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pirateshow
2008-12-10, 01:49 PM
What are your little tricks that help you run your game? Every DM I've played with has had their little tricks that grease the wheels of certain situations, and now that I'm DMing for the first time I'm seeing how useful they can be.

I'm new to DMing, though I've been playing D&D for a bunch of years, and I'm a professional actor in 'real life'. I recently performed in a show where everyone covered a pile of small characters, and got a bit of advice from a fellow actor: for each character, pick a Muppet. As long as you bring that Muppet to mind before stepping onstage, it won't matter that you've got no downtime between characters, because every Muppet is a beautiful package of archetypal character traits that you can use as a jumping-off point. This isn't a good idea for larger roles, but if you're in Hamlet and have to keep diving in and out of Barnardo, Rosencrantz, Laertes, the Player King, and Osric (true story!), you're going to need something to kick you immediately into the right headspace for the next character.

This has proven immensely useful as a DM- picking a Muppet for each NPC that you'll be roleplaying again makes it easy to jump back into that NPC with no warning. And although you won't (or at least don't need to) be impersonating the Muppet in question, thinking of the Baron as Sam the Eagle will bring a certain posture and vocal quality, very different from Scooter the royal page or Pepe the court bard. This little acting trick is helping me keep my NPCs distinct and memorable, and the players have yet to catch on to my method.

What's your trick?

Oracle_Hunter
2008-12-10, 02:24 PM
(1) If you need inspiration, TV Tropes (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/HomePage).

As a repository of media analysis, it's a good spot to pick up plot ideas, character archetypes, and even Tabletop Game specific tropes (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TabletopGames?from=Main.TabletopRPG).

(2) If you haven't yet, read The Giant's gaming articles.

Specifically, his series of articles on World Building (start here (http://www.giantitp.com/articles/YPgbz2j3PckGjjviJU5.html)) has helped me in better designing worlds.

(3) Pick a language analog for your societies.

This can be helpful for coming up with consistent place & NPC names on the fly. Baby Name lists (free & online!) are great places to mine for appropriate names too.

***

These are good starting points. I've never heard of the Muppet Trick, but I'm sure that can work with any familiar character list. Generally, I make sure I write up some sort of personality for all the major NPCs beforehand and for minor NPCs I pull out a character archetype or noticeable quirk to keep the character lively.

RTGoodman
2008-12-10, 02:30 PM
When things get quiet, roll some dice. No, they don't have to actually MEAN anything, just make sure your players see that you're rolling dice, taking a look at a book/chart/whatever, and smirking a little. :smallamused:

Also, after every session, talk to the players. Ask them what they liked, what they didn't like, and things they think you could improve (and maybe give them some things you think THEY could improve). It seems simple, but one of my best DMs ever did this, and it helped a lot.

Evil DM Mark3
2008-12-10, 02:35 PM
Choose a tone for the game and mostly stick to it, but vary it too.

Give downtime and closure, there is nothing wrong with the PCs killing a big bad and going home for a year or two. The idea that the PCs go charging around the world all the time is laughable.

Have recurring non-villains as well as recurring villains. Make the PCs as concerned about that the Duke will think or how the tavern keeper's sickly son is as what the lich lord is doing if you can.

Be aware of cliches and make sure to both use and avert them.

BRC
2008-12-10, 02:41 PM
Remember the first rule of DnD, Fun for you and Fun for your PC's. The numbers on the paper are suggestions. If the party is laying the smackdown on the evil sorceror, youve got some time left, and the party isn't anwhere close to a TPK, go on and throw some extra HP on that baddie.
Until the PC's find out about it, it dosn't exist. If the PC's think the evil cult is hiding under the inn instead of in the cave outside of town, let them be right.

valadil
2008-12-10, 02:43 PM
I got a bunch of tricks. But first I wanna say that I really like your suggestion of picturing a muppet for each NPC. I have a very hard time bouncing between characters and was trying to correct that in my current game. This technique should help though I may not limit it to muppets. Now on to my tricks:

I don't run D&D, I run a D&D inspired system known as Valadil's Game. I've spoken about this in other posts. First off it gives me total reign to rule 0 whatever I like. I don't do a lot of rule zeroing, mind you. But it scares off players who don't like that sort of thing. More importantly though, it takes the players out of the D&D mindset. I've been really successful in getting players to play the game as collaborative storytelling rather than hack and slash. I've seen other games with better stories fail because the players were stuck in hack and slash mode. This technique frees players from that mindset so they can take part in a story.

I have no qualms about ripping off ideas. Now, I won't mimic something entirely but if I get an idea from a movie I won't dismiss the idea because of its origin. I've always been a little OCD about originality but I've been able to overcome it in D&D. The reason being is that I believe there is a finite number of premises to games. But when you combine that with your own personal twist what you end up with is something new.

Here's an example. One of my favorite movies is The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. It has some memorable scenes involving nooses. Every time I see that movie I put a noose in a D&D game. Sometimes I put a player in that noose. Now, even if I describe the scene flawlessly, it's not the same scene as in the movie. The characters involved are different. How they arrived at the hanging is different. And where they go after it is different too. When you combine all those factors the game session you end up with is something nobody has ever seen before.

