20 Dungeon Master Mistakes that Ruin D&D Games

#1 Taking away player agency

The most extreme example I’ve seen of a DM taking away player agency was at a convention a few years back. The dungeon master literally took control of some of our characters and made them do certain things. Let me tell you, the look of unease and even anger on those players’ faces was unmistakable.

But denying player agency is usually more subtle. It happens when the players’ decisions and actions in the game don’t affect outcomes. It happens when the dungeon master has already rather decided what’s going to happen in the game, usually in servitude to the BELOVED story they’re trying to tell.

#2 Running too many games

We like D&D, yes, we all like D&D. But a dungeon master who gets all JAZZED UP and decides to run ten games is probably going to run ten games rather poorly. If you want to run GOOD games and not get burned out, you need to have limits. You may be excited now, but you may not be when you realize exactly what you committed to.

#3 Favoritism

“Hey guys, my girlfriend is going to play with us.” Okay, sure no problem. “Oh, by the way, she gets better magic items than you all, too.” Yeah, that’s not sounding like… “And I sort of have to give her invulnerability because if her character dies she’ll get angry with me. It’s cool, though, and kind of makes sense, because her character is ten levels higher than your alls.”

I know I’m picking on girlfriends, but it could be best friends, or just players the DM likes more than others. The bottom line is that when you show favoritism, your other players will notice, and they probably won’t be happy. And if it keeps up, they might not be your players for long.

#4 Anti-favoritism

Similar to favoritism, but when the dungeon master cause ALL BAD in the game to fall upon one player’s character. Their ranger PC gets a nerf, but the paladin who grants +6 to all saving throws—that’s that’s fine, cool. Oh, and don’t forget to have a dragon swoop out of the sky and take away their magic bow while you’re at it.

#5 Not preparing for the game

Now, some dungeon masters are just lazy, admit to it, and will wing everything. Other dungeon masters will simply claim they are running an open-world SANDBOX game, so preparation is rather useless. Finally, there are the dungeon masters who hide behind the mantra of preparation being worthless because players will do something else anyway.

Fact: running a good sandbox game involves MORE preparation than running a non-sandbox game. Fact: the more you prepare, the better game you will run, EVEN IF your players dodge your plot hook and head off somewhere else. Fact: even if you’re a veteran dungeon master and CAN run games will little to no prep, your game WILL be better if you prepare more.

#6 Ignoring player feedback

Now, sure, not every piece of feedback your players give you is gold. When the power-gamer says that you should give them more magic items or allow them to build gestalt characters (PCs that level up in two classes at once), you might not want to listen to them. However, the dungeon master who ignores player feedback completely and doesn’t make adjustments to continually improve or course correct their game, is potentially marching their game off the cliff.

#7 The DM vs Player mentality

Dear, dungeon master, your goal is NOT to win. In fact, winning the game in the traditional sense is absolutely meaningless in Dungeons & Dragons. The bottom line is that your monsters are almost always going to lose. The game is designed that way. Instead, your goal should be to run a game where everyone, including you, has the opportunity to have fun. And the mentality you should adopt is to run a challenging game where you are roleplaying the bad guys to win, but you are also secretly rooting for the players’ characters to win, and you WANT them to win.

#8 Having a DM PC or NPC that outshines the players’ own characters

Your players’ characters should be in the limelight. THEY are the heroes of the campaign, not your DM PC or NPC. I don’t care how jazzed up you are for your precious NPC or DM PC that you spent hours developing. They should not carry the party and constantly rescue them from certain doom. They should not get all the cool magic items. They should not constantly be in the spotlight. Do this at your own peril.

#9 Prioritizing DM fun over player fun

This is the dungeon master who plays the game THEY want to play, and they ignore player preferences and desires. Now, the DM still owns certain game elements, such as the plot arc, and villains, and how the world reacts to character actions. I’m not suggesting dungeon masters should bow down in subservience to their players and ignore their own desires nor deny ownership of the DM role. Instead, dungeon masters should CONSIDER their players’ preferences when they design game elements. I should know what my players like and don’t like, and then allow that to inform how I run my game. It doesn’t RULE how I run my game, but it does inform it.

#10 Using homebrew rules no one likes

Yeah, some of us signed up to play D&D fifth-edition, or 3.5 or 2e or whatever. And we rather don’t like all your homebrew rules. And we also don’t like that you’re using us for guinea pigs for a whole slew of new rules you dreamed up and every game session you’re changing those rules. It’s not that DMs should never use homebrew rules. I have some homebrew rules I use. The issue lies in having too many, having rules players don’t like, and – perhaps first and foremost – creating said homebrew rules BEFORE you even know and understand the core rules that well. This is like having no idea how an internal combustion engine works but pulling it all apart anyway and making your own modifications. You’re going to break something; and people might not be happy.

