Dungeons and dragons, along with other tabletop roleplaying games, call for a designated dungeon master to guide the rest of the party through the campaign. The role of the dungeon master is a central one.
Not only does the DM control the campaign as it progresses, but he or she also plans the campaign beforehand and creates the world where the campaign takes place. The dungeon master is also somewhat responsible for the ruleset.
Still, I know people wonder if it’s possible to play DnD without a dungeon master.
While DnD was designed to be played with a dungeon master to guide the party, it can be played without one, but doing so will change the entire structure of the game. For it to work, either the players themselves must come up with the scenarios and the ruleset, or the role could be given to a virtual dungeon master, such as Endless RPG.
If you end up in a situation where no one wants to take on the role of the dungeon master, continue reading as we’ll go through everything you can do to not be hindered by not having a dungeon master. Being prepared is going to make your DM-less experience so much better.
How Do You Play DnD Without a Dungeon Master?
Playing DnD without a dungeon master could be a daunting task and it will require a bit of cooperation in order for your party to successfully replace the most vital role in a DnD session without limiting the experience.
Most people will argue that you shouldn’t play DnD without a dungeon master – but I refuse to say that it can’t be done, as I have done it myself. A bit of thought had to go into the project in order to execute it properly.
Did I have a good time? Yes. Was it a different experience? Yes, it absolutely was. I’ll share what I’ve learned, and what I’ve been able to find through friends, other groups, and online forums.
1. Use Generators
Using generators isn’t a new thing when it comes to DnD and other tabletop RPGs. In fact, it’s quite common for a DM to use generators to come up with names for non-player characters, taverns, events, and such, but there are also generators for:
- Loot
- World Maps
- Quests
- Towns
- Adventures
- Treasure Maps
- Spells
- Items
- Combat
- Effects
While the list above may seem chunky, it’s merely a fraction of all the generators available. Using these resources is one of the best ways of playing a campaign without a dungeon master. You can leave the guesswork to the generators, and the rest to the player characters.
Start by finding all the generators your party may need and keep them at your disposal before the campaign. Make sure the players themselves can supply the rest. If there’s something missing, try to find a generator for it or see if one player can be responsible for that certain object.
2. Play Campaigns Designed To Be DM-Less
While most (if not all) official Dungeons & Dragons campaigns are designed with a dungeon master in mind, there are fan-made campaigns that don’t require a dungeon master to run.
Additionally, some of these fan creations are incredibly well designed and should be able to provide an experience similar to that of an original campaign in terms of quality.
I can come up with two different types of games that you can run without a dungeon master.
Solo Adventures
Your traditional solo adventures in RPG are designed to be played without the need for a dungeon master’s guidance. Oftentimes, a solo adventure is a shorter experience that moves at a faster pace than a regular DnD campaign.
While a solo adventure doesn’t have to be less complex than a full-fledged campaign, it usually is. You, as the player(s), will be given choices throughout the adventure – depending on the choice you make, your story will progress one way or the other – but quicker than what you’re used to, I think.
Solo adventures are very well worth trying if you’re missing a dungeon master. You can find these adventures available online either for free or for a very small price. The quality will vary from one adventure to the next, but that’s true for almost everything in life.
You could start with the most popular solo adventures that have gained favorable reviews and work your way down the ladder from there. Don’t let reviews hold you back though.
Dungeon Master’s Guild has a bunch of resources for solo adventurers. One of the more popular solo adventures is “Death Knight’s Squire” – which is available to download online.
One of the most iconic solo adventures throughout all time must be “Bargle’s Underground Lair” from the 1983 red box set.
Other solo modules include:
DnD One-Shot Adventures
One-shot adventures are small-scale versions of DnD campaigns, designed to allow the player to experience the entire story in a much shorter period of time. The average one-shot adventure is somewhere between 4-6 hours long.
Compared to some regular DnD adventures, a 4-6 hour-long story arc is basically nothing. Regular DnD stories can span for months, even years in some particular cases. These short stories are, however, the perfect candidate for a campaign without a dungeon master.
Instead, the story can be experienced and played as a collaborative campaign, where the storytelling is managed by all of the players instead of one. Players will take turns narrating events and characters, instead of being restricted to their own character at all times.
This opens up a lot of possibilities for players and each session will provide a new adventure with new characters, quests, and encounters because they’re rather short.
Preparation for one-shot adventures includes preparing the encounters and the progression of the game’s story. Replacing strong encounters with smaller more interesting ones will keep the player’s lethality down and make for a better one-shot adventure, according to Haysaakian.
