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20 Tips for First Time DMs
Do you dream of trying out being a dungeon master, but are unsure of yourself or your abilities? Do currently DM but wish some parts of it weren’t as hard or complicated? Today’s episode is filled with 20 tips to help you skip some of the mistakes that we’ve made in our DMing journey. With these tips, you can gain the confidence to DM like you never have before. More importantly, with these tips, you’ll know that you are a good DM right now and that with some practice you can get even better.
TLDR:
The tips can be boiled down into a couple of META tips:
- Relax and Play the Game (It’s just a Game)
- Everything you Do can be improved even just 1%
- Practice is what will improve your game.
Feel free to read the tips below, or read the full episode transcript if you want to dig in deeper.
The tips:
- Intro
- Go Slow and Deliberate
- Follow the Fun
- Let your Players Do Some of the Work
- Do Homebrew Early and Often
- Read Everything You Can
- Spend Some Time Everyday Writing
- Foundation First
- Details Make It Incredible
- Always Be Meeting People
- Make Your Player Characters the Stars
- Know What You Are Good At
- Don’t Try to Have Your Best Session Ever
- Steal Ideas (Except When Making Money)
- It’s Ok to Look Things Up
- Success Is Measured by People’s Enjoyment
- You Will Get Better
- You Make the Rules
- Commit
- Listen to Podcasts and Watch Youtube Videos
Mentioned in this episode:
Why Listen to Ads?
Ugh, another ad break.
Let’s be real—ads are the worst. If you’re anything like my wife, you’d rather quit a show entirely than sit through another ad.
So why suffer? Just skip them.
Join our Patreon at patreon.com/betterdungeonmaster and enjoy ad-free episodes with exclusive patron-only content—all for just $5 a month.
Look at you, all fancy with your uninterrupted listening experience.
So stop wasting time on ads (like this one). Go to patreon.com/betterdungeonmaster and upgrade your listening today!
Patreon
Give Us a Rating and Review
You obviously have really good taste, you’re listening to How to Be a Better DM after all. We thank you for your support. If you’ve ever gotten anything useful from our show, take a minute to give us a rating and a review. It goes a very long way to making it so How to Be a Better DM can help many more dungeon masters just like you. If you love our content, help others become better dungeon masters too.
Do You Want to Earn some Money?
🎲 Want to Earn Some Extra Gold?
We’re offering a referral incentive for our professional Dungeon Mastering services! Here’s how it works:
1️⃣ Refer someone to session0studios.com/prodm
2️⃣ They sign up for a free consultation.
3️⃣ They mention they were referred by a podcast listener.
4️⃣ We DM an unforgettable session for them.
5️⃣ They get 10% off their booking.
6️⃣ You get 10% of what they paid—straight into your coin purse.
7️⃣ We celebrate with a virtual high-five. 🙌
We run games for private groups and corporate teams—whether it’s a one-shot or a long-term campaign.
💰 Want to earn some gold and help someone level up their game night?
Send them to session0studios.com/prodm and start earning today!
Brought to you by Session 0 Studios
Visit session0studios.com for more information.
View all episodes
By Justin Lewis
4.8
3636 ratings
Do you dream of trying out being a dungeon master, but are unsure of yourself or your abilities? Do currently DM but wish some parts of it weren’t as hard or complicated? Today’s episode is filled with 20 tips to help you skip some of the mistakes that we’ve made in our DMing journey. With these tips, you can gain the confidence to DM like you never have before. More importantly, with these tips, you’ll know that you are a good DM right now and that with some practice you can get even better.
TLDR:
The tips can be boiled down into a couple of META tips:
- Relax and Play the Game (It’s just a Game)
- Everything you Do can be improved even just 1%
- Practice is what will improve your game.
Feel free to read the tips below, or read the full episode transcript if you want to dig in deeper.
The tips:
- Intro
- Go Slow and Deliberate
- Follow the Fun
- Let your Players Do Some of the Work
- Do Homebrew Early and Often
- Read Everything You Can
- Spend Some Time Everyday Writing
- Foundation First
- Details Make It Incredible
- Always Be Meeting People
- Make Your Player Characters the Stars
- Know What You Are Good At
- Don’t Try to Have Your Best Session Ever
- Steal Ideas (Except When Making Money)
- It’s Ok to Look Things Up
- Success Is Measured by People’s Enjoyment
- You Will Get Better
- You Make the Rules
- Commit
- Listen to Podcasts and Watch Youtube Videos
Mentioned in this episode:
Why Listen to Ads?
Ugh, another ad break.
Let’s be real—ads are the worst. If you’re anything like my wife, you’d rather quit a show entirely than sit through another ad.
So why suffer? Just skip them.
Join our Patreon at patreon.com/betterdungeonmaster and enjoy ad-free episodes with exclusive patron-only content—all for just $5 a month.
Look at you, all fancy with your uninterrupted listening experience.
So stop wasting time on ads (like this one). Go to patreon.com/betterdungeonmaster and upgrade your listening today!
Patreon
Give Us a Rating and Review
You obviously have really good taste, you’re listening to How to Be a Better DM after all. We thank you for your support. If you’ve ever gotten anything useful from our show, take a minute to give us a rating and a review. It goes a very long way to making it so How to Be a Better DM can help many more dungeon masters just like you. If you love our content, help others become better dungeon masters too.
Do You Want to Earn some Money?
🎲 Want to Earn Some Extra Gold?
We’re offering a referral incentive for our professional Dungeon Mastering services! Here’s how it works:
1️⃣ Refer someone to session0studios.com/prodm
2️⃣ They sign up for a free consultation.
3️⃣ They mention they were referred by a podcast listener.
4️⃣ We DM an unforgettable session for them.
5️⃣ They get 10% off their booking.
6️⃣ You get 10% of what they paid—straight into your coin purse.
7️⃣ We celebrate with a virtual high-five. 🙌
We run games for private groups and corporate teams—whether it’s a one-shot or a long-term campaign.
💰 Want to earn some gold and help someone level up their game night?
Send them to session0studios.com/prodm and start earning today!
Brought to you by Session 0 Studios
Visit session0studios.com for more information.
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