Granted I wouldn't run a game using the same plot as a movie I liked. I wouldn't make a carbon copy of my favorite character either. But I would take aspects from them and use them in my game. Jack Sparrow's suggested homosexuality and (Lost's) Sawyer's arrogance have ended up in many of my bards.

Another trick of mine is that I don't have plot in my games. Instead I have NPCs. NPCs make plots. If a player does something that breaks the story, I don't give a damn. But my NPC does. The NPC will react and try to fix the plot. This means I can let my players run all over the place and not worry about them breaking anything because I don't have anything for them to break.

Unlike a lot of freeform story based improv game GMs I do like to write out plans for my game. It's not so much that I'm writing the structure for the next game as I'm taking notes on what I expect to happen. I can predict where the players will go 90% of the time. I usually can't predict how they get there of course. But if I know where they'll end up I'd rather have a well thought out scene planned. If things don't go to plan I save the scene for later. What I'm doing is effectively precaching where the game will go. If I'm going to meet some new people I'll likely read up on current events just so I have something to talk to them about. This is the same thing. I'm predicting something the players will be interested in and trying to have something for them to do there.

I fudge up but not down. Players can tell when you pull punches and it ruins the combat. I'll let a mook live an extra round or have reinforcements join in mid way through combat. I rarely lower someone's AC if it's too high. I know that not everyone approves of fudging, but my games are advertised as narrativist (sorry for invoking GNS) and the players all know its that kind of game before they get involved.

Before each game players share the previous session from their character's eyes. They can leave out anything that's private or that their character didn't take part in. One player does this before each session and gets rewarded (see below). It helps that one person get in character and fixes the usual problem of people not knowing whats going on because they forgot what happened last week.

Finally, I don't do XP. Players level when I want them to. Players deserve rewards though, so I give out fate chips. Fate chips can be spent to let players fudge their own die roll. I intentionally do not tell the players what exactly a fate chip can do except that it's fudging their own character rather than someone else. The point is to let players play the character they imagine instead of the one the dice give them.

-- addendum --

I also constantly survey the table and approach the player who looks the most bored. I've fallen victim to GMs who focus on whomever is having the most fun so I try to do the opposite. Usually my plans involve scenes for each plot. If someone is bored I queue up their personal plot as best I can.

Also, now is a good time for me to pimp the link in my sig where I discuss all these ideas more thoroughly. I was gonna do another post today (slow day at work) but thanks to this thread my gaming babble is sated for today.

Tacoma
2008-12-10, 02:44 PM
I'm generally a procrastinator in real life. But I'm a list-maker in D&D. Lists are your friends.

Some ideas:

Pickpocket result list
List of creative tailored "random" encounters (I don't actually use truly random encounters anymore)
Useful dungeon trash list
Base Wizard spellbook plus random school list
(comparable lists for Sorc, Bard, Druid, Cleric, Paladin, Ranger)
Creative tailored "random" treasure in categories of 10, 50, 100, 500, 1000, and x000 categories.
"Tavern tales" style rumors
Simple adventure plots with hooks and twists, no more detailed than 5 or 6 to a page
NPC names in male and female columns by race or culture

(Note that the above is itself a list :P )

Prepared maps are also great. Use whatever computer art software you like (I use MS Paint with a grid of light grey 2-thick lines) and print out prepared locations that can be interchangeable. Some examples:

Cave systems
Buildings in town where action often occurs
City streets of varying sizes
Small villages (whole and ruined)
Small dungeon complexes
Graveyard
Docks
A couple islands with varying topography

I write down any ideas I come across or invent in a "scraps" file and place it where it would make the most sense. You could quickly find that you have enough random material to start a camapaign, adventure, or culture off the cuff. And if you have a couple hours to prepare and choose things that actually make sense, your players won't know you're not using the best published materials.

Steal ideas from real life. Read the news from sources in various countries. Read history. Watch the History channel if you get it. Drift through Wikipedia like a feather on the breeze. You'll find cool ideas that will find a good home in SOME campaign you run eventually.

Use real life architecture and wilderness areas. I have trouble even after all these years with making outdoor areas interesting. But even if you can't go on hikes and adventures yourself to find inspiration, people out there love to take nature photos and you can get plenty of cool stuff from them.

Steal liberally from art: theater, music, novels, TV, radio, movies, video games, etc. If you're ever going to actually publish this thing you're writing, you'll have to put enough of your personal creativity into it to ensure you're not just copying someone else. But honestly, after watching sitcoms and children's shows for a while you start to realize that even Hollywood rarely innovates.

Vortling
2008-12-10, 02:46 PM
Give your NPCs goals. Even if it's Bob the ratcatcher or Phil the beggar, give them a simple little goal.

Think of your game like a movie. Don't put things into scenes unless they need to be there. Try to have each scene or encounter have its own build-up, climax, and denouement.

arguskos
2008-12-10, 02:47 PM
When things get quiet, roll some dice. No, they don't have to actually MEAN anything, just make sure your players see that you're rolling dice, taking a look at a book/chart/whatever, and smirking a little. :smallamused:

Also, after every session, talk to the players. Ask them what they liked, what they didn't like, and things they think you could improve (and maybe give them some things you think THEY could improve). It seems simple, but one of my best DMs ever did this, and it helped a lot.
Both of these are excellent ideas, especially the latter one. I always make sure I ask for some feedback after the session for how it went, what was good, and what I need to work on improving (and, for example, I've found that my NPC's are apparently excellent... who knew?).

