D&D General The DM Shortage

[Art Waring]

Its a good question.

5e is much easier to play in as a player, where my previous experience back in the day with 2e was pretty bad to be honest, and GMing for me would have been a nightmare, as we didn't have access to the red box or beginners kits and the internet wasnt't yet a thing. Not to mention the local players had little interest in teaching kids how to poke stone walls with ten foot poles looking for traps.

The problem might reside on the GM's side in terms of perceived responsibilities.

IME, 5e is potentially more heavy on the GM side than the game first appears. It is a simplified version of d&d on the surface, but for a new GM, they have their work cut out for them if they lack experience with d&d.

I almost think that solo play might be one solution for GM's in training. Let them learn to run a game on their own, learn all the rules as you go along in a stress free setting without pressure from players. Get comfortable with the mechanics, then move onto roleplaying and social encounters with a group of players.

 

[CleverNickName]

I didn't know there was a DM Shortage until I saw this thread.
I should charge more for my services, I guess?

 

[Reynard]

Anyway I think there's two main reasons and there's not a lot WotC can do to fix it. They make starter sets.

Those starter sets don't necessarily teach how to DM, though -- at least not in the way the 1983 Red Box did. The only comparable product I can think of is the Pathfinder Beginner Box.

DMing is hard and a weird skillset. Teaching people to do it, step by step, is a real thing. Advice videos on YouTube about how to better use goblins doesn't really help.

I think WotC needs to do more, as far as creating new DMs is concerned. The hobby depends on DMs. there is no game without them, and they are highly undervalued from WotC's perspective apparently -- putting out relatively little DM focused products and not putting together DM "training" materials -- videos, publications or otherwise.

 

[Reynard]

Its a good question.

5e is much easier to play in as a player, where my previous experience back in the day with 2e was pretty bad to be honest, and GMing for me would have been a nightmare, as we didn't have access to the red box or beginners kits and the internet wasnt't yet a thing. Not to mention the local players had little interest in teaching kids how to poke stone walls with ten foot poles looking for traps.

The problem might reside on the GM's side in terms of perceived responsibilities.

IME, 5e is potentially more heavy on the GM side than the game first appears. It is a simplified version of d&d on the surface, but for a new GM, they have their work cut out for them if they lack experience with d&d.

I almost think that solo play might be one solution for GM's in training. Let them learn to run a game on their own, learn all the rules as you go along in a stress free setting without pressure from players. Get comfortable with the mechanics, then move onto roleplaying and social encounters with a group of players.

I think the real solution is a starter set/adventure that walks them through it, step by step. That's what we got in 1983 and it really did teach the basic skills of DMing in a relatively short period of time, and you built on top of that with modules and just playing.

 

[Minigiant]

Anyway, as for a DM shortage, reasons why newer players are reluctant to pick up the DM mantle are:

• they lack confidence / don't want to appear foolish
• they don't want the responsibility
• they don't have the time to commit to prepping
• they are intimidated by videos they watched / stories they heard
• they have more fun playing
• they feel they don't have the imagination
• they don't believe they can handle the story-telling aspect
• and so on...

As a DM in the DM shortaged NYC who mentored a couple DMs, I agree with this.

The biggest issues I've run into s that either people don't want to DM because they are afraid to disappoint the group OR they tried it and due to lack of guidance it was awful.

And a lot of it is due to the higher standard of expectation players have of DMs. Most due to the grand expectations player-turned-DMs put on themselves of how they want to DM and either:

• scaring themselves out of it
• attempting things above their skill level
• getting stuck on one of the DM skills

 

[overgeeked]

Those starter sets don't necessarily teach how to DM, though -- at least not in the way the 1983 Red Box did. The only comparable product I can think of is the Pathfinder Beginner Box.

DMing is hard and a weird skillset. Teaching people to do it, step by step, is a real thing. Advice videos on YouTube about how to better use goblins doesn't really help.

I think WotC needs to do more, as far as creating new DMs is concerned. The hobby depends on DMs. there is no game without them, and they are highly undervalued from WotC's perspective apparently -- putting out relatively little DM focused products and not putting together DM "training" materials -- videos, publications or otherwise.

Return of the Lazy DM has a lot of great stuff. It’s not a full how to DM onboarding, but it covers a lot of ground. If you’re of a more linear or railroading bent, Tracy Hickman’s X-Treme Dungeon Mastery is quite useful.

