@dmethan_: My dungeon master style has changed dramatically since I first started dungeon mastering. When I first started dungeon mastering, many years ago, I ran my first campaign to completion. It was with a few friends from work and some family members. I tried several campaign planning methods, like the 5x5 grid where you write out 25 adventure ideas. I used primarily barbed hooks or linked hooks, where they found the next adventure hook at the end of the previous adventure. It was going great. We were having a great time, but there were several things I didn't do. I never let them go find their own quests or follow their backstories, and I engaged little with their character concepts. This style of campaign still worked very well for me for many years. That first campaign eventually had to be wrapped up very quickly when my partner and I decided that we were going to go teach abroad in China, and we only had a few more months to wrap things up. You could say it was a railroad, but the players went along with it happily. I gave them the final hook, the final push to save the world. They went to their final dungeon, which was a maze, and I led them through their final adventure. It ultimately ended in them saving the world. Many years later, I ran a game for strangers. This was after Critical Role became really popular, and these players were completely different from the players I had played with in the past. My previous players were all about following the story, engaging with tactical combats, and running through dungeons. They had little care for what else was out there in the world, or at the very least, they didn't emphasize it. There wasn't much feedback suggesting that it was something I should offer. But Critical Role showed players a different way to play. Character arcs were emphasized. Roleplay was emphasized. Suddenly, I had players at my table that wanted and craved this style of game. As someone who had never watched Critical Role, I was off in the deep end, unsure of how to respond when they started talking to my NPCs. When they started leaving the tavern and going off, asking for things like, "Hey, I want to find someone in this town that knows about my past," or "I'm looking for signs of werewolves." They would ask NPCs random things from their backstory that I wasn't ready for. I found that I had to be quick on my feet. I needed to engage with them and offer them these character arcs. It took me several campaigns to adapt, and now, I've found that it's really one of my most fun and easiest ways to run as a Dungeon Master. The players come to the table with so much more. They take an active role in where the campaign will go. They're active in scenes, and they drive the story forward on their own. All I needed to do was make sure that it went somewhere. . . dungeons & dragons TikTok dungeons and dragons tips for dms dungeons and dragons beginner planning dnd campaign dnd session planning template planning a dnd session dnd planning tools dnd campaign planning sheet creating a dnd adventure dnd adventure template dnd adventure prompt dungeons and dragons dms dungeons and dragons gm tips how to dm dnd . . . #dnd #dndtiktok #dungeonmaster #dungeonsanddragons #dmadvice #dmethan #gamemaster #dndadvice #dndcampaign

DM Ethan

Open In TikTok:

Region: US

Sunday 25 August 2024 08:04:14 GMT