Author: Ben M

I’m running a few sessions of Dungeon World for some new players at my workplace next week and I was wondering what advice you might have.

Most of the players have never played DW and a few of them have never roleplayed before. My main aim is for us to have fun and for them to see that the stories that we can create together in a TTPRG like DW can be personal and dramatic.

I have 8 players interested so I’m thinking of splitting it into two sessions of 4 each. There might be the opportunity for us to play more than session (for one or both groups) as well, and I’d like to come up with something that really shows off DW’s ability to weave a complex narrative in that short time – one that really builds and is centred around the PCs.

I was thinking I’d either run a Dungeon Starter or go with something like Brian Holland’s excellent Adventure Builder. The Starter would give me more to lean on if the players are expecting more of a cohesive ‘plot’ but I expect it would make the adventure feel less personal. Building the plot at the table would almost certainly give them more ‘skin in the game’ but it may be lacking a sense of mounting drama during the session(s).

What do you reckon?

I’ve been trying to come up with a template for prepping my Dungeon World sessions for a while now. I tried to make something that would guide me so that when I sit down cold to prep I can get straight into it.

Drawing on good advice from this community and particularly the Discern Realities podcast I am currently using the following. If you find it at least a little bit useful, interesting or inspiring then I’m happy. 🙂

If you have comments or suggestions they are welcome!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DHILrUeX0ardO5xlHWOSA8mIlAF4QFpzWEuDwZ9KpJk/edit?usp=sharing

You’re sitting down to run a session of a game (and it’s not the first session).

You usually have some establishing questions in mind that you want to ask the players.

You also have some nice in medias res text you intend to read to the players to (a) remind them where you left off the previous session and (b) give them a dramatic “in” for this session.

So what order do you do these in?

Me, I’m conflicted.

If I do the questions first it can often result in interesting conversations (well, you’d hope so wouldn’t you!?) and possible action, and then the medias res bit can subsequently seem a little railroad-y or forced.

If I do the in media res first, I forget to ask the questions.