🔗 Share this article

When I am a Dungeon Master, I traditionally steered clear of extensive use of luck during my Dungeons & Dragons adventures. My preference was for narrative flow and what happened in a game to be determined by character actions instead of pure luck. Recently, I chose to try something different, and I'm truly glad I did.

The Inspiration: Watching an Improvised Tool

An influential actual-play show features a DM who frequently calls for "chance rolls" from the adventurers. He does this by selecting a specific dice and outlining possible results contingent on the number. While it's essentially no different from rolling on a pre-generated chart, these are devised in the moment when a player's action has no predetermined outcome.

I opted to test this method at my own session, primarily because it looked engaging and provided a break from my standard routine. The outcome were remarkable, prompting me to reflect on the often-debated balance between preparation and improvisation in a tabletop session.

An Emotional Story Beat

At a session, my group had survived a large-scale fight. Later, a player wondered if two beloved NPCs—a sibling duo—had lived. Instead of deciding myself, I let the dice decide. I asked the player to make a twenty-sided die roll. I defined the outcomes as: on a 1-4, both were killed; a middling roll, a single one succumbed; on a 10+, they survived.

The player rolled a 4. This resulted in a incredibly moving moment where the adventurers discovered the corpses of their allies, forever united in death. The party conducted a ceremony, which was especially significant due to earlier character interactions. As a parting gesture, I improvised that the remains were miraculously restored, containing a magical Prayer Bead. I randomized, the bead's contained spell was exactly what the party needed to address another major story problem. It's impossible to plan these kinds of perfect moments.

Improving DM Agility

This incident caused me to question if improvisation and thinking on your feet are truly the essence of D&D. Even if you are a detail-oriented DM, your ability to adapt need exercise. Adventurers frequently find joy in upending the best constructed plots. Therefore, a skilled DM must be able to pivot effectively and fabricate scenarios on the fly.

Employing similar mechanics is a fantastic way to train these talents without straying too much outside your comfort zone. The key is to apply them for low-stakes decisions that won't drastically alter the campaign's main plot. As an example, I wouldn't use it to decide if the main villain is a traitor. However, I would consider using it to determine whether the characters arrive right after a major incident unfolds.

Empowering Collaborative Storytelling

This technique also helps keep players engaged and cultivate the feeling that the story is dynamic, shaping in reaction to their choices immediately. It reduces the sense that they are merely actors in a pre-written script, thereby strengthening the shared foundation of storytelling.

This approach has long been integral to the original design. The game's roots were reliant on charts, which made sense for a game focused on exploration. Even though current D&D tends to prioritizes plot-driven play, leading many DMs to feel they must prep extensively, that may not be the required method.

Finding the Healthy Equilibrium

It is perfectly no issue with being prepared. Yet, it's also fine no issue with relinquishing control and permitting the dice to guide minor details rather than you. Authority is a major part of a DM's responsibilities. We need it to manage the world, yet we can be reluctant to release it, at times when doing so can lead to great moments.

A piece of suggestion is this: Don't be afraid of letting go of control. Experiment with a little randomness for inconsequential outcomes. You might just create that the unexpected outcome is significantly more powerful than anything you might have pre-written on your own.