How to Be a Better DM: Dungeon Master Tips for the DM Newbie, the Hobbyist and the Forever DM

Today we talk about how to fix Combat Encounters

1. Use Scatter Terrain

2. Use Distance

3. Use Elevation

Also, we are doing 6 panels at FanX coming up in Salt Lake City in September so if you are in the area, come see us!

Thanks for listening to today’s show. If you like our stuff and want to support us, here are some sponsor links and links to our other stuff:

Worldsmith: http://session0studios.com/worldsmith

Roll and Play Press:http://session0studios.com/rollandplay

Phantasm Studios: https://session0studios.com/fantasms

Monument Studios: session0studios.com/monumentstudios

Discord: http://session0studios.com/discord

Patreon:https://session0studios.com/patreon

Dungeon Master Level Up Guide: https://session0studios.com/newsletter

Tanner talks about Points of Interest: what they are, why some DMs find them difficult to prepare, and how to make them worthwhile. Remember that it's about making the world exciting, not just full!

Welcome to How to Be a Better DM

Today we talk about 7 mistakes I still make:

1. ​Not taking in the moment and enjoying.
2. ​Not surprising my party
3. ​Trying to be a dungeon master that I’m not
4. ​Comparing Myself to Other DM
5. ​Not being me
6. ​Forcing my expectations on other players
7. ​Not Skipping the Boring Bits

Thanks for listening to today’s show. If you like our stuff and want to support us, here are some sponsor links and links to our other stuff:

Worldsmith: http://session0studios.com/worldsmith

Roll and Play Press:http://session0studios.com/rollandplay

Phantasm Studios: https://session0studios.com/fantasms

Discord: http://session0studios.com/discord

Patreon:https://session0studios.com/patreon

Dungeon Master Level Up Guide: https://session0studios.com/newsletter

Tanner shares a minor update about the podcast from his perspective, and talks about how to prioritize fun when starting a campaign. Hint: it's not with a lot of roleplaying like he did with his recent campaign...

Here are today's sponsors:

Worldsmith - Easy D&D Prep - Start a Free 7 Day Trial: https://session0studios.com/worldsmith-podcast

Roll and Play Press - Easier D&D: https://session0studios.com/rollandplay

Studio Fantasms: https://session0studios.com/fantasms

Our Patreon: https://session0studios.com/patreon

Why your combat Slogs

1. You haven’t set the epectations with your players
2. Because you’re building combats and not encounters
3. You haven’t red shirted it - you’re not familiar with the baddies or the mechanics
4. You as aren’t taking advantage of all 4 of the Pillars of DMing
5. The party doesn’t want to do a combat. 
6. You don’t know how to make the combat intense
7. Phones are at the table
8. You make it go on too long

Special thanks to:

Benj Weyland for Graphic Design (https://www.instagram.com/benjweydesign/)

TJ Max, Juka, and TechSenpai for being amazing moderators

Kyle Wilson, Nick Ammann and Professor Nobody for being our patrons.

Mentioned in this episode:

Save time with Roll and Play Press

Save yourself some precious time with Roll and Play Press.

Brought to you by Session 0 Studios

Visit session0studios.com for more information.

Here are today's sponsors:

Worldsmith - Easy D&D Prep - Start a Free 7 Day Trial: https://session0studios.com/worldsmith-podcast

Roll and Play Press - Easier D&D: https://session0studios.com/rollandplay

Studio Fantasms: https://session0studios.com/fantasms

Our Patreon: https://session0studios.com/patreon

Today we are announcing that going forward, we are cutting back on everything except just doing the podcast and only doing 10 minute un-edited episodes. This is a short term change that will allow us to focus on other priorities. Thanks so much for your support.

Special thanks to:

Benj Weyland for Graphic Design (https://www.instagram.com/benjweydesign/)

TJ Max, Juka, and TechSenpai for being amazing moderators

Kyle Wilson, Nick Ammann and Professor Nobody for being our patrons.

Mentioned in this episode:

Brought to you by Session 0 Studios

Visit session0studios.com for more information.

I Made a CR 100 Monster

I made a Monster with a Challenge Rating of 100

Here are today's sponsors:

Worldsmith - Easy D&D Prep - Start a Free 7 Day Trial: https://session0studios.com/worldsmith-podcast

Roll and Play Press - Easier D&D: https://session0studios.com/rollandplay

Studio Fantasms: https://session0studios.com/fantasms

Our Patreon: https://session0studios.com/patreon

While our guest, Kyle Shire, has many talents and credits to his name, major ones including his senior producer role at Critical Role as well as being the creator of the Queen By Midnight boardgame. However, his time as a standup comedian brings some unique lessons for DMs that we have yet to explore on our podcast!

