D&D General Practicing DMing

Mannahnin · Dec 21, 2021

Maxperson said:
Well now we have 8 Ps.

The seven I learned were Proper Prior Planning Prevents Piss-Poor Performance.

pogre · Dec 21, 2021

Manbearcat said:
* Practice your situation framing (making it provocative, making it curiosity-piquing, integrating it with player input).

* Practice your consequence/complication-handling as an outgrowth of particular initiating parameters of situation + action declaration intent + mechanical resolution + principles/premise of play (especially making these personal to one or more PCs).

* Practice running various archetypes of conflicts (kill, capture, flee, pursue, drive-off, convince, convince crowd, adjure/banish, ploy, sneak, journey).

This is a very practical approach I think is a chance to do the kind of Deliberate Practice the O.P. spoke of - the only thing I would add/suggest is I know what you mean, but perhaps others might benefit from reference to threads that would define some of the terminology you are using.

Perhaps it is unnecessary at this point, but I know when terms like "situation framing" first cropped up it took me a while to figure out what the heck people were talking about...

Manbearcat · Dec 21, 2021

pogre said:
This is a very practical approach I think is a chance to do the kind of Deliberate Practice the O.P. spoke of - the only thing I would add/suggest is I know what you mean, but perhaps others might benefit from reference to threads that would define some of the terminology you are using.

Perhaps it is unnecessary at this point, but I know when terms like "situation framing" first cropped up it took me a while to figure out what the heck people were talking about...

Alright, situation-framing. Here are two easy examples I’ll copy and paste directly from Discord as I’m teaching a group to work through the density of Torchbearer. The first one is the situation-framing for a Kill Conflict. The second is situation-framing for Camp Phase:

KILL CONFLICT

Alright , lets start with a Flee or Kill Conflict (I'm deferring to you).

You're on a Journey to your Adventure site. Its the scant few hours of day this far north so no light issues. This is your 3rd Leg out of 3 Legs and this leg is Wilderness. Your Pathfinder Test yielded a Twist. Its a Twist, so I get to decide the Conflict type. However, I'm going to defer to you guys. Do you run? If so, it will be Flee (this is very dangerous terrain). Otherwise, its Kill. Your navigation of the ridge line has led you to a tumulus that has been disrupted. The stones still stand as they were, but the graves that lie beneath have been unearthed due to landslide or some other natural event. The remains and their valuables lie strewn about a 100 SF area on a steep, dangerous grade.
Scat, tracks, and a day-old carcass quickly reveal that a pack of Dire Wolves take up residence in the former hewn earthen tomb, treating the hollow as a cozy burrow! Birch trees dot the ridgeline and the more flat, broadened areas of it. A single huge wolf appears as a shadow in a stand of birches. Where there is one, there is inevitably more. 12 paces and circling, darting like a shadow between birch trees as it does.

Flee or Kill (they're Might 3 w/ Leader Might 4 so you can Kill)?

1) Pick a Conflict Captain for tiebreaker stuff to rep the group for the conflict.

2) Roll Disposition after you determine the conflict type.

After that, I'll declare my weapons/traits and action order (and I'll give you fiction around that).
Then you declare weapons/traits et al and your action order.
Then we'll declare and reveal actions and test.

CAMP PHASE

Alright, lets practice a Camp Phase.

* Everyone has the following Conditions: Hungry and Thirsty and Exhausted.

* One of you has Injured. Another has Angry (I'll let you guys decide who).

* You guys have 4 Checks between you to spend in Camp.

* We'll put this in Wilderness (meaning the Adventure is a Wilderness one). That will affect the Camp Events table and any possible Danger/Twists that occur as a result of Checks. You're on a steep cliff of a fjord, looking down at the inlet. A pine forest spreads all around you. Its nearing freezing cold and there is a light rain. The area is Unsafe due to the conditions (-2 to Camp Events table), but not Dangerous. You would have liked to have found better conditions/locale, but you decided to settle here because The Grind was crushing you guys (couldn't afford more Exploration Turns) and you needed respite.

