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 jreilly89 wrote:
Piggy backing off juptrking's thread, what are some good tips for keeping players engaged? I generally run modules, due to time and kids, but have no problems improving as needed.

My PC's seem to enjoy playing, but half the time either A) are always on their phone or B) wait for me the DM to drive the action, i.e. they just walk forward constantly until something happens.

Piggy back by all means! That's a great question. Here are a few things I do to try and keep players engaged...

Modules can be prescriptive - don't let that get in the way of something interesting
I've only ever done one module as DM, and it was White Plume Mountain, which if you haven't heard of it, is somewhat nuts. Also it was the original release edition that we adapted for 5E (Not my idea, I'll post about it some other time! ) As you can imagine I took a lot of liberties with it. I have done modules as a player, and I get the distinct impression it's harder for DMs to tailor the experience to their players. When I did White plume I ended up tweaking things a lot (mostly because I had to), but I also found ways to introduce some of the players favourite NPCs from previous games. My advice would be don't be afraid to go off piste if you can find a way to engage your players.

What do your players enjoy the most?
On the subject of tailoring, if a lot of your players love combat, why not throw in an extra goblin encounter? And while you're at it, throw in some really grisly combat descriptions! Got a player who loves to stat grind? Maybe throw in a treasure chest containing bracers of defence (and maybe throw in a curse for good measure). Perhaps your party are into roleplaying, replace that boss battle with an intense negotiation scene.

Make them do the work
A good way to get players interested is to get them thinking and get them invested. I've found a great way to achieve both of these things is to let them do your job for you! When you journey to the dark marshes, choose a player and ask them what they see, let them explain the landscape to you. This will not only get the gears in their head turning, but it will also make them feel like they have some ownership over the world you're exploring together. Maybe one of your players isn't so much into landscapes, let them describe the visceral outcome of a combat roll, "You rolled a natural 20 against the Kobold, describe what happens next" anything goes!

Create conflict
If your players are all in agreement about walking forward until something happens, present them with a bone of contention. Try and find a scenario where you know your players (or characters) will all have differing opinions. If a player wants some skin in the game, they'll have to put down their phone and raise their voice.

Define alignments
Finding a contentious point of view can be difficult... Unless your players have clearly defined motivations. It's never to late to expand on player characters' back stories. I will regularly take opportunities at the table to ask my players about their character's pasts. Ask some open ended questions like "where is your character from?", "what was their family like?", "what does your character want out of life?". These answers will help you point your player in the right direction of their alignment. Once your players understand alignment, you can start creating conflict in the group.

Quick wins
Here are some really simple quick things you can do to keep players engaged (some of these may or may not involve you treating your party like school children).

- Small party sizes: Smaller groups are easier to manage and helps prevent the possibility of cross talk (players who like to chat while you're describing things).
- A good atmosphere: Suitable background music can help keep players' minds in the fiction.
- Seating arrangements: Mix up your seating arrangements to prevent cross talk.
- Suddenly, Ogres: Players not paying attention? Hit them with an unexpected combat encounter.
- Go thermo-nuclear: Instate a no phones at the table rule. (I've never done this/needed to do this, it could definitely backfire)

Hope that helps

 jreilly89 wrote:
what are some good tips for keeping players engaged?

pay close attention to what they care about and develop those events/themes/arcs

Mandatory reading:
DM of the Rings

http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=612

The ultimate result?

"Why don't YOU run the next campaign?"
"Now, now. Let's not get crazy here. I'm sure you'll do better next time."

I'm currently in the process of moving my campaign to the Dungeon World system. I think their approach to DMing is very unique and very interesting. I suppose it is similar to my idea about using frameworks to plan games but pushes it much further.

I would argue it's worth a read if you DM using any game system, there are certainly a lot of good ideas in there. I'll post a follow up with some of the ideas that I find really interesting soon. I'm also in the process of scheduling my next game, so I'll definitely have lots to report on after my first Dungeon World game.

If you don't mind, some things I've learned over the years:

Know how to say "No"
Players ask to do some of the wildest things, and outright saying "no" just shuts down creativity. Instead of refusing an oddball player request, twist it into a choice - if what they want is worth it, they'll agree to your conditions to keep it from causing a problem in your game - especially if its something you, as a DM, would prefer to be a one-time occurance. "Yes, but ..." often works, as does, "Well, if you can complete task A and B, you just might be able to pull that off".

