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I have very many questions on this but I'll start with just a few. I figure I'm going to have to work up on GM skills for PFS b/c at some point I'm just going to either get very low on what i can play or run out.
What are things you love/hate about GMs?
Common Mistakes new GM's make?
Do you have to know every rule in all sub books like blood of fiends or ones like that that i can't think of at the moment....?
Any other best practices/lessons learned?
Thanks ahead of time to everyone:)
-M
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I have very many questions on this but I'll start with just a few. I figure I'm going to have to work up on GM skills for PFS b/c at some point I'm just going to either get very low on what i can play or run out.
No worries. We all still have questions about this stuff, so ask away.
What are things you love/hate about GMs?
Love when GM's personalize the game as much as they can, taking into accont the player's characters, motivations, classes, (and class resrictions), etc. . . Also when the GM is sort of taking note what thing the group is enjoying and lets it continue a little longer or hating and rushing it a little more quickly. There are so many things I love (and hate) that it would take a lot of space to talk aout them all, so I'm going to stick to general things.
for PFS specifically, some things I Hate are when a GM obviously has a favorate character (or Class or Faction), and wants to reward them a little more. Tht really shows and is annoying. Bad communication with the players (when it is the GM's fault). Basically things that GM's do intentionally, and (either do not see or do not care) that no one else is enjoying the game.
Common Mistakes new GM's make?
In PFS especially, and this is in some ways unavoidable, as PF is notoriously bad for where it places information in it's books, when the GM misses a key point of information about the adventure or a monster that would have changed what everyone did if they had known earlier.
Do you have to know every rule in all sub books like blood of fiends or ones like that that i can't think of at the moment....?
Not at all. Players are required to bring books or print outs off everything they use (and someone at the table should have it) if it is not a common class or bility or whatever. Players will likely tell you in advance if they have something uncommon, because they usually intend to use it.
For adventures, you should read them completely before running them, and they tend to include all the relevant information. If not, they will give quick examples of the basics. It happens sometimes, but certainly do not beat yourself up when it does.
Any other best practices/lessons learned?
Thanks ahead of time to everyone:)
-M
Things happen, and both players and GM's make mistakes. The best thing you can do it make sure everyone (including yourself) has fun and just keep the game going. If something comes up that puts the game on hold, your job as a DM is to make a call. Listen to the players arguements, I would say twice, and make a call, and keep going. If you are not sure, feel free to ask another GM, but don't hold up the game more than a min or two.
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I have a handout that I generally give to all my new GMs - I've posted the document on the Ontario Pathfinders website, and you might find it useful.
It's basically just a little advice on how to start GMing, and a checklist of things to remember to bring and do at an event. It's a very stripped-down version of the best advice for New GMs from Painlord's How To Be A Better Judge thread.
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Being able to adapt when your players do something you do not expect is an important skill for good GMs. Try not to be too "railroad-y". If the players find an alternate solution to a problem, try to let them use it, unless the scenario absolutely dictates that they can't/shouldn't. For example, I recently GMed a game where the players were supposed to set up an ambush for the villain, then follow her back to her hideout. Well, thanks to some good Diplomacy rolls (that were outlined in the scenario) they were able to find out the location of the villain's hideout before setting up the ambush, so they went there to check it out. Instead of either not letting them find the entrance, or having the villain not be home (which both would have also been acceptable), I just rolled with it and altered the rest of the scenario as needed (not changing stats or encounters at all, just how things were set up and played out.) My players later realized that they didn't "do things by the book" and thanked me for going with it instead of railroading them into what the scenario dictated.
Another example is subtly altering NPC tactics as necessary. Some villains will have morale listed, such as they flee/surrender once below a certain number of HP. If the encounter is going badly for the villain, I will sometimes have them flee/surrender early, even if they have not hit that specific HP mark yet. In a different scenario recently, there were three NPC villains against a group of six PCs. Two of the villains went down, leaving one left with about half his HP left. His morale said he should surrender if he has less than 10HP left, but after seeing his companions go down (quickly and effectively) and taking a few hits himself, I had him surrender early. There was almost nothing he could do to the party, since he was a caster backed into a corner who would force either AOOs or a concentration check to cast and nothing he could do could help him escape, so it seemed logical to have him surrender when he did.
