I've been running a continuing campaign with the same group no for about 7yrs or so. Its a slow game as we normally manage about 2-4 sessions per year and as a result they have only just reached level 6/7. We started with 4e and 'Keep on the Shadowfell' and the tactical system there worked reasonably well for the group getting into D&D. However, since 5E's release we have been trekking our way through HotDQ and currently they have just I=entered the caves below Castle Naerytar.
Although my group likes essentially just rolling dice and mashing monsters, I have noticed in my own style of DM'ing I am more and more relying on whats written in the text of book and less improvised embellished narration. So I was wondering what the rest of the community does and how they have tackled the balance between following (however loosely) the module text, detailed narration/embelishment and keeping a good pace on the game.
My players often relay on me as the DM to offer up some detailed description of their killer blows/actions etc. I have tried to watch the pro's like Matt Mercer and Chris Perkins to draw on their style a bit, but tbh at 9pm on a Saturday night and a long week at work my mind is sometimes fried.
++++ TLDR +++++
In short how much embellishment do you add to your descriptions whether that is about the location/area, the characters/NPC's/Enemies, effects or the actions of the players characters?
Do you have such detail in your game notes in advance or do you make it up at the table? If you have notes, what is your trick to make sure you don't forget to add that into the game and just gloss over to the next pre-written section?
Any advice, tips, discussions are most appreciated
When I dm a pre-made adventure I read the book from cover to cover and mark whatever I find is crucial for the plot - which information the players HAVE to get and which locations they really need to visit. Then I take the entrypoint of the pre-made plot and try to lead the players slightly to the "correct" path hopefully without them noticing. For example: When they decide to kill a crucial plot person, and they have a great idea to do so I will let them do it and invent a different person to have that piece of information for them.
I will not try to narrow their playstyle for the sake of the premade plot.
So basically to answer your question: I try to be as creative in my descriptions and ongoing dming as possible but try to have the players basically run the game with their actions and own creativity.
It's hard to say exactly how much narration or description I give... but it is easy enough to show what my notes often look like on the rare occasions when I prepare them in advance, rather than winging the whole game at the table (which comes out pretty much the same because I've practiced improvisational DM for a long time).
Within the following spoiler tag is a sample of a traveling portion of the campaign I'm currently running. The names are all Scarred Lands setting pieces, and the dates at the start of the paragraphs correspond to in-setting time. The text is a mix of stuff I'll paraphrase aloud to the players and notes for myself, saving space by writing them together since I known which is which (pretty much anything you think "I wouldn't tell the players that as written" is the stuff I'd change or not say - like where it says "a trio of displacer beasts" I'd replace the name with a description of the creature if saying it out loud for the players (unless their characters are familiar with displacer beasts, at least)).
Morning, 3-3-150 AV: Continuing the journey to Vesh at last.
The journey is fairly long, with two general paths to be chosen: through the mountains (192 miles at half-pace) and across the plains to the city of Lave (168 miles); or a 72 mile shorter path across the mountains (120 miles at half-pace), through the Mourning Marshes (108 miles at half-pace), and across the plains to the city (60 miles).
Path A: Around the Marsh
3-3 & 3-4-150 AV: You head northward out of Burok Torn, taking to the mountain paths again. The weather is fair, and the first two days uneventful.
3-5 & 3-6-150 AV: The next couple of days are interspersed with a mildly irritating precipitation of sleet, but Turen guides the party through a mostly covered access road used to haul heavy materials when Burok torn was being built.
3-7-150 AV: Harsh winds have been whipping at the mountain trails as you crest the last of the peaks along your path. Far ahead and below you can see the expanse of darkly green marshland and grasslands vibrant with spring's new life. The journey is mostly downhill from here.
Evening, 3-8-150 AV: As you head down into a valley, still seeking refuge from the strong winds, a pair of ettins along the path serve as an obstacle. They are locked in a 4-way argument in orcish that seems to be primarily about which of them gets to keep this stretch of road for plundering and which should find a cliff to jump off - the issue being that the only two heads in agreement among the four present are not on the same body. Their names are Mort-Bort and Pungle-Fungle, and while they are about to come to blows to solve their argument, they will certainly delay that battle until after they've taken down the party and are fighting over who gets to eat the horses and who gets to keep the valuables.
