How to Dungeon Master

Oct 19

to dungeon master a small emerald dragon breathing blue fire

Can you be a Dungeon Master as a Beginner?

Yes, absolutely you can. There is often mystery surrounding the great and powerful role of being a Dungeon Master, and honestly, it’s not really a big deal. So long as you know that there is a bit more work when it comes to your role in the game, you can do it with no problem. The job of the DM is to herd the players through a fun and enjoyable night of gaming. So long as you do that, you will do fine. As a new Dungeon Master, I want to give you a few things to remember. Just remember that there are a few key things to note.

You don’t need to know all the rules to get started. Does it help? Sure. Is it necessary? Not really. There are a lot of rules, and not everyone can spend hours upon hours reading a book before getting started. The starting adventures that Wizards of the Coast releases are designed for the DM to have ZERO experience. So just go for it.
You’re a storytelling sheep herder. It’s your job to set the scenes, plant hooks, and herd the players through the story. You do this through the rules the game provides. As stated, you don’t need to know all or any of the rules when starting. Prewritten adventures such as the Lost Mines of Phandelver (Highly Recommend) give you the details you need and the player character sheets have the details they need that they can provide to you.
When you’re unsure of a ruling or a decision, just take a moment to think about the situation. Is it reasonable that a character can do this? No? Tell them and move on. Yes? Then allow them to roll for a chance to succeed with the appropriate ability check. If a character has a particularly increased chance of success or failure in the task, add the advantage or disadvantage accordingly. I call this the Golden Rule.
As Dungeon Master you are the one the players will turn to for disputes, in-game and out-of-game. Unfortunately, that is how the dice roll. It isn’t always pretty. Make sure to remember that help the players resolve situations in an adult manner. I recommend the mantra “Don’t criticize, condemn or complain”.
It’s a game. Have fun. As you play the game, ask the players (including yourself) what your favorite parts are about the game. Is it building powerhouse characters? Complex backgrounds? Political intrigue? Horror? Dungeon crawl? Always talk with the players, get feedback, and run adventures that fill that interest. If everyone hates a dungeon crawl, why would you run one? You can drop single adventures that delve into different aspects to scratch those itches. Just keep the feedback coming and build accordingly.

How do I Become a Good DnD Dungeon Master?

Below is a simple outline that can keep with you at the table that will help you keep your story and campaigns moving forward. It may not seem like much, but it all starts with setting guidelines for identifying the tasks at hand. Here are some example tasks and situations and how the DM might handle the situation. The Player Handbook goes into plenty of detail on combat, so we will give an outline of the other tasks.

Exploration Task:

Describe the Options
Get the players to inform you what their characters are doing
Identify player responses
Interruption with obstacles/encounters
Advance to the next decision point

Conversation Task:

Describe the scene and the NPC
Decided the goals of the NPC
Give an opening line
Roleplay conversation
End conversation

Grab Unearthed Tips and Tricks to get you Started!

We put together a great starter pack, a 5-star best-selling book chock full of Dungeon Master tips, encounter ideas, player tips and so much more here. Come prepared and support our work.

Still here eh?

Want more?

Well, check out this article or our How to Run a Session 0 in Dungeons and Dragons video on Youtube.