A few weeks ago I had an idea and I pitched it to my friend the NewbieDM:
What if we created a series of dual posts comparing the views of a new DM and one with 25+ years of experience? We would pick a subject and each write an opinion post about it and cross link it.
The idea was accepted nearly instantly and we sat on it, waiting for a great subject to start the series.
Then NewbieDM hit paydirt with the following Tweet:
I wish one day I’d be lucky to play D&D with a DM as great as the DMGs’ hope to create. The DMG2 is awesome for storytellers.
This was too good a subject to pass up.
So we agreed to discuss what it take to be a great GM. Not merely a good one, but a GREAT one!
Here’s my stab at this…
What IS a great GM?
Great GMs will run amazing games 9 times out of 10. While not necessarily extroverted, they irradiate clear enthusiasm for whatever game they run and Zen-like confidence that whatever happens during a session, fun will be had by all.
Great GMs know they are good but always try to become better, shaping their GMing styles to fit with their group’s changing needs. When they happen to run a game that isn’t stellar, they note down what went wrong, check with players for feedback and move on without insecurity or self-flagellation.
Great GMs will also foster favorable gaming conditions to maximize everyone’s fun. They will develop an accurate sense of the key motivators of all players, get to understand their own and work these motivations into their adventures. Even when caught with the intricacies of game mechanics, they will sense subtle changes in a group’s dynamics and react to help channel the energy toward maximum.
Great GMs know that table authority only goes as far as what the players are willing to grant. They know that it isn’t inherited by the position. They will foster bidirectional trust between themselves and the players and facilitate trust between players, irrespective of the actions of PCs.
Great GMs are great mediators and will try their best to resolve conflicts around the table. However, they also know when to walk away from a failing game or excise fundamentally selfish players from their games. When a game does fail, they learn from it, move on, start a new game or even invite others to get on the GMing seat to foster the growth of new, possibly great GMs.
The Elements of Great GMs.
In my opinion, great GMs shine more through their social abilities than their mastery of the rules or the originality of the scenario they’re playing.
Great GMs possess the following social skills:
- Great Communicators: They are dynamic speakers that can convey complex information in simple and entertaining ways.
- High Empathy: They can read their players, sense moods and react accordingly
- Active Listening: They pay close attention to what players are saying and use what is said to shape game decisions.
- Fair: They treat all players equally and adjudicate game situations in a neutral, consistent fashion
Of course, technical skills are not negligible. Understanding the rules of a role playing game and being able to refer to rules rapidly (or make fair rulings on the go that make sense), are important aspects. Great GMs will usually internalize the algorithms of a game and use them to guide adventure design (be it pre-prepared or improvised).
Dude, that’s a long list! No one’s that good!
But more importantly, Great GMs are not just the figment of this here GM. They exist, I’ve seen them in action. There aren’t enough of them, I’ll grant that. You have to be on the lookout for them. I strongly believe it’s the job of older GMs (like me and others) to foster more of them. The hobby desperately needs more Great GMs.
The thing is, all I’ve listed above are habits and skills that everyone can learn, save one. If a GM refuses to recognize that they could get better, then they’ll never achieve great GM status.
How long must one work to become a Great GM? I’d say years, many years. There are certain core lessons of GMing that no amount of Forum posts, blog posts and Game Master Guides will teach, especially the social and other ‘soft’ skills. For those, only time at the table can teach… and often the lessons are painful and hard to swallow, the temptation to ignore them is high, so you need to learn them several times before they ‘take’.
(Putting one’s motivation ahead of the players’, or assuming that one’s motivation are the one true way to play are two examples of habits we have a hard time changing )
Heck, I’ve been at it for 26 years now and while I know I’m a very good GM, I can’t claim to have reached the great stage yet. But that doesn’t prevent me from striving to get there eventually and I encourage all GMs who want to get better to aim for that Greatness. I know I’ll get there someday!
