GM Delegation
by Bill Mahmet Below is some advice that ALL GMs can use, though “workaholic” GMs should especially benefit from the contents of this article. The problems the below listed tips are meant to solve often occur for GMs who are not as good at coordinating people as they are at writing and running adventures. Don’t […]
Continue readingBasic GMing Rules
From Garry Stahl 1: Garry’s First Rule of Fantasy Do not change reality more than necessary to make your universe work. Real world physics are your friend. You do not need to explain gravity, weather, or in general how the world functions. So don’t complicate things that do not need complication. Adding super science or […]
Continue readingGM Interview: Chris Rheinherren
This interview features our first GM who runs games over internet relay chat (IRC). If you have any questions about IRC, just leave Chris a comment below. Please introduce yourself Your name: Chris Rheinherren, online I use Bynw or Anlarye. My campaign’s website is located at www.teara-adan.com There is a link there to a […]
Continue readingThe Logic Death Guide to Players
by Doug Lochery There are two breeds of RPG gamer – Players and Gamemasters. There are several subtypes of the Player breed that, when faced with our glorious hobby, try to ‘break it’ in some way or other. This is not always a conscious decision on the part of the poor player. Below is a […]
Continue readingManaging Intraparty Conflict
By Andrew McLaren Roleplaying is a group activity. One cannot enjoy roleplaying alone. Sometimes the GM’s job is made more complicated by conflict that takes place within the group, when arguments and fighting takes place between characters and players. Consider the following situation to get an idea of what I mean: Having defeated the evil […]
Continue readingManaging Player Expectations
In the GM Mastery Yahoo! group, Randal recently asked, “How do you deal with player expectations? And more importantly, how do you prevent the game from failing as a result of not meeting those expectations?” Some great discussion ensued that included numerous points of views and GMing styles. I thought you might find snippets of […]
Continue readingGM Interview: Frank Bartlett
This week we hear from Frank Bartlett, who GMs for his wife and two daughters. I love the idea of the whole family gaming together! Well done, Frank. Please introduce yourself Do you have a blog, website or campaign wiki? No, while I use my PC to create my campaigns, my group prefers old school […]
Continue readingHow to Make Your Games More Cinematic
by Travis W. Herring Many role-players enjoy evenings with their friends, sitting around the table or living room, eating pizza and drinking soda. For most, this is enough. For others, however, a traditional evening about the table isn’t. They want MORE. For those people, this article is the answer you have been looking for. How many […]
Continue readingHow To Reduce Combat
By Mark of the Pixie If you want less combat, try these tricks. 1) Use fewer monsters PCs can only fight if there are people or things to fight. I know a few GMs who throw in monsters as a delaying tactic, to slow the game down. Don’t do this if you want to reduce […]
Continue readingStrategy, Tactics and Logistics for GMs
By Michael Beck (Read the original German version at http://spielleiten.wordpress.com) In the military, one distinguishes between different levels of decisions, called strategy, tactics, and logistics. I don’t want to delve deep into this issue, since I’m no expert in this field. But a short and rough explanation will help understanding the following tip. Logistics are […]
Continue readingHow to Determine Campaign Length
By Jeremy Brown I was inspired to write this article by a problem my wife had when she first started trying her hand at GMing. She didn’t feel she had a good enough story. She wanted to run a long, intricate, and interesting campaign. Many novice GMs, especially ones who have played in experienced groups, […]
Continue readingChoosing a Setting
by Delphine T. Lynx Please be aware that, while the article below is relevant to gaming in general, its initial target audience was those interested in MUDs, or Multi-User Domains – text games played via computer. Therefore certain aspects may not be applicable to classic roleplaying games, but the theory behind the essay is. Choosing a […]
Continue readingGM Interview: Alexander
What kind of GM does a quantum physicist and a French existentialist artist produce? Let’s find out. Meet Alexander D. Fagaly, aka Hourglass. Please introduce yourself: Do you have a blog, website or campaign wiki? My website consists of my gaming group and a few other friends. We post various alternative rules, campaign concepts and […]
Continue readingRunning a Zombie Apocalypse
by Silveressa Recently Mordred asked me: “ I’ve attempted to run a few zombie campaigns of my own in the past, and they’ve all come to nothing. I’m curious as to how much of this campaign you actually write and how much is player driven? Do you simply have a list of encounters that you […]
Continue readingGM Interview: Gerald
Today we interview Gerald. Roleplaying Tips needs more interviews. If you would like to do a GM interview, email me and I will send you the questions. Veteran and new GMs are equally welcome – it would be great to get all perspectives here. Section One: Opportunities What is your biggest GMing stumbling block right […]
Continue readingA Con, A Cave, a Troll
by Simon Woodside If you’re anything like the typical GM you have at one point or another asked yourself the following question: What do you do if the players don’t do what you wanted? The question underlines a classic GM problem. As the GM you are expected to be a storyteller for your players (some games […]
Continue readingHow To Fix Botched Encounters In Mid-Game
You often know right from the start when an encounter stinks. It’s boring, or cliché, or maybe confusing. And the reason could be it’s the last encounter of the night and you’re tired, or the players went in a new direction and you’ve got nothing planned, or perhaps it just looked better on paper. But […]
Continue readingRunning Adventures with Little Preparation
by Brennan O’Brien Johnn asked me to write on a topic dear to my own heart. Between career, family, and too many hobbies, I often find I don’t have a lot of time to come up with adventures for my characters. When game time comes, I tend to make it up as I go. The […]
Continue readingI Smell Props
A discussion recently popped up in the GM Mastery Yahoo group when group member Randal asked about using smells in games: “Have you ever noticed that when you smell a familiar smell it brings back all these memories? Just curious if any of you have tried to set the mood by burning incense or doing […]
Continue readingFree Will in Roleplaying
by Heather Grove Free will may seem like an odd issue to bring up in relation to roleplaying, but it’s an important one. Some GMs like to run very scripted games. They plan everything out and push characters into following the script. Some groups enjoy this, and I can’t argue with that. But I don’t […]
Continue readingConversation Skills in an Action Game
by Christopher Magoun Conversation, persuasion, oratory and seduction can pose special problems to new and experienced GMs alike. These charisma-based skills are often treated differently than physical skills. When a PC tries to use a physical skill, the GM assigns a difficulty based on the situation at hand, and the player rolls against his skill. […]
Continue readingHow Do You Make RPGs School-Safe?
An RPT reader wrote in with a question about how to make sure the content in RPG materials used in a school club align with school policy. That is a tricky question I was not qualified to answer. So, I brought in the big guns – Katrina Middelburg – who wrote two articles for me […]
Continue readingSpy Tips: Blind Communication
From Logan Horsford Blind communication protects the identity of the message sender. This offers the perfect tool for villains in your campaigns. Here are a few blind communication methods: Dead letter drop I make a chalk mark on a building that you go by on the way to work. That means, “you have a package […]
Continue readingHow to Make Your Games More Cinematic
by Travis W. Herring Many role-players enjoy evenings with their friends, sitting around the table or living room, eating pizza and drinking soda. For most, this is enough. For others, however, a traditional evening about the table isn’t. They want MORE. For those people, this article is the answer you have been looking for. How […]
Continue readingWhen It All Goes Wrong: DMing on the Fly
by Deacon Rayne Warning: This article represents a certain ruthless type of gameplay that, while still friendly between DM and Players, may be better suited for good friends who know not to take whatever cutthroat tactics their DM may use personally. In a perfect world, you, the DM, create an awesome story. Your awesome players […]
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