* You're at Turn 2 and at the end of Turn 4 of The Grind, you guys will incur another Condition. Turns don't take place in Camp Phase. However, if you want to Survey for a good camp site w/ amenities, that will cost a Turn in the Adventuring Phase (putting you guys at 3/4 Grind). Doing this grants several advantages to Camp.

a Camp w/ Shelter grants +1 to Camp Events table.
a Camp w/ Concealment grants a further +1 to Camp Events table.
a Camp w/ Water Source (lets you refill your skin et al).

These things would also impact fictional positioning if we get a Calamity/Twist.

* You're in Wilderness, so that is already Ob2. Each amenity is a Factor, so your minimum Survivalist Ob3 and max Ob5. You can also use Survivalist w/ any of your Checks to add Amenities if you want to. Alright, so this is the first procedure for Camp. Do you guys want to spend an Adventure Phase Turn (bringing you 3/4 on Grind) to look for a good camp (if so, what are you looking for) or are you cold-camping? * EDIT - you get an auto +1 to Camp Events in Wilderness because of your Ranger.

Situation-framing brings in the relevant fictional and mechanical parameters for an obstacle/conflict facing the players. They orient themselves to the situation before them using this information > make further observations (via moves or back-and-forth of conversation) > decide on a course > act.

The above two are discrete situations removed from any actual through-line of play. This is just practice stuff. GMs can, and should, do this to hone their own skills and the skills/familiarity of their players so that the actual subsequent session play is improved.

Bill Zebub · Dec 21, 2021

Charlaquin said:
Yep, I’m about to run Curse of Strahd for a third time (session 1 was supposed to be Thursday, but we had to cancel at the last minute so now it’s going to be Thursday after next), with almost the same group of players as the first time, only one swapped out. Keeps getting better every time I do it.

Ooh I wish I could join that campaign!

ART! · Dec 21, 2021

If it hasn't been mentioned yet:

If your GMing style includes doing voices or accents, physically acting things out to any degree, using tics or mannerisms, you could definitely practice that kind of thing. Think about an NPC or monster they're likely to encounter, and feel out that character. How do they stand? How do they sit? Do they look people in the eye? How's their posture? Are they very formal, or "vulgar"? Etcetera.

Charlaquin · Dec 21, 2021

Bill Zebub said:
Ooh I wish I could join that campaign!

I never get tired of running Curse of Strahd, so maybe there will be another opportunity. I don’t love DMing online, but it’s probably a skill I should make myself practice.

MNblockhead · Dec 21, 2021

Live an interesting life, meet interesting people, take interesting risks. Travel, experience other cultures and people with different viewpoints and lifestyles, both locally and abroad. Read and write.

I'm not great at acting, making up voices, or improv, but I can usually come up with interesting NPCs on fly and interesting adventures and scenarios because I have many points of reference from personal experience or from things I've read.

Most of my "practice" comes from game prep. The act of prepping maps helps get my imagination going and thinking about how things could play out. That will often send me into tangents of writing out ideas and the act of writing helps me better describe the envrionment or play the NPCs.

The one skill I would like to practice more and even take classes on is verbal story telling. That would not only be more useful for running games but would make me are more interesting in conversation which has wide application in various social interactions. Some of the best DMs I've experience are not great voice actors or writers. They are not skilled improv artists. They don't spend a lot of time planning out story arcs. They are just damn good story tellers. They can describe things to make it interesting. They tend to be good at describing something they and their friends did in real life and making that interest as much as they can describe a dungeon and its denizens.

Lakesidefantasy · Dec 21, 2021

Manbearcat said:
Alright, situation-framing. Here are two easy examples I’ll copy and paste directly from Discord as I’m teaching a group to work through the density of Torchbearer. The first one is the situation-framing for a Kill Conflict. The second is situation-framing for Camp Phase:

KILL CONFLICT

Alright , lets start with a Flee or Kill Conflict (I'm deferring to you).

