Suport for the Art of DM-ing

[Luce]

The usual disclaimer: Not edition waring. Please keep it on topic etc.

I think with each subsequent edition there was (at least) an attempt to improve the science of DM-ing. I would acknowledge that not everyone likes the changes in the rules. Lets leave it at that as this not what this thread is about.

I wish to discuss the support and advice beyond the one presented in the core (3) rulebooks that each edition have. My list is by no means complete or exhaustive, just a staring point. Also since many of the advice is not as firmly tied to specific game system (or edition) it can have wide appeal.

All: Dragon Magazine. From the beginning there had been the occasional article on how to be better at gaming beyond the rules. There is even a column called "Dungeoncraft" Examples are numerous, but here is a small sample (retrieved from http://www.aeolia.net/dragondex/articles-subject.html#d) "Article" Author Issue(page)
"Beyond the Rule Book" Lewis Pulsipher 75(38)
"Five Keys To DMing Success" Mike Beeman 80(14)
"GM's Ten Commandments, The" Rig Volny 122(44)

"Way We Really Play, The" Tom Armstrong 106(38)
"Out of Character: DMing As An Artform" Peter Adkison 250(24)
"Referee's Code of Honor, The" John Setzer 184(33)
"D&D Is Only As Good As the DM" Gary Gygax SR7(22)
"Be Nice To Your Referee" Stewart Robertson 188(16)
"Best DMs Will Look Further Than the Book, The" Tom Armstrong 52(62)
"Improve With Improv" Jason Strasser 226(28)
"Preparing To Improvise" Johnn Four 298(94)
"Dungeon Mastery" Ed Carmien 239(78)
"To Err Is Human, To Repair Divine" Lewis Pulsipher 52(61)
"Negotiating With Your DM" Robin Laws 303(98)
"Organization Is Everything" Richard Hunt 196(30)
"Dungeon Mastery" Troy Daniels 235(91)
"Trouble At the Table" Robin D. Laws 298(98)
"How Do You Rate As a DM?" DeAnn Iwan 43(20)
"When Choosing a DM, Be Choosy!" Fred Zimmerman 48(28)
People who had been keeping with http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?239789-Let-s-read-the-entire-run should be able to list many more.



1e. In the latter 80s Gary wrote two books "Role-playing mastery" and "Master of the Game" both of which offered advise on the art. Some topics covered: Problem players, Problems that DM faces, How to keep people motivated and engaged

2e. There was the "Rules supplements" line. While there were 8 books only 3 are relavent for this discusion:
A)"Campaign Sourcebook and Catacomb Guide" Some good advice that should probably been included in the DMG such as "do not railroad", allow for cooperative camaign building and how to deal with problematic players.
B)"The Complete Book of Villains" Lot of system neutral advice on how to make the big bad both believable and memorable. Specialized yes, but a well contracted villain (or group) can be a centerpiece around which a campagn is build.
C)"Creative Campaigning" Actually I do not own this book, but from what I rememeber from skimming through back in the day it did contain DM advice on how to make one;s campaigh unique and tailored to the group.

3e. The DMG 2 guide did contain some useful advice on how to identify players preferences and engage their interests. Thas was the time of 3pp, so there are probably many I have not seen. To get us started here are three that have leaved me personally impressed:
"Advanced Gamemaster's Guide" advice on world building and keeping peace at the table.
"Villain Design Handbook" Details different emotional archetypes and organization placement. Surprisingly little overlap with the 2e book above.The two complement each other nicely.

4e. DMG 2 (since I said I will talk about books beyond the core 3) It has a chapter called "Group Storytelling" with advice on pacing and tailoring the game to the player preferences. A particular part I like is the talk of how to solicited and incorporate player suggestion into the campaign, without unbalancing or granting unfair advantages.

So what about you? Which books do you peruse in the quest to perfect you GM-ing skills?

 

[pemerton]

I think the single best book I own in this genre is the Burning Wheel Adventure Burner. The utility of its advice goes well beyond GMing BW, in my view.

I also think that Robin Laws has very interesting stuff to say in his HeroWars/Quests books which is useful for a D&D GM, at least if GMing 4e. And Maelstrom Storytelling, which I first learned about from Ron Edwards essays, also has very interesting advice applicable outside that particular system.

 

[delericho]

Note that a lot of the advice given in 3e's DMG2 later appeared in 4e's DMG1. (Also, I haven't read it, but I think it had also mostly appeared before in "Robin's Laws of Good Gamemastering". This isn't a surprise, of course, since IIRC the author of that advice was the same in each case.)

 

[Ahnehnois]

I read the DMG when I was a kid, but instantly rejected a lot of it. The advice books I've read since then have occasionally provoke good thoughts, but have mostly been useless or counterproductive. My impression is that while a lot of work is put into developing and testing the main rules, DM content is often produced quickly and without a lot of thought or work. Occasionally, the writer has a good idea, but in general I would not look to rpg books to learn how to play or DM. The books are to give you a framework for creating a world. The rest is tangential.

Nor have I ever observed and improvement in the quality of DMGs and DM advice over time. If anything, they seem to be getting worse.

