GM-ing To Screen or Not to Screen

[WalterGM]

Ahh, the eternal "to screen or not to screen" question for GMing. It's already been said in this thread but bears repeating, there's no "right" answer -- the right answer is the one that works for you!

Personally, I'm rarely, if ever, seen behind a screen. Nor do I really sit down, now that I think about it. Too often my chair becomes a platform for my backpack. I'm the GM that's animated and energetic, rolling those dice in the open that don't matter (my initiative, my damage, etc) and perhaps tossing a bluff check behind a cupped hand. I suppose that the crafty player could keep an excel spreadsheet of my rolls for a specific foe and figure out their statistics, but I do a pretty good job of noting the dice then scooping them away and calling out to hit numbers.

Back in the day I remember GM screens between me and my players. But I also remember myself in middle school taking over an hour to get through basic combats, and having to look up every spell. So my message is this: do what works for you, but don't expect it to stay that way.

My GMing has been evolving since game one of PFS, and it's not going to stop until I stop running tables.

[Finlanderboy]

As for GMing cheating fah. The dice prove little. I see DMs cheat often. Combining fights, changing tactics, having you fight the higher teir monsters, adjusting the dice modifier. A screen give the illusion of fair play. I prefer to roll on the table as the player can see my crits and auto fails.

One thing I do for metagamers is fake roll dice. I roll a die and askthem to make a perception check when nothing is there. I find that fun to do.

[Deussu]

I tend to use a GM screen if I happen to bring it along. I've also opted to run games while standing, as it allows me to better see at the table and give me more, eh, authority.

Not all rolls should be done in open though. Most players forget that certain disable device, disguise, sense motive, and perception rolls should be made secretly.

[hustonj]

Through my years of GMing in large, organized play, shared campaigns I have come to a fairly simple set of conclusions.

People like to see my dice.

They like to see me use tactics appropriate for the opponents they are facing.

They LOVE to have me cheer them on, encouraging them to win the day. ESPECIALLY when my dice are just absolutely beating them down.

I don't generally use a GM screen anymore. If I NEED to make a secret roll (it does happen), I hide the dice behind my other hand.

If I have true beginners at the table, I try to assist them with some system-specific tactical insights as appropriate. Younger players also get less tactical effort from me than older players, because there is no reason to expect them to understand much about tactics, yet. Both of these are adapting to the table the same way that adjusting box text based on the age (or phobias) of the participants require. I have a friend who is deathly afraid of spiders. Guess what ALWAYS gets left out of descriptions, or renamed (but not re-stated) for her benefit?

The tables which stick in my memory through the years either had some seriously entertaining (and unexpected) role-play, or they had that skin-of-your-teeth brush with death. My favorite disappointment was a table where, in the climactic fight, all the bad guys but one were dropped AND all the PCs but one were dropped. Both of the standing characters were Clerics who had run out of useful spells and had only an HP or two left. Whoever managed to hit the other first would win the day for their side, and the PC had a statistical advantage (needed less on the die to hit). They danced that way for something like 4 rounds before my die finally ended the fight, with me telling the guy to "hit me!" every time he picked up his die. Everybody at the table thanked me for killing them. Seriously. Why? Because there was no question the table was run fairly, that I played the bad guys intelligently and provided the opposition they were supposed to face, or that I was rooting for them to win instead of just trying to prove I could kill them.