
How to Be a Better DM: Dungeon Master Tips for the DM Newbie, the Hobbyist and the Forever DM
Learn how to be a better DM (Dungeon Master) so you can tell better stories for yourself and your friends.
Learn things like how to start a campaign, how to create realistic NPCs, how to move the plot along, and how and why to use session 0's for your party.
Join hosts Justin Lewis, Cayden Ottley and Tanner Weyland as they distill all the DM tips, tools and resources for the beginner DM, for the DM with a few years of experience and for the Forever DM who's been playing for 20 years.
If you're sick of searching for things like, "How to create a homebrew DND campaign?", click the play button and listen to become the best dungeon master you ever could be!
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/betterdungeonmaster
Discord Server: https://discord.gg/g77qt8quM2
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/howtobeabetterdmpodcast/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@session0studios
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/@session0studios
Professional Dungeon Master Services: https://session0studios.com/dungeon-master-for-hire/
DM Coaching: https://session0studios.com/coaching/
Latest episodes

Aug 13, 2024 • 33min
In the Footsteps of Giants: Part 1
Welcome to How to Be a Better DM.Today is a special episode.In it, you'll hear the first 30 minutes of one of our professional dungeon mastering sessions.Some of the players are new to D&D and have very little experience.If you're interested in this episode, and want to hear the rest of the session, reach out to us on our Discord. If enough people reach out, we'll put all of the rest of the session up on the podcast.If you're interested in having us be your professional dungeon master, go to session0studios.com/dm4hireMentioned in this episode:Brought to you by Session 0 StudiosVisit session0studios.com for more information.I Made a CR 100 MonsterI made a Monster with a Challenge Rating of 100
Why?
Because I could—and it only took me 5 minutes using Worldsmith.
And the best part?
You can do this and much more.
Get a free 7-day trial at session0studios.com/worldsmith and unlock their full suite of TTRPG generators from monsters to mythic magic items and everything in between.
Yep, that’s a full 7-day trial—completely free.
That’s a whole week of monsters, magic items, and more—whatever you need, zero burnout.
Try it now at session0studios.com/worldsmith.
Save time and make unlimited creations with Worldsmith.
Get The Swampberry Moonshine Jamboree For FreeTake a trip down to the bayou in The Swampberry Moonshine Jamboree.
We teamed up with Studio Fantasms to bring you a raucous one-shot adventure full of gatorfolk, catfishing, and a whole lotta moonshine.
We wrote the adventure, they designed the minis—it’s a sweet little bundle, and it’s totally free for the month of May.
Just head to https://session0studios.com/fantasms and sign up to grab it.
Don’t wait—May’s free, and once it’s gone, it’s gone.Give Us a Rating and ReviewYou 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.

Aug 8, 2024 • 25min
3 Questions To Determine a Combat Encounter’s Length
When you are planning a combat encounter, do you know how to get it into the "Goldilocks" zone in terms of length? You don't want it so short that no one got anything out of it, but you also don't want it so long that all the players are secretly praying that it will be over after the next turn.To help you plan the length of your encounter, whether beforehand or on the fly, here are 3 questions:Question #1: Has each player had a chance to feel either useful, powerful, or seriously threatened?Question #2: Has this combat encounter had at least one “story-worthy” moment?Question #3: Does the length of this combat match its importance?Learn how these questions can help you execute an appropriately-lengthy combat in today's episode!Mentioned in this episode:Brought to you by Session 0 StudiosVisit session0studios.com for more information.Play D&D with UsDid you know that you can have one of our hosts here at How to Be a Better DM be your dungeon master?
That’s right.
All of our podcast hosts are professional dungeon masters that you can hire for your private or corporate dungeons and dragons game.
We can do one-shots or long-term campaigns.
If you want to schedule your first session with us, go to https://session0studios.com/dungeon-master-for-hire/ and get started.
Dungeon Master for HireGive Us a Rating and ReviewYou 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.Get The Swampberry Moonshine Jamboree For FreeTake a trip down to the bayou in The Swampberry Moonshine Jamboree.
