One of the things that stood out in my mind in last week’s game was how well the players managed to pull together with a show of teamwork and cooperation.
Trust is one of the largest factors when it comes to teamwork, and while I’ve known the other Players for a long time, we’re so used to running our respective gimmicks that we don’t get a lot of opportunities to do some real teamwork. Last time I saw some really good teamwork was when I was running the Teen Champions HERO game.
Looking back at last week, I think it was a good idea to highlight the abilities and niche that the other players occupied with their characters and acknowledging to them that it was impossible for my character to do everything alone. In admitting my character’s limitations and reinforcing that my character was working closely with the others for a reason, the other players began to step up the bat.
Players who were otherwise complacent, or soft-spoken began to take the initiative, and some of the older players that I’ve had the pleasure to game with on the same side of the table worked with a comforting efficiency that still leaves me grinning.
Back from a gaming weekend dedicated to pretty much cramming as much gaming as I can in 2 days. Played in the second session of the nMage game I’ve been enjoying and things are still pretty interesting. Multiple time sensitive objectives and a limited amount of resources is always a good thing. Throw in a hostage and the stakes get even higher, and the players are are all at the edge of their seats.
This is what I love about being able to play once in a while, it recharges my batteries, and gives me a ton of future ideas. I’m fairly confident in my ability to run a game, but being able to observe other GMs methods are invaluable.
I started GMing without anyone else to run for me with a box of Star Frontiers, and a reluctant older brother who was too lazy to run, but didn’t mind playing. From there, I probably hit all the bases, railroading, cheating to “win” and just about everything else.
Eventually it sort of dawned on me that I wasn’t really supposed to be competing since I was the GM. It was sort of a spontaneous realization that since I came up with the rules, and theoretically had a cast of thousands at my beck and call, it was my job therefore to make the game fun for my players and myself, all without having to “win” by killing off the characters.
Now that I’ve been running for a few years, my definition of winning as a GM relies on simply seeing if people are having fun. I get my kicks out of seeing my players happy and excited about the game. That and maybe feeling a little clever when one of my plans works out and my players are left wondering what hit them, but maybe that’s a better topic for a different entry.
I’m pretty sure I’m not the only GM to run into the type of player who genuinely enjoys playing rpgs, but can’t really muster the time or focus to sit down and internalize a campaign setting. In most cases this really isn’t a problem. Most hack and slash games, and superhero campaigns can be glossed over with a few set pieces and maybe some details as to the local organizations and big name heroes and villains and we’re ready to go.
However there are certain games that require more than just a passing familiarity with the setting. For example, campaign settings such as Legend of the Five Rings, Shadowrun and Exalted are all very setting specific games, where a group can get the most out of it from understanding the nuances of the cultures and people of the setting. L5R in particular is a setting that draws inspiration from ancient Japan, but differs enough to have it’s own take on etiquette and cultural norms that would leave most Japanese Historians puzzled or laughing their heads off. Shadowrun, as noted in one of the comments about jargon in a previous post, counts as having it’s own internal language of acronyms and slang that isolates those in the know from those who are just trying to understand the game. Exalted, on the other hand, has a massive setting that pretty much has everything in it, and due to the nature of most of it’s players, tends to draw a lot of talk about charms, combos, and various Gods and Deities that could easily be construed as a very big mess.
So how does a GM allow for the casual gamer to enjoy him or herself in the game without forcing the book down their throats?
Well… to be honest? Very slowly.
My personal success story with this sort of thing is with my girlfriend. She’s admittedly not the type of person who really wants to curl up in a chair and look over rules and charts and entire walls of text… but she does love a good tale. So rather than shove the book in her face, I sat her down, and began to tell her a legend or two about the people and places in Rokugan. If there’s on thing that John Wick and the other writers of L5R did right, it’s the stories. One tale led to another, until she eventually began to pick up on the nuances of the setting, how Honor was valued above most things, how the various clans viewed their roles in the empire, and even the motivations of the villains of the settings.
In the end, that did more for her than any book I could have lent her, and in a short span of time, she was already writing the broad strokes of a character history for a Phoenix Void Shugenja, and insisted that I run a game for her.
However, how does one deal with setting such as Exalted, where it doesn’t have much in terms of a metaplot? Instead you have NPC heroes running around the setting having done Great Things ™ and stand on the very edge of even Greater Things ™. While I totally appreciate Exalted’s “Go forth an trash our setting, we want you to” point of view, most of the casual players will have a hard time memorizing the setting like the more rabid book thumping rules fixated players do.
The solution I have for this is to introduce tiny, bite sized chunks in healthy portions. There’s no need to go back to the massive tale of the Usurpation and the Great Contagion, when all the player wants to do is start as a simple farmhand. Focus on the local, the immediate and the significant. A Solar player might not know what the hell a Sidereal Exalt is, or who Lytek might be, but in the scheme of things and at this stage of play… does it really matter? Information overload is a bad thing to the casual player as it starts creating the association that playing in the setting = work.
