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General Tabletop Discussion
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Advice on how not to feel like a lousy DM
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<blockquote data-quote="MonkeezOnFire" data-source="post: 7863896" data-attributes="member: 6784845"><p>No one is an expert the first time they try something. It's important to keep that that perspective in mind. The first few times I DM'd it was horrible. Heck, even after years of running a 5e game I still get the feeling that I'm no good and that no one cares about my game. Just take a deep breath and remind yourself that this is supposed to be fun.</p><p></p><p>As for actual actionable DMing advice? I think the most important thing is to try to find your style and then hone in on it. Some DMs like to have a plethora of notes prepared and some mostly just wing it. Some DMs are great at acting out interactions with NPCs. Some are great at setting tone by describing scenery. Some are great at really creative dungeon design. Try to find a play style that you are comfortable with and what aspects of the game you are creatively strong in. Then lean into those things heavily. You can branch out into other things later once you are just comfortable running a game. </p><p></p><p>Of course the best way to do that is just to DM enough until you find your feet but there are other things that can help you along. Watch or listen to actual play podcasts. There are plenty of DMing advice blogs to pour through. As with all advice some of it will be good if it applies to you and a lot of it you are safe to ignore. Just find a couple articles that you think are worth trying out. </p><p></p><p>Lastly, I also think it's important to have interests and hobbies outside of table top rpgs. Having knowledge of other fields not only makes you a well rounded person, but it also really helps your DMing sometimes.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="MonkeezOnFire, post: 7863896, member: 6784845"] No one is an expert the first time they try something. It's important to keep that that perspective in mind. The first few times I DM'd it was horrible. Heck, even after years of running a 5e game I still get the feeling that I'm no good and that no one cares about my game. Just take a deep breath and remind yourself that this is supposed to be fun. As for actual actionable DMing advice? I think the most important thing is to try to find your style and then hone in on it. Some DMs like to have a plethora of notes prepared and some mostly just wing it. Some DMs are great at acting out interactions with NPCs. Some are great at setting tone by describing scenery. Some are great at really creative dungeon design. Try to find a play style that you are comfortable with and what aspects of the game you are creatively strong in. Then lean into those things heavily. You can branch out into other things later once you are just comfortable running a game. Of course the best way to do that is just to DM enough until you find your feet but there are other things that can help you along. Watch or listen to actual play podcasts. There are plenty of DMing advice blogs to pour through. As with all advice some of it will be good if it applies to you and a lot of it you are safe to ignore. Just find a couple articles that you think are worth trying out. Lastly, I also think it's important to have interests and hobbies outside of table top rpgs. Having knowledge of other fields not only makes you a well rounded person, but it also really helps your DMing sometimes. [/QUOTE]
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