DM Tips Twitter Archive: November 2011

by Mike Shea on 03 December 2011

Below is an archive of all of the Sly Flourish DM Tip Twitter posts for November 2011. Get daily DM tips at http://twitter.com/slyflourish!

#dnd tip: Try running your game without a DM screen to keep things more open and give you a better view of the table.

Excellent NPC generator. A great tool for the lazy dungeon master! http://t.co/LAUSmeA6 #dnd

#dnd tip: Speed up combat and keep things lethal: At beginning of turn, monsters gain vulnerability 5 per tier and +5 per tier in damage.

To clarify today's #dnd tip: I'd have the increased vulnerability 5 / +5 damage per tier only happen once.

Of the #dnd Essentials + Heroes of Shadow classes, my group tends to gravitate towards Blackguards. Very high power, it seems.

Ran an 18th level elite Ghost Beholder against our level 10 party. One PC death. Lvl+8 elites can work but it's a hard fight. #dnd

Check out @skylandGames's clothespin initiative tracker: http://t.co/WNPzv9ap #dnd

#dnd tip: Every encounter should teach the PCs more about the story of the adventure. What will they learn from your next one?

When you're building out a #dnd dungeon, where do you go for inspiration?

Holy cow this site is useful: http://t.co/ZDYIoTxM

#dnd tip: Before you prep your game, go over your collection of poster maps to get ideas for cool encounter areas.

#dnd tip: Think real hard about your game and then forget about it for a day. Let good ideas grow subconsiously.

#dnd tip: When running one-shot D&D or Gamma World games, start them at level 1 to keep things simple and fast.

Dave Chalker on Epic D&D: Recently Dave "The Game" Chalker, my friend and editor of the Ennie-award-winning... http://t.co/3f7pMFKb #dnd

Interesting look at the inside of #dnd 4e design.
http://t.co/SfsgoXYG

Interesting read on #dnd 2e to 3e opinions. Thanks @brianrjames: http://t.co/rzOoTZrv

.@JCStefansson faster combat, less action-stealing status effects, fewer player options at the table (lots in char building), better solos.

#dnd tip: If you do nothing else, use updated damage expressions for monsters published before the Monster Manual 3. http://t.co/Y7tIe0qb

Interesting takes on epic-tier stuff in Dark Sun. That polearm gamble cheese made my game hurt in epic #dnd: http://t.co/pWDkWwg3

Pondering the idea of a "lord" monster template that adds core offensive and defensive power to "boss" monsters. Article to follow. #dnd

Examples: dam resist penetration, stun / daze / dominate avoidance, zone avoidance, mark throwing, bonus damage.

#dnd tip: Set aside all the minis or tokens you might need for the general area your PCs explore. It opens up potential encounters.

Great interview with Scott Fitzgerald Gray, freelance #dnd editor and designer for WOTC by @TheIdDM: http://t.co/LtDcPpTs

#dnd tip: Try building a whole encounter that's nothing but traps and hazards. Think the idol temple in Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Also ran the Bronze Warders from Monster Vault 2 and they ran very well. Good job @brianrjames or @matt_james_rpg or whoever made them. #dnd

#dnd tip: Fleeing as a "combat out" rarely works well. Players are determined to stop them from running. Let them get away in an instant.

I find myself preferring inherent bonuses more and more. It makes things so much simpler in the long-run. #dnd

It occurred to me that a PC who trains in skills outside of high-attribute skills has a real wide range of decent skills to roll on. #dnd

#dnd tip: For detriments, reduce defenses and add vulnerabilities rather than steal actions and reducing attack scores or damage.

#dnd skill tip from @wizards_dnd: If players are thinking smart, don't punish with a dice roll. If they need help, let them roll to get one.

Hard core Quake-inspired #dnd by @saveversusdeath http://t.co/cEzVtpw0 Orgasmic thunder damage indeed...

When I finish with Gloomwrought, I think I'm going to run the DM Kit, Monster Vault, and Gardmore Abbey adventures for my group. #dnd

#dnd tip: The Gloomwrought Despair deck can work well for any dismal adventure. Use it at the edge of (or within) the Far Realm.

#dnd tip: Heavy and nasty environmental effects can help a solo stay a solo in an encounter.

Excellent interview with Steve Townshend by @DreadGazeebo on freelancing and Heroes of the Feywild: http://t.co/igU84eFN #dnd

I've tried a lot of minion solutions: minion generators, two-hit minions, resist minions, etc. None have worked perfectly. #dnd

.@FaustoReluctant reminded me that minions who get knocked prone on a hit and only die when hit prone worked well. #dnd

I find I don't get mad when monsters die, I get mad when they become totally ineffective. #dnd

Game-breaking monster inhibitors: stun, daze, dominate, weaken, insubstantial, free-healing, marks, constant temps, fighting below 0 #dnd

We agree that monster incapacitation is lame. What can we DO about it? I'm not sure how to fix it without nerfing 50 items and powers #dnd

Updating the #dnd 4e "Overpowered" wiki page: http://t.co/xZHRyCMX

#dnd tip: Stick to gear rewards from the Dungeon Master Kit and Mordenkainen's Emporium. They have a good sense of what makes a rare item.

