Introduction
Some of the greatest stories ever told weren’t written in isolation—they were shaped through collaboration. Writers, directors, and game designers often bounce ideas off of others to refine and improve their narratives. As a GM, you can now do the same for your Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) campaigns—with AI as your brainstorming partner.
AI-powered tools can help D&D GMs overcome creative blocks, refine encounters, and even suggest alternative story outcomes that fit seamlessly into their campaigns. But to get the most out of AI, like ChatGPT, you need to know how to ask the right questions. That’s where prompt engineering comes in. In this guide, we’ll break down five powerful techniques that will help you use AI to enhance your storytelling, create deeper worlds, and run more immersive sessions.
In this guide, we’ll cover five prompt engineering techniques that will help you use AI (ChatGPT and Game Master Platform) to improve your campaign prep and improvisation.
You’ll learn how to:
✅ Make AI roleplay NPCs naturally
✅ Improve AI-generated ideas through refinement
✅ Generate multiple versions of an encounter or item instantly
✅ Create compelling story twists with AI’s help
✅ Use AI as an assistant, not a crutch
With ready-to-use examples, you’ll see how AI can speed up session prep, enhance worldbuilding, and help you think like a master storyteller.
Let’s dive in.
1. Role Prompting – Make AI Act Like an NPC
What It Is:
This technique tells AI to act as a specific character so its responses feel natural and immersive. Instead of just saying, “Describe a grumpy innkeeper,” you make AI become the grumpy innkeeper.
Why It Helps GMs:
✅ Instant NPC dialogue without awkward phrasing
✅ Consistent character personality across different interactions
✅ Helps you improvise when players talk to unexpected NPCs
Example Scenario:
The party questions an innkeeper about a recent murder, but they didn’t actually see anything. They’re just making things up for the drama.
AI Prompt:
"You are Luthor, a grumpy innkeeper who hates adventurers but loves gossip. He didn’t actually witness the murder but wants to sound important. Respond in-character to any player questions, exaggerating details and contradicting yourself."
Sample AI Response:
"Oh aye, I saw the whole thing—’cept, er, it was a bit foggy, y’know? Coulda been a nobleman, or a beggar, or—wait, no, definitely a nobleman! I heard him scream somethin’ about ‘cursed bloodlines’ before he keeled over. Or maybe that was last week’s murder… Bah, what’s it to ye?"
🔹 How to Use This at the Table:
Let AI generate NPC dialogue in advance for key encounters.
Use it live if players talk to someone you didn’t prepare.
Adjust the tone for different NPCs (suspicious, helpful, terrified, etc.).
Here is Luthor and his background that the AI is trained on.
2. Zero-Shot Prompting – Think Like a DM, Not a Machine
What It Is:
Instead of asking AI for a single answer, this technique makes AI break down its thought process before responding. This leads to more logical, DM-like answers.
Why It Helps GMs:
✅ Creates realistic NPC reactions
✅ Helps design tactical enemy behavior
✅ Gives depth to moral dilemmas and story choices
Example Scenario:
The party tries to sneak into a bandit camp. How do the bandits react?
AI Prompt:
"Describe step-by-step how a group of bandits would react if a party of adventurers tried to sneak into their camp. Include DC checks for success and failure on both sides, include perception, stealth, and any relevant skills. Consider their level of alertness, potential ambush tactics, and ways they might attempt to flee or surrender."
Sample Response:
Step 1: The bandit on watch is half-asleep, leaning against a wooden post with a half-finished bottle of ale in his lap. The campfire is burning low, giving him disadvantage on perception checks.
➡ Perception Check (DC 12, with Disadvantage) & 1st Player Stealth Check: If the bandit fails, he dismisses the sound as a small animal. If he succeeds, he sits up and grips his crossbow, scanning the darkness.
Step 2: The rogue steps on a dry twig, producing a sharp snap in the still night air.
➡ 2nd Player Stealth Check (DC 15): If the party succeeds on their check, the bandit shrugs and returns to his drink. If failed, he nudges a nearby bandit awake and whispers, “You hear that?”
Step 3: The bandit leader, a former soldier, has trained his crew well. He knows better than to charge blindly into an unknown threat.
➡ Tactical Decision: (Stealth Check) for bandits (Perception Check for Players): If two or more bandits become aware of the party, the leader signals them to spread out and flank the noise source instead of rushing in.
Step 4: If the party remains hidden but tensions rise, the leader initiates a fallback strategy.
➡ Insight Check (DC 14) for the Bandit Leader: If he fails, he assumes it’s just paranoia and calls off the search. If he succeeds, he orders a controlled retreat, leading his bandits into a trap-ridden escape route rather than risk direct confrontation.
