1001 DM Tips

[The Pressman]

I saw the one for the adventurers, and I thought new DM's deserve one too.

1. Don't expect them to be kind to your plot.
2. Ever.

[Dragonfire]

3. Don't pull punch's. Ever. What fun is a game without risk?

4. Watch the players eyes and face they will give you a split second to cry/plan/curse/etc before they set something on fire.

[holywhippet]

5. If it moves, consider the possibility that they might try to kill it.

[Elfin]

6. If it doesn't move, consider the possibility that they might try to haul it off and sell it.

[World Eater]

7. It doesn't hurt to have one more back-up plan, regardless of how many you already have.

[Captainocaptain]

If you dont want the players to have it, dont give it to the bad guy, they will figure out a way of taking it

[Rixx]

Don't worry constantly that you're not doing a good enough job. Emotions are contagious, and being in an authoritative position like the "Dungeon Master" makes them doubly so. Be confident and enjoy yourself, and your players will enjoy themselves as well.

[Callos_DeTerran]

10. Expect them to do the unexpected.

11. Nobody likes a DMPC besides you. At best they will complain. At worst they will kill him/her/it.

12. You can never have enough traps.

[Dire Moose]

13. If you want a recurring villain in your campaign, make sure to give him/her an escape plan. Preferrably one that you know the current players won't be expecting and aren't prepared for. (see #5 for reason why)

14. Never say "The hallway appears to have no traps" or "there is a pool of what appears to be water". Instead, simply say "It's not trapped" or "there is a pool of water".

[The-Mage-King]

15: If you're planning a wonderful heist encounter, with enough foes for each player to have a fair share, someone will quit.

16: When making characters who are supposed to be patrons, use an evil sounding name.

17: When making an evil empire, make sure the ruler is up to date on the List. It'll throw your players off, and maybe let you get a TPK in if they aren't expecting it.

[jguy]

18: Never, ever, ever, make the key to the entire plot rest on one NPC telling the PC's about the important plot device. Because they will slaughter him before he can get a word in edgewise.

[MrRigger]

19. If you map out the world so that the road between the town and the dungeon is surrounded by impassable mountains and forest, the party will want nothing more than to find out just what is in those mountains and forests.
20. When the players figure out some way to switch bodies with your BBEG Beholder Mage despite being level 3, don't let them see your tears.

MrRigger

[houlio]

I've found in my limited experience:
21. Always use more flavor text, always.
22. In fact, always use more flavor in general.

[Maxios]

23: In an intrigue game, or when the PCs are in character "If the giant boot don't fit, they most aquit"

[Dienekes]

24: Make your main plan the one where the PCs do everything they possibly can wrong/most violently/most stupidly
25. Keep a fuzzy background plan on what happens if everything goes right, you know, in case the impossible happens.
26. If the PCs are about to wreck your plot simply smile at them. At worst they'll think you're a good sport about it, at best they'll get scared and wander back onto your rails.

[OldTrees]

27 Know your players better than they do. This allows you to create a plot without excessive railroading.
28 Always expect the players to surprise you. This can be a good thing (puzzles without a defined answer) or something to watch out for (players missing your clues)

[Raven777]

29. If your players do not know what a Gazebo is, don't tell them.
30. Be prepared for your players to BURN and *then* complain about not being able to PILLAGE.
31. If it has breasts, someone will try to seduce it.

[strawberryman]

11. Nobody likes a DMPC besides you. At best they will complain. At worst they will kill him/her/it.

((Not completely true, I have a pseudo-DMPC in my current campaign who my players seem to like, of course he's two levels behind and only has a longsword and shield, and a prinny-pouch to store stuff. ))

...Anyway.

32. Never say No unconditionally, but always conditionally say no.

33. When all else fails, improvise~

34. Natural 1s are prime for funny fall-ups, whether it's PCs or NPCs.

And, less generally;

35. Don't give the party an ally that will explode every time they're thrown.

[Kaww]

36. You should never try to kill your players, they do this all by them selves...

37. Know your player's strengths and weaknesses.

38. Every player should have some time under the spotlight, this is also known as they all deserve a bad cop/bad cop interrogation.

39. Have a list of random encounters and dice that determine a specific random encounter from the list.

40. Don't railroad, if possible make everything seem like the players idea.

41. Have several alternative routes planned for every trip your players take, don't bother with the main rout, they won't be using it.

