Gaming

Tips, strategies, and hard-won wisdom for DMs and players who want to run better games and have more fun doing it.

Shadowdark vs B/X vs Old-School Essentials: What to Play Instead of 5e

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Alternatives to fifth edition D&D have been increasing in popularity, with a good portion of that interest focusing on older editions as well as Shadowdark RPG, which is itself heavily based on old-school rules.

I think there are several reasons why D&D players and DMs alike are looking for something other than 5e. It takes forever to generate a character, the products are expensive, and the company that publishes them, Wizards of the Coast™, can’t seem to stop making stupid decisions that further alienate an already frustrated group of customers.

Whatever’s behind your motivation to consider something different in D&D, I’m going to compare what I consider the top three viable choices: the original 1981 Basic and Expert rules from Tom Moldvay, or B/X as it’s often called, Old-School Essentials Advanced Fantasy, and Shadowdark RPG. There are definitely other third-party D&D clones to consider, but these are the three I’m going to focus on.

In this article, I’ll compare all three of these products across five categories, so that you can get a better sense for which one you want to try in your group.

Shadowdark makes death slightly less scary without making it just a flesh wound like 5e does.

Ancestry, Class, and Level Limits

The first category has to do with ancestry, classes, and level limits. In Shadowdark and Old-School Essentialls Advanced Fantasy, you can pick different combinations of races and classes. In B/X, you’ve got the four original character classes of cleric, fighter, magic-user and thief but those can only be human. If you want to play a dwarf, elf or halfling, those ARE their classes. They call it race-as-class. Functionally speaking, dwarves in B/X are dwarven fighters, elves are fighter/magic-users, and halflings are thieves.

In B/X, demi-human race-as-class characters have a maximum ceiling on level. The Basic part of B/X limits all characters to third level, but the Expert part of those rules lets you go to higher levels, but the demi-human races have upper limits that are lower than humans. It’s the rule’s effort to balance the game over time.

Old-school Essentials Advanced Fantasy has the most complex matrix of race and class combinations of the three editions I’m reviewing, and the racial caps are higher. It’s still simpler than the Advanced D&D rules from the late 70s that it’s modeled after, however.

Shadowdark RPG simplifies character race and class combinations in a simple matrix. Ancestry and class are fully separate, so you pick a dwarf, elf, goblin, half-orc, halfling, or human, and then pick fighter, priest, thief, or wizard, with nothing capping your growth based on which one you picked. A dwarf wizard climbs just as high as a human wizard.

My recommendation goes to Shadowdark because it’s more straightforward. If you want to build the exact character you’re picturing without a level cap, Shadowdark is the best choice. If you want a broader range of classes, go with Old-school Essentials.

Armor Class

Both B/X and Old-School Essentials use descending armor class. Lower is better in a counterintuitive way. An armor class of 10 is the worst. 0 is better, and -10 is the best. It relies on charts, and if you didn’t cut your teeth on this system, it takes a session or two to get used to it.

Shadowdark uses a more intuitive ascending armor class like you find in 5e. Higher is better, and there’s no mental conversion required or chart to consult. It also imports advantage and disadvantage from 5e, so instead of fishing for situational modifiers, you roll two d20s and take the one that matters.

As with level and class combinations, this category goes to Shadowdark. If you’re bringing a table full of 5e players over to try something old-school, ascending AC removes one entire layer of relearning. B/X and OSE aren’t broken for using the older system. They’re just asking new players to learn something that is opposite of what is logical.

Spellcasting

B/X keeps spellcasting simple and capped low. Magic-users top out around 6th level spells, even at the Expert set’s highest levels. You prepare your spells, cast them once, and then they’re gone until you rest.

Old-School Essentials goes bigger, because it’s pulling from the AD&D spell lists. Spellcasters can eventually reach into 7th, 8th, and even 9th level spells. That’s a real jump in power, and it changes what a high-level wizard or cleric can accomplish.

Shadowdark keeps some of the old traditions but with a twist. Spellcasters don’t get fixed spell slots. Instead, every time you cast a spell from your list of “spells known” you roll against a DC based on its tier. If you roll high enough, it works and you’re free to try casting it again later. If you fail, that spell’s off limits until you rest. If you roll a natural 1, it’s worse. Wizards roll on a Mishap table, priests owe their god a Penance, and the nastiness of what happens gets nastier as the spell tier goes up. It’s a small gamble built into the game every time you cast a spell, which adds tension, and it keeps spellcasters making decisions in the moment instead of just ticking spells off a list.

I’d split this one. If raw power and a high spell ceiling matter to your campaign, Advanced Fantasy wins outright, nothing else here touches it. But if you want spellcasting that feels tense and interesting, Shadowdark’s recast mechanic is the more engaging design, even with the lower spell ceiling. It’s subjective, but my personal favorite is Shadowdark.

Class Roster and Advancement

B/X is lean by design and keeps the available class roster at seven options, with four human classes and three demi-human race classes.

Old-school Essentials Advanced Fantasy goes much further. You get acrobats, assassins, barbarians, bards, druids, illusionists, paladins, and rangers, on top of the expanded race classes. If you want the depth of an AD&D character sheet without opening an actual AD&D rulebook, OSE delivers it.

Shadowdark goes the other direction with the shortest list of available classes out of all three products. The core book gives you four classes: fighter, priest, thief, and wizard. Shadowdark RPG wants you making meaningful choices inside a small set of options rather than drowning in subclasses.

