How to improve at DMing?

[randomling]

I admit it. I'm not a good DM. I have all these ideas, but I don't know how to structure them properly -- and therefore I suck at execution. Also, player discipline is not my strong point (as discussed in another thread somewhere). I enjoy running games, but it's not easy when you suck at it?

So from all you good DMs out there, I want to know how you got good at what you do -- and what the key skills are -- and what advice you have for a struggling DM?

Thanks in advance!

 

[arwink]

Run games. A lot. It gets easier. I don't really know whether I'm a good DM or not, but my players keep coming back and that's enough for me. Mostly, no matter what everyone tells you, it's going to come down to experience. There are no two DM's alike, and while advice is good, nothing beats developing your own style over time.

Go to www.roleplayingtips.com and sign up for the weekly newsletter. It has more useful advice per week than I can use

Push yourself. Always try something new in your games, and avoid resting on your strengths.

 

[Crothian]

How did I get good? Well, I'm still trying to get there, but I think experience really counts. Identifying your weakness and strengths is good so you can work on the weak ones and emphasis the good ones can help. Flexibility is important, so that you can deal with whatever the PCs think of. But getting control of the PCs might be the most challenging and possible the most important.

 

[Stone Angel]

Yeah you have to be your own DM. Just ask your players to critique you.

Know your strong points and your weak one's. Take good notes while you are running game, and oganizing stuff into a binder helps Maps, NPC's, Encounters, even a section for random ideas scratched down.

As for the notes you take take note of Players actions such as

Jim's ranger led Ed's hafling thief around the flank setting up an ambush

Tom paladin held action while on his mount waiting for a good time to charge.

Beth's sorcerer launched a lightning bolt, etc.

Also take note of what the players liked big encounters with multiple foes, or just fighting a BBEG, or if they like the roleplaying aspect of it. A good dm knows his group and himself.

Also a DM's best friend is a set of concise easy to refer to set of notes. Even the best improv DM can appreciate that.

 

[Shallown]

Roleplaying Tips is a good site for advice and help. I find that picking one aspect and workingon it for a session or two is an easy way to improve. For example. I want My Npc's to be memorable and real. Focus on it above the other things in the game. Don't let anything slide just pay a little more attentin to that aspect. After a few months you should have several new skills under your belt.

I have played and Gm'd for 20 years and still work on aspects every session. Just to try to keep sharp and improve. Some things I do very well... others not so well but I still work at it.

 

[ced1106]

Besides RoleplayingTips.com:
* Robin's Laws of Good Gamemastering
* NPC Essential (by the editor of RoleplayingTips)

Both are under $10 and have reviews at RPGnet.com.


Cedric.
aka. Washu! ^O^

 

[maddman75]

- Practice. DMing is an art, not a science. Keep at it.

- Keep it simple. Don't go for a continent spanning epic with a huge arcing overthread for your first game. Just a dungeon crawl is good to get your feet wet.

- Be Flexible. If your players have no interest in the ruins that have been haunted by undead recently and would rather hunt some orc, invent some orcs in the opposite direction.

- Be Firm. If there's a rules dispute, allow a moment for a brief debate or rule lookup. If that doesn't settle it, make a ruling and stick to it. Explain that you'd be happy to talk about it after the game, but you need to keep things moving.

- Talk over them. I remember your rowdy player post. Just talk anyway, right over the stupidity. If they don't know what's going on because they are being jagoffs, that is *their* problem.

- Try to figure out what kind of game you want to run and what kind of game the players want to play. Find something in the middle.

HTH
madd

 

[haiiro]

Keep running games. As long as your players keep coming back and everyone has a good time, your DMing will improve with experience.

Think about your weak areas - like player discipline - when you're prepping for a game. Then get feedback from your players after the game.

If you have trouble structuring your ideas, try weaving them into published adventures for awhile. That way you can focus on things other than preparing material - voice, style, discipline, etc.

Take this with a grain of salt, though: the last session I ran was embarassingly terrible. Don't stress out too much over it.

 

[Mark]

Preparation is key, IMO. Whether you are buying modules and reading them a handful of times (while making your own notes in the margins) or designing your own scenarios, nothing beats knowing in advance as many posibilities as you can. You'll never know everything the PCs will do, but knowing many of the possibilities goes a long way to making "thinking on the fly" easier.

It may also be of some help to read the transcripts from the DMing Chat Sessions. A lot of good DMs stop in for those and share ideas and opinions on running good games.

 

[randomling]

OK, so... I need to learn to prepare. That's a good start (winging it once or twice has worked but other times it crashes and burns like you wouldn't believe).

And I'm definitely going to roleplaying tips (I've read some of the articles there but I'm now going to subscribe). Thanks for the links and advice everybody!

Now I just need decent preparation time. And to know what to prepare...