Discussion: Do You Alter Game Plans Based On Players Real World Situation?

For those of us living in the United States this has been....a hell of a week. At the time of writing this it is showing no signs of slowing down either. From what I've seen online, the whole world may be watching the U.S. elections with held breath. I am not going to go into that, but I am curious about something tangentially related to it.

When anxieties are high in real life, do you modify your game plans? I don't mean canceling vs. having game. I mean as the GM do you change the tone of a session? Lower the strain/stress? Up the mechanical crunch? Shift it up to hopefully be a more palatable experience for your players?

I've found myself doing that this week. With the time I can spend focusing on prep. The session had the potential to be fairly grim, but with time to review plans and consider how the session would go over I've found ways to shift and adjust things to still hit the story beats I want, but keep things from getting as dark and depressing. A more obvious road to a 'heroic' path so to speak.

I've only - that I can think of - done this once before. And that is back in February I specifically dropped a plague related arc in one of my games. With the Corona Virus starting to go rampant and people getting worried about it, it just felt a little "too close to home" to have in game at the time. The game didn't miss a beat, and any of my players who read the blog are only finding out now it was ever on the table.

How about you? Do you adjust and shift to fit the mental and emotional reality of yourself and your players? Or do you find enjoyment in keeping it the same and just digging into it through the game?

Discussion: What in GMing is Fun For /You/?

 The most recent Matt Colville video is a reminder of an important fact of gaming that I talk about a lot. Namely, that the DM/GM is also a player of the game. That your fun, as the DM, is important to the game. In fact, your fun is key. Because if you're not having fun, that is going to come through in the game and will make it harder for everyone else to have fun.

Which brings me to my question this Friday. What do you enjoy about the DM/GM role in a table top RPG? I know plenty of people who don't mind GMing but prefer to play. I also know people who prefer to GM. I think I fall into that latter category, but I also enjoy playing.

The hard thing though is I am not 100% sure what it is about GMing that is fun for me. I mean, I enjoy telling stories with friends. I enjoy giving a place and fantasy for friends to escape to. I enjoy the hobby in and of itself. There is a combination of story telling, puzzle solving, and tactics that is hard to capture anywhere.

If I had to say what I enjoy most is helping characters build to epic moments, and getting there chances at those epic moments.

This also is where sometimes my frustration or lowering of fun comes from. To build to those moments demands investment from my players. And if the players aren't acting or moving towards things sometimes my games feel flat - at least to me. It is the difference between stopping a villain's plot because that is what is going on in the game, and stopping a villain's plot because that is what your character needs to do.

Obviously there are other aspects of GMing that I enjoy. I like making creative encounters. I enjoy making villains and allies. But ultimately I'm there to provide a good time via a shared fantasy...and if it feels like that's not there is where I get unhappy or doubtful of the game.

What about you?

Discussion: Cancelling Game

 On Friday I had the unfortunate circumstance where I had to cancel game. 2/6 people couldn't make the game, and while the rule is normally 50% for this session I didn't feel good going in with 2/3 of the playergroup. The key problem being that the two missing PCs were the ones with the significant plot beats coming up, and combat having the potential to be lethal without the PCs full toolkit available.

Objectively it was the right choice to make. Subjectively I feel like crap whenever I cancel game.

It does make me curious though: under what criteria do you cancel game? How does it make you feel? Do you consider that feeling when considering if the game is fun/good for you? How does it work?

Discussion: Do you theme sessions around holidays?

 I know some people aim to have a 'spooky' session around Halloween, or a holiday session around the holidays. Other people have worlds with holidays of their own which can and do come up. And other times the game world has no real holidays that come up, or references to real holidays. None of which is wrong. The question is though, given the choice, which of the three would you prefer?

When I can do it, I like to take influence from the time of year for certain sessions. Having ghosts and a horror/mystery around Halloween, or finding a reason to have a session around a large gathering for Thanksgiving can be a lot of fun. It also lets you tap into energy already going on around the players.

Sometimes that doesn't work. And sometimes people have bad relationships with a holiday so it is better to avoid it. Still, when able, I find it adds a fun extra layer to the game.

How about you?

Discussion - How Do You Handle Travel?

 Go on enough car trips and you realize that sometimes the journey is the more enjoyable part of a trip. At the same time, enough time is lost in transit that the ability to teleport - if made - would be a hot commodity and not just for the efficiency of it. When it comes to table top RPGs where a 2 month journey can be handled as quickly as saying "it's 2 months on the road before you arrive at..." and how one feels about travel can definitely come out in ones game.

