Dungeon Mastering for Young Adventurers
Dungeons & Dragons Starter Set (2014) Cover Art by Jaime Jones
Playing D&D with young kids is very fun. It is also very exhausting. It can be difficult to keep them engaged for a full session, so the easiest way to have a good time yourself as DM is to embrace their imagination and chaotic energy. They have so many ideas and always want to move on to the next monster or location. They will always want to make up their own spells and approach challenges from angles you never could have predicted. However, you can’t give your story and structure away to the chaos, or the group will get stuck in an incoherent silliness without any forward momentum.
In an adventure, structure and openness are equally important. If it's too railroady and they don't have any input in what happens next they can lose interest and if you let them run wild in an open world it'll just be chaos without any story. So it's all about a balance; keeping the story moving while also making them feel like they have a real effect on the outcome and letting them explore and linger in the parts that pique their interest.
I've never felt the need to change any of the major rules or mechanics of 5th Edition D&D, but I do try to do most of the more complex parts myself so the kids can have a more streamlined experience. It's easy to overwhelm them with class actions and niche mechanics to the point where it all blurs together for them. The key is to know their sheet and the game intricacies so if they're stuck you can let them know which attacks they could use and tell them how many damage dice to roll if they hit.
Personally, the one element I do simplify a bit is spells. Oftentimes the kids will have ideas for spells more cool and imaginative than anything in the core rulebooks, or will just want to use a type of magic (fire, water, poison, rainbow, etc.) It's very rewarding to embrace these abstract spell ideas and adapt them into reasonable effects and damage dice.
Don't let them fudge rolls. They want a nat 20 so bad they will lie to your face at every turn if you let them. One of the best lessons D&D can teach kids is that failure isn't the end and can even make the game more enjoyable. I recently had a kid cry because he was afraid of dying from a Dragon's breath weapon. He would've died, but I assured him that his grandfather Zeus (yes, the Zeus) wouldn't let them die. He was also afraid that the other players weren't going to help him through healing or other means. He eventually collected himself and came back to the table.
They were near the end of the fight, and this kid got the final hit on the dragon. After the dragon died, all the kids stood up and started cheering with joy and support for their fellow party members. It wasn't an easy situation to navigate, but it's easily one of the best moments I've ever witnessed in one of my D&D sessions. So don't let them hide their dice and let them fail, because it makes the victory all the sweeter for you and them.
I hope these few words of advice help anyone trying to engage with creative children through Dungeons & Dragons. The highs and lows. frustration and inspiration, all balance out in the end.
