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The Lazy DM's Workbook
The Lazy DM's Workbook is a quick reference book containing tools, tables, guidelines, random generators, maps, and worksheets to help you prepare, improvise, and run great fifth edition fantasy roleplaying games. It goes hand-in-hand with the ideas in Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master and is useful right at the table.
This book includes the
- Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master quick reference
- Fifth edition mechanics quick reference guide
- List of over 500 fantasy names
- Random trap generator
- Random fantastic monument generator
- Random item generator
- Random town event generator
- Ten random dungeon monster tables
- 5e encounter building guidelines
- Guidelines for theater-of-the-mind combat
- Character connection table
- Ten lazy lairs with maps
- Fill-in worksheets
- Session worksheet fill-in page
- Character tracker worksheet
- NPC tracker worksheet
- Campaign planner worksheet
Along with the references and random generators, The Lazy DM's Workbook contains ten "lazy lairs": full-color maps and quick descriptions of locations common to most fantasy roleplaying games. When the characters take a game session in a direction you didn't expect, you can use any of these lairs with minimal prep time, running it straight out of the book. The PDF and Map Pack version of this book includes all ten maps formatted for virtual tabletop support.
Think of The Lazy DM's Workbook as an extended Gamemaster screen. This workbook gives you a toolbox you can carry with you and keep on hand as you prepare and run your games. It's specifically designed to help you quickly plan a session and let you improvise a detailed and rich game that can surprise both your players and you.
The Lazy DM's Workbook is an indispensable reference, designed to be kept at your side as tales of high adventure unfold at your gaming table.
This book includes the
- Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master quick reference
- Fifth edition mechanics quick reference guide
- List of over 500 fantasy names
- Random trap generator
- Random fantastic monument generator
- Random item generator
- Random town event generator
- Ten random dungeon monster tables
- 5e encounter building guidelines
- Guidelines for theater-of-the-mind combat
- Character connection table
- Ten lazy lairs with maps
- Fill-in worksheets
- Session worksheet fill-in page
- Character tracker worksheet
- NPC tracker worksheet
- Campaign planner worksheet
Along with the references and random generators, The Lazy DM's Workbook contains ten "lazy lairs": full-color maps and quick descriptions of locations common to most fantasy roleplaying games. When the characters take a game session in a direction you didn't expect, you can use any of these lairs with minimal prep time, running it straight out of the book. The PDF and Map Pack version of this book includes all ten maps formatted for virtual tabletop support.
Think of The Lazy DM's Workbook as an extended Gamemaster screen. This workbook gives you a toolbox you can carry with you and keep on hand as you prepare and run your games. It's specifically designed to help you quickly plan a session and let you improvise a detailed and rich game that can surprise both your players and you.
The Lazy DM's Workbook is an indispensable reference, designed to be kept at your side as tales of high adventure unfold at your gaming table.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 30, 2022
Usual caveats apply, I have experience of GMing for about 9 years, but I do not play DnD 5E. I do however, have experience with a variety of systems and currently run an OSR campaign.
Unlike my previously reviewed "Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master" by Mike Shea https://tinyurl.com/23zrxhsh, this book has a much more narrow focus targeting GMs of DnD 5E almost exclusively. I will be looking at it with the caveats mentioned above.
The Good:
A beautiful bullet-pointed summary of the "Lazy DM Preparation Process" summarising everything covered in the "Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master".
A one page list of fantasy names and surnames is extremely useful.
Random tables for monuments and items, you could really get some fun and creative things with those.
Random tables for connecting characters. I am proponent of creating character stories through adventuring and do detest long backstories before adventure begins. However, there is always a need to outline the connections between the characters and plant a seed of what the character is all about in the players head. I feel that this is a good step in that direction, the process is similar to tying characters together in Fate.
The Bad:
If you need rules for running large numbers of monsters that involve subtraction, consulting a table, division, consulting a table, doubling or multiplying (that is a process just for attacks, there is just as involved of a process for saving throws), maybe you need to rethink how you run a large amount of monsters. This is not a good design.
Random traps tables, specifically triggers. Throne is not a trigger, neither is a door, nor a chest, nor an old book. This is exactly how people start hating traps, as this would make no logical sense. If you are looking to put traps in your games read through "Artifices, deceptions and dilemmas" book instead.
Layouts for Castle, Docks and Sewers lairs...what happened to double page spreads for ease of reference?
And the Ugly:
This section has nothing to do with art :).
Lazy Lairs...one thing I was really looking forward to in this book and probably the thing I am most disappointed with. It is not bad, it is just not what it could have been. Allow me to elaborate.
First in the description it says hey you can use all these lairs together...but they are not designed specifically to be used together, you have to work on building up connections and expanding the areas, not only would it take a good chunk of time, but it would have made the whole lairs chapter much more than a sum of its parts, would this one small design decision was made in the very beginning.
The way that lair entries are organised, with area aspects followed by an italicised text that should help you describe the area or to be read aloud, is my second big gripe with this.
Area aspects are all on point and you can spin your own description just from that without any issues however, the italicised text, the descriptions are so vanilla and many times so redundant that they do nothing but add page count.
