Its a social construct.
The GM is there to adjudicate the rules, which (for most people) means following the vast majority, and making changes as needed for the health and fun of the campaign.
So yes, the GM is the final arbiter of the rules, not the least bit because its their time spent preparing for the game. If you find their houserules a concern, the best thing to do is talk to them outside the game, as adults.
I hope that helps you. I'm gonna go ahead and assume this question was innocent, but so you know, this sort of thing can cause a rather large argument, and you can search for any number of threads with many opinions.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
The GM has as much authority as the players give them.
If you say rocks fall, everyone dies, then you can say that's what happens, and in the game world it is, but your players can argue that it's not fair, can call you a bad GM, and can get up and walk away from the table.
If you make a house rule that is poorly thought out, then it's the rules within your game, as much as anything in the Core Rulebook is, but your players can ignore it when you're not paying attention, can abuse it and turn it against you, and can get up and walk away from the table.
It is truly possible for the GM to do whatever he wants, in the game. What the GM says, goes, within the game. But whatever else you do, the players will always have that one freedom to make the game no longer happen, to revoke any authority you have over them. While they participate in the game, to the extent they participate in the game, you have all the power. If you lord it over them, and/or if you don't prioritize the game being fun for them, they'll stop coming back. Earn your players' trust and respect, that's extremely important.
"You rule because they believe."
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
The GM controls the actions of everybody in the world except for the PCs, and all of those various folks are free to do as they (i.e. the DM) wish(es) subject to more or less the same constraints as the PCs are.
Insofar as something does not involve the PCs at all, the GM can fiat whatever he or she wishes. If some bit of conflict involves the PCs directly, you should generally allow this to be adjudicated by published rules in order to avoid situations like "BANG! You're Dead"/"No I'm not". If the rules are unclear about something (or you just don't understand them completely) then ask the people at the table for their opinion of what is reasonable, but the GM has to make the final call.
The GM's real job is to make sure everybody at the table is having a good time, and if you can accomplish that task, more or less everything else is going to work out.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
The rules in this book are here to help you breathe life into your characters and the world they explore. While they are designed to make your game easy and exciting, you might find that some of them do not suit the style of play that your gaming group enjoys. Remember that these rules are yours. You can change them to fit your needs. Most Game Masters have a number of “house rules” that they use in their games. The Game Master and players should always discuss any rules changes to make sure that everyone understands how the game will be played. Although the Game Master is the final arbiter of the rules, the Pathfinder RPG is a shared experience, and all of the players should contribute their thoughts when the rules are in doubt.
Basically the purpose of the game is to have fun. If you're having fun (even by constantly bending/breaking/changing the rules) then you're doing it right. If you're not having fun (even if you're sticking to the rules) then you should think about changing something.
It's important to remember that this doesn't just mean YOU having fun, it should be about EVERYONE having fun ... If someone at the table (including you) isn't having fun try to work out why and change something.Here's a few tips:
TIP 1: Generally speaking try to stick to the rules. The rules of Dnd/Pathfinder/whatever game you're playing have been play-tested for months/years/decades. Chances are if you give them a chance you'll find them a really good template for a good game. Most groups - however - find that they do some things differently, which brings us to ...
TIP 2: HAVE A LIST OF HOUSE-RULES. Nearly every group does something that isn't in the rules. It's a good idea to try to have these in a list so people can look at them and access them easily (give everyone a copy, either on paper or a digital copy so that they can refer to it when they need to). Generally speaking this will be the GM's list, but it's a good idea to sit down together before you start playing and talk to the players about which rules they do/don't like. Maybe they'll come up with another rule that you can add into the game. Again this is a group game, so any rule that helps everyone enjoy the experience is a good rule.
TIP 3: DON'T ARGUE DURING THE GAME. It's inevitable that something will come up that the rules (and your house-rules) haven't covered. Or that could be interpreted different ways. Or that one person is just straight up wrong about. If this happens, you can call someone on it, but if it takes longer than about 10 seconds to resolve the dispute, ask the GM to make a snap decision. This decision will be binding for the rest of the session, but you can talk about it after the game has wrapped up and decide as a group how you'd like to handle this "rule" for future games (and add any new rules to your list for people to refference).
|
Its a social construct.
The GM is there to adjudicate the rules, which (for most people) means following the vast majority, and making changes as needed for the health and fun of the campaign.
So yes, the GM is the final arbiter of the rules, not the least bit because its their time spent preparing for the game. If you find their houserules a concern, the best thing to do is talk to them outside the game, as adults.
I hope that helps you. I'm gonna go ahead and assume this question was innocent, but so you know, this sort of thing can cause a rather large argument, and you can search for any number of threads with many opinions.
Yeah, I wasn't trying to start a fire. Thank you all for your great responses!
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Mr. Charisma really hits the nail on the head. I've been both a GM and a player and as such, am lucky enough to see the issue from both sides of the fence. The one thing I have learned as a GM is that I will almost certainly never learn "all the rules" by heart. This is doubly so if you allow more than just the Core Rulebook. Simply put, I don't have enough time to memorize all of that. As such, if there is a question, or disagreement, in game when I GM, I generally allow a very brief amount of time to try to find the rule in question, and if unable to do so, I will make a ruling that stands for the rest of the session and then try to look up the answer later and let the group know the result.
The important thing to remember is that the game is about having fun, and for most people, arguing incessantly about a ruling at the table is not fun and will almost certainly result in a bad vibe at the table. As a player, I try really hard to remember that as well even if I think the GM is getting it "wrong". I also know that for a lot of rules, two people can look at the same rule and come to completely different conclusions, both of which are rational. The recent debate here on Create Pit vs. a Paralyzed target is a perfect example. Neither side of the argument was really irrational in my opinion, and as a player, I would have been fine with either interpretation, regardless of the "official" ruling.
The important thing to remember is that RPGs are a cooperative experience, even between GM and Players. (Or in other words, the GM is a player too, even if she doesn't have a PC). At the end of the day, if you as a player are concerned about a ruling made by the GM, the best bet is to discuss it outside the game since the GM will feel a lot less threatened in that situation and it will give you time to point her to the specific rule. Likewise, if you as a GM sense that a player(s) is frustrated, talk to them outside the game. Its entirely possible you've overlooked something.
In short, I think the best description I have ever heard is this: "The GM is always right, but that doesn't mean she is always correct."
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
The rules are there to bind your game together. The GM has to run the adventure. No GM, no adventure. The GM should stay impartial, but they have first and last say on everything.