Dungeon Master For Dummies

by James Wyatt, Bill Slavicsek, Richard Baker

Overview

Design your own fantasy D&D epic filled with adventurous exploits, cloaked characters, and mysterious monsters

If you're a Dungeons & Dragons fan, you've surely thought of becoming a Dungeon Master. Learning to be a DM isn't as hard as you might think, especially if you have Dungeon Master For Dummies tucked into your bag of tricks!

Whether you've assumed the role of Dungeon Master before or not, this illustrated reference can help you run a D&D game, either online or in person. From organizing your first D&D game to dealing with difficult players, this book covers everything a DM needs to know. Written for the newest edition of D&D by the experts at Wizards of the Coast, the game's creators, it shows you how to:

• Run your very first campaign, from shaping storylines and writing your own adventures to dealing with unruly players and characters
• Build challenging encounters, make reasonable rulings, and manage disagreements
• Recognize all the common codes, tables, and spells
• Understand the parts of a D&D adventure and how to create dungeon maps and craft monsters
• Shape storylines and write your own adventures
• Find your style as a DM and develop a game style that plays to your strengths
• Script an encounter, vary the terrain and challenges, and establish rewards (experience points and treasure)
• Decide whether to use published adventures
• Use and follow the official Dungeon Master's Guide
• Develop a campaign with exciting themes, memorable villains, and plots to entrance players

If you're getting the urge to lead the charge in a D&D game of your own, Dungeon Master For Dummies provides the information you need to start your own game, craft exciting stories, and set up epic adventures. Grab your copy today, and you'll be on your way!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780470292914
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	11/17/2008
Series:	For Dummies Books
Edition description:	4th ed.
Pages:	416
Sales rank:	412,125
Product dimensions:	7.20(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

James Wyatt is Design Manager for D&D and a lead designer of D&D 4th Edition. Bill Slavicsek is Director of Roleplaying and Miniatures Game Design. Richard Baker is a senior game designer and bestselling author of Forgotten Realms novels. All are associates of Wizards of the Coast, publisher of the Dungeons & Dragons® game. Bill and Richard are coauthors of Dungeons & Dragons® For Dummies.

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Table of Contents

Foreword.

Introduction.

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: Your First Adventure: Kobold Hall.

Part II: Advanced Dungeon Mastering.

Chapter 8: Running an Ongoing Game.

Chapter 9: Choosing Your Game Style.

Chapter 10: Creating Excitement at the Game Table.

Chapter 11: Growing Your Game.

Chapter 12: Using Every Available Resource.

Part III: Creating Adventures.

Chapter 13: Tools of the Trade.

Chapter 14: The Dungeon Adventure.

Chapter 15: The Wilderness Adventure.

Chapter 16: The Event-Based Adventure.

Chapter 17: The Randomly Generated Adventure.

Chapter 18: Paragon and Epic Adventures.

Chapter 19: Sample Dungeon: The Necromancer’s Apprentice.

Part IV: Building a Campaign.

Chapter 20: Building a Continuous Story.

Chapter 21: Creating Memorable Villains.

Chapter 22: Bringing the World to Life.

Part V: The Part of Tens.

Chapter 23: Ten Heroic Encounters.

Chapter 24: Ten Paragon Encounters.

Chapter 25: Ten Things to Avoid When DMing.

Chapter 26: Ten Things to Do All the Time When DMing.

Index.