D&D 5E Understanding DM Fatigue

[TheSword]

DMing is not hard. And it's not a lot of work to produce an enjoyable experience. But sadly we have to slog through a lot of hard work it seems to understand it's not all that necessary.

With all due respect I disagree. Good DMing requires a wide range of skills and talents, some that can be acquired, most of which require practice and finessing. Micro decision making, long term planning, listening, coaching, debate, diplomacy, oratory, tactics, game theory, comprehension, analysis, creative writing, drawing, and a few other bits.

Now you may be a natural at these things, or have become skilled over time. It doesn’t mean that it isn’t hard, it just means you’ve gotten good at it.

An orthopedic surgeon may be able to routinely perform a hip replacement. However it doesn’t make hip replacements easy to the average Joe... it’s all relative.

One of the best uses of these forums is to support DMs and help develop those skills with discussion and signposting to resources that make them easier.

 

[Baldurs_Underdark]

You gotta realize that a long campaign is like any project: there comes a time where it all needs to be tied together and that is difficult, especially if you are very creative and bubble with fresh ideas but you are now forced to use old ideas and close up the storylines.

My only experience with something like DM fatigue is when I made my own story too complicated. Too many factions and NPCs, and too many "demands" from the player characters who all had diverging ambitions from their background stories. The solution was really simple though: A brief chat before the session to discuss how to deal with all those backgrounds and explaining that I cannot come up with any storyline that combines 6 diverging personal end-goals of all characters. And then I also reduced the complexity of the storyline a bit, by killing some of the NPCs.

 

[ccs]

With all due respect I disagree. Good DMing requires a wide range of skills and talents, some that can be acquired, most of which require practice and finessing. Micro decision making, long term planning, listening, coaching, debate, diplomacy, oratory, tactics, game theory, comprehension, analysis, creative writing, drawing, and a few other bits.

There you go, proving Iserith's point.
DMing is NOT that hard.
All you really have to do is understand how to play in general (HPs, combat, Saving Throws, etc), & be able to Make S(tuff) Up.

 

[Umbran]

DMing is not hard.

DMing is not hard like, say, aerospace engineering. Or like unloading an entire barn of hay by yourself. But, as luxury entertainment that's got to sit in the interstices of the rest of your life, it can be a significant amount of work.

And it's not a lot of work to produce an enjoyable experience.

Given that not everyone agrees on what constitutes an enjoyable experience, I'm not sure that's a solid statement.

 

[jayoungr]

With a focus on your 5E experiences - why have you experienced DM fatigue?

I don't believe any fatigue I'm experiencing has anything to do with 5E per se. It's more about having to be always "on" without downtime to recharge my creative batteries.

 

[Charlaquin]

One source of fatigue I’ve experienced that I’m surprised no one else has mentioned yet is when I have a fun idea for my next campaign. It can be hard to stay invested in my current campaign when I’m more excited for the game I’m planning to run after it. Makes the current campaign feel like a chore I have to finish before I can get to the thing I really want.

 

[Laurefindel]

As others say, depression, isolation, interpersonal conflicts are all important sources of DM fatigue.

To add to that (and this is perhaps more personal), repetitive game cancelations (regardless of the legitimacy of the cancellation), unmotivated players, large player groups; all contribute to DM fatigue.

For me DM fatigue also increases progressively with level progression above 7-8th level, and drastically after level 13-14th. I'm still struggling with high-level play. There are many solutions to the high-level "problems", but none match my play style as a DM. I can cope, I can adapt, I can find new ways to challenge the players, but it gets me out of my comfort zone which in turn induces DM fatigue.

So keeping group small (3-player games are ideal), games regular but not too frequent (twice a month), and expecting the majority of the campaign between level 3rd and 10th (ending around level 13th) help me keep DM fatigue low.

 

[iserith]

DMing is not hard like, say, aerospace engineering. Or like unloading an entire barn of hay by yourself. But, as luxury entertainment that's got to sit in the interstices of the rest of your life, it can be a significant amount of work.

That sounds more like life being hard than DMing being hard.

Given that not everyone agrees on what constitutes an enjoyable experience, I'm not sure that's a solid statement.

It's solid enough in my view. I'm referring to the sort of game experience the rules books point to. The rules books that are designed for Ages 12 and up. If a 12-year-old can do it, it's probably not all that hard by design.

Maybe we DMs could do with getting over ourselves and out of our own way. And maybe not pat ourselves on the back so hard for all the "work" we're voluntarily doing.

 

[Tyler Do'Urden]

It's solid enough in my view. I'm referring to the sort of game experience the rules books point to. The rules books that are designed for Ages 12 and up. If a 12-year-old can do it, it's probably not all that hard by design.

A 12 year old can play basketball, too, but unless you're the 12 year old's dad, you probably don't want to invest a lot of time into watching 12 year olds play basketball.

You want to watch LeBron James play basketball.

As a DM, I know that people are coming to my table to be entertained. While part of it is work on their side, it's my job to be upping my game and making that commitment of five hours they could spend doing something else worth it. I may never be the LeBron of DMs (there's only one Matt Mercer), but I strive to be the DMing equivalent of a center for the MN Gophers.

If something is worth doing, it's worth doing well!

 

[Charlaquin]

A 12 year old can play basketball, too, but unless you're the 12 year old's dad, you probably don't want to invest a lot of time into watching 12 year olds play basketball.

You want to watch LeBron James play basketball.

As a DM, I know that people are coming to my table to be entertained. While part of it is work on their side, it's my job to be upping my game and making that commitment of five hours they could spend doing something else worth it. I may never be the LeBron of DMs (there's only one Matt Mercer), but I strive to be the DMing equivalent of a center for the MN Gophers.

If something is worth doing, it's worth doing well!

I’m with you on most of this, but I don’t think Matt Mercer should be held up as the LeBron of DMs. Like, he’s a fine DM, and what he does works well for his group. But there’s this weird tendency to put his DMing on a pedestal, and I don’t think that’s good for the D&D community.