Hey guys,
so this thread is more or less just intended to be a catch all for any advice you have for people who are GMing. The nice thing about this thread is that you can aim your advice at beginner, intermediate and expert GM.
If possible, notate what level your various advisements are being aimed at in Bold.
General (Anyone can use this, isn't tied to a skill level).
Beginner (Intended for low-skill or beginning GMs).
Intermediate (Intended for moderate-skill or average GMs).
Expert (Intended for high-skill or master GMs).
I'm assuming that the vast majority is going to be under General, but lets see if I'm proven wrong. Also, don't worry about mistyping, your categorization of your advice is just as subjective as where you feel you fit in in the above categorizations.
Note: Advice is subjective. Do not read someone's advice and think that it is the only way to do something. People have very different preferred play styles.
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General
Don't see the game as a competition, you are all on the same side. The goal is fun, if the players have fun, you have WON THE GAME.
As GM, you have unlimited resources, killing a PC isn't a success, it's a punishment.
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Beginner Don't allow too much. Keep all 3PP material out of your Games. I know you want to be cool and not say no to a players request. But you do not have a grip on the game yet to determine if anything is "Balanced" or "Broken" or "OP". Stick to Paizo materials and run a few Pre-made Campaigns/modules/scenarios to get a basic feel for Game Mastering.
Intermediate Write down the things you think might be too strong and thinking about Removing from your game. Your now at the point where you have a understanding of early, mid, and late game power jumps of all the classes, and you have a understanding about the Games mechanics. After writing them down consult the Forums with your Observations and concerns. Bounce your Ideas off the community. If you get an overwhelming response from veteran players about a subject then you can now start writing you House rules/Bans list with research behind your reasoning instead of Impulsive decisions.
Expert Polish off your House rules list and start making your own NPCs and Enemies. This is where you need to challenge yourself and create enemies/encounters with rules you want to play out. More obscure rules like Mass armies, ship to ship, and Kingdom Building. This is a point where you can successfully create your own campaign. And this is the point I feel it is ok to start adding in 3PP stuff as you have a full grip on the game.
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Expert KNOW YOUR PLAYERS!!!
Some players want to be railroaded, and will ask you what they should do next, if it's not made really obvious. Some players despise that, and will do anything to break the boundaries and get into a sandbox.
Some players want you to fudge the dice so that they always "barely win" every encounter. Others will hate you for it, and want the dice to fall where they may -- even to the point of wanting you to roll in the open, instead of behind a screen.
Some players want softball challenges so that they can explore unusual character concepts that don't necessarily work well mechanically; they probably don't want their character to die. Others want you to push the challenges to 11 so that they can hone their skill at building and playing a dedicated hunter-killer; they'll be upset if they make a mistake and there's NOT a TPK as a result.
Some players want a rules-lite story hour. Some prefer a game with more mechanical working parts.
Some players want a PG-13 game that avoids potential "triggers" and maintains a "safe space." Others want a game that runs like an Eli Roth movie on crack.
Some players want a traditional Tolkienesque medieval fantasy. Some prefer a Sailor Moon flavor. Others might prefer a mashup of Lovecraft and the Outer Limits. Etc.
Some players want to get drunk at the game and have their characters do outrageous stuff. Others take their gaming very seriously and expect others to as well.
None of these preferences are "right" or "wrong." And despite being presented as such for the sake of brevity, none of them are actually "yes/no" propositions, but more like endpoints in a spectrum. None of them have to apply all the time to the same people; some players will change their preference in each category depending on the campaign and the other players.
Your job, as DM, is to accurately gauge their preferences and provide that sort of game for them.
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Beginner/Intermediate/Expert Relax and have fun.
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General Unless you're playing PFS, feel free to ignore the rules. Make the ruling that makes the most sense and will result in the most fun at the table,... and keep the energy level up.
Beginner/Intermediate/Expert Relax and have fun.
