## The Lazy RPG Prep Toolkit

* Dice, pencils, and dry-erase markers
* GM's notebook
* Campaign worksheet
* Curated random name list
* 3×5 index cards
* Numbered initiative cards
* GM screen or cheat sheet
* Dry-erase flip mat
* Published books and adventures
* Miniatures, maps, and terrain as needed

## Building a Lazy Campaign

* Develop a spiral campaign with the characters at the center
* Build a campaign hook focusing on a single major goal
* State the six truths of your campaign
* Define three fronts incorporating goals and grim portents
* Run a session zero to help build the characters and tie them together

## Running Your Game

* Relax
* Focus on your strong start
* Listen to the players, and build off of the ideas they bring you
* Trust your preparation to help you run a creative, flexible game
* Ask the players to summarize the events of the previous game session
* Draw players into the story by asking them to describe killing blows, define monster characteristics, and describe interesting events during travel
* Imagine the world as a living place when building scenes and situations
* Let the world and the NPCs react to the characters' actions
* Use a mixture of combat styles, including theater of the mind, gridded maps, and abstract maps
* Maintain a good pace by staying close to the action
* Cycle between action and relaxation, and alternate upward and downward emotional beats
* Use specific hopeful or fearful beats to send the action in a specific direction

## Thinking About Your Game

* Prime your GM's brain with great books, movies, and TV shows
* Remind yourself of the player characters' names and backgrounds
* Ask what the villains and NPCs are doing right now

## Embrace the GM's Truths

* Players don't care as much as you think
* Players want to see their characters do awesome things
* The GM is not the enemy of the characters
* Be a fan of the characters

## Lazy RPG Tricks

* Award levels at key points in the story
* Improvise ability and skill checks
* Delegate certain tasks to the players
* Use static monster damage