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In my role as a DM, I usually shied away from extensive use of randomization during my D&D adventures. I preferred was for the plot and session development to be shaped by player choice rather than pure luck. Recently, I chose to alter my method, and I'm incredibly happy with the result.

The Catalyst: Seeing a Custom Mechanic

An influential streamed game features a DM who often asks for "chance rolls" from the adventurers. This involves choosing a polyhedral and assigning consequences tied to the number. It's essentially no unlike using a pre-generated chart, these get invented in the moment when a character's decision doesn't have a clear outcome.

I chose to experiment with this technique at my own table, mainly because it appeared engaging and offered a departure from my normal practice. The results were remarkable, prompting me to reconsider the perennial balance between pre-determination and improvisation in a tabletop session.

A Memorable Session Moment

During one session, my group had just emerged from a large-scale conflict. Afterwards, a player inquired after two beloved NPCs—a pair—had lived. Instead of deciding myself, I let the dice decide. I instructed the player to make a twenty-sided die roll. The stakes were: a low roll, both died; a middling roll, only one would die; a high roll, they survived.

The player rolled a 4. This led to a deeply emotional sequence where the party came upon the remains of their friends, still united in their final moments. The group held funeral rites, which was especially significant due to earlier roleplaying. As a final reward, I decided that the NPCs' bodies were strangely restored, revealing a magical Prayer Bead. By chance, the bead's contained spell was perfectly what the party lacked to address another major quest obstacle. One just orchestrate such perfect story beats.

Honing Your Improvisation

This incident made me wonder if chance and making it up are in fact the beating heart of this game. While you are a detail-oriented DM, your improvisation muscles need exercise. Players often find joy in upending the most detailed plots. Therefore, a effective DM must be able to adapt swiftly and create details in the moment.

Employing on-the-spot randomization is a great way to practice these skills without venturing too far outside your usual style. The key is to apply them for small-scale circumstances that won't drastically alter the overarching story. To illustrate, I wouldn't use it to determine if the main villain is a secret enemy. Instead, I might use it to decide whether the party enter a room just in time to see a major incident unfolds.

Strengthening Shared Narrative

This technique also helps make players feel invested and cultivate the sensation that the adventure is alive, evolving in reaction to their decisions in real-time. It prevents the sense that they are merely pawns in a pre-written script, thereby enhancing the shared nature of storytelling.

This approach has long been part of the core of D&D. Original D&D were filled with charts, which suited a game focused on exploration. While contemporary D&D tends to focuses on narrative and role-play, leading many DMs to feel they require detailed plans, this isn't always the best approach.

Achieving the Sweet Spot

There is absolutely no issue with doing your prep. However, it's also fine nothing wrong with letting go and permitting the rolls to decide some things rather than you. Authority is a major part of a DM's role. We need it to manage the world, yet we can be reluctant to give some up, in situations where doing so can lead to great moments.

A piece of advice is this: Do not fear of letting go of control. Try a little improvisation for smaller story elements. The result could find that the organic story beat is far more rewarding than anything you would have pre-written by yourself.