Sometimes the room is empty
One of the things I hated about the 3.5 version of Ravenloft was that every location had some sort of battle waiting behind every door. The original Ravenloft had a lot of essentially empty rooms - and that was fine. It made it so that when you did get jumped, it was often unexpected and more tense. Also, empty/quiet areas gave the players a moment to rest their characters, plan or retreat to after a harrowing encounter.

Not everything is a nail
Somewhat based on above, if the party gets into "standard operating procedure" to handle every encounter, it is time to try a new approach. Not every encounter should be overcome by combat, a simple skill check or magic (offensive or utility); it's okay for the party to face things over their head and have to run for it or take another approach to resolve the situation.

It's not his story - it's THEIR story
Never make the mistake of basing a campaign around the story or plot that affects one character. A character death, missing a game, dropping out or any number of other reasons can be why a character falls out of the game, and if you've revolved the plot around that character, you're suddenly going to have to backtrack or rewrite sections of the story to move forward.

This is not to say not to attempt to flesh out character stories for the game, but don't make the campaign's progress DEPENDANT on the actions of a SINGLE character/player. Give them ALL the limelight at different points in the campaign.

All good advice Stormonu! I think what you're saying about saying no is very important. One of the reasons RPGs are so compelling is because anything can happen, but some sort of boundaries need to be set. Attaching that yes to a difficult choice can give the DM some control whilst leaving the player feeling like they've been heard and had input into the game.

I think I'm going to change the name of this thread as my diary updates haven't exactly been coming thick and fast I really like the idea of a thread for people to share general DMing tips and stories.

 Stormonu wrote:
This is not to say not to attempt to flesh out character stories for the game, but don't make the campaign's progress DEPENDANT on the actions of a SINGLE character/player.

And yet, if the fate of Middle Earth depended entirely on whether Frodo made the Will test to throw the Ring into Mt. Doom!

At the end of each session, remember to talk to the players about what they liked about the game, and conversely what didn't work. Even before you create characters talk a bit about what everyone expects for the campaign about tone and setting.

Hyperactive, distractable, or committed/sympathetic/guilty players can be kept busy by designating them extra roles. For example, you can put the person who keeps going through the rulebooks looking for gear they want to buy in charge of the party's finances. Party XP is almost universally handled by one person in my games. The one in the corner who doodles in the margins of all the rulebooks might be happy to draw maps of the dungeon the party is in. Experienced players can be the ones to help new players with their characters. And that one git who keeps missing games and complaining about it can be in charge of scheduling. Yeah, the examples are kind of cheesy, but someone is usually willing to step up and do some work, so don't be too afraid to delegate.

 JohnHwangDD wrote:

 Stormonu wrote:
This is not to say not to attempt to flesh out character stories for the game, but don't make the campaign's progress DEPENDANT on the actions of a SINGLE character/player.

And yet, if the fate of Middle Earth depended entirely on whether Frodo made the Will test to throw the Ring into Mt. Doom!

Yes and no. Alternatively, Sam could have pushed Frodo into the lava.

 JohnHwangDD wrote:
And yet, if the fate of Middle Earth depended entirely on whether Frodo made the Will test to throw the Ring into Mt. Doom!

This is why I love the idea of Dungeon World so much, because it creates a setting where maybe Frodo doesn't destroy the ring. Then what happens?

Great ideas gnome_idea_what, get your players to help you manage the game and let everyone play to their strengths.

Also, I've just discovered Adam Koebel's Office Hours and they're filled with loads of great GMing advice.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpHN-sm__o0&list=PLAmPx8nWedFVGdrP2JmcYzdvZC8sWV5b4

Hey everyone. I played my first game of Dungeon World as GM, and it felt like it didn't go so well. I felt like the set player moves weren't coming up, it was more like straight improv. So the day after i was thinking about it and I found this article.

How to ask nicely in Dungeon World.

I realised I had been "cheating". In Dungeon World the GM has a pretty strict protocol to follow.

There is no GM move called "make an arbitrary decision." There's also no GM move called "have a freeform social interaction." If the GM is following the rules, this kind of stall should not happen.

I wasn't choosing from the set of GM moves, I saw them more as a suggestions but in reality it's mandatory, in the best possible way.

Hopefully I can resist the urge of slipping back into 5E style GMing and bring it back for our next game.