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<blockquote data-quote="CleverNickName" data-source="post: 9284990" data-attributes="member: 50987"><p>The best advice I can give as a veteran Dungeon Master of 35 years and counting: don't be afraid to delegate stuff to your players. Fill-in-the-blank descriptions for things like rooms, monsters, treasures, even magic items can go a long way to making everyone at the table feel more creative and engaged, and save you a lot of time and effort trying to dream up stuff on the fly. If your players are eager to participate; <em>let them</em>.</p><p></p><p><strong>DM: </strong> "The hinges groan with the weight of the years, as Sir Biffleboff carefully opens the chest. Peering inside, you see a glittering silver weapon resting on a pillow of silk. Sir Biffleboff--what kind of weapon is it?"</p><p><strong>Kevin: </strong> "Oooo, it's a war pick! I need a war pick for my build."</p><p><strong>DM:</strong> "War pick, excellent. Go on then, describe it for us."</p><p><strong>Kevin: </strong>"Um, the war pick is made of steel, with bronze and copper inlay on the head in a knotwork pattern. The name 'Bloodspike' has been engraved in Dwarven runes along the handle."</p><p><strong>DM: </strong> "Perfect. Bloodspike is a +1 war pick that sheds light as a torch on command."</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="CleverNickName, post: 9284990, member: 50987"] The best advice I can give as a veteran Dungeon Master of 35 years and counting: don't be afraid to delegate stuff to your players. Fill-in-the-blank descriptions for things like rooms, monsters, treasures, even magic items can go a long way to making everyone at the table feel more creative and engaged, and save you a lot of time and effort trying to dream up stuff on the fly. If your players are eager to participate; [I]let them[/I]. [B]DM: [/B] "The hinges groan with the weight of the years, as Sir Biffleboff carefully opens the chest. Peering inside, you see a glittering silver weapon resting on a pillow of silk. Sir Biffleboff--what kind of weapon is it?" [B]Kevin: [/B] "Oooo, it's a war pick! I need a war pick for my build." [B]DM:[/B] "War pick, excellent. Go on then, describe it for us." [B]Kevin: [/B]"Um, the war pick is made of steel, with bronze and copper inlay on the head in a knotwork pattern. The name 'Bloodspike' has been engraved in Dwarven runes along the handle." [B]DM: [/B] "Perfect. Bloodspike is a +1 war pick that sheds light as a torch on command." [/QUOTE]
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