So how do you feel about it? How do you handle it? Obviously approaches can change from specific scenario to specific scenario, but in general how do you like to handle it? Do you get straight to the arrival - or close enough to that - to continue whatever the PCs were doing or will be doing? Or do you explore what happens on the road, laying down seeds for potential side quests and side tracking that can push of the 'main' plot (if there is such a thing) for multiple sessions at a time?

The more I'm running D&D the more I feel like there is a lot that can be done going into the journey that happens. More than just the survival aspects of the game, but the chance to get information, have fun encounters, make allies, or just get in some silly side trouble.

What about you? Do you have a preference?

Moving Fights Around

This is less advice and more thinking through a problem. Just some quick thoughts (a rant or ramble if you will. If you have ideas on this, please share. I'd love to have a discussion on it.)

 One of the things that happens in table top RPG fights is that the combat itself tends to be static. The crunchier or more tactical the RPG, the less likely you are to get characters to move. This can lead to two characters not moving at all once they get into range of each other, as instead they just trade blows and see who can deplete the HP of the others first.

This isn't a problem for the most part, but it can cause one. Static combats can quickly just become math and dice rolls. Which in turn can become completely mechanical and depending on your players that can make it more boring than exciting.

Discussion: Your Favorite Quick Adventure

 I find GMs often have a very quick adventure. Something they can run at a moment's notice, almost regardless of system or genre. Sometimes there are limitations on that, but often they can be twisted or coopted to do what needs to be done in the event you need it.

Do you have an adventure like that? If so, how does it work?

Amusingly enough, my absolute favorite quick adventure is pretty set for the Super Hero genre, but you can make it work elsewhere. It's actually a book adventure and came in Palladium's "Heroes Unlimited" Revised Edition. The mission in question being: The Mall of Terror.

The Mall of Terror is a simple setup, a local shopping mall has some super villains taking it over. The super villains have hostages inside. They've made exorbitant demands of the city. And the PCs (the heroes) have to find a way to stop the villains and save the hostages.

What I love about the mission is it is endlessly repeatable because who the villains are changes the challenges in the mall and how the mall is set up to be defended against heroes.

What I also love about the mission - though maybe less so these days - is you can use it to quickly get people into the scenario because you can use whatever mall you want. Have a local mall? Use that. Now your players know what you are talking about when you point out which shop or which area. They can easily imagine where they are, and you can run with that. 

This also makes it a good introductory mission for new players because since you are using a landmark from the area, they don't have to strain as much imagining things. And since they know the area, they can also be creative in applying things. I more often get an attempt at creative solutions when the player - especially a new player - doesn't have to build what I'm describing but can just recall from memory.

What about you? What is yours? How does it work?

Discussion: How Often Do You Use Pre-Generated Content?

 With all the work on building dungeons, I'm curious how often you use pre-generated content for your games?

For the longest time I thought there was two ways to game. Almost fully custom content - which is the way I've GMed for most of my life - and running pre-generated campaigns and adventures. A friend recently introduced me to how he runs campaigns, which is he takes a bunch of adventures, swaps around some of the NPCs, builds custom content links between them, and then strings those together for the game that he wants to run.

This is definitely not a style I could do really. I think at this point I need to customize and be able to wing so much that it'd be hard to move into those confines. My mind somewhat naturally rebels against it. With a bunch of adventures written like "Jewel of Yavin" I could possibly do it, but that adventure is less a "run these events this way" and more a "This is a heist. here are the maps, here are the players, here are some events, go nuts and have fun."

What about you? How do your games work? How much content do you customize?

Discussion: Skills That Are No Longer Taught

Have you noticed that as RPGs have progressed there are skillsets and concepts the new books just don't teach anymore? This isn't true in every game I'm sure, but in some of the big ones I've noticed that it happens. Oddly this is most notable when it comes to tools for the Game Master. I say odd because every game that is released should be trying to bring new people into the game. New people, by definition, are new. And yet there are some very basic things in places that are just not taught.

What kind of stuff? The most notable I've come across lately is that 5th Ed Dungeons and Dragons does not teach you how to make a dungeon. It is near half the title, the GM for the game is called the 'Dungeon Master', and it's just not taught.

Now, don't get me wrong, the DMG does have a section on designing a dungeon, but it does not teach you how to build the mechanics of the dungeon. Most of the section talks about the story of the dungeon. The rest gives some ideas of things you might want in a dungeon, but just in a giant list of "here are some hazards and obstacles that could pop up."

