MASTERING THE GAME: Observations From 50 Years as a ‘Forever GM’

WHY IS A GAMEMASTER important? Many TTRPGs appoint such a figure, though the titles vary from game to game. Their function is to facilitate the creation of a story. They don’t know how it all will end, but they do know a few key things that will happen along the way.

For those new to game-mastering, the best way to learn is to play through a short simple adventure. You will take on a mix of responsibilities, starting with that of host. You are at the very least host to whatever adventure you are presenting. And, you may be hosting the player group at your own actual table.

First-time GMs should play it easy until they have a few games under their belt. Encounters may be less lethal, with foes likely to surrender or flee rather than fight to the death. And first-time players will appreciate such a training ground to learn the rules and become familiar with their characters.

Your job is to manage a crew of supporting characters, villains, demons, monsters, and the occasional god. You must also know the rules. It is encouraged that players know them too, but they will often look to you for guidance, making you part teacher.

You are responsible for impartiality. Fair play should always prevail. You are neither for nor against the characters, or the players. It’s your task to ensure everyone has a chance to participate and feels encouraged to do so.

An adventure may be well-constructed on paper, but it is the GM’s role to make it colorful and immersive. You will learn to give descriptive details and to run a retinue of supporting characters, each with their own little lives. You will learn to portray the villain and the righteous alike.

Each GM is different. One might expect the players to retreat in the face of overwhelming odds, recuperate, and come back later. While another may assume they will go forth, despite the pain and opposition. But you must try not to impose your own expectations onto the group. If there’s something you think they should be doing that they are not, consider adding further narrative. Perhaps the scene could use more clarification.

A Gamemaster is sort of like a farmer. They help things grow. Three of their tools are the hook, the fork, and the prod. Story hooks are used to entice players to engage with the game world. Forks are plot points, where a character’s choices are vital to future events. Prods are little scenes where the GM interjects reality into an otherwise questionable decision. For instance, to the player who wants his character to leap across a 40’ chasm, you might say, “you see that this would probably kill you. However, you do see a way to climb down one side and up the other.”

Just don’t prod your players into a ‘railroad’ situation. You are not a train conductor. The freedom to take it off the tracks is what players love. 

Remember that the characters would know more about their world than the players do. They live there. They know almost as much as you do. You may choose to prompt the player, when there’s something the character should realize, or would remember. The player can forget things from past sessions that their character would probably remember.

It is your choice whether and which ‘house rules’ to use. However, optional rules are best when they are agreed on by the group before the game.

Everyone can win if the definition of winning includes all the various emotions felt in a typical session: grief, disappointment, fits of laughter, and waves of heroic pride. On the other hand, everyone can lose if the game descends into the mode of player vs. player, —or worse, player vs. gamemaster.

No one is perfect. It can be helpful to approach the table knowing you might make a mistake, and that’s okay! Often players will work with you to compensate, and to round out the experience.

Occasionally you will forget a rule. You know it’s buried somewhere in one of the books. However, if the story is moving along nicely, you don’t want to break the momentum to leaf through an index. It may be better to just make an educated guess about the next most logical occurrence. Estimate the odds based on your own grasp of the situation and roll a die to see what happens. Then, refresh your memory on the rules after the game. Try not to do this too often, or in life-or-death situations.

There are few real-world comparisons to the relationship between a gamemaster and their players. The separation of powers seems at first arbitrary and lopsided. One person plays a character, while the other plays gods, townsfolk, monsters, and even the character’s mother.

But players are people, and people are always trying questionable things. If there were no questions about whether a character’s actions succeed, well, half the GM’s job would be done. And likewise, much of the fun would evaporate.