Strong Winds: Disadvantage on ranged weapon attack rolls and Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing. Extinguishes open flames, disperses fog, and makes flying by nonmagical means nearly impossible (land at the end of turn or fall).
3-9-150 AV: The winds finally calm as you descend further down the north side of the mountains. One of the valleys you pass through is littered with ruins - the last remnant of some civilization stricken from existence long ago by the capricious Titans, even their name irrevocably lost.
3-10-150 AV: As you set out in the morning you feel as though something is watching you. It takes hours to finally catch a glimpse of what it is that stalks you - an immense, black feline form, carefully following you along the ridge line above. A trio of displacer beasts are stalking the party, readying to pounce on them from above at the right moment (lunch time, basically).
Edit to add some insight into why i do it this way: I try to get the most from the least words, so that I spend less time talking between times that a player is talking about their character doing something. So I focus on details that matter because they can be interacted with or convey the ambience of a scene, and avoid anything fiddly that players might get hung up on asking questions about later for no reason other than that I said it and that made them think it was important when it isn't.
Personally, I like lots of details - but I try and remember "Nobody got time for that!".
So - what I strive for is a few, concise, memorable, descriptors. I also try and avoid what I call an "all points bulletin" description of precisely what they look like, are wearing, carrying, etc. - and try and aim for descriptions that only touch on a few relevant points, and which have active verbsin them, not just passive nouns. Player imagination will fill in the rest.
In strides a short, broad, powerful man - still radiating confidence & command despite the white peppering of his hair and beard - moving with grim purpose despite the considerable paunch of his middle. His practical riding boots, and worn leather sword belt contrast sharply with the finery of his banquet apparel, and his steely gaze quickly and intelligently catalogs the details of the temple carnage.
I don't often realize this ideal, but it's what I aim for.
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Similar to Vedexent, I think descriptions are a solid way to slowly build up your storytelling. I try to use two directly related to the party for at least any eventful moment such as a player action or a setting reveal so they feel immersed, ex:this guy is bumming you for booze money vs the man reeks of desperation, you can smell the alcohol in his sweat, orthe fort is up on a hill in front of you vs you see the fort up on the lonely hill, glowing pale under the full moon.
Neither of these phrases take up too much time but they place the players in the setting. As a player I could imagine myself there, and that gives me more reason to invest myself which in turn feeds you as the DM. I started with just a couple phrases every now and then, and now it's pretty natural. I haven't had any complaints yet about lack of balance, so I think you'll be fine by taking whatever method you try with baby steps.
I really like that! The active verbs can involve the PCs
In strides a short, broad, powerful man - you can sense an air command radiating from him despite the white peppering of his hair and beard - and he moves with grim purpose despite the considerable paunch of his middle. His practical riding boots, and worn leather sword belt catch your eye,contrasting sharply with the finery of his banquet apparel, and his intelligent steely gaze quickly flicks over you, and onward to catalog the details of the temple carnage.
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
That’s absolutely great, and I assume takes a bit of practice to get into the habit of doing this. So what are your trick to ensure you don’t miss the chance to embellish your descriptions.
I’m thinking along the lines following along a published adventure like HotDQ or SKT or any of the others that WOTC have put out there. As you move from one room in the dungeon to the next or to the next segment of description where there is a little text for the DM but no ‘Read out’ box to give the players. How do you add this in? I mean do you pre-plan these embellishments or is it simply ad-hoc at the table and whatever comes to mind?
part of the reason I ask is that some of my best ideas of description pop into my mind as I’m reading the chapter in prep, or during the drive to work in the morning. But when it comes to the time at the table I’ve found myself get a bit tunnel visioned on the encounter and forget these little extras that bring immersion and life to the game.
part of the reason I ask is that some of my best ideas of description pop into my mind as I’m reading the chapter in prep, or during the drive to work in the morning. But when it comes to the time at the table I’ve found myself get a bit tunnel visioned on the encounter and forget these little extras that bring immersion and life to the game.
Have you tried jotting down some of those things that pop in your head? You could make a list of a few and mark them off as you use them, plus the list sitting in front of you while running the game could serve as a reminder to do the describing in general. The list could have the drawback of you spending time looking at ideas you jotted down that don't fit with the current situation, so I'd watch out for that if you try it out.