To do so, aspiring GMs should set goals to reach and constantly try new things at the table. Failure is likely, but learning to brush it off while absorbing the lessons of such failures is one of the traits of Great GMs. My own game reports and ‘Lessons Learned’ are the tools I use to get better and I work at specific goals, like becoming a better improv GM.
Anyway, suffice it to say that whatever you may have heard or thought about GMing, developing social skills are far more important than knowing the rules or building the perfect game world.
Do you agree or not? Tell me what you think and how you would define great GMing.
Have you ever seen such GMs?
Now let’s have a look at what NewbieDM has to say about this. (The post is up!)
I hope you liked this new format, I think it’s got potential!
Last week I returned to GMing for the first time in 20 years. I’m a little rusty, but the players seemed to have a good time.
I’m not disagreeing, but I’ll note that while you even acknowledged familiarity with the game rules as an important aspect of a great GM, coming up with a great story didn’t even make the list.
I think a great story is what everyone is after, but while a good imagination helps, it’s those other characteristics you mentioned that can turn almost any game setup in to a great story.
.-= David´s last blog ..B2B for FFG =-.
@David… I’m not really disagreeing with you… having a good story helps a lot. But I don’t think its really necessary at all. I believe that Chatty proved this with his last round of game posts. He didn’t really have a prepared story at all. He just had key points… a rough outline, if you will. He turned the actual story over to his players and they gave him just about everything that he needed to piece together with his rough outline. This is what he referred to as Active Listening. He listened to what they said and worked with that. Improvisation clearly trumped having a good story there. If he wasn’t actively listening to his players in that game session, it probably would have been a failure.
The bulk of my playing days were back in the early 90s, using a mix of 1e/2e rules. Our DM was not one to have a great story planned out for us. He primarily relied on improvisation and active listening to build campaigns, adventures, and even encounters tailored to what he gleaned from the players. Those were very enjoyable game sessions back then, but I would be hard pressed to recall any moment that was obviously part of a pre-planned story.
@David: Interestingly enough, I had one sentence in the original draft that said ‘Great GMs are often Great Writers and Storytellers’ but it just didn’t seem to fit in the post (from a style perspective, not the actual content). So I ended up removing it. It turns out that leaving it out sparks a good discussion.
For what it’s worth, I’d roll great Story into Great Communicator. No matter how awesome the story you come out with, not being able to deliver it adequately defeats it’s purpose.
So important element, yes… as important as mastering the rules, but not as much as Soft skills IMHO.
@Tiorn: Thanks for providing the example.. I would not have thought of that.
The absolute apotheosis for an improv game is when players can’t tell what was improvised and what was prepared. And I agree that active listening is a key element here. I’m so glad I learned that technique during management training.
I think an underestimated quality of good GMs (and players) is breadth of experience at the table. Not just playing the same game, with the same people year after year…but playing as many different kinds of roleplaying games as possible with different players. From campaigns to convention one-shots, from D&D to story games to jeepform. Each new game will open new horizons for you and will inform every game you play.
Good point Tim, I only just recently opened up to new games (the post d20 era is rife with cool new concepts… and I also can dig back to non d20 games of the last decade). Just reading Mouse Guard opened up a whole new way of playing the game!
You could add great DM rarely recognize themselves as such as they will always find something they could improve…
A great GM is not perfect but strive to be and you my friend are the best GM I’ve seen by a long shot and in my book you are a Great GM.
Awww shucks man. I wasn’t baiting for compliments but thanks so much.
I really think that ‘Great GM” is a somewhat utopic goal toward which we should all strive for. No one should stop and say ‘I made it, I’m the best at what I do'” Every time I did, I found that my experiences at the game table plateaued.
There’s always something new, some way of making a game more enjoyable.
A Great GM’s (or one to be) quest should always try to see what’s behind the next hill.
Not your style… You’ll bait for comments with hot topic on a friday though… 😉
And I totally agreed that it’s an ongoing quest, perfection is a unattainable goal after all.
