As Dungeon Master / Game Master, you're the heart of any role playing game. As DM / GM you run the world, play all the NPCs, and you decide which rules apply when.
That's a lot of work... sometimes a bit too much. This book tries to address that potential problem, by helping you to only prepare what is necessary.
Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master
If you're a DM / GM that likes to spend hour after hour in prep work, then you can skip this post. This isn't your book 😏
Return (of the Lazy Dungeon Master) has been written by Mike Shea aka 'Sly Flourish', and it's a handbook for starting as well as experienced DMs. In this book Mike shows you how you - as a DM - can limit your preparations.
For starting DM's this means that the amount of work you have to do becomes manageable.
For experienced DM's this can bring time and peace, so they no longer have to feel discomforted by the idea of preparing for 'yet another game'.
Note: the book may refer to D&D (and 5e) but it is effectively system agnostic.
The Lazy Anthology
My copy isn't entirely original. I created my own hardcover, combining all three books, and called it The Lazy Anthology. May Mike forgive me.
This home-made (sort of) hardcover contains these books:
- Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master
- The Lazy DM Companion
- The Lazy DM Workbook
Return provides the basics, where Mike explains his approach. Workbook is a practical approach that you might use as the basis for an adventure, and Companion provides additional information with tables and the like.
But... it's mostly about the Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master. The Companion and Workbook are nice to have, offering hints and tables and locations, but they're not essential. Should you buy them when ordering Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master? Hmmm... Yes, I guess zo, because they are convenient in case you're in a hurry.
Yes, cheapskates! There is a free version... kinda.
Before looking at this DIY hardcover: there is an official, cheap, free (ah, the Dutch) limited version online. If you like it enough, I'd suggest you buy the real thing in either PDF or in print.
Link
- The Lazy Dungeon Master (old version)
- The Lazy GM's Resource Document
- Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master
I compared the original with the newer version called Return of the Lazy Dungeonmaster you'll find some additional stuff that makes it worth getting the latest one.
Don't do anything you don't have to do. Period.
That's the core of the story: don't do anything that isn't necessary. Focus on those parts that help you run the game, and leave out everything that might not be used, or would not interest the players.
The goal for a DM is to enjoy the game, just as much as the players should. That will be easier when the DM has the right tools to run the game, has the proper answers ready, and doesn't have to worry about those things he / she can't predict anyway. Focus on what you know, and make sure to change your places when everything goes haywire. Which it will, you know that. As a DM, you're probably been a player yourself.
That doesn't mean you don't have to prepare at all, but it does mean you can limit yourself to the essentials.
Wat you do or don't want to prepare also depends on your experience, your style, and the things you like to do. There is no universal recipe, but Mike Shea gives you a framework from which you can pick the elements that you like.
He broke it down into 8 steps:
- Know your (player) characters
- Create a strong start
- Outline possible scenes
- Define secrets and clues
- Create fantastic locations
- Outline important NPCs
- Choose relevant monsters
- Choose suitable magical rewards
Next to that he offers a grabbag of other tips, like re-skinning (so obvious, and I never considered it).
What did (not) work (for me)?
Is everything great? Nope, but 'only prepare what makes sense' is the most important message, and that one lands!
There are a few items which are not that interesting, or where I have my reservations.
- Magical rewards - It's not all about rewards. I actually like the adventure more than the reward.
- Theather of mind combat - Might work for some people, but I would limit it to very simple encounters.
- Thinking about your game - That part's a little vague and esoteric...
Personal take-away
Here's my take-away (combined with some info from other sources, which I have marked in a different color).
0. No players, no fun
The DM has fun if the players have fun. If you prefer world building most of all, then perhaps you should consider writing a book instead of running a game...
1. Players and characters
Yes. The aim is to entertain the players (and yourself) so you need to understand what the players want, and what works for the characters they created.
2. Strong start
Just as in a written story you need a 'hook' to grab the attention of the players.
