The practical arts and methods applied to gamemastering.
8
votes
2answers
537 views
How do I run a single player 4e essentials game? Drow Hunter
I am trying to create a set of encounters for my wife. She will be playing a Drow Hunter (controller) from the Essentials line of DnD 4e.
I'm looking for advice on how to make encounters (2 levels ...
13
votes
5answers
456 views
How can I cast what can't be cast?
I'm running a Pathfinder campaign with the Eberron 3.5 setting, and I'm often finding that I want my players to be able to use magic in a way that the rules don't allow.
For example, a party is in an ...
4
votes
6answers
467 views
Chuck Norris player character - can I keep true to the internet meme while still running a balanced game?
One of my group mates has been quite obsessed with creating a Chuck Norris inspired character. He's playing a martial arts heavy, assassin flavors of Rogue, in a DnD campaign, which works well enough ...
9
votes
3answers
184 views
Ending a Campaign Gracefully (With a Newbie In Tow)
My Shadowrunners have been going on a five (real-life) month streak of destruction and have gotten immensely powerful to the point where they are near gods, but also gotten incredibly shafted due to ...
9
votes
3answers
243 views
New GM to a Laundry RPG game [closed]
What should a new (and not so experienced) GM watch out for when starting to run a game set in Charles Stross's Laundry universe? Note that all this could be applied to a Call Of Cthulhu game as well ...
29
votes
10answers
1k views
How can I prevent a TPK without obvious Deus Ex Machina?
I've gotten into a situation in my Pathfinder game where I will certainly kill my entire party (perhaps excepting one or two who can flee quickly) if I let the situation play out. We arrived in this ...
7
votes
4answers
510 views
“Epic Level” Shadowrun
Recently I've run into an issue with my Shadowrun campaign for a number of reason, the most key of which is that my players have hit the 180-250 karma level where they've started to ascend to levels ...
11
votes
6answers
211 views
How can I add underworld intrigue to my Dresden Files game?
In D&D/Pathfinder/RIFTS/Shadowrun-type games I've played in the past, corrupt nobles/merchants, thieves' guilds, megacorps, ancient evils, and various religions with a flakey axe to grind were all ...
30
votes
9answers
683 views
How can I cut short a doomed fight?
Occasionally one of my PC's wanders off and gets himself into a battle he simply cannot win. I know the player wants to play out the battle to see if they can somehow pull it out, but it's boring for ...
7
votes
6answers
198 views
What are good techniques help remember the interrupts of DND 4e monsters?
For new and experienced 4e DM's alike, a recurring challenge is activating all of the appropriate interrupt powers on monster sheets. It gets really easy to miss something when solo monsters can have ...
10
votes
4answers
184 views
How do you handle the use of unrelated skills in the Dresden Files?
Back into the breach with our weekly Dresden Files game, and because of the lapse in time between sessions/people missing as much as anything else, I had some unique situations occur.
One of the ones ...
17
votes
5answers
413 views
How do I make a single combat in a day challenging and interesting?
4e is a game of resource attrition. I can't find the quote in DMG right now, but from memory and experience, it works best with about 3-5 combat encounters in an adventuring day. That way, some of the ...
12
votes
5answers
213 views
How to I create material (on the fly) to support plot changes?
In both pre-plotted adventures and more story-telling ones, a lot of situations occur where monsters/npcs/magical items/geography appear, which wasn't thought of beforehand. I.e. I do not have the ...
12
votes
8answers
309 views
How does one get players to explore more?
In a comment in my answer within What qualifies exploration gaming?
Javafueled commented:
It almost begs me to ask the question: How do I get players to explore more? :) – javafueled
In order ...
18
votes
5answers
283 views
How to fight the unseen, and still keep things interesting?
In a horror themed campaign with a lovecraftian feeling, a big part of the game is to be in a constant feeling of being threatened, but without any visual stimuli other than glimpses, or sounds ...
10
votes
1answer
541 views
Resources for 3D printable RPG props?
I would like to introduce more map-based props (figures, terrain, obstacles, etc.) into my game. In particular, I'd like to be able to use a 3D printer to make props specific to whatever encounters a ...
