Conquer DM Burnout
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- Опубліковано 9 вер 2024
- BREAK OPEN IN CASE OF ZERO MOTIVATION TO PREP YOUR GAME!
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Personally, to avoid burnout, I run a west-marches game with the following rules for myself.
No sessions on Sundays - even if I'm doing amazing and could run D&D nonstop for a week, I have to rest sometimes and keeping that in mind helps me to be well rested off my other responsibilities. (Like work or school on Mondays)
I only prep when I feel like it. I actually feel like prepping rather often but rarely in direct correlation to a particular session.
To build on the previous rule, I only plan games when I have something prepared and almost only when I feel like it. This pairs well with West Marches because the improvisational format reduces the amount of content I need prepped while the PCs drive the actual story.
Finally, I actually take breaks whenever these criteria aren't met and make sure D&D isn't eating my time from other events. This once meant I took a break from DMing for an entire year. No regrets and it refreshed me quite a bit.
Pinning this for my own use later! This is great
@@TheADHDM Oh thanks. Glad I could help 😁
LMAO you can see that my Christmas tree is still up
i just threw away my halloween pumpkin…
@@Azimii A kindred spirit
My usual go-to when I'm stuck is to scour the player character's backstories for The Juice.
Great to see your videos again, hope you're doing well :)
We love the Backstory Juice! Thanks for tuning in!
Wonderful insight into one of the greatest challenges for a GM, especially if you've been running a game for a long time. I just faced this issue a few months ago, and had to call the game. You have to remember that the point of gaming is fun, for all involved. If it's not fun for you as the GM, something has to change.
"If it's not fun something has to change" has been my narrative arc in all art for the last three years
As a solo gamer, I learned the value of Random Tables. That is something I use as a gamemaster. It's to the point that I just ask my players what they want to do, hit up some random tables, and just go with it
Random tables are amazing. Even if I roll something up and don't like it, that at least points me toward what I actually want
@@TheADHDM
Oh yeah, if your roll doesn't spark inspiration, roll again. If you keep building on that idea, your campaign world creates itself. Feedback from the players is crucial also. I have some sessions that I'm literally waiting to run until the right players become available too though. Sometimes, I keep those ideas in my Game Master folder, but Random charts are my bread and butter as a DM
Struggling with prep due to burnout, creative block, and hectic schedules is all too familiar for me. It can be nerve-wracking, especially when you feel that bringing an enjoyable session to your players is important. I like your idea of starting with a monster, and going from there.
Return of the Lazy Dungeonmaster taught me that through having a simple set of priorities and combined with figuring out one or two concepts I like, I can get those gates open to let the creative juices start flowing freely again. It has an effective system for prioritizing work on the basic, compelling and engaging elements of the adventure, and figuring things out, even when stumped.
I'm also learning to forgive myself when it's difficult. DMing isn't my job but is something I do as a recreational side activity. No one is owed anything and I still provide an evening's worth of free entertainment to a group of people a few times each month. It's ok to have an off-week now and then, as long as I continue to figure out new ways to make it fun and satisfying for myself and others. Enjoy the process, learn from the mistakes, seek new wisdom, and have faith in oneself.
Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master is awesome! I have gotten to interview Mike Shea a few times and his advice has always been golden.
Thanks for some hints.
My way to be always prepared is to run short "seasons" of the game - 4 sessions or so - each new game is exciting as hell, so I just prepare some cool problems PCs will face using their backstories and then, between sessions I just have to think how the enemies will react to PC's actions in interesting way, which I do by just... ruminating randomly and sometimes taking notes. And after each 4-sessions season we either start some new game or we go back to something we want to continue.
What's important, I avoid games which require preparing too much mechanical stuff like enemies and maps, because it's boring as hell. I'm running PBtA, Ironsworn-like games and now I'm preparing for running Blades in The Dark - books for those games teach A LOT of important things you can use in your games, even in more traditional systems, which results in more open and less time consuming adventures.
Keeping it contained like that sounds amazing from a commitment perspective too; if something is tough to prep or run, and you're only committed for a month, that sounds way more manageable
And Blades in the Dark has been one of my favorites lately. I love how there's no reason to prep too much, because the players making stuff up at the table is baked into the game
it was so helpful to see suggestions for the many different stages of burnout you can be stuck at. so often the advice for situations like these is given in singular form; "oh just do this." But sometimes, as you say, that just doesn't help in that moment and then what? it can often leave me feeling even worse, like I'm failing even that part, or that it's somehow proof that I don't want it enough or I'd be able to take these reins I'm offered and see it through.
your videos are always so helpful in providing multiple solutions to an often multi-faceted problem. And also just the simple but powerful feeling of being understood. So thank you for that
Comments like this mean a lot to me! It's good to know I'm not just providing hyper specific only-useful-to-me information
Your videos have really helped me crunch through gm burnout. Thanks!👍
Glad to hear it! I hope you get some restorative time
Thanks for posting this video! I need to rewatch it a couple of times. I GM play-by-post games, and I alternate between being super focused on the games and avoiding them and my players. I really hate it, and the longer I'm away from the game, the harder it is to force myself to log back in. I get bogged down in combat and making maps, and it can also be hard to start a new adventure after the previous adventure ends. I love play-by-post, and I hate that I have this avoidance built up.
Woof I feel that. The task list just gets bigger and bigger in my head, and I think about it like one huge insurmountable thing.
i just improv everything
May your improve well never run dry!