D&D's upcoming 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide looks to actually guide dungeon masters, including a 4-step plan to making a story with a satisfying climax
Dungeons & Dragons' 2024 rulebooks seek, among other things, to address some of the more long-standing complaints with the system—now, I've got my own opinions on Wizards of the Coast's decisions to just upgrade their existing shtick instead of trying something new, but for people who love 5th edition (5e) and don't want to rock the boat, it's been a strong showing so far.
It looks like that trend's going to continue with the upcoming 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide (DMG), according to a new video posted to the official D&D channel yesterday. In case you're unfamiliar, the original 5e DMG, which came out in 2014, has constantly been the source of some ribbing for one reason—it didn't really do a great job teaching you how to run the game.
It was semi-useful, sure, given that it had all the snazzy magic items in it, and some awkward guidance for encounter building (that didn't really stand the test of time), but other than that it was mostly a bunch of setting-based fluff, which didn't work out too well. It gestured in the direction of teaching players how to set up their own plots and organise their own notes—but only vaguely.
The 2024 DMG, which arrives November 12, looks to course-correct by having an entire chapter dedicated to helping new players out when it comes to designing their own adventures. As creative director Christopher Perkins put it: «This is advice to you, the DM, about how you can prepare for your own game.» In other words, a Dungeon Master's Guide that actually guides your dungeon mastery.
According to Perkins and senior game designer James Wyatt, the 2024 DMG'll handle this by setting out a four-step plan for newbie DMs: Premise, Hook, Encounters, and Climax—stop giggling, it's perfectly acceptable storytelling terminology.
As Perkins then goes onto talk about what he enjoys himself, as a seasoned DM telling stories, Wyatt chimes in: «It's interesting—a lot of what you're talking about branches into the campaign chapter. [It talks] about how you
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