What Makes a "Good GM"?

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Ladybird said:
"Don't structure the fun away" is probably the big one for me, actually. I know one GM who explicitly thinks in terms of story beats and a three-act structure, and will happily tell you about it, and his games are... not exciting. You can see the rails and you know you can't deviate from them; it feels like the only part of the game world that actually exists is the part you're exploring now, there's no sense of wider goings-on outside it and you're basically just clinging on as the plot happens around you.

It's not that they're bad techniques, even; there's a reason why so many stories use them. But you have to at least try and hide them from the players.


When I'm GM'ing, I have enough to do. If the party have the wrong toolset for the adventure, that's their problem to solve, not mine.
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One of the reasons WFRP3 is among the worst RPGs ever. In their adventures, they Mechanically enforced the Act and Scene structure including actual Intermissions where the PCs were safe and certain healing/rest rules could be used. They cut down the Forest to see the Trees better.
 
CRKrueger said:
One of the reasons WFRP3 is among the worst RPGs ever. In their adventures, they Mechanically enforced the Act and Scene structure including actual Intermissions where the PCs were safe and certain healing/rest rules could be used. They cut down the Forest to see the Trees better.
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It was one of the things I hated about The One Ring, as well; the game felt so heavily reliant on it's structure and perfectly happy to do it's own thing that it didn't seem to care much whether the players showed up or not.

Black Leaf said:
Good GMs do that. Exceptional GMs give all their dwarves bad Scottish accents.
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Personally I like a Yorkshire / Up North accent, but I'm also awful at scottish accents :smile:
 
Ladybird said:
It was one of the things I hated about The One Ring, as well; the game felt so heavily reliant on it's structure and perfectly happy to do it's own thing that it didn't seem to care much whether the players showed up or not.
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So much awesome stuff in that game though. Every time I think about running it, however, my Heart, Mind and Soul all say “convert to Mythras”.

Ladybird said:
Personally I like a Yorkshire / Up North accent, but I'm also awful at scottish accents :smile:
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It’s natural to be bad at some of them, you guys have a mutually unintelligible accent for every square mile of land.
 
Speaking of good GM practices:

Don't try to do funny voices. You can accomplish more, better, by only slightly changing your inflection, using specific turns of phrase, and maybe inserting the occasional non-English word or expression.

A bad accent or ridiculous voice just comes across as comedic and false. I mean, I've encountered exceptions (having gamed with a voice ctor), but on the whole it's best to just not, unless it's an accent that you do naturally.
 
TristramEvans said:
Speaking of good GM practices:

Don't try to do funny voices. You can accomplish more, better, by only slightly changing your inflection, using specific turns of phrase, and maybe inserting the occasional non-English word or expression.

A bad accent or ridiculous voice just comes across as comedic and false. I mean, I've encountered exceptions (having gamed with a voice ctor), but on the whole it's best to just not, unless it's an accent that you do naturally.
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That’s the thing, doing it well. I remember Max Foley from the Mercurial adventure talked really fast and had some speech mannerisms (like always saying “Amirite?“). I decided to run with it, but I practiced talking like that until I could do it naturally. Took me a few days. The players still talk about Max Foley 30 years later.
 
CRKrueger said:
So much awesome stuff in that game though. Every time I think about running it, however, my Heart, Mind and Soul all say “convert to Mythras”.


It’s natural to be bad at some of them, you guys have a mutually unintelligible accent for every square mile of land.
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I once worked with a chap from Edinburgh who could rattle off at least 10 distinct Scottish accents.
 
This has been said a lot -

1. Make sure they are having fun.
2. Ensure the players understand the type of game you are running. Is it gritty, cinematic?
3. Ties in two really, if it is cinematic, the players are usually supposed to be heroes. So you want players that will fill that part.
4. Be consistent in your decisions. This is the critical part. Don't change powers, or rules halfway through - unless there is a plot specific reason.
5. Don't take control of a PC from a player for long periods, .e.g if they are suffering from some effect. Try not to do so, and have them role play it.
6. Another vitally important point....You are not actively trying to kill your players.
7. See point six. If you are playing that kind of game, then make sure everyone is onboard with it, such that in the event of death, re-rolling another character is quick and easy for the player that has been sidelined.
 
I'm starting my first play-by-post D&D game ever in a day or so, and a lot of this advice is super helpful. I'm about to select a four-person party, from an application pool of about 12, so wish me luck.
 
I remember when I was in my late teens and early 20’s, my players always knew an NPC was important because I invariably spoke in a low voice. When they pointed it out to me, it naturally became a running joke - the lower the voice, the more important the NPC.

Over the last few decades I’ve learned how to do a bunch of very different accents well. The key is to keep them subtle, just barely enough to be noticed and recognizable, so they don’t become caricatures.

But the most important skill I’ve developed is that I’m able to put forth situations that their characters hate but the players love. One of my players described it like reading the X-Men comics - the characters are put through hell but the books are still awesome to read.
 
Make the game fun.
Let Players have their head and don't shut them down at every turn.
Don't just have one way of doing things, instead set up a situation and let the Players find the solution.
Be flexible, allow for more than one way through a scenario.
Be consistent, where possible.
Know the rules, or as much of the rules as it important.
 
cryptkeeper said:
A good GM rewatches their recorded game sessions. Just like athletes review game tapes to improve performance.
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Who has the time?

You could run a whole additional game session in the time it would take you to watch a recorded game session.
 
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Record my game sessions? Jesus no. The last thing I need is proof on tape of that kind of fuckery. I feel like taking notes is more than enough.
 
3rik said:
The only one that I didn't find so convincing was the "Spanish" accent
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Yeah, sounds sort of like somebody from Andalusia but I'd say it had the biggest "stage" element. The anglophone accents all sound perfect to me.
 
Séadna said:
Yeah, sounds sort of like somebody from Andalusia but I'd say it had the biggest "stage" element. The anglophone accents all sound perfect to me.
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Admittedly I'm only really familiar with Mexicans speaking American English. So maybe it's more well done than I realize.
 
A "Good GM" is whoever is willing to run a game in a way that players can accept.

Period.

Yeah, a group might have crazy players but, if the crazies accept the GM's guidelines ... game on.

The GM is always the best player because without them nothing happens.
 
It can be tough to listen to your own voice. I really had to get used to mine after doing a bit of podcasting. It takes some training to understand that you sound normal to other people.
 
ka maat said:
A "Good GM" is whoever is willing to run a game in a way that players can accept.

Period.

Yeah, a group might have crazy players but, if the crazies accept the GM's guidelines ... game on.

The GM is always the best player because without them nothing happens.
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I thought the OP was more nuanced when talking about a "Good GM". Like, and not trying to be a dick, your reply is really broad and not much use in describing what the OP is about.
 
Nemesis said:
That works if you're Matthew Mercer.
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Funny, I thought the opening post was not about how to become a media star. I take it, whether you like the "practice" or not, whether you "like it" or not is irrelevant.

If your knee-jerk reaction is "why" and it seems not something which makes a "Good" DM, if your not into doing this you probably are not interested in the medium as some others who think it is much more than a game. Like me. I take the roleplaying experience more serious than most. Some people like to play checkers with the pieces while others prefer a game of chess with the same tools. If you are in the latter camp as myself, looking to get better and better and better (whatever that becomes, it is organic)as a Game Master than you should tape the session and listen to the audio playback.

I say this from experience. It has become an essential tool in my practice.
 
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