Prescriptions
How to Run a Large D&D Group (7+ Players)
/u/BoyScholar wrote in this post: I’ll be attempting to DM a module with a group of roughly 7-8 players sometime next month and I’m looking for any advice to manage the player count. First off: do it. Some advise that you either turn some of the players away (at least temporarily), or run 2 groups. I … Continue reading
How to Prep a Spellcaster for Combat in D&D 5E
If you’re running D&D 5E combat that includes an enemy spellcaster, you may look at its stat block and secretly despair. Spellcaster enemies often have a dozen or more spells available to them. How on Urth do you decide which ones to use in combat? Do you go over the list every round and decide which one is … Continue reading
Buffing D&D 5E Fights without TPKs
Let’s say your PCs are waltzing through combat in Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition. How do you make fights harder without accidentally annihilating the PCs? Let me introduce you to Dale. Dale tried a bunch of different approaches. This is his story. Increase AC First, Dale increased the AC of the monsters in the battle. This … Continue reading
GMs: Ask These 3 Questions At the End of Every Session
“What was your favorite part of the session?” “What was your least favorite part of the session?” “What do you want to see happen next?” Of course, you don’t have to ask these questions. But if you don’t ask for feedback, or the feedback you get isn’t helpful, these questions tend to get to the … Continue reading
RPG Rx: “I Won’t Play X Because of Mechanic Y”
“Different Directions” by Matthias Ripp on Flickr From an old thread on RPG.net, shockvalue asked: Are the people who absolute[ly] won\’t abide a game with some mechanic and/or prop a tiny, tiny minority? Or are they more common? Are there a lot of people who just flat out refuse to use cards in a game? … Continue reading
Slimpunk, a simple cyberpunk tabletop RPG
Joshua Kubli on Google+ wrote, “I keep thinking I want to run Shadowrun, and then my enthusiasm tapers during planning. [The art below] is basically what I want from Shadowrun. Less near-future spy stuff, more punk and urban shamanism/modern magic stuff.” I hear you! So here’s a simple system for that: If attempting something risky, like jimmying open … Continue reading
RPG Rx: Letting Players Drive Lovecraft
In a thread on RPG.net, smarttman asked: I’m going to run a Lovecraftian adventure soon, and I…want to try the style of…having a small outline of events/places I want the players to see, and just kind of let the players do their own thing when it comes to exploring. Of course I will guide them … Continue reading
How To Play When It’s Just You
On the Gamer Assembly wiki FAQ, one of the questions is: Are there any pre-made D&D 4E adventures designed for one player and one DM? Something to help teach rules (for both DM and player)? This is what the Red Box was designed for. If you’ve paid for a D&D Insider account, you can download … Continue reading
How Not to Release Something Horrible from the Never Never (A Primer for New Players of The Dresden Files)
A few quick pointers on approaching a game of Evil Hat‘s Dresden Files RPG: The major themes of the Dresden Files include investigation and magic (including the Occult). Good backstories include one or both of these. Pick Aspects that relate to either your character’s inner struggles, or other people (particularly other players and known antagonists). Once your … Continue reading