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Category Archives: Advice
10 Ways to Build a Character That Will Earn the Love of Your Party
In Dungeons & Dragons, rolling handfuls of damage dice feels like a good way to shine among party members, but know this secret: Other players usually overlook the damage you do. If you really want to shine, find ways to … Continue reading
Should Charm Person Work Like a Jedi Mind Trick?
In three original, brown Dungeons & Dragons books, what spell ranks as the most powerful? At 6th level, disintegrate could turn someone to dust, but charm person could put someone “completely under the influence of the Magic-User until such time … Continue reading
Should a Dungeon Master Invite Players to Help Create the D&D World Beyond Their Characters?
In 1970, Dungeons & Dragons co-creator Dave Arneson joined the Castles & Crusades Society, a group of miniature gamers formed by D&D co-creator Gary Gygax. The group imagined a Great Kingdom and parceled out territories to players to develop for … Continue reading
Event-driven D&D Adventures Aren’t About Events; They’re About Villains
The plot of every vintage James Bond movie resembles a role-playing scenario based on an investigation and events. A hook like the theft of an atomic bomb sets Bond into motion. In an investigation, he chases leads from one situation … Continue reading
Posted in Advice
Tagged adventure design, Angry DM, Courtney Kraft, Dungeon World, fronts, Justin Alexander, plot, preparation, villains
2 Comments
Dungeon Masters, Instead of Plots, Prepare Secrets, Clues, and Leads
Planning a Dungeons & Dragons game around encounters and plots leads to trouble. In my last post, I explained how preparing encounters proves less flexible than preparing situations. Situations can take dungeon masters far. Every D&D adventure published before 1982 … Continue reading
Posted in Advice
Tagged clues, hooks, Justin Alexander, leads, Mike Shea, plot, preparation, secrets
4 Comments
Dungeon Masters, Don’t Prepare Plots and Encounters—Do This Instead
Every dungeon master sometimes throws characters into a combat encounter, and then sees players do something unexpected. We never expect a peaceful dialog. Later, the characters reach a mountain outpost stocked with perfectly crafted encounters and the players show ingenuity … Continue reading
Posted in Advice
Tagged encounters, plots, preparation, situations, Tom Lommel, Tomb of Annihilation, Tomb of Horrors, villains
10 Comments
The Best Ways to Track Initiative in Dungeons & Dragons
In my last post on tracking initiative, I surveyed every tracking technique I knew, from apps to combat pads. Five years later, I feel ready for a stronger statement: If you don’t use card stock tents to track initiative, you … Continue reading
D&D Locations and Tactics that Encourage Dynamic Combat Scenes
Last summer, I played in the Dungeons & Dragons adventure Hecatomb. The multi-table event put numerous parties on a massive battlefield. Our characters scrambled to destroy arcane obelisks while fighting monsters. To start the event, the dungeon master pointed to … Continue reading