My recommendation depends entirely on what your table wants. If your players like building unusual characters from a big menu, Advanced Fantasy wins. If your group gets paralyzed by too many choices and just wants to start playing, Shadowdark wins. If your group is filled with newbies, Shadowdark RPG remains my recommendation.

Lethality

When it comes to character death and lethality, B/X and Old-school Essentials both use the classic approach. When your character reaches zero hit points, you’re dead. 5e, in comparison, adds death saves and the ability to stabilize a dying character, so death in the latest official rules is far more rare and far less scary.

It’s like that scene in Monty Python’s Holy Grail where the black night says, “It’s just a flesh wound.”

Shadowdark adds its own dying mechanic. When your character hits zero hit points, you roll to see how many rounds you’ve got left before actually dying. When you combine that with the fact that no Shadowdark character has darkvision but monsters do, you’ll notice it has a stronger flavor of danger. Light becomes a resource you’re always careful about, and running out of it in the wrong room can kill you just as fast as a monster can.

This is very much a subjective thing between which is better. B/X and OSE both have a reputation for being deadly. I think Shadowdark feels slightly more dangerous because of the one-hour torch rule, but its dying roll takes some of the sting out of it. In my experience as a DM, I’ve seen this factor having a real impact on how players play the game. They’re much more cautious when playing any of these three editions compared to 5e. This isn’t necessarily a good or bad thing, but it is definitely a noticeable difference to how these games feel and how the players make choices.

Between those three, Shadowdark makes death slightly less scary without making it just a flesh wound like 5e does.

Which D&D Alternative Is Best?

Shadowdark wins if you want something approachable and easy to pick up. Old-school Essentials Advanced Fantasy wins if you want AD&D’s depth and power in a currently printed product. B/X, the original 1981 game, wins on raw, unforgiving danger because it’s just as easy to die as it is in Shadowdark but minus the death rolls.

None of these are wrong choices. They’re different tools for different tables. Try one and see how it feels, and don’t be afraid to steal rules from one system to fix something you don’t like in another. That’s what I do.

How to Quickly Add New Characters & Players to an Existing D&D Group

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This article is part of a series where I give you three tips for your D&D game that you can read in three minutes or less. In this piece, I’ll give you three ideas for how to integrate a new player into your existing D&D group.

#1: The first method is a classic, and it works no matter where the current party is exploring, whether it’s in the wilderness or nine levels deep inside a mega-dungeon. You have the party come upon the new character who is held captive. The premise is they were out exploring solo and got captured by the monsters and the party finds them and hopefully releases them.

They might be tied to a tree out in the wilderness, or held in a cell or cage inside a dungeon. The party rescues them, and bob’s your uncle.

#2: The second idea takes place during combat. The party begins a fight against some monsters, then they notice an arrow fly into the beasts from the opposite side of the combat area, or maybe it’s a spell. This goes on for a round or two before they discover another adventurer happens to be there too. Perhaps they got cornered, or were fighting the monsters when the party arrived, effectively saving them from perishing against really bad odds.

The premise for why the lone adventurer was there is typically they set out on their own looking for something in the dungeon or wilderness area, or they were part of another group that got wiped out, leaving them as the sole survivor.

#3: This third idea is all about looking at the new character’s backstory and mining it for inspiration. Actually discuss your ideas with the player off-line and figure out your introduction before their first session with the established group. This takes a bit more thought, but it works really well because it makes the player feel even more invested in their character, and makes the other players more invested and interested as well. If the newbie’s character was formerly a soldier, you can say they were a deserter. Maybe they grew up as a spoiled child of rich merchants or royalty and wanted to rebel, so they sought out the local adventuring group with a growing reputation.

Three Shadowdark RPG Rules to Add to Your D&D Game

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This short article is part of my series, ‘3 Tips in Under 3 Minutes’, where I provide quick, actionable tips you can use in your D&D game that take three minutes or less to read.

The topic for this article is for DMs, and it’s three Shadowdark RPG rules that will make your D&D players think, not just roll dice to solve their problems.

If you’re curious about Shadodark RPG but aren’t sure about switching entirely, here are 3 ways described in 3 minutes or less that you can modify your D&D game to make it have more of Shadowdark’s gritty, dangerous feel.

The intent of these specific tips is to do just that: make your D&D game more challenging, and a wee bit scarier. Finally, there’s a theme underlying all three of these tips, and that’s to make the players use the grey matter between their ears instead of relying on numbers on their character sheet to solve all their problems.

#1. Get rid of character darkvision, regardless of ancestry. The party has to use torches and those torches only work out to 30′ distance, which adds a bit of scariness. And speaking of torches, use the 1-hour rule where the torch goes out after 1-hour of real game time.

Use one of those little hourglasses and put it where everyone can see it to add tension. This adds even more oopmh to the game by making resource management another element to the party’s tactics, strategy, and planning.

#2. Limit the classes available to just the four basics of cleric, fighter, magic user, and rogue. I think this takes the onus away from character complexity and brings the gameplay down to fundamentals. This one is also about saving time during the prep phase of your game, which in 5e can take forever. Essentially, it’s a way to take the rules and mechanics out of your way and increase the focus on the gameplay itself.

#3. Implement spell-casting based on a d20 check. This rule is one of my favorites because it raises the stakes for failure, and makes the successes of spell casters feel more special somehow. Furthermore, it makes the casters feel a bit more involved in combat instead of just hiding behind the barbarian, hoping the monsters don’t notice them.

Well, they’ll do that anyway, but this makes them feel more involved.

The whole group pays attention to the dice rolls, increasing the tension for everyone, instead of just taking their spells for granted.