We teamed up with Studio Fantasms to bring you a raucous one-shot adventure full of gatorfolk, catfishing, and a whole lotta moonshine.
We wrote the adventure, they designed the minis—it’s a sweet little bundle, and it’s totally free for the month of May.
Just head to https://session0studios.com/fantasms and sign up to grab it.
Don’t wait—May’s free, and once it’s gone, it’s gone.

Aug 2, 2024 • 19min
11 More Things Every Dungeon Master Should Remember Part 2
Things Every Dungeon Master Should RememberAs a Dungeon Master you have so much to remember, it’s a wonder you can even remember your own name. Yet, what if, by remembering a few more things, you were able to not only make your game better, but feel better yourself, and make everything you do as a Dungeon Master better?I know what it’s like to deal with all the disappointment of a dungeon master. You deal with so much and rarely get thanked for it. Yet that’s ok, because you didn’t get into this game to be thanked. You got into the game to be the best Dungeon Mater you could ever be.To become the best, here are 11 things that you need to remember.Welcome back to How to Be a Better DM. This is the show for the Dungeon Master who has other things going on in their life and doesn’t have any extra time to work on their craft. We’ve been crafting episodes just for you for the last 3 years or so, and today are bringing you another personally crafted episode to help you amplify your dungeon master skills.This will be part 2 of this episode with part 1 having come out yesterday.Today I'm going to continue on a topic that hearkens back to episode 2!Here are 11 things every dungeon master should remember.It’s Not Your Sole Responsibility to Make the Game AmazingYou Get What You GiveIt’s All a SkillYou Are Not Matt Mercer or Brenden Lee MulliganYou Don’t Have to Be Completely OriginalShow Don’t TellMake It Corny Until It’s NotIt’s Just a GameBe In the MomentYour Best Is Yet to ComeIt’s Not the Accent but the ActorMentioned in this episode:I Made a CR 100 MonsterI made a Monster with a Challenge Rating of 100
Why?
Because I could—and it only took me 5 minutes using Worldsmith.
And the best part?
You can do this and much more.
Get a free 7-day trial at session0studios.com/worldsmith and unlock their full suite of TTRPG generators from monsters to mythic magic items and everything in between.
Yep, that’s a full 7-day trial—completely free.
That’s a whole week of monsters, magic items, and more—whatever you need, zero burnout.
Try it now at session0studios.com/worldsmith.
Save time and make unlimited creations with Worldsmith.
Give Us a Rating and ReviewYou 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.Get The Swampberry Moonshine Jamboree For FreeTake a trip down to the bayou in The Swampberry Moonshine Jamboree.
We teamed up with Studio Fantasms to bring you a raucous one-shot adventure full of gatorfolk, catfishing, and a whole lotta moonshine.
We wrote the adventure, they designed the minis—it’s a sweet little bundle, and it’s totally free for the month of May.
Just head to https://session0studios.com/fantasms and sign up to grab it.
Don’t wait—May’s free, and once it’s gone, it’s gone.Brought to you by Session 0 StudiosVisit session0studios.com for more information.

Aug 1, 2024 • 33min
11 More Things Every Dungeon Master Should Remember Part 1
Things Every Dungeon Master Should RememberAs a Dungeon Master you have so much to remember, it’s a wonder you can even remember your own name. Yet, what if, by remembering a few more things, you were able to not only make your game better, but feel better yourself, and make everything you do as a Dungeon Master better?I know what it’s like to deal with all the disappointment of a dungeon master. You deal with so much and rarely get thanked for it. Yet that’s ok, because you didn’t get into this game to be thanked. You got into the game to be the best Dungeon Mater you could ever be.To become the best, here are 11 things that you need to remember.Welcome back to How to Be a Better DM. This is the show for the Dungeon Master who has other things going on in their life and doesn’t have any extra time to work on their craft. We’ve been crafting episodes just for you for the last 3 years or so, and today are bringing you another personally crafted episode to help you amplify your dungeon master skills.This will be part 1 of this episode with part 2 coming out tomorrow.Today I'm going to continue on a topic that hearkens back to episode 2!Here are 11 things every dungeon master should remember.It’s Not Your Sole Responsibility to Make the Game AmazingYou Get What You GiveIt’s All a SkillYou Are Not Matt Mercer or Brenden Lee MulliganYou Don’t Have to Be Completely OriginalShow Don’t TellMake It Corny Until It’s NotIt’s Just a GameBe In the MomentYour Best Is Yet to ComeIt’s Not the Accent but the ActorMentioned in this episode:Give Us a Rating and ReviewYou 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.Play D&D with UsDid you know that you can have one of our hosts here at How to Be a Better DM be your dungeon master?