Some tidbits of advice I find useful, and you may too:
-Don't be afraid to let the PC's have some inter-party conflict. Sometimes it's fun and good. Just don't let it get out of hand, that leads to party kills, tears, and lost friends. :smallannoyed:
-Remember, you are first and foremost a moderator and facilitator. Approach the game that way, and it'll all be good. Take a light hand.
-This is something my best DM taught me: if at any time you are unsure about something, ask yourself, "is this for the fun of the game?" If you answer no, change what you're doing. If yes, then keep on trucking!

valadil
2008-12-10, 02:56 PM
One more thing I forgot. I never ever do random encounters. Sometimes an encounter will appear random but it will spiral out into something bigger. Other encounters will seem random only if the players don't make the connection to other plot. Basically if you're throwing down an encounter just to put combat in the game, rethink it as a plot.

Here are some examples. I just started a game and I wanted to demonstrate how combat worked since it's supposed to be more deadly than normal d20. I had a random encounter with bandits planned out. Instead of giving the encounter to the PCs, I gave the encounter to a messenger on his way to the PCs. Now they have to go save the messenger. This involves several encounters with the bandits (so already I've upped the game content) and negotiations to get their guy back. Because the players are trading the poor bandits their castle forged steel, there will be repercussions down the road when the bandits become more powerful raiders. Turning a random encounter into a plot gave me tons more game time to use. It also took a fight with bandits and gave it meaning. It was the same fight whether the players were ambushed or whether they were saving their friend, but by making it a plot I gave the story oriented players a reason to care.

BRC
2008-12-10, 03:00 PM
One more thing I forgot. I never ever do random encounters. Sometimes an encounter will appear random but it will spiral out into something bigger. Other encounters will seem random only if the players don't make the connection to other plot. Basically if you're throwing down an encounter just to put combat in the game, rethink it as a plot.

Agreed. Perhaps its just because my game is almost entierly against humanoid opponents with class-levels (Urban Campaign), but Random Encouters are a sign of an incrediably lazy DM.

rayne_dragon
2008-12-10, 03:07 PM
Ooo... tips!

- Planning out dungeons is cool, but players often do weird things. I might write out a whole dungeon, but most often I think about what players are most likely to do and plan out in general terms all the most likely actions. Details are filled in later

- If I can't have all the information I need to use laid out in front of me at the time when I need it, things are too complicated

- having some generic NPCs premade can help when you need stats for a character you hadn't planned out. Having names and personality archtypes on hand is nice too.

- Any NPC that the players are likely to re-encounter should have some sort of small, but noticable, quirk to help distinguish them. When improvising these, keep notes so that you can portray the character accurately when they reappear.

- Always, always expect players to do something you didn't consider. Always. So be prepared for it, at least enough to fake that you weren't surprised by it.

RTGoodman
2008-12-10, 03:11 PM
Agreed. Perhaps its just because my game is almost entierly against humanoid opponents with class-levels (Urban Campaign), but Random Encouters are a sign of an incrediably lazy DM.

Eh, I guess it depends on the game. Occasionally, and especially if you follow normal-ish XP rules, you might want to give the PCs a little bump to get the to the next level or something. I usually don't do truly "random" encounters, though - if I'm running a pre-published adventure, for instance, I usually just pick something cool off the "random encounters" chart, or if I'm wingin' it I just find something that makes sense.

I do usually think the "Roll d% for every hour the PCs travel; there's a 50% chance during each hour that they'll encounter one of the creatures from the following chart" thing is kinda silly, though. Like V says (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0145.html), if you're going to run a "random encounter," you're probably just going to run one so you can get on with, you know, important things.

Oracle_Hunter
2008-12-10, 03:11 PM
- Always, always expect players to do something you didn't consider. Always. So be prepared for it, at least enough to fake that you weren't surprised by it.

But don't drive yourself crazy trying to anticipate every eventuality. You're not going to be able to do it.

A good way to prepare is to keep a loose and easy mind about the plot. Deal with the situation before you, and then later try to work it back into the story.

And don't be afraid to take a minute to think through your response before you make it. It can sometimes be very hard to fix a mistake once it's made.

BRC
2008-12-10, 03:14 PM
Eh, I guess it depends on the game. Occasionally, and especially if you follow normal-ish XP rules, you might want to give the PCs a little bump to get the to the next level or something. I usually don't do truly "random" encounters, though - if I'm running a pre-published adventure, for instance, I usually just pick something cool off the "random encounters" chart, or if I'm wingin' it I just find something that makes sense.

I do usually think the "Roll d% for every hour the PCs travel; there's a 50% chance during each hour that they'll encounter one of the creatures from the following chart" thing is kinda silly, though. Like V says (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0145.html), if you're going to run a "random encounter," you're probably just going to run one so you can get on with, you know, important things.