Probably the best advice I've seen in an rpg book is CoC d20. Even if you're not playing horror, it gives a lot of good story construction advice. Non-D&D rpgs in general seem to have shorter and better DM chapters, perhaps because they're divorced from some of the more toxic elements the D&D-specific culture.

All that said, most of what I know about DMing I learned in psychology classes (how to manage small groups, engage/communicate with people) and by learning about other creative media. The Battlestar Galactica podcasts were tremendously helpful in getting a sense of how to subvert audience expectations, which is really the most important thing. In general, television and film commentaries and writings about the creative process behind them are very informative, and better developed than rpg advice. Sure, rpgs have different constraints, but once you know what you're doing it's easy to adapt.

So for anyone learning to DM, my advice would be not to spend too much time on D&D books, but instead to educate yourself (either formally or informally) in social and creative skills. Learning the rules is easy. Learning to DM is harder. But more rewarding.

 

[Hussar]

To be honest, the Fear the Boot Podcast has been one of my biggest go-to places for DMing advice. There's just so much goodness there.

Another place I find good advice is simply reading a lot of RPG books. See how things are being done in different systems and learn to judge what works for you based on a broader sampling than just D&D books.

En World has certainly made me a better DM. And much more aware of my own failings as a DM.

 

[Luce]

Thank you for your replies. I tried to limit my initial examples so there is not just wall of text. Just enough to get us started. Also, the Art of DM-ing is hard to quantify as there are many specifics particular to the group. In other words things acceptable in one situation/group/system could not be in another. Like should the DM try to prevent TPK or should he let the dice fall where they may? There is but one answer and that is your own . One does not have to blindly accept the authors answers, but it is nice to at least have frank discussion. A look behind the curtain if you will, where the game writers explain their motivations for gunning for particular direction. For example, in one of the books in the first post regarding 1e by Gary he states and I will paraphrase: "A party taking reasonable precausions should succeed 95% of the time." That extrapolated means that even the best laid plans fail one time in twenty. He talks about how this will prevent the players becoming complacent as well as inject the notion that the world is real beyond the PCs actions. In other words the world is not fully observable. He tempers this by stating that this only should be done if there is dramatic tension to be have. To draw a parallel, driving to the store for groceries when you are not in a hurry is routine and not worthy of a check. Rushing to the E.R. (located on the same row as the above store) because you need anti venom or 'cause you toddler just swallowed some scent balls would be. The car might choke, there might be a slow traffic due to an accident or road work, blowing up a tire, slipping and falling down the stairs in you hurry. Even though you have done that drive hundreds of times, when things really matter otherwise annoying delays may turn into life threatening complications.
I can respect such position, even if I decide that I want to give automatic success to the players for their clever plans.
And of course there are many many other sources. Take podcasts for example, some are may have a wider strike zone (like FtB or Gamerstable) while others may be focused on specific game or edition (like Thaco's hammer), but in all there could be found valuable advice.
Finally, we are inspired in different ways. For example when I read book and film analysis it gets me in the mindset of creating cool description, but also gets me railroady. Say I had worked on setting a scene where the heroes burst into the villains chaimber. There he is on his throne high above the ground level looking down with disdain. The large room is filed with bloodthirsty minions blocking the way. The hostage the heroes are seeking to rescue is trapped in golden plated cage suspended from the sealing. In other words a set up for a dramatic showdown I may have spend two hours working to make just right- drawing maps, coming with tactics, synchronizing monster synergies. But the players decide to use non-detection and improved invisibility, drop down from an air shaft, cast several delayed blast fireballs set to detonate simultaneously on the villain, teleport the hostage to safety and fly away before anyone was the wiser. I knew they were not doing it with the purpose of make me waste my time and they really remember that secession fondly (since I did not deny them their cool rescue), but for a while it left a bad taste in my mouth.

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

I find a lot of good (and not-so-good) DMing advice on the internet. Alas, it tends to be scattered.

 

[Iosue]

If very much depends on what style of play you desire.

For example, if you are running a rules-thin game that front-loads adjudication onto the GM, playing in a sandbox and/or dungeon crawl, then I think some of the best DM advice out there is in the Moldvay Basic Rules and Mike Carr's B1: In Search of the Unknown. As I shake off the rust from a long hiatus of DMing B/X, I refer to these time and again to get me inspired and in the right mindset.

I suspect, though, that these books' advice would be less helpful for someone seeking to play a plot heavy adventure in a PC-oriented world, in a rules-robust system that takes a lot of the responsibility for mechanical improvisation off the DM's shoulders. For this kind of game, for my money, Chris Perkins' The Dungeon Master Experience column on the D&D website are one of the best resources out there.

 

[pemerton]

if you are running a rules-thin game that front-loads adjudication onto the GM, playing in a sandbox and/or dungeon crawl, then I think some of the best DM advice out there is in the Moldvay Basic Rules

Did you ever review this in your Moldvay Basic thread? And if not, why not?!

 

[Iosue]

Did you ever review this in your Moldvay Basic thread? And if not, why not?!

Hehe. Sorry, I just got stuck at the Monsters section. I wrote a couple big posts that got little more than crickets (and your encouraging words) here and at RPG.net, so I think I lost motivation.

Not to fear, though! I currently putting together a post that looks at both the Moldvay DM advice and the B1 advice.