.@newbiedm @alphastream I never track effects on monsters. Players ALWAYS remember them. Their own effects? Not so much. #dnd

Many suggesting saves to rid effects. Problem is, if they don't save, they're just as useless. Save Ends isn't good effect mitigation. #dnd

Easy way to make #dnd 4e much more enjoyable: white-list post-essential class books and stick to heroic tier.

My next Nenir 1-10 campaign will have Essentials races and classes + Heroes of Feywild and Shadow classes. Should be a good run. #dnd

#dnd tip: Designing a big solo? Make sure they have a way to break away from movement impairment zones and chained effects.

Interesting article by friend @matt_james_rpg "Root the 4e System": http://t.co/V7SEZVa5

Just sent @matt_james_rpg a 1,500 word rebuttal against the idea that PC power scales linearly in #dnd 4e. Future @criticalhits post? Maybe.

Some excellent tips on #dnd monster design in today's Rule of Three: http://t.co/Z2u0AcaV

#dnd tip: To give your dungeon some extra flavor and challenge, add a dungeon-wide effect like +5 to necrotic attacks or vul 5 to cold.

Top #dnd tweeters for the past couple of months: http://t.co/rVcI2X3r http://t.co/B1awMhnS

Just read @MonteJCook's latest article: http://t.co/NK72bp5E two things come to mind...

Resists scale poorly across levels. They make it too easy for higher level players. 2. Complexity should be a flatter curve across level.

I think game complexity should be released in supplements, not part of the core #dnd game. @MonteJCook got me thinking a lot about it.

#dnd tip: Use vulnerability and "- X defenses" instead of action-stealing or "-X attack" status effects. Keeps up threat without boredom.

Check out @SarahDarkmagic's new #dnd column over at @Wizards_DnD: http://t.co/hv4r4sbM Thanks for the mention, Tracy!

Some very cool #dnd level 1 pregens that tap into the new Heroes of Feywild on Dungeons and Donuts: http://t.co/2Q4Jjr4C

Of course, Penny Arcade articulates the #dnd PC power curve problem better than I ever could: http://t.co/cbwNYVJD

#dnd tip: Replace complicated status effects with "knocking prone". It's easy to keep track of and doesn't bone the PC too much.

#dnd tip: If you write up anything, write up a read-aloud summary of your last game to get your players in the right mindset.

My latest @criticalhits article "The Scaling Woes of 4th Edition #dnd" was just posted: http://t.co/LnpVOiH4

#dnd tip: A good villain thinks he's right. A great villain IS right.

My Sentinel just hit level 7 and got the ability to ask questions to plant-life. I dig how rituals are sort-of built in to Essentials chars.

Check out @DaveTheGame's take on Redesigning the Epic Tier: http://t.co/3Yy77sQV Goes well with my last article and our podcast on the topic

#dnd tip: A static damage number for traps and hazards makes them run a lot faster at the table.

It's definite. @RosaMoonshadow and I are going to be at DDXP. I hope @DaveTheGame's weather jynx doesn't hit us!

Boy I wish I could get a copy of the Talon of Umberlee Lair Assault for my home players. #dnd http://t.co/edKAFKVZ

If you want to see some serious analysis of PC status effects across level, check out @TheIdDM's latest article: http://t.co/ljJLB3et #dnd

#dnd tip: Use your Gloomwrought, Dark Sun, or Neverwinter maps to show your party where they ended the last session.

#dnd tip: A single high-level elite and a series of traps can make for a great non-standard encounter.

@TychoBrahe and @cwgabriel on the challenges of player power in #4e #dnd: http://t.co/X8rWuGgL

Here's my arbitrary graphic that I think accurately describes the discrepancy of PC and monster power over level:
http://t.co/7CWPTo35

56 page Baba Yaga's Dancing Hut #dnd #ddi adventure! Pretty amazing! They earned their money this month! http://t.co/q7SYXFlx

If you enjoyed these tips, take a look at Sly Flourish’s Dungeon Master Tips book or Sly Flourish’s Running Epic Tier D&D Games. You can also use these links to purchase the Heroes of the Fallen Lands, the Dungeon Master’s Kit, or the Monster Vault or bookmark this link to buy anything from Amazon.

Need some battle maps? Pick up some Gamemastery Flip-Maps from Troll and Toad, an official Sly Flourish sponsor.

Send feedback to mike@mikeshea.net or share on twitter.