You absolutely do not need to know every rule in every book to GM. I don't think there's a single person who knows everything from every book. What I like to do, and recommend doing, is read over the scenario a couple of times and then look up things you don't know. If an NPC has a spell or feat that you're not familiar with, look it up before you run the scenario. If the scenario requires the PCs to make a skill check, or if it takes place in an environment where they're likely to need to make skill checks (such as on or near a body of water where the PCs may need Swim) familiarize yourself with the DCs and rules for those skills. You don't need to memorize everything about every rule this way, just read over it so you're familiar with it and know where to look for it if you need to during the scenario.
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A big thing that helps me when I'm prepping a scenario is to look up any spells the NPCs have that I'm not 100% on fore the game, and take notes on how it works. Even though I've been playing 3E and variants since it came out in 2000, I don't have them all memorized.
Don't be afraid to ask your players how something is supposed to work, if you've got experienced players or GMs at your table. Be sure to look up anything you get guidance on after the game, as even the best of us make mistakes (or get our editions confused).
Dont rely on players to volunteer what odd things they have in their characters. In one recent scenario, I had a player tell me, after hai friend walked into a ambush with ethereal foes, that he had see invisibility up and should have seen the bad guys before they attacked. My response was, "you didn't tell me when you did that, so it didn't happen." the piont of this anecdote is: remind your players that they need to tell you about odd or unusual abilities they have.
When you make a bad call (and you will make bad calls), own it, don't try to deny it. Of course, if the players don't realize it, then just try to balance it out some other way. :)
Have fun. GMs are playing the game, too.
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A few other items:
If a critter is a spell user, try to familiarize yerself said spells; eg, what they do, range, save allowed, damage, duration, etc. This is something I still struggle with as I tend to not play spell users. On a related note, ask the spell users in the party to know the DC of the spells they cast, if there is one. Nothing I hate more is when I ask what the DC is and the player responds with, "Um... yeah, uh, wait a sec, is it 10 plus my ability mod? Yeah."
Get some sleep the night before.
Keep the players at the table involved. If there is a rule question , I will often ask a player not involved in the debate to look up the rule in question. This speeds up the conversation and gets the other players involved so no one player dominates the session.
You will run long. Don't worry about it.
Take a break. As much for you as it is for them. Drink lots of water as you are going to talk a lot.
Finally, the last most important rule to remember: Have fun. If you are, odds are everyone else is as well.
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Probably the biggest piece of advice I have gotten for GMing is this: You will screw up. Period. You're the Game Master, and thus human - humans make mistakes. The good thing, though? It's okay to screw up. None of your players expect you to be perfect, so when something slips just roll with it and adapt, because the overall experience is more important than making sure each minute detail is correct. It will be a lot for fun for everybody if you move the game forward instead of getting hung up on every minute detail.
Which brings up another point; unless it's critical(someone's life depends on it), don't worry about all of the rules. What I mean by this is, if a rule comes up that you don't know, and the players can't reach a consensus quickly, make a 1-minute ruling and continue with the game. Possibly the worst thing you could do in a situation like that would be to spend 60 minutes digging through rulebooks to find the 'correct' answer. It's almost always better to use your common sense and keep the game flowing.
Lastly, I would echo the idea of preparing scenarios you know you will be running ahead of time. It took me 3-4 sessions to realize that 'perparing' was different from 'reading through the scenario'. 'Preparing' involves reading through the scenario, making sure you know what all the enemy spells do, thinking about how the enemies will fight against the players, take notes on rules you don't know by heart for quick reference, etc. It takes a bit more time, but everything will flow smoother if you do it this way.
All of that said, don't sweat it. GMing should be fun for you and the players, and it's actually not that difficult to do. Your players will thank you for stepping up to the plate, and it will be rewarding to provide them with a fun experience.
Venture-Lieutenant, Washington—Pullman
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Being on the end of running a scenario cold a lot of times, or given just a few minutes before GMing to read through it, I really suggest reading the summary of the scenario and then looking at the combat tactics and the maps to familiarize yourself with them. Best to read the scenario before hand though. Good luck!
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thanks for the advice everyone. I was thinking finding a mod that my friends have ran through and GMing it (for no credit of course) just as a test to get a feel for it in a safe setting.
My worry is as a player I've seen some characters come in that totally seem illegal how often to players get checked if at all? (i know mine have never been)
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also any suggestion on what scenarios might be a good idea to try and run first i can tell as a player that some are def. harder to run then others(like don't think id wanna do midnight mauler for my first GM try)
And if i GM before i play it i can still play it latter just have to not say anything really during play correct?
-M
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RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32, RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
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The GM can audit a PC at any time, but that takes time and a lot of PFS happens at conventions or in stores where time is limited, so most GMs only audit a PC if something seems suspicious.