Well, the way I see it, if the PC's are traveling through the wilderness and you want them to have a random encounter, you can spend a few minutes picking somthing that makes sense from the book ahead of time.

Starscream
2008-12-10, 03:24 PM
Love the Muppet idea.

Here's a few ideas that have come in handy over the years (although I haven't DMed in quite some time)

1) Make villains a little bit funny. I'm not talking funny like Xykon is funny. You should still be able to take your villain seriously as a threat. I'm thinking more like the classic Disney Villains. Baddies like Jaffar and Ursula and Uncle Scar can quip at the protagonists' misfortune, roll their eyes at the incompetence of their henchmen, and still be scary. The best villains of film and literature have always been despicable as people, but likable as characters. Roger Ebert once said of Hannibal Lecter "He's a horrible person, but would make an entertaining dinner guest". Go for that.

2) Use a laptop. Your players can tell more than you think from the other side of a cardboard screen. Some of mine had borderline x-ray vision. On a laptop you can store the stat blocks of all your npcs (as well as those of the players), keep maps of your dungeon up, type notes, and look up stuff online in wonderful forums like this. Very handy. You can also keep open a random number generator for those occasions when you don't want your players to know when you are rolling dice.

3) If you're going to have a laptop with you anyway, might as well check out some of the lovely free D&D related programs out there. Heroforge lets you generate a complete character in just a few minutes, Monsterforge can create a monster's stat block in seconds, and there are any number of good map drawing tools. Of course, these "quick and dirty" machine made characters will have nothing on the ones you have thought up and fleshed out yourself, but in the case of random encounters, or NPCs you didn't expect to need they can be great time savers.

4) Make your players come up with a backstory for their characters. Some players love doing this, and will present you with a binder detailing their Bard's appearance, life story, and favorite flavor of frozen yogurt on demand. Others will resent having to do "homework" to play the game. Tough. Even if its just a paragraph or two, and yours isn't a very roleplaying intensive campaign, giving their characters some kind of personality and motivation beyond "Lets kill monsters and nick their stuff" will in the long run allow them to have much more fun.

5) Ignore everything I have said if you don't think it applies to you. What do I know anyway?

TheCountAlucard
2008-12-10, 03:37 PM
The one time I did have random encounters, I ended up retroactively making them less random, so yeah, I advise against truly random encounters.

I'm more than a little reluctant to give out the names of the monsters that the PCs are fighting. Some of my players are very good about metagaming, but some just can't help themselves, and it's much easier to just not give them the option rather than punish them afterward.

Oracle_Hunter
2008-12-10, 03:47 PM
Well, the way I see it, if the PC's are traveling through the wilderness and you want them to have a random encounter, you can spend a few minutes picking somthing that makes sense from the book ahead of time.

QFT

Random encounters are as central to fantasy RPGs as finding adventures in taverns :smallbiggrin:

Extended Discussion
More importantly, they can be used to establish the dangerousness of an area without making it seem like a "DM's choice." Gygax was onto something with his love of random tables; players can sense the danger that comes from a roll of the die. Unlike a DM selected encounter, players can't trust in the benevolence of the DM to protect them from stupid decisions - or at least, that's what they believe.

In a sense, this is why we use dice at all in RPGs; trusting your life or death in fate is much more exciting than leaving it up to your friend to decide. Incidentally, this is why you should avoid fudging the dice whenever possible, and perform all combat rolls out in the open.

Now, the issue with Random Encounter tables is that they are generally poorly designed. Ideally, you should tailor each Random Encounter table to a specific area of your campaign world, including the number of encounter per day!

An Example

Let's say the players are traveling through the Fire Swamps, an area known to be infested with monsters and natural hazards. At the start of every day, you should make an Encounter Check (d%):

01-25: No Encounter
26-50: 1 Encounter
50-75: 1 Encounter with Hazard
75-99: 1d2+1 Encounters with Hazards
00: Roll Twice OR DM's Choice

Note, 00 should always be terrifying. There are some traditions that must be maintained :smallwink:

After you make the Encounter Check, refer to your Fire Swamps Encounter Table and roll an appropriate number of times. For fun, roll these in open sight of the PCs - chances are you won't get the same result often enough to allow them to metagame, and the mental horrors you'll conjure are well worth that risk :smallbiggrin:

Oh, and always roll at least one d% at the start of each day. It'll keep your PCs guessing!

This is a great way to spice up traveling, and possibly also set-pieces in your campaign. If the PCs are supposed to encounter a band of travelers with a Plot Coupon (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PlotCoupon) later in the day, and you rolled a random encounter with orcs, why not have the PCs find the travelers as they are being attacked by orcs?

Admittedly this technique will automatically complicate your plot, but it can also help you develop your DM Improvisation skills without the pressure of dealing with Clever Players at the same time. Also, it can be a lot of fun :smallbiggrin:

In any case, be sure not to have the encounters always occur at the same part of the day, particularly if there are multiple encounters. And generally do try to keep them during the day (night encounters are hard on the armor-wearing types).

