Yep, it’s been a while. I didn’t intend for this blog to fall by the wayside, but things happen, and well, here we are. In the last post, I talked about three different types of Dungeons and Dragons games, and which one might appeal to you. Now, I’ll be going a little more in-depth with what it means to run each of them, starting with the one-shot.

Now, as a matter of point, the phrase “one-shot” is a little bit misleading. One-shot games can be games that are run in one session, but a one-shot is really just a single, self-contained adventure. These stories often begin with a group of adventurers (the players) being hired to complete some job. This can be anything from exploring old ruins to exterminating an infestation of monsters. Whatever the story, a one-shot rarely lasts more than three or four sessions and should have a satisfying and conclusive ending.

One-shot games are the easiest of the three types to prepare for. Since the goal in a one-shot is usually clearly defined, it’s much easier to keep your players on target. That being said, players will be players, and that means they’re going to be hard to control no matter what. To maintain flexibility, I find it helps to have an outline of what you want to happen, but don’t get too hung up on the details.

We’ll use the following scenario as an example.

The party has been approached by a resident of a small mining town in the mountains. Lately, monsters have been coming down the mountains more frequently and attacking miners on their way to and from the mines. Without the revenue that the mines bring in, the town will collapse. They need the party’s help!

In this situation, you as a DM have to decide on a few things.

1.      What type of monsters are coming down the mountain? Having a good variety to choose from allows you to throw a few fights at the players on their way to figuring out the root of the problem, as well as adjust the difficulty of the game on the fly, based on how well the players are doing.

2.      Why are the monsters coming down the mountain? If this is a new problem, there has to be a cause. What the cause actually is, is up to you. It could be an oncoming storm or natural disaster, it could be a stronger monster that has made the peak it’s territory, or it could be something else. The choice is yours.

Beyond these things, you can plan however much you want. If you want to go into detail about the town’s political structure and name every villager, you can go right ahead and do that. Likewise, if you want to create characters as the players meet them and interact with them, that’s also perfectly fine. In the end, it comes down to the type of DM you are. Personally, I prefer a more improvisational style of DMing, but it’s all personal preference.

Up next, we’ll be looking at running an adventure module.

-Grey

The first topic I’ll be covering is mostly for new DMs: the process of starting a game of DnD, and things to keep in mind throughout that process. With that in mind, there are two things to consider first when you decide you want to run a game: what do you want to play, and who do you want to play with? This first series of posts will be dedicated to

WHAT YOU WANT TO PLAY

There are many different ways to play DnD. Some people like sprawling epics born straight from the imagination of the Dungeon Master, and others like stories that take place within one of the official DnD settings. Still others prefer smaller stories—stories that can be told over the course of only a few sessions of playtime. It’s up to you what you want to play, but you have to have a clear idea in mind before you start playing. A good seventy percent of being a DM is about preparation.

So should you play option one—the homebrew campaign? Option two—the adventure module? Or option three—the one-shot or mini-campaign? Well, that depends largely on how much time you have available. If you want to play, but time is a commodity in your life, you may want to run a one-shot. These are simple to set up and fun to play, without involving the weeks of planning that go into the others. If you have a fair amount of time, but don’t have the time to (or just don’t want to) create a world from scratch, it’s worth looking into an adventure module. These are books published by Wizards of the Coast, and contain all the information you need to run an adventure. Such modules include Storm King’s Thunder, Princes of the Apocalypse, and Hoard of the Dragon Queen, to name a few. 

If you’ve got time to spare and you’re feeling ambitious and creative, a homebrew campaign might be to your liking. While this requires more work on your part, it can be very rewarding to see players interact with and enjoy a world of your making.

Next, we’ll be taking a deeper look at what it means to run each of these types of adventures, and the work that needs to go into it beforehand. See you then!