Three Quick Ways to Impress Your Players

Gaming

This short article is part of my series, ‘3 Tips in Under 3 Minutes’, where I provide quick, actionable tips you can use in your D&D game that take three minutes or less to read.

The topic for this article is for DMs, and it’s three quick ways to impress your players.

#1: Bring handouts. One is to bring a drawing of a monster they’ve never seen before. The age-old advice is to describe a monster to players rather than just say, “You see a carrion crawler.” This works best when they’ve never encountered that monster before. If you go with theater-of-the mind, just use a verbal description. But, if you can swing it, hand them a cool drawing and say, “You see one of THESE step around the corner and it looks really hungry…”

Another hand-out I have used in several of my campaigns are menus for the inn where the party is staying. I list foods and their prices. You can download the breakfast menu and the lunch/dinner menu as free PDFs here:

Breakfast
Lunch/Dinner

#2: Give your NPCs odd and hopefully memorable quirks. One I like to use is an irrational yet harmless fear, such as a shopkeeper who is afraid of feathers, thinking the bird they came from will seek revenge, hunt him down, and attack him in his sleep.

#3: Tap into real locations or people the players know. I’ve used town designs that are based on the same layout of a real town the players are from, then as the town gets explored and they see the map take shape, there’s a moment where they start to think, “This seems familiar.” It takes more than that, though. You can imply that the town they’re in is a parallel universe from the one they’re used to in real life. They’ll start making choices about where to go next based on that assumption.

Players and DMs Want the Same Thing: Cool Characters

Whether you play D&D, Shadowdark, Old-school Essentials, or even Daggerheart — any of them — it doesn’t matter if you’re a player or a DM, what do you have in common? Everybody wants cool characters. Players want to run characters that are not just fun to play, but have a high chance of not just surviving the campaign, but to do it in an epic way. DMs actually want that, too. But the commonality goes beyond that.

It all starts at the Session 0, when the character is created. I’m not going to talk about the mechanics of how to create your characters; the rulebooks already cover that. I’m going to talk about something bigger than that: the what and the why of player character creation and how focusing a bit more on that phase of the game can make it way more fun for everyone, players and DMs alike.

Bad-Assery

I’m going to start with two questions. Why do both players and DMs want the game to have cool characters? And what actually makes a character cool in the first place?

Let’s dispel a myth right off the bat, something nearly every player intuitively thinks their character needs in order to be great: bad-assery. This implies they need to be highly effective at what they do. If they’re a melee class, they need to deal maximum damage while taking as little as possible in return. If they’re a caster, they need the most powerful spells and the biggest buffs for the party. If they’re a healer, well, you get the idea.

But is this focus on max max max everything max what makes a character cool? It can, but not always. Being a bad-ass is only one possible way to make a character cool, and sometimes it doesn’t do that at all.

Here’s an example. I DMd a 5th edition group a few years ago. The party had a human barbarian who could one-shot nearly everything that wasn’t a big bad evil guy. He was a powerfully built character on paper. But even though we ran that campaign for several months, at this point I couldn’t tell you a single thing about who he was. He hit things hard, really hard, but that’s all he did. That was the whole character, a collection of high stats but he wasn’t a character in the more metaphorical sense of the word.

DMs can intuitively understand the draw to maxed-out characters, too, because a party full of stats and gear is arguably easier to design around. Encounters become more mathematical and therefore a bit easier to create. There’s nothing wrong with that on its own. The risk is that the game turns into a stat versus stat exercise. It’s like designing a spreadsheet that can stand toe to toe against four other spreadsheets in a cage match. This can be subtle or it can become bloody obvious, especially when everyone at the table has this max max max attitude.

The Cool Kids

Not every player is chasing the biggest number, though. Some care more about who the character is and how they “play” than how effective they are in combat. They’d rather play a character that’s interesting than one that is effective but boring.

DMs like those kind of characters, too, because they’re fertile soil for inspiring adventure design. Despite this, some less experienced game masters can run the risk of overpowering a party built for their cool factor rather than their combat effectiveness. This is because monsters and encounters as written might be a bit more powerful than the “cool” character can handle. Good DMs, of course, judiciously adjust encounter strength based on the party, not on the stats as written, but that can require a bit of squinting and judgment to really nail it. It’s not that hard to do, really, if you give it a few minutes extra thought and I suspect that most DMs do this automatically.

The Backstory

A lot of players watching this, and maybe some DMs, too, might think that all you need to do to make your character cool is come up with an elaborate backstory. Here’s something I’ve said in other articles and I’ll repeat here: a backstory that runs three thousand words in length might be a great read for the player who wrote it, but it rarely translates into an actually better night at the table for everyone else, including the DM. If your group genuinely enjoys reading each other’s autobiographical fan fiction, go for it. But don’t mistake a long backstory for a good time. They’re not the same thing, especially when a paragraph or two usually accomplishes the same goal.

You want a certain amount of backstory for your character, of course, but remember that in terms of impact on the game itself, a little goes a long way.

What the DM Wants

In my personal view after more than four decades in this game, DMs shouldn’t have an agenda with the kind of characters the players choose. The game master is there to create the opportunity for everyone to have a good time, and the odds of a good time can go down when the DM has pushed a player into a choice they wouldn’t have made on their own. When this happens, it’s usually subtle, but I’ve actually seen it happen on more than one occasion in a more overt way.