That’s right.
All of our podcast hosts are professional dungeon masters that you can hire for your private or corporate dungeons and dragons game.
We can do one-shots or long-term campaigns.
If you want to schedule your first session with us, go to https://session0studios.com/dungeon-master-for-hire/ and get started.
Dungeon Master for HireJoin Our DiscordSo a little bit of a spoiler alert. We’re building an army.
That’s right, we’re building an army of amazing dungeon masters who want to make the world of D&D a better place.
If you want to join our army and fight by our side against the evil forces of boredom and bad dming, join our Discord and lend your voice to the cause.
Go to Session0studios.com/discord and join for free today.
DiscordBrought to you by Session 0 StudiosVisit session0studios.com for more information.

Jul 25, 2024 • 36min
How to Start Terrainscaping for your D&D Games with Jay’s Tabletop Terrain
Have you ever seen amazing terrainscapes worthy of legend and have looked on with envy?Do you want to learn how to start getting into terrainscaping so you can have amazing battlemaps like all of the famous actual play shows?Well, this is the episode for you.Welcome back to How to Be a Better DM.Today Justin and Tanner are joined by Jay from Jay's Tabletop Terrain on Instagram. You can learn more about Jay and what he does by going to: https://www.instagram.com/jays_tabletop/In today's episode we talk about questions like these:How does one start into crafting or assembling terrain for their D&D games?Which is cheaper in the longer run, buying/3d printing or crafting terrain?What handful of pieces are staples and should be first in the list to start with?How do you measure distance for tactics in combat if there isn't a grid?How do you use terrain to improve the gameplay rather than taking away from it?And more.Let us know how you like this episode, but thanks for giving it a try.We'll be back next time with another great episode.Until then, let's roll initiative.Mentioned in this episode:Brought to you by Session 0 StudiosVisit session0studios.com for more information.Give Us a Rating and ReviewYou 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.Play D&D with UsDid you know that you can have one of our hosts here at How to Be a Better DM be your dungeon master?
That’s right.
All of our podcast hosts are professional dungeon masters that you can hire for your private or corporate dungeons and dragons game.
We can do one-shots or long-term campaigns.
If you want to schedule your first session with us, go to https://session0studios.com/dungeon-master-for-hire/ and get started.
Dungeon Master for HireJoin Our DiscordSo a little bit of a spoiler alert. We’re building an army.
That’s right, we’re building an army of amazing dungeon masters who want to make the world of D&D a better place.
If you want to join our army and fight by our side against the evil forces of boredom and bad dming, join our Discord and lend your voice to the cause.
Go to Session0studios.com/discord and join for free today.
Discord

Jul 18, 2024 • 13min
Lessons Learned My First Year DM'ing
Welcome to How To Be a Better DM. In today's episode I (Cayden) go over 3 of the biggest lessons I've learned over this past year as I've started running D&D games for my friends & family. Hopefully something in this episode inspires those of you who have yet to give DM'ing a shot, to try it out. Mentioned in this episode:Play D&D with UsDid you know that you can have one of our hosts here at How to Be a Better DM be your dungeon master?
That’s right.
All of our podcast hosts are professional dungeon masters that you can hire for your private or corporate dungeons and dragons game.
We can do one-shots or long-term campaigns.
If you want to schedule your first session with us, go to https://session0studios.com/dungeon-master-for-hire/ and get started.
Dungeon Master for HireJoin Our DiscordSo a little bit of a spoiler alert. We’re building an army.
