D&D (2024) The New DM Tools In The New Dungeon Master's Guide

DMG contains an alphabetical miscellany of varied things to help you prep or run a game.

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The 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide contains a 'toolbox'. The DM's Toolbox is the third chapter in the book, presented as an alphabetical miscellany of varied things to help you prep or run a game.

Each entry is 1-2 pages long and includes things like creating monsters, fear and mental stress, chases, firearms and explosives, and traps. For example, it goes in depth into chases, with details about wilderness or urban chases.

Much of the topics were already in the 2014 DMG--albeit organized differently. Some new topics include character death, and more detailed look at alignment--and how actions determine alignment and not vice versa.

Also included is a big table of 'dungeon quirks'--why, then, and by whom was it built? Examples include made by giants (with everything being larger scale), built on top of a cloud, and so on.

There's plenty more stuff--environments, a settlement tracker (Chris Perkins and James Wyatt roll up a random settlement in the video), hazards, mob rules, marks of prestige (rewards like deeds, medals, or titles).


 

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pemerton

Legend
The DMG was not designed primarily as a guide to new DMs until this not-yet-released version. So that's nearly 50 years of a book with the same name having a different and broader purpose. The consequences of changing that purpose without relabeling it, or even publishing it as part of a different edition, are all on WotC.
Huh? I think the key audience of the AD&D and 4e DMGs is new GMs. The AD&D one is full of stuff about world-building, scenario design etc. The 4e one has similar stuff but also a lot about designing both combat and non-combat encounters.
 


pemerton

Legend
New DMs used to be part of the audience, but now they appear to be all of it.
If they want to stop including veteran players and fans of the franchise in their list of potential customers in favor of more numerous new players, and change their products (while keeping all the nostalgia-bait names in place) to that effect, WotC should have the courage to state that intention plainly.

<snip>

My issue is less that they did it (although it certainly doesn't feel good) and more that they won't admit both who they care about and who they don't.
I find this all a bit bizarre.

The AD&D DMG has a lot of stuff that, these days, would be in the PHB: details on races, classes, spell mechanics, combat mechanics, exploration mechanics, etc.

It also has a lot of advice on world-building, scenario design and the like, which is aimed primarily at new GMs in so far as someone who is familiar with that advice and how to apply it doesn't need to read it again.

Also for new GMs, it has advice on some practicalities around establishing and administering a campaign (starting level of PCs, handling in-game time, etc).

It also has some material for content generation: various encounter tables, treasure tables (magic items, gems and jewellery, etc) and the like. This is the material that would not - these days - be in a PHB, and that even an experienced GM will keep using. Is there any suggestion that the revised 5e DMG lacks this sort of content?
 

Chaosmancer

Legend
Haven't read it, so obviously not. We're all just speculating here. I'm not even trying to win an argument, just enjoying the discussion.

So, having loudly declared that the book is merely a money grab, that it isn't being made for the proper audience, and that it should be written differently.... in the end you have no thoughts on what it could do differently except be smaller by taking out the advice to new DMs.

Oh right, and you are "enjoying the discussion" as you make all these baseless claims that have no stakes for you, while having no thoughts of things that could be done differently.
 

Parmandur

Book-Friend, he/him
So, having loudly declared that the book is merely a money grab, that it isn't being made for the proper audience, and that it should be written differently.... in the end you have no thoughts on what it could do differently except be smaller by taking out the advice to new DMs.

Oh right, and you are "enjoying the discussion" as you make all these baseless claims that have no stakes for you, while having no thoughts of things that could be done differently.
Apropos of nothing...

Have you heard the Good Word of the Ignore feature...?

If a post just raises your blood pressure, maybe consider it.
 
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Micah Sweet

Level Up & OSR Enthusiast
So, having loudly declared that the book is merely a money grab, that it isn't being made for the proper audience, and that it should be written differently.... in the end you have no thoughts on what it could do differently except be smaller by taking out the advice to new DMs.

Oh right, and you are "enjoying the discussion" as you make all these baseless claims that have no stakes for you, while having no thoughts of things that could be done differently.
I don't agree with your biased interpretation of any of my views. But oh, well.
 

Tales and Chronicles

Jewel of the North, formerly know as vincegetorix
So, having loudly declared that the book is merely a money grab, that it isn't being made for the proper audience, and that it should be written differently.... in the end you have no thoughts on what it could do differently except be smaller by taking out the advice to new DMs.

Oh right, and you are "enjoying the discussion" as you make all these baseless claims that have no stakes for you, while having no thoughts of things that could be done differently.
The important is that you know that the thing you like sucks. And in case it wasn't clear, they'll tell you in every thread, no matter the original subject.
 

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