Tag: DM Resources

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DM Resources

Friday Favourite: The Spoils of War

On Friday we comb through our extensive archives to find an older article that we feel deserves another look. From March 26, 2009, Dungeon’s Master once again presents: The Spoils of War.

When the fighting ends and the dust settles, it’s time to look at the spoils of war. How will your PC claim his fare share of the reward when the war ends? Your character’s motives for fighting will be the best guide for the DM when he decides how to reward the players.

But before anyone gets to claim the spoils of war, let’s quickly look at how the PCs got here in the first place.

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D&D Encounters Player Resources

We’ve Added D&D Next Characters to Our Pre-Gen Library

The Dungeon’s Master Pre-Generated Character Library is one of our most popular pages. It houses all of the character Wizards has provided for D&D Encounters over the years as well as many fan-made characters. We’ve continued to add more characters, including characters above level 1, in order to keep our library useful for all people playing at their FLGS on Wednesdays.

With more and more groups switching their weekly D&D Encounters adventures to D&D Next we felt it was time to create a library for the D&D Next pre-gens. Wizards has provided six pre-generated characters with the playtest packets. These six characters are each available at levels 1, 3, and 4. For your convenience we’ve added links to all of the PDFs in our D&D Next Pre-Generated Character Library. These pre-gens are the property of Wizards of the Coast and the information on these characters fall under the umbrella of the D&D Next NDA.

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DM Resources

6 Tips for Making Potions Fun Again

potionsSome of my fondest memories of D&D involve a situation where a character drinks an unidentified potion. The results were usually chaotic, hilarious, or both. However, as D&D changed so to did the mystery and wonder that potions can bring to the game.

In 4e D&D the system became so magic heavy that potions were of little consequence. At low levels when a potion can actually make a difference, identifying them is automatic during a short rest. I can’t remember the last time characters had a potion in their inventory that they couldn’t identify.

I’ve recently started using the D&D Next rules during public play and in my home games. It draws heavy influence from the older editions of D&D where magic was rare (much more so than it is in 4e). It’s been so long since I’ve played in games with limited magic treasure that I’ve really had to change my gaming mentality to keep things interesting. By thinking back to those fantastic campaigns I was part of in my younger years, I remember the awe and wonder in the simplest elements of the game. Everyone in the party doesn’t need a +1 sword to make their character interesting and to have fun. But when magic is introduced, it’s a big deal.

In a system with limited magic items, even consumables such as potions and scrolls are deemed valuable and important. They always have been, but when there are over 100 other magic items in a party, no one cares about a simple potion. But in a party where there are only one or two magic items, discovering a few potions in the treasure horde is a real find.

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DM Resources

Friday Favourite: Breaking Away From Procedural Story-Telling

On Friday we comb through our extensive archives to find an older article that we feel deserves another look. From October 26, 2011, Dungeon’s Master once again presents: Breaking Away From Procedural Story-Telling.

When you watch an episode of CSI, Law & Order, or NCIS you know that by the end of the show all the loose ends will be tied up. The villain will be captured, the conflict resolved and the story wrapped up nicely. This formula for procedural story-telling is gratifying because you know that it’s going to be self-contained. There’s rarely an expectation that you’ll need any more than a rudimentary knowledge of the story coming in and that when it’s done you can walk away satisfied that no questions were left unanswered.

D&D adventures usually follow a similar procedural approach. The DM sets the stage, introduces the conflict and the villains, and after a few encounters everything is resolved. The exception is a long-term home campaign where the DM creates a much larger story arc, but even when this is the case the stops along the way are almost always resolved as quickly as they happen.

This is not to say that procedural story-telling is a bad thing. If it’s what everyone expects and it makes all the participants happy then by all means keep doing it. But if this is the way your game has run for as long as you can remember then perhaps it’s time to leave some details unresolved. After all, real life isn’t usually anything like the procedural shows we see on TV. There are always loose ends and things left unresolved.

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Friday Favourites

Friday Favourite: Even a Regular Item Can Become an Adventure Hook

On Friday we comb through our extensive archives to find an older article that we feel deserves another look. From September 7, 2011, Dungeon’s Master once again presents: Even a Regular Item Can Become an Adventure Hook.

Sometimes the most interesting and memorable part of a D&D adventure is the stuff that happens between the structured encounters. These are often instances when the players do something unexpected and the DM is forced to fly by the seat of his pants. If the DM pulls it off successfully the result can be a scenario that is talked about for a long time. If only there was a way to scrip this kind of strange happenstance?

Spontaneity cannot be scripted by its very nature; however there are ways to still get the effect you’re looking for by giving the PCs a nudge in the right direction. And you don’t have to look any further than their equipment list. When it comes to inventory on a character sheet, most players are really only concerned with magical items and money. The other regular stuff is usually added to the list as an afterthought. So why not have so fun with the regular stuff.

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DM Resources

Should the DM Use a Screen?

dm-screen-1
Picture by Mike Shea of Slyflourish.com

The DM’s screen – the great barrier that separates the DM from the players. Behind the screen the DM can do whatever he pleases. Personally I detest the DM’s screen. It forms a literal barrier that divides the table and cuts the DM off from the rest of the group. I feel that the screen only serves to perpetuate the incorrect belief that it’s the DM vs. the players. The screen denotes exclusivity and secrecy and in my vast gaming experiences it often gives the DM a false sense of self-worth, self-importance and power over the rest of the table.