That’s right, we’re building an army of amazing dungeon masters who want to make the world of D&D a better place.
If you want to join our army and fight by our side against the evil forces of boredom and bad dming, join our Discord and lend your voice to the cause.
Go to Session0studios.com/discord and join for free today.
DiscordGive Us a Rating and ReviewYou 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.Brought to you by Session 0 StudiosVisit session0studios.com for more information.

Jul 11, 2024 • 30min
Downtime Activities in D&D, Part 4: Running a Business
Should you encourage your players to run a business in your campaign? What would that even look like? And, most importantly, can allowing players to run a business in your D&D Campaign become an additive to the overall story, or a distraction? Tanner explores these questions, their many other nuances, and the effects of a player-run, in-game business on your campaign.Also, if you'd be interested in supporting us and this show, sign up for our new Patreon: patreon.com/Session0StudiosMentioned in this episode:Join Our DiscordSo a little bit of a spoiler alert. We’re building an army.
That’s right, we’re building an army of amazing dungeon masters who want to make the world of D&D a better place.
If you want to join our army and fight by our side against the evil forces of boredom and bad dming, join our Discord and lend your voice to the cause.
Go to Session0studios.com/discord and join for free today.
DiscordTry Worldsmith Today!Give yourself access to infinite possibilities with Worldsmith!
It's the ultimate tool for Dungeon Masters to spark creativity or just save your bacon when you're in a bind.
You can generate infinite stories, traps or treasures.
Sign up at https://session0studios.com/worldsmith-podcastWorldsmithGive Us a Rating and ReviewYou 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.Brought to you by Session 0 StudiosVisit session0studios.com for more information.

Jul 8, 2024 • 56min
Where Have My Fingers Been & Why Players Should All Be DMs - Guest Appearance on RPG Academy
Welcome back to How to Be a Better DM.Today is a special bonus episode. We were fortunate enough to have been invited onto RPG Academy. Listen to our conversation but absolutely check them out at https://therpgacademy.com/Mentioned in this episode:Brought to you by Session 0 StudiosVisit session0studios.com for more information.Give Us a Rating and ReviewYou 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!Try Worldsmith Today!Give yourself access to infinite possibilities with Worldsmith!
It's the ultimate tool for Dungeon Masters to spark creativity or just save your bacon when you're in a bind.
You can generate infinite stories, traps or treasures.
Sign up at https://session0studios.com/worldsmith-podcastWorldsmith

Jul 4, 2024 • 19min
10 More Tips for Even Better One-Shots
“You creep slowly through the cobwebbed dark of the crypt, your breath coming out in puffs of steam that you’re trying your hardest to cover. You reach the corner and peer around down the hall. You see the source of the thumping sound. It’s a creature the size of an ogre, with the same proportions. The only difference is that where an ogre would have 1 head, this creature has 6, along with 3 extra arms and a 3rd leg that it drags behind it. Oh… and the entire body seems sewn together in the most grotesque way….It’s some night in the future. That’s the sound of you pulling off the perfect one-shot. You’ve gathered a full party of friends and now you’re playing a once in a lifetime game.But how do you create the once-in-a-lifetime One-Shot?One-shots are fun, but getting them right is a skill that needs to be developed. Luckily for you, I’m going to share some tips that will help improve every single one-shot you ever play. The more often you play, the more likely it is that you create the Once-In-a-Lifetime One-shot.Welcome back to How to Be a Better DM. This is the show that helps you, the Dungeon Master, craft better stories in less time and with less stress. We’ve been helping dungeon masters new and old for over 150 episodes now. I’m Justin Lewis and I’ll be your guide for today.I love one-shots!You probably know that if you’ve listened to the show for any amount of time.If you want to go back and listen to the other episodes I’ve done about one-shots you can listen to:Episode 1Episode 12Episode 24Episode 38Episode 82And Episode 101.The Most important would be Episode 82 which is 10 Reasons to Do One-Shots as a Dungeon Master.So I’m not going to talk about why you should do one-shots, but just know that you absolutely should. Instead, today I want to talk about some more tips to help you push the limits of your abilities. I want you to make your next one-shot the best the world has ever seen.Tip #1: Go All OutGoing all out for a campaign could be daunting and possibly exhausting depending on a lot of factors and circumstances. Going all out for a one-shot is much easier in comparison. So with this next one-shot you do, give