However, this isn’t the same thing as the DM saying something like, “This adventure will definitely benefit from having a healer or two in the group, know what I’m saying? Nudge nudge wink wink.” That’s a totally valid and maybe even common thing for DMs to say to the group during their session 0. The difference is the players as a group will discuss that advice and figure out amongst themselves who’s going to build a healer or not.

Having said all that, DMs look for two key elements in how players create their characters. The first is investment. Are you emotionally invested in your character, and what does that investment look like? To start, it means you care enough about your character to fully flesh them out. You spend time thinking about which class and ancestry you genuinely want to play, creating a combination you’ll enjoy the most. You think about how to allocate your stats, and which gear you prefer and what spells you select. This isn’t min-maxing, it’s giving thought to your choices and taking a personal interest in them.

Second, you know your character inside and out. Players who are fully familiar with their character’s strengths and weaknesses are fun to have around the table. Great players are well-versed in the gear and abilities and spells their characters possess, and they study up to know not just how to use them, but when. It’s really cool for the DM when a player does something like using their final flask of oil to set the baddie on fire so the party can escape. Creative game-play like that makes it a more fun experience for everyone.

The Rising Tide of Fun

Table-top role-playing groups miss out when those around the table treat player characters as a collection of stats devoid of meaning and depth, or when they’re created without thought to how they can be played effectively, or without any personal motivation or investment by the player.

We can sometimes forget that Shadowdark and D&D and the others are role-playing games. This means we have real people playing the roles of invented personas. When we as people take an emotional stake in the characters we create, not just a functional or coldly intellectual one, the richness and depth of the game goes up, and that makes it more fun.

It’s also easy to forget that DMs have a stake in which characters are being run at their table. If the players are emotionally invested in their characters, odds are the DM will be, too. When the DM gets emotionally invested in the characters, the quality of the encounters and adventures and even the entire campaigns they create goes up. Everyone wins.

If you’re a player, I hope this article has inspired you to take a deeper interest in the characters you create at your next game. If you’re a DM, I’m probably preaching to the converted when I say, if your players raise the level of care they put into their characters, you’ll likely be inspired to up your game as well, pun fully intended.

Advice for DMs and Players When Their D&D Game Isn’t Very Fun

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A recent Reddit post from a new DM made me realize that some DMs new to the game worry about their players not enjoying the adventure they run, or liking them as a DM. Some of this comes down to basic newbie anxiety, but sometimes they’re also picking up on potential or even actual vibes from the players themselves.

If you’re a DM, new or experienced, have you ever run a game and had this sort of anxious, nervous feeling, where you think, “Is everyone having a bad time? What am I doing wrong?” In this article, I’m going to cover this very real issue and give some advice that will help ease that anxiety and make your game more successful.

And if you’re a player, this article is definitely worth reading because it sheds some light on the efforts your DM goes through to make the game enjoyable for you. I talk about how your attitude during the game has an impact on the amount fun you’re likely to have in that experience. I also highlight some ways you can make a good time more likely. In the end, the goal is for everyone to have a great time at the gaming table.

Newbie Players

Okay, nervous newbie DMs, let’s get right to it. First of all, it’s important to understand that it’s not uncommon for the players to also be new to the game, and they may not know what to expect. They may come into it thinking it’s going to be like Stranger Things and you, as the DM, have to be just like Eddie or that you are just a Matt Mercer clone.

Speaking of Eddie of Stranger Things, I had that experience with a young player, who was actually confused about the fact that every D&D game is unique and not part of some big, common plot.

He literally thought I was going to be running the same campaign Eddie did in the hit Netflix TV show.

Other players come into it thinking the game itself progresses just like a movie plot, where they don’t have to do much but sit back and passively experience it. The DM is left wondering why the players aren’t engaging, or don’t seem to think they have to do anything. These players don’t realize they have to participate, and in fact the bulk of the action is on them. They need to decide where they go, what they do or say, etc.

You’re a Chef

Most DMs understand, either implicitly or explicitly, that their goal is to show the players a good time. They know it’s not about them, it’s about the players. The DM is like a chef cooking a delicious meal for their guests. In this sense, DMs are like hosts, making sure their guests enjoy themselves.

I think newbie DMs have an even stronger sense of that feeling, the inherent responsibility of the role to make the whole table’s experience an enjoyable one. This drive to show everyone a good time can border on the anxiety end of the scale, to the point where they fret and worry about it. I’ve been playing D&D for over forty years and I still feel that pressure and feel that drive when DMing a game for a group of players I’ve never met before.

To new DMs, I say, it’s normal for you to worry a bit about whether your players are going to enjoy your game, even once you’ve had a lot of experience under your belt. That’s part of the job, really.

And for players, remember that your DM cares about your enjoyment of the game. They spend a lot of time and mental, and even emotional, energy crafting an experience that you will enjoy.

Advice for New DMs

Do I have any advice for DMs on this? Yes, and like most things in D&D, it’s a bit subjective based on my own personal experience and observation after playing for four decades. I don’t know it all, but I have seen a lot, and I’m still learning something new with every game I run.

First, you cannot and will not be able to please all players. It can’t be done, at least not consistently. Remember, being a DM is like dating four or five other people at the same time. Everyone has their own unique personality, along with their own likes and dislikes and preferences, so making all of them happy all of the time is impractical, if not outright impossible.

Second, a happy DM has a better chance of being a better DM. If you’re not having a good time, your players probably won’t, either. If you’re constantly stressing and fretting over what your players like or don’t like, you’ll be spending valuable brain time worrying about the wrong kind of perception at your table instead of focusing on what’s happening in the game itself.

