Symptoms of ADHD include
difficulty focusing, staying organized, and staying still. So why do so many people
who have it choose to be Dungeon Masters? A role where you sit at
a table for hours on end, playing out complex scenarios
with a textbook worth of rules in a world that only
exists in your imagination. Hey friends, my name is
Ginny Di and I have ADHD. And yes, I am a dungeon master. It can seem contradictory, but actually for a lot of people with ADHD, running games can
be easier than playing in them. The ADHD Mind craves stimulation, and as a game master, you
are constantly engaged because you're not just
playing one character who may or may not be actively
involved in what's happening. You're playing the whole world. But no matter how fun and rewarding DMing might
be for someone with ADHD, the role also comes with some challenges. Honestly, navigating all these obstacles and still running a great
game is kind of like magic. Oh my God, we're doing
magic. Are we wizards? Wait, let me try something. Ha! I have been preparing for
this moment my entire life. Okay, so we're wizards. Coping with ADHD isn't a
skill we were born with, but we've been practicing and learning it, and there are yet more
powerful coping strategies that we haven't unlocked
yet. Kind of like spells! Let's see. Aha, here we go.
The Dungeon Master's ADHD Grimoire. There are four spells in
this book that are essential for running games. Maybe they're new to you or
maybe you already know them, but I could help you learn to
cast them at a higher level. But before we start dabbling
in these mysterious arts, I have to warn you about something. This is an unpredictable sort of magic. Everyone's experience
with ADHD is different. We all face different obstacles and something that helps
one DM might not be helpful to another. This video, contrary to how
it may appear, is not magic and can't solve every
problem for every person. I'm just here to share some ideas and help you explore new strategies that could make DMing easier. Great. With that out of the
way, let's get to casting. Our first spell is Power Word Prep. Preparing for game sessions
can be tough for DMs with ADHD because we often struggle with something called executive function. Executive function refers to the skills that let us take "goal-directed action." Basically, every step between
setting a goal and reaching it. That includes identifying the steps needed to complete a task, remembering
those steps in order, guessing at how long they'll take and staying on task to
actually complete them. That's why DMs with
ADHD might sit in front of an empty page for hours and
still not get anything done, or try to read the module, but understand it about as much as you understand ancient draconic. On the flip side, we might
end up hyperfocusing or getting completely
absorbed in one specific task. This might sound counterintuitive because there's a misconception that ADHD makes it difficult to focus. In reality, ADHD makes it
difficult to regulate our focus, so sometimes we can't focus
and other times we can't stop. This means maybe the
session starts in one hour and we haven't prepped any
of the encounters for today, but we do know the last 300
years of political history for this region, complete
with a meticulous timeline of events. Or we learned
how to play the ukulele! So, how do we cast a
magic spell to fix this? Well, every wizard knows
that spells have components and Power Word Prep has three. The first component is
thinking big picture. This doesn't just apply to
individual session prep, it's also about your
campaign overall. What kind of game will be easiest for you to run? This might mean setting your
game in a fictional world that you already know a lot about or in a limited area, like a single city. It might mean planning
to run games every two weeks instead of every week. Maybe it means running
a pre-written adventure so you can change stuff and add homebrew when you feel like it, but on weeks when you have low motivation, you can just fall back on the module. Some DMs with ADHD find that they lose interest
when running a long campaign with one central plot arc. For those Dms, running shorter campaigns or more episodic campaigns allows you to change up the setting and theme when you feel the
urge to try something new. The next component is a system. Research has shown that having
a clear, predetermined plan or routine is a crucial
coping strategy for people With ADHD. Things we may
normally struggle with, like remembering everything
that we're supposed to be doing and prioritizing those
things appropriately, can be outsourced to a system. For example, maybe you
write down a checklist of all the things you
need to have prepared before a session in order of importance. Maybe the most important
thing for you is knowing what stat blocks you'll be
using in your combat encounters. Now, when you start
prepping, you know to begin with combat encounters, instead of spending two hours writing
some extremely interesting NPCs and then realizing
that you aren't prepared for the game. Systems
might also include alarms and timers to keep you
from losing track of time. Maybe you set a recurring
calendar reminder to prep the day before your session. Maybe you track how long
it takes you to prepare for a session so that you have
a better idea in the future of how much time to set aside. There's no one system
that works for everyone, and your prep might not
necessarily look like another DM's prep. I am a verbal processor, so I
get a lot more done by talking through my session plans with a friend than by writing it down. If reading is a struggle
for you, use a PDF reader and listen to it instead. It's important to remember that
whatever style of prep works for you, that's the correct one. Of course, no matter how good your systems and your intentions, sometimes
you'll just have weeks where you're not ready.