Telling people they have to "relax" is good Beginner advice. It contradicts the "know your players" part of expert GMing. For example:
Some players want to get drunk at the game and have their characters do outrageous stuff. Others take their gaming very seriously and expect others to as well.
General Unless you're playing PFS, feel free to ignore the rules.
Again, this is good for Beginner, and OK for intermediate. For an expert GM it is good advice if and only if the players are looking for that kind of game.
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General Unless you're playing PFS, feel free to ignore the rules. Make the ruling that makes the most sense and will result in the most fun at the table,... and keep the energy level up.Again, this is good for Beginner, and OK for intermediate. For an expert GM it is good advice if and only if the players are looking for that kind of game.
I disagree. Even expert players are generally looking to play Pathfinder, and not to argue cases before the High Court. If a player has to dig up the three rules quotations and two FAQs that prove that this is how Paizo intends for the rules to work.... even if she's right, she's not having fun and neither is anyone else at the table.
I disagree. Even expert players are generally looking to play Pathfinder, and not to argue cases before the High Court. If I have to dig up the three rules quotations and two FAQs that prove that this is how Paizo intends for the rules to work.... even if I'm right, I'm not having fun and neither is anyone else at the table.
Your preferences are not universal. Some players want consistent mechanics, and expect the DM to provide them. If you fail in that, you might be a very, very good intermediate DM, but are not an expert one.
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I disagree. Even expert players are generally looking to play Pathfinder, and not to argue cases before the High Court. If I have to dig up the three rules quotations and two FAQs that prove that this is how Paizo intends for the rules to work.... even if I'm right, I'm not having fun and neither is anyone else at the table.Your preferences are not universal.
No, but the idea of "make the rulings that will result in the most fun at the table" is universal, as is the idea that Pathfinder players want to play Pathfinder.
I stand by my assessment.
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Well, my first addition to this thread will be to leave this link here.
That is a link to my old thread with advice for aspiring GMs, but can reasonably be employed by GMs of all calibers. It also lists tools to make the nitty-gritty of GMing go by a bit more smoothly, which can be useful no matter how accustomed you are to being behind the screen.
Since then I've happened upon an idea to help making NPCs. There is a really amazing roleplaying game out there called Burning Wheel, and this idea is taken directly from a mechanic of that game.
Making NPCs can be a bit daunting, you don't generally want to write a 5-page background for them, since the players will then reliably ignore the NPC or kill him when they first lay eyes on him. Don't question it, that is just the way the universe has decided it works. On the other hand, you don't wanna have nothing for your NPCs, or you risk them becomming stale and samey. Instead give every NPC one to three beliefs and one to three instincts. A belief is an assertion, followed by a statement of purpose, this is used to keep track of what would drive the NPC. Instincts are things the NPC does without thinking about it - they're generally great if acting on them can get you in trouble. A person CAN suppress an instinct.
When done, it takes this shape:
NAME: Briawick Riccaby. Merchant person.
Beliefs:
- The merchant guild is charging their members too much. I will get influence in the guild and help the smaller businesses.
- Adventurers are wealthy braggarts. I will charge them extra.
- Shops are a mark success. When I become rich enough, I want to replace my stall with a real shop.
Instincts:
- Talk down to dwarves.
- Don't admit fault.
- Respond to threats with snarkiess.
This is quick and easy to do, depending on how many beliefs and instincts you want for a given NPC, and it gives you an impression of how the person would act, both in the pressence of the PCs, but also once the PCs go off and do something else.
Hope it helps.
-Nearyn
No, but the idea of "make the rulings that will result in the most fun at the table" is universal, as is the idea that Pathfinder players want to play Pathfinder.
Maybe your definition of "universal" is a lot different than mine. I've played with at least one Pathfinder player who was only playing Pathfinder because he couldn't find a Shadowrun game, for example. I can list a bunch of other examples that contradict your "universal" rule that "Pathfinder players want to play Pathfinder," but one counterexample should serve to disprove a "universal" rule.
Beginner This is not "Your" game. This is everyone's game. Don't try to be a tyrant. "Rocks Fall and You Die" is a meme for a reason.
