Life got in the way! I'm updating day 4 and 5 tomorrow don't worry, I just literally couldn't get a computer for a while, so I couldn't write anything. Tomorrow!
~Blaze

Day 3: Write a 15 step list titled "How to be a ____"

I want to educate people in something very important that I myself have been studying quite a lot: How to be a Dungeon Master.

Now, don't get the wrong idea. I'm talking about Dungeons and Dragons, a pen and paper game that relies on your imagination and creativity. One of the most important things in the game is the Game Master, known mostly as the Dungeon Master. They keep the player's creativity in check, keep the game running, and provide the beginnings (and plot) of whatever story is happening. I of course want to start my own game, and after a lot of research I have determined these 15 steps for how to be a Dungeon Master of your own game.

*This is for people playing on the 5th Edition of Dungeons and Dragons, particularly with their own world created.

*Many of these tips are taken directly from our Lord and Savior Dungeon Master extraordinaire Matthew Mercer. A quick video of the DnD game he plays is provided above.

1. Dungeon Crawl or Sims
One of the first things you should do when creating your game is to determine what the main plot is going to be. We've established that the game itself is on the Dungeons and Dragons system. But you need to establish with your players whether they want a hack-and-slash take over dungeons loot hoarding expedition, or an emotion filled character-run game. Both are fun! But it's good to know which your players want to give them the funnest time possible.

2. Pick Your Poison
Whether the players want a Dungeon Crawl or an emotional journey, you need to decide where you want to take them. This step is choosing what story you want to tell! Even a Dungeon Crawl needs a bit of backstory to get the characters into the evil creature's lair. Pick a plot

3. Start the World
Part of picking the story depends on what your world is going to be, and what your characters will begin. Here is the time to establish how long your players will be playing. If this is a one-off game, you don't have to worry about making a huge, fantastic world. If you know that you will be playing the game for a long time, just remember that you'll want more intricate, fun, but long plots for the game that will last more than one game. But remember, it's much easier to start a world with a very small town, with all your characters meeting at one place, then slowly expanding the world for yourself and for your players.

4. Building the First Town
This can be very fun! Make something creative! Maybe your players start in a small trading post and the "owner" of the post has an issue he'd like the players to take care of. Maybe its a self-reliant town located in a marshy area, with fish as their main food source and they need you to figure out what's poisoning the fish. There's a multitude of things that can be done!

5. Filling the Town
So you've got a little self sufficient town on a marsh! That's great! Now you have to fill it! Think of what a little town has in it. A small population, with a few stores and houses. Those stores wouldn't be anything fancy (no jewelry or anything) but something a small town would have! A trading post, of course, a general store, and something like a blacksmith or a butcher. Places for your players to fool around in, just in case. Know your city's main locations.

6. Who runs the world?
Often there will be a particular guild that runs that particular town. In our example above, it would most likely be a fishing/farming guild, with the people who control the food at the top in the town. A trading post would have a merchant guild as the top, elite of the town.

7. The People Part A
Now the real work begins! A town needs people, and your town is no different. Players need characters to interact with, be it a shopkeeper for potions or a townsperson for information. Making a character can be a whole other tutorial, but basically just have 5 things for your character- name, class, species, personality, and motivation. This way you know how a conversation with that character can go. Ex: One of my NPC's is Zaphrina, a tiefling rogue with a standoffish personality. Her motivation is money- she will cooperate with anyone as long as she is being paid

8. The People Part B
You don't have to fill the entire town. Don't have every child listed in a book or something insane like that. Focus on main characters, people who might actually be visited in the town. The most important people to flesh out are the ones you know will be used in story. Have some names written and be comfortable improvising just in case you need a random person in a store or randomly.

9. The Villain
Sometimes the most important character is the villain. The Disney movie Princess and the Frog wasn't amusing for me until the villain, and more particularly, his song. We got some lovely backstory throughout the movie for him, and honestly he was the best part. That's what you want for your villain. Give him a really intriguing backstory, something surprising or maybe something simple that makes sense. Greedy person trying to take over the trading town! Give him motives, give him powers, flesh him out and give him followers too if you want. Go all out!

10. Monsters Part A
Sometimes before the party meets the villain, they are going to fight random creatures along the way. The path to the end is usually littered with all sorts of monsters. You can find a DnD Monster Manual online, or even just google mythological creatures and improv your own monsters. Just know what might pop out where, what player action could trigger a monster attack, and just know your monsters!

11. Monsters Part B
The Villain might be able to control creatures. He might even be able to summon things like golems. Know those monsters as well! And if your players have really good stats or deal a lot of damage, fix the monsters and the villains as you will! It's your world. What are they going to do about it? Quit? Sucks for them.

12. The Rules
As the DM you should have a grasp of the rules of the system, because you are the one telling the rest of the players what to do. It's perfectly alright if you have to reference a manual every so often, but you should be familiar with what you are doing and your world.

13. Reward Your Players!
The end of every game or battle should have some sort of reward in place for the victors. If they kill the villain, for example, give them some cool loot! A really awesome sword or some magical item is sure to make people feel happy and satisfied.

14. Discuss it With the Players
Make sure when you start the game, the players know what they are getting into and where you stand. Some games have the DM fighting against the players, and other times the DM simply acts as the narrator, organizing the game and working with the players. Communication is key for making any game run smoothly, so have it!

15. Have Fun!
This is your game. Have fun with it! Don't let anyone get you upset. You put a lot of effort into your world and this game. Be proud of it, and make sure you have a good time.