Category Archives: DM Advice

Flashbulb Memories: The Pinnacle of Gaming?

Posted on April 8, 2013 by

September 11, 2001. 9/11 If you were born prior to 1990, then you likely remember this date in history. You probably recall what you were doing that morning and throughout that day. At the time, I was in graduate school … Continue reading →

Posted in Blade Raiders, DM Advice | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

You’ve Been Terminated

Posted on November 6, 2012 by

During the past five weeks , I have moved out of a house, sold said house, closed down at one job, driven 1,200 miles and started a new job. And that’s the condensed version! One of the more challenging aspects of … Continue reading →

Posted in DM Advice | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Guest Post: The Power of +1

Posted on August 7, 2012 by

Several weeks ago, I was approached by one of my players who wished to write a guest post for the blog. He plays a Ranger in my Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition campaign, and his character has the wonderful genre-breaking … Continue reading →

Posted in DM Advice | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Removing Non From NPC

Posted on July 30, 2012 by

During the past two sessions, the brave adventurers traveling through The Shadowfell have been without their devote Cleric of Pelor as he is on vacation worshipping the Sun in some foreign land. How typically Pelorian of him! The remaining party members are a … Continue reading →

Posted in DM Advice, Steal This NPC | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

The Transparency of Damage Dice Irrelevance

Posted on July 16, 2012 by

Frequent readers of The Id DM likely know the site started as a result of my interest in analyzing data related to combat speed in Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition. To satisfy that curiosity, I coded episodes of the Dungeons … Continue reading →

Posted in D&D Next, DM Advice, Wizards of the Coast | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 46 Comments

Achievements in Campaigning

Posted on July 13, 2012 by

With a great deal of dismay, I learned last week that our local Smoothie King is discontinuing their customer loyalty program and replacing it with something to be determined at a later date. It was a simple and standard program – buy … Continue reading →

Posted in DM Advice | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Curse With Purpose

Posted on June 22, 2012 by

I have been hesitant to give out Artifacts and Cursed Items to players in my Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition campaign. Artifacts have intimidated me to a certain degree since it is one more facet of the game the players and I would need … Continue reading →

Posted in DM Advice | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Procrastination & Self-Preservation

Posted on June 13, 2012 by

For weeks, I’ve had it in my mind to write about the topic of procrastination and how it relates to my role as a Dungeon Master. There have been moments when the urge to jot down thoughts on the subject … Continue reading →

Posted in DM Advice | Tagged , , , , , | 18 Comments

The Tome Show: Player Engagement & DM Preparation

Posted on June 1, 2012 by

I was recently invited to participate in The Tome Show, a long-running podcast devoted to Dungeons & Dragons news, reviews, interviews, and advice. I joined hosts Jeff Greiner and Tracy Hurley to discuss the topics of player engagement during a session and … Continue reading →

Posted in Communication, DM Advice, PC Behavior, Podcast | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

May of the Dead: Character Death & Player Grief

Posted on May 25, 2012 by

I was asked by the fine folks at The Going Last Podcast to participate in their May of the Dead Carnival. The blog carnival features a wealth of articles devoted to the undead. Realizing that many other talented writers would … Continue reading →

Posted in DM Advice, PC Behavior | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments