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Focus Extra Prep Time on the Characters

by Mike on 30 October 2023

Whenever we're looking at our game prep, it's useful to consider what's valuable and what isn't valuable for the fun of the game. What matters? There's not a perfect answer — each of us chooses what matters the most for us and our group — but there are common areas we can focus on.

Almost everything we do to tie the characters to the world, the story, and the game provides tremendous value in our prep. As much as we might enjoy pondering the 7,000 year history of our city or hunting for the perfect battle map, it's important to find new ways to tie the characters to the story and draw our players deeper into the game we love.

Maybe you're done with your prep (as much as we're ever done.) Maybe you still feel some anxiety about it and have some time. Where do you spend that time?

On the characters.

Here are ten things you can do during or after your prep to better tie the characters into the game.

Add one secret or clue tied to each character for your next session.
Look over the characters' current magic items and think about what they might want to find next.
Think about each character's specialty in combat and think about a way to let them shine in one of your upcoming conflicts.
Think about the NPCs players really liked and how you can bring them back into the story.
Think about a home base the characters might acquire or ways to modify their existing home base.
Write some flash fiction about one of the characters and email it to the group.
Develop a handout describing one or more of the characters and the impact they had on the world.
Tie one of your upcoming locations to the backgrounds of the characters.
Plan a prophetic scene for one of the characters with an arcane or religious bent.
Think about the motivations and actions of an intelligent item currently carried by the characters.

Whether you're having trouble digging into your prep for your next session or you're done with your prep but want to dive in a little more, think about what character-focused ideas you can drop into your next game.

Every moment spent thinking about the characters and their connections to the world, the story, and the next session provides great dividends for you and your players.

More Sly Flourish Stuff

Last week I posted a couple of YouTube videos on Get Characters to Move in D&D Combat and Mutant Catfish! – Shadowdark Gloaming Session 9 Lazy GM Prep.

Last Week's Lazy RPG Talk Show Topics

Each week I record an episode of the Lazy RPG Talk Show (also available as a podcast) in which I talk about all things in tabletop RPGs. Here are last week's topics with time stamped links to the YouTube video:

Patreon Questions and Answers

Also on the Talk Show, I answer questions from Sly Flourish Patrons. Here are last week's questions and answers:

RPG Tips

Each week I think about what I learned in my last RPG session and write them up as D&D tips. Here are this week's tips:

Change up the themes and feeling of your adventure arc by focusing exclusively on a new monster book.
Prep in the space where you’re going to run your game. Visualize what it’ll be like to play. Fill in the gaps.
Build three musical playlists to run during your game: Relaxing, sinister, and battle music.
Worry less about the larger D&D and RPG zeitgeist. What do you want and need to have a great time playing games with your friends?
Run small experiments.
Ask players what mechanics they’re eager to see play out in the game. Build encounters to show them off.
Great table aids: blue sticky tack, index cards, adhesive re-usable bookmarks, generic tokens, Pathfinder flip mat, dry-erase markers, big flat acrylic sheet.