So help me be a better GM....

[Tolen Mar]

Okay, I am getting ready to start a new campaign and a new group. All of you have been very helpful before on the few occasions I have had questions, so in order to do the best job I can, I figured I'de come over here and ask your advice on a few things.

First, about me. I have played AD&D from 1st edition, through 2nd, and into 3rd. The system keeps getting better (although the 3E seems to be the best so far. I have run RIFTS, Palladium Fantasy, even a couple of shadowrun and cyberpunk games here and there. So I do know a bit about GMing, but as I learned a long time ago, I can always learn more and improve.

So I want your advice. Ill take anything beyond the basic "Know the rules" and "you are DM, use rule 0" and all that. As I said, I have some experience at this, already. Im looking for the stuff that hasnt been covered that I might not have read/heard/mentally absorbed...

Also, I have a few specific questions.

1: How do you balance encounters for groups larger than four? The core books, and all the books Ive read say the best group is a four member party, and that a group of more characters can handle tougher challenges. Unfortunately, thats all the further that goes. How much is apprpriate? If you have six players, do you up the challenges by 1.5 CR's? or do you just add 1, 2 or more? Or do you simply beef up the monsters one or two extra HD? Do you do the same thing at level 1 as at 10? What about 20? What works best in your experience?

2: How many encounters make a good adventure for an ongoing campaign? You know, like a chapter or episode from a longer series...I know the official rule is that 13.33 encounters of equal CR should give the party a level, but what is a good mid point PER ADVENTURE? Again, What works best for you?

3: This one isnt so much about being a GM, but I would like an answer or some help nonetheless. I have a project and I need playtesters. How do I go about creating an NDA? (I plan on publication, and want to cover my bases.) What goes in it? How should it be written? Do I need a lawyer?

4: What do you do when you run out of ideas? What happens when you get through a killer session then realize you have nothing left?

I realize that these are a rather varied lot of questions, and if need be, Ill move them to separate threads. At any rate, Thanx in advance for any and all advice you are willing to give.

 

[Crothian]

The quest to be a better DM, I know it well. Here at En World we have some very good DMs, and I like to steal their ideas as much as I can. I figure it's the next best thing to being a great DM.

1) Balancing encounters is an art form. Even for a 4 player party it needs to be played with. Not all 4 person parties are created equal. What I do is start with a few weak encounters at the campaigns beginning to get a feel for how everyone will be playing their characters. When creating encounters I always have ways of encreasing them on the fly just in case I've planned to weak. I've found it's easier to make weak encounters hard, then to make hard encounters easier.

2) The number of encounters varies. I mix up role playing and combar encounters and disguise them. I don't plan to have X in a session or adventure, I have the amount of encounters I need to tell this part of the story.

3) No idea. I'd suggest asking this question on the Publishers Forum.

4) When I run out of ideas , I go back through my notes and see where things are going. I talk it over with the players or with other gamers (En World rocks for this sort of thing). If I can't come up with something I like, I'll call off a game session or two to recooperate. Sometimes, you need to take a break and get things organized.

 

[Mistwell]

3) Reword the one on the right side of the page:

http://www.kenzerco.com/corporate/demoplaytest.php

If you need more help, ask here again and I can help you. I'm an attorney, and I have drafted literally hundreds of NDAs.

 

[Tetsuyama]

1) On the one hand, balancing the encounters at low levels is easier in some ways -- the PCs don't have as varied a set of abilities, so you don't have to take as much into account. However, the PCs are more fragile, and likely to be killed. Better to start off with encounters that are too easy and work up, than wind up replaying a couple of encounters that were too tough. A good rule of thumb is probably x1.5-x2 for 6 PCs, by numbers, not by CR or ECL at low levels.

Later in levels, it gets *far* more complicated. The monsters at CR 5-6 and above start getting special abilities. Large groups of PCs wind up having large numbers of weird abilities and ability combinations. This gets nightmarish to try to figure out. A good rule of thumb is probably an ECL 1-2 greater than the party average level will provide the party with a tough fight. Divide the XP by 6, and they'll get about the same amount as a 4 PC party would get for an ECL == party level.


2) This kind of varies. Our last couple of fights have been *tough*, with major baddies. Two colossal fights provided us with roughly 8000 XP each, with 7-10 PCs at an average level of 7. Generally, I'd say it actually should depend more on how often you're able to play, and how long you can play when you do. Something like a level a month is a decent target. I think the book suggests an average of 4 encounters per session, 4 sessions per month, resulting in 1 level per month. We usually only get through 2-3 encounters per session, but they're generally pretty hard on the party, so we usually have been levelling once every 3-4 weeks.

3) No idea.

4) I try to use a bunch of the stuff from the worldbuilding column in Dragon, and here's a roleplaying tips site that has tons of useful stuff. Like Crothian said, go back through your notes (make sure to keep notes -- it pays and pays as a DM). Look at anything that looks like it could be a hook, and turn it in to one. One of the most useful hints I read had to do with keeping some 3x5 cards of plot hooks and secrets about various things (characters, places, items) in the world. Shuffle the deck and try to plan an adventure around one or two of them. If you arrange it right, the PCs will run across hints leading to more of them.

