How Summoning Stone helps

It’s a pro-level app built for live streaming: built-in audio cleared for commercial use, Siri and Stream Deck control, and scenes that play the same way every time. See what Summoning Stone is.

Frequently asked questions

Can I stream D&D with music?
Yes, with audio you have the right to broadcast, such as Summoning Stone’s built-in audio, credited properly.

What music is safe to stream D&D?
Audio cleared for commercial use, like Summoning Stone’s built-in music, ambience and effects, with attribution.

Can I use Apple Music on a stream?
We’d advise against it. Apple Music tracks aren’t cleared for commercial use through Summoning Stone.

How do I get sound effects onto my stream?
Capture your device’s audio as a separate source in your streaming software, and trigger effects with a soundboard or Stream Deck.

Get Summoning Stone on the App Store

Give each group its own campaign, build reusable scenes once, and switch between them with one tap. That keeps prep small, even if you run several games a week.

The problem with several groups

Each group has its own tone, story and favourite scenes. Prepping audio from scratch for every session is a lot of work, and mixing them up mid-game is worse.

A system that scales

1. One campaign per group. Keep each group’s scenes together, so nothing gets mixed up.
2. Build reusable scenes. A tavern, a road, a dungeon and a boss fight work across campaigns. Duplicate and adjust.
3. Tune per group. One group likes ambient and quiet; another wants epic. Adjust music, levels and reverb in each group’s copy.
4. Prep only what’s next. Three to six scenes per session. See prep audio in 15 minutes.
5. Start from community campaigns for published adventures, such as Death House, then customize them for the table.

Tips for professional game masters

• Name scenes clearly, so you can find them mid-session.
• Keep one generic campaign for improvisation.
• Use a Stream Deck or Siri so audio stays hands-free. See how.
• If you stream or record, rely on audio cleared for commercial use. See streaming with audio.

How Summoning Stone helps

It’s a pro-level app with tons of features: fully customizable scenes grouped by campaign, so you create a custom campaign for each group instead of starting from someone else’s ready-made scenes. Every scene plays exactly as you saved it, and the app gets out of the way. See what Summoning Stone is.

Frequently asked questions

How do I manage audio for multiple D&D campaigns?
Keep one campaign per group, build reusable scenes and adjust each copy to suit the group.

Can I reuse scenes between groups?
Yes. Build once and adjust levels and music for each group.

What’s the best app for professional DMs?
In our view, Summoning Stone: customizable scenes grouped by campaign, one tap per scene and commercial-use clearance for streaming.

Can I download pre-made campaigns?
Yes. Community campaigns are available with a subscription.

Get Summoning Stone on the App Store