20
votes
10answers
723 views
How do I find and eliminate plot holes?
I'm still a pretty new GM. Even though I enjoy coming up with plots and writing the overarching story-line, when I tell my wife (who does not play) how the adventure should progress (the long-view, ...
28
votes
9answers
737 views
How can I more effectively use darkness in a dungeon?
In more than one of my D&D campaigns, I've found myself feeling disappointed at my inability to make the darkness of the dungeon matter.
Everyone has enough torches, and I'm not likely to be able ...
6
votes
4answers
429 views
Bringing a pre-made character to the table or not; pros and cons?
Sometimes a player will have a pre-made character and bring it along to the first gaming session. Other times they will make the character at the table. Sometimes you get a mixed bag. As both a player ...
22
votes
10answers
1k views
How to make magic items more interesting?
We all read about the little person finding a magical ring and the GM basing
his whole plot on that little ring. That was a cool example
of a MacGuffin.
Earthdawn has a system in which characters ...
24
votes
5answers
357 views
How many sessions is enough to judge a game fairly?
I want to introduce some new games to my group. But when I broach the topic like, "Howdja like to play Dogs in the Vineyard?" they balk - not at the prospect of trying something new, but at the ...
7
votes
4answers
232 views
How do I get my dresden files players involved in city creation?
I've tried to involve my players in city creation a few times through the course of the game, usually whenever they are about to finish up a story arc, but I usually all I get are just get a few ...
13
votes
12answers
711 views
Why would I hire you?
I'm designing a D&D 4E campaign (set in the Forgotten Realms) for my local gaming society, which may or may not spill out into bigger things, rpg.se has given me too many ideas!
I want the party ...
4
votes
3answers
302 views
Mitigating conflict in a 'mixed' nWoD game
The last (and only) time I ran a mixed game (containing Changeling, Mage and Vampire characters) for nWoD. I explained at length that nWoD started with a clean sheet and no one 'instinctively' hated ...
9
votes
4answers
187 views
How can a GM aid switching between the immersion and the meta level?
In recent adventures, I've often employed and supported using the meta level (i.e. thinking, joking and referencing about the game's contents with reference to our cultural context) for everyone's ...
13
votes
4answers
355 views
What if the GM knocks over the tower during a game of Dread?
In Dread, the status of the tower is pretty much the entire game. If it falls over accidentally, it really sort of ruins everything. Obviously the GM stays as far away from it as possible to avoid the ...
11
votes
5answers
478 views
What can be done to encourage players/character to use rituals more?
An on going issue I have is with my players is that they leave a very large amount of power untapped in the arsenal of things they can do, namely rituals.
As a DM I use them all the time, but the ...
15
votes
7answers
480 views
Techniques for skimming through travel (fast travel) without meta-teleportation
In most of my group's campaigns, we spend a lot of time traveling. Unfortunately, this leans one of two ways:
Uninteresting or distracting obstacles. If you want to spend time but keep it fresh, ...
21
votes
6answers
464 views
How can I close my sessions better?
A big principle of group practices (facilitation, meeting management, etc) is Opening and Closing. Opening is creating a comforting environment where people feel invited and welcome. Closing is about ...
15
votes
6answers
553 views
As an experienced GM, what pitfalls should I watch out for?
I've been GMing for 20 years and have recently started to question if I need a GM-makeover. We are still having fun but could the game be more fun if I shed some bad, and well ingrained habits? I ...
13
votes
5answers
306 views
How to handle lack of PC communication?
I've currently got a DFRPG group, and it's struggling a little bit. The main issue right now is that there's a good lack of communication between PC's. How can I encourage the players to communicate ...
8
votes
2answers
385 views
How do you run a political campaign?
Although it's a fair way off yet there's a decent chance that my campaign is heading towards becoming very political. I've considered running political games before, but it seems like it would ...
8
votes
3answers
120 views
How do I make players more comfortable in an unusual historical setting?
I run a lot of games/write systems set in specific historical/cultural contexts, because I like rpgs as a way to explore them and think they provide a great sense of place. However, I tend not to ...