Summary
Dice rolling adds an element of danger and unpredictability to any situation, and can be very helpful in keeping both yourself, and your PCs, on their toes. Random Encounter tables are a good way to do this on otherwise boring trips or when venturing into dangerous zones (like the Bad Part Of Town, or the Fire Swamps).

valadil
2008-12-10, 03:59 PM
QFT

More importantly, they can be used to establish the dangerousness of an area without making it seem like a "DM's choice."

Showing how dangerous an area is is a perfectly good reason to use an encounter, but I wouldn't call it random. These encounters have a specific purpose (defining the setting) even if it doesn't enter into the plot. I'd consider them background to the story. Take the Princess Bride for instance. The fire swamp was full of encounters, that's why Wesley and Buttercup went there. The ROUS had no plot of his own but he had to be there. Otherwise we're just taking Wesley's word for it that the fire swamp is dangerous.

Aevylmar
2008-12-10, 04:18 PM
This is primarily a superhero game thing, but it can also be adapted to other settings:

Always have a deathtrap prepared, in case the PCs end up beaten. That way, defeat leads into a setback and another chance for a dangerous encounter, not into "Whoops, campaign's over".

Xanos
2008-12-10, 04:23 PM
Body-language is very, very important. If you're acting out an important noble / king / whatever, raise yourself physically above your players. Stand up, have the higher seat, whatever. Always works for me, it's a psychological thing.

Also, if you're acting out an angry NPC, use your arms. Throw them in the air, do strong gestures, w/e. No one's intimidated by a guy with his arms by his side.

All those little things, act like you're the NPC. It'll make it a lot more believeable, especially in the long run.

Jinura
2008-12-10, 04:45 PM
and there are any number of good map drawing tools.




Where?! I order you to tell me now!

Prometheus
2008-12-10, 05:03 PM
Also, after every session, talk to the players. Ask them what they liked, what they didn't like, and things they think you could improve (and maybe give them some things you think THEY could improve). It seems simple, but one of my best DMs ever did this, and it helped a lot. This always. Also, take cues from what your characters are interested in, I call it the "Han Solo Effect". If you have a random NPC that the PCs just seem to love, he/she gets upgraded to major part of the plot.

On that note, I try to give as many of the NPCs as I can unique names and characteristics so that I can always expand their role in the plot later. In general, I always try to work from the past. Who is angry because they got the short end of the stick? Who has been ignored but remains a threat? By defining the geography and demography of various places in the setting, I can do a similar thing to what I do with characters - build off of what you have.

Sometimes it better not to have an overarching plot built into the game. Even when the game is free-form, the PCs feel like they are being railroaded and that they don't have any bearing on the major events of the world. Instead, play with short term focus.

Starscream
2008-12-10, 05:22 PM
Where?! I order you to tell me now!

Been a while since I was the actual DM of a group, and I mostly use photoshop and just create patterns from various tiles I own.

But this one:
http://www.profantasy.com/products/dd3.asp
seems pretty popular.

Oracle_Hunter
2008-12-10, 06:16 PM
Showing how dangerous an area is is a perfectly good reason to use an encounter, but I wouldn't call it random. These encounters have a specific purpose (defining the setting) even if it doesn't enter into the plot. I'd consider them background to the story. Take the Princess Bride for instance. The fire swamp was full of encounters, that's why Wesley and Buttercup went there. The ROUS had no plot of his own but he had to be there. Otherwise we're just taking Wesley's word for it that the fire swamp is dangerous.


:confused:

A "random encounter" is, as far as I know, an encounter that occurs at random as opposed to being placed there ahead of time by the DM. TV Tropes describes them as such (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RandomEncounters) anyhow. In the D&D sense, these encounters don't necessarily have to serve any plot purpose (and generally do not), or even establish background. After all, my Fire Swamp table does not ensure that the PCs will even see one Fire Geyser or ROUS even if they spend a month in there.

Certainly you shouldn't throw a Red Dragon at the players while they are traveling on the King's Highway, but you may want to include a small chance of thieves or other non-combat encounters along the way. Among other things, it adds a little depth to your setting - certain areas are more dangerous than others, and all of them have certain types of creatures about them.

Heliomance
2008-12-10, 07:00 PM
Agreed. Perhaps its just because my game is almost entierly against humanoid opponents with class-levels (Urban Campaign), but Random Encouters are a sign of an incrediably lazy DM.

Not necessarily, it depends on the world. We play in a world that is established as having a dangerous wilderness - outside the cities is not necessarily safe. If you're travelling through the wilderness, you can expect to be attacked by something that thought you'd make a nice snack, depending on just how wild the area is.

Make your NPCs memorable. Give them quirks. It's been said before, but it bears repeating. In our campaign we're about to face the BBEG. That's fine, we know he needs to die, and he's going down. But the one we really want to kill? His second in command. She keeps coming round and throwing things in our way, she's horrendously arrogant, and she patronises us hugely every time we meet. "Oh, I've brought some of my nice little friends to meet you. Isn't that fun? I do hope you get along! Play nicely, now! And if you survive, I'll kill you myself! Won't that be fun!"
Cue summoning a couple of devils that fill the same role in the devilish army that siege engines fill in mundane armies.