And if not a list, a sticky note that says "Remember the flourish!" or something along that line at your DM station could be a reminder. I prefer to use yellow ones for important reminders because I hate the color yellow which keeps my attention occasionally going to the note as I see it in my peripheral vision and think "blech... why is that there?" Then when I finally memorize or internalize whatever the note was about, I can finally get it out of my sight, so that's like an extra incentive to reach that point.
part of the reason I ask is that some of my best ideas of description pop into my mind as I’m reading the chapter in prep, or during the drive to work in the morning. But when it comes to the time at the table I’ve found myself get a bit tunnel visioned on the encounter and forget these little extras that bring immersion and life to the game.
Have you tried jotting down some of those things that pop in your head? You could make a list of a few and mark them off as you use them, plus the list sitting in front of you while running the game could serve as a reminder to do the describing in general. The list could have the drawback of you spending time looking at ideas you jotted down that don't fit with the current situation, so I'd watch out for that if you try it out.
Writing down these, as AaronOfBarbaria suggests is a good one.
As my "DM Screen" is my laptop screen, even at our tabletop game, I tend to write these flourishes and descriptions out in the text file notes for the upcoming session - then tailor/twist them to match the changed circumstances.
However - I still forget stuff. I think this just takes a lot of practice.
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
I tried using my laptop and found it just got in the way and detracted from my game experience of paper and pen, even as the DM. Although I am trying to run a regular session of LMoP with my wife and kids, playing purely off the laptop.
If we we get the option to mark up pdf versions of the rule and adventure books either on mobile or laptop versions of D&D Beyond I may be converted.
but I will keep this in mind, always time to learn something new and improve on processes.
I have the laptop, and a pad of paper to my left. I can make quick notes there. That's it. To me the game experience is the story and the characters, not the paper and the dice - but we all enjoy different aspects, no criticism there.
All rules references are a web browser session to DnD Beyond (supplemented by the occasional Google search); all game notes are done up in Google Docs - and honestly, most of the "paper notes" go right back here; while I do the occasional physical dice roll on the table for the players to show opponent saving throws, etc, most of the enemy/monster combat die rolling is done up all at once in a combat tracking spreadsheet I built in Google Docs.
That latter one - which randomly generates two versions of attack and damage rolls ( advantage/disadvantage - take first if not ), for each of the creatures attacks options for every non-player creature in the combat, and tracks not only NPC creature damage, but generates a little state descriptor ( "Injured","Bloodied" ... "Near Death" ) - really speeds up combat. I can just scan down the column and read out results - "Miri, 14 hits? ... <insert attack description> .... 5 points, Vul ... 3 misses ... <describe miss> ...Allister, your attack ... yep, 22 hits - AC is 14 for future reference ... 12 damage? ... Ooo, that was a solid hit, and he stumbles back, badly hurt ... " ... < press button to refresh attack rolls for next round >.
We managed to chew through a 6PC, 12NPC bar room brawl combat in about 20 minutes.
Plus other browser tabs manage things like sound effect and playlist selections off of Youtube.
Plus - it's light to throw in the backpack. compared to a stack of hardcover books :)
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
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Hi,
I've been running a continuing campaign with the same group no for about 7yrs or so. Its a slow game as we normally manage about 2-4 sessions per year and as a result they have only just reached level 6/7. We started with 4e and 'Keep on the Shadowfell' and the tactical system there worked reasonably well for the group getting into D&D. However, since 5E's release we have been trekking our way through HotDQ and currently they have just I=entered the caves below Castle Naerytar.
Although my group likes essentially just rolling dice and mashing monsters, I have noticed in my own style of DM'ing I am more and more relying on whats written in the text of book and less improvised embellished narration. So I was wondering what the rest of the community does and how they have tackled the balance between following (however loosely) the module text, detailed narration/embelishment and keeping a good pace on the game.
My players often relay on me as the DM to offer up some detailed description of their killer blows/actions etc. I have tried to watch the pro's like Matt Mercer and Chris Perkins to draw on their style a bit, but tbh at 9pm on a Saturday night and a long week at work my mind is sometimes fried.
++++ TLDR +++++
In short how much embellishment do you add to your descriptions whether that is about the location/area, the characters/NPC's/Enemies, effects or the actions of the players characters?
