I started playing pen and pencil rpgs last year, but I've been playing Video Games my whole life. I've never run a game, but I have a couple groups of friends who I've talked with about playing some tabletop games and they're wanting me to be the GM. I'm not opposed to this. In fact, it may be a lot of fun for me as I have a pretty imaginative mind. The only problem is, like I said, I have NEVER done this before.
I decided to start this thread in hopes that perhaps some of you who have experience could give some pointers to me (and anyone else in need of them) about running games.
Here is the only real (two pieces) advice you need unless you meet a truly extreme situation. First: TALK WITH THE DAMN PLAYERS. Don't just dismiss things like most GMs, or ignore problems. Talk to them, one on one. Fix the problem, whether its something too big of a cliche (which can easily be made to be interesting) or whether its simply being a dick (tell what they're doing, why it's a dick move, and what you want-be careful to not be a dick in the process.) Second-Learn to improvise. The players will always take you by surprise. So learn to react quickly. Learn the system inside-out while you're at it to ensure you reaction can be mechanically correct. Know your campaign/world well. Always have at least one note for all areas, so you can improvise from that. That's all OP, hope it goes well. Oh, and don't let videogame mentality bring you down.
Ryder Lopez
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Lincoln Ward
Thanks for the tips, user. I appreciate the kind words, as well.
Not sure what you meant by "videogame mentality" but I won't get caught up on it lmao
Nolan Thompson
You got it user. And as a final tip, talk with the group as a whole each time after each session or a major issue. Gauge what is wrong, and what is right. Then adapt to it. Remember, each party of players will have their own unique preference. It is because of this that a universal advice is nearly impossible except for being adaptable. But don't feed every desire as well. Be realistic, and do what is necessary. But always talk when things seem bad, or too much is asked of you.
Kevin Sanders
Not the guy you asked, but I have some input. It's what I've been struggling to root out of certain players. PCs aren't the be all end all heroes, things can and will fail, you are not meant to succeed with everything you do. Video game characters too often are the center of the world, is the mentality that should not be brought into PnP RPG.
Gavin Clark
>start with the core book/books and introduce additional ones one after another >read them at least four times >maybe start with a prebuilt adventure before doing your own >look up some P&P streams of groups to see how other GMs do it >don't make big "save the world" stories, smaller and personal is often better >encourage roleplaying/acting >don't panic and don't get discouraged if something doesn't goes your way >your first sessions will be horrible, get feedback and get learn from it
There are more in detail but this should be the gist of it. If you have specific questions ask them.
Jacob Cook
I planned on talking with them like that, definitely. I'm pretty tolerant with my friends so it shouldn't be too hard. I also understand the need for realism and not picking their side. As a GM you need to be neutral. It'll be tough at times, but necessary.
I think I understand now. The whole "supreme being" ideology that's rooted in lots of vidya.
I planned on reading the books a lot, yeah. I'm currently getting a ton of pdfs. Getting serious now lmao
Also, planned on using a prebuilt adventure, already. Eventually, I do plan to make some of my own lore. Maybe even make maps, invent races, etc... but for now, I'm gonna keep it simple til I'm comfy. I will definitely keep quests smaller time and also expect feedback.
I guess my only question for ANY of you is, what game do you think I should start with for people who are new to these games? I'm thinking D&D 3.5, perhaps? It's what I had my cherry popped with and it was pretty fun.
Jackson Wright
3.5 is preeeeety breakable right now and there's so much content. Pathfinder suffers from the same problem. 5th ed is a bit easy, since there's a nice cap on things. Haven't tried Shadowrun, can't say. RIFTS requires a little bit of patience for initial learning. Hrmmmm...... 5th ed is probs your best bet just to keep things easy and balanced. However, the options are limited right now past basic classes, so be warned.
Lincoln Cooper
This guy's playlist on the subject is pretty good. It's focused on D&D but most GMing advice is applicable to any game. He's an SJW but he mostly keeps his politics in the comments, not in the videos.
>Your plan will be worthless, but your planning is essential.
Don't try to construct a static plot about how things need to progress from A to B to C to D and so on. But that doesn't mean that you should just do no work whatsoever and just show up and start making whatever shit you've got up. Contrary to what several on Veeky Forums would assert, players do notice, and will probably lose interest in your game.
Like the above user said, you need to improvise, but the best way to be able to improvise is to construct a world with realistic groups of people, with their own interests, abilities, fears, desires, etc. Write it all down, and if possible, memorize those networks of NPC interaction.
Then, when your players inevitably make a decision you didn't account for, you already have the system and the world in place for how it would react to such a change, and can make one that's internally consistent.
Don't half-ass it.
Xavier Lopez
One suggestion I have is being cautious with red herrings. Sometimes players can attach to certain ideas that you never meant to be that important.
Also, first impressions of NPCs matter. If they're a jerk to your players they'll probably be remembered as a jerk forever.
And finally, if it has stats, the players will find some way to kill it.
Luke Howard
Taking all of that in to account. I always wanted to try RIFTS. All I've played so far was 3.5 and Heroes Unlimited.
Thank you for this. I'll start watching in a minute.
Never even heard of it, honestly. I'm very new to this realm, man. I appreciate that recommendation, though and I'm going to look in to it.
Good things to remind me of. I took them in to account, but I DEFINITELY need to drill every point you made in so I absolutely thank you.
All noted. Thanks for the contribution.