Players, Good and Bad

Players, here’s some valuable advice that’s actually in your best interest. Let your DM know if you are having a good time at their table. Positive feedback is like oxygen to them, so don’t starve them of it if you genuinely enjoy what they’re doing.

If you’re not having a good time, figure out why. If you’re having issues outside the game and you’re bringing that into the gaming room, don’t take it out on the DM. Let them know you’ve got a headache that night or that your boss is being an asshole. Whatever. If your issues are with the game itself or how the DM is handling it, let them know privately. Be constructive, be specific, and be honest, but above all be kind.

DMs Want to Excel

DMs, it’s totally valid that you want to be good at running the game. In fact, I’d say that desire is one of the prerequisite qualifications. However, if that desire to run a good game isn’t there, it will likely become a self-fulfilling prophecy. The trick is to pursue that improvement without it becoming an actual anxiety.

This takes a small realization and acceptance that you’ll put in the effort but you’ll never achieve that “Everyone is Happy” state with all the players at all the games. Even with a group of players who are your best friends and have been playing at your table for years will sometimes just not be feeling it. That’s okay.

We’re all human, except for Dave. Nobody’s quite sure what he is yet. You have an exponetially larger load on your shoulders compared to the players, who really only have to show up and roll some dice and maybe role-play their dwarven fighter with a Scottish accent, because you know, them’s the rules.

A Matter of Perspective

My final advice to DMs is to keep working to improve, no matter how long you’ve been running the game, but remember that perfection isn’t something you’ll achieve, because, and I’m being totally honest here, you can’t. There are no perfect DMs, so don’t stress it when you have an off night.

And to players, remember that your DM is likely working their ass off trying to present an adventure and gaming experience that you enjoy so much you still talk about it years later. Understand that how you come across during the game, intentional or not, can contribute or even take away from their ability to achieve that goal. If you’re not engaging, or you’re constantly looking at your phone during the game, or you keep ghosting the group by not showing up, that drags the whole group down a little bit every time. Ultimately you are the one that misses out on an otherwise fun experience.

If you’re genuinely not having a good time, figure out the truth about why, then have a one-on-one conversation with your DM and let them know. Be specific, but be kind about it.

Fun Scenarios and Table Rules for Dedicated PvP Sessions in D&D

Twice a year, the D&D group I run has a dedicated PvP session completely outside our ongoing campaign where the players get to fight each other and death doesn’t count. Normally we don’t allow any player-against-player action in our regular campaign, but during these special games, we get some pizza and pop and have a session dedicated to bashing in each other’s skulls instead doing that to the orcs and ogres in fantasy land.

In this article, I’m going to share some of the PvP scenarios and special rules we use to make these occasional player-versus-player sessions a total blast. The players have a ton of fun, and if you’re interested in having a dedicated PvP game at your table, I hope this article gives you some cool ideas.

Download these and other PvP scenarios, for free, in The Vault

Is PvP Right for Your D&D Group?

PvP in D&D is a bit different than regular play, and the DM guides and player handbooks don’t really cover it much, if at all. Some tables allow it during regular game play, but I think that’s pretty rare. Most groups ban player-against-player hostility outright as does ours.

PvP is all about what each character can do to the other characters, so this is highly tactical play with none of the usual adventure plot hooks or NPCs and such.

To start, you’ll likely need a battle mat and some minis. I suppose you could do this entirely in your head, what’s commonly called “theater of the mind,” but because so much of PvP is highly tactical, it’s a lot easier to visualize what’s happening if you have a battle mat and miniatures.

Next, how many players will be participating? PvP scenarios can change a lot if you have six or more players than if you only have three or even two. Some of the scenarios I’ll describe in this article work best with larger groups while others are best suited to a smaller number of players.

PvP-specific Table Rules

Let’s begin with some ground rules. These are entirely up to you, but these are what we’ve done at our table. First, we don’t allow Inspiration rolls. There might be some situations where advantage or disadvantage come up, but we ignore Inspiration entirely.

Second, think about equal hit points and think about how you want to handle characters of different levels. A 6th level wizard versus a 2nd level barbarian is not a fair fight. At our table, we artificially set every character’s hit points to be the same, typically 30. You can optionally adjust the number of spells casters have available based on what the party’s average level is. This takes just a few minutes to adjust before play starts.

Some additional PvP-specific table rules include death at zero hit points. This kind of combat play is very fast-action, so you don’t want to waste a bunch of time rolling death saves.

When you hit zero hit points, you’re dead.

An alternative is that when a character dies, they get one respawn a round or two later in the same spot or at some random location, and you can even decide that, although alive, they only have one hit point. This can really add some fun pressure to the game.

Next, I like to set up my battle mat so it has grid coordinates down two sides, with letters across the short axis and numbers down the long axis. This way if we run any scenarios where invisibility is possible, the players with invisible characters can write their coordinates on a piece of paper and pass it to me in secret.

Finally, and this is entirely your choice, but you can choose not to use initiative, so that all actions take place simultaneously each round. This can lead to two characters killing each other at the same time, which is pretty hilarious. Or, you can have initiative be solely based on random dice rolls without DEX bonuses, which is what we usually use. Experiment and see what the group thinks and turns out to be the most fun.

PvP Scenarios

Here are some scenarios we’ve used. I’ll indicate if any are best suited to small or larger groups.

Battle Royale

The classic is Battle Royale … with cheese. This is essentially everyone against everyone and the last one alive wins. You can spruce this up by introducing different terrain features on your battle mat, whether you just draw them with a dry erase marker, or by placing physical blocks or other objects on the arena. Battle Royale scenarios tend to work better with groups of four or more players, but I’ve got some other ideas I’ll mention later in this article that make it fun for smaller groups.