Do you have such detail in your game notes in advance or do you make it up at the table? If you have notes, what is your trick to make sure you don't forget to add that into the game and just gloss over to the next pre-written section?
Any advice, tips, discussions are most appreciated
Ta
That is a very good question actually.
When I dm a pre-made adventure I read the book from cover to cover and mark whatever I find is crucial for the plot - which information the players HAVE to get and which locations they really need to visit. Then I take the entrypoint of the pre-made plot and try to lead the players slightly to the "correct" path hopefully without them noticing. For example: When they decide to kill a crucial plot person, and they have a great idea to do so I will let them do it and invent a different person to have that piece of information for them.
I will not try to narrow their playstyle for the sake of the premade plot.
So basically to answer your question: I try to be as creative in my descriptions and ongoing dming as possible but try to have the players basically run the game with their actions and own creativity.
It's hard to say exactly how much narration or description I give... but it is easy enough to show what my notes often look like on the rare occasions when I prepare them in advance, rather than winging the whole game at the table (which comes out pretty much the same because I've practiced improvisational DM for a long time).
Within the following spoiler tag is a sample of a traveling portion of the campaign I'm currently running. The names are all Scarred Lands setting pieces, and the dates at the start of the paragraphs correspond to in-setting time. The text is a mix of stuff I'll paraphrase aloud to the players and notes for myself, saving space by writing them together since I known which is which (pretty much anything you think "I wouldn't tell the players that as written" is the stuff I'd change or not say - like where it says "a trio of displacer beasts" I'd replace the name with a description of the creature if saying it out loud for the players (unless their characters are familiar with displacer beasts, at least)).
Morning, 3-3-150 AV: Continuing the journey to Vesh at last.
The journey is fairly long, with two general paths to be chosen: through the mountains (192 miles at half-pace) and across the plains to the city of Lave (168 miles); or a 72 mile shorter path across the mountains (120 miles at half-pace), through the Mourning Marshes (108 miles at half-pace), and across the plains to the city (60 miles).
Path A: Around the Marsh
3-3 & 3-4-150 AV: You head northward out of Burok Torn, taking to the mountain paths again. The weather is fair, and the first two days uneventful.
3-5 & 3-6-150 AV: The next couple of days are interspersed with a mildly irritating precipitation of sleet, but Turen guides the party through a mostly covered access road used to haul heavy materials when Burok torn was being built.
3-7-150 AV: Harsh winds have been whipping at the mountain trails as you crest the last of the peaks along your path. Far ahead and below you can see the expanse of darkly green marshland and grasslands vibrant with spring's new life. The journey is mostly downhill from here.
Evening, 3-8-150 AV: As you head down into a valley, still seeking refuge from the strong winds, a pair of ettins along the path serve as an obstacle. They are locked in a 4-way argument in orcish that seems to be primarily about which of them gets to keep this stretch of road for plundering and which should find a cliff to jump off - the issue being that the only two heads in agreement among the four present are not on the same body. Their names are Mort-Bort and Pungle-Fungle, and while they are about to come to blows to solve their argument, they will certainly delay that battle until after they've taken down the party and are fighting over who gets to eat the horses and who gets to keep the valuables.
Strong Winds: Disadvantage on ranged weapon attack rolls and Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing. Extinguishes open flames, disperses fog, and makes flying by nonmagical means nearly impossible (land at the end of turn or fall).
3-9-150 AV: The winds finally calm as you descend further down the north side of the mountains. One of the valleys you pass through is littered with ruins - the last remnant of some civilization stricken from existence long ago by the capricious Titans, even their name irrevocably lost.
3-10-150 AV: As you set out in the morning you feel as though something is watching you. It takes hours to finally catch a glimpse of what it is that stalks you - an immense, black feline form, carefully following you along the ridge line above. A trio of displacer beasts are stalking the party, readying to pounce on them from above at the right moment (lunch time, basically).
Edit to add some insight into why i do it this way: I try to get the most from the least words, so that I spend less time talking between times that a player is talking about their character doing something. So I focus on details that matter because they can be interacted with or convey the ambience of a scene, and avoid anything fiddly that players might get hung up on asking questions about later for no reason other than that I said it and that made them think it was important when it isn't.
