Few things will kill your D&D group faster than DM burnout. In this article, I’m going to cover what burnout looks like and how knowing the warning signs can help your gaming group avoid it. Since players suffer the most when, to protect their health and sanity, their DM says, “Eff this, I’m outta here!” I finish by describing some things players can do to help keep that from happening.
For those following along at home, I cover this material in greater depth in part 3 of my DMs guidebook, “The Dungeon, The Dragon, and Becoming The DM Who Makes it Fun“.
Crash and Burn!
If you’ve ever seen the Val Kilmer movie, “Real Genius”, you might remember a scene where the main characters are studying in a library. Suddenly one of the other students gets out of his chair with a sort of frantic look on his face. He shakes his hands and starts screaming, obviously having a meltdown from the pressure, and then rushes out of the room.
That can happen to DMs, too. It may not be as dramatic as in the movies, but that feeling of pressure can build up until it sort of snaps. It’s like trying to cram 13 eggs into a dozen-egg carton. Sooner or later something’s going to break.
Here’s how you can tell when burnout is approaching.
What Burnout Looks Like
To start, there’s a difference between simple fatigue and burnout. Most DMs will feel tired or a lack of energy in their creativity or productivity from time to time. That’s normal, because being a DM can be a lot of work. But, that feeling is often temporary and doesn’t have the same sort of issues I’m about to describe.
Burnout looks different than simple fatigue. Symptoms include feeling a sort of unpleasant dread when you see the next game coming up on the calendar. That dread can manifest by looking for excuses not to show up.
You are tempted to call the game due to opthalmological issues, “I just can’t seem myself running the game tonight.”
Another is when you do show up, you’re just kind of phoning it in. Your NPCs all sound the same, or you rely on random encounter generation tables way more than you normally do.
Other ways you can tell when burnout is imminent is you get irritable with people before the game, such as with your romantic partner or a roommate or a co-worker. You might then carry that irritability into the game itself by lashing out at the players or finding unfair ways to kill their characters.
How DMs can Avoid Burnout
Once you recognize the signs of burnout within yourself, here’s how the DMs reading this article can take steps to make that burnout go away, or at least reduce the intensity.
The quickest way to reduce burnout is to lower your workload. You may have already done that a bit by relying more on random tables. This is a sign your creative energy is running thin. Those random tables are there for that specific reason, to spark creativity or to be a substitute in a pinch when you can’t come up with ideas on your own.
You can also reduce workload by pre-generating encounters or settings or maps ahead of time. There are a ton of online tools that will help you roll up everything from NPCs to maps to complete adventures. Generate some stuff beforehand to save some time and mental pressure during your prep phase.
Also, be sure to check out the Vault. I include a number of encounters and adventure and campaign ideas you can grab and use absolutely free.
In-game Workload
The stress of running the game can be pretty high to some DMs, and that’s where I think a lot of the dread comes in. There’s a lot for a DMs brain to keep track of while the game is underway and that can be very tiring. In my DMs guidebook, I mention several ways to make the in-game experience more efficient. Here are three of my suggestions.
First, as mentioned, is to pre-gen monster lists, encounters, or maps, but don’t overdo it. Like camping, it’s easy to overpack for a trip, and as a game master, it’s easy to over-prep. You likely don’t need as much as you think you do.
Like camping, it’s easy to overpack for a trip, and as a game master, it’s easy to over-prep.
Second, reduce the volume and clutter of what’s behind your DM screen. Put your rule books to the side or behind you, or leave them in your bag. All I keep behind my DM screen are my prep notes, my dice, and a notepad. That’s it.
The third suggestion is a little secret more experienced DMs rely on, and that’s to delegate appropriate tasks to players, such as keeping a log of monsters slain or treasure gained. I’ll talk about this a bit more in the next section.
Players, DM Burnout Warning Signs
Okay, now to the players. I’m going to quickly describe how you can tell when your DM is reaching their tipping point and follow up with some suggestions for how you can bring them back from the brink.
To start, pay attention if your DM starts canceling sessions on short notice. Each reason might seem plausible and be totally legitimate, but if this becomes a trend, they might be burning out.
Next, if the DM is short or snippy when communicating, that’s also a potential warning sign. It may have nothing to do with the D&D group itself, but when their work or personal life starts stressing them out, that stress can manifest in how they interact with you and the other players.
Finally, you get the sense during the game itself that they’re just phoning it in. The way they role-play NPCs is flatter than usual, or the monsters you face don’t use combat tactics but are now just a cluster of hit points you have to hack through, then your DM might be burning out.
How Players Can Help
Start with some basic understanding that being a DM is a lot of work, both before the game and during the game itself. Show some appreciation for all the care and time they put into it. Few things make a DM feel empowered more effectively than when a player says, “Tonight was a blast. I had a great time! Thank you!”
Before the game, don’t bombard your DM with a bunch of special requests.
Don’t ask them to read your character’s 3,000 word backstory like it’s some kind of award-winning fan fiction (it isn’t).
Avoid anything that adds to your DM’s pre-game workload.
During the game itself, volunteer to be a scribe or chronicler of the party’s actions. Keep track of treasure gained and monsters defeated, then email that to the DM after the game. They can use that to update their session notes.
Finally, don’t ghost the group on game night. If you can’t make it, say so as far in advance as possible. All DMs know that life happens and players will occasionally miss a game, but don’t wait until 10 minutes before game time to say you can’t make it, or worse, simply not show up at all. That’s just rude.
Playing Solo D&D
Unless you’re playing Solus Domini, my solo hex and dungeon crawl rules, D&D requires a dungeon master. DMs are awesome and they’ve got a lot on their plate, but they don’t have inexhaustable stores of energy. They have their limits, and those limits should be respected.
DMs, recognize your signs of burn-out and do what you can to reduce the load on your already over-taxed brain and schedule.
Players, feed DMs what they need to maintain their motivation, while also reducing how much you ask of them.
Everybody at the table wins when the DM is energized, enthused, and has the creative juice they need to keep the game fun, so I hope this advice helps you out.