You’ll put yourself out of your comfort zone only to improve yourself. You’ll stifle your little internal voice and say yes to the players cool but scary new idea. You’ll take action when you see that energy or fun level of your player is low.
Enough said… 😉
Chatty, Yan is just buttering you up so you don’t kill his character tonight when he rolls a one on his stealth check;)
I think I am a good DM, that can craft a good story and I can read my players needs, wants, and ambitions for their character. I do open conversation and try to work with the players.
I recognize the importance of saying Yes for fun, but am not afraid to say no to save the campaign, story, or session. Saying yes is important to a player, but sometimes saying no is important to the group.
Like you point out Chatty, a Great DM has to WANT to grow, and not become complacent or comfortable. They don’t just dream of delivering the best game ever, they go after it and learn new ways to do it!
A Great DM also isn’t afraid to admit that they made a mistake/did something wrong. One that that has repeatedly impressed me about your game logs Chatty is that you always point out what you did wrong! You don’t shy away from showing the warts of your gaming sessions, and that is awesome, and provides the readers with food for thought, so keep it up, you Great DM, you!
Great post Chatty, as always!
.-= wrathofzombie´s last blog ..Dragon’s Age: Origins looks promising. =-.
The fact that our game is tonight as nothing to do with it…
Really…
Why is everybody staring at me?
‘Damn I’ve bin found out…
😉
I’ve been trying to kill Yan’s PC for 10 years now. I almost made it last game… almost.
When we used to play Gurps, it was a more common occurrence.
But Yan knows that mere words on a website don’t buy my clemency, I only take payment in 2 currencies Booze and Strippers.
🙂
Ah yes.. The players that beg to be spared from death or other unpleasant occurances.. My g/f does that all the time in my current game. Something is about to crit her, or really hurt her, and she gives me the big eyes and says, “You wouldn’t really do that to your girlfriend would you?” Needless-to-say it doesn’t work, she takes damage, and I sleep on couch.
Yan, I recommend showing a little leg this game! It may work! Or your character may end up in the Overmind’s Vats mysteriously;)
.-= wrathofzombie´s last blog ..Dragon’s Age: Origins looks promising. =-.
NewbieDM’s post is up… you can follow it at:
http://newbiedm.com/2009/09/18/something-old-something-new-great-dms/
Great article Chatty, and I agree with you, DM’s need to teach the game to others for this hobby to survive. I know when my kids are old enough, they’ll have a seat behind the screen and take a look at what it is daddy is doing. They are too little now, but in a few years they’ll be loving this stuff.
PS… I’d like to put 25 years of Dm’ing to the test, and am now inviting myself to sit in on a drunken D&D session at next year’s Gencon…. or at least watch it in action… 🙂
.-= newbiedm´s last blog ..Something Old, Something New: Great DM’s =-.
Nah… I’m the proud owner of the record for most time killed in Chatty’s game. Did not complain then will not start now… 😉
In the last 3 months I’ve started DMing again after a long break. Luckily, being a DM is a lot like riding a bike, and the fact that I’ve been playing RPG’s for over 20 years helps too. Still, I would only classify myself as a good DM, not a great one. See, I’ve seen other good DM’s in action, and recognize that everyone has different skills. Me, I’m a good communicator, and I have a lot of enthusiasm for the game. Plus, my technical skills are pretty good. I also tell a good story.
What I’m not excellent at is improvisations, and I’m only decent at reading my players. I tend to get caught up in the world and pay a bit less attention to the players. I’ve played with DM’s who are amazing at this, though, so I know how much it brings to a game.
Ultimately, you need a certain attitude and commitment to be a great dm. And then you need to practice. It reminds me of a writer friend who told me that if you want to be a professional writer, you need to read. A lot.
.-= wickedmurph´s last blog ..4e Sandboxing =-.
I completely agree with this article, except you you leaving out the “great story” requirement.