There is nothing about how to map. There is nothing about how to set up encounters in the dungeon. There is nothing about how to place treasure in the dungeon. There is nothing about pacing, or the benefits of having multiple paths versus more linear designs.

This information exists online, sure. You can find it. However even there it is fairly spread out. I know, I've been looking for it lately. Even going into Old School Essentials I did not find a lot on how to build a dungeon, but what was there gave more information on how to run one at least.

It makes me curious what skillsets that are core to the games you run are not taught in that game? And how are you overcoming that obstacle?

Discussion: How Often Do You Use Politics & Intrigue In Your Games?

How often do politics and intrigue happen in your games? I don't mean around the periphery. Any time you do someone infiltrating a kingdom, fake kings, possessed kings, etc you have some politics happening going on in the world. But how often do you have them come up center stage? How often can the PCs get involved, and play kingmaker? How often do they get embroiled in the struggles of resolving conflict and manipulating powers without the direct application of violence on that issue?

It is something that is rare in my own games - I've always felt I was bad at running them, and I'm not sure that feeling has changed. This is why I have been so fascinated with things like "need" vs "want" and the conflict of desires and dramatic poles. Because ultimately those are the things where politics comes from in a sense.

I would like to do it more, even if just hints of it here and there.

What about you? How often does it come up? How often do people dig in?

Discussion: Are You Attending Virtual Gen Con?

If you hadn't heard, this year GenCon has gone virtual. Even better, the badges for attending are free. You still have individual event charges, but you can participate - at least somewhat - for no charge.

That said, I'm curious if you plan on attending virtually, and if so what you are looking to do? I honestly haven't had much of a chance to look at the Event Guide or sign up for anything aside from a badge. Work is getting busy too with plans to return to the office area going on, so I don't even know if I'll have time to do it.

Still, it is always interesting to see what has other people hyped. So are you going? Do you plan to game? Are you looking for different types of events? Is there something you want to plug? Sound off in the comments.

Discussion: How Do You Keep Your Game Safe?

There have been a lot of allegations and witnessed fuckups when it comes to violating consent, sexual harassment, and sexual assault in the table top rpg, comic, videogame, and writing communities that surround this fun hobby of ours. It's brought up a lot of the same topics we've gone over before. Believe women. Believe people when they come forward about issues like this. They're important.

It also brings up the question of how do you keep the players in your game safe? I don't mean the PCs, but the players. How do you make sure they feel welcome? How do you make sure they're comfortable? How do you make sure they feel safe so that they can enjoy the game and are not worried about being emotionally wounded or hit by some averse comment or the content of your game?

It's important. So how do you do it?

In the newer of my two D&D games, I used Monte Cook's Consent in Gaming form. In it every player fills out a list giving a green light (enthusiastic consent, or no problem with), yellow light (touchy, but good with forewarning/discussion), and/or red light (absolutely not, do NOT want) for a large list of common topics to come up in gaming. There is also space for more things to be added. I had every player fill out a form and submit it to me anonymously. I filled out a copy myself. Then I shared a 'master' copy with every line filled out with the harshest light it had received from anyone.

Yes, if one person marked anything as a red light, that thing is not allowed to happen in the game.

Also, I did not show the players my own form. I just included the results in the master form. Why? Because this way if anyone had a question about "why is X a red light? It's not that bad!" I could simply say "I marked it that way, as it's not something I'm interested in having in the game right now at all." Simple.

Beyond the Monte Cook form, I use a 'Session 0' for all my campaigns. In the Session 0 we talk about the themes we want in the game, but I also talk about things people do not want in the game. I generally bring this up bluntly, asking people if there are any topics or things they do not want in the game at all, or only with forewarning. I then go on to add that common things I add to these lists are on screen torture of PCs, on screen rape of NPCs, and any sexual assault/rape of PCs.

Finally, I do regular check ups and check ins with my players. I make sure they're having fun. I give opportunities to share if they have problems. And if anyone is acting off or quieter than normal, I make sure they're ok, and ok with the content of the game.

One thing to note here though is that the groups I'm running for have been playing together in some form or another for years. We all have a fairly good rapport. There is built up trust. Even still, I do all this because I value that trust and don't want to lose it. Trust, once broken, is very hard to mend.

How about you? Do you do anything special?