Personally, I like lots of details - but I try and remember "Nobody got time for that!".
So - what I strive for is a few, concise, memorable, descriptors. I also try and avoid what I call an "all points bulletin" description of precisely what they look like, are wearing, carrying, etc. - and try and aim for descriptions that only touch on a few relevant points, and which have active verbs in them, not just passive nouns. Player imagination will fill in the rest.
In strides a short, broad, powerful man - still radiating confidence & command despite the white peppering of his hair and beard - moving with grim purpose despite the considerable paunch of his middle. His practical riding boots, and worn leather sword belt contrast sharply with the finery of his banquet apparel, and his steely gaze quickly and intelligently catalogs the details of the temple carnage.
I don't often realize this ideal, but it's what I aim for.
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
For myself I have a lot of description in my homebrew. However I like to use pre-written adventures.
Similar to Vedexent, I think descriptions are a solid way to slowly build up your storytelling. I try to use two directly related to the party for at least any eventful moment such as a player action or a setting reveal so they feel immersed, ex:this guy is bumming you for booze money vs the man reeks of desperation, you can smell the alcohol in his sweat, or the fort is up on a hill in front of you vs you see the fort up on the lonely hill, glowing pale under the full moon.
Neither of these phrases take up too much time but they place the players in the setting. As a player I could imagine myself there, and that gives me more reason to invest myself which in turn feeds you as the DM. I started with just a couple phrases every now and then, and now it's pretty natural. I haven't had any complaints yet about lack of balance, so I think you'll be fine by taking whatever method you try with baby steps.
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
That’s absolutely great, and I assume takes a bit of practice to get into the habit of doing this. So what are your trick to ensure you don’t miss the chance to embellish your descriptions.
I’m thinking along the lines following along a published adventure like HotDQ or SKT or any of the others that WOTC have put out there. As you move from one room in the dungeon to the next or to the next segment of description where there is a little text for the DM but no ‘Read out’ box to give the players. How do you add this in? I mean do you pre-plan these embellishments or is it simply ad-hoc at the table and whatever comes to mind?
part of the reason I ask is that some of my best ideas of description pop into my mind as I’m reading the chapter in prep, or during the drive to work in the morning. But when it comes to the time at the table I’ve found myself get a bit tunnel visioned on the encounter and forget these little extras that bring immersion and life to the game.
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
I tried using my laptop and found it just got in the way and detracted from my game experience of paper and pen, even as the DM. Although I am trying to run a regular session of LMoP with my wife and kids, playing purely off the laptop.
If we we get the option to mark up pdf versions of the rule and adventure books either on mobile or laptop versions of D&D Beyond I may be converted.
but I will keep this in mind, always time to learn something new and improve on processes.
Possibly getting off topic, but ...
I have the laptop, and a pad of paper to my left. I can make quick notes there. That's it. To me the game experience is the story and the characters, not the paper and the dice - but we all enjoy different aspects, no criticism there.
All rules references are a web browser session to DnD Beyond (supplemented by the occasional Google search); all game notes are done up in Google Docs - and honestly, most of the "paper notes" go right back here; while I do the occasional physical dice roll on the table for the players to show opponent saving throws, etc, most of the enemy/monster combat die rolling is done up all at once in a combat tracking spreadsheet I built in Google Docs.
That latter one - which randomly generates two versions of attack and damage rolls ( advantage/disadvantage - take first if not ), for each of the creatures attacks options for every non-player creature in the combat, and tracks not only NPC creature damage, but generates a little state descriptor ( "Injured","Bloodied" ... "Near Death" ) - really speeds up combat. I can just scan down the column and read out results - "Miri, 14 hits? ... <insert attack description> .... 5 points, Vul ... 3 misses ... <describe miss> ...Allister, your attack ... yep, 22 hits - AC is 14 for future reference ... 12 damage? ... Ooo, that was a solid hit, and he stumbles back, badly hurt ... " ... < press button to refresh attack rolls for next round >.
We managed to chew through a 6PC, 12NPC bar room brawl combat in about 20 minutes.
Plus other browser tabs manage things like sound effect and playlist selections off of Youtube.
Plus - it's light to throw in the backpack. compared to a stack of hardcover books :)
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.