As for knowing one of these GMs? By good friend, Roger (Alacrity) Briant at the Red Dragon Inn meets all of these criteria. I have never met anyone else who spends as much time planning and working to bring the world alive… which he does, with a great sense of timing and humor.
.-= Olan Suddeth´s last blog ..Paladins of Other Alignments =-.
@NewbieDM: You have a spot in one of next year’s Gen Con games for sure man!
@Wicked: I’ve been working at my Improv a lot lately and I can assure you that it gets easier with practice.
@Olan: See my argument about Story… it’s a helper, not a requirement for being a great GM. Great GM will make story emerge through players with a room with a pie and an Orc in it.
At least, so I’d like to believe,
Chatty, good post and great idea.
However, you are only rating half the GM. This goes along with those guys that mentioned story. I think the half you mentioned you hit spot on.
I love reading your stuff, and I care enough to take the time to write this, but I am going to take you to task somewhat.
You speak and rate GMing as if all you have to do is perform well at the table. I feel like you are reviewing a restaurant saying that the waiter was great so therefor the experience was great, and that the venue, ambiance, menu, theme, wine list, kitchen prep, food quality, and kitchen staff was of minor importance.
I don’t know how much I am dating myself, but I still believe that you rate a GM as much by the adventure, campaign, and setting they create, as this figures as much into the game at the table as anything else could. I’m not saying that a good GM needs to have every thing described ahead of time, nor am I saying that ad-libbing whole games is anything but fun and a great test of the ability to mesh prepared material with performance ability. As I said, the part you wote about, you hit dead-on, and all of that is very important.
But to totally ignore all the ‘back-stage’/’Back-of-the-House’ work that is just as critical to a great game is criminal to all the aspiring GM’s reading this.
“Anyway, suffice it to say that whatever you may have heard or thought about GMing, developing social skills are far more important than knowing the rules or building the perfect game world.”
I don’t agree with this at all. I Think you are right about the importance of the social skills being absolutely critical, but I ask you, how many GM’s need the crutch of using canned adventures to make up for their lack of skill in adventure and setting creation? I agree that a good ‘Game’ GM (which is what we used to call them) can make a good game out of a mediocre adventure, but I think a tremedously well-written and GROUP-TAILORED adventure and campaign makes a mediocre GM appear good, and is the only way you will EVER see a great game. The best chef in the world still thinks ingredients and a recipe are critical, and the very best GM in the world will never run anything more than a decent game without a well-written adventure.
So as for this?
“it’s a helper, not a requirement for being a great GM. Great GM will make story emerge through players with a room with a pie and an Orc in it.”
I contend that you are right that the great GM will make story from the room with the orc and the pie (and just for that, I’m going to put an orcash Pastry chef into my next session), but that a Great GM knows that Front-of-the-house-GMing and Back-of-the-house-GMing need to work in perfect tandem, and to claim the title of great GM, a GM must be able to do both.
@Tiorn, BTW, I am not disagreeing with you. One of the ‘Back-of-the-house’ skills is marrying the ingredients your prepped ahead of time with the direction the players go in while the game is in play, not to mention taking those session notes and player responses and writing them into the future adventures, which are skills it looked like your GM had.
.-= LordVreeg´s last blog ..edited Personalities =-.
@LV: I really appreciate you making the effort to phrase your argument as you did. And I agree that the ability to weave a good story, tailored to your player’s need is a very important ingredient for great GMing. In hindsight, leaving my original paragraph about Great GMs being good writers and Storytellers would have likely quelled the slight disagreement with the piece.
However, I will take you up on one thing. If, as you say, GMing has a Front-end (Communication, enthusiasm, empathy, listening) and a back-end (Plot weaving, World Building and Story-crafting), then I contend that given the choice between a GM with high skill in only one of the ‘ends’, the Front-ended GM will deliver a better game experience.