Nicholas Reyes
A lot of people would say that all of this is unnecessary. I'm not one of them, and this pretty much hits the nail on the head here. Well, "realistic" might not be the word, but I think everyone gets what this user is saying.
Juan Moore
"Internally consistent" might be better than "realistic"
Carson Gray
Thanks again, to everyone. Here's hoping I'm an alright gm for my friends.
Luis Sullivan
>I'm thinking D&D 3.5, perhaps?
So you'd be comfortable with pathfinder
Ryder Wright
>What game do you think I should start with for people who are new to these games? Any game with simple core mechanics that are easy to pick up, with any additional rules being easy to reference. That said, it really depends on what genre or game experience you all want out of it.
>I'm thinking D&D 3.5, perhaps? It wouldn't be my first choice, mainly because it has numerous flaws that are well known and there are other choices, like 5e, that are accessible. However, my reasons for the first suggestion that popped in my head amounted to: "It's what popped my cherry and it was pretty fun." So, what do I know?
Also, have a couple Veeky Forums GM resources.
Matthew King
There's also Grain into Gold, which is not Veeky Forums, but a great resource when you want to develop a fantasy game economy or just use one that is more internally consistent than most.
Gabriel Thomas
pic related
Noah Cook
Hey... buddy.... OP can't bump the thread unless someone else has posted.
Jace Watson
I'm totally new to this so I'm open to try it all out.
Thanks for these. I'LL read them when I can.
I think we'll be doing the standard medieval fantasy setting, but I do have Heroes Unlimited and Villains Unlimited, already.
Greatly appreciated, user.
Well aware of the fact. Just wanted to contribute something instead of just asking for help.
New to Veeky Forums, bud. Had no clue there was an archive.
Jordan Nelson
Make sure that you practice balance when it comes to players fudging things. Give PCs the chance to ask questions about the environment, talk as a group about "2nd lives" (all of my players USUALLY get one free resurrect). In my current campaign, it's one death. That death is permanent and the player will have to roll a new character. On that note, there are those people who would try to die on purpose if they get tired of their character. KNOW YOUR PLAYERS. Like I said, players fudge things. It's human nature to want to negotiate yourself out of a shitty situation. Fudging can happen anywhere: rewards, deaths, loot, damage, remaining spell use, all of it. You must be the mediator. Rule zero, mate. Know it, and make sure all of your players understand that the most important rule in any RPG is rule zero. If you are a good DM, your players will respect rule zero.
Mason Davis
How do y'all usually introduce your players' characters the first time they meet?
How do you encourage them to go explore a dungeon you spent hours designing?
Evan Clark
Eh, it's fine really. I didn't notice that had already posted the .png file. It's what the Advice boils down to: also, don't let the faggots who bitch about fudging and go >hurr durr open rolling sway you. Open rolling is very rarely better than rolling behind a screen.
Parker Phillips
I have a certain group I play with nowadays and we usually go with >We all know each other, one way or the other.
My last party, for example >Two friends decide to run away from home to make a name for themselves in the wide world and the unttamed wilderness. >The brother of one of the two sneakily follows them and, after getting caught, persuades them to let him join. >As the trio make their way out of the settlement/village, the cousin of the other guy catches them and joins aswell, under the pretense of keeping them safe -while he reasons that he is bored out of his mind and a change of scenery would be nice.
And that's that.
Blake Martin
Can any one recommend a simple yet effective system that a total new comer to the pnp genre can DM and explain to a party? I got the d20 of Da archive but it's a bit nebulous. Gurps lite seems to be alright for the most part. But it's a little to "lite". Btw I'm not above any home brew system. As long as it's fun.
If it's your first RPG I wouldn't advise 3.x, and that's as someone who likes 3.x.
I'd start with something like 5e, or opend6. Unisystem is pretty simple, too.
GURPS is easy for players, but the campaign prep on the GM side is pretty steep figuring out which game mechanics to use for the campaign you want to run. Good game though, flexible and highly customizable for whatever you're looking to run.
If you want to run prewritten adventures, I'd go with 5e.
Converting adventures from 3.x to 5e isn't too hard either, if you've got a specific adventure in mind.
Thomas Fisher
There's some great adventures for Shadowrun, if you think you might enjoy some awesome magic cyber punk.
4e/20th anniversary or 5e Shadowrun are your best options. 5e has better combat rules, but 4e at combat is still pretty damn good, and 4e has quite a bit more content, and a better character creation system.
Xavier Kelly
Pathfinder is very very similar to 3.5, but with way more adventures, and it's more accessable than 3.5 because you can get all the character content you need on d20pfsrd.com way better organized than if possible in a game spread across tons of books like in 3.5e.
So if you're considering 3.5, you should also consider PF.
But neither would be my suggestions for a new group. Both have a steep learning curve in terms of character building, and poorly balanced options.
It can still be a lot of fun, but I'd advise leaning heavily on character guides until you're familiar with the system.
On the GM side, WBL is an important rule, not a suggestion; and you should not allow more than a 3-tier spread between classes unless the people building weaker class have explicitly stated they understand what they're doing and want to play a less versatile 1-trick pony character.
Sebastian Moore
>5e is simple d&d for a group. Easy enough to convert 3.5/pf adventures to as well. >GURPS is good, but a bit difficult for a newbie GM because you have the extra step off choosing the options for your campaign, and building a GURPS campaign is like building a character but more complicated. >SR is fun, and has premade adventures, but is a fairly crunchy system.
