2014’s 5th edition introduced the Inspiration mechanic to D&D as a way for DMs to reward their players with advantage on a future ability check, attack roll, or saving throw. This is described both in the Player’s Handbook as well as the Dungeon Master’s Guide. It’s a novel mechanic (built alongside the advantage/disadvantage system) which seeks to reinforce positive player behaviors for the benefit of the table. Inspiration is awarded for role-playing consistent with character background, taking heroic risks, succeeding in a particularly important goal, or adhering to genre norms.
Inspiration, as-written, is great – it doesn’t need to be fixed since there’s nothing wrong with it. Rather, the core idea can be expanded further to 1) increase character autonomy, 2) through game balance allow a GM to increase the challenge/difficulty, and 3) encourage excitement of the game outside of scheduled sessions. So, what changes can boost the role of Inspiration in your D&D* games? *Similar mechanics can be added to your RPG of choice so feel free to make this your own.
1) Increase the cap of Inspiration for each player from one to three. Any Inspiration gain in addition to this may immediately be given to other players who are not yet at their cap. This further encourages positive behavior since players will often hold their Inspiration until needed such that many points are simply lost due to the previous cap.
2) Allow players to spend two Inspiration to re-roll something AFTER instead of being limited to only affecting ability checks, attack rolls, and saving throws before a roll is made. Players are often annoyed when they cash in their Inspiration for advantage that they didn’t end up needing in the first place: you needed a 16 to pass so spent your point only to roll an 18 and a 20. This change gives players greater control in how their rewards are used: those who enjoy risk-taking may continue to use the mechanic as originally intended, but more often. Risk-averse players may instead save until an important roll is already failed, cashing in more for another shot at a critical spell save, or re-rolling an unlucky miss.
3) Allow players to spend an additional Inspiration to affect a DM’s roll. By spending two Inspiration, a player (or players) may either give the DM disadvantage or otherwise negate advantage on a roll. Likewise, per 2) above, the table could spend three Inspiration points to force a DM to roll something after-the-fact, such as an Nat 20 crit when half the party is already down. This specific change encourages your players to share their gains while also allowing a DM to add more challenging challenges relative to the normal CR balance limitations. Due to normal Action Economy balancing, giving the players an opportunity to affect the limited attacks or critical saving throws of challenging enemies such as bosses means a DM is able to bring tougher threats than normal all while reducing boring aspects of play like missing attacks, save or suck spells, or being knocked unconscious by a random enemy early in an important battle.
So, if you agree that these are worthwhile changes to how Inspiration may be used, how do we increase the supply in a way that meets demand while encouraging positive play? Continue to distribute points to players for good role-play, undertaking heroic actions, and/or beating tough challenges, but furthermore seek to reward the players themselves for behaviors away from your table and even between games. Consider rewarding the following:
-Providing a post-session summary in writing either in- or out-of-character. This is doubly useful when other players miss a session. As a DM I always find it valuable to read what the players thought was important, what they might have missed, how they interpreted certain characters or situations, and what might need to be clarified or reinforced later.
-Bringing snacks. I can be bribed with coffee and a danish, a slice of pizza, or even a veggie tray. Any guest that brings food or drinks to help share the weight of hosting a group every session is entitled to an extra Inspiration for their effort and consideration. Of course if a player IS the host, they will earn a point every single session – this is no small responsibility for someone to take on over the lifetime of a game and a few extra dice rolls is a small price to repay that generosity.
-Any reminder of something forgotten that benefits the DM and/or hurts the party. Anyone willing to help the person running dozens of monsters to remember something inconvenient is likely someone that sees the DM as a trusted friend, not an opponent to be beaten. This person cares more for a fair, shared experience than WAAC. (Winning At All Costs – a term used extensively in war-gaming to describe over-competitive, unsportsmanlike players) Be careful with this one: the intent is that helpful information be shared such that the group story improves, not as a mechanic to target another player or suck up to the DM for extra Inspiration. If you are unsure if this is right for your table, skip it.
-Significant downtime/time skips. In-world Inspiration can represent whatever you think fits most appropriately: blind luck, fate, heroic destiny, the manipulations of the Gods, spectacular skill made manifest, etc. When there is significant downtime between adventures consider that these would be happening passively in the background – depending on how your adventures are timed you may find it’s appropriate to distribute Inspiration to the entire party between chapters. Likewise I always make sure that brand new players have at least one (if not two) when they start. The early levels are hard enough as it is with D&D’s all-or-nothing hit/miss mechanics with few exceptions, combined with the likelihood of someone being unfamiliar with the strengths and weaknesses of a brand new character.
-Role-playing an NPC. Often a DM will find themselves in situations where they might have to role-play two or more NPCs in the same scene; this is usually fine until a DM has to talk to themselves. Avoid this by incentivizing the role-playing of recurring NPC roles without a direct-relationship between the controller and the player’s actual character. Player A would therefore not control both their rogue and the rogue’s mother, but player B could control the rogue’s mother while A controls her bodyguard. This should always be voluntary and the interactions relatively short – give players note cards that briefly describe three noteworthy aspects of the NPC: greedy – kind – short-tempered – suspicious – hates goblins – obsessed with nobility – balls fists when frustrated – laughs seldomly but loudly, etc, etc.
-Creative works and Donations. Including but not limited to: drawing characters or scenes, painting their model, writing a story, writing a song, performing IC or OOC, making and sharing memes related to the game, providing needed module or resource books, bringing models or terrain for the table, helping other players in need with transportation, and last but certainly not least: performing an extra role at the table. My next article will cover this last idea in more detail so be sure to check that out in June.
As the DM, you are the final arbiter in which behaviors you think should be rewarded and subsequently encouraged at your table. I am hopeful I’ve properly persuaded you to consider the value that an expanded Inspiration system could add. If you are a player that agrees, please share this with your DM, but before you go, check out my first article: a player’s guide to maximizing your fun in every RPG.
=Thorn
Forever DM
Cat Dad
Head of the Deathskull Boyz gaming club
Amateur game designer
Alliance guild leader of the Scarlet Brotherhood, Warmane – Icecrown server, WoW
