🔗 Share this article

In my role as a DM, I historically avoided extensive use of chance during my tabletop roleplaying adventures. My preference was for narrative flow and session development to be shaped by player choice rather than the roll of a die. Recently, I decided to alter my method, and I'm truly glad I did.

The Inspiration: Watching an Improvised Tool

A well-known actual-play show showcases a DM who regularly requests "luck rolls" from the players. This involves selecting a specific dice and outlining consequences based on the roll. This is essentially no distinct from rolling on a random table, these are created in the moment when a course of events doesn't have a predetermined resolution.

I chose to experiment with this method at my own game, mostly because it seemed interesting and presented a break from my usual habits. The experience were eye-opening, prompting me to reconsider the perennial tension between pre-determination and improvisation in a tabletop session.

A Memorable Story Beat

At a session, my group had survived a massive battle. Afterwards, a player inquired after two beloved NPCs—a sibling duo—had survived. Instead of choosing an outcome, I asked for a roll. I asked the player to roll a d20. The stakes were: a low roll, both were killed; on a 5-9, a single one would die; a high roll, they both lived.

Fate decreed a 4. This led to a profoundly emotional sequence where the adventurers found the remains of their friends, still clasped together in death. The party held funeral rites, which was uniquely meaningful due to earlier character interactions. In a concluding touch, I chose that the forms were strangely transformed, showing a magical Prayer Bead. By chance, the bead's magical effect was exactly what the party required to solve another pressing story problem. It's impossible to orchestrate such perfect coincidences.

Honing On-the-Spot Skills

This experience made me wonder if randomization and making it up are in fact the beating heart of tabletop RPGs. Even if you are a detail-oriented DM, your improvisation muscles need exercise. Players frequently find joy in derailing the best constructed plots. Therefore, a effective DM must be able to think quickly and create details on the fly.

Using luck rolls is a fantastic way to train these skills without venturing too far outside your comfort zone. The trick is to apply them for small-scale situations that won't drastically alter the session's primary direction. For instance, I wouldn't use it to decide if the main villain is a secret enemy. Instead, I might use it to determine if the party arrive just in time to see a critical event occurs.

Enhancing Player Agency

This technique also works to make players feel invested and foster the impression that the game world is dynamic, progressing based on their actions in real-time. It reduces the sense that they are merely pawns in a pre-written script, thereby strengthening the cooperative nature of roleplaying.

This philosophy has historically been part of the original design. Original D&D were enamored with encounter generators, which fit a game focused on exploration. While current D&D frequently prioritizes narrative and role-play, leading many DMs to feel they need exhaustive notes, this isn't always the only path.

Finding the Sweet Spot

There is absolutely no problem with being prepared. Yet, it's also fine no problem with letting go and letting the whim of chance to decide some things instead of you. Control is a big aspect of a DM's responsibilities. We need it to run the game, yet we often struggle to cede it, in situations where doing so might improve the game.

A piece of advice is this: Do not fear of letting go of control. Try a little chance for inconsequential details. The result could find that the surprising result is far more memorable than anything you might have pre-written by yourself.