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In my role as a game master, I usually shied away from significant use of randomization during my tabletop roleplaying games. I preferred was for story direction and what happened in a game to be shaped by player choice as opposed to random chance. Recently, I decided to change my approach, and I'm very pleased with the outcome.

The Inspiration: Seeing 'Luck Rolls'

A well-known podcast features a DM who regularly calls for "chance rolls" from the players. He does this by selecting a specific dice and assigning consequences contingent on the number. While it's fundamentally no distinct from using a random table, these get invented spontaneously when a course of events has no clear resolution.

I opted to test this technique at my own table, primarily because it appeared novel and presented a change from my normal practice. The results were eye-opening, prompting me to reflect on the often-debated tension between pre-determination and improvisation in a tabletop session.

An Emotional Story Beat

At a session, my group had concluded a city-wide fight. When the dust settled, a cleric character wondered if two key NPCs—a brother and sister—had lived. Rather than choosing an outcome, I let the dice decide. I told the player to roll a d20. I defined the outcomes as: on a 1-4, both died; on a 5-9, a single one succumbed; on a 10+, they both lived.

The player rolled a 4. This resulted in a deeply moving moment where the characters found the remains of their companions, still clasped together in their final moments. The cleric held a ceremony, which was particularly powerful due to earlier story developments. As a final gesture, I improvised that the NPCs' bodies were suddenly restored, showing a magical Prayer Bead. I rolled for, the bead's contained spell was exactly what the party needed to resolve another critical story problem. You simply orchestrate this type of serendipitous coincidences.

Honing Your Improvisation

This incident led me to ponder if chance and making it up are in fact the core of this game. Although you are a detail-oriented DM, your improvisation muscles need exercise. Groups often excel at ignoring the best constructed plans. Therefore, a good DM must be able to pivot effectively and create content in real-time.

Employing similar mechanics is a excellent way to train these talents without going completely outside your preparation. The trick is to deploy them for minor circumstances that don't fundamentally change the session's primary direction. For instance, I would avoid using it to decide if the main villain is a traitor. However, I would consider using it to figure out whether the PCs reach a location just in time to see a major incident unfolds.

Enhancing Player Agency

This technique also serves to maintain tension and cultivate the impression that the adventure is alive, evolving based on their actions in real-time. It prevents the feeling that they are merely pawns in a rigidly planned script, thereby strengthening the collaborative nature of the game.

Randomization has always been part of the game's DNA. Early editions were reliant on charts, which made sense for a game focused on treasure hunting. Although contemporary D&D tends to prioritizes narrative and role-play, leading many DMs to feel they must prep extensively, it's not necessarily the best approach.

Achieving the Healthy Equilibrium

Absolutely no problem with doing your prep. But, it's also fine no problem with letting go and allowing the whim of chance to determine certain outcomes in place of you. Authority is a big aspect of a DM's responsibilities. We require it to manage the world, yet we often struggle to release it, even when doing so could be beneficial.

The core advice is this: Have no fear of relinquishing a bit of the reins. Try a little chance for smaller details. It may create that the unexpected outcome is far more powerful than anything you would have planned by yourself.