Lets elaborate with a concrete example "Castle": 1. Lower gatehouse has area aspect of Arrow slits and a description of "Narrow slits offer a view of the gatehouse entrance and the front of the castle". Not only can i tell that from the included map already, but this is repeated verbatim in the entry 17. Lower gatehouse, which is "surprisingly" enough on the other side of the same gate. But the greatest sin of all, it is literally flavourless. It evokes no feeling for the players, so why bother with this redundant description where a simple aspect does a much better job, as its shorter for the GM to read?
Or here is a thought, why not include a more evocative description that would make the place memorable...like I dunno maybe making it into a "fantastic location"? It doesn't have to be long or elaborate, but it has to evoke something in me to see the room immediately in my minds eye.
This happens throughout all of the lairs, with a few exceptional entries here and there. I can understand the reasoning to keep a lot of descriptions very neutral in tone, so as to slot lairs into any world, but the same interchangeability can be achieved easily with a modicum of flavour in the descriptions.
Given that the system agnostic content in the workbook is low, while I will find some use for the random tables in my games, I would not be recommending this to anyone who is not using DnD 5E rules. For those people that do, a lot of my criticism is still valid, but you can bump up the rating to 3 stars due to more system specific content present.
Unlike my previously reviewed "Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master" by Mike Shea https://tinyurl.com/23zrxhsh, this book has a much more narrow focus targeting GMs of DnD 5E almost exclusively. I will be looking at it with the caveats mentioned above.
The Good:
A beautiful bullet-pointed summary of the "Lazy DM Preparation Process" summarising everything covered in the "Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master".
A one page list of fantasy names and surnames is extremely useful.
Random tables for monuments and items, you could really get some fun and creative things with those.
Random tables for connecting characters. I am proponent of creating character stories through adventuring and do detest long backstories before adventure begins. However, there is always a need to outline the connections between the characters and plant a seed of what the character is all about in the players head. I feel that this is a good step in that direction, the process is similar to tying characters together in Fate.
The Bad:
If you need rules for running large numbers of monsters that involve subtraction, consulting a table, division, consulting a table, doubling or multiplying (that is a process just for attacks, there is just as involved of a process for saving throws), maybe you need to rethink how you run a large amount of monsters. This is not a good design.
Random traps tables, specifically triggers. Throne is not a trigger, neither is a door, nor a chest, nor an old book. This is exactly how people start hating traps, as this would make no logical sense. If you are looking to put traps in your games read through "Artifices, deceptions and dilemmas" book instead.
Layouts for Castle, Docks and Sewers lairs...what happened to double page spreads for ease of reference?
And the Ugly:
This section has nothing to do with art :).
Lazy Lairs...one thing I was really looking forward to in this book and probably the thing I am most disappointed with. It is not bad, it is just not what it could have been. Allow me to elaborate.
First in the description it says hey you can use all these lairs together...but they are not designed specifically to be used together, you have to work on building up connections and expanding the areas, not only would it take a good chunk of time, but it would have made the whole lairs chapter much more than a sum of its parts, would this one small design decision was made in the very beginning.
The way that lair entries are organised, with area aspects followed by an italicised text that should help you describe the area or to be read aloud, is my second big gripe with this.
Area aspects are all on point and you can spin your own description just from that without any issues however, the italicised text, the descriptions are so vanilla and many times so redundant that they do nothing but add page count.
Lets elaborate with a concrete example "Castle": 1. Lower gatehouse has area aspect of Arrow slits and a description of "Narrow slits offer a view of the gatehouse entrance and the front of the castle". Not only can i tell that from the included map already, but this is repeated verbatim in the entry 17. Lower gatehouse, which is "surprisingly" enough on the other side of the same gate. But the greatest sin of all, it is literally flavourless. It evokes no feeling for the players, so why bother with this redundant description where a simple aspect does a much better job, as its shorter for the GM to read?
Or here is a thought, why not include a more evocative description that would make the place memorable...like I dunno maybe making it into a "fantastic location"? It doesn't have to be long or elaborate, but it has to evoke something in me to see the room immediately in my minds eye.
This happens throughout all of the lairs, with a few exceptional entries here and there. I can understand the reasoning to keep a lot of descriptions very neutral in tone, so as to slot lairs into any world, but the same interchangeability can be achieved easily with a modicum of flavour in the descriptions.
Given that the system agnostic content in the workbook is low, while I will find some use for the random tables in my games, I would not be recommending this to anyone who is not using DnD 5E rules. For those people that do, a lot of my criticism is still valid, but you can bump up the rating to 3 stars due to more system specific content present.
August 26, 2021
Would recommend any DM to read it for the preparation checklist. Also enjoyed reading it because it helps think about your own game in new ways.
But, you can also read Sly Flourish’s blogpost about the prep-checklist, and be done faster and cheaper.
But, you can also read Sly Flourish’s blogpost about the prep-checklist, and be done faster and cheaper.
September 27, 2019
This is an excellent book for any DM looking to spice up their campaign. Its filled with good advice and quick reference tables. Plus, some ideas for quick maps/adventures.
Highly recommended.
Highly recommended.
December 29, 2019
Multiple ready to use tools for game mastering on the fly!
March 3, 2020
This is a great D&D book. I was able to use it right away and they made some really fun dungeons. Love it!
January 13, 2022
Good intention, but the execution is lazy (pun intended). This is the bare minimum and could have been so much better.
October 9, 2022
Un libro preparado para ayudarte a trabajar tu campaña. Lleno de recursos útiles que no son obligatoriamente de D&D 5. Interesante cuánto menos.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews