An Introduction

Dungeon Master for Dummies is the latest in a long line of "how to run a role playing game" books, going back to Gary Gygax's Role-Playing Mastery in 1987 (and possibly before). Recent works in this field include Gamemastering Secrets, 2nd Edition, Dungeon Master's Guide II, and what I consider the standard, Robin's Laws of Good Game Mastering by Robin Laws. These books expand on the section found in most rulebooks -- usually tucked towards the back -- which explains how you actually run an RPG.

Often this section of the rulebook for the Dungeon Master/Referee/Keeper/Storyteller just included more rules, notes on monsters, NPCs and treasure types. There was very little guidance for newbie Game Masters on how to put a group of players together, the various types of players and what they want in a game, how to manage problem situations and how to plan adventures and campaigns. Recent RPGs have included more information and advice like this, with various levels of success.

When I first heard about Dungeons & Dragons for Dummies, I thought it was a joke until I found an actual copy in my local game store. I haven't read it but I think it is a great idea. Anything that makes it easier for a new player to enter the hobby is a good thing, in my opinion. Then, after seeing GURPS for Dummies, I had hoped that there would be a book about how to run a game, whether it was a DM companion volume for D&D for Dummies or something else completely. When I found Dungeon Master for Dummies on the shelf, I had to pick it up. I'm very glad I did.

For those readers who may not know the names of the authors, Bill Slavicsek is Director of RPG Research and Development for Wizards of the Coast, and Richard Baker is a senior game designer for Wizards of the Coast and a best-selling author of fiction. Both of these gentlemen have more than enough experience to write at length on this subject.

Some Notes On the Contents

Dungeon Master for Dummies is divided into five parts, then sub-divided into thirty chapters. Rather than give chapter-by-chapter details, I will summarize the main points of each part.

Foreword
Introduction

An outline of what the book is all about, including a list of important D&D terms.

Part I: Running a Great Game
Chapter 1: The Role of the Dungeon Master
Chapter 2: Preparing for Play
Chapter 3: Running the Game
Chapter 4: Narrating the Adventure
Chapter 5: Dealing with Players
Chapter 6: Teaching the Game
Chapter 7: Sample Dungeon: The Rat Lord's Lair

The first seven chapters of the book cover the basics of Dungeon Mastering. Here you will find explanations of what the DM does and what roles the DM plays in the course of a session -- rules arbitrator, action narrator and all of the NPCs are some examples. Advice is given on how to find and gather together a group of players, how to prepare for that first session and a good overview of gaming etiquette. The "laws" of DMing are given, along with some notes on the various parts of a game session, character creation, encounters, character alignment and how to wrap up a session.

Special attention is paid to DM narration in a chapter on D&D as a group storytelling experience, and an analogy of the game as movie -- special effects, pacing, fantastic locations, and memorable encounters. The authors stress the fact that the game is a social event. Recommendations for how to interact with players are given along with ideas about what is usually referred to as "the social contract" -- ground rules and expectations in the game and for the group.

Chapter 6 shows ways to successfully teach the game to others in logical steps without overloading the beginner in minutia. This section of the book closes with advice on how to prepare for a session using a published scenario, followed by an introductory sample dungeon. It's a good beginning adventure, and notes are provided on increasing the difficulty level.

Part II: Advanced Dungeon Mastering
Chapter 8: Running an Ongoing Game
Chapter 9: Knowing the Players
Chapter 10: Choosing Your Game Style
Chapter 11: Creating Excitement at the Game Table
Chapter 12: Growing Your Game
Chapter 13: Using Every Available Resource

If you are following along with the steps in the book, by this point you have gathered a group of players and ran your first session. Part II consists of six chapters that expand on the ideas presented so far.

The authors look at the various formats of campaign games and how to link adventures together. Chapter 8 concludes with a sample village to use as a “home base”, complete with NPCs and adventure hooks.

It is very important to know your players, and here you will find ways to determine the playing styles of your group, including how to handle problems in and out of the game. DMing style is also discussed -- the use of dice, common sense, improvisation and DM "cheating" are among the topics. The authors urge the DM to keep the game moving and challenging, and offer tips on building and maintaining player interest with pacing and by not having to "search for the fun".

When it is time to move out beyond the dungeon, ideas for creating the larger campaign world around the players are given. If you decide to add new rules and options during play, you will find advice on the best way to do so. The final chapter of this section is an overview of the types of published d20 material and accessories and how to determine what you need for your game, how to incorporate it, and where to find inspiration for story elements.

Part III: Creating Adventures
Chapter 14: Tools of the Trade
Chapter 15: The Dungeon Adventure
Chapter 16: The Wilderness Adventure
Chapter 17: The Event-Based Adventure
Chapter 18: The Randomly Generated Adventure
Chapter 19: The High-Level Adventure
Chapter 20: Sample Dungeon: The Necromancer's Apprentice

This part of the book covers "the adventure” in its various forms. Chapter 14 presents the various parts of an adventure scenario. Details on how to create maps, encounters and player rewards are given here. Then each of the following chapters focuses on a certain type of adventure. Chapter 15 tells you how to create your first dungeon scenario and the difference between static and dynamic encounters, followed by a short chapter on wilderness encounters.

As a change of pace from the usual location-based scenarios, such as a dungeon complex or castle, there is a chapter on using planned events and player actions to drive the story, and how to design event outlines and possible player choices. Reversing completely from that topic, the next chapter discusses random dungeon creation with tables to use during play and information on how to start and keep track of the random dungeon layout and events, traps and treasure. The tables are useful even as a source of inspiration when planning adventures.

Next is a survey of the changes you can expect in the game during higher-level play, including ways to still challenge PCs who have magical means of avoiding encounters at higher levels while increasing the stakes for high-level PCs. This part of the book concludes with another sample dungeon that includes notes on which rules to be familiar with before running the adventure. This one is much more involved than the dungeon presented in Chapter 7.

Part IV: Building a Campaign
Chapter 21: Building a Continuous Story
Chapter 22: Creating Memorable Villains
Chapter 23: Bringing the World to Life

Part IV begins with an overview of how to structure the campaign. The authors give advice on building a history of your game world over time during play. Themes and genres, episodic adventures, where to find inspiration, and how to use the hints your players give you are some of the topics presented here.

Chapter 22 gives the definition of a villain, how to use them successfully, archetypes of the villain and major and minor types. The final regular chapter discusses the creation of the campaign world, various types of locations, and levels of detail in the game world.

Part V: The Part of Tens
Chapter 24: Ten Best Classic Adventures
Chapter 25: Ten Best Dungeon Magazine Adventures
Chapter 26: Ten Best 3rd Edition Adventures
Chapter 27: Ten Challenging Traps
Chapter 28: Ten Ready-to-Use Encounters
Chapter 29: Ten Things to Avoid When DMing
Chapter 30: Ten Things to Do All the Time When DMing

Top Ten lists are a staple of the "...For Dummies" books, and there are several lists included here. The traps and encounters presented here are good, with any of the necessary maps and stats included. Chapter 29 and 30 are "big picture" tips; not specific things but attitude and style ideas to keep in mind during play.

Index

The book is well indexed, a must for an item such as this. I checked several items at random and found those entries to be accurate.

The "...For Dummies" books always have a tear-out insert to go along with the content. Dungeon Master for Dummies has a double-sided card just inside the front cover that has 3 PC/NPC stat cards on one side and 3 monster cards on the other. The main difference between the two is that the character cards substitute Listen, Spot, and blank Skill slots for the Special Attack slot found on the monster cards.

My favorite theme running through this book is that it actively encourages DMs to take the game outside of the dungeon setting and into the light of the campaign world. Not that there's anything wrong with that style of play, if you and you group enjoy that, but the authors spend a lot of time on NPC interaction, character/NPC goals and motivations, and other non-combat encounters. In fact, Slavicsek and Baker so much as say that if your group is having fun, disregard whatever advice they give in the book and keep doing what you're already doing -- if everybody is having fun, that is the most important goal of the game. That's a very refreshing attitude to see in a climate of number-crunching/tournament/competition gaming.

I thought there would be official Wizards product placement in the text, since this is an official publication. There is some of that but it isn't as obnoxious as I had expected when I picked up the book. For example, in the discussion of using miniatures, the official D&D miniatures are suggested, but the authors also say that other miniatures are available. Other d20/OGL materials from third-party publishers are mentioned. At numerous points throughout the text there are references back to the pertinent sections of the core rulebooks, which is helpful and expected. This isn't meant to be a rulebook but a how-to guide on DMing.

Who Needs This Book?

I am a little surprised at my reaction to this book. Considering the size of the book and the quality of the contents, Dungeon Master for Dummies may be the best "how to run a role playing game" book published to date.

If you are just starting to play Dungeons and Dragons and you will be the DM, this should be the next purchase for you after getting the three core books. You will save yourself many game sessions of trial-and-error by using the advice given in this book right from the start.

Even if you have been running D&D games for quite a while, you will find something useful within the pages of Dungeon Master for Dummies. There is sure to be something here to spark your imagination, or something new to try, or just to remind you of something you might have forgotten.

If you are running a different RPG -- fantasy or otherwise -- you may want to flip though the book and check it out for yourself. Most of the ideas presented are not limited to just D&D or the fantasy genre. There are plenty of tips and advice here that apply to role-playing in general. For that matter, the fantasy/D&D items and encounters could certainly be translated into another genre.

If you spend a lot of time reading through gaming message boards, you might have read similar advice or sample encounters like those presented here. Not exactly the same of course, and not from the design team themselves. The best reason I can offer for getting this book, then, is that you will have all of these tips, tricks and ideas right at hand in one spot on your shelf and ready to insert into play wherever you need one.

In Conclusion

Dungeon Master for Dummies gets a 4 rating for Substance. It's a solid work on how to run a game, thick with plenty of tips and advice to keep a DM (or whatever the term is in your favorite game) going for many sessions. I continue to be really impressed with what the authors have done with this book.

For Style, I give it a 4 also. I haven’t been a big fan of the "...For Dummies" layout style, but it started to win me over by the end of this book, therefore it just barely squeezes into the “4” bracket. The illustrations are hit-or-miss, if those are important to you. However, the village and encounter maps were very well done and useful. Although there are artist credits, I can't identify the map artist. The chapter-opening cartoons by Rich Tennant ("The 5th Wave") are cute in a "The Far Side" way, but it seems clear that he isn't a gamer.