And that's natural! We may be wizards, but we're not gods. We can't be perfect all the time. That's why the final component of Power Word Prep is a backup plan. Your backup plan might be that
you play board games instead, or skip a week, or even reschedule. Sometimes if I'm good to run a session, but I'm just not prepared for whatever's coming
up in the main campaign, I'll run a one-shot, either as a side quest within the campaign or something completely separate. I really like Grant Howitt's
one-page games for this because I can run something like 'Goat Crashers' or 'The Witch is Dead' without preparing anything
in advance. Maybe one of your players would be
interested in running a one-shot. But whatever your backup
plan is, it's important to discuss it with your group
so they know what to expect. If players are expecting D&D it might be frustrating to get a surprise board game night or a last-minute cancellation. Communication helps keep
everybody on the same page. Congratulations! You can
now add Power Word Prep to your spellbook. In a minute, three more spells to
help you run your games. But first, somebody's
gotta keep the lights on in this Wizard Tower: It's time for today's sponsor.
- (off-camera) Okay, babe. Just like we rehearsed. - Hello, I am today's sponsor. You should subscribe to Ginny's
Patreon because I love it and there's absolutely no
conflict of interest here. - (off-camera) Tell 'em about the perks. - Starting at just $2, you can join Patron-exclusive livestreams and... uh... - (demonic voice) THE DISCORD.
- And the Discord! And the Discord. You can, you can get on
the... the private Discord. I'm on there of my own free will. - Okay, now the PDFs.
- Yeah, yeah. There's PDF downloads every month. Magic items, NPCs, monsters
for fifth edition games, and I... I think that's it. Can I, can I go now? - (off-camera) Oh, crap. You are wearing your
wedding ring the whole time. Give it to me. We gotta go again. Now we can look at spells
to use during sessions. For example, we prepared
all this information, and... wait a second, where
did I just put those notes? You saw them, right? I just had them. Crap. Well, at least there's a spell for this. It's called Prestidigitaking notes. Notes can be a minefield for
someone with ADHD. It's common to write something down so
that we don't forget it, but then forget where
exactly we wrote it down. You might take some notes in a notebook, some on the notes app on your phone, and yet more on a nearby scrap of paper and what are the chances of finding all of those notes later when you need them? Plus tons of DMs and players alike have
told me that they struggle with being able to take notes
effectively while listening or talking, which can make
it especially hard to do during sessions. But
if we don't take notes, it's very likely that we'll
forget important information. One meta-analysis of more
than 80 studies found that while ADHD does not
impair long-term memory, it can impair our ability to turn short-term memories
into long-term memories. So if our brains are libraries, we don't usually have
trouble finding books there, but sometimes we forget to put new books onto the
shelves in the first place. Now, before we cast this spell,
we need to choose a target. This is very important. Make a decision right
now about the one place you will keep your notes. Is it Google Drive? Is
it a paper notebook? Is it the notes app or
Evernote or World Anvil or Notion or Microsoft Word? Is it recording sessions and jotting down
timestamps to make it easy to listen back? Whatever it is, pick one and then speak these words of
power: From this day forward. I shall keep my notes in this
hallowed place, and no other. If you ever notice yourself
taking notes in any place other than the one you just
designated, catch yourself and redirect. This designated
note-taking space does not need to be perfect or neat or
comprehensible to anyone but you. I would recommend something
you can access online, just so you can't forget it at home, and ideally something searchable, but that's really up to you. The point is, if you can't
consolidate your notes in one place, then everything else I'm about to suggest will be meaningless. When you need to find information, you should know exactly where to go. Once you've chosen the
target for this spell, how you use it is completely up to you. I'm one of those obsessive weirdos who has my notes split into
folders with color coding and spreadsheets, but you might
get just as much value out of one long Word document with a few bullet points per session. Whatever system you choose, it should make note-taking
easier, not harder. One thing that has really
helped me is taking notes or reviewing notes right after a session - the
next day at the latest. Anything I missed writing down during the session is still
floating around in my head so I can fill in the gaps
right now with information that I will definitely have forgotten by the time the next session rolls around. But also, worst case scenario, you forget stuff. If you don't remember and your players don't remember, maybe it just wasn't that important. Fun fact about this spell: lots of different classes can cast it, even players! If session notes
are especially challenging for you, see if any of
your players are willing to take on the job and share
the notes that they take with you and even with
the rest of the party. You can give 'em a fancy
title like 'Official Archivist' or 'Party scribe.' Some DMs offer inspiration to
players who do session recaps. It's nice to make sure a player
feels appreciated if they're taking on an extra job. Now that we've mastered
Prestidigitaking Notes, or at least outsourced it, we're ready to tackle the next one: Divine Focus. Even for people without ADHD, there's a lot to keep track of as a dungeon master. Not only do you need a strong
