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When I am a DM, I usually shied away from significant use of chance during my tabletop roleplaying sessions. My preference was for the plot and what happened in a game to be determined by player choice as opposed to the roll of a die. However, I opted to change my approach, and I'm incredibly glad I did.

The Inspiration: Observing an Improvised Tool

A popular streamed game utilizes a DM who frequently asks for "chance rolls" from the participants. The process entails selecting a type of die and assigning potential outcomes based on the roll. It's essentially no different from using a pre-generated chart, these get invented on the spot when a player's action has no clear conclusion.

I decided to try this method at my own game, mainly because it looked novel and offered a departure from my usual habits. The outcome were remarkable, prompting me to reflect on the often-debated dynamic between pre-determination and randomization in a tabletop session.

A Powerful In-Game Example

In a recent session, my players had concluded a large-scale fight. Afterwards, a cleric character wondered if two beloved NPCs—a brother and sister—had lived. In place of picking a fate, I let the dice decide. I told the player to make a twenty-sided die roll. The stakes were: a low roll, both were killed; on a 5-9, a single one would die; a high roll, they both lived.

The die came up a 4. This resulted in a incredibly emotional scene where the adventurers discovered the remains of their allies, still united in their final moments. The party conducted funeral rites, which was particularly significant due to prior character interactions. As a final reward, I decided that the remains were strangely transformed, revealing a spell-storing object. By chance, the bead's magical effect was perfectly what the party required to address another major story problem. One just script such perfect moments.

Improving Your Improvisation

This experience made me wonder if chance and spontaneity are in fact the core of tabletop RPGs. While you are a prep-heavy DM, your ability to adapt may atrophy. Adventurers reliably find joy in ignoring the best constructed narratives. Therefore, a effective DM has to be able to adapt swiftly and fabricate details in real-time.

Utilizing on-the-spot randomization is a great way to develop these abilities without venturing too far outside your comfort zone. The key is to use them for small-scale situations that don't fundamentally change the campaign's main plot. For instance, I would not employ it to decide if the king's advisor is a secret enemy. Instead, I could use it to determine if the PCs reach a location right after a major incident takes place.

Empowering Player Agency

This technique also serves to maintain tension and cultivate the impression that the story is dynamic, shaping in reaction to their decisions as they play. It reduces the sense that they are merely actors in a pre-written script, thereby strengthening the shared foundation of the game.

This approach has historically been part of the original design. Original D&D were filled with encounter generators, which fit a game focused on dungeon crawling. Although contemporary D&D frequently emphasizes narrative and role-play, leading many DMs to feel they require detailed plans, that may not be the required method.

Achieving the Right Balance

It is perfectly nothing wrong with doing your prep. Yet, there is also no issue with stepping back and permitting the rolls to determine certain outcomes instead of you. Authority is a big part of a DM's job. We require it to run the game, yet we frequently find it hard to cede it, in situations where doing so could be beneficial.

The core recommendation is this: Do not fear of temporarily losing control. Try a little randomness for inconsequential outcomes. It may discover that the unexpected outcome is infinitely more powerful than anything you might have pre-written on your own.