 

[toucanbuzz]

Same old problem as when I started, different decade.

Circa 1989. Many wanted to play D&D. No one knew the rules so no one wanted to DM. So, yours truly fearlessly asked for the "Red Box" for his birthday. Yours truly read it and it had a 1-person dungeon crawl. Yours truly had already read many AD&D "choose your own adventure" style game books that came with a d10 for randomization. These gave yours truly a lot of ideas and inspiration. Eventually, without watching any podcasts or YouTube videos because they hadn't been invented yet, I invited a few folks for a game. I don't recall much of it. I'm sure it was terrible and non-memorable. Then because no one else knew the rules, I was volunteered to try again, and again. And eventually, I got the hang of it. And I'd freak out then and now if someone proposed live-streaming our games. Hell no.

Personally, I moved states and found a new group of novice players. Their desire to play D&D largely sprang from podcasts. They were seeing professional actors "doing it better" than normal folk could and it looked fun. Since gaming with others in person, they watch a whole lot less of it. I like to think it's because they're realizing our game is pretty damn fun and they don't have to experience D&D vicariously. It's my belief that watching others play D&D is a really BAD way to inspire someone to become a DM because they'll feel pressured to "perform" in a way the professional actor and their professional crew who are wanting to be recorded and displayed to the world do.

Personally, I think new DMs would be a whole lot better off if they learned from doing, and trial and error, and without pressure to perform a certain way. It doesn't mean the DM shouldn't look for inspiration, but they can do it without living up to a standard. I know for a fact had I watched the "pros" and then were asked to DM, I would've declined because at the time I was the type of person who'd feel pretty intimidated.

Conclusion: aspiring DMs should take advice from "old school" DMs...just go for it. If you're with friends, they'll love the fact you're trying hard, and you'll get more confident and better as you go. Don't look for your inspiration by mimicking other groups.

 

[Reynard]

Return of the Lazy DM has a lot of great stuff. It’s not a full how to DM onboarding, but it covers a lot of ground. If you’re of a more linear or railroading bent, Tracy Hickman’s X-Treme Dungeon Mastery is quite useful.

I think you are missing my point: WotC needs to reproduce the techniques of the 1983 Basic Set if they want to solve the "DM crisis."

 

[Reynard]

Same old problem as when I started, different decade.

Circa 1989. Many wanted to play D&D. No one knew the rules so no one wanted to DM. So, yours truly fearlessly asked for the "Red Box" for his birthday. Yours truly read it and it had a 1-person dungeon crawl. Yours truly had already read many AD&D "choose your own adventure" style game books that came with a d10 for randomization. These gave yours truly a lot of ideas and inspiration. Eventually, without watching any podcasts or YouTube videos because they hadn't been invented yet, I invited a few folks for a game. I don't recall much of it. I'm sure it was terrible and non-memorable. Then because no one else knew the rules, I was volunteered to try again, and again. And eventually, I got the hang of it. And I'd freak out then and now if someone proposed live-streaming our games. Hell no.

"Yours truly" didn't read the book, that had a full tutorial in DMing, from the fully stocked 1st level, to the mapped but not stocked 2nd level, to th conceptualized but unmapped and unstocked 3rd level.

 

[Minigiant]

I think you are missing my point: WotC needs to reproduce the techniques of the 1983 Basic Set if they want to solve the "DM crisis."

It might keep but it won't solve the issue.

Thereal issue is 5e's audience doesn't want to be basic DMs.

Basically to remain excited, most 5e DMs wont to play the DM the way thay dream of. And this is beyond basic DMing.Or in layman's terms:

Modern DMing for Modern D&D is so advanced that no one is willing to do it if they can't get to the advanced stuff they like.

AKA No one wants to crawl before they run.

People want to do their wacky GOT clone or anime hero setting or grand fantansy plot but it takes a long time to learn DMing. And they either get too scared to jump, burn out before they learn the basics enough to transition, or drown in a quick plunge in the deep end. This is why a lot of DMs are ex4e and ex3e DMs with rings on their trunk.

DM tools need to not only teach how to DM but how to modify your game and effects of each modification. This way you start knowing how to shift the game into something you are excited about after the initial rush.