Discussion: Impostor Syndrome

Do you suffer from impostor syndrome when it comes to your GMing?

Are you aware what it is?

For those that don't know, Impostor Syndrome is when your brain tries to convince you that you're a fraud at whatever it is you are doing, and that it is only a matter of time before everyone figures out that you've been fooling them this entire time. It frequently happens for people regarding either their talents when it comes to creation (artists of all types talk about it a lot), and can also happen with regards to someone's job especially after they get a promotion.

In short, it is insecurity fucking with you.

The thing is, I've seen people who GM games have it too. Hell, I have had it. I have it semi-regularly. It makes sense. GMing is a creative endeavor. Your players are looking to you for a fun time. It is easy to convince yourself that you're a horrible GM, that you're a fraud, the game is only fun because of the players and that any moment they're going to realize that and then...who knows, cut you out? Stop playing? Have someone better take over?

The thing about Impostor Syndrome is it can also put a lot of undue pressure on you. You feel compelled to do more prep, to try harder, to reach for more than maybe you're currently able to handle with your sessions. You hold yourself to unreasonable standards. Comparing yourself to GMs like Matt Mercer when it comes to portraying NPCs even though you're not a professional voice actor with years of experience and education in acting and portraying characters. Or to other GMs who also have their own games, own players, own styles, and own games.

To be blunt, Impostor Syndrome sucks. However, it can be fought.

The first thing is to recognize it for what it is.
The second is to apply logic. People would not be part of your game if they weren't having fun. If you ask your players if they're having a good time, and they consistently say yes you can believe them. If people are looking forward to game, regularly attending, and showing up on time/staying for the whole session without 'other plans' regularly getting in the way? Those are all strong indicators they're enjoying the game.

You don't need to be a Matt Mercer, Matt Colville, Brandon Dixon, Chris Perkins, Shareef Jackson, or Satine Phoenix. You just need to be you. You have your strengths and weaknesses, just like they have theirs. So be the best you, and run your game.

You got this.

Discussion: Why Do You Play Table Top RPGS?

Why do you play Table Top RPGs? What drew you to the hobby? What latched on and wouldn't let you go? Is it just a fun game and mental exercise, or is there something more to it for you?

Shocking no one, for me it is a bit more than that. Gaming is a big part of my life. I spend a lot of my free time - and even some stolen time during work and other things - thinking about game, and how I can do a better job at GMing or playing to make things better for my players and friends. Hell, it's why this blog exists. I wanted a place to get my thoughts down.

For me, I game for three major reasons: Escape, Exploration, and Agency.

I game as Escape as my preferred way to get away from the real world and the stresses therein. Whether it is the world being on fire like it is now, personal stresses, work stresses, or whatever else is going on int he world, I like being able to escape into the imagination with friends and acquaintances where my problems are different, and at times I can throw a sword at them.

I game as Exploration to explore concepts or ideas in my mind, and to try and find alternative viewpoints. I'll never know what it is like to live life as a different person, race, profession, or in a different time. However, I can - through the lens of a character - try to recreate some aspects of it and try to see things from those perspectives. How does the world look to someone who was raised in isolation where the threats that go bump in the night are very real? There are other things too. I've used gaming to explore my depression and other emotions with the right groups, and I've helped people work through other problems with gaming. It's not something to foist on people unawares - and not with groups you don't trust implicitly - but it can be done.

Finally I game as a form of seeking agency. This goes along with Escape, but so many problems we face in the real world are just beyond us. There is nothing I can do to solve the real problems that face the world and stress me out today, but in an RPG I can. Problems there are more manageable - or the PCs are more powerful. Good can prevail over evil. Things that are impossible can become not only possible but probable if worked at. It is definitely a draw.

How about you? What brings you back to the table?

Discussion: A Go To Adventure

Do you have a 'Go To' Adventure? Something in a genre or vein you could run in almost any situation or for particular game types at the drop of a hat? Something comfortable and familiar you can use to get a game going or just fill in a gap?

If so, what is it?

For me I have two, one for modern/futuristic games and one for more fantasy/historical settings.

For modern/futuristic I like doing a group of criminals/bad guys taking over a mall or shopping center. You get hostages, but also interesting public locales that give lots of options to the players while making for a tense situation and some fun action sequences.

For historical games, cultists grabbing a family works great for low level characters while being an easy one shot, or setting up a future adventure chain.

What about you? Any tricks or go to easy plot elements you keep handy just in case?