3. Modify the DnD System
As we’ve mentioned, the system that DnD is built upon expects a dungeon master to participate. That doesn’t mean that the system can’t be modified to suit your needs. Think of the system as the foundation, the groundwork.
You can change a bunch of different things to make the system more appealing to a DM-less party without compromising the entire system. You can mix mechanics and RPG systems from different sources to build the perfect system – or you could mimic what others have done.
But keep in mind that this is no easy task, it’s a bit of work to create the perfect mixture of mechanics. Your best bet is to find a template and start from there. Also, your homemade system may seem perfect to you, while the rest of the party doesn’t approve. Therefore, I recommend building the system together.
You can search for hackable RPG systems to find a good foundation. Savage Worlds is an example of a hackable RPG system that could work well for this purpose, or at least its combat system.
4. Distribute Tasks
Distributing tasks evenly throughout the party is a surefire way to improve a DM-less game. Now, this is what happens when you don’t have a designated dungeon master – the players themselves will be given responsibility for various areas of the game.
The narrative should be a collaboration between all the players at the table, while other things such as part of the plotline, encounters, maps, and dice tables can be distributed to each member of the table.
Make sure you’re all on the same page when it comes to the narrative, as you’re going to collaborate on it. Go through preparations together to make sure you feel like you’re on the right path. Adjustments can then be made on the go to improve the campaign.
It’s also important that each player takes notes of anything that may be of value. Each and every player is responsible for taking notes. These notes are important for the remainder of the campaign. Be it character background, plot twists, or other properties.
Documenting the run is important, especially if the campaign stretches over a couple of sessions. I also recommend taking notes of things you think could be improved during the session and presenting them to each other at the end of the session then making adjustments accordingly.
Providing feedback has improved a bunch of our campaigns.
5. Try Endless RPG
Endless RPG is a tool that generates maps and random dungeons which can be explored without the need for a dungeon master. Endless RPG Is available on Steam or as an application for your mobile devices.
The generated dungeons contain a fog-of-war discovery system full of encounters, treasures, traps, and more. The outcome of any situation within these dungeons is determined by rolling dice. You can generate completely random dungeons or provide some input to give the generator guidelines.
You can either make multi-level dungeons or single-level smaller dungeons. What I like the most is that Endless RPG also generates hidden secrets and sections to be discovered by the party.
It’s not the most nuanced way of planning a dungeon – but when you’re missing a dungeon master, I think this is a good alternative.
6. Try Alternative Games
For parties who are missing a dungeon master or who would rather not have one, I suggest looking for other tabletop games that don’t revolve around the role of the dungeon master as much as DnD does. Games such as Mice and Mystics or Fiasco are good options.
But there are plenty of other tabletop alternatives for you and your party that are well-made. You may think it’s intimidating or feel like you can’t be bothered to try another system now that you’ve learned DnD.
However, I believe it’s much easier to understand the basics of other systems once you’ve adapted to the Dungeons & Dragons system.
If you didn’t find Mice and Mystics or Fiasco appealing, I recommend checking these out:
- Gun & Slinger
- Flotsam: Adrift Among The Stars
- Cosmic Patrol
Can You Play With a Virtual Dungeon Master?
A virtual dungeon master would be a dungeon master-robot, of sorts. I picture an artificial intelligence designed to provide the best possible DnD experience “it” can come up with on the spot.
However, DnD is a rather complex game because of the roleplaying element, which makes it quite hard for a robot to generate appropriate content on the go. Modern software may be advanced but I have yet to see anything capable of providing the real dungeon master experience.
If you insist on using a software-based dungeon master, I think a Game Master emulator such as Mythic Role. I’m fairly certain we’ll be able to integrate AI into RPGs in the future – but we’re just not there yet.
Another project that I think is still under development is AiDungeon. It might be worth checking out.
Yes, I’m well aware that it feels like we’ve dropped the guillotine on your hopes of playing with a virtual dungeon master but hear me out, as there are alternatives.
When it comes to a digital experience, there are plenty of games that are built on the concept of DnD that you can play together with your friends on a PC. These games require no one to take the role of the dungeon master.
While PC games don’t have the ability to provide endless possibilities for each scenario, I’d say they’ve come a good way with the hand they were dealt. My personal favorite is Divinity: Original Sin 2, but other enjoyable games include Disco Elysium, Darkest Dungeon, Baldur’s Gate, and Pillars of Eternity. They’re all worth checking out.