 

[GuardianLurker]

1)A general rule of thumb I read on the boards a while back was that a 6 person party merited about a +1 EL. It seemed to work well for those who used it.

2) When I design an adventure, I work in terms of "encounter units", where a single EL +0 encounter is 1 encounter unit.
Theoretically :
EL -4 = 1/4 eu
EL -3 = 1/3 eu
EL -2 = 1/2 eu
EL -1 = 2/3 eu
EL +0 = 1 eu
EL +1 = 1.5 eu
EL +2 = 2
EL +3 = 3
EL +4 = 4
(EL +5 = 6)

Yeah, I know it's basic, but it never hurts to restate the obvious. And mix-n-matching eu until I get to 14 works well.

Something to keep in mind; 14 eu isn't a very long adventure. If it was a straight combat fest, I'd expect most groups to be able to complete it in one session. A reasonable mix of EU-worthy scenes, "empties", RP scenes, and false leads will probably bring things up to two sessions (or maybe even three on slow days).

One thing to keep in mind (that *I* have to keep in mind) is that combat isn't the only thing. I really like "The Crystal Tower" scenario in "Nature's Fury".

3) Take Mistwell's advice. And definitely get a lawyer to vet it. And though IANAL, if you're serious enough about things to be throwing around NDAs, you probably need to incorporate as well. And you DEFINITELY need a lawyer's advice for that.

4) Take a break. Run a boardgame session (one of the Cattan games), play MtG, do an animefest, whatever. Usually, if its just "GM block" one or two sessions away will be enough. For mild cases of "GM burnout", I try to convince my players to do a one-shot in another system. For bad cases of "GM burnout" I hand off to another GM for a while. For near-fatal cases, nothing helps but cold turkey.

The only really tricky part is the "pinch GM" scenario. You've got to have one waiting in the wings. Which is why I always try to "grow" one when I don't have one. BTW, early use of the "pinch GM" can extend the MTBF for GMs.

Personally, every time I've run out of ideas, I've later realized it was just "GM burnout" striking. Ideas are fairly eacy to come by; if nothing else, almost every adventure, especially published ones, leave loose ends. As an example, drawing from the Sunless Citadel - what if the twig creatures escape (as is likely)? Suppose the Gulthias tree isn't the original? How big *was* the culture that built the Citadel? Is it still around? Heck, with out much effort, just about every single published module can be used to launch at least an arc, if not an entire cohesive campaign.

Ideas are easy; it's the implementation that's hard.

 

[Xarlen]

1) If it's a group of 6, I would treat them as a group of 4 PCs one level higher, thus make the CRs of the average level challanges 1 higher then the average party level (For example, have a party of 6 4th level PCs, use CR 5s as 'normal with level' encounters, instead of CR 4). Add 1 for every two more party members. If they cream these critters, then up the average one.

2) Depends on the adventure. I had one adventure with One combat; that was a murder mystery, and the only fight was between the party and some footpads who were hired to 'get rid of the investigators'. Ask yourself 'Does it fit?' Try to have fights that either A) Are only linked with the plot, thus there are only enough that the plot calls for, or B) A fight to spice things up and wake everyone up.

4) When I run out of ideas, I start letting my mind wander. I think of abstract things, of ideas. I try to put mental images in my head, and build from there. Look at the MM, monster books, spell books, prestige classes, and try to build a story around that. For example, Grimlocks. Grimlocks have blindsight. They don't need to see. People can't see in smoke. What if some Grimlocks used an Eversmoking Bottle to take over a town?

Let the PCs give you their own hooks. Listen to their commentary, and sometimes, they'll inadvertantly throw you a hook that you can turn right around on them. Let PCs actions define the next adventure. Did the rogue rob someone in town? Well, maybe the guy finds out, maybe it turns around to bite them. Did they save someone? Maybe that person has a need for them.

Watch lots of movies, Watch things like Autopsy, Unsolved Mysteries, and Tales from the Cryptget. Find someone who roughly knows about D&D or who isn't a player, and bounce ideas off them.

When you burnout, take a break, try and be a player, or instead, rent a movie and watch it with the guys. Sometimes, I get Gaming Burn, and just need to stop for a while.

 

[Tolen Mar]

3) Reword the one on the right side of the page:

http://www.kenzerco.com/corporate/demoplaytest.php

If you need more help, ask here again and I can help you. I'm an attorney, and I have drafted literally hundreds of NDAs.

Thanx for such a quick reply (This goes to everyone!), and I did come up with a few questions after reading your form.

I dont yet have a company. I have the name of a company I want to build, and the name of a company I am associated with, but neither are official. In fact they exist only in name. Obviously I have to idicate ownership of the work. Can I use either of those company names, or do I use my name (in real life, obviously)?

Would I need to register this with anyone, or simply keep it on hand until I think someone stole my work, then drag it out and take it to court (see! he signed it!)?

