I've already played a game with my friends, and I often find that during the game I run out of ideas and have to greatly improvise. So far it hasn't been too much of a problem, although one of the NPCs did end up with the name Walakazam. However, I'm afraid if I keep on with that poor planning then something bad could happen. Advice on plotting out campaigns would be very helpful. Also, how can I make combat more interesting and find monsters that are the right challenge rating for my players?
Hey! Glad you're taking interest in DM-ing.
My first bit of advice: you can boost up the difficulty of an encounter without your players knowing. I find it helpful to have the first two rounds of combat as a gauge for difficulty, then nerf or buff the enemies from there.
Secondly: It is also helpful to have a few lists for emergency character creation. Things like names, traits, accents, races, etc really help to flavor characters made in the heat of the moment.
Thirdly: try to use colorful language to describe damage being done during combat. Instead of saying
"you are hit with a firebolt and take 6 fire damage"
try saying
"the one in the pointy hat waves his hand for a moment and then sends a small ball of fire out at {player}. It catches you in the shoulder and you take 6 points of fire damage."
Hope these tips help!
Thanks a lot! I'll keep this in mind while playing.