Intermediate Make sure the rules at your table are consistent. Nothing is as annoying or rage-inducing for players as having to ask "When suzy did this last game session you had her roll acrobatics at -5, why am I having to roll climb at -10?"
Basically, quick on the fly rulings are fine, in a crunch, but try to know the actual rules and enforce them in a consistent fashion so your players know they have a fair and stable playing field. If you have to change something from the way it was done at a prior game session communicate clearly with the table before doing so.
Intermediate Rule of Three: Always have three ways planned for any situation to be resolved, or any clue to find its way to players. Also be ready for players to find different ways besides your three. Never rely on just one way as this can lead to frustration for everyone and stifling of creativity.
Expert Be ready to roll with the punches. Your players will drive your game drastically off the rails. Perhaps to another continent, perhaps to another world.
If this is making your game not fun for you or others the stop and discuss with the group so you can all reach a place where fun is had by all.
General Communication is Key: This is a game we play for fun. Communicate your desires and expectations clearly with your group and make sure they do the same with you. Build a communal constructive game where you all have fun. If you find that this cannot be done, stop gaming with whatever it is that is causing the lack of fun.
No Gaming >>> Un-fun Gaming
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Your preferences are not universal. Some players want consistent mechanics, and expect the DM to provide them. If you fail in that, you might be a very, very good intermediate DM, but are not an expert one.
Orfamay Quest posted his GMing tip. I suggest you follow your own advice here, recognize that not everyone has the same preferences in giving advice at each of these levels of GMing experience, and move on.
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RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32, RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
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General: Learn the difference between running an RPG and directing a play. When you direct a play, you already know how the characters will overcome any given challenge, what the result will be, what comes after that, and how it eventually ends. When you run an RPG, you present a situation to the characters without knowing what will happen next, you wait for them to decide on a course of action, and you honestly and faithfully describe the results of their actions. In a play, the plot is pre-determined and the story doesn't move forward until the characters have done what the writer decided they should do. In an RPG, the plot is determined by the natural interaction of the characters and the setting. And just like you'd be a s*&#ty director if you let the actors decide how to approach their characters' obstacles and adjusted the plot accordingly, so too you'll be a s&#%ty GM if you block PC actions until they do what you planned.
Beginner: The game must go on. If a rule dispute comes up, make a ruling that the players can appreciate and move on. However, always treat these rulings as temporary momentum-savers. Write down the topics that come up (or have someone else write them down), then research the real answer before the next session. To reach "Intermediate", you must work toward a goal of reducing at-the-table rulings, striving to replace them with known-beforehand understandings (after all, just as an on-the-fly ruling is better than a long debate, so too is a lack of a dispute in the first place far superior to an on-the-fly ruling). If you neglect this work (whether because you just don't want to put the time in, or because you have authority issues and chafe at seeing your own rulings as the temporary fill-ins they are, or whatever other reason), then you are forever a Beginner GM, no matter what other skills you develop or how long you've been doing it.
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Beginner/Intermediate/Expert Relax and have fun.Telling people they have to "relax" is good Beginner advice. It contradicts the "know your players" part of expert GMing.
It certainly does not. Having an intense exciting atmosphere in game doesn't mean you should be stressed about running the game.
More to the point, being a 'perfect' GM might be a disable goal, but having fun and not worrying too much about not making any mistake is, in my opinion, a whole lot more important.
It is unlikely that anything you do as a GM will have huge negative consequences for the world no matter how much you screw it up, so don't sweat it too much and remember it is a game, you are doing it for entertainment, and it certainly is not life or death.
In other words, relax and have fun.
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RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32, RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
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...I think you guys have different definitions of "relax". Seems like Dave Justus figures if you're not sweating and going "oh jeez oh jeez what if I mess up" then you're relaxing (and thus "relax" is good advice for everyone), while Kirth Gersen seems to mean "relax" as something more like exclusively playing "beer-and-pretzels" types of games (which would be pretty egotistical to presume is universally desirable).