Capture the Flag

Another classic is Capture the Flag. This is best for four or more players. Put a line down the center to separate the battle mat into halves, then draw some rooms or corridors or other features on the mat of relatively equal complexity per side. Split the group of players into equal groups, and let them choose where to place their flag on their side of the map. I use a token or a coin.

The goal is standard: each side tries to reach the other team’s flag, and once touched, carry it back to their own flag position without dying. If a character dies while carrying the flag, the flag is dropped in that square ready to be picked up by any other character. The dead character then respawns back at their own home position, or they are eliminated from the field of play. Your choice. This one can take a while if you allow respawning, but it’s still a lot of fun.

More PvP Scenarios

Here’s one idea I’ve done that’s fun in a surprising way. It’s Battle Royale but nobody starts with any weapons or magic items. Instead, those items are placed in various locations around the map by the DM and can be used by any class. I like two variations of this. First, you indicate locations where an item is placed but you don’t indicate what that item is. It could be a bow, a battle axe, or it could be a wand of Magic Missiles. Also, for magic items, you don’t indicate what the magic is, beyond just stating it’s a wand, and they don’t discover what it does until they actually pick it up. If you go this route, don’t enforce class restrictions by item type.

If your group of players have a lot of casters, you can have wizard duels. Give melee class types wands that mimic spells, so they can participate, too. If your players are heavy on the melee side, let your casters use weapons. You get the point.

Yet More PvP Scenarios

Here are four scenarios you can use with groups of just three or four players. The first is Fox and Hounds. Randomly select who’s the Fox. Optionally, every two or three rounds, you can have who’s the Fox rotate to the next player going clockwise around the table until they are killed. When the Fox dies, they become a Hound for the rest of the game. The last player not to be killed wins. This is best if your arena has physical terrain features where tactical positioning can help the Fox evade the Hounds.

A modifier you can add to just about any scenario is what I call the short-range shoot-out. You set all ranged attacks, spells and movements to 30 feet. This one adds a positional tactics element to the action.

I call this next scenario idea “Buffs Abound”. The players start at a single spot in the center of the mat. You place 3 buff tokens equidistant away from them, such as points on a triangle. It’s best if they’re on the other side of some obstacles. Use the same range limits in the Short Range Shoot-out of 30 feet for ranged attacks, spells, and movement per round. The buff tokens you place are:

Double damage for 2 rounds
Double hit points for 2 rounds
Double movement and range for 2 rounds

I use colored tokens to indicate which one’s which: red for double damage, white for double hit points, and green for double movement and range. When buffs expire, they are placed in new, randomly chosen locations. If a character carrying a buff dies, the buff either respawns a round later in that same spot, or it immediately respawns in some new, randomly selected location.

Triple Trouble

The final scenario is called Triple Trouble. It’s battle Royale but adds monsters to the mix. This one is my personal favorite to run as the DM. You can put buffs in the arena, but I recommend not imposing range limits. You start by placing the characters in the center of the arena and designate that they can’t attack each other until round two. Around the edge of the arena you place monsters of different types, the same number as there are players. I like to match the challenge rating of the monsters to the average level of the characters.

My suggestion is to use monsters that don’t have spells or magic abilities, but they can have ranged melee attacks like a manticore’s thrown tail spikes. The monsters I like are ogres, owlbears, and manticores. When in doubt, make sure the monster hit points are relatively the same as the party’s average.

Player Responses to Dedicated PvP Games

When we have our dedicated PvP session twice a year, we usually make it through three or four scenarios during a two-hour game. One thing I’ve noticed is that players develop a keen awareness of the relative strengths and weaknesses each other’s character has that they didn’t really notice before during regular campaign play. I think this is because they don’t pay as much attention to that rogue’s sneak attack or the wizard’s sleep spell until it’s directed at them. I find that very interesting.

Another thing I’ve noticed, at least with the players in my teens group, is that nobody takes it personally. They’re highly competitive, but they are really good sports about it because they know it doesn’t count, it’s not personal, and when we have a regular play session the next time, that other player is now on their side against the party’s common enemy.

DM Burnout: What It Looks Like, How to Avoid It, and How Players Can Help

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The Dungeon, The Dragon, and Becoming the DM Who Makes It Fun

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

Solus Domini: Solo fantasy wilderness and dungeon adventure rules — Solus Domini: Solo hex-crawl and dungeon crawl rules

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.

How Choice Paralysis Affects D&D Players and DMs (And How to Fix It)

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Even if you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice.

Have you ever had a moment in D&D, whether you’re a player or the DM, where you were frozen with indecision? I have and I’d almost be willing to bet a dollar you have, too. There are some people who have the personality type to never question or doubt their decisions and they just boldly go forward always confident they’re doing the right thing, but for the other 98% of us, there are definitely times in the game of D&D when we suffer from choice paralysis.

In this article, I’m going to describe three types of choice paralysis that afflict D&D players, and three types that afflict DMs. Most of my examples in this article share something in common, fear of making the wrong choice, but another one has more to do with the pursuit of perfection when the option of “good enough” is staring you right in the face.

Character Creation Choice Paralysis

The first of three examples of D&D player choice paralysis have to do with something that happens before the game. It’s time to create a character and you get a bad case of blank-character-sheet-syndrome.

You flip through the Players Handbook and review the different ancestries and classes, and like that meme where the math symbols are floating around in space like Greek mosquitos, your brain spins around all the possible options and never seems to make up its mind.