Yes, you can still play a scenario for credit if you've already GM'd it, you just need to "play dumb" a bit so as not to spoil anything.
As for good first scenarios to run, I'll leave that to our more experienced GMs to answer.
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The First Steps scenarios are probably the simplest to prep and run. At least, parts 1 and 3. I've never run part 2, and it does include one or two things that might be slightly more detailed than 1 and 3, so I won't vouch for that one.
Generally, I've found that low level adventures are easier for newbie GMs. Not only are there less monster/NPC powers and abilities for you to have to research before the game, but there's also less PC powers and abilities that you might not know during the game. I only GMed PFS for a subtier 8-9 once at a convention, and my players were doing all sorts of crazy stuff based on combinations of feats and spells I'd never heard of. At subtier 1-2, if someone is doing something you've never heard of, it's almost always just one spell or one feat, so it's easier for you to look up quickly and learn about it properly on the fly.
Other adventures that were easy for me to prep and run at low levels include Assault on the Kingdom of the Impossible and The Icebound Outpost.
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You might also want to go for the enthusiasm start, running the Free RPG Day module from last year, We Be Goblins!. It has crazy goblins run by players, a greased pig, crazy goblins, firewqorks, crazy goblins, fireworks, a horse, crazy goblins, fireworks, some dogs, and fireworks. Did I mention it has crazy goblins run by the players?
Venture-Captain, California—San Francisco Bay Area South & West
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As a very new GM, (precisly 1 GM session under my belt so far), I'd definitely recommend the First Steps modules. Thay have no faction missions and only one tier, so they are far simpler to run. I ran part III as I had already played it twice and there were a group of regulars at our FLGS who wanted to run some new characters through it. We Be Goblins would also be a good one. I've played it twice now and look forward to running it. Its fun, and yes "it has crazy goblins run by the players".
Also, having a friedly audience is perfect and preparation is key to be able to get through it without losing it.
So stick your toe in the water its nowhere near as scary as we virgins think.
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Venture-Captain, Arizona—Tucson
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make sure that you're as prepared as possible, then relax and have fun. You will make mistakes: Don't sweat them.
It's best to generally let "the dice fall where they may", for good or ill. Players can tell when you're fudging rolls and it weakens their enjoyment of the game.
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RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32, RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
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if, for example, the players are whining about the scenario being easy (which happened to me), then bump the final encounters a bit. If they're having a hard time getting through the bad guys (which has also happened to me), then lower the attack bonus or damage bonus that a bag guy deals.
You must never ever ever change the numbers. Campaign management has asserted and reasserted over and over that scenarios are to be run as written. If things are not looking fun for your players, find another way to cope - but don't change the numbers.
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1) Have fun, create a fun atmosphere
2) Don't keep saying this is your first time, maintain focus on fun, but don't be overbearing.
3) Flow, I'd rather a GM just make a call and keep going
4) RP the monsters even in a fight, mindless things, or animals blunder in, ogres and giants are overconfident in their size, smart or trained things use an appropiate level of tactics... I hate when a DM has everything fight the same way because of the rules.
5)Drama, my best GMs made me fell like my character was surely doomed when the bad guys had the upperhand on us.
6) Encourge players to act in character.
7) Be prepared, I run best when I've read through everything. Checked how the villians abilities work, etc.
8) Let your players go off script! One of the best times I had was our grouping playing for 5 hours AFTER the final encounter!
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No problem.
Sorry if it came off a little stern; usually I'm referencing that official stance to those who know better.
Jiggy, maybe the best way to approach this in future, especially for someone posting who has no visible stars, is to not do a bald no, but say, "I'm sorry. You may not have noticed, but you are posting in the PFS area of the forums, and PFS rules say that you can't modify the encounters."
Of course, with Season 4+ scenarios, that is going to have to change, too.
"For Season 0 scenarios, you should, usually, just add the CMB & CMD, and consolidate the skills, for the monsters. You can, if you are confident, substitute the PFRPG version of a monster from the scenario, but only if both versions have the same CR. For Season 1-3 scenarios, you cannot change the monsters, beyond anything listed in errata for the scenario. For Season 4 scenarios, they are designed for 6 PC parties, and include scaling instructions for when you have only 4 PCs playing."
For PFS scenarios, you should attempt to use the tactics given for an encounter, but be prepared to have to change them a bit on the fly if the PCs actions make the written tactics unusable. It is a pain to have the NPC's first action supposed to be a Summon Nature's Ally I, but have him already in melee with one or more enemies before his turn starts. And, yes, I have GMed this exact situation at least once before.