Improv
The focus of our subject today is possibly one of the most important skills a Dungeon Master needs, Improve. With that said, let’s dive right in! Being a Dungeon Master requires us to put on many hats, referee, a local NPC shop keeper, the big bad monster in the dungeon. But perhaps the most important role is story-teller.
But being a story-teller in a D&D game isn’t as simple as creating one story arc and calling it quits. The biggest pull for players is being able to have the freedom of choosing their own path. Which is both awesome and the best part!
Plan for the Unexpected
But it also means that if you plan for the paths to the North and West, there is a chance that they might decide to head Southeast… I have found it is generally better to create various bullet points that I can implement into a
story no matter which direction my players go.
If I had a sewer built below the city but my players decide they want to head into the mountains. Well, then my sewer tunnel system has now become ancient caverns built into the mountainside.
Doing things like this can make your job much easier to come up with a location for the night’s adventure. And it works much better than you stopping mid-game and going (uh… wait a second you guys weren’t supposed to go that way…)
Now that doesn’t mean that it is never ok to be stumped for a moment or two. And honestly, when it happens to you, I suggest you laugh and embrace it for what it is. Your players getting the best of you at that moment.
Improv Brings New Elements
Sometimes improving can allow you to bring a whole nother element into your game. I had players do a random search and rolled high so I threw out a random scene, which then led to my player following these shady figures and making contact with a local thieves guild. A guild I had never created until my players showed random interest in one. Now my players have a contact and a new place to get potential quests from in the future.
Conclusion
So to recap today’s topic, Work towards keeping bullet points rather than fully fleshed out adventures. This way you can quickly switch up enemies and locations when needed, and still allow your players to feel like they are in complete control! And don’t be afraid to throw out a new idea into the middle of something it might bring you somewhere you didn’t expect and create an amazing story. As always I really hope this gives you some food for thought!
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