Dungeons & Dragons Players Want More Out of The Dungeon Master's Guide

Several high-profile members of the online Dungeons & Dragons community are discussing what they feel are the strengths and weaknesses of the Dungeon Master's Guide, one of the core rulebooks of the game. Dungeons & Dragons has experienced a renaissance in recent years thanks to its Fifth Edition ruleset, a simplified, intuitive version of the rules that dictate how to play the popular tabletop RPG. While Dungeons & Dragons has more players now than it has in years, some feel that the core rulebooks of the game struggle to properly explain the best practices for actually sitting down at a table to play the game.

Over the weekend, a conversation started about the strengths and weaknesses of the Dungeon Master's Guide, a core resource published by Dungeons & Dragons to help DMs prepare for sessions. The current version of the Dungeon Master's Guide contains everything from variant rules to explanations on the D&D multiverse, but it only contains one section about actually running the game at your table, and even that is focused on handling particular situations that occur in the game. The Dungeon Master's Guide doesn't contain very much about the different of styles of DMs or advice on what the DM's role in the game should be.

The conversation over DM styles and the Dungeon Master's Guide started with a Twitter thread by DMs Guild creator Jacob Kellogg, who noted that "DM culture," that is the actual behavior of Dungeon Masters at the table, is largely based on tradition. Kellogg encouraged D&D fans to examine the role of the DM at the table, particularly when it comes to power dynamics and player agency. The streamer and commentator Dungeon Commander elaborated on this by discussing the importance of communication at the table and the variable power dynamic that DMs have with their players. They noted that while the original version of Dungeons & Dragons frames the DM as the absolute arbiter of rules and the story, the Fifth Edition rules stress the importance of working with the rest of the player to have fun.

From here, the discussion turned to the Dungeon Master's Guide and its strengths and weaknesses. Some, such as D&D writer James Haeck, pointed out that they learned more from other resources about DMing than they did from the Dungeon Master's Guide. Mark Hulmes, the DM of the fantastic High Rollers webseries, noted that the Dungeon Master's Guide hadn't helped him grow as a Dungeon Master at all, but also noted that no system book had really provided substantive advice on how to improve one's abilities to actually run an RPG session. Even Greg Tito, the director of PR and communications at D&D, jumped into the conversation by stating that a video Dungeon Master's Guide would be more effective than a text version, as it could actually provide example of good etiquette and game management at the table. Others like Mike Shea, the creator of the wonderful Sly Flourish series of DM tools, defended the Dungeon Master's Guide, noting that it was an underrated resource.

Ultimately, there's no perfect way to be a DM, nor is there a comprehensive guide to balancing all of the responsibilities a DM has during an actual game session. Personally, I think communication and compromise are key to being a successful DM. A DM doesn't have any more importance in the story being crafted during a D&D campaign - their role is simply different than the other players at the table. Open communication and equal expectations are critical to a great D&D session, and most "bad DM experiences" usually come from a DM failing to understand their player's expectations and needs, or from a DM who misinterprets what their responsibilities are while playing. However, this week's conversation is a reminder that the core rulebooks are just a starting point for D&D and don't provide players and DMs with everything they need to have a successful campaign.

What do you think of the recent conversation around DMing? Let us know in the comment section or find me on Twitter at @CHofferCBus to talk all things D&D!