understanding of the rules, which are detailed enough
to fill a textbook, but there's also a lot of
miscellaneous information to keep tabs on while you play. Who's up next in initiative? Was there a specific piece of information that players were supposed
to receive in this location? Would anyone's passive insight
be high enough to notice that this NPC is lying? Does this monster have a
reaction that can be used here? Studies have shown that
people with ADHD have trouble with working memory. That refers to the
information that you have to hold in your mind
while completing tasks. So if you've ever walked into
another room to get something and then immediately
forgot what you came for, that's your working memory falling short. DMing is a task that puts a huge strain
on your working memory. That's why the first component of this particular spell is
all about outsourcing some of that working memory. This is known as cognitive offloading, and you already do it all the time. When you write an event
down on a calendar, your brain doesn't have to hold onto that information anymore because the calendar
is holding it for you. In the same way, we can
use tools to offload some of the cognitive demands
of DMing. For example, using an initiative tracker
means you don't have to memorize initiative order. Using condition markers
means you don't have to remember which monster is hexed or which player character is grappled. And these examples are common
even at neurotypical tables, but you can stretch this
strategy way, way further. Have trouble remembering which
minion is which? Use numbered scraps of paper instead of minis, or put the minis on top
of colorful poker chips to differentiate them. Don't wanna forget to give
players a certain clue this session? Write 'CLUE' in
huge letters on a sticky note and put it in the middle of the DM screen and don't take it down
until they've found it. There are tons of digital
tools for this stuff, too. If you play online,
many VTTs have features for tracking things like
initiative and status conditions. D&D Beyond has an encounter tool
that tracks initiative order and hit points and lets you easily click through different stat blocks. The more information you can
offload, the easier it'll be to focus on what's left. Our next component is simplification. You can use all the tools in the world, but sometimes the stuff
you're keeping track of is just too complicated. Not even the best encounter
tracker is going to make it easy to run a boss monster
with a half dozen minions, legendary resistances, lair actions and environmental effects
all at the same time. And for some DMs, even
less complex combat than that is still difficult to stay on top of. Thankfully, there are plenty of ways to simplify D&D mechanics, and a lot of them won't even
be visible to your players. For example, these days I
pretty much always just use average damage for groups
of simple enemies instead of rolling damage. Now, don't get me wrong,
it's fun to roll dice, but when you have five
minions with multiattack, you're already rolling 10
times just to see if you hit. Likewise, as your baddies
go up in challenge rating, so will the number of things they can do. It's okay to skim a spell
casting villain's stat block beforehand and highlight just two or three spells that you
think you'll actually use. You can even just choose monsters that have simpler stat blocks, or edit stat blocks to simplify them. There's no shame in that. If it's hard for you to make
tactical decisions mid-combat, you can simplify that stuff too. Maybe you decide beforehand that when this monster reaches
30 hit points, it tries to run. Or you decide that once two of the creatures are dead, the remaining creatures
call for reinforcements. You can absolutely set conditions
like that in advance so that you don't have to be
making on-the-fly strategic choices in the middle of a fight. The final component is just
cutting yourself some slack. You have a chronic condition
that makes it extra hard to be a dungeon master. It's honestly incredible
that you're even doing it. Take frequent breaks. Let your players know
when you're struggling and don't shame yourself for
needing to look things up or make corrections. I promise you, you don't need to have all the rules memorized. Even highly experienced
DMs have to look stuff up. If you're not sure about
how to rule something, you can take a second to Google it or just make a call that feels right and double check it later if you want. This is actually why I love
having other DMs as players, because then I can just say, 'how does holding your breath work again?' and one of us will probably know it. One of the most game-changing realizations for me was when I learned that I could just press
pause on the game anytime and take a second to collect my thoughts or do some research. One time my players decided to try and talk their way out of a problem that I had definitely assumed
they would solve with combat. I realized I had no idea how
this character would respond to being persuaded, so I
called for a 10 minute break. I went into the other room. I reviewed the character's goals. I set some DCs for persuasion, deception and intimidation checks, and when we reconvened, I felt totally prepared for the situation. You can even end the whole
session early if you feel unprepared to respond to
surprising player choices or if the party moves through your material
faster than you expected. You should now have
Power Word Prep, Prestidigitaking Notes, and
Divine Focus in your spell book. Hopefully you still have
a little parchment left because there is one
more ppell all Dungeon Masters with ADHD - I'm sorry, all wizards - need to know. Here it is: Speak With Friends. When we talk about symptoms of ADHD, we're usually talking about
hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattention. But there's another,
less-recognized symptom that researchers are starting to realize is a core feature of ADHD. It's called emotional dysregulation, and it basically just means that we sometimes have trouble
controlling our emotions and might react disproportionately. And here's the thing about D&D: It might seem like it's a
game about swords and castles and dragons, but at its heart, all tabletop games are social games. Judging by what I see
in tabletop communities, online games are way more likely to end over social
conflict than over pretty much anything else. And as the Dungeon Master,
you are in a unique position that puts you under more social pressure. You are the guide leading
players through a game that is supposed to be fun for them. I don't know about you, but
that makes me very anxious! Doesn't it make you anxious? I wanna run a great game
that my players love. I want my bad guys to be scary. I want my friendly NPCs to be lovable. I want combat to be challenging
enough to be exciting, but not so impossible that they can't win. I want my players to laugh at my jokes and gasp at my surprises, and of course, if something
isn't working for my players, I wanna know about it so I can fix it. Unfortunately, emotional
dysregulation can make it very difficult to receive feedback. It's easy for people who
experience this symptom to take criticism very personally and maybe even react so
poorly to receiving it that they unintentionally
teach players not to speak up when something isn't working. And even though criticism
can be hard to hear, it's absolutely essential for making sure that everyone is enjoying the game and allowing us to become
better dungeon masters. Thankfully, we can do magic!
In this case, the magic of systematizing feedback. There are plenty of different systems that you can use for feedback. One DM told me that they
use an anonymous form so players feel
comfortable being critical, and even if the DM feels
upset, they can't attach that emotion to a specific player. Some DMs like to have
occasional get togethers where they don't play at all, but just discuss how the game's been going and anything that they'd
like to see changed. Kind of like recurring Session Zeros. Personally, my favorite
feedback system is called Stars and Wishes. In this system, after a session, you go around the whole table and
everyone gives one 'star', or something they enjoyed
from the session, and one 'wish'. or something they'd like
to see in a future session. This has been a really useful
way for me to get feedback because even when a wish
contains a criticism, it's phrased in a forward-looking way. Instead of focusing on
the problem, saying, 'I didn't like this part of the game', it focuses on the solution. A great example is when a player
told me that their wish was to have more space to roleplay
with their fellow players. This helped me realize
something about myself. I was so scared the
players would get bored that I was rushing from scene to scene and encounter to encounter,
trying to fill space. But in doing that, I took away
my players' ability to choose to fill that space. If that player had said,
'Ginny, just so you know, you talk way too much', that would've really hurt my feelings. I've always been talkative and I've gotten my fair
share of flack for it. But by focusing the
feedback not on my mistakes, but on the players' wishes,
it made it a lot easier to hear that criticism. Also, since Stars and Wishes takes place at
the end of the session, I have plenty of space to think about and process that feedback
before the next session. This is really important because a lot of times my gut
reaction will be defensive, but once I take the time to sit with what my players have said, I can calm down and respond to it more rationally. And Speak With Friends
isn't just about feedback, it's also about asking for support. Remember, no wizard adventures alone. We're way too squishy for that! You're a member of a party and it's okay to ask your
fellow party members for help. Everybody is at the table
to have fun playing D&D, you included. If you tell your players about
an obstacle you're facing, they might have ideas for how to help or how to make it easier or
how to avoid it completely. If something about the game is
hard for you, you don't have to shoulder it alone. Man, I thought a wizard
tower would be awesome, but this place absolutely
reeks of bat guano. I'm gonna go. Phew! Much better. You know, whenever I talk
about ADHD, people tell me that you don't have to have
ADHD to experience these kinds of struggles or to benefit from this advice, and that's true. Anyone can have trouble with
prep or note taking or focus or communication. But people with ADHD experience these
kinds of problems chronically to the point where it's
disruptive to our lives. So yeah, these tips could be
useful for any Dungeon Master, but I didn't make this video
for any Dungeon Master. I made it for my fellow wizards. You deserve to run games if you want to. You deserve to have a great time and feel comfortable in
your role as Dungeon Master. It's okay that DMing might look different for you than it does for neurotypical DMs. There is nothing wrong with you. Except for having like...
ridiculously few hit points. That's pretty bad. Make sure
to check out my video with tips for D&D players with ADHD if
you haven't seen it already, because honestly, there's
a lot of crossover there. Plenty of my tips for
players also apply to DMs. Plus, in my experience,
neurodivergent people tend to find each other, so chances are some of your players probably have ADHD too and might really benefit
from the stuff in that video.
