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When I am a Dungeon Master, I traditionally avoided significant use of chance during my tabletop roleplaying adventures. My preference was for the plot and session development to be shaped by player choice instead of random chance. However, I chose to alter my method, and I'm incredibly happy with the result.

The Catalyst: Watching a Custom Mechanic

An influential streamed game utilizes a DM who regularly calls for "fate rolls" from the adventurers. He does this by picking a polyhedral and outlining consequences tied to the result. While it's fundamentally no unlike consulting a pre-generated chart, these are devised on the spot when a player's action has no obvious conclusion.

I chose to experiment with this technique at my own table, mostly because it seemed novel and offered a departure from my usual habits. The outcome were eye-opening, prompting me to reconsider the ongoing balance between planning and randomization in a D&D campaign.

A Memorable In-Game Example

During one session, my group had survived a massive fight. Afterwards, a player asked about two beloved NPCs—a pair—had survived. In place of deciding myself, I let the dice decide. I instructed the player to make a twenty-sided die roll. The stakes were: on a 1-4, both were killed; a middling roll, a single one succumbed; on a 10+, they survived.

The player rolled a 4. This triggered a deeply moving scene where the adventurers came upon the corpses of their allies, still united in their final moments. The group held a ceremony, which was particularly significant due to earlier roleplaying. In a concluding touch, I improvised that the NPCs' bodies were strangely restored, containing a magical Prayer Bead. I randomized, the item's contained spell was precisely what the group required to resolve another major situation. You simply script these kinds of serendipitous moments.

Honing Your Improvisation

This event made me wonder if chance and making it up are actually the core of this game. Although you are a meticulously planning DM, your ability to adapt need exercise. Groups reliably excel at upending the best constructed plots. Therefore, a skilled DM must be able to adapt swiftly and fabricate scenarios on the fly.

Employing luck rolls is a fantastic way to develop these abilities without straying too much outside your preparation. The key is to deploy them for small-scale situations that won't drastically alter the campaign's main plot. To illustrate, I wouldn't use it to determine if the central plot figure is a traitor. Instead, I could use it to determine whether the party reach a location right after a critical event unfolds.

Strengthening Player Agency

Luck rolls also works to keep players engaged and foster the feeling that the game world is dynamic, progressing according to their actions as they play. It reduces the perception that they are merely pawns in a pre-written narrative, thereby bolstering the shared nature of the game.

Randomization has long been part of the core of D&D. The game's roots were reliant on random tables, which fit a playstyle focused on exploration. Although current D&D often focuses on story and character, leading many DMs to feel they require detailed plans, this isn't always the only path.

Achieving the Healthy Equilibrium

Absolutely no issue with being prepared. However, there is also no issue with relinquishing control and letting the dice to guide minor details rather than you. Direction is a major part of a DM's responsibilities. We need it to facilitate play, yet we frequently find it hard to give some up, at times when doing so can lead to great moments.

My final suggestion is this: Don't be afraid of relinquishing a bit of the reins. Experiment with a little randomness for smaller details. You might just create that the surprising result is far more powerful than anything you might have scripted by yourself.