#11 Railroading

Of course, this has to be on the list. Everyone hates a railroad, though a railroad is NOT a linear adventure, let’s be clear here. A railroad is when a dungeon master has a pre-defined story in mind that must needs be played out by their players’ characters. For instance, they watched session two of Critical Role and decide to run that same campaign at their table. BUT NOT JUST THAT. They also decide that the story that unfolds at their game table should mimic what happened during Critical Roles’ game, and they take steps to ensure that happens. Railroading is often accompanied by, and is probably a flavor of, stealing player agency. To dungeon masters who are considering running a railroad, I have this plea: just go write a book instead.

#12 Content that makes players uncomfortable

Look, living out your private fantasies at the game table might not be a good idea. A weird furry convention? Probably not going to go over well. Including graphic rape scenes that players are intended to roleplay out... There are probably some things that shouldn’t be in the game, and if you’re uncertain where the line lies, you should talk to your players and establish those boundaries.

#13 Not removing problem players

Problem players KILL GAMES. They suck the life out of your group. They obliterate fun. You might not like it, but you’re the dungeon master, and your players look to you as a leader. That means it falls on you to act when a problem player needs to be removed from the game. It doesn’t mean you need to do it alone, but you need to initiate things, get the ball moving. If you neglect this responsibility, you are doing your GOOD players a disservice, and you may find them slowly leaving the game due to your problem player. And the LAST THING you want is for all your good players to leave, and to be left with the bad player.

#14 Using real life coercion

Apparently this is a thing... The dungeon master doesn’t have a girlfriend, so he uses his DUNGEON MASTER POWERS to force the girl to go out with him. The dungeon master is short on cash, so she makes her players pay her in order to level up their characters. I mean, I’m going to be honest. Doing this never occurred to me, and if it had, I would have had far more girlfriends over the course of my life, and I would have made much more money. But, but don’t do it. It’s bad.

#15 Allowing PVP

I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again. It may sound fun, may sound like a good idea, but it takes a REALLY good gaming group full of REALLY mature players for PVP to go smoothly. Whether we’re talking about the rogue stealing treasure from the other players or straight up character fighting character, PVP has a very high likelihood of getting players pissed off at each other. I also contend that one of the biggest STRENGTHS of D&D and similar tabletop RPGs is that they are COOPERATIVE and they do NOT involve player versus player. So when we introduce PVP into the game, we’re ruining that specific appeal of the game.

#16 Not involving all players in the game

This happens when you have five players, but two of them hog all the spotlight. They are constantly talking and doing things, and they give the other players no chance to do anything in the game. It’s your job as the dungeon master to CREATE that opportunity for the quieter players to participate. Quiet down the talkative ones, and ask the others what they want to do. Also, when it comes to custom magic items, integrating backstories into the game, and other such things, make sure that you share the love with all your players.

#17 Getting burned out

DM burnout is real. I’ve experienced it myself, and when I’m burned out, my games suffer dramatically. The causes can be varied: running to many games, other stresses or busyness in your life, or just getting bored with D&D. Actions that I’ve taken in the past to help with DM burnout:  Cutting games so that being a DM stops feeling like work and starts feeling more like fun again. Taking a break. Reading fantasy novels or monster manuals or adventure modules to reinvigorate my passion. Eating pack after pack of sweet, delicious bacon. Your personal remedies may vary but ignore burnout at your own peril.

#18 Getting overwhelmed

You buy all the core books. You buy all the 3^rd party books. You brainstorm SO MANY ideas for campaigns. You want to use all the monsters. You start creating your own campaign world, because all good DMs have their own world, right? So much to read! So much to do! This will take months – years, before I’m ready to run my first campaign. Time to get cracking!!! Let’s gooooo!!! Until you’re a crazy-eyed mess hugging your favorite blankie in the fetal position over in the corner. So how about you just start small, start running the game, and then slowly add on as you go. Your sanity will thank you.

#19 Being too generous with wealth and magic items

This is the classic new dungeon master mistake. Almost every Q&A livestream I do I get this question: “Luke, I gave my players too many magic items. Now they’re all OP and steamrolling the module. What do I do?” I have two answers to this: 1) You made your bed; now sleep in it. Next time, do better. Or 2) prostrate yourself before your players with an offering of bacon and beg for mercy. Explain the issues the magic items are causing and ask for help. Maybe that means they give a few back. Maybe it means not using them so much. I don’t know. Hopefully you and your group can come up with a solution everyone is good with.

#20 Forgetting to have fun, too

And this is the mistake all dungeon masters, new and veteran, can so easily fall into. This is a game. If we’re not having fun, why are we playing it?

100 Years of GM Experience at Your Fingertips!