Building GM Aids like Software for Experts

[SlyFlourish]

Mike Mearls had two interviews recently, one with Ben Riggs and one with Professor Dungeon Master. In both of these interviews he brought up a thought that really resonated with me: The idea that RPGs and GM-focused accessories are really like designing expert software for expert users – think Photoshop, InDesign, Final Cut, or advanced Linux adminstration tool suites. When we look at game and systems, we often look at what it does for new GMs or new groups. A lot of 5e-focused products continue to add character-focused material like new subclasses and spells in an attempt to get players to buy these books alongside GMs. It's rarer to find products clearly focused just on GMs and what GMs need or want to run great games.

I obviously have some confirmation bias here. I feel like my books (Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master, the Lazy DM's Companion, Forge of Foes, and City of Arches) are specifically designed and focused to give experienced GMs tools and ideas to help them run great games. I dig the idea, clearly.

I have two questions for you fine folks:

1. What are some really good GM-focused products (including full RPGs) you've found that fit this sort of "advanced software for advanced users" idea?

2. What sort of GM-focused products do you think are missing?

These don't have to be just for D&D or 5e (which is why I put it in the TTRPG general section). You can recommend any product for any RPG system.

If @mearls wants to chime in and clarify the thought, that'd be awesome too =)

 

[payn]

1. What are some really good GM-focused products (including full RPGs) you've found that fit this sort of "advanced software for advanced users" idea?

Paizo, in the PF1 era, did the Game masters Guide and Ultimate Campaign. 3E had the DMG II. These products go a step beyond game play instruction and move into adventure and campaign design. Further, the APs were often test beds for optional mechanical sub-systems that keep the game fresh and interesting. These are the types of things I enjoy buying and using as a GM that are often not in good supply.

2. What sort of GM-focused products do you think are missing?

I could be wrong on this as I havent been too deeply involved in the VTT space, but quick generating NPC and monster tools. I was running a Traveller game the other night and realized I need more generic pirates, law enforcement, etc.. NPCs for numerous situations. Not named figures of any importance, just figures that make logic sense in any given situation. I have been making them manually as needed, but its not the fun part of my GM prep in the VTT space.

 

[SlyFlourish]

Paizo, in the PF1 era, did the Game masters Guide and Ultimate Campaign. 3E had the DMG II. These products go a step beyond game play instruction and move into adventure and campaign design. Further, the APs were often test beds for optional mechanical sub-systems that keep the game fresh and interesting. These are the types of things I enjoy buying and using as a GM that are often not in good supply.

I could be wrong on this as I havent been too deeply involved in the VTT space, but quick generating NPC and monster tools. I was running a Traveller game the other night and realized I need more generic pirates, law enforcement, etc.. NPCs for numerous situations. Not named figures of any importance, just figures that make logic sense in any given situation. I have been making them manually as needed, but its not the fun part of my GM prep in the VTT space.

The D&D 4e DMG2 was also well regarded, and still is. I'll have to look at it again. It's been years since I looked at it.

VTTs as advanced software (actual real software) is a good example. Foundry is cool but it has a high learning curve in my experience. But the GMs who love it really love it.

Being able to quickly improvise stats for any creature you have in your head was the design goal for Forge of Foes. For me, the idea came from Numenera which I think is awesome on the GM side of letting you come up with any challenge from a small mutant rat to a world-eating cybernetic asteroid by just assigning a number to it from 1 to 10. Cypher isn't my favorite system from a player standpoint but I love it from the GM side of things because of that one feature.

 

[payn]

The D&D 4e DMG2 was also well regarded, and still is. I'll have to look at it again. It's been years since I looked at it.

VTTs as advanced software (actual real software) is a good example. Foundry is cool but it has a high learning curve in my experience. But the GMs who love it really love it.

Being able to quickly improvise stats for any creature you have in your head was the design goal for Forge of Foes. For me, the idea came from Numenera which I think is awesome on the GM side of letting you come up with any challenge from a small mutant rat to a world-eating cybernetic asteroid by just assigning a number to it from 1 to 10. Cypher isn't my favorite system from a player standpoint but I love it from the GM side of things because of that one feature.

