The 4 Core Skills of Dungeon Mastery (Plus the Secret 5th One)

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Feeling stuck or burned out as a Dungeon Master? You’re not alone—and you’re not out of options. In this episode, Justin and Tanner break down the Four Core Skills that every great DM needs to master:

1️⃣ People Management

2️⃣ Showmanship & Performance

3️⃣ Game Design

4️⃣ Storytelling

And yes... there's a secret fifth pillar 👀

We discuss how to use these pillars as a personal skill assessment framework so you can stop overthinking your sessions and start building campaigns that actually improve week to week. Whether you're overwhelmed with prep, worried you're not "immersive enough," or comparing yourself to pro DMs, this episode will reframe your mindset and re-energize your games.

🔑 What you’ll learn:

• The most overlooked DM skill (and why it makes or breaks your game)
• How to identify and strengthen your weakest pillar
• A tactical way to use these 4 skills to get "unstuck" mid-session
• How to balance emotional storytelling with crunchy mechanics
• Plus: A future tool we’re developing to help you self-assess

Special thanks to:

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

TJ Max, Juka, and TechSenpai for being amazing moderators

Foxy Beard, Kyle Wilson, and Nick Ammann for being our patrons.

Mentioned in this episode:

Brought to you by Session 0 Studios

Visit session0studios.com for more information.

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