Picking your class and ancestry combination is probably the most frequent example of choice paralysis experienced when creating your new character, with choosing how to allocate your six ability scores being a close second.

If you’re a fighter, it’s easy. Dump the biggest score in STR and your second biggest in DEX and move on. But if you’re a bard or ranger or some other versatile class, it can be a challenge figuring out which stat gets which score.

I wish I had some really good advice for how to overcome this, but I don’t. All I have is sympathy and the explanation that it’s alright. You’ll get through this.

Which Spell?

When you are creating a spell caster type of character, you can experience yet another type of choice paralysis. This comes up when trying to pick the spells your character takes with them at the beginning of an adventure. It’s like first level wizards wondering if they should take Sleep or Magic Missile.

I’ve seen newbie players opt for some pretty bizarre choices in their first and only spell, but I try as a DM to guide them in a more useful direction. Admittedly, I know what kind of situations are likely to come up in the adventure, so it’s kind of like insider trading.

When the DM asks, “Are you really sure you want to take Comprehend Languages?” you’ve got a pretty good indicator there won’t be any unusual languages you’ll need to comprehend.

Combat Choice Paralysis

The most common example of player choice paralysis I’ve seen takes place during the game and impacts all classes. It’s that situation where combat has begun and you’re frozen with trying to decide what to do during your turn in the round.

The DM says, “It’s your turn,” and now you’ve got a half dozen people staring at you and their headlights are on high-beam. You’ve either got a selection of movement options, weapon choices, which monster to attack, or a selection of spells to cast and you can’t decide.

This one is a classic example of the fear people have of making the wrong decision. Combat can be hard, especially when the party’s hit points are low, but ironically that can actually make decisions slightly easier, especially if you have fewer spells to choose from or you’re all out of arrows and the only real choice you have is to either bash the dragon again with your mace or cast Cure Light Wounds on the wounded Barbarian — or yourself. Crap, there’s yet another choice to make.

DM Choice Paralysis

Choice paralysis is a very real issue for DMs, too. Like character creation for players, the first example occurs before the game. This is more of an issue where a DM doesn’t know when to stop than it is about being unable to decide between multiple options.

There are a lot of DMs who will spend weeks or even months with world-building and prep, sometimes going down to the smallest level of detail, without knowing when enough is enough. I’ve done this many times during my career as a DM, but I will provide a caveat that “over-prep” isn’t necessarily a bad thing if two conditions exist:

First, the DM is heavy-prepping because they enjoy it. Prep is a joy for many DMs and they love every minute spend doing it, no matter how detailed.

Second, the DM does it with full understanding and acknowledgement that only a small percentage of what they create will ever be discovered by the players. In fact, I’ve learned that in my career as a DM, only about 30% of what I create, on average, gets explored. If that seems low to you, I’ve got another article that talks about how to mine that other 70% so your prep time isn’t wasted.

Encounter Difficulty Paralysis

I’ve seen other DMs fret over how to structure an encounter so that it’s challenging for the players without being too easy or too difficult. I used to worry about this issue a bit more back in the day than I do now, because I’ve learned some ways to dynamically adjust the combat as it’s happening.

There are some formulas that use 5e’s Challenge Rating for monsters into account that are a good ballpark, but each encounter still needs a DM’s discerning eye and judgment to shape appropriately.

The fear of a TPK can make DMs design encounters that are too weak, and I’ve seen DMs create encounters that start wiping out player characters one per round because they underestimated the strength of the monsters. This circumstance isn’t so much choice paralysis as it’s anxiety about outcomes, but that paralysis can definitely come into play during the design phase, more so than during the combat itself.

Session Choice Paralysis

This last example of choice paralysis for DMs is by far the most common.

It’s that old chestnut, “What am I going to run during tonight’s session?”

This generally applies to encounters and session-level choices, not adventure-level or campaign-level choices. I face this all the time, even now after running D&D games for four decades, and it comes down to the worry that the players won’t have a good time. What I’ve realized, though, is that the players always have a good time to one degree or another because they enjoy what you present to them without ever having knowledge or awareness of the ideas you discarded or postponed.

Here’s a little insider secret about smart DMs that players shouldn’t read. A good DM preps it all, even if it’s just in brief outline format, and keeps track of what the players use and what to keep in reserve. The DM knows that if they can’t decide between three different adventure choices, they can just pick one knowing the other two can always be used down the road.

Freewill

In the Rush song, Freewill, Neil Peart’s lyrics tell us, “Even if you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice.” And the cool thing is, pretty much no matter what choice you go with, you will almost always have the opportunity to use your other options later on.

See the video:

https://youtu.be/vxSV-GKeMag

The 10% Rule: Run Better D&D Games on the Fly

Planning and prepping is fun for a lot of DMs, and I’ll be honest, I’m one of them. But here’s something I’ve come to believe after being a DM for more than four decades: winging it might actually be the better way to run the game.

Before the prep enthusiasts reading this click away, hear me out. I’m not saying throw your notes in the trash. I’m saying that running your game on the fly is a skill worth developing, and in this article I’ll show you a simple rule that makes it easier for any DM, even if you’ve never thought of yourself as a naturally creative person.

I came to this conclusion the same way I come to most conclusions about running D&D: by looking back at what actually happened at my table and identifying what works and what doesn’t. When I think about my most memorable sessions, the ones my players still talk about, a lot of them weren’t heavily prepped. A lot of them were sessions where I was winging most of it and something unexpected yet really cool happened. I don’t think that’s a coincidence.