Those are my two suggestions as to how to get around this issue, but I’m curious to hear more from other GMs and players and their feedback on how they step around this issue, how do you guys do it?
Having been in the hobby for a goodly amount of years, I’ve had my fair share of convention games and one-shots run for newbies.
Unlike running for those who are already in the know about the hobby, or have had a few sessions under their belt, Newbies are an entirely different kettle of fish. The basic assumptions we make might not be obvious to them, and we have to be careful that we don’t commit some of the common mistakes of trying to get a new guy or girl to understand the setting.
Save the Jargon for Later - This has to be the most common mistake I’ve seen. RPGs by their nature often develop a specific “technical” language consisting of terms that don’t usually make it to common conversation. Over-enthusiastic veteran gamers try to make the game sound impressive to newbies by peppering their introduction with a mind-boggling array of terms. This could be anything from mysterious acronyms (THAC0, anyone?) to even words that mean one thing and used to mean an entirely different thing (Arete and Gnosis). Instead of becoming more impressive, the game suddenly becomes increasingly intimidating as the newbie is left confused by all of the jargon being thrown at his or her face. The fact that everyone else seems to understand it only highlights the sensation of alienation and non-inclusiveness.
Save the Tactics for Later – Newbies haven’t sat down and read through the rules with a magnifying glass, and a notebook. They have not geared their minds to fully optimize their Very First Character ™ into a Feat / Charm Comboing machine of Death. Newbies have not mastered the nuances of D&D’s Attacks of Opportunity, or the multiple maneuvers of HERO’s combat system. They’re here to try out the game and see if it’s fun. Again, veteran players may risk intimidating the newbie by throwing thousands of suggestions of what makes a “great” character without giving thought to the context of a new player. Worse, veteran players might begin to start backseat driving the new player, telling him what he ought to do. Most newbies come in blind and would rather learn the gaming system on their own pace. Respect their space and give them a chance to play what they want, and to explore the games systems for themselves.
Focus on the Fun - This one is for the GMs. New often come in with very little confidence in what rpgs are all about, or in what a game actually plays like. As such, don’t expect to throw a new player blind into a complex game right away. Let them learn how things work first, and give them something they can probably handle. Throw in a little of everything, some social situations, a chase, some combat and maybe a bit of problem solving. Let them experience what the full game is like, without going overboard. When they get the hang of things (trust me, it usually doesn’t take very long), they’ll begin to adapt faster than you think.
I’m not advocating “dumbing down” games for newbies, but I am in favor of pacing things so new players can find their sea legs without the added stress of players shoving crap down their throats. In pretty much any hobby I get into, if I need to know about something, I’ll ask. I react more negatively if the moment I set foot in a new hobby, I’m suddenly flooded by over eager individuals trying to tell me the One True Way ™.
Okay, now I think I’m walking straight into half-baked theory territory with this one but after watching this video clip taken from “A Beautiful Mind”, something stood out with regards to a pen and paper rpg context.
To repeat the points made in the video, Economist Adam Smith claims that self-interest alone (in a proper institutional setting) can lead to socially beneficial results. John Nash (in the movie at least) remarks that the statement is incomplete, as members of a society or institution must look out to both their self-interest and the interest of the group to attain the maximum benefit for all.
I’ve played in some games with a different gaming group where Screen Time was an issue. Much like in the movies, characters were constantly maneuvered by their respective players to garner as much Screen Time as possible, hoarding as much coolness as they can given the time they can hold the GM’s attention. Needless to say in the end, it resembled more of a group of shrieking fishmongers, and all possible enjoyment that could have existed ceased to be.
So who’s or what is to blame for this madness? Is it the GM? Possibly. Some groups have GMs who are capable of holding their own in crowd control. My current group has several such GMs, with varying tolerances for players who try to jut in out of turn, or try to upstage the less outspoken members of the group.
Mostly however, incidents like those I mentioned before could have been avoided if players in a group looked outside of their personal benefit and decided to act in accordance of what might be fun for everyone rather than just themselves. (finally got to the point of my title… whew)
It’s not really that hard, and most groups don’t even need this pointed out to them. However, sometimes it’s good to stop for a moment, and consider the other players when one is participating in an rpg. This applies to both the GMs and the Players by the way.
GMs sometimes become nearsighted when it comes to fixating over something they’ve designed. The plot should be so, characters are supposed to go here, and the bad guy can only be defeated thusly. By being so fixated on their plans and hence, themselves, they begin to negate player enjoyment, disallowing them from freely expressing or exploring their roles and utilizing their creativity.
Players are guilty the moment they begin to look at their characters as the primary focus at the expense of all others. Murdering NPCs, betraying other characters, and even deliberately ruining plot points at random for the all mighty experience points are all examples of behaving in a means that might push the benefit of your self-interest, but gleefully ignores the interests of the group.