Again, I want to publish, but I want to make sure it is tested and polished before I shop it around to anyone, unless most publishers prefer me to not do that...I expect a balanced and tested book would sell better than one not...

On the other hand, if I were brave enough, Id form one of those companies and publish myself, but I have zero resources for that.

But back to the other topics. I thought about 1.5 times the number of creatures, and it seems resaonable to me. I just worry that I rig the encounters too hard or too easy and thats why I lose players all the time (I really need to get better at this): boredom or annoyance.

Aside from reinforcements, how would I go about making an encounter more difficult once its begun? Any ideas?

I realize that there are no hard and fast rules about any of this (Save the legal stuff, which should have been placed in a second thread), but 4 per session and 4 sessions is at least an aiming point. Up to now I either used premade adventure modules or 'winged it.' Most of my past adventures had little more than a concept noted. Of course, the ones where I actually did the work went over much better.

Here are a couple of encounter ideas I've had for when this new game starts. Ill save all the details about the campaign and just give you the set up. (Shadow, dont read any further!!!)
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Encounter 1: 6 goblins (this is a first level party, BTW) have retreated after some ambush attacks (or rather 6 plus the survivors, if any, of those attacks) across a ravine deep enough that you dont want to fall into it, and just wide enough that jumping will be a serious difficulty (I think in my notes it was 20-30 feet). They have a bridge they used and can raise it. They pelt the PC's with arrows from across the ravine. Obviously, this can become a ranged duel with spells and arrows flying all over the place, but if any of the fighter types dont have either, then they end up just watching. The ropes that hold the bridge up can be shot through, with difficulty, and there is a suitably large tree that could be felled if they can cut it down while being pelted with arrows. Again, the goblins will fall back to a cave behind them if the PC's get ahead in the game or across the chasm.

Now this is difficult enough as it is (Enough to seriously make me consider reducing the number of goblins). But if they were having too easy of a time, what would you do to beef it up? Also, what EL would you give this one?

Encounter 2: The cave beyond. The goblins have a retreat path picked out, but short of a good search (DC 25 or more), it looks like a regular cave. Once they get halfway across the cave, they see two things. First, they see another pit that stretches the width of the cave and 50 across. There is a net suspended over the whole thing, and a path further beyond it. Second they find a magically trapped Earth Elemental (small), whose sole job is to bull rush the PC's onto the net (Alternatively, I considered a simple pressure plate trap that uses a swinging log to push them onto the net). At first the net seems sturdy, but after 3 or 4 of them are on it (about 500 lbs total weight), pins securing the net break lose, and the center of the net falls, which cinches up the net into a bag holding everyone in it. The pit here is shallow enough to fall into and rather easy to climb out of, but the goblins are back, again with the bows to take advantage of the trap.

Are these too tough for a level 1 party (Keep in mind, the possibility of 6 characters as opposed to 4)? What would you change? What EL would you assign them?

Maybe this gives you something of a look into the way I think about things, and how devious I can be as a GM. At the same time, though, I want to be reasonably sure they survive this (I really hate killing low level characters). Of course, I dont want it to be too easy either.

 

[bret]

Encounter 1 seems fine.

Encounter 2 bothers me for a couple of different reasons.

How in the heck do the goblins get an entrapped earth elemental? I don't think the characters will be able to deal with the earth elemental even if there were no goblins, since they are unlikely to have a magical weapon. Don't all elementals have DR?

I would redo this trap as having areas of the floor that tip. Think of the bridge trap in LadyHawk. Something simple that the goblins could reasonably be constructed by the goblins.


In any case, both of these encounters would kill many groups in my experience. It depends on how smart the group is, but you are giving the goblins a lot of tactical advantage.

 

[Tolen Mar]

Encounter 2 bothers me for a couple of different reasons.

How in the heck do the goblins get an entrapped earth elemental? I don't think the characters will be able to deal with the earth elemental even if there were no goblins, since they are unlikely to have a magical weapon. Don't all elementals have DR?

Well, first off all, I did say I am considering going a more mundane route, and for much the same reason.

OTOH, I was also thinking of working the cave system into the story as some sort of mystical "Dont go there" type of ancient magic yada, yada, yada...The PC's in that case would eventually discover the reasons behind the entrapped elemental, and so forth.

At this point, the above isnt likely, and the trap is going to be redone to a mechanical type trap, sans Elemental.

Does anyone else think I am giving the goblins too much advantage here? I was wanting to portray the goblins this time as being more cunning and less cannon-fodder (which is their usual role). Two of my players are old-hands at the game and I wanted to surprise them. It would be a regular thing, goblins with tactics. Still, I am willing to admit I may have gone too far. The second encounter bothers me too, and that is why I included it, to get an idea of what's good and what isnt, to see if I was just being paranoid.

 

[Tolen Mar]

I just looked them up, earth elementals dont have Dr that I can see. The only reason he was there was to push the PC's into the trap. That job can be done by a mechanical trap and make the players use reflex saves and maybe avoid the worst of it.