CHAPTER 11: OUR PREPARATION NOTES SO FAR
We’ve now gone through the full Lazy Dungeon Master preparation process for our “Scourge of Volixus” adventure. These notes show how the checklist results in a document that can fit easily onto a page or two of paper.
THE SCOURGE OF VOLIXUS: PREP EXAMPLE
- Strong Start: During the last great trade-day before winter falls upon the village of Whitesparrow, an iron-armored caravan filled with hooded hobgoblins attacks the bazaar. Their goal is to steal weapons and armor—as well as an old book possessed by Paula Dustyfingers, the curio vendor.
- Potential Scenes: Investigate the caravan; talk to Paula Dustyfingers; talk to Aluvena the Keeper; find Littletoes; follow the trail to the Watchtower of Set; travel through the goblin warrens; sneak into Grayspire; face Volixus.
- Secrets and Clues: Hobgoblins are building a war machine in the western mountains. The machine was forged in the Nine Hells. Volixus the Burning Rage leads the army. Grayspire was once the headquarters of High Lord Grandel Whitesparrow.
- Fantastic Locations: Watchtower of Set (crumbling stone, black oil, deep tunnels); Goblin Hovels (caves, shrine to Irons, oily water); Courtyard of Bones (rusted armor, growling bones, spiked wheels); War Engine (iron skull, green hellfire); Molten Keep (half-melted granite, petrified bodies, iron throne).
- NPCs: Paula Dustyfingers (Archetype: Marcus Brody); Volixus the Burning Rage (Archetype: Bane); Littletoes (Archetype: Gollum); Aluvena the Keeper (Archetype: Sarah O’Brien).
- Monsters: 24 hobgoblins, 36 goblins, 12 gnomes, 6 cultists, 4 wraiths, 2 hell hounds, 6 ogres, and Volixus.
- Magic Items: Stonehewer (greatsword of sharpness) ; gauntlets of ogre power.
Review Your Notes Before the Game: Roughly thirty minutes to an hour before your game, you should give your notes a solid review to jam the ideas into your short-term memory.
CHAPTER 12: REDUCE THE CHECKLIST
“The true goal of your session notes is to make you comfortable enough to run your session.” — Phil Vecchione, Never Unprepared
Sometimes time is short, or your connection to the upcoming session is strong enough that you don’t need the full eight steps. You can cut the checklist down to just three essential things:
- Create a strong start.
- Define secrets and clues.
- Develop fantastic locations.
WHY THESE THREE?
- Strong Start: Every session benefits from leaping into the story and getting close to the action.
- Secrets and Clues: These pick up the slack for the missing steps; they can mention monsters, identify NPCs, or tie into character backgrounds.
- Fantastic Locations: These are the hardest to improvise and building them helps create a larger fantastic world.
CHAPTER 13: OTHER HIGH-VALUE PREPARATION ACTIVITIES
For GMs who have the time, additional activities can make the game even more fun.
- Handouts: Create a physical connection to the story. Parchment-style paper or a physical invitation from a vampire lord ties players strongly to the fiction.
- Maps: Beautiful full-color maps transport players to the lands they’re exploring. Laminated poster maps can be used as table-sized whiteboards.
- Artwork: Show evocative images from the internet to players to fire up their imaginations.
- Music: Video game and movie soundtracks (like The Witcher 3, Skyrim, or Conan the Barbarian) dial up the mood if kept at a low volume.
CHAPTER 14: THE LAZY DUNGEON MASTER’S TOOLKIT
A toolkit of portable and flexible supplies helps games run smoothly at the table.
- The GM’s Notebook: Whether digital or paper, it should be easy to use and reference.
- Campaign Worksheet: A single sheet to track character names, backgrounds, and campaign goals.
- Curated Random Name List: Your most important improvisational aid; use it to name NPCs on the fly and write them down immediately so you don’t forget.
- 3x5 Index Cards: Useful for quick sketches, solidifying quests, or handing out magic item descriptions.
- Initiative Cards: Folded, numbered cards (1–9) placed on the table so everyone can see the turn order.
- Dry-Erase Flip Mat: A versatile tool for drawing sketches, tracking damage, or rendering diagrams of fantastic locations.
CHAPTER 15: RESKINNING
“Take something that already exists and describe it as something new.”
Reskinning lets you use published, playtested material and fit it into your game in seconds.
- Reskinning Monsters: If you need a barbarian bodyguard, use the stat block for an ogre but describe him as a human. A white dragon can become an avatar of a dead god by changing its breath weapon to necrotic energy.
- Reskinning Dungeons: Take a map from a published adventure, reverse it, or use only a few rooms. You can turn a fire-themed dungeon into an icy one just through description.
- Mash-ups: Combine two elements into one. Take a giant’s stat block and add a mage’s magical elements to create a “rune-giant wizard”.
Your License to be Inspired: Don’t feel like reskinning is cheating or less creative. It is about absorbing the energy of professional designers and channeling it into your game with minimal effort.