By watching ourselves, and how we conduct play… we go back to a concept that is very, very elementary. Pre-schoolish in fact: Playing well with others.
Remember that all in all, rpgs are games. And nobody wants to play a game where someone is spoiling the whole thing by being a selfish nitwit. Once everyone plays by the social context of a fair and mutually beneficial experience… then everyone wins.
I’ve always wanted to GM a game, I’ve always had a lot of ideas in my head to the hoops and hooks I’d have my players would encounter as well as their responses to these sticky situations. I find myself a bit disappointed, I have to remind myself every now and then that I’m not playing. I’m already getting devious ideas… I ran Shadowrun that day, a game I picked up and learned to love, even with all the shennaneghans a lot of other people do over it.
I frequent the dumpshock forums for my fill of everything Shadowrun. Help with some things that seem foggy, reading about their mishaps and triumphs in game, as well as reading through their play-by-post games. Then there are the horror stories, the conversions (some are cool but there are conversions that just scare me like the Ai Cho-Aniki Shadowrun conversion… my brain…), and the overall asshattery that comes with internet forums. I still can’t get over the “Don’t shoot! We’re Shadowrunners!” story. That move was pure stupidity.
I found it a bit frustrating that my players sidestepped the few bits of the inherent violence of the setting that came their way… Not to mention that the fact that they didn’t know the full details of what their characters can do and what their gear does. That’s the price of dealing with newbies to Shadowrun.
In retrospect, I suppose sidestepping is better than dying, or getting shot, or getting arrested and jailed so a much bigger troll can make you his little puppy.
I must make it a point to turn up the “cyberpunk-iness” of the whole Shadowrun experience. Prepare for hookers, monolithic corporation encounters, drugs (BTLs too!), gangs, encounters most sexual and what not! BWAHAHAHAaahaaaaahaaa…… where’d my players go?
Well… I can’t really say that the Philippine movie industry isn’t trying.
Behold Resiklyo (“Recycle”) a movie where apparently an alien race with superior technology has conquered the world, and only a small group of rebels armed with robots made from recycled materials (and apparently ramp jumping motorcycles) can fight back.
The Philippine movie industry has really been in a sort of mediocre lull in terms of Speculative Fiction, mostly preferring to stick to tired and worn formulas of Engkantos (essentially the Fae) , Anting-Antings (magical talismans) and Superheroes. I’m just glad that they’re trying something new for a change, and it’s a real sci-fi movie without involving a rubber alien that looks like farmyard animal droppings.
Yep.
Anyway, given that it’s a decent attempt at serious Sci-Fi, I can see where they got some of their ideas. The Resiklo mechs in particular scream of Battletech’s Madcats
Personally, I hope this movie does well. I probably won’t watch it, but it would be a good thing for the general public to learn to appreciate a decent sci-fi action/adventure yarn, instead of the usual crappy fare, even if it is just once a year.
Being used to GMing, I am happy to report that I am finally back to playing. Admittedly I haven’t participated in an rpg as a player all that often and I always look forward to enjoying rpgs from the alternate standpoint.
Last weekend I got to try playing 2 games… Shadowrun 4th Edition and Mage: the Awakening.
Both games were very enjoyable experiences. I felt out of my element in Shadowrun as I was trying to figure out genre conventions even as I went along. Unlike the horror stories I keep seeing in the net, it would seem that it is somehow possible to sidestep the constant threat of violence inherent in the setting. We’re not even halfway through the actual scenario but I’m slowly learning from the experience.
Mage: the Awakening is an admittedly biased experience for me as I ran it before and was beside myself in joy at the chance to actually play. It also helped that the game revolved around an investigative game that rewarded players who took the initiative and actively worked to find the culprit rather than just wait around for plot hooks. I suspect that having GMed the game and read the rules (and supplements) has helped me look into avenues of investigation that other players overlooked but I hope a fun time was had by all.
—
As a player I’ve been evaluating my performance and playing style, trying to figure out what works and what doesn’t. One of the first few things that I realized about how I play was that I paid an inordinate amount of attention to the metagame angle. Perhaps it’s the belief that rpgs are meant to be games to be enjoyed by the entire group that influenced this, but I was making choices under the following sequence:
In-character Logic – Is this something he would do/say?
Story Logic – Will this action be detrimental to the story the GM is telling?
Group Cohesion – Am I stealing someone’s spotlight? How can I make sure that other people have fun with my decisions?
If any of these questions come up with a negative effect, then I start considering something different that will fulfill my overall agenda: Assist the GM and the Group to have 8 hours of fun in a 4 hour game.
Of course all of these decisions will fall flat on their face if I’m encountered with a GM who has a purely GM vs. Player perspective, as his fun is obviously against our own. I’ve met a few GMs who seem to revel in this mindset, and I have precious little in the way of good things to say about them so I’ll probably save that for some other post.