The upshot of this? We hate her. We loathe and detest her. At least three members of the party have sworn to personally kill her, and we've devised the most painful death we can think of for her. It involves a Staff of Swarming Insects and Otto's Resilient Sphere. And that's great! It's drawn us in, created a hugely memorable character that we love to hate.

Tacoma
2008-12-10, 08:20 PM
Certainly you shouldn't throw a Red Dragon at the players while they are traveling on the King's Highway ...

I always throw a Red Dragon at the players while they are traveling on the King's Highway. Who do they think they are, walking on the King's Cobblestones with their grubby peasant feet? Peasants got no sense these days. You walk in the King's Muddy Ditch if you're lucky. Back in my day the King's Muddy Ditch held lizardmen and if you escaped them by setting foot on the King's Highway,

BAM!

Red Dragon.

OneFamiliarFace
2008-12-10, 08:37 PM
Here are a couple of my favorite tricks that I can think of off the top of my head.

1. Palette Swapping:

This is the trick of just changing one monster's appearance and calling it a new monster.

This works spectacularly well in 4e, but is still no slouch of a trick in 3.5. Say your players are veterans and know every trick in the book. "Oh, it's a troll," they say, "Oops, I accidentally trip and hit it with my torch." But if, instead of a troll, they are approached by the Heffalump (which secretly has all of the trolls stats and none of its looks), then they might spend precious rounds trying to catch it in a Pooh-pit, rather than burning it with acid.

2. Module Building: (Or Dungeon Mix n Mash)

When I build adventures, I build many parts of them in discrete units. This way, if the players avoid my dungeon (or part of an adventure), I can sideline it and use it later (perhaps with a little palette-swapping). This allows players to make their own choices without my having to go through an extreme amount of trouble planning for every eventuality.

Starscream
2008-12-10, 09:33 PM
At least three members of the party have sworn to personally kill her, and we've devised the most painful death we can think of for her. It involves a Staff of Swarming Insects and Otto's Resilient Sphere.

Wow. Don't let Xykon hear about that, or we'll see O-Chul having to suffer through it in an upcoming strip.

Every consider gagging her, sovereign gluing her to a magic carpet, and then telling it to go up?

Heliomance
2008-12-10, 10:00 PM
Unfortunately we don't have time to make the glue or the carpet, as it's all going down in about 10 IG minutes. Awesome idea though.

Thrawn183
2008-12-10, 11:26 PM
Change your rhythm. Throw the occaisional combat encounter in the city when everyone isn't necessarily together. Throw some stealth/diplomacy into your dungeons every once in a while. Heck, go ahead and throw a dragon at your party when they're on the king's highway, if done properly it can make them feel really badass. Have them be hailed in the next town or something. Let them carry battle standards that name them as the dragonslayers.

Be tricky. Even if you're tricky just some of the time, it makes the PC's think ALL of the time.

Also, how many people do you know who just do things without backup plans? How many do you know who do things where its their only chance without really thinking them through?

Try and throw some references to people's backstories. If there is a cleric, throw in a beaten up/run down church of his/her deity. It doesn't even have to change the plot if you don't want, just make sure that in downtime the characters have something in character to do.

Always, always, keep a general idea of what your party can do. I'd make a list of the most extreme. This is everything from healing poison, flying, invisibility, to disintegrating through walls, that sort of thing. It helps in designing encounters that really give one person a chance to shine.

Make the heroes... heroes. Have some woman literally try to give the paladin her baby because he's just that awesome.

Just try to avoid the situation where a player sits down, and maybe says a few things in character but doesn't really change the direction anything even small is going and is essentially just on a ride from one fight to the next.

Too challenging is always better than too boring.

OneFamiliarFace
2008-12-11, 02:09 AM
Be tricky. Even if you're tricky just some of the time, it makes the PC's think ALL of the time.

This. Having players wonder what is going to happen next only really involves surprising them a few times.

It reminds me of another of my favorite (only slightly related) DM tricks.

3. Listen to the Players:

The players will often make off-handed guesses about what is coming up or what is going to happen. Sometimes, their idea is way better than any you had. So steal it, and start feeding it clues.

It also tells you which of your clues they aren't picking up, letting you know that your upcoming Big Reveal is going to fall short. They need to be able to look back at the evidence and piece it together in retrospect of the end. It's like the wise old prophecy that is gibberish until it happens, except that you can have all that delicious hindsight revelation without ever having had to have a prophecy. Just make sure you're not the one reminding them of all the clues after the revelation :-p.

potatocubed
2008-12-11, 02:40 AM
3. Listen to the Players:

The players will often make off-handed guesses about what is coming up or what is going to happen. Sometimes, their idea is way better than any you had. So steal it, and start feeding it clues.

A corollary:

3a. Let the Players Talk
If you're going to make use of OOC chatter, then there needs to be some OOC chatter to make use of.