it everything you got.It’s a simple fact of dungeon master, and most things in life actually, but what you put into something is what you’ll get out of it.With your next one-shot, go all out!Obviously I say that hoping you’ll exercise some degree of temperance. I don’t expect you to rent out a suit of armor and act out every single part. Use your judgment.But if you are thinking critically, then you’ve probably thought of at least some sort of 1% type action that you could do that you don’t normally do. Maybe you don’t do music and you could add it to your game. Maybe getting some real candles could spice up the atmosphere. Try to push yourself just that little bit and go the extra mile. Your players will appreciate the effort.Tip #2: Write It YourselfAs a DM, you’ll need to practice the creativity it takes to manage and perform full campaigns. Practicing your writing abilities goes a long way toward that end. So with your next one-shot, try to write the entire thing yourself. It’s a great practice in story creation, development, pacing and character creation. Because one-shots are so short, your story needs to be punchy as do the characters. You know pretty easily and clearly, if the story doesn’t really land.One-shots are also a great opportunity to try writing stories that you don’t normally tell to stretch yourself and push your limits.Tip #3:Be Clear About the Character Creation OptionsWhen preparing your one-shot, prepare the character creation options for your players. Because it is a one-shot, you are going to go all out. Your players are going to do the same exact thing. They will try to make the most wacky characters and sometimes the most min-maxy characters. This could easily break your one-shot.If you’re trying to write and publish a one-shot then this is a good thing. You want to test out the limits of what you’ve created.But if you’re just playing for fun, then maybe say no to the changelings or the flying creatures. At least just know what you want to allow and what you don’t so that when character creation happens, you aren’t making things up on the spot. Tip #4: Plan for a Small Break in the MiddleTo make the one-shot even more fun, plan a small break in the middle. Announce the break at the beginning of the game and explain when it will happen. This will help your players manage themselves so that they don’t get up and grab something during some of the best parts of the one-shot.It also makes the mood much more relaxes and allows you to strategize and gameplan in the middle of the session.Tip #5: Playtest what You’ve WrittenSince you’ve written this one-shot, I’d highly recommend playtesting it as much as is possible. If all you can do is just a quick run-through in your head, that is exponentially better than not doing that.If you can, test out parts of the one-shot, either with yourself or with some volunteers to make sure the mechanics work and are interesting. You’re also trying to ensure that the game isn’t too easy or too difficult.Playtesting will allow you to make sure the game is going to be fun.More than anything though, it will allow you to just remember what you’ve got going on. Going through it once or twice will allow you to more easily recall the important elements during the game.Tip #6: Try a Theme or Mechanic You’ve Never Done BeforeThis tip goes in line with the tip to go all out, but this is your opportunity to try a rule you’ve never used before. Try out insanity mechanics or the Alert Level mechanics. If you get it wrong, that’s fine because it’s a one-shot.Some other interesting mechanics you may try out are:DiseasesCalled ShotsPossessionMetamorphosis/TransformationReputationSentient WeaponsWeapons that Grow or BuildPersuasion of the Masses.Those are just some examples, but hopefully, they got you thinking of what you could try out.Tip #7: Don’t Worry About Making It UniqueThis tip might be somewhat contradictory of tip #1, but don’t worry about making it unique. What I mean by that is that you might be tempted to try to make it something no one has ever seen before. Even as I write this, I am thinking of a one-shot I’m preparing. As I’ve been working on it, from time to time I’ll think, “Well that sounds exactly like so many other shows out there. This character won’t work because it’s such a cliche”.Don’t worry about that. The uniqueness that we all crave so much will come in time. Just focus on making this one-shot as fun as possible. If you do that and you really care about your party, then it will all fall into place.Tip #8: Consider Letting the Party Plan the ClassesOne problem one-shots can run into is having 3 rangers in the party (speaking from experience).If that’s what the party wants, then that’s fine, but if you sense some awkwardness as the party is describing and introducing their character, then that’s probably why.When people make characters, they often want their character to feel special and unique. Often, if there is more than one character with the same class at the table, there is a chance