Follow Kyle Shire for more inspirational projects he is working on!

Special thanks to:

Benj Weyland for Graphic Design (https://www.instagram.com/benjweydesign/)

TJ Max, Juka, and TechSenpai for being amazing moderators

Kyle Wilson, Nick Ammann and Professor Nobody for being our patrons.

Mentioned in this episode:

Brought to you by Session 0 Studios

Visit session0studios.com for more information.

I Made a CR 100 Monster

I made a Monster with a Challenge Rating of 100

Join Our Discord

So a little bit of a spoiler alert. We’re building an army.

Discord

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.

Here are today's sponsors:

Worldsmith - Easy D&D Prep - Start a Free 7 Day Trial: https://session0studios.com/worldsmith-podcast

Roll and Play Press - Easier D&D: https://session0studios.com/rollandplay

Studio Fantasms: https://session0studios.com/fantasms

Our Patreon: https://session0studios.com/patreon

We share a brief announcement in this episode... also, to clarify, I realized on relistening that I made it sound like Justin was the one having the baby, when we all know that his wife was the one doing all the work, haha. After that, we jump into a discussion of restarting D&D campaigns, which often feels even harder than starting a whole new campaign! How do you get the gang back together, and how would you pick up the pieces of the old campaign? Listen in to get some tips.

Special thanks to:

Benj Weyland for Graphic Design (https://www.instagram.com/benjweydesign/)

TJ Max, Juka, and TechSenpai for being amazing moderators

Kyle Wilson, Nick Ammann and Professor Nobody for being our patrons.

Mentioned in this episode:

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.

Join Our Discord

So a little bit of a spoiler alert. We’re building an army.

Discord

Brought to you by Session 0 Studios

Visit session0studios.com for more information.

I Made a CR 100 Monster

I made a Monster with a Challenge Rating of 100

TL;DR:

If your sessions start strong but crash halfway through, it’s not your story, your prep, or even your players—it’s your energy management. In this episode, Justin breaks down the hidden reason your games lose momentum mid-session and teaches you how to fix it permanently.

Here are today's sponsors:

Worldsmith - Easy D&D Prep - Start a Free 7 Day Trial: https://session0studios.com/worldsmith-podcast

Roll and Play Press - Easier D&D: https://session0studios.com/rollandplay

Studio Fantasms: https://session0studios.com/fantasms

Our Patreon: https://session0studios.com/patreon

-The Real DM Killer: It’s not scheduling, it’s session fatigue—and most DMs don’t even realize it’s happening.

-Mental vs. Physical Energy: Why you’re probably managing the wrong one (and what to do about it).

-The “Secret Breaks” Technique: How doing less mid-session can actually supercharge your impact.

-Hydration Science for DMs: Why sipping water wrong is draining your stamina (and how to fix it).

- Find Your Energy Style: Why trying to copy Mercer or Mulligan might be sabotaging your flow—and how to unlock your personal DM tempo.

After this episode, you’ll know how to control your energy like a resource, just like mana or spell slots. No more sluggish sessions. No more zoning out. Just peak performance when it counts.

You’ll walk away with:

• Tools to maintain high engagement from start to finish
• Confidence in your pacing, presence, and delivery
• A repeatable framework for showing up energized at the table every time

Ready to stop running out of gas halfway through your game?

Hit play and let’s supercharge your DM style.

Want this kind of energy in your own campaign? Book a pro DM session at Session0Studios.com

Special thanks to:

Benj Weyland for Graphic Design (https://www.instagram.com/benjweydesign/)

TJ Max, Juka, and TechSenpai for being amazing moderators

Kyle Wilson, Nick Ammann and Professor Nobody for being our patrons.

Mentioned in this episode:

Join Our Discord

So a little bit of a spoiler alert. We’re building an army.

Discord

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.

I Made a CR 100 Monster

I made a Monster with a Challenge Rating of 100

Brought to you by Session 0 Studios

Visit session0studios.com for more information.

Welcome back to the 6th installment of our short series on writing a Homebrew one-shot.

In this episode, we're joined by our friend Rob Van Auken and we continue work on The Chimefall Ceremony: For Whom the Bell TolIs.

This miniseries is designed to help give you an idea of how to collaborate on a project like this and how to write and publish a one-shot.

Also, a little bit of Rob's audio is lost at the end due to a poor connection... sorry!

Mentioned in this episode:

Brought to you by Session 0 Studios

Visit session0studios.com for more information.