Wednesday, January 24, 2024

Book Review: So You Want to Be a Game Master


More people than ever are discovering Dungeons and Dragons, the tabletop roleplay system that lets you adventure with your friends while playing as fantasy characters. But planning and running your own game can be intimidating to newcomers - where do you start?

Justin Alexander is here to help. He’s the writer behind The Alexandrian, a well-known trove for new and seasoned Dungeon Masters alike. He’s known for teaching readers about gameplay mechanics in a fun, approachable way, breaking down each aspect of gameplay to its barest essentials. He’s here to teach you everything you need to know about D&D, from understanding and enforcing rules to designing your own dungeons. There’s no need to suffer through dense game books – tabletop is meant to be fun, and Justin makes it easier than ever to start a successful campaign that your players will remember for years.

So You Want to Be a Game Master by Justin Alexander was published by Page Street on November 21, 2023.

I saw reviews of the book on several YouTube channels I follow, so I knew I had to pick this one up. I've been playing and running RPGs for most of my life, so a lot of this information I have learned from experience. However, for someone new to the latter role, this book is invaluable.

Justin's guidance is universal and system agnostic; he does not need to get bogged down with specific game mechanics which one would find in the rulebooks of a specific game. His approach is also very user-friendly. He takes the time to walk the reader through the process - first in running and then creating a dungeon, followed by focuses on topics like mysteries, raids and heists, urban adventures, and then wilderness adventures. Each time, he discusses what the person running the table-top role-playing game (known as a game master, a dungeon master, etc.) does in order to facilitate the game for the group.

In the end, I came away with several great pointers and tips that will help me to improve my game mastering at the table.

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