When I played at the table (pre-covid) the NPC codex from Paizo for PF1 was a great product for this.

I use Foundry and find it pretty easy to use. There is a lot of bells and whistles, but you dont need most of them. I think folks get caught up in all the possibilities and look well beyond their needs. Anywho, I dont have issue making things in Foundry, I just want to spend my time on the cool stuff and not the basic stuff. Not a problem of technical ability or knowledge, but one of time and effort.

 

[THEMNGMNT]

Interesting question, Mike.

Here's my hot take: I believe that most of the innovative 13th Age mechanics are DM Aids in disguise. Take Icons, for example. Icon Relationships live on the character sheet. But they’ve helped me immensely. Need to give some depth to that mummy? Easy enough when the wizard has a relationship with the Lich King. Need an NPC to lift the mummy’s curse? Easy enough when the paladin has a relationship with the Priestess–he knows a cleric in the next town over. Need the cleric to have some sort of complication? Easy enough when the rogue is former lovers with the lieutenant of the Prince of Shadows who swiped the cleric’s holy book and is auctioning it to the highest bidder. Backgrounds and even the Escalation Die are also DM Aids.

I'm about 30 sessions into my first 13th Age campaign. I've found that most of these mechanics simplify my life but actually complicate life for the players. "Roll a Medicine check DC 20" is much easier for them than "Explain to me how your Background as Orc Lord Courtesan allows you to lift the curse".

As an aside, my perfect version of 5E would include relevant subsystems in each adventure campaign. For example, Tomb of Annihilation would have had expanded rules for exploration more in line with what Level Up has. I don’t think the DMG needs to pack in every single DM Aid. They can show up when relevant for a campaign with the adventure acting as a sort of tutorial for how, when, and why to use them.

 

[overgeeked]

1. What are some really good GM-focused products (including full RPGs) you've found that fit this sort of "advanced software for advanced users" idea?

Man. That's a long, long list. Off the top of my head...

Ghosts of DMGs past is a good place to start, especially the AD&D and 4E DMGs. Clocks from Blades in the Dark. Fronts from PbtA games. The mystery and monster design advice from Monster of the Week. The tactical advice from The Monsters Know What They're Doing blogs and books. The Game Master's Book of Proactive Roleplaying. Tome of Adventure Design. Random Esoteric Creature Generator. Mothership's Warden's Operations Manual. Worlds Without Number. Monster Overhaul. Index Card RPG, specifically the GM advice. XDM: X-Treme Dungeon Mastery 2E. And pretty much the whole of the FKR scene, if you can avoid the more... negative... aspects.

2. What sort of GM-focused products do you think are missing?

That will be really hard to answer. Referees have different styles so will see different gaps. I'm a big fan of open-world sandbox play, hexcrawls, and improvised play. I think that style is well covered. Lots of what I'd call frameworks to aid play already exist and there are piles of related products. Random charts and tables, random map generators, drag and drop content, books like Return of the Lazy DM, Forge of Foes, etc.

One thing I don't know that I've seen is something to help story-focused referees improvise story. There are a lot of books on story outside the hobby to draw from. I'm not sure about any purpose built for referees. But it has been touched on by people like Robin Laws and games in the Powered by the Apocalypse family. That said, it seems both so light a framework and such an obvious one that it's almost not worth articulating. It might be a blog post, at best. Not sure it would rise to the level of product. "Story without Railroading in Six Easy Steps" or some such.

 

[payn]

As an aside, my perfect version of 5E would include relevant subsystems in each adventure campaign. For example, Tomb of Annihilation would have had expanded rules for exploration more in line with what Level Up has. I don’t think the DMG needs to pack in every single DM Aid. They can show up when relevant for a campaign with the adventure acting as a sort of tutorial for how, when, and why to use them.

While some folks rather dislike this experimental space of adventure material, I love it. I think you are correct in there being opportunity to teach and experiment with mechanics within adventures. Its a bonus too becasue folks who prefer to write their own stuff can rip out the parts they need making the product have value beyond the fans of the adventure/setting specifics.