How to Be a Better DM: Dungeon Master Tips for the DM Newbie, the Hobbyist and the Forever DM

Episode 1 - Well… We’re in Hell. || The Pact & Boon

Welcome to the World of Calignos. This is the first episode of The Pact and Boon, and we find our heroes in the Prison of Mentiri within the City of Dis in the 2 levels

You've Been Building Encounters Wrong This Whole Time: The DICE Framework Explained

Stop balancing D&D encounters and start engineering them. This episode gives Dungeon Masters a simple four-part framework, DICE, for building unique encounters on demand,

Session 0 Isn’t Step 1: How to Prepare Your D&D Players Before Session Zero

Most DMs treat session zero as step one. It's not — it's where prep pays off. Professional DM Justin Lewis breaks down five conversations to have with your D&D players be

Stop Blaming Your Players. Start Coaching Your Table

In this episode, I’m breaking down the three levers every DM has to fix frustrating table behavior without turning into the bad guy: structural changes to your game, dire

How to Quickly Build an Interesting Combat Encounter

Is it possible to build a combat encounter quickly while also making it interesting? After all, most quickly-planned encounters end up just being a bunch of random enemie

Stuck? How to Keep the Cogs of the World in Motion - C.C. S2E12

Welcome to the Season Finale of Creative Contraband! Today Danny Barrett helps us deal with slow sessions or stuck campaigns. With these 4 different techniques, you will

Mimics and Networking with DM Neal - C.C. S2E11

In the third and last interview of the season, we join the very productive DM Neal, and talk about everything from Mimics and subverting expectation, to IT work and busin

The Insecure DM Trope (And How Not to Become It)

You know the trope: the DM who builds an unwinnable encounter, or a puzzle so clever it’s basically unsolvable — not because the story needed it, but because somewhere un

Therapy: Your Last Day on Earth - C.C. S2E10

Welcome back to Creative Contraband, dear Dungeon Masters! Today Danny Barrett tells us about Your Last Day on Earth, a free contemplative solo NanoRPG. We then use that

Is it Better if it's Homebrewed?

Do you ALSO feel the crushing need to homebrew if you want to be a good DM? Well you're not alone! While one of the best aspects of D&D is the capacity to create a world,

TTRPGs, Performance Art and Ephemeral Artforms - C.C. S2E9

Welcome back, Dungeon Masters and Game Masters! Today Danny Barrett talks about the importance of being present and focusing on our players. We discuss different kinds o

Neurocinema and the Kuleshov Effect - C.C. S2E8

Welcome back, dear Dungeon Masters and Game Masters! Today Danny Barrett tells us how the order of the information influences the conclusions we draw. We discuss example

Why Your D&D Group Keeps Canceling (It’s Not a Scheduling Problem)

Scheduling conflicts aren’t really about calendars — they’re about priorities. Justin shares the story of nearly losing three close friendships (and Session 0 Studios’ ow

Pocahontas, Cars, Invincible, Avatar and Reskinning - C.C. S2E7

Welcome, dear Dungeon Masters and Game Masters! Today Danny Barrett shows us how reskinning can optimize effort and enhance success at the table. Do you have some more e

Magic Item Shops: Guardians, Pricing, and the Players Who Want to Rob You

Your party just walked into a magic item shop — and at least one of them is already casing the room for guards, cameras, and an exit route. Are you ready? This episode b

Lord of the Rings as DnD - C.C. S2E6

Welcome once again, dear Dungeon Masters and Game Masters! Today we talk about how the Lord of the Rings trilogy can be described mostly as DnD checks and situations. In

Railroading: Everything You Know About It Is Wrong

Railroading has a bad reputation in the TTRPG world — but is it actually the villain DMs think it is? In this live panel from FanX 2025, Justin Lewis, Tanner Weyland, and

Suspense vs. Surprise - C.C. S2E5

Welcome once again, dear Dungeon Masters and Game Masters! Today we talk about suspense and surprise from Alfred Hitchcock's movies and Game of Thrones. In this episode

Looking Beneath the Surface: the Hidden Wishes of D&D Players

Players (and DMs) have many unchecked assumptions for what they want out of a D&D adventure: they want "powerful loot," easy NPC interactions, and a cinematic, epic story

Sacred Art of Gaming Shares Wisdom about Solo TTRPGs - C.C. S2E4

In our second interview episode, we sit down with Sacred, and talk about Solo TTRPGs, intention, immersion and getting to know yourself. Sit back and enjoy this light-he