1 post tagged “rpgs”

Currently, the trend at Wizards of the Coast is to develop more GM-oriented products instead of the deluge of character options products that marked the first few years. That's why this year and the previous, you're seeing more large-scale adventures, the new encounter format, the improved monster stat blocks (I mean who else will use this but the GM?), and the environment series (most notable is Cityscape and Dungeonscape).

That's not to say Wizards of the Coast has ignored this market--even early on, they already had their entry-level adventures from The Sunless Citadel to Monte Cook's Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil. (And let us not forget the hints of Ashardalon in various adventures which culminated in The Bastion of Broken Souls.)

The thing with pen-and-paper RPG design is that it doesn't merely revolve around the designer-player interaction. Pen-and-paper RPGs has a designer-game master-player model. It's not like a video game where once the programmer finishes the game, it's up to the player to enjoy it. And while certain board games like War of the Generals has a mediator (a non-player who judges the players), his participation in the actual game is limited. A game master, on the other hand, isn't just a mere referee--he shapes the game, he shapes the story. From a different perspective, it could be said that the game master is a player too--he engages in the same combat encounters that players face, he participates in the same story they're part of. However, his role is different: he's the yang to the player's yin. I mean it  could even be interpreted that the GM is a player and the players are the ones game-mastering for the GM, reacting to him as he is reacting to them.

However, the typical pen-and-paper RPG usually begins with the GM. It's up to the GM to get the ball rolling, to create a story or an adventure, to gather the players around a common time and place to game. Unlike conventional games where players are all that's necessary, in RPGs you need a game master as well. Thankfully, a game doesn't need a lot of GMs: you only need one. Players, on the other hand, can be almost any manageable number, from one to eight (I've even seen games where there's more than a dozen players but that can get unwieldy). Still, at the end of the day, you could be stuck with seven people and all of them are players--no one wants to act as a GM--and thus you have no game. GM's are the backbone of the RPG. There's probably no shortage of players but it can be difficult to find a GM that suits your taste. And perhaps the only way for gaming culture to spread is if the number of GMs increases. It's easier to convince other people to play for example rather than to GM, especially if you're a newbie or simply uninitiated.

The good news is that people aren't divided into GMs and players. There's usually an overlap and a gaming group can have a rotating routine of GMs and players. The other good news is that the transition from player to GM isn't necessarily difficult. Sure, it's a change in perception: you have to prepare the game, plan to cater to your needs as well as your players, etc. But depending on the game, there are lots of tools out there. And perhaps the most important thing for starting GMs is to start with a modest goal--your game doesn't need to be this huge epic or complicated conspiracy: it merely needs to be fun. And when it comes to D&D, this usually entails combat (perhaps the good thing about D&D is that it has no pretensions as to what kind of game it is--it's not The World of Darkness where the focus is role-playing, nor is it GURPS where it could go either way).

The bad news however, is that someone has to actually volunteer. It's easier to be a player rather than a GM, at least in terms of time management. If you want to spread the love of gaming, someone has to pick up the duties of a GM. And when no one is volunteering, perhaps it's time for you to step up.