But as I write this, I realize one thing. We’re both guilty of defending a type of GM that caters to our preferences as a player (Well, me more than you since you validated the importance of Front-end GMing). I’m not much of a World-Storyteller player. I far prefer introspective storytelling (called Psychodrama) and I’m also an instigator, making stuff happen… so I expect of GMs that they will listen to me, and rapidly change their stories and game plans to fit me in them… thus, I put more importance of Front-End skills than Back end ones.
It’s also one of the reasons that I don’t like Storytelling GMs with low social skills because I often feel railroaded and balk at their lack of flexibility/self-assurance when confronted with unexpected player antics.
Thanks for the insight LV, with that being said, I agree that Great GMs have above average skill in both aspects of GMing and seek to become better in both.
I think I have more fun posting here than I do almost anywhere. Maybe it’s because you (Chatty) can actually have a civil conversation.
Let me share something that may speak to my need to throw the old spotlight on the ‘Back-of-the-House’.
My original degree is in Psych. I’ve spent years of my life up on a stage, literally and figuratively. I have a…LOT of management, High-end sales and Vendor relationship experience, without getting too deeply into it.
And even more GMing experience.
So maybe I tend to think of that as the easy part, honestly.
On the flip side, and again, I am being honest and self-analytical, as opposed to perfectly polite, but I am going to come right out and admit I look down on exerienced GM’s who use a lot of published materials in their games. I can go on for pages as to why, but that is irrelevant for now.
What is relevant is that while it is not fair of me to think that way, maybe it will make my point of view a little more understandable.
Oh, and as another bit of mental gristle to chew on, let me expand upon something you said…
“then I contend that given the choice between a GM with high skill in only one of the ‘ends’, the Front-ended GM will deliver a better game experience.”
Define ‘Game’, My friend. I agree that the front-end GM will deliver a better SINGLE-GAME performance, but the Back-door man (yes, I went there) will provide the better campaign, stuttering and mumbling the whole way.
But now you have me trying to figure out which sessions have ended with me stopping a game that went into double-overtime with salivating, wide-eyed players so deeply immersed that they were forgetting their own names…and what made those sessions happen.
Another good, thought-provoking post. Thanks again.
.-= LordVreeg´s last blog ..added Basic History and Information of Igbar =-.
I try real hard to provide a friendly and open-minded environment. That fact that no comment threads have ever turned into mudslinging flame wars in more than 2 years is a tribute to the willingness of everyone to abide by the unwritten social rules of the blog.
As I read your responses, I’m slowly starting to suspect that we’re in the classic case of “2 blind men describing the same elephant from different ends” And interestingly enough, both of us are openly and unashamedly biased in our assessment.
We both seem to share similar experiences with soft skills. I find it real easy to walk to the front of a room and make a speech, or do a pickup game with strangers and you are so used to the idea of active listening, Sales techniques and negotiations that they seem second nature to you.
What I realized since I started blogging is that I’ve seen way too many GMs focus on Backend skills, often exclusively. In fact I know that many GMs aren’t even able to grasp the importance of social skills in GMing and have never thought that ‘reading’ players was a rich source of data about the state of a campaign.
For these reasons, I’ve made it one of my trademarks to push social skills development at the table. Heck, my post was mostly me saying “hey you World builders and chart creators! There’s more to GMing than just that!”
And for the exact same reasons you mention, I tend to trivialize back end skills because I’m a writer with levels of creativity above the norm and the mental discipline to craft logical, deep stories with little effort… and I sometime fail to realize that everyone is not like that.
Funny huh?
As for Published adventures, well I don’t brush them off because I’ve had long periods of time where using such adventures were the only way I could DM every two weeks with my friends. To my credit though, I’ve been hacking said adventurers to fit our group’s tastes for quite some time now.
You’ve missed it all both of you…
The great GM is the one that does what needs to be done so everyone is having fun.
Anything else is just details…
Now, where is my rockband DVD so we can start that campaign. 😉