Duo-DMing

[Shadowdancer]

Our current campaign uses two DMs, mainly because our group is so small -- only four people total. So we have one group of characters. When I am DM, my character is an NPC. When the other DM is running the game, his character becomes an NPC.

We are running the WOTC 3E adventures series, taking turns being DM. I ran The Sunless Citadel, he is running Forge of Fury.

We have a storyline to connect the adventures together and fill time between adventures involving a prince who is the friend of the PCs, and they are helping him win favor with various factions so they will support his claim to the throne once his father, the King, dies. The king recently suffered a stroke and is still alive, but is sort of feebleminded. He is not competent enough to pick a successor, and a successor can only be chosen when he dies. He has five children, and all are maneuvering to be in the best position to become the ruler when the king dies.

So far, it has worked out pretty well.

 

[StealthyMark]

Maybe you are looking for this article?

 

[Quickbeam]

Our group has three DMs (including myself) that take turns running entirely different campaigns. Occasionally we will integrate primary NPCs and nemesis type nasties into more than one of the campaigns, but generally we're left to our own devices based on different DMing styles. This sytem of multiple DMs has worked exceedingly well IMG.

We've never tried having two DMs at once, but given the right circumstances I could see it working. Then again, I could also see it quickly becoming a nightmare of indescribable horror . Good luck to you!

 

[Kichwas]

This has always been a disaster for me everytime I've tried it and everytime I've been a player in a group doing it.

I wish it would work out though; as I'd love to be able to play in my own settings rather than just run them.


Usually what I see boils down to an assortment of problems:

1. Miscomunication causes one DM to ruin the genre concerns of another.

2. One person wipes out another's plot.

3. Somebody uses it to cheat the position of their PC. This is rare once people get adult levels of maturity though.

The first two are almost bound to happen. No matter how well you communicate and plan at some point the fact that you are not all the same person will result in some form of miscommunication.

If it's severe enough it can ruin a game. Which is what I've always seen. But some people are lucky enough to keep these situations minor.

 

[Humanophile]

Question; do you mean each person takes turns DM'ing, or that you have an assistant DM? There's a world of difference between the two of those.

Rotating DM's is incredibly hard work, and you either have to be extraordinarily good at improvization, or else in constant communication. Both, if you want to avoid seeming disjointed. I've seen this a lot, and usually different DM's styles made for a very disjointed campaign, and differing ideas of what was a good power level made for a hard time balancing what to expect.

If you have a co-DM, that ventures into territory I don't think D&D was written for, but that can be very cool nonetheless. Someone to help with combats, recordkeeping, and the occasional NPC can be a lifesaver, but it can be hard to find someone to take that role.

 

[mac1504]

First let me say- thanks for all of the responses- I had lost track of this thread, but I see I was missing out on a few good remarks.

Thanks to StealthyMark for that link- I had almost completely forgotten about that website and agimminon's column. I love that guy's sarcastic wit!

As far as my plans to run a campaign with 2 DM's- one of the guys I game with is going to DM with me. He will essentially be my aide in running the campaign: listen to my ideas, give me feedback, run NPCs, help with running combat encounters, run the other group when PCs inevitable split up. I will be in full control of the creative license and where the campaign will go- he will essentially be my wingman in running it all.

I think it will work out (we're not running the game for a few months- time for us to prepare ahead of time) we both have same ideals of what we think makes a good game and a good campaign, and I think we're both more than mature enough to handle this task. And to keep it even- after my campaign I will be his aide in running his campaign.

Thanks for all the feedback, I love to hear how it goes in other's gaming groups, even if it is negative!

-mac1504

 

[babomb]

The concept is a good one for a few modules I would say. After all, two heads are better than one. But be warned, you must choose a co-DM who you can get along with. I tried this once with one of my more mediocre players. Regrettably, he made the maps, and I did the rest...sigh. When he periodically mentions co-DMing these days, I just shudder and move away quickly.

I had a similar experience. Originally, the idea was that he would run the campaign in general, and I would play some of the NPCs (especially in combat) or run one group if the party got split up. But sometimes he would get bored with running it and tell me to take over while he took a break. (This happened most often when there was a disagreement, or if someone commented about something he did not making any since. ) So suddenly I'm running a session with a plot I don't know what he wants to do with, a dungeon map I've never seen, and notes for the map filed in a seemingly random system that only he could understand.

And then there was the fact that I usually disagreed with (IMHO) his heavy-handed DM style. For example, at one point, a PC stole something, but was spotted and chased by guards. He ran to the wagon, where the party had been waiting, and jumped in. Despite the fact that only about 3 guards had been chasing him and despite the fact that the wagon was already 100 feet away and moving rapidly, the guards in the watch towers were magically alerted of this and fired four arrows, two of which hit the offending 3rd level character for about 10 damage, and two of which were lodged in the wagon.

Also, sometimes when the party was split up, the groups would go to the same place but not realize it, because we weren't paying attention to what the other half was doing.

Still, I'm convinced it would be a good idea if done properly.

 

[JoeGKushner]

I've done this on a few occassions and it works and doesn't work.

First, there have to be some ground rules. For me, it was character creation guidelines, power level, NPC use, no using your player as NPC while DMing. In addition, we each used different parts of the setting (or even different worlds) and had the characters meet in crossovers now and again. It prevented too many issues as I tend to have lots of unique or different small powered magic items and a few moderately powered magic items while the other GMs tended to focus on lots of magic items so eventually it would require a purging or two.

Things can get interesting if you have a neutral ground so to speak that allows you to have elements of both campaigns in one area without overbalancing either one. Good ideas to keep in mind with such events are that perhaps things aren't always what they seem. For example, dreams or time manipulation could be used to restore elements that one GM didn't like.

The hardest part of such a thing is if both GMs are players, which is how it was in my case. How much can you tell another GM without ruining his in-character knowledge? Do you make that character a sage or advisor to the party ala a wizard or oracle style class or do you just keep them in the dark? Very difficult.

 

[pogre]

It would be interesting to alternate DMing with one guy running a Good group and the other an evil group. Naturally, they would collide from time-to-time, but it would be very player driven. The players would be plotting on how to thwart the other group.

The DM who is playing at a given session would be in charge of saying, "Now, remember, these characters do not know that," whenever someone was trying to use meta game knowledge.

 

[Djeta Thernadier]

I haven't experienced this myself, but I am wondering if people have any opinions as to whether or not this would be a good way to have a "new" DM learn the ropes?

I am hoping to run my first game sometime next year and am thinking co-DMing with MojoGM first might be a good way to start out.

Sheri