[Drascin]

42: Never over-plan. The players will not go for any of those sixteen elaborate backup plans you have, anyway. Instead, have a base outline and get good at improvising the details.

43: Rules are really not that important. Remember, as a GM, your prerogative is to change the rules if it would make the players have more fun.

44: Train your poker face. Players are remarkably adept at reading how screwed they are supposed to get by reading your evil smiles, and will find a way out .

45: Have fun. This always gets forgotten, but as the DM you're a player too. If things are not working for you, talk with the others and shake things up!

[Kaww]

45: Have fun. This always gets forgotten, but as the DM you're a player too. If things are not working for you, talk with the others and shake things up!

I thought this one went with this being a game, no need to emphasize it. It's like don't cheat, don't be rude, don't insult people...

[dsmiles]

46. Roll dice behind your screen for suspense. Not too often, though, or they may catch on.

47. For ease of operation, have a list of pre-rolled d20 rolls. After you use one, cross it off the list, and go to the next one.

48. If you're running a published module, roll the initiatives for the baddies in advance.

49. Never, and I mean NEVER, accept bribes (unless they happen to be especially delicious noms).

[Tyrmatt]

42: Never over-plan. The players will not go for any of those sixteen elaborate backup plans you have, anyway. Instead, have a base outline and get good at improvising the details.

This one.

Also 50. No matter how carefully you prepare your uber monster, it will be smacked down in one go. The tried and true basic creeps will always do better than just about anything you build.

[Rising Phoenix]

51) Don't be afraid to break the rules if they come in conflict with the storyline/ or something really cool the PCs come up with.

52) Always check your players character sheets.

53) Don't be afraid to use the ban hammer or say no.

54) Be aware of munchkins, they will try to sneak things past you.

[Eloel]

55. Never randomize too much. Eventually the rolls will break the plot.

[dsmiles]

56. Invest in wierd dice. You never know when a d3 or a d30 will come in handy.

[MightyTim]

57. Don't be stingy with loot. You may be trying to get them to appreciate the items you do give out even more, but they really just think you're holding out on them.

58. Don't think of an elaborate plot and story for the campaign. If you do, you're going to railroad the PCs into it. Instead, plan session to session the logical outcomes of the PCs actions and go from there.

59. The Rule of Cool overrules any other rules. If you can imagine the PCs idea panning out as a neat scene in a movie, let them try it.

60. Before the start of the campaign, make sure that your PCs characters are compatible. An honorable paladin is not compatible with a party of amoral scoundrels who are content to kill anything to get what they want UNLESS they can provide a convincing reason to the contrary.

[Cyrion]

61. Remember that Wealth By Level and CR are guidelines. Always design the challenge of encounters around the equipment your party has and equip your party for the challenge level you want your encounters to have.

62. From time to time, throw in a monster specifically designed to get around a player's Win button. Time stop is only effective if your monster pays attention to time...

63. Don't always rely on 62.

[valadil]

64. Plan to improvise.

65. Don't dismiss an idea just because it isn't original enough. Unless you're running your campaign straight out of a book your players will never even guess at what your inspirations were.

Spoiler

Show

What I mean by #64 is that you should write notes that make improvising easy. Even if your players like running on tangents, you can usually predict what direction they're heading in. Plan for them to go there, but don't require it. Even if you're only right two thirds of the time (and that's pretty damn low in my experience) you'll have material ready that can most likely be applied to wherever they end up.

I run my plots as something that belongs to an NPC. As long as that NPC is well defined it's easy for me to react when the players do something unexpected. If they circumvent a plot, I let the NPC figure out how to deal with it, instead of getting in a hissy fit because my plot was derailed. Most of the time, good improvising is just a matter of knowing what each of your NPCs is doing in his corner of the world.

[Oracle_Hunter]

66. Take notes. On everything.

Your players will do wacky things during games; you'll make up wacky things during games. Write all of those down and think about them after the session. You'd be surprised how many excellent plot developments and adventures can be pruned from throwaway lines and NPCs.

Plus, the Players that brought up the hook you later incorporated will become your unconscious ally at making that adventure work. This is a rare and precious thing - don't waste it!

Oh, and it'll make your Players believe that the entire campaign had been seemlessly plotted from the first. Inspiring fear and awe in your Players is one of the prime requirements of being a proper DM