PLAY D&D NOW, MY LORD

One of the hottest new games out on the web today is Evony. I need not go into how it is amazing. It pretty much speaks volumes about itself. Truthfully, I’m not really sure why anyone would play anything but Evony. Just in case you have not ascended to the next level of gaming, I bring to you several ways you can bring a little of the light and goodness that is Evony to your D&D game until you decide to catch up with the rest of humanity.

• Recruiting New Players
  Looking for more players for your group? It happens to the best of us. People move away, work schedules change, kids take up all our free time. Sometimes you need new recruits! One of the best ways to get some new blood for your group is to place promotional materials in areas where prospective players frequently gather. You’ll want to include the standard information like how to contact you and what kind of game(s) you’ll be playing, but you should also put in a little tasteful eye candy from a stock photography site to capture the attention of your prospective audience. Note that the things that appear in the ad may not appear in the game, but you don’t have to tell anyone.
  
  
• Make The Game Accessible To Everyone, But Reward Extra Effort
  One of the best things about tabletop roleplaying games is that people from all different walks of life and experience levels can come together and play, giving each game a unique flavor. In order to give the game the most realistic feel possible, the wisest Dungeon Masters will allow players to give themselves a leg up on their teammates by setting up a system of rewards.As a start, consider offering one free re-roll to anyone that buys the DM’s pizza for the evening. Once the players become more comfortable and familiar with the concept, try offering a permanent enchantment on a player’s weapon of choice. Prices can vary somewhat depending on the player’s needs. We recommend $10 for a +1 enchantment, $2 per wand charge, and a sliding scale for healing surges based upon whether they are purchased in advance or at a critical moment to the character’s survival. Anyone wanting a Ring of Three Wishes or a sword +5 Holy Avenger should probably be prepared for a price that includes the phrase “and a happy ending”.

  In order to encourage participation in these programs, we recommend including at least one monster per game session that cannot be hit by normal weapons. Also, it is good to offer free items to every character every few weeks. One tried-and-true DM favorite is a cloak of invisibility that summons a hungry, invisible rust monster while the wearer sleeps.

• Realism Is The Key To Good Roleplaying
  As a DM, you should take every opportunity to make sure the players feel immersed in the game experience. Encumbrance rules are a good start. If you’ve ever read The Lord of The Rings, you know that you get a real sense of how long and arduous Frodo’s journey was because you get a detailed account of every step. As a DM, you can let your players experience this too by making your campaign take place in real time. One huge benefit of this is that every day of travel time in the campaign take a day in the real world. This also has the added benefit of extending the life of your campaign exponentially, freeing you from the worries of rushing to put together that weekend’s adventure. We recommend the purchase of a sturdy thesaurus so that the players don’t get bored by the same old descriptions of trees and rocks every week.

  Additionally, a real-time campaign virtually eliminates the problem of spotty player attendance. Who wants to have their character stand in place, blank-eyed and unspeaking, while the rest of the party ventures forward? This will also encourage the party to hide their valuables and invest in some sort of mobile, secure lodgings between sessions since you should definitely have bandits attack the party once or twice a week in between sessions.

There you have it. I have just given you the basic equivalent of one of those Fiero to Lamborghini mod kits for your D&D game. Now, my lord, COME PLAY!