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2017-06-22 / \/ \/ / \
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Phoning this one in a little. It was the / _/ / /
only post I wrote for another blog we \_______/_\___/____/\___/____/_
attempted that never really got off the / \/ \/ / \
ground and it makes more sense to bring it / _/ /_ _/
into this phlog where I'm actually writing. /- / _/ /
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A while back I asked a question to
Twitter; "What makes a good dungeon master?"
I was in a mood because a few days earlier I'd been talking about Dungeons
& Dragons with a friend and it made me realize how much the hobby had changed.
I felt alienated by something I genuinely loved and listening to people talk
about it using terms like "tanking" and "DPS" and the descriptions of endless
combat just sounded like they were describing a video game. I had a small
tantrum about new kids ruining shit and posed my question.
The answers I got pretty much cemented how I already felt; "They write good
campaigns", "Props and maps", etc, etc. All things less about the dungeon
master and more about the game, a DM could download a campaign from the web,
complete with printable handouts and run it effectively. Hell, some campaigns
are just a hallway of combat encounters and will essentially run themselves.
I thought about the question myself a bit too, turning over what I liked
about my friends' games, what I got right and what I struggled with in my
games and came to the conclusion that it's their agility that makes a great
dungeon master. Anyone can put together a great campaign with all the bells
and whistles, maps and minis, handouts and props, mood lighting and sound
effects, but if your party just wanders past the clue that leads to your
meticulously planned fantasy fun house and off into who knows what, you need
to be ready.
A dungeon master shouldn't be a story teller, they should be a facilitator
to the collaborative storytelling of pen & paper role playing games and it's
not the dungeon master's place to dictate to the party what they should and
shouldn't do; not the races or classes they choose, not their character's sex
or name or background (to the extent that it doesn't affect game play) or
personality, even if this means the campaign they're running needs to change.
It's how well a DM can improvise, how well they can adapt and how
seamlessly they can do it when their party inevitably zigs instead of zags but
it's also a willingness to compromise, it's a poor dungeon master who
frantically boxes their party in with invisible walls or insurmountable
obstacles to force them back on track just so they can get back to the script
and inversely, it's the strong dungeon master who's willing to humbly put
their lovingly crafted dungeons aside to let the collaborative story evolve.
In addition to being flexible with their party's whim, a good DM should be
able to apply that agility to the game itself and its rules.
I once described Dungeons & Dragons to Danielle, saying something to the
effect of "Everyone rolls dice, then they all lie about the results to make
the story more interesting."
I was (half) joking but, as far as being a dungeon master is concerned I
really believe this is a good way to approach the game. Cards and maps and
miniatures and arguably even dice are all fluff, baubles on what is at its
core just a group of friends sitting around telling tales, they shouldn't
define the game and certainly don't define what makes a good DM. D&D, or any
pen & paper RPG, isn't a board game or a video game and I don't think they
should be played like one. Stats and rules and dice rolls do have a place but
the "G" should be there only to enhance and give some structure to the "RP",
it shouldn't be the main focus. Combat in a pen & paper RPG is rarely very
exciting, it's lots of dice rolling and scribbling and a combat-heavy campaign
is unlikely to be one that stays with your players once it's over.
In that same vein, a good DM shouldn't let the dice rolls drive the game.
Sometimes a DM is going to roll a ridiculous string of critical hits but it's
their decision whether to blindly rely on the dice and tell the poor player
that their beloved character accidentally got beaten to pudding by a kobold
thug and they have to roll a new one. Though I will admit, it'd be worth it to
see the look on the party's faces.
Sometimes a natural 20 needs to be a humble 19.
Lastly, I believe that a DM needs to apply that agility to the players
themselves. Sometimes running a campaign is like herding cats, as players
drift off and discuss other topics, swap Magic cards at the table or get
snacks and you cannot force people to play. A good dungeon master needs to
know when to change up the campaign to re-ignite the party's interest or when
to concede that they're not going to get anything important done and run the
party through some casual filler until they're ready to be properly engaged.
To conclude, because I feel like I kind of just left it hanging, a great DM
needs to be the guide but not know the path, they need to lead and follow the
players in equal measure and be prepared, because the players will surprise a
DM as much as a DM tries to surprise them.
