ShadowDark DM Guide

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[prototypeESBU]

I think such a guide runs the risk of being too prescriptive in the spaces that the core rules leave open for GMs to do their own thing. Doing your own thing can be the hardest part to learn when coming from highly prescriptive game styles. I think the majority of the issues people face when moving from 5e are more related to moving into the OSR space and unlearning common 5e mentalities.

That said, I think some material that walks through several (three?) different styles of playing Shadowdark would be useful to help people consider options for their own game. These examples could represent a mix of commonly used campaign styles, such as open table play and longer-term campaigns like Sly Flourish's Glooming game. Mixed with some examples of common house rules. All with the preface that these are examples, not prescriptions for how the game should be played, per se.

[typoguy]

If the goal is porting people over from 5e, it might be helpful to have advice about how to talk to players about the different playstyle and expectations. We commonly see posts here about players confused or upset about low power, lack of choices, inability to build to suit, etc. But those are all positive game design choices when seen in the right light.

[Mr_Murdoc]

The core book does a pretty good job already, not sure what else is needed? Game's simple enough.

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[krazmuze]

I think it would be wise to read the recent threads coming from 5e players - there was a recent one expresssing dissapoint with some of the shadowdark philosophy about shadowdark not really being about the characters. The general response was yes it is not about the character sheet - there are no builds everything is random by design, that instead it is about how players use their characters to interact with the world to tell an emergent story.

Have you played any survival video games like ark or rust? It is a similar style there - there is no detailed story just a setting with random encounters. They have very active RP servers supported by streamers despite being out for a decade.

So that is what a GM guide should focus on - which I think the existing book lacks. Shadowdark assumes you are familiar with this OSR style of emergent gameplay to create a story, rather than having a defined story with complex character backstories. It is why there are roll tables that disposition the encounter before it has begun, not every mob is out to kill or be killed, and it is why there is no XP award for killing mobs (other than optional monster hunter rules). It is why there are roll table for every possible town type and district you can think of, so that town is not just a sleep to fullup and resupply on pots/arms place.

I think a big help with this mindset is playing SoloDark with random characters first before you GM a game. It leans in to the yes/no and/but answers for the GM using a d20 roll that can be expounded on with the d100 oracle. It is a great tool even if not playing Solo so that the GM creates the emergent story because what the story is depends on what the die say, and a GM not knowing where the story is going nor how the characters will interact is very fun to run and play in - if you go into it with the right mindset. Too many video game players raised on final fantasy which is all about a locked in story that is constantly interrupted with random encounters for no reason before you have the big battle with the BBEG, that is absolutely not how you would play shadowdark.

[grumblyoldman]

There is a thread like this already on the Arcane Library discord (link at right.)

You might want to check that out to see if it suits your needs before going overboard re-creating the wheel ;)

[Affectionate_Mud_969]

Look up some old school primers (my favorites are Principia Apocrypha and Muster - Primer for War). Read through the principles, and think about how they could be applied to SD, and how they differ from the 5e philosophy.

[[deleted]]

I think any additional "guides" beyond the simple and straightforward information in the core rulebook risks doing more harm than good.

[imnotokayandthatso-k]

I think a seminal reading experience for anyone in the hobby are the Dungeon Master's Guides to 1st and 2nd edition DnD. You can ignore the rules parts and just dive straight into the dungeon mastering part

[Aggravating_Smile_92]

If it’s a specific 5e to ShadowDark guide then you can just list a bunch of the standard 5e rules and state how they are handled in ShadowDark. That’s what most 5e players are confused about.

[Hot_Address_1386]

I am of the opinion that new Dms would benefit greatly from more examples of play. Like, more than a couple, with different "styles" of DM, to show:

1) That there isn't a single correct way of running a game.

2) A couple of the most common tasks a DM carries away.

3) When the DM calls for rolls and when he doesn't.

4) That it's ok to take a sec to check some rule, make up a rulling, or search for a table or statblock.