Lastly, I’m sure you can find someone online who’s looking for a group to play with. Someone who wants to take on the role of the dungeon master. You can either play the entire game on a platform like Discord or put the Dungeon Master on a monitor on the table with a set of speakers and a microphone nearby.
Hybrid environments (digital and non-digital) can be a bit messy but work well with the right setup.
Read more: Playing DnD Over Discord
You Can Hire a DM
Being a dungeon master isn’t only a hobby. For some people, it’s an actual job. Yes, that’s true. There are plenty of people online who offer their services as dungeon master’s in exchange for money.
While the majority of dungeon masters who offer this service have it as a side hustle, there are those who had to quit their jobs because the demand for their skill skyrocketed. Dungeon masters are usually paid 5 to 25$ per session – some even charge per person.
You can compare it to hiring a professional musician to play at your wedding or birthday party. These dungeon masters are often good storytellers and will most likely provide an experience unlike that of a new dungeon master.
If you’re new to the idea of hiring a dungeon master you may think it sounds strange but there’s nothing strange about it really. We’ve tried hiring dungeon masters from Roll20 during the pandemic and it’s been a blast. We can recommend this as an option for those who don’t have a dungeon master.
How Do You Become a DnD DM?
Becoming a dungeon master is something that I think develops a person. Trust me when I say that I’ve seen plenty of friends who’ve developed tremendously by undertaking the role of the dungeon master.
Being in the center of the game, being responsible, being creative, being less passive, and being more vocal are all properties that you will develop as a dungeon master.
You may not have these at first, and you may not be entirely sure if you want to be a dungeon master. But if something inside you is drawn to the thought of being a dungeon master, I think you should give it a go.
Becoming a dungeon master isn’t harder than signing up for the role. Becoming a good dungeon master requires training, confidence in your ability, good communication with your group, creativity, flexibility, and an interest in storytelling.
Watch other dungeon masters online or in your group to learn from them. Remember to draw inspiration but then develop your own style. What you have, no one else has. That’s what you’ll want to bring to the table.
Take your time to prepare the campaign and everything associated with it. If you need help, ask a person from your party to assist you with something that doesn’t reveal the story.
Talk to your group after each session to see if you’re on the same page. Feedback can sometimes be hard to handle, but it’s a good way to get better.
Other than that – continue training. You’re probably already doing a good job, and you’ll improve quickly!
Read more: Can You DM If You’ve Never Played DnD?
Can You Play DnD As Both Character and DM?
You can play as both a player character and a dungeon master. This is also known as a DMPC, which is short for Dungeon Master Player Character. However, the question is if it should be done, and why it might not be the best option for a good campaign?
Playing as both a player character and a dungeon master can be tricky because you, as both dungeon master and player character, will know things that you shouldn’t know before they happen. You must almost be robot-like in order to not act on the knowledge you harbor or let it influence you in any way.
Instead of trying to control a character throughout the campaign, the dungeon master should focus on controlling all of the NPCs, the story, and the encounters. This in and of itself is an enormous task that will give the dungeon master enough to do as it is.
I wouldn’t advise anyone who isn’t an experienced dungeon master to do this. It will most likely affect your campaign.
Can You Play DnD With a Party of Two?
Yeah, you can absolutely play Dungeons & Dragons with a party that only consists of a dungeon master and a single player. It’s a different experience but it’s a great way to enjoy the game if you don’t have the ability to gather a larger group, or if you enjoy playing with small companies.
It doesn’t really matter why you’d prefer to play with a smaller group, the most important thing is that it can be done. The dungeon master will be part of the story through the NPCs he or she controls, and this is by no means unique for a campaign made for two.
However, in order to make a good campaign for two, I think your dungeon master should amplify the focus on encounters with NPCs in order to increase the interactions the two of you have throughout the campaign.
It’s important to remember that it comes down to personal preference. If you don’t mind being the main character in the story, with fewer interactions, then go ahead and play it that way. The most vital part is knowing that it can be done.
You Might Also Like: Can You Play DnD By Yourself?
Can You Play DnD Without Anything?
You don’t need any fancy tools or expensive equipment to play Dungeons & Dragons. Yes, the game can be played completely free of charge, but there’s a certain feeling associated with rolling dice, having character sheets, battle mats, and so forth.
But in essence, the game can be played without any materials.
Read more: The Cheapest DnD Books