In addition, it's a low-down trick for when the players throw your plans out of the window - which they will do, even to the best of us. It's perfectly okay to say "Okay guys, give me a minute to work out what's going to happen next...". However! If you just let them chat, all the while frantically re-adjusting things in your head, it can look like you didn't need to think about it much or at all, and this makes you look like an awesome GM. :smallcool:

OneFamiliarFace
2008-12-11, 05:20 AM
In addition, it's a low-down trick for when the players throw your plans out of the window - which they will do, even to the best of us. It's perfectly okay to say "Okay guys, give me a minute to work out what's going to happen next...". However! If you just let them chat, all the while frantically re-adjusting things in your head, it can look like you didn't need to think about it much or at all, and this makes you look like an awesome GM. :smallcool:

Spoken as a truly awesome GM. :smallsmile:

Mercenary Pen
2008-12-11, 08:30 AM
Piece of advice I always try to stick to:

No matter how random the encounter is, the creatures need their own motivations
It may sometimes be as trivial as the Dire Wolves being half starved, but it always gives you something to work off (if you need an idea for where the PC's go next)- and it allows you to work in some of the more unexpected plot encounters seamlessly...

For example, your players could decide to try and discover why the Dire Wolves are starving, avenge themselves upon the Hill Giant bandits, or even find themselves captured by demons flocking to the banner of the upcoming BBEG (all under the guise of a 'random encounter').

Thrawn183
2008-12-11, 09:19 AM
This. Having players wonder what is going to happen next only really involves surprising them a few times.

Oh man, I was right. On the INTERNET.

valadil
2008-12-11, 09:25 AM
3. Listen to the Players:

The players will often make off-handed guesses about what is coming up or what is going to happen. Sometimes, their idea is way better than any you had. So steal it, and start feeding it clues.


Another corallary to this is to listen to your players' backstories. They're full of freebie plot hooks. You don't have to come up with these plot hooks, just steal them. Best of all, the players are already interested in those plot hooks. Your work is 90% done, all you need to do is attach that hook to your story.

DM Raven
2008-12-11, 03:48 PM
Roll dice randomly every now and then. I love how quiet the room suddely gets when I roll a d20 then a d10 after it. If players ask what you're rolling for, just shrug innocently and continue the game.

Hzurr
2008-12-11, 05:29 PM
Roll dice randomly every now and then. I love how quiet the room suddely gets when I roll a d20 then a d10 after it. If players ask what you're rolling for, just shrug innocently and continue the game.

One thing that I do from time to time is randomly ask players to roll dice for me, without telling what it's for. Oftentimes, there really is stuff going on in the background that's being effected, but everyso often, it's just because I feel like having them roll something.

Raum
2008-12-11, 05:40 PM
I tend to ask for rolls which I'll use in the future. Primarily perception but stealth also on occasion. Essentially I ask for an early notice roll which I don't need and write it down. Once something comes up which requires a notice roll I'll use it and then ask for another.

On a somewhat related issue, I'll use the result of a roll until the situation or scene changes. Instead of asking for a stealth roll every turn or X number of feet traveled, I'll ask once and let it ride until they do something to affect stealth (attack, try to hide better, move out of cover, etc) or go on to a different scene. Helps speed up the game by requiring fewer rolls.

KeresM
2008-12-11, 05:46 PM
Random generators are your friends. Possibly even your best friends.

If your players are anything like mine, they've been made so paranoid by a former GM's railroading that their response to a plothook is 'Run AWAAAAY'.

Enter the random generator.

They decide to go to a village you haven't had time to map out or add any details to?

http://www.dndadventure.com/ftp/toolsdl_citygen.zip
http://tavernmaker.de/eng/men-eng-inf.htm
http://www.seventhsanctum.com/

Grail
2008-12-11, 05:52 PM
What's your trick?

Know the rules at least as well, preferably better than your players if you can. Nothing devolves a game faster than a player getting control over most of the mechanic debates.

Come up with a policy for working out any debates in game on mechanics. Mine is that what I say is right. End of. This gets the game flowing. Then after the session, players are entitled to query me and I may well make a ruling one way or the other that will effect the rest of the campaign, even if it is counter to what I ruled in game. The advantage is that the game flows, and this is important.


Try to keep numbers of players manageable.
Try to keep players who are likely to chat amongst themselves separate.
Try to keep non-game required materials off the playing surface as best as possible.
Try to have everything ready before you start.



In game, let players have some control over the story-arc.
Have other heroes in the game that the characters can form alliances and relationships with.
Have NPC's that are ambiguous with regards to hero/villainy that the characters can form relationships with that they will at times question.
Have the world move even if the characters do not.
Use tropes, but manipulate them so that they aren't what the players expect.
Avoid cliches.
Try to encourage all players to take an active part in the game, and have mini-arcs for every character/player.

potatocubed
2008-12-11, 06:17 PM
Try to keep numbers of players manageable.
Try to keep players who are likely to chat amongst themselves separate.
Try to keep non-game required materials off the playing surface as best as possible.
Try to have everything ready before you start.
In game, let players have some control over the story-arc.
Have other heroes in the game that the characters can form alliances and relationships with.
Have NPC's that are ambiguous with regards to hero/villainy that the characters can form relationships with that they will at times question.
Have the world move even if the characters do not.
Use tropes, but manipulate them so that they aren't what the players expect.
Avoid cliches.
Try to encourage all players to take an active part in the game, and have mini-arcs for every character/player.


Hot damn, that's a fine list. Nice work.