that one of them doesn’t feel unique.Before the one-shot, connect all your players together with a text thread, a phone call, an email or even an in-person meeting **GASP**.Let them talk about what each of them want to play as before the game begins. This can help them form a good party, or just avoid forming a bad one. It can also allow the party to hash out how their characters know and relate to each other. If you want, you can insert that bit yourself, but giving them parameters (you all know each other and have worked with each other for a while) can allow them the creative freedom to come up with some pretty cool stuff.Tip #9: Skip the Boring BitsYou see this on a lot of actual play shows where there is a time limit, but they do skip a lot. In your one-shot play, you don’t need to do the traveling and exploring if you don’t want to. If there is something that seems boring, then move on.Because one-shots are often with limited time, you often do have to trim the fluff or risk not being able to finish.This is actually good practice for normal games. Sometimes we ask for skill checks just to add some sort of difficulty rather than actually pushing for an interesting story. When you trim the fluff and skip the boring bits, you’re always evaluating whether the current encounter or scene is worth doing. Having that mental critique is useful because hopefully, at the end of the day, everything that happened was 100% worthwhile to the party.Tip #10: No Phones or TabletsI know that nowadays in the crazy digital age, we’re all slaves to our devices. But every once in a while, it’s a nice treat to get back to the origins of tabletop roleplaying games. Do away with the phones and tablets and computers. Have everyone agree to use pen and paper for the one shot. They can write down the spells they are going to use before hand.I know this is (weirdly) a big ask.But getting them to give you their full attention (so no phone distractions) can make for a very fun game. Plus, I think a good amount of us need the break.There you have it, 10 more tips to help you make each one shot you do even better than the last. As I mentioned at the start of the show, one-shots are so important. Often, getting a group to stay together is one of the hardest parts of a being a dungeon master. If you can get good at doing one-shots, you’ll enjoy yourself much more because your scheduling headaches will be limited to just one day rather than week-in and week-out.With these 10 tips, you’ll be able to have a much more fun time. I am curious though. What sort of one-shot will you create?When you do any sort of one-shot, reach out to us and let us know how it goes for you. We’d love to be a part of your journey.As you go on and DM, you’ll have ups and downs and all arounds. No matter the challenges you face, keep going. Every man, woman and child is better on the other side of challenge. Thanks for listening to How to Be a Better DM. It’s you who makes this possible. So with your blessing, we’ll be back next week for another great episode, but until then, let’s go ahead and roll initiative.Mentioned in this episode:Brought to you by Session 0 StudiosVisit session0studios.com for more information.Give Us a Rating and ReviewYou 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 MonsterI made a Monster with a Challenge Rating of 100
Why?
Because I could—and it only took me 5 minutes using Worldsmith.
And the best part?
You can do this and much more.
Get a free 7-day trial at session0studios.com/worldsmith and unlock their full suite of TTRPG generators from monsters to mythic magic items and everything in between.
Yep, that’s a full 7-day trial—completely free.
That’s a whole week of monsters, magic items, and more—whatever you need, zero burnout.
Try it now at session0studios.com/worldsmith.
Save time and make unlimited creations with Worldsmith.
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.
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Jun 27, 2024 • 57min
Yes And... Why Improvisation Isn't About You | Talking Improv and Comedy with TJ from Comedy Sports
How do you improvise things that make the game better? How do you add comedy to the game without making it corny?Welcome back to How to Be a Better DM. Today I talked with TJ Salmon from Comedy Sports, located in Provo Utah. For more information check out https://www.comedysportzutah.com/The biggest lesson of today's show is that improv, and comedy, both of them, it's not about you. The best Dungeon Masters do everything they can for their players. They build the story on what their characters add. The best way to be a DM is to DM for your players.Thanks for listening today. Mentioned in this episode:Brought to you by Session 0 StudiosVisit session0studios.com for more information.Give Us a Rating and ReviewYou 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?
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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?
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