🔹 How to Use This at the Table:
Use it to generate realistic enemy behavior.
Break down NPC motivations in social encounters.
Ask AI to analyze player choices for consequences.
3. Iterative Refinement – Get AI to Polish Your Ideas
What It Is:
Instead of accepting the first response, ask AI to refine and improve it.
Why It Helps GMs:
✅ Avoids generic story elements
✅ Lets you tweak AI-generated content to fit your world
✅ Useful for quest hooks, riddles, and lore development
Example Scenario:
You ask AI for a plot twist in a “rescue the kidnapped noble” quest, but the first idea is too basic.
AI Prompt:
"Give me five different twists for a classic ‘rescue the kidnapped noble’ quest. Ask me 3 questions one at a time to flesh out the twists."
"Now refine #3 to make it more mysterious and morally complex."
Sample AI Response (Before Refinement):
Twist #3: The noble was never kidnapped—he faked his own abduction to escape an arranged marriage.
Refined Version:
The noble faked his own abduction, but it wasn’t to escape marriage—it was to join a secret rebellion against the kingdom. If the party brings him back, they unknowingly destroy the rebels’ plan to overthrow a tyrant.
🔹 How to Use This at the Table:
Refine side quests so they tie into player choices.
Ask AI to “make it darker” or “add moral complexity” to a plot.
Keep improving twists until they feel unique.
4. Few-Shot Prompting – Teach AI with Examples
What It Is:
Few-shot prompting is a technique where you provide a language model with a few examples of a task, along with the desired output. This allows the model to learn the pattern and apply it to new, similar inputs. By giving AI 2-3 example responses, you show it the type of output you want.
Why Few-Shot Prompting Helps GMs
✅ Ensures AI Mimics the Right Tone and Style: By providing a few examples, you guide the AI to generate responses that match the mood, personality, and level of detail you want. This is especially useful for consistent NPC speech patterns, prophecy styles, or quest dialogue.
✅ Reduces the Need for Constant Rewriting: Without examples, AI responses can vary wildly in tone and detail. Few-shot prompting teaches the AI the expected format upfront, reducing the time spent refining or correcting its output.
✅ Helps Maintain Worldbuilding Consistency: When crafting lore, legends, or character speech, a few well-placed examples help the AI stay in character and aligned with your campaign’s themes—whether that’s cryptic fortune tellers, noble scholars, or drunken sailors.
Think of it as showing the model a few completed problems so it can solve a new one.
Below I am creating an NPC, Madame Zoraya, she is a prophet that the players might run into. I want to train the AI on the different personalities of who she is. This way when I ask her questions, the AI will have a sense of how to respond. These personalities will come forth based on how the players interact with her.
Three Variations of Madame Zoraya’s Speech and Mannerisms 🔮
Madame Zoraya is a mystical, enigmatic fortune teller whose presence lingers long after a reading. While her appearance remains the same, her personality and the way she delivers her prophecies can shift, making every encounter unique.
🟣 Description
✨ A frail woman draped in layers of dark violet and gold-threaded robes.
✨ Her ink-black eyes never focus on anything, yet she always seems aware of who is watching.
✨ Her voice is soft but weighted, carrying the burden of prophecy.
✨ She gestures slowly, as if weaving unseen threads of fate as she speaks.
🌀 Variation 1: The Poetic Prophet
💭 Personality:
🎭 Mysterious, lyrical, and theatrical. She treats prophecy as an art, painting vivid word-pictures that leave listeners pondering their meaning long after they leave her tent. She thrives on dramatic pauses and unsettling coincidences.
🗣 Speech Examples:
🌓 “The sun chases the moon, yet they never meet. So too does your fate dance with the blade’s edge. Will you fall, or will you step aside? That choice, child, is yours alone.”
🌊 “The river does not ask where it flows, yet it always finds the sea. Will you fight the current, or let it guide you to the place you were always meant to be?”
🎭 How She Acts:
✨ She moves with graceful, sweeping gestures, like an ancient storyteller.
✨ Occasionally, she will hum softly or trace unseen shapes in the air, as if reading from an invisible book.
✨ She never raises her voice, yet her words seem to echo in the mind.
⚖️ Variation 2: The Stern Guardian of Fate
💭 Personality:
⏳ Cold, authoritative, and unwavering. Madame Zoraya does not coddle those who seek her wisdom—she only reveals what she deems necessary. She believes that fate is absolute, and those who question it waste their time.