SoD
2008-12-11, 08:16 PM
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Be organised, at least a week before the session. Don't do what I did, and find out that all your campaign notes were thrown out by a family member cleaning up the place, the day of the session, half an hour before getting picked up. An entire bloody campaign! Rewritten! The PC's are level 3, I HAD IT PLANNED UP TO LEVEL 30!

Grail
2008-12-12, 12:13 AM
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Be organised, at least a week before the session. Don't do what I did, and find out that all your campaign notes were thrown out by a family member cleaning up the place, the day of the session, half an hour before getting picked up. An entire bloody campaign! Rewritten! The PC's are level 3, I HAD IT PLANNED UP TO LEVEL 30!

More advice from me..... don't plan this far ahead.

When I run a campaign, I play it very loose. I am fairly good at ad-libbing, and also predicting the kind of things my players will do. Now, not everyone can do this, but it's good to practice it. Run short adventures non-campaign specific where you've got nothing more than maybe a very simple idea, then run the rest out of your head.

With my current game, the only thing that I had planned from the beginning was the ending, but that's how I always start games - I know how I want it to finish before I know how I want it to begin.

If you plan everything that will happen in the campaign, then you're not truly giving your players any free-will. As I said in my prior list "In game, let players have some control over the story-arc." This is important, especially for a long running game. The Players need to have a very definitive say in how the game runs, and if your players are anything like mine, the more you try to limit their choices, the more they will fight and try to take control anyway.

Oh, and for long running campaigns - I cannot stress this enough.

Take some breaks from the game.....!

Have another player run some one-off stuff, or even small little mini-campaigns that may or may not be related to the longer campaign. If you try to do too much, the game can stagnate and players can become bored. In the long running DnD game I've been running (it's gone for around 4 years or so), we've had breaks to play Call of Cthulhu, some d20 Superheroes, another mini-campaign related to mine which was run by one of the players and also a few breaks just from gaming. The games were all different styles, so everything remained fresh, and the old campaign seemed that way when we went back to it.

OneFamiliarFace
2008-12-12, 12:58 AM
Take some breaks from the game.....!

Going along with this: I always try to bring some rented movies or other games (Munchkin, Settlers of Catan, Heroquest, etc), so that if people aren't feeling D&D that night, we can take a break. If the movies are decent movies of the same genre, then the players will often be back in the game before they are done.

Gardakan
2008-12-12, 07:14 AM
I suggest to you to follow those 3 simple rules.

1 - DM have always reason

2 - If you have any question refer you to the rule 1

3 - Maybe if you have a proble refer you to the rule 2

Tormsskull
2008-12-12, 08:24 AM
Its not really a trick, but one of the most important things I have learned as a DM is:

Know thy players.

You can have the greatest story ever with well-detailed environments and NPCs, fantastic monsters and treasure with fine description, but if your players only want to roll some dice, kill some monsters and gain levels, it isn't going to be worth your time.

F.L.
2008-12-12, 10:02 AM
Where?! I order you to tell me now!

If you can figure out RPtools' Maptool, you'll be set. If you have a laptop.

Brauron
2008-12-12, 01:51 PM
Don't plan a campaign. Plan out NPCs, their goals, and a few encounters that can be thrown in as necessary. Let the PCs go where they will, and let their actions have consequences.

For example.

I'm building a Call of Cthulhu campaign right now, set in Roman Egypt, circa 120 AD.

I researched the time period enough to be able to tell the players who the emperor is, what's going on in general in Rome, Alexandria, etc.

I have a villainous entity (a protoplasmic mass responsible for legends of the Greek Lamia, Mesopotamian storm demoness Lamashtu, and Mesopotamian/Jewish demoness Lilith) and its underlings, and what is trying to be accomplished by them.

I have a general idea of how the PCs get drawn in to the entity & co.'s villainous plans.

The rest is up to the PCs.

SoD
2008-12-13, 01:29 AM
More advice from me..... don't plan this far ahead.


I enjoy writing out my campaigns, and I'm never like "What? But they just killed a guy who's going to be important 5 levels from now! Oh noes! MY campaign is ruined!". I enjoy being able to go through my plot, add in extra bits, take out others, and so on between sessions. But when it goes freakin' missing! Grah!!! SoD smash!

Grail
2008-12-13, 07:16 AM
I enjoy writing out my campaigns, and I'm never like "What? But they just killed a guy who's going to be important 5 levels from now! Oh noes! MY campaign is ruined!". I enjoy being able to go through my plot, add in extra bits, take out others, and so on between sessions. But when it goes freakin' missing! Grah!!! SoD smash!

Then you seem to be a decent DM if you let the players wreck your plans. My experience over my many years of gaming is that when DM's plan this much, they toe-hole their players into a linear game, often to the point where the players feel like they are spectators to a narrative rather than participants in the game.

The players are the main protagonists, as such IMO, they should get the most choice in what is actually happening. Of course, my players would probably argue this - but they just like to argue and call me a CM, not a DM. (I mess with my players all the time!).

Gardakan
2008-12-13, 09:32 AM
At least a DM can do what he wants

Raum
2008-12-13, 10:37 AM
At least a DM can do what he wantsNot a good DM. But that's an argument for another thread.