16
votes
6answers
319 views
How do I help create story around the table without writing it?
I love RPGs. I think they can create some of the most fun and enjoyable stories, both from an out-of-game and in-game standpoint.
I also realize that "story" is the result of the game played by the ...
26
votes
26answers
1k views
Biggest GM pitfalls for new GMs? [closed]
What are the biggest/most common GM pitfalls (or mistakes) for new GMs?
One pitfall per answer, please!
50
votes
21answers
1k views
What approaches are there to lessen or eliminate reliance upon dice in an RPG?
Is it necessary to use dice all the time in a dice-based RPG system? In other words, are there occasions or means by which you speed up gameplay by either reducing the number of rolls or removing the ...
11
votes
6answers
203 views
Rebalancing Experience Point Totals?
Say that through legal game play some player characters have gained a lot more XP than others. Should the referee take steps to rebalance the player characters, or just let it go as it is part of the ...
7
votes
2answers
146 views
Good storylines to accompany adding another player to the game?
I just ran my first two sessions as GM and we are probably going to be adding a 4th player to the group soon (making 5 of us total). I'm trying to thing of a good premise for the party to meet the new ...
8
votes
2answers
444 views
How do I implement Social Combat into a D&D/D20/Pathfinder game?
One of the coolest parts of White-Wolf games, in my opinion, is that they usually offer the ability for Social Combat to be just as exciting as physical or mental combat.
How can I run Social Combat ...
20
votes
4answers
295 views
How do I construct an individual session as part of a larger campaign?
I've been GMing/DMing on and off for years. I prefer playing. Mainly because when I run a game, I'm more a fly by the seat of your pants kind of dm, and it works sort of..
My problem is that, while I ...
27
votes
4answers
485 views
How do I keep a long-range plot cohesive and coherent?
I enjoy GMing but I much prefer to to have some sort of long running plot (or meta-plot) rather than having a series of unconnected unfortunate events afflict my PCs.
For example, I would love to ...
4
votes
5answers
466 views
What's a good text only adventure game to improve my storytelling for DMing?
I've been trying to think of good ways to improve my narration of scenes when I can't actually practice firsthand with my group. On idea I had was to find some old text-only adventure/RPG games and ...
5
votes
4answers
313 views
Where can I find/buy/get a detailed output NPC generator tool (digital or paper)?
As a part of my on-going quest to be a better GM, I am looking for a tool, paper based or digital, that can generate solid NPCs rapidly. These could be used as one shots but I am looking primarily ...
21
votes
6answers
668 views
What GM tasks can be delegated to players to speed up encounters?
My party's encounters (D&D4e - 13th level) take on average 3-4 hours. We chit chat a lot and are pretty easily distracted, and it's not a huge deal because we're all having fun. But lately we've ...
11
votes
6answers
216 views
How to introduce item descriptions
One of the things that I dislike when running a session is how a great majority of the items are bland - a short sword is a short sword, a bow is a bow, an arrow is an arrow.
After sitting on it for ...
13
votes
8answers
582 views
How valid is lying to players about the rolls they are making in The Dresden Files?
In last weeks Dresden Files game, the players followed the bad guy using a tracking spell, and found him in the projects at an apartment that they knew little about. Seeing his car, they decided to ...
6
votes
0answers
170 views
How do I effectively portray multiple characters in conversation? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
How do you handle verbal exchanges between NPCs without taking the PCs out of the spotlight?
You should be familiar with this set up: All the characters are at a party ...
32
votes
3answers
429 views
How do I build a sense of wonder in my games?
I guess this is part three of a series of questions, with part I being on building tension, and part II being on building comedy.
Greg Stafford has talked of his primary motivation as a gamemaster ...
24
votes
10answers
726 views
What are some sources for in game puzzles for players?
I love to spice up campaign settings (dungeons in particular) with logic, mechanic or word-based puzzles. Can you propose valid resources for this ?
23
votes
7answers
483 views
How to add a player who joined after the campaign started?
I started running a game, and then a friend of mine expressed interest in playing, so I invited him to join us. He created a character and came along to the next session. As the rest of the party was ...
