DM prep time with D&D

[S'mon]

I find the Quick NPC system (see sig) very helpful in creating NPCs, especially ones lower-level than the PCs (ie most of them, in most games) - at most it's a couple of minutes per NPC.

 

[Crothian]

creating NPCs I've alwways found easy, I just write down what i want the NPC to be able to do and have and I'm done.

 

[scourger]

5) Spend less time on ENWorld.

YES, but I LIKE reading and posting here. It feels like I'm discussing the game with my gaming buddies--who won't (or will no longer) so indulge me. So, I could have spent today prepping to DM my game next Wednesday, but instead I'll post my time-savers here. The following steps are what works for me right now. I like to think of them as the current refinement of my gamecraft. These are the tips I'll be using for this week's game.

#1) Run what you want and make it exciting for the players so it's what they want, too. My current game is The Shackled City Adventure Path from Dungeon with elements from other games that I like: Star Wars, Judge Dredd & Omega World. I also added aasimar paladins with no ECL to encourage the players to play good characters. I knew I couldn't bear to play another plain vanilla D&D game (reinforced with the last 2 weeks in a classic 1e game), so I added in the elements I wanted. It upped the power curve, so the players love it, too.

#2) Don't sweat the details. I didn't do a lot of work to write conversion manuals for jedi, judges & mutants. I just told the players basically how it works and we play the game. Plus, there are plenty of unintentional mistakes (even after 25 years) that help & hurt the PCs so that it all evens out.

#3) Use preprinted adventures. I subscribe to Dungeon, so it's easy for me to pick out an adventure or a campaign to run. I have made adventures from scratch, but nowadays I mainly use modules. There's still plenty of work to do.

#4) Keep the game heroic. I give bonus chips for cool or clever roleplay. A chip can be cashed in to reroll a d20 or for a 5% expereince bonus at the end of each night. This allows the players a little more control over the game and allows me to instantly reward the kind of play I want to encourage. I'm also experimenting with Adventure Cards (a free demo download from great white games--ful version for sale at rpgnow).

#5) Initiative cards. Essential for my game. I should buy the Game Mechanics' preprinted set at rpgnow for this weks game (and in thanks for the free ones I've bene using for a couple of years).

#6) No minis for the bad guys. I use counters. This really saves me time & effort.

#7) Minis for the PCs. It's the players' responsibility, though. Having a pianted one gets a bonus chip. This keeps the players invested in their characters and helps me keep friend & foe separated on the battlefield. Which gets me to tactical maps.

#8) Easy tactical maps. Recently, I've gotten a lot of mileage out of using player's maps. Ideally, one comes with the adventure. If not, I just give one to a PC who might have reason to know the layout of a place. I even prepared one for this week's game by scanning & manipulating it on the computer to take out the room numbers, traps & secret doors. I plan to give this information as a reward to the PC who captured a foe last week. I tried to poster print the map on my computer printer, but the scale is just too small. Sometimes it works great. I'll let the players draw out the areas for combat durung the game. Although I have the big, quad-ruled easel pads with 1-inch squares, making maps ahead of time is very time-consuming (although very fun, too).

#9) Last but not least is the theorem: no matter little preparation I've done, it's enough. The corollary: no matter how much preparation I've done, there is always more that could be done. I figure that there is at least 1 hour prep time for each hour of game time. It may actually be a 2:1 ratio some weeks. There is a lot of work in the front end of a module, and at times I can coast through the later weeks.

Well, that's it for now.

 

[Stone Angel]

Oh I so understand. 3.x is hell well at first anyway on making npc's spells, equipment, mounts, monsters, animal companions, familiars, magic items...etc.

Scrounger had some great suggestions really solid.

I am here to say that it gets better eventually you will just no what class'es and such get what base bonus' at certain levels what spells are go to what levels and such. So just keep truckin you will get to not be an accountant maybe just an aide or something.


Good luck


The Seraph of Earth and Stone

 

[Gundark]

I use e-tools for this very reason.

I can whip up a decent high level NPC in 5-10 minutes.

yeah...etools is worth it's weight in gold.....but more cause it doesn't weigh much.

 

[Gundark]

as a side note there are free character generators out there if etools is out of tyour price range. Redblade is a good one. PC gen is another. Jamus Buck did a 3.0 character generator, somebody 3.5'd it.

http://www.dungeon.gr/archinf.php?id=223 I think this link might be a good one (Redblade)

 

[Bagpuss]

While I love GM'ing, I find GM'ing D&D above about 10th level becomes a real pain in the backside, when it comes to NPC's. I prefer GM'ing games like Feng Shui or Cyberpunk where the work load tends to stay about the same no mater how experienced the PC's get.

In the end I tend to use published materials (like Dungeon) for D20 games and homebrew adventures for more GM friendly games like Feng Shui, Cyberpunk, etc.

 

[Akrasia]

While I love GM'ing, I find GM'ing D&D above about 10th level becomes a real pain in the backside, when it comes to NPC's. ...

I concur. This is one of the main reasons why I recently switched my campaign over from 3.5 to Castles and Crusades. It has greatly reduced my game-related consumption of aspirin. I now approach the task of statting up a 12th level wizard without cringing. (Interestingly, while a couple of players were sceptical of the switch at first, being fans of 3.5, everyone is now really digging the faster pace of the campaign.)

While I am happy to play 3E D&D (and will be playing in a Midnight campaign soon), I simply don't have the inclination to DM it ever again.

Anyway, if you are committed to DM'ing 3.5 at high levels, I guess the easiest route would be to simply rely on published modules and Dungeon magazine -- tweaking things to suit your style and campaign. Indeed, Dungeon is probably worthwhile simply to yank fully statted high level NPCs for your own adventures.

I have heard rumours that the DMG2 is supposed to include some advice on how to reduce DM prep time. Details are scarce at the present time, however.

 

[MadMaxim]

I spend A LOT of time preparing for sessions. I spend more time preparing than actually playing, but guess what, I like preparing for a session. I love working out cool class combinations and statting NPCs. I love looking through my books for great prestige classes to add to the NPCs. I'm currently preparing an Eberron campaign which isn't going to start anytime soon, but I love the whole process of thinking about plots, cool NPCs, dungeons, encounters, you name it!

However, I can see how all this book keeping can become irritating. You're not always in the mood for making a 12th-level wizard who's probably going to be slaughtered in one or two rounds if you don't account for your players' strengths and weaknesses. I still find it very satisfying, though...

 

[ender_wiggin]

Don't stat him out. Really, 90% of his stats are a waste of time.

If you feel confident enough, dont' stat him out at all, and just go in blind with a concept of what his strategy will be.

If you are newer to DMing, I would suggest stating out his spellbook and memorized spells, but nothing else. Why have to figure out his melee attack bonus when you know he's never going to attack with a mundane weapon? He's a 12th level wizard.

If you feel ok with just his spells, go in with just memorized spells, and make up items on the spot. If the PCs are winning the fight pretty fast, have him pull a limited wish scroll out of the back end of his GI system. If the PCs are getting shafted in that same area, then don't. It's very cool because you can tailor the fight while it's going on to the PCs level.