Obviously the DM’s role in the game is different from that of the players. Yes, the DM has more to do, and controls all of the monsters, and decides on how things in the world play out, so I understand why some DMs get drunk with power. But there’s a simple way to level the playing field and bridge any ill will between the DM and players, and that’s to stop using the screen all together. I realize this may be scary for some DMs, so we’ll look at the most common reasons for using a screen and review the pros and cons of each.

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DM Resources

When PCs Kill the Final Boss Too Soon

As a player nothing bugs me more than a villain that is protected by the power of plot. No matter what happens, no matter how creative or lucky the PCs get during a direct confrontation early in the adventure, this one particular villain cannot be killed, captured or defeated because the DM needs him during the final showdown. It’s the biggest tease in gaming and it needs to stop.

Now I’m not saying that DMs should never have the PCs engage the major villain before the final confrontation. I like it when the PCs get a glimpse of who they’re up against early on. But if circumstances happen to put the PCs into a fight with the big boss and they manage to take him down, don’t rob them of that victory. Obviously something went very, very right for the PCs or something went very, very wrong for the villain. In either case the encounter was likely memorable and no doubt thrilling. So why belittle such an amazing convergence of fortune and let the villain live simply because the story demands that he does?

In a home game the DM obviously has significant latitude to tweak the story if a big boss villain is unexpectedly killed early on, but in printed adventures it’s a lot more difficult. However, it’s never impossible and more DMs need to remember this. You are in charge of everything behind the scenes. You are empowered to make changes as you see fit. You are responsible to keep the adventure moving forward and ensuring the players are having fun along the way. Waving the magic DM wand and saying “he wasn’t really dead” is not the right way to handle things. Not when there are some many great alternatives.

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Friday Favourites

Friday Favourite: Staying Alive – 8 Ways to Keep Wounded PCs in the Game

On Friday we comb through our extensive archives to find an older article that we feel deserves another look. From June 5, 2012, Dungeon’s Master once again presents: Staying Alive: 8 Ways to Keep Wounded PCs in the Game.

One of my biggest issues with D&D is the five-minute work day. This is when PCs expend all their best powers and burn through their healing surges so quickly that they’re useless unless they take an extended rest. The game is designed for PCs to have four or more encounters before they should need to take an extended rest but I suspect that many DMs rarely push through more than four encounters before calling it a day. However, there will be times when this just isn’t possible – either because it doesn’t make sense given how the story is progressing or the printed adventure doesn’t allow it. In these cases the DM may need to get creative to keep the PCs alive until the end of the day.

Assuming the PCs can still take short rests then output isn’t usually a big deal if the party continues on past four encounters. Sure they may not have those awesome daily powers at their disposal into the fifth encounter but they will have all their cool encounter powers. It’s healing surges that usually become the biggest problem.

Strikers generally have the fewest surges to begin with, and unless the player has a reasonable Constitution score or the Durability feat they’ll run out of surges quickly. What makes the problem worse is that as soon as monsters (intelligent monsters anyway) see a striker mowing through their ranks they’ll target the biggest threat (the striker). Unless you’ve got advantageous tactics or a decent defender at your side, strikers end up taking damage every fight.

So what’s a DM to do when this kind of thing happens? How do you keep a wounded party in the game and convince the players to push those PCs forward? It may just be a game, but players get emotionally attached to their PCs quickly and no one wants to enter a combat encounter knowing that their PC is likely to die. It’s a delicate situation that requires some careful manipulation. The key is not to do so in such a way that it insults the players or belittles the game mechanic. Players want to do well but they don’t want the DM to just give them an easy, unearned victory. It’s a real balancing act and here are 8 suggested ways to pull it off.

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DM Resources Friday Favourites

Friday Favourite: D&D Math – Adding the Numbers

On Friday we comb through our extensive archives to find an older article that we feel deserves another look. From June 20, 2011, Dungeon’s Master once again presents: D&D Math – Adding the Numbers.

Player – I rolled a 15, plus 7. Do I hit his AC?

DM – What’s the total?

Player – Um, hold on. 15… (Counts under breath) 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22. (At full volume again) 22! Does that hit?

DM – Yes it does. His AC is 14.

I’ve been playing a lot of public-play D&D over the past year; mostly D&D Encounters but also a fair amount of LFR. This is of course in addition to my regular weekly game. Playing in all of these games allows me to see how other people play and lets me learn from the experience. It also highlights problem areas in my game and in the game of the other players and DMs.

One disturbing trend that I’m seeing more and more is players that don’t (or possibly even can’t) do the math. They roll a d20, call out the result and then give me their modifiers and ask if they hit. In many cases the roll is high enough to beat the monster’s defences, so I know they hit even without the modifier added in; however, I always ask for the total before confirming a hit or miss. And it’s not only happening with attack rolls. It’ happens with damage rolls too.

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DM Resources

Friday Favourite: Reputation

On Friday we comb through our extensive archives to find an older article that we feel deserves another look. Today’s Friday Favourite is a special case. When we were still a fledgling site we did some guest posts for other gaming blogs. The first was an article on Reputation for The Core Mechanic. Unfortunately the site is now defunct and our article is no longer available. Until now. From April 6, 2009, Dungeon’s Master once again presents: Reputation (Part 1).

Reputation is everything in D&D. Even level 1 characters have a reputation. It may only be a reputation for being eager to prove themselves, but it’s enough to get them noticed. What the PCs do today will have a direct impact on the opportunities afforded them tomorrow. Every adventure will add to their reputation and will impact how NPCs view them. It’s up to the DM to use reputation to enhance the overall game.

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