Cheat sheet
GM checklist (Daggerheart)
Before-session and during-session reminders.
Quick blocks
Daggerheart GMing is fiction-first: the 2d12 generate Hope (player resource) and Fear (your resource), and your job is to spend Fear in dramatic, visible ways. Don’t prep beat-by-beat — let the dice drive escalation.
Session checklist
- Frame scenes around traits and Experiences, not stat blocks.
- Spend Fear narratively: complicate, reveal, escalate — not just damage.
- Use domain cards as story prompts, not just rules text.
- Always offer a hard choice when the Fear die wins.
Common pitfalls
- Running it like 5e with different dice
- Skipping consequences after Hope/Fear rolls
- Pre-scripted plot beats that ignore the dice