Eventually, most players want to try their hands at running a game. Becoming a Dungeon Master (DM) or the more general Game Master (GM) requires more than a core rule book and a basic understanding of how things work. Running and designing a game can become something like a part-time job or feel like homework. Like most jobs and homework, GMs are going to need the tools to see their work through.
Updated on July 6, 2022 by Ritwik Mitra: Dungeons and Dragons is one of the most popular tabletop role-playing franchises around. The sheer amount of influence this system has had on everything from the JRPG genre to the inception of western role-playing games is astounding, making Dungeons and Dragons one of the most culturally significant and important releases of all time. Each session of DnD requires a good DM to maintain the pace of the campaign and introduce threats organically, and here are some skills that will help any aspiring DM craft a wondering and exciting campaign for their friends.
15 Boundless Imagination
The most important skill in any DM’s arsenal is the ability to concoct several exciting scenarios that players can get invested in. Following pre-planned scenarios is good enough but only till a point — participants would want a more personalized approach sooner rather than later.
A DM with boundless imagination can craft highly engaging campaigns that test a player to their very limit. It’s easy to see why having a ton of imagination is crucial to ensure the best experience around.
14 Great Improvisation Skills
Great campaigns tend to swerve from the beaten path, with many people proposing wild and unique solutions to any given problem. While certain DMs tend to favor a rigid path, a good DM understands the point of flexible roleplay for a conducive session.
With good improvisation skills, a DM can turn a relatively tame session into something truly exciting and stimulating. Quick thinking is important for any DnD game to become a legendary time.
13 The Understanding Of How To Craft A Tough Yet Fair Game
A DnD session that is too easy can leave players wanting for more, while a game that is unreasonably hard will be more frustrating than fun. A good DM knows how to strike a balance here.
A campaign that is tough yet fair offers up plenty of challenges without feeling too oppressive or easygoing. Great DMs are known for crafting well-thought-out campaigns that are highly engaging and challenging.
12 Good Communication Skills
A DM needs to interact with each player and carefully integrate their actions into the main narrative. With good communication skills, all of these diverse opinions and tasks can be incorporated into the main campaign with ease.
Properly speaking and listening to a player is also important to help everyone feel involved. Failing to do so can lead to certain players not having fun, which beats the point of sitting down for a DnD session.
11 An Open Mind
There are times when DMs craft an extremely scripted campaign that is extremely rigid and linear. While this might seem engaging at first glance, the whole point of a DnD session is for players to roleplay as they see fit.
As a result, DMs should be ready for things to go off-script instead of sticking to the script. The latter makes for a limiting and frustrating experience that many fans might not have a great time with.
10 Wet Erase Grid Mat And Markers
Nearly every GM incorporates “theater of the mind” into their games, but many tabletop systems encourage the use of a physical representation of the playing field. Having something to help visualize the battle or dungeon comes in handy when considering all the different combat rules that arise.
It’s preferable for a player to see how they receive or fall victim to something like an attack of opportunity or trap. Otherwise, positioning is at the whim of the GM and games are more fun for a player when not trying to visualize the battlefield in their head. Drawing the map for your players helps immensely.
9 Grid Paper
A good GM shouldn’t rely on their memory alone to plot out the floor of a complicated dungeon. The GM needs a reference for drawing out a map or dungeon and there’s nothing better to accomplish this than graph paper. The squares on the paper can be easily transferred 1 to 1 on a grid mat for easy dungeon and battlefield design.
A library of dungeons and battlefields physically on hand makes them re-usable. A single dungeon from a sprawling campaign can easily be selected and dropped into a quick one-off adventure.
8 Miniatures
A map on a grid can’t represent the playing field alone. Players and GMs will want to include miniatures (“mini-figs”) into their games to mark player and NPC positions. Since everything is now represented visually, none of the GM’s players will be at a loss as to what they can and can’t do in regard to movement. This is a great boon for every gaming table.
It’s also fun to have a visible representation of the characters to help immerse players in the world. A whole sub-hobby of miniature and model painting is huge among table-top game players.
7 Area Of Effect Templates
Area of effect (AoE) templates represent the area on a grid map that a spell or power can cover. There are a lot of options out there for AoE templates. Many options can be found in local game shops and online. Some are simply wire perimeters that can be set down on the map. There are also large, clear plastic areas that can be held above the action.
DIY AoE templates are easily made. Because the grid-map squares are 1-inch by 1-inch, the areas can be measured onto foam project board and cut out. However, an AoE template is made, it’s great to have on hand.
6 Combat Risers
Since most TTRPGs offer a number of powers and abilities, a character is eventually going to fly. It can get pretty tricky keeping track of which character is flying and exactly how high. To convey flight, there are a number of different styles of combat risers available.
Some are very simple, like a clear plastic base that elevates a miniature and utilizes a die to represent height. Others are high-end elevated platforms that follow the same grid system as a combat grid. Extensions can be purchased to change the height of the platforms. Risers literally add another dimension to your game.
5 GM/DM Screen
A GM screen might seem useless at first, but it solves a couple of issues a GM could come across. First, it serves as a barrier between the GM’s game notes and rolls. A GM’s job isn’t to decimate the players. It might be necessary to “fudge” the dice to keep players hanging on. It also may be necessary to change an enemy’s result to move the story along. Sometimes a GM has to lie to maintain balance.
Many companies make screens specifically tailored to their games. In these instances, the inside of the screen will be filled with important notes and quick reference guides.
4 Dice Towers Or Trays
Dice towers and trays might seem like a silly luxury, but once they’re put into use the table will never want to play without them. Some tables might not give a die a good bounce. A combat grid taking up most of the surface area won’t either. If a table does give the dice a good bounce then they might bounce and roll completely off the table.
Thousands if not millions of dice have likely been lost over the years because they rolled off the table. It’s one thing for a die to disappear in a home the players are familiar with, but the die is likely lost forever at a game shop full of racks, displays, and other players. With trays and towers, you keep the dice on the table, and they get a nice bounce to keep those rolls random.
3 As Many Books As Possible
There are free and online System Resource Documents (SRD) for a number of TTRPGs, but there is nothing like having a book on hand. If a GM is familiar with their books, it’s much quicker to reference a rule, class, or creature than it is to search online. SRDs are better designed as a quick reference for players that already know what they’re looking for.
Books provide artwork and flavor text that help a GM flesh the game out in their mind. They also provide indexes and tables of content to help navigate all the information. It’s also important to mention that the more books you buy, the more you support the game and the more content the publisher will create.
2 Note Taking Tools
Whether you use a basic pencil and paper or an application like Google Docs or Notepad, it is extremely important that someone at the table is taking notes. At least one player should be designated as the note-taker so the table can recall the timeline of events, but the note-taking doesn’t end here.
The GM will have to take their own notes to keep track of things like player conditions and turn order. To some extent, every player should be taking notes on their inventory, plans, and abilities. Character sheets only fit so much.
1 Smartphone Apps
Smartphone applications have completely changed tabletop gaming and there are a ton of them out there. Game-specific reference applications are a must-have, but there are a lot of other useful apps out there as well.
There’s a variety of free random dice generators out there that are great in a pinch if someone forgets their dice bag. There are also a number of free game-specific character sheet apps as well. A roller and sheet application is fantastic for rolling characters on the fly or keeping track of all your different NPCs and PCs. Never worry about losing a character sheet again!
More: D&D: The Most Common Problems During A Campaign (& How To Solve Them)