3. Secrets and clues
Maintain a list of important and less important (but enjoyable) secrets. These are the general, campaign wide secrets, but you might add some fun, alternative 'facts and secrets' too, so you can keep your players entertained at each individual stage and location.
4. Scenes
Scenes are situations and activities. Things the players are most likely to attempt, and for which you'd like to have something prepared, even when only roughly.
Scenes are difficult to recycle and / or reuse. Just develop the minimum required, and throw these ideas and sketches away if you no longer need them.
5. Locations
These are locations that players visit. They need to offer something memorable, something wondrous.
Mike Shea mentions 'fantastis' locations, but I can imagine that less 'fantastic' locations - that might be essential to your campaign - might be just as important and may deserve just as much attention, especially if they play a key role in your compaign, or if the players spent excessive time at such locations.
Locations can always be re-used. Still, feel free to throw them away.
In a pinch you could use locations from a source book 🤔 Duh! That makes books with fantastic locations suddenly a lot more interesting!
6. NPC's
NPC's are important, but the amount of detail per NPC differs. Make sure you have a list of names standby (or the players will start disbelieving your world) and reserve stat blocks for your most important NPCs.
You might keep a few stat blocks standby, things like 'Noble 1' or 'Fighter 2'. Then, if for some reasons the players end up in combat with an NPC you just add that NPC's name to the stat block, and there you go.
A book with NPCs can be quite handy to create new NPCs on the spot, or it could help you set up NPCs for new encounters, new locations, or new scenes.
Remember: you can also reskin NPCs!
7. Monsters
Monsters are pretty much the same thing as NPCs, except that a. you want to use suitable monsters for your setting, and b. you want to have those stat blocks ready for monsters, as such encounters typically end up in combat.
Please read Mike's comments on reskinning!
8. Epic, cinematic
9. Yes and the Rule of Cool
If you don't know if something is possible, then it is. (Within limits, obviously.) The default answer is Yes, not No!
Also, every rule can be broken if that improves the game. Especially if that would lead to unique, epic, memorable moments. As long as this doesn't turn the game into a free-for-all.
Data
Generic
Name: Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master (The Lazy Anthology)
Setting: Generic
Type: other
System: any
Author / design: Mike Shea (Sly Flourish)
Copyright / Publication: 2018
About: a guidebook for DM's that helps them to reduce their prep time
Package
Format: hardcover (note that my version is a hardcover, you can buy it as PDF, or a combo of hardcover, softcover, and ring-bound)
Pages: 96 + 48 + 64 = 208
Score
Pages:
- hardcover - 208 pages - +0
Positive:
- sees lots of use - +5
Negative:
- a little repetition - -1
- supporting books could have used a little more organization and clean-up - -1
Opinion: (very subjective, I know...)
- +2 - very good - does what it says on the tin, and does it well
Total score: 5
Notes
- the copy I reviewed is my own DIY hardcover combo of all three books
The Verdict
96 (208) pages, suitable artwork, easy to read, logical setup. In total quite usable! Read the free version, but - even better - just buy the damned thing. It's absolutely worth it.
As separate books the Workbook and Companion are less interesting, but as part of the whole bundle they do come in handy. I would buy them all, and if need be turn them into your own hardcover. It's what I did 😏 (Dutch)
Very good. Buy it!
More
- Dutch version of this post
- Sly Flourish
- The Lazy GM's Resource Document
- Druk je eigen RPG handboek af (Dutch)
- RPG Book Reviews
- RPG Book Scores Explained
Note to the hapless visitor
This is a personal blog, and it is a bit messy. I use it as a dumping ground for anything that piques my interest, and so it has gotten a little disorganized over time... (And that certainly isn't limited to a single topic!)
If you're interested in a something specific, then try this page, which has shortcuts to different labels and filters. Or simply drop me a line.
(No) AI
This page (and everythign else on my blog / website) has been written by me, by hand, without any assistance of any kind of AI.
The text on this page may only be used to train any AI / LLM if a link to this page is included with any results that used the information on this page.
Yeah.
As if anyone would care.
No comments:
Post a Comment