Ok I’ve been reading the 5th ed DMG. It is full of random tables. For everything. I’ve never used random tables.

19 thoughts on “Ok I’ve been reading the 5th ed DMG. It is full of random tables. For everything. I’ve never used random tables.”

1. I don’t like to use them typically because I want to make a clear choice about what I incorporate into the next move I make.

2. Well I love Carl Gerriets​ Roll-A-Mission tables. I also use D&D Dungeon Builder’s Guidebook tables for inspiration on dungeons.

3. I was thinking about this the other day and I don’t think DW is designed well for random tables. Tables are fantastic for mechanics-based games like 5E, Dungeon Crawl Classics, and most OSR variants. DW is fiction-based, and I think using tables would detract from the immersive and improvisational feel of the game.

4. They also go great with improvisation.

5. That’s my point.

6. I have always felt that I am creative enough to do without them. And then one of my players said, “Oh. Gaint spiders and vampires again!” So maybe I should start to at least look at tables to get out of my giant spider rut.

   Somebody mentioned Vornheim. I read quite a bit about it before I actually bought the pdf. Most of the positive reviews were about the tables. So that is why I was wondering about random tables in the DW community.

7. Tim Franzke Definitely agree with your first post.

8. I made these random tables for our Planarch Codex game and they were super helpful/inspiring: http://www.random-generator.com/index.php?title=Planarch_Codex_Parish

9. Also:

   http://donjon.bin.sh/fantasy/random/

   http://roll1d12.blogspot.com

   http://chaoticshiny.com/alphabetgen.php

   http://davesmapper.com/

   http://blog.microdungeons.com/2012/02/details-of-mission.html?m=1

10. I like having random tables around, but it’s good to know when to ignore and roll and just pick something. 

11. I like tables, but only when the results have certain degree of internal logic. Tables are for use, not for abuse.

12. .

13. If I need a random idea I just ask my fellow players.

14. Tim Jensen  , agreed. Disclaiming decision making can throw a curve into a story as well as any random table.

    I do like the concrete objectivity of random tables. It curbs my editorial voice. Also agreed that lots of OSR products are great with Dungeon World.  

15. There’s also the “fourth pages” tables that appeared for World of Dungeons. Great stuff for inspiration and such.

    https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/1821838/wod%20layouts/wod_FourthPages.pdf

16. Herman Duyker awesome resource!

17. I generally agree with Tim Jensen and Dirk Detweiler Leichty: asking the players usually does the job that tables do.

    However, DW’s core rules include a fantastic random table: the treasure table.  I always try to use it because:

    1) I’m inherently conservative about handing out goodies, and this prevents me from doing so

    2) Asking the players to describe their own treasure feels a bit too conflict-of-interesty to me

    3) The table results are general enough that I can still follow the fiction and ask my players for details (like “Guyver, what sort of minor magic items were common among the Guildhouse of Titch?”)

    The random tables in Jason Lutes’ Perilous Journeys look to be great for this, too.  Impressions & concepts, not specifics.  Enough to nudge you in a direction you might not have gone, but still very open to interpretation.

18. I love tables precisely because they serve improvisation directly by pushing the narrative in unexpected directions. I find that incorporating random results into play helps me hone my improv skills, and keeps us all wondering want’s going to happen next.

    That being said, I’m not a simulationist, and only go to the tables when there’s an open question in need of answering. One guiding principle that I propose in Perilous Journeys is “ask, say, or roll.” Ask the players if their characters would know the answer; if they don’t know the answer, say it yourself; and if it’s not on the tip of your tongue, roll to see what happens.

19. I find tables (or more specifically lists) are great prompters about things I may not be including in my DM’ing.  I don’t tend to use them in game, as the other players are usually a great source of ideas.

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