Murder Mysteries for your Game

Murder mysteries - or almost any kind of mystery - is one of the common things adventures go into when it's not just combat or saving kingdoms from possessed demons. This is also one of the places where you can get into trouble. In a book or movie, you can make sure that the right clues are found and things are strung together at the right time for maximum climactic achievement. In an RPG that's a lot harder. After all, you have 4-6 other people working on the adventure, putting clues together, and they - unlike the protagonists in a novel - know the mind of the person crafting the mystery and what they tend to do. That said, there are still things you can do. So let's go into it.

Discussion: Custom or Found Maps?

This was meant to go up on Friday, but apparently didn't so I figured I'd use it today.

Assuming you use maps for your RPGs, do you make custom maps or do you use pre-made/found maps? For book adventures and campaign settings there is often a bunch of professionally made maps for you to use, and that can be an awesome reference. Even for custom content, there is often publicly available maps from various artists put up for free for everyone to use. All you need to do then is modify it to your needs.

And then there are people who make their own maps, either with simple drawing tools on a mat or with software/tools designed to do it.

In person I like using a Chessex Battle Mat and drawing things out as needed. It is even fun sometimes to have one of the players draw the map for the area we're in while I get other things set up, and then placing things around that scenario as I can to get the fight going.

Online I was using scavenged maps, but with Dungeon Draft I find it is just as easy - if not easier - to whip something up on the quick as it is to go looking for things. The best part of that is I can put in the specific challenges I want to have while doing so which makes it all the better.

What about you? Custom, Savenged, or book adventures? Or do you have something that puts you somewhere in between like tile sets you can mix and match as you desire to get something custom made out of something made/found?

How Do You Plan NPCs? (Discussion)

I believe I've mentioned before, but I change the way I prep everything from sessions to NPCs fairly regularly. It's like how I'm doing things stops working, or I forget some of the key steps that I am supposed to focus on which makes it lose the 'magic' so to say. I am always looking for new/better ways too, so it's not long before I find something and then I go off in that direction.

That said, while I've gone through a bunch of ways to make NPCs I don't know I've ever had one stand out to me as a solid, quick way to make an NPC that covers all the bases I need. Obviously there is more needed for a major NPC than a minor one, but sometimes an NPC is straddling the line where you're not sure if they'll be a big deal or not until you're in session and need that.

At present I am using a method where I try to define their weaknesses, wants, needs, allies, and enemies. It works ok, but leaves out some qualities that could be useful. I've previously done 3 aspects like I was making a FATE character which can also work, and you can scale to 5 aspects for bigger characters.

How about you? What method do you use? What have you found works well for you?

Discussion: How Are Your Games Going During All This?

At this point where I am we're in social distancing for over a month now. There's a ton going on in the world. There's a ton going on just around the house. I'd be lying if I said I haven't felt some of the stress and existential angst that comes with living in interesting times. So I'm curious, how are your games going?

The three games I'm still in - running 2, playing in 1 - are going well online. The transition for the two I'm running to online hasn't been perfect but it's been good enough to work. The other one was always online, so really it didn't miss a beat. In fact, a player who had been gone due to work being super busy was able to come back which is super awesome.

That said, I've found prepping for game harder at times. If I'm not careful it is easy to lose track of time and not prep that way. Other times it just feels like being mentally blocked even when I have general ideas of what I want to do. Thankfully I've been at this long enough I can improv well, I have good players, and I know how to plan a few vague things to at least have some directions to go.

How about you? How are your games going? How are you doing? Holding in there I hope.

Discussion: How Are You Holding Up?

Normally I save discussion for things about games and gaming. With us being at the tail end of week 2 of quarantine I figured instead it would be a good idea to check in and see how everyone is doing. I'm in a good spot. I'm working from home. I'm still being paid. We have groceries, entertainment, and shelter. I'm still able to make blog posts, which in and of itself is a sign of how well I am doing.

For me the problems come in the mental. I don't do a lot of social interaction in person so that's not really bothering me. However, the change in daily routine to working from home, not going to the office, and doing everything online is definitely making the days blur together. Today I was convinced it was Tuesday until speaking to a friend who said they thought it was Friday which prompted me to check the calendar and see it was actually Thursday.

Self care is important during times like this. Gaming can definitely help with keeping the mind strong and healthy, providing an outlet for emotions and feelings of frustration with a world where there are rules that make things make sense.

So how are you doing? How are you keeping on? Got any game moments you're particularly looking forward to?