As with most things, there’s a catch.

The Problem With Pure Winging It

Winging it sounds great in theory. There’s no prep stress, just you and your players creating something together in real time. The problem is that when you’re making things up completely off the top of your head, you can easily paint yourself into a corner. And getting yourself out of that corner requires even more mental energy in the moment, which is what you want to avoid.

Random or disjointed creativity can make things go really wonky, really fast.

Let’s say an NPC makes a promise you can’t keep, or a dungeon layout stops making physical sense. Maybe a plot detail from an hour ago contradicts something you established in a previous session, and the players call you on it. Let’s face it, DMs who wing it need good memories, even if they keep good notes. I’ve been there.

When those moments happen, you’re not running a game anymore. You’re doing damage control while also trying to keep the session interesting, all in your head.

Some DMs are naturally spontaneous and have the ability to hold it all together. I’ve met one who was genuinely airtight at keeping track of everything they invented on the spot, but even they have their limits. For most of us, pure unanchored winging it tends to produce adventures that feel scattered rather than alive.

The goal is to make it up as you go along in a way that the players think you had it prepped all in advance.

The 10% Rule

Here’s the thing: when winging it works well, there’s usually a reason why you pull it off. You likely didn’t grab something out of thin air. What you most likely did, maybe without even realizing it, is you started with something that already existed and you tweaked it just enough to make it feel both new and intentional. What you did was edit something rather than invent it. That’s the principle underneath every good improv moment at the table, and once you see it, you can learn how to do it on purpose.

I call it the 10% Rule.

Here’s how it works. Start with something. Anything. Roll on a random encounter table or think of a scenario you’ve seen in a movie. It doesn’t matter where the seed comes from. What matters is that you have something in front of you to react to.

Then change it by 10 percent. Nudge it in a new direction or give it a slight twist. Add one detail that makes it yours. That’s it.

The reason this works comes down to a truth I’ve talked about for years: it’s easier to edit than to create. When you have something in front of you, even something rough or random or borrowed, you enter more comfortable and confident territory. You’re no longer staring at a blank page. You’re reacting, adjusting, and maybe even improving something that already exists. That’s a completely different cognitive task, and it’s one most people can do quickly and do fairly well.

What This Looks Like in Practice

Let’s say you roll on a random encounter table and you get “2 bandits on the road.” That’s not very exciting on its own, is it? But now apply the 10 percent rule. What if one of them is clearly nervous and the other is doing all the talking? What if they’re not actually trying to rob the party, but are pretending to, because someone is watching from the tree line? What if they’ve been hired by someone the party already knows?

You haven’t invented the wheel from scratch. You’ve taken something generic and added one layer that makes it feel new to the players. That’s the 10 percent.

The same thing works for locations. Let’s say you need a tavern on short notice. Every tavern has a bar, a fireplace, and a suspicious stranger in the corner, right? Fine, start there. Now change one thing. The barkeep is mute and communicates by writing on a small chalkboard. The suspicious stranger is a child. There’s a scruffy dog sitting in front of the fireplace, it’s got a severed hand in its mouth, and yet everyone is pretending not to notice. One detail changes the whole feel of the scene, and that detail took you about four seconds to invent because you started with something that already existed and you changed it by 10%.

NPCs Are Where This Really Pays Off

Roleplaying NPCs is probably the purest form of improv in D&D. The party walks into a shop, or gets stopped by a guard, or stumbles into a conversation you hadn’t planned, and suddenly you’re on stage with no script.

The 10% Rule works here too, and it’s especially powerful because you can draw from people and characters you already know.

Pick a real person in your life, someone you know well enough to predict how they’d react in a given situation. Think of a coworker, a neighbor, or your uncle Frank. Now put them behind the counter of a blacksmith shop and see what happens. You already know how they talk, whether they’re friendly or gruff or long-winded, what gets under their skin, etc. That’s your NPC. You’ve done zero work and you’ve got a character with genuine personality.

You can also do this with fictional characters.

Can you play a city guard as if he has the personality of Joey from Friends?

He’s confident and friendly, but not always the sharpest sword in the armory. That’s a fully realized character, and he’ll likely feel more alive to your players than someone you spent an hour inventing on paper.

Maybe you’ve got a young shopkeeper’s assistant. Portray them with the anxious, well-meaning energy of Peter Parker. The players will think you rehearsed the character for hours the night before.

This method means you’re not doing creative work in the traditional sense. You’re borrowing an existing structure and applying it to a new situation. That’s the 10 percent rule at work.

This Is a Skill, and Winging It Gets Better

Spontaneous creativity isn’t just a talent some people are born with and others aren’t. It’s a skill, and like any skill, I believe you can improve it with practice.

The 10% Rule is a training tool as much as it’s a technique. The more you use it, the faster your brain starts making those connections on its own. You’ll find yourself automatically looking for the twist, the detail you can adjust, or the personality you can borrow in a pinch. After a while, winging it stops feeling like a risk and starts feeling like the best part of your session.

Building Memorable Sessions

I think back to those memorable sessions I mentioned at the start. What made them work wasn’t that I got lucky. It was that I had enough experience to grab something quickly and shape it into something that felt alive. That’s what the 10% Rule builds over time. You’re not just getting through the session. You’re getting better at the thing that makes D&D genuinely fun to run.

So the real secret to winging it well is simple: steal from other sources and change them by 10 percent to make them yours. Start with something, react to it, and adjust it just enough to make it fit. That’s all you need.

I believe this method can help you make your D&D game even better than if you prepped it all in advance.

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