Preparation and Planning

For our hypothetical model ALFA DM, over-preparation and under-preparation are sins both. One of the key lessons to be learned by every PDM is that it is both necessary to spend some time preparing before every DM session, and that PCs are capable of ruining the best-laid plans. Planning comes in two forms: long-term and session.

Long-Term Planning

Long-term planning is – unsurprisingly – when a DM sketches the broad outline of a plot line or series of adventures he intends to initiate. Generally, this might take the form of introducing a new villain or faction to the server, picking up an existing, unresolved plot, or planning opportunities for PCs to achieve their own long-term goals. Frequently, it will involve a combination of all of these: the best DMs are those that successfully blend their own plot ideas with those extant on the server and the dreams of the involved PCs. Be aware though: planning too far ahead, and in too much detail, is likely to be a waste of time. Unlike PnP, there is no guarantee that a PC you think of as critical to the plot will still be around when needed, or that the PCs as a whole will be interested in pursuing the resolution you expect or have planned for – make sure you have a good idea of the future plans of important PCs before committing to involving them in your plot. You may also find that you have planned to carry out more than you can handle: do not spend so long developing a plot that you haven’t got the energy left to see it through.

Example: Our hypothetical DM notices that a high level paladin has arrived on his server. He has been running a localised plot involving a small-scale necromancer but would like to increase its significance. Ten hours of toolset toil result in a cavernous lair, home to a powerful lich, the liege lord of the local necromancer, and a suitable foil for the newly-arrived paladin, plus inevitable allies. The paladin then leaves the server...

Session Planning

The same general warnings that apply to long-term planning apply to the kind of work DMs need to do before they run a session, although they are less weighty. Generally, it is a lot easy to predict the broad course of a single DM session than a multi-session campaign. Before running a session, it is worth taking time to familiarise yourself with scenarios that are likely to arise during its course. At the most basic level, this might be simply checking that the creatures or areas you require for the session have been added to the current iteration of the server, and that they work.

Example: If you have built a particular creature for use in your session, double-check that it has been loaded into the live mod before the session starts. If it’s missing, you can then either try and have it added beforehand, or plan an alternative. Sounds obvious, but isn’t always done.

A more complex example would be to look up any RP spells likely to be used during the course of the session – at the very least, have the necessary rulebook or SRD hotlink easily accessible.

Example: Knowing that you will be DMing a Cleric with knowledge of and a track history of using Detect Alignment, and your session will involve a villainous NPC masquerading as a friend of the PCs, you print out the spell description to have ready to refer to should you need to make a quick ruling on its success.

If you are DMing a fairly consistent, regular group of players, think over the tactics they commonly use and consider how you intend to present them with a different challenge.

Example: Your regular party consists of two fighters and two combat-oriented clerics; by including an ambush scenario in your session you are able to challenge them with stealthed hostiles and control their route of attack with terrain and barricades, allowing hostile spellcasters and archers to focus attacks on a single target.

If you have little prior knowledge of the likely participants, make sure that you have prepared with sufficient flexibility to handle likely situations.

Example: Your regular party is as above, but you know that a pair of rogues of similar level have recently arrived on your server and may have made friends with your regulars; if the main challenge of your session relies on the use of stealth and trickery to outflank the party, you will need to make changes if the rogues are present. Options include the use of environmental factors to diminish their scouting abilities – torrential rain and wind giving significant Spot and Listen penalties – or alternatively have early scouting efforts encounter an unusually powerful enemy scouting patrol, scaring them into rejoining the main body of the party.

Clearly, it is not possible to be prepared for any eventuality. It may be that your expected PCs have friends who are significantly more powerful and have offered to lend their assistance. In such circumstances there are two good options open to a DM: either work with the players of the more powerful PCs to find a good in-game reason for them not to assist, or allow the PCs to triumph, rewarding their in-game relationships. Either way, it is inadvisable to either forbid the involvement of external parties, or massively increase session danger levels on the fly.

Example: Our regular party of two Fi6 and two Cl6 are due to explore a dungeon in pursuit of their villainous arch-enemy’s second-in-command. You have spent several hours tooling the dungeon and preparing the encounters, but you find out that your regulars are to be joined by their friends, a Ro12 and Wi12. The Rogue is able to disarm every trap, pick every lock, and spot every scout in the dungeon, while the Wizard is capable of single-handedly slaying the end-of-level boss several times over. As all of those involved have good IC reasons for participating, some emergency rebalancing is in order to maintain the challenge. A Scroll of Spell Mantle gives the Big Bad a chance of surviving the Wizard’s initial attack, while beefing up every scout patrol with a supporting higher CR melee henchman restores some of the challenge that the Rogue’s presence reduces.