The Ultimate DM’s Blueprint (partial chapter reveal!)

The following excerpt is an early draft from the introduction to the book, The Dungeon Master’s Ultimate Campaign Blueprint.

I hope you enjoy this excerpt and don’t forget to pre-order your digital copy. Save $10 off the cover price until July 17, 2023.

From the Intro (What To Expect in This Book)

This book has one main goal: To make you a better Dungeon Master.

But what does this really mean?

Well, let’s look at what the role of the Dungeon Master is and what they do, in a D&D game.

A DM is a judge, a teacher, and storyteller.

A DM facilitates, evaluates, guides, and entertains.

A DM can be a doorway or an obstacle.

A DM can be giving or challenging. They can provide or hinder. And they can express realism or illusion.

But, the one thing a DM must always be, is present. Without a DM a the table, it’s impossible to have an enjoyable game of Dungeons & Dragons.

And, this is where you come in. If you decide to take on this exciting role and all the challenges it brings, then being a DM is for right you.

For me, being a DM has made me grow as a person. And, each time I DM a game of D&D, it teaches me more and more about our real world, through the lens of an imaginary one.

I hope this book challenges you. I hope it brings new meaning to you in some way and makes you feel a sense of responsibility that you can use in any part of your life.

This book was written to give new DMs the desire to become a Dungeon Master and more confidence to those who already take on this important role.

In either case, I hope it makes you see that what you learn from roleplaying, acting, imagination, and camaraderie, are powerful tools that will help you IRL (in real life).

A DM and their world

This book is about building a world for your players to explore. A world where the story is built partly by the player characters when they interact with your world. And where the story is forever unfolding, indeterminanate, and engaging. Where everything comes together naturally as the game sessions increase.

Unlike Sly Flourish’s The Lazy Dungeon Master book, this book is about the long game and the short one. Although I cover short-term prep in this book, it also focuses on the longer-term campaign view and its ability to provide amazing results over weeks, months, and years of playing.

This book is the equivalent to D&D, as the long simmer is to cooking a wonderful and hearty stew. It gets better over time. It also allows you to make some mistakes along the way. It allows more flexibility by allowing you to tweak things to create a better story through longevity.

It lets you infuse your own spin on the game, unique to you. It puts you on par with the great forefathers of the Dungeons & Dragons game who created their own worlds when they were DMs.

In fact, there were many famous game worlds and DMs who turned their home-brew campaigns into commercialized products.

Ed Greenwood - Ed’s the creator of the Forgotten Realms setting, one of the most iconic and beloved game worlds in Dungeons & Dragons history. Ed started as a DM running a game in his own world and later published articles about the setting in gaming magazines. The popularity of his world led to it being published as an official D&D campaign setting which dominates many of the D&D adventures being released today.

Chris Perkins - Chris is a well-known Dungeon Master who has worked for Wizards of the Coast, the company that publishes Dungeons & Dragons. He created the world of Acquisitions Incorporated for his home game, which was adapted into a live play podcast and then a series of published adventures.

Matthew Mercer - Matt is the DM for the popular web series Critical Role, which features a group of voice actors playing Dungeons & Dragons in a home-brew world. The popularity of the series led to Mercer publishing his world as a campaign setting book, Explorer's Guide to Wildemount, which is now an official Dungeons & Dragons product.

Keith Baker - Keith worked in the video game industry and later worked as a freelance writer for Atlas Games. In 2002, Keith was chosen as the winner of the Wizards of the Coast Fantasy Setting Search for his Eberron campaign world. Keith’s submission to the contest was one of 11,000 entrants - quite an amazing feat! Two years later, along with game designers James Wyatt and Bill Slavicsek, Keith wrote and published his winning campaign world of Eberron as an official D&D product in 2004.

Gary Gygax - Of course, we can't forget the co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons himself! Gary’s original game world, Greyhawk, was based on his own home-brew campaign and one of the earliest supplements to D&D. Greyhawk was published as an official D&D campaign setting and is the world where many of the famous first edition D&D modules take place.

David Arneson - Dave was also a co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons, and he started running games in his own world of Blackmoor in the early 1970s.

Blackmoor was a fantasy world that was heavily influenced by Arneson's interests in history and war gaming. The setting featured a mix of traditional fantasy elements, like dragons and wizards, as well as more historical and realistic elements, such as gunpowder and naval battles.

Arneson ran his Blackmoor games with a group of players, including his friend David Wesely. The games were run using a set of rules that were later adapted and expanded upon by Gary Gygax to create the first edition of Dungeons & Dragons.

In 1975, Arneson and Gygax formed TSR, Inc. to publish and distribute Dungeons & Dragons. Arneson contributed to several early D&D products, including the original Dungeons & Dragons game box set and the first edition of the D&D Player's Handbook.

In the 2000s, Arneson published several books that detailed his original Blackmoor campaign. The books included maps, notes, and other materials from Arneson's original games, as well as new adventures and information about the world of Blackmoor.

In 2004, Arneson collaborated with Goodman Games to create the Blackmoor Campaign Setting, a d20 System campaign setting book that was compatible with Dungeons & Dragons 3rd edition. The book included information about the world of Blackmoor, as well as new monsters, spells, and character options.

Today, Blackmoor continues to be a popular and influential game world, and it has been referenced and adapted in various Dungeons & Dragons products over the years. The world of Blackmoor is a testament to the creativity and innovation of Dave Arneson, and it stands as a reminder of the importance of home-brew game worlds in the history of tabletop RPGs.

These are just a few examples of Dungeon Masters who have created their own game worlds that went on to become official products.

It's a testament to the creativity and imagination that can be found in the world of tabletop RPGs, and a reminder that anyone can create their own world and bring it to life through gaming.

Including you!

Don’t forget!

These emails are exclusive, behind-the-scenes insights into my new book as I build it. Be sure to share this with others who may be thinking of becoming a Dungeon Master but don’t know where to start.

Also, send it to veteran DMs so they can make fun of me and tell me I’m wrong. I love constructive feedback! Do your worst! 😀

Game on! May all your rolls be 20s.

-Joe