In part 1 of this series on single-session adventures, Michael gave the broad strokes of adventure design, from the desired playstyle to decisions on system and settings. Now we move into more specific adventure construction advice. If you missed the previous article, find it here: Designing the Adventure part 1 Consider Multiple Environments George Lucas … [Read more…]
Part one of a four-article series on designing and running a one-shot, single-session adventure. See the end of the article for links to the rest of the series. Unfortunately, I’ve never been to a gaming convention, but for years I have been intrigued by the early tournament adventures of the late 1970s and early 1980s. … [Read more…]
This is RPG-ology #4: The Big Game, for March 2018. I’m going to begin by apologizing to the Christian Gamers Guild President, Reverend Rodney Barnes. It seems we often find ourselves arguing opposite ends of a question. Years ago (maybe decades) we both participated in the Magic Symposium in The Way, the Truth, and the … [Read more…]
CGG President Rodney Barnes begins a series about how a Gamemaster can be a Servant to their roleplaying group. How big should your RPG group be? There is not a set answer to the question of how big your group should be. But here are some helpful guidelines to help you in establishing a group … [Read more…]
Over the past few weeks, Dave has talked about six roles the GM plays—Director, Writer, Referee, Host, Actor, and Tactician—and how each of those roles helps to make a fun and memorable game. During the Game Summary A good GM runs a smooth game by making his players comfortable immersing themselves in the game, by running a … [Read more…]
A GM also has to be the tactician for the NPCs. There are various ways for GMs to run the opposition in battle. Reactive Tactics The opposition can react based on what the players characters do. If the hero brick squares off against the villain mentalist, the villain speedster could intervene. If the hero swordsman prepares to attack the … [Read more…]
GM as Actor GMs also need to take on the role of actor. When heroes encounter villains, allies, or neutrals, they want for them to be interesting enough to be able to tell one from another. When the NPCs perform their heroic or dastardly deeds, they should remain feasibly consistent with what the players have already learned about them. Cult … [Read more…]
GM as Host The GM is also the host of the game. Whether the game is at the GM’s home or not, it is still the GM that is responsible for the game. New Players When new players want to join, they should feel welcome so that they enjoy the experience and want to return — make them feel … [Read more…]
GM as Referee GMs also have to act as referee/judge when running a game. In other games that require a referee (such as football), the referees must know the rules in and out, and be ready to make a call instantly. GMing is a little different, since the GM not only enforces the rules like other referees; he’s … [Read more…]
GM as Writer …and then the elephant said, Not with my trunk, you dont! A good GM also acts as writer, whether he has written the stories himself or not. The situation is similar to a playwright who has created a script, yet has to endure the directors differing interpretation, the casting director’s questionable role assignments, and the actor’ mediocre … [Read more…]