🗣 Speech Examples:
⚔️ “You seek the truth, yet you do not ask if you are worthy to bear it. Knowledge is a blade—sharp, unrelenting, and without mercy. Are you prepared for the wound it will leave?”
🚶♂️ “Do not ask if your path is just. Ask if you have the strength to walk it.”
⚖️ How She Acts:
🪶 She sits completely still, hands folded neatly in front of her.
🪶 When she speaks, her words are deliberate and final—there is no room for argument.
🪶 If questioned, she does not argue—she merely repeats her words and waits for understanding to come.
👁️ Variation 3: The Unsettling Harbinger
💭 Personality:
🕯️ Haunting, enigmatic, and unnerving. Madame Zoraya does not just foretell the future—she makes people feel its weight pressing down on them. Her words linger like an echo in an empty hall, whispering through the mind long after she has gone.
🗣 Speech Examples:
⏳ “You will not die today. No, not today. But soon. Soon enough that you will hear my voice when the moment arrives, whispering, ‘I told you so.’”
👤 “Your shadow walks ahead of you, but one day it will fall behind. When that day comes, do not turn around.”
👁️ How She Acts:
🕷️ She smiles at the wrong moments, tilting her head as if listening to something no one else can hear.
🕷️ She occasionally repeats a word or phrase under her breath, as if testing how it sounds in the air.
🕷️ When she touches someone, her fingertips are ice-cold.
🔮 Which Version of Madame Zoraya Will Your Players Meet?
Each version of Madame Zoraya sets a different tone for the game:
🔹 The Poetic Prophet offers mystical guidance full of meaning.
🔹 The Stern Guardian makes prophecy feel inevitable and unyielding.
🔹 The Unsettling Harbinger ensures players leave questioning whether they even wanted to know their fate.
Or… perhaps she changes depending on who is asking the question? 💀
🔹 How to Use This at the Table:
Teach AI your preferred storytelling style.
Use it to create NPC catchphrases and quirks.
Ensure AI-generated responses match the tone of your world.
5. AI as a Critic with Multi-Shot Prompting – Generate Multiple Variations at Once
What It Is:
Instead of asking for one idea, this technique prompts AI to generate multiple different storylines or outcomes at once. This helps GMs compare ideas quickly, choose the best fit, or mix and match elements.
Why It Helps GMs:
✅ Provides multiple campaign story arcs or endings to choose from
✅ Encourages unexpected twists and alternative paths
✅ Helps refine and improve existing campaign ideas with a fresh perspective
Example Scenario:
You’ve planned a climactic showdown between the players and a rising necromancer king. But what if you want alternative endings or different ways the story could play out?
AI Prompt:
"Act as a professional campaign critic analyzing my D&D story. Offer three alternative storylines or outcomes that would make the narrative more engaging, unexpected, or emotionally impactful. Consider player agency, moral dilemmas, and hidden twists."
Sample AI Response – Three Alternative Storylines
1️⃣ The Necromancer’s Redemption Arc
Instead of a final battle, the necromancer isn’t truly evil—he’s trying to resurrect a lost love but is trapped in a cycle of grief-fueled destruction.
The players must convince him to let go or help complete the ritual safely—but who pays the cost?
Possible moral dilemma: Should the players sacrifice someone else to bring back his love?
2️⃣ The Betrayal Within the Party
A trusted NPC or even a player character is unknowingly bound to the necromancer and begins hearing his voice.
The final battle isn’t about defeating him physically but unraveling the hold he has on one of their own.
Possible player twist: Does the character resist, or do they turn on the party at the worst moment?
3️⃣ The Cycle Continues
The players defeat the necromancer—but his death triggers the final phase of his plan.
The land is cursed, and the players become the new guardians who must prevent his resurrection.
Possible long-term consequence: Did the party actually stop the evil, or just delay it?
🔹 How to Use This at the Table:
Use AI as a "campaign critic" to refine your story ideas.
Quickly explore alternate endings or twists.
Generate dynamic outcomes that keep players engaged and surprised.
This approach ensures that every major campaign moment has depth, unexpected turns, and player agency—instead of a predictable railroaded ending! 🚀
Conclusion & Quick-Reference Guide
AI isn’t here to replace GMs—it’s here to amplify creativity and make session prep faster and more fun.
Key Takeaways:
✔ Role Prompting – AI as an NPC
✔ Chain-of-Thought Prompting – AI thinks like a DM
✔ Iterative Refinement – AI polishes ideas
✔ Few-Shot Prompting – AI mimics your storytelling
✔ Multi-Shot Prompting – AI acting as a critic can help you generate many outcomes or options at once
Now, go forth and let AI do the grunt work so you can focus on telling epic stories.
Comments