DM BOOK & ADVICE

Prepping Adventures:

Overall:
o Adventure Funnel (Use index cards, write some important bangs)
o Lazy DMs Guide (see pdf)
o 3X3X3 method (http://www.gnomestew.com/game-mastering/gming
advice/the-3-3-3-approach-to-quick-game-prep/)
Genre:
o "Adventure Types & Genre: Adventure, Crime, Horror, Western, Mystery,
Noir, War, Orientalism, Pirates, Post-Apocalypse, etc.
Hooks:
o Create adventures with PCs motivations/goals in mind /include NPCs goals
(Best interests from IAWA for drama between characters)
o Make it personal, use Motivations, Contacts, Past Events, Items
o Use ASSH Random Adventure hooks, B&B, BOL, and Conan 2nd Ed (Return
to the Road).
Scenario:
o Prep situations, not plots: dont create endings leave it open to player
interference
Details:
o Use Sword and Sorcery tropes, plot twists (via Pulp ficiton method)
Scenes:
o IARR (Intro, action,roleplaying, reward) for scenes/encounters
o (Who, What, Where, When, Why, How? - scenes and overall adventure
structure)
o Obstacles/Encounters: Start with PC goal, then add complications or
obstacles, then reward
o Types: Conflict/Obstacle, Character, Decision, Exposition,
Exploration/Investigation, Negotiation/Interaction, Planning/Montage,
Reward/Discovery, Twist/Trap
o Code/Parts: Name, purpose, setting, interactive bits, establishing shot,
takeaways, exits. (http://theangrygm.com/how-to-code-a-scene/)
o Framing scenes: Ask players why their characters are there, and/or any
miscellaneous details to fill in detail. (Conan 266, Atlantis GM chapter)
o Bangs
o Chokepoints: Use 3 clue-rule (have 3 solutions in mind)
NPCS:
o DONT RUN THE GAME, RUN THE NPCs
o Write Antagonists goals/schemes, resources, and timeline (if not interfered
with)
o Factions: Create tensions, triangles, opportunities for the PCs to enter/disrupt

Key Scenes/timeline (can be altered) -

o Fronts from Dungeon World

Locations:
o 5 room dungeon for quick adventure-locations

Opening Scene:
o In medias res, action, battle, dangerous situation, accident, discovery/revelation
for S&S
o Adventure Goal, Hook/Motivation, Entry to other scenes
(http://theangrygm.com/your-mission-is-to-start-an- adventure/)

Index Cards:
Have separate ones for:
o Opening Scene (and then other possible ones),
Events/Timeline*, NPCs, Locations (including quick floor-
plans), Treasure/Rewards
o Handouts: Quick plans of important buildings
o Aids: Have encounter tables, random buildings, NPCs handy, pictures ready

Narration/Description:
o SPEAK LESS - LET THE CHARACTERS TALK/DO
o Less telling, more showing/describing in quick detail and bullet points
o Speak more in character
o Think like a camera - pan and zoom in/out
o Describe sounds, smells, feeling, mood, weather, color as well (6 senses)
o Use more dynamics in your voice, change pace and volume
o Describe the surrounding in detail, use all the senses and paint a mental picture.
o Create a mood, use color and feeling
o Take your time.

Game:
o Dont suggest anything, make plans (through NPCs or anyone else)
o Give quick facts/details about the scenario/mission and then let the PCs move
 from there, letting them gather information on their own
o Roll only when the outcome is uncertain or in a dangerous situation, not for
routine actions

Combat:
o Have enemies run more, surrender, retreat. Use morale rules.
o They should flank, surround, and call for reinforcements.

Reattempting Skills (RQ6 rule):

o In some situations a character will fail a skill attempt but be left in a situation
where he could potentially try again. Example cases might be picking a lock or
attempting to climb a sheer wall. Instead of simply denying any further attempts,
kindly Games Masters may permit a follow-up, last-ditch attempt. How- ever, the
character will suffer some trepidation or lack of confidence which increases the
difficulty of the skill roll by one grade.
o If this second effort also ends in failure, the character is assumed to have given it
his best shot and cannot make any further attempts for the foreseeable future.

Failing rolls:
o Failure opens new paths for the game to take unexpected directions
o Use Dungeon/Apocalypse World (hard moves) for failure complications,
interesting results, new details to consider, etc

NPCs:
o Characterize your actors through descriptions, speech, actions, jobs, attitudes

Pacing
o Ask what the character's goal is, narrate scene, present any obstacles they may
face
o Skip empty time (boring parts, wandering, haggling), and frame scenes
aggressively:
o Elide/cut using narration
o Agenda: What is the question the scene is going to answer? What are the
stakes?
o Narrate: Give context (where, when, who, what, how, why*)
o Introduce next bang or meaningful decision
o Bangs: Use more compelling triggers for action/reaction - if characters do
nothing, let the world/story keep moving without them.
o Hunter vs. Hunted: (Playing D&D with Pornstars) use the same technique

Fostering Roleplaying:
***Make it consequential***
 o Motivations/Flaws:
o Ask questions (how they do things like walking, talking, moving,
likes/preferences, habits, ticks)
o Set up non-combat scenes (background, daily life situations, conversations)
o Encourage to characters to think in-game/in-character (they need to eat, they
natural feel things like hunger, weariness)

Consequences:
o Deaths and kills matter (esp. in cities); guards will search for them, authorities
will hunt them down
o Have random NPCs mutter and whisper about the PCs actions and deeds
o Show the change in the world both pos. and neg.
o Figure out who they have pissed off and what fallout awaits

Ending
o Have PCs announce what they intend to do in the future,
o Use the Episodic seed voting for next session,
o Use the between-session tables (Conan 2d20, ASSH, Beasts and Barbarians, LOS,
etc.)
o Let them explain what they do with treasure and rewards,
o Where they are interested in going next

EPOSODIC HUBS:
o To structure scenarios: Use a guild-house, tavern, patron/contact, legend, street
rumors, foreigners & travelers with news and tales, items & maps to sort through
a list of hooks.
o One way to look at this is as an issue of initial focus: if you start the play from the
dungeon door, that's a different initial experience from if you start at an inn. My
longest D&D campaign used a specific inn-based procedure: the players would
make certain city-based information gathering moves, and I'd give them a list of
rumors from a pre-prepared list on the basis of their effectiveness in this work-
mongering. The information collection would then result in a number of different
types of adventure hooks, among which the players would choose which to go
after. These hooks would differ in terms of reliability, level of danger,
consequences for ignoring, character-based relevance and so on, so the
adventuring party would have to argue among themselves whether they should
investigate a potential danger to the city, uncertain rumours about an enemy cult
or other priorities.

ENCUMBRANCE & ACCUMULATED TREASURE

Items carried - use common sense: any obvious wealth, two handed weapons,
unconcealed medium-heavy armor, bulky equipment, and weird treasure attracts
attention and slows you down (usually negative - see social and AGI penalties inn BOL
mythic pg. 59)

Use LOTFP Encumbrance system (pg 38)

Treasure and equipment (use Conan 2d20 p.302-303)