How to Be a Better DM: Dungeon Master Tips for the DM Newbie, the Hobbyist and the Forever DM

Nov 14 2024 188 ep. 24 mins 42

How to Be a Better DM: Dungeon Master Tips for the DM Newbie, the Hobbyist and the Forever DM Podcast artwork

Learn how to be a better DM (Dungeon Master) so you can tell better stories for yourself and your friends. Learn things like how to start a campaign, how to create realistic NPCs, how to move the plot along, and how and why to use session 0's for your party. Join hosts Justin Lewis, Cayden Ottley and Tanner Weyland as they distill all the DM tips, tools and resources for the beginner DM, for the DM with a few years of experience and for the Forever DM who's been playing for 20 years. If you're sick of searching for things like, "How to create a homebrew DND campaign?", click the play button and listen to become the best dungeon master you ever could be!

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To Randomize or Personalize Loot: That Is The Question

Nov 14 2024 17 mins

Do you think deeply about every piece of loot that you give? Or does your party get a kick out of getting the most random, most funny, more chaotic gear and equipment that D&D has to offer? Depending on your answer, you might want to focus on either personalizing or randomizing how you give out loot. But which is better? Listen to our episode and find out!Mentioned in this epis

How to Start an Actual Play D&D Podcast With Brennon from the Afterlife Pod

Nov 07 2024 41 mins

Welcome to How to Be a Better DM.Today we talk about how to start an actual play podcast, how to keep going with a creative idea and how to make it happen with Brennon from the Afterlife Pod.Today is part 1 of a special 2-part series. The 2nd part of this show is over on the Afterlife Pod. You can find out more about the Afterlife Pod at https://www.patreon.com/AfterlifePod/Mention

DM Coaching: DMing for Kids and Tying Up Loose Ends with Aaron Singh

Oct 31 2024 43 mins

Welcome Back to How to Be a Better DM!Today is a very special episode. Today is a Dungeon Master Coaching episode with our friend Aaron Singh.Today we talk about Dungeon Mastering for kids and tying up loose ends in your campaign.If you're interested in having your own dungeon master coaching session go to https://session0studios.com/coaching. If you let us record the first episode

Oh No! Your party is in trouble! Deus Ex Machina, I guess??

Oct 24 2024 21 mins

Your party probably gets into a lot of sticky, unforeseeable moments, where death or a terrible consequence is on the table. At that moment, you might be tempted to utilize a Deus Ex Machina plot device, saving them from their own mistakes through some person or change that they never expected. But is that a crutch for you, or an opportunity? Let's talk about it!Mentioned in this e

How to Flesh Out Your Afterlife - Questions to Ask to Help Develop the Concepts of Afterlife in your Homebrew World

Oct 17 2024 25 mins

Welcome back to How to Be a Better DM.Today we talk about the afterlife. Listen to episode 109 of our show to learn about death in D&D if you want more on this topic.Here are some questions to help you flesh out the topic of the afterlife in youIs there an afterlife?How many types are there? With many different gods who rule over many different domains, you need to know how man

When Your D&D Group Loses Momentum

Oct 10 2024 22 mins

We’ve all been there: you’ve had a great run with all your players. Month after month, and maybe even week after week, you’ve been able to meet without any significant delays or gaps. And then, all of a sudden, it’s hard to meet. And if you do discuss meeting up, people don’t seem to prioritize it as much. And you’re worried that the campaign might not have much longer

8 Tips for Begginner Dungeon Masters

Oct 03 2024 15 mins

Welcome back to today's Show.Today, we talk about 8 tips for beginner dungeon masters.Stop Waiting - For Finding Players listen to this episode: https://session0studios.com/captivate-podcast/how-to-find-your-dd-group/Push Past the Learning CurveStart where you are.Focus on your Strengths or on Finding your StrengthsDon’t Stop - Be ConsistentFocus on Player EngagementDo what feels

Swole Initiative: Player Check-ins and Campaign Themes with Jay Foster

Sep 26 2024 51 mins

Welcome back to How to Be a Better DMToday we have a special episode with Jay Foster from Swole Initiative (https://swoleinitiative.com/)Today we talk about a lot of things including:The importance of player check-insHow to push boundaries without crossing lines or veilsWhy and how to add theme to your gameAnd more.If you liked today's episode and you want Jay to come back on the s

What to Spend $50 on For Your D&D Hobby

Sep 24 2024 19 mins

Welcome back to How to Be a Better DMThis is another RAW episode, which means more personality and less polish.I'm your host today, Justin Lewis.Today we talk about what I would spend $50 on to improve my D&D hobby.This is my list:A dungeon master screenA new SourcebookA large tablecloth and some pipe cleanerA lot of Foam and some paintA set pieceSome LED lightsA simple sound s

The Skills of the Dungeon Master

Sep 19 2024 30 mins

Welcome back to the show!Today we talk about what skills you need to develop as a DM.MechanicsUnderstanding the basic gameplay of the gameBeing able to make twists on the rules or invent new ones to suit your gamePlayer ManagementScheduling ManagementRelationship ManagementStory WritingBeing able to create beautiful settingsBeing able to build amazingly real charactersPlot twists,