D&D General A Rant: DMing is not hard.

[Reynard]

One of the things I really dislike that has come out of the rise of popularity of D&D (and to some degree other RPGs; but let's be honest, it is mostly D&D) is the monetization of convinging people that being a Dungeon master is hard.

Early on as 5E gained steam, we had people like Matt Coville and Matt Mercer conving people that yes, you can be a DM. Coville in particular built a following around explaining how to DM, but never telling his viewers that they could not do it. Others have followed, such as Ginni D, who offer similar advice.

But something I see a lot more of now is an endless stream of products aimed at DMs trying to convince them that Dming is hard and the only way to manage it is to buy this book. There are tons of books of super simplified adventures and advice on how to be a better DM and ways to cut corners, and the marketing is all "DMing is super hard, buy this to make it easier."

DMing is not that hard. We learned to do it when we were 10. We fumbled around and made weird calls and built bad adventures and still had a blast -- enough to still be doing it decades later. We need fewer products marketed as ways to make DMing easier, and more people advocating for letting new DMs screw up.

And part of this, IMO, is the professional DM cottage industry. I get why people would want a paid GM, especially as it relates to scheduling, but pro DMing amplifies the attitude that DMing is some sort of elite skill set that only someone with expertise can do. And that is nonsense. Anyone can DM.

Anyway, I saw an ad that really turned my crank. Had to get that out. Everyone can go back to their regularly scheduled Best of 2025 lists or whatever.

/rant

 

[aco175]

I guess it is a bit like everything. I like golf and anyone can be a good golf player- depending on what you think is good. If you like to go out and have a good time with friends and maybe have a couple drinks, that's a good time playing golf. If you need to be a single-digit handicap or scratch golfer, then it is hard, but some can do it with ease. If being good means you need to be Jack or Tiger, than few can do it or do it well.

Being a DM combines several skills. Some are at the table playing, with the ability to make decisions and keep pace and deal with player problems or arguments. There is also skills with making a dungeon that might not be a problem is you only run a published adventure. Both can be fun.

Maybe it is finding your skills and where they can be best input.

 

[el-remmen]

DMing is not that hard. We learned to do it when we were 10. We fumbled around and made weird calls and built bad adventures and still had a blast -- enough to still be doing it decades later. We need fewer products marketed as ways to make DMing easier, and more people advocating for letting new DMs screw up.

I don’t think you are wrong but one big difference between learning when we were 10 and learning when you are an adult, is that back then we had (seemingly) endless time, while now all those screw ups and bummers might feel like wasted time to folks (whether or not it actually is). But for me when I look back at the various stages of my young DMing that are cringey or boneheaded, despite feeling they were necessary, I imagine those mistakes even when potentially productive are not as tolerated.

All that said, yes a DM (esp. a starting one) needs room to mess up in order to get better. It is just that room is harder to come by (or allow ourselves).

 

[Scribe]

@Reynard with great power comes great responsibility.

Your last rant kicked off one of the biggest threads of the year, and now you come for.the DMs?!

 

[Reynard]

I don’t think you are wrong but one big difference between learning when we were 10 and learning when you are an adult, is that back then we had (seemingly) endless time, while now all those screw ups and bummers might feel like wasted time to folks (whether or not it actually is). But for me when I look back at the various stages of my young DMing that are cringey or boneheaded, despite feeling the were necessary, I imagine those mistakes even when potentially productive are not as tolerated.

All that said, yes a DM (esp. a starting one) needs room to mess up in order to get better. It is just that room is harder to come by (or allow ourselves).

Why do you think that is? Are new players less tolerant of new DMs?

 

[Scribe]

Why do you think that is? Are new players less tolerant of new DMs?

A product of our times, just like in online gaming, we are all now expected to be polished semi pros who have done our research.

 

[GMMichael]

But something I see a lot more of now is an endless stream of products aimed at DMs trying to convince them that Dming is hard and the only way to manage it is to buy this book. There are tons of books of super simplified adventures and advice on how to be a better DM and ways to cut corners, and the marketing is all "DMing is super hard, buy this to make it easier."

GMing varies. DMing is as hard as your players make it. Some expect you to know all the rules (like whether a Simulacrum is real or illusory). Some don't know their own rules, so you have to fact-check them as they go. If your players don't care, yeah, DMing is pretty easy. Otherwise, to me, it's a rules-nightmare.

And part of this, IMO, is the professional DM cottage industry. I get why people would want a paid GM, especially as it relates to scheduling, but pro DMing amplifies the attitude that DMing is some sort of elite skill set that only someone with expertise can do. And that is nonsense. Anyone can DM.

Would you want anyone to DM for you?

 

[MGibster]

If being good means you need to be Jack or Tiger, than few can do it or do it well.

When I started gaming back in the late 1980s, we didn't have anyone to compare ourselves against aside from the other people we gamed with and letters/articles in places like Dragon Magazine. A new GM today might be comparing themselves directly against Jason Carl or Matt Mercer whereas I could never directly compare myself against Gary Gygax. I wonder if newer GMs these days feel a little more pressure to be like Mercer or Carl. I wonder the same about players through. Those social media gamers are very often actors and those games are very different from what I'm accustomed to.

While I believe GMing is more work than being a player, I encourage everyone to give it a try. If you can be a decent player then odds are good you can be a decent GM. If you don't like being a GM that's okay. But it's not too hard.

 

[schneeland]

DMing is not that hard.

Disregarding for a moment that this is a rant, I'd say: yes and no. It's not hard in the sense that DMing is a skill like any other and it can be learnt. But on the other that, it is hard because for some people it might be a new skill, which is harder to acquire as an adult than it is as a teenager. And, at least as long as we talk about games with traditional GM and player roles, the GM role does come with more time investment than the player role (which is also trickier to manage as an adult).

That being said, I agree that it doesn't make sense to hold ourselves to the standards of professional entertainers, and I also strongly believe that it benefits a group when the GMing responsibility doesn't stay with one person all the time.

 

[Zardnaar]

Its harder than playing.

Playing requires minimal effort. I put 20-30 hours or more into a new campaign.

I dont chatge but current batch have agreed to chip on some cash to cover expenses.