5ead/rules/md/Lazy GM Resource Docs/03 - The Lazy RPG Preparation Process.md

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