Like many gamers, when I first entered the hobby, I thought that it was
desirable and even necessary to have rules to account for the outcome of
every possible Character action or environmental condition. Thick
rulebooks were the norm, although roleplay games were typically thin on
descriptive and inspirational background material.

While Gamemastering a gaming group over a 10 year period, my
outlook was altered by two factors: first, that many of the rules
established by the games I played didn’t provide what I thought was an
‘adequate simulation’ of the actions I was trying to recreate in my
adventures, and second, that so many rules inevitably led to numerous
game stoppages requiring rulebook consultations and occasional player
debates. Additionally, I rarely had the time to prepare a detailed
adventure in advance for the weekly session — I was forced to
‘wing-it’. Drawing on my experiences as a GM I’ve put together the
following tips for stress-free and fun-filled Gamemastering.

1. Make having fun your goal. More than anything else, keep in mind
   that the primary objective of playing any game is for everyone to have a
   good time — the GM and all the players. The satisfaction of having
   spent your time well, in the company of people whose companionship
   you’ve enjoyed, and together experienced an adventure, is what it’s all
   about.

2. Give everyone a chance to participate. Both the GM and players
   need to cut others some slack — especially if they’re new to
   roleplaying. Offer roleplaying suggestions where appropriate but don’t
   roleplay other people’s Characters for them. While you should not
   discourage the louder, enthusiastic players, they should not be the only
   ones who get to influence the outcome of the game; make an effort to
   involve shy or quiet players by asking each player in turn (after
   describing the current game events that pertain to their Character),
   “What are YOU doing now?”

3. Play with people you like. You should not feel obligated to play
   with people you dislike or who dislike you. If you think you’ve given
   another player a fair chance to ‘fit in’ with your group and they
   continue to be abrasive or disruptive, tell them, in a ‘friendly way’,
   what they’re doing that’s upsetting and give them the option to change
   their behavior or leave the group.

4. There are two types of games: Character Hostile and Character
   Neutral. Tell the players which style you’re using (or give them the
   option of choosing) before gameplay begins.

   Character Hostile games were common in the early days of
   roleplaying and most often take the form of ‘dungeon crawls’. A
   Gamemaster creates an environment full of nasty creatures hoarding lots
   of treasure, while the players, knowing full well that the GM is out to
   kill their Characters (and in some cases, the Characters are out to kill
   each other), enter and try to emerge wealthy and in one piece.

   Character Neutral games are best for realistic scenarios and
   prolonged campaigns. The Gamemaster, rather than taking the side of the
   Creatures and Gamemaster Characters and competing against the player’s
   Characters, instead presents situations and conflicts that contribute to
   making the most interesting story possible. Situations which allow
   Character development and the accumulation of a ‘personal history’
   should be pursued.

5. Use the simplest rules you can find that make sense to you. I
   personally prefer a system where either a d10 or d100 is used for
   practically all rolls; occasionally I include d6’s for a smaller numeric
   range of inflicted Damage. All Skills are expressed as a percentage; all
   Stats (rolled against when no Skill is available or applicable) are
   factored up to a percentage. Details of specific ‘current conditions’
   can be included as modifiers to your action resolution rolls by applying
   +/- 5% toward the target number (Action Value) prior to rolling. Simple.
   Fast. Effective.

   The rules you choose will often reflect the seriousness of the
   stories you wish to roleplay. Humorous games, where Character death
   rarely occurs (though great pain and embarrassment is frequent), are
   well suited to a minimalist system — even diceless. Serious games,
   where Character death is a real and ever-present danger, may require
   more specific rules, to convince the players that the GM is unbiased
   when they reveal that a Character has taken a bullet to the leg and must
   now suffer wound trauma. Use the level of detail that is right for your
   game. Be consistent and fair.

6. Only roll dice when necessary. There are two situations where it
   is desirable for a GM or player to roll dice: a) When an action
   resolution result is required that can’t reasonably be provided by a
   direct GM response, and b) When you want to scare a player into
   thinking that you’ve got something up your sleeve and thus keep them on
   their toes — this is an artificial means that the GM can use to instill
   tension into a situation when the players’ roleplaying skills are not
   capable of adequately providing it for their Character. At any other time you can simply provide a description of the
   outcome of a Character’s action attempt.

7. Don’t hold back a Character. If a Character’s desired action seems
   at all plausible (given the genre you’re playing) let them attempt it
   and use the outcome (successful or not) to stimulate the plot of the
   adventure. Some GMs will limit their players by stating that their
   Character can’t even attempt a specific act. This will only result in
   timid players and a less exciting game. Try not to deny Characters the
   opportunity to attempt things — let the players set their Characters’
   own limitations based on their experiences of past failures.

8. Play to the Characters. Try to get to know each Character’s
   distinctions and then over the course of the adventure provide at least
   one event or encounter specifically geared to their interests, skills
   expertise, personal traits, or weaknesses. If another Character takes
   the bait instead, go with it. However, if you’ve constructed the
   situation correctly, it should be clear that the party must address the
   situation through the targeted Character.

9. Go with the flow. This is crucial to stress-free Gamemastering and
   difficult for some to apply. If you’ve established an outline or script
   for your plot in advance and the Characters take a sudden turn which
   causes them to omit a location or event, let it go. Remember, the
   Characters don’t know what cool thing they’ve missed — they’re
   responding to events as they’ve encountered them. Concern yourself with
   what ‘logical’ encounter or event the Characters would experience on
   their new course, rather than worrying about what they could have seen.

10. Let the Adventure write itself. If you’re GMing without a
    predetermined and detailed plot, pay attention to what the Characters
    say and do and use their successful actions (and failures) as windows of
    opportunity to introduce Gamemaster Characters and events (e.g., a
    crisis or opportunity requiring a quick response) into the developing
    story. When you confront the Characters with an event or encounter try
    to consider two or three possible outcomes to the situation and how they
    might impact on the plot. Just ask yourself: “What 3 possible things
    could happen next?” Then, when the Characters act in response, you can
    smoothly present whatever events that flow logically from the situation.
    If the Characters act in a way that you did not consider, again, go with
    the flow and see where it leads. You will often be thrilled by the
    results.

Kevin Davies is the president and creative director of Peregrine,
http://www.peregrine-net.com. Peregrine produces the humorous roleplay
games MURPHY’S WORLD and BOB, LORD OF EVIL, plus ADVENTURE AREAS
miniatures gameplay surface, GRIT miniatures rules, and ADVENTURE AUDIO
background music. We are always looking for new writers and playtesters.