You're on a Journey to your Adventure site. Its the scant few hours of day this far north so no light issues. This is your 3rd Leg out of 3 Legs and this leg is Wilderness. Your Pathfinder Test yielded a Twist. Its a Twist, so I get to decide the Conflict type. However, I'm going to defer to you guys. Do you run? If so, it will be Flee (this is very dangerous terrain). Otherwise, its Kill. Your navigation of the ridge line has led you to a tumulus that has been disrupted. The stones still stand as they were, but the graves that lie beneath have been unearthed due to landslide or some other natural event. The remains and their valuables lie strewn about a 100 SF area on a steep, dangerous grade.
Scat, tracks, and a day-old carcass quickly reveal that a pack of Dire Wolves take up residence in the former hewn earthen tomb, treating the hollow as a cozy burrow! Birch trees dot the ridgeline and the more flat, broadened areas of it. A single huge wolf appears as a shadow in a stand of birches. Where there is one, there is inevitably more. 12 paces and circling, darting like a shadow between birch trees as it does.

Flee or Kill (they're Might 3 w/ Leader Might 4 so you can Kill)?

1) Pick a Conflict Captain for tiebreaker stuff to rep the group for the conflict.

2) Roll Disposition after you determine the conflict type.

After that, I'll declare my weapons/traits and action order (and I'll give you fiction around that).

Then you declare weapons/traits et al and your action order.

Then we'll declare and reveal actions and test.

CAMP PHASE

Alright, lets practice a Camp Phase.

* Everyone has the following Conditions: Hungry and Thirsty and Exhausted.

* One of you has Injured. Another has Angry (I'll let you guys decide who).

* You guys have 4 Checks between you to spend in Camp.

* We'll put this in Wilderness (meaning the Adventure is a Wilderness one). That will affect the Camp Events table and any possible Danger/Twists that occur as a result of Checks. You're on a steep cliff of a fjord, looking down at the inlet. A pine forest spreads all around you. Its nearing freezing cold and there is a light rain. The area is Unsafe due to the conditions (-2 to Camp Events table), but not Dangerous. You would have liked to have found better conditions/locale, but you decided to settle here because The Grind was crushing you guys (couldn't afford more Exploration Turns) and you needed respite.

* You're at Turn 2 and at the end of Turn 4 of The Grind, you guys will incur another Condition. Turns don't take place in Camp Phase. However, if you want to Survey for a good camp site w/ amenities, that will cost a Turn in the Adventuring Phase (putting you guys at 3/4 Grind). Doing this grants several advantages to Camp.

a Camp w/ Shelter grants +1 to Camp Events table.

a Camp w/ Concealment grants a further +1 to Camp Events table.

a Camp w/ Water Source (lets you refill your skin et al).

These things would also impact fictional positioning if we get a Calamity/Twist.

* You're in Wilderness, so that is already Ob2. Each amenity is a Factor, so your minimum Survivalist Ob3 and max Ob5. You can also use Survivalist w/ any of your Checks to add Amenities if you want to. Alright, so this is the first procedure for Camp. Do you guys want to spend an Adventure Phase Turn (bringing you 3/4 on Grind) to look for a good camp (if so, what are you looking for) or are you cold-camping? * EDIT - you get an auto +1 to Camp Events in Wilderness because of your Ranger.

Situation-framing brings in the relevant fictional and mechanical parameters for an obstacle/conflict facing the players. They orient themselves to the situation before them using this information > make further observations (via moves or back-and-forth of conversation) > decide on a course > act.

The above two are discrete situations removed from any actual through-line of play. This is just practice stuff. GMs can, and should, do this to hone their own skills and the skills/familiarity of their players so that the actual subsequent session play is improved.

What game is this?

Blue · Dec 22, 2021

Communication. Ask your players what they want to see more of after you run a session. It's not a "touchy subject" because it's positive. After they get used to that, start asking "and what didn't go as well". Don't debate, don't confront, just take it.