MURDER YOUR PLAYERS AS HARD AS YOU CAN (DM advice)

Now, some people don't understand what I mean when I say this. Basically it can be summed up like this. You are the DM. You have a duty to try to murder your players to the best of your ability. You shouldn't create one sided encounters the players cannot win. You shouldn't tell them that "Rocks Fall. Everyone Dies." What you should do is play the NPCs to the best of their ability. If the NPCs are dumb as a box of rocks, they can make tactical mistakes and the players can run rings around them. But if he's got an Int of 34, he'd better have some sweet contingency plans ready.

It's murder them as hard as you CAN. As in, ability, given the limitations imposed on you by the scenario you have created and the limits of the rules. More then anyone, you need to come down on yourself as hard as possible to keep yourself in line. If a PC can't get away with something, you sure as heck shouldn't either. By working hard to murder them, but making sure to keep yourself in check by sticking with the framework of the rules, you know that the players are succeeding, or failing, on their own.

It's a poorly kept secret that most DMs are actively rooting for the players to win. We want them to have an epic journey and have fun overcoming horrible odds to save the day. But if you just let them win, the victory means nothing. So you owe it to the players, and to yourself, to murder them as hard as you can.