Tag: DM tools (Page 4 of 5)

DM Tips: Controlling the Camera

February 18, 2019 / Fen / 0 Comments

The Dungeon Master is in charge of many elements of Dungeons & Dragons. They set the scene, call for initiative, and move the game along, all while adjudicating the rules of the game and prepping for the next encounter.

I’ve been watching MCDM’s new D&D stream, the Chain. At one point during the first session, Matt Colville, the DM, describes a short series of scenes for the players. These scenes don’t take place anywhere near the player characters. There’s no way the characters know those scenes are happening. But, for players and audience, those moments give a cinematic feel to the events, and they’re foreshadowing something.

That got me thinking—

DM Tips: An NPC’s Purpose

February 11, 2019 / Fen / 0 Comments

The world of D&D would be pretty empty without NPCs (non-player characters)! These people give a voice to your campaign. They’re the personalities that your players will interact with throughout the game. Your players will clash with, negotiate with, protect, fight, and stand beside these characters.

But what makes a good NPC?

DM Tips: Moving Past a Rough Session

January 21, 2019 / Fen / 0 Comments

D&D is really fun! But DMing is hard, and sometimes a session falls flat. Something happened, and you walk away feeling less inspired and maybe even disappointed. That’s okay!

Nobody is perfect, not even the greatest DMs with the best player group have 100% perfect sessions all the time.

So, let’s figure out what to do and how to improve from a less-than-ideal session.

Session Prep: January CoS Session

January 11, 2019 / Fen / 0 Comments

Hey! This year, I’m trying to get better at session prep, so we’ll be talking about it every time I run a session.

For last week’s Curse of Strahd session, I didn’t have a ton of time to prep stuff. But, here’s what I did.

Friendly Bard Reviews: Strongholds & Followers by MCDM Productions

January 7, 2019 / Fen / 0 Comments

When I first told myself, “I’m going to Dungeon Master a game,” I had no idea what I was doing. I’d listened to one campaign and played in another, short one, but that was all the D&D experience I had. I wanted to be a good DM! I had no idea how. Thus, I found myself scouring the Internet for guidance. Among others, I found Matt Colville’s channel and his “Running the Game” series. And so, I started following his videos and other content.

Strongholds & Followers was funded by a wildly successful Kickstarter campaign that launched in early February 2018. In December, backers received the PDF in its finished form (with acknowledgement that typos would be fixed before the first printing). It is also available for purchase from the MDCM online store.

After getting the chance to read it cover-to-cover, here’s my review!

Looking at UA: Sidekicks

December 21, 2018 / Fen / 0 Comments

If you haven’t seen it already, the new Unearthed Arcana came out this Monday. This month’s UA is about “Sidekicks,” creatures who end up tagging along with the player characters during their adventures. “Sidekicks” offers a system for leveling up these creatures in a streamlined way.

8 Seasonal NPCs to Inspire Your Next Session

December 17, 2018 / Fen / 0 Comments

A picture of frosty foliage with a blur effect. The text over it reads "8 Seasonal NPCs for your next session".

Whether you’re running a special holiday-themed oneshot or chugging along with your normal campaign this month, here are a few NPCs you can sprinkle in to add some wintry flair!

DM Tips: Seasons and the Passage of Time

December 10, 2018 / Fen / 0 Comments

In “How I Take Session Notes,” I talk about the different ways I keep track of campaign events. One of those ways is a campaign timeline, which summarizes what happened on each in-game day in the campaign. This helps us remember our character’s perspective of time passing (common example: “I’ve only known my party members for a month and a half but I Would Die For Them”).

Keeping track of time is also a valuable tool for DMs! You can use the time of year to inform your descriptions of the world around your players.

You All Meet in a Tavern: Getting the Party Together

November 19, 2018 / Fen / 0 Comments

First impressions mean a lot! So, how your D&D party gets together can flavor the tone of their interactions for a while. A lot of people want to avoid the traditional “you all meet in a tavern” method. But, after experiencing and running a few other methods, I think I get why taverns are an effective way to bring the party together. Continue reading

Fortune’s Favored: A Tweak to the Lucky Feat

November 9, 2018 / Fen / 0 Comments

The rules of D&D are meant to function for many different groups and individuals. They give a Dungeon Master guidance in adjudicating questions in case of unexpected circumstances. But sometimes, what’s written doesn’t quite work the way it should, or the way we feel like it should.

Of course, DMs have the freedom to alter the rules of the game as it suits their table. The Dungeon Master’s Guide has a whole chapter dedicated to optional rules variants and creating your own items/spells/monsters. So, if something’s not working, you can feel free to tinker with it until it does.

For example, let’s look at the Lucky feat.