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scott2978
Lieutenant Commander
Joined: 02 Jun 2005
Posts: 220
Location: Arizona, USA
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 Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2008 2:27 am Post subject: |
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A few years ago I put together a list of rules that I called "Role Playing Etiquette 101". They were kind of my own personal rules, and while I never imposed them on my group, I do strongly encourage that everyone finds some they can agree with and follows them.
Here are a few of the "Etiquette for the GM" rules:
2. Consider the players opinions carefully. Accept that your rulings can be challenged.
7. Don’t take out your frustrations on the players. Outside the game they are still your friends.
9. The GM should always let the dice fall where they may, but always behind a screen.
10. The GM should never let the dice ruin a good story.
12. Always give the character a chance to survive.
13. You are not the players’ adversary!
14. Always let the characters attempt something that sounds reasonable.
16. Never miss a good opportunity to turn a random NPC into a recurring character.
17. No matter what, be consistent.
18. Never expect the players to find the clue, no matter how obvious you think it is.
21. When great role playing conflicts with the story, screw the story.
22. Role playing NPCs and giving vivid descriptions is only half of the job.
23. Think before every ruling how you would feel about it if you were a player and not the GM.
I also have a list of "Etiquette for the player" rules too.
As for one single golden rule, mine would be:
"Strive to be a good gamer by knowing and following the rules and etiquette of good role playing." |
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vong
Jedi
Joined: 30 Aug 2006
Posts: 6699
Location: Ottawa, Canada
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| Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2008 12:34 pm Post subject: |
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you should post a link to your full list 
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Doomhead
Commander
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
Posts: 252
Location: In the Heart of Texas
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| Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2008 12:49 pm Post subject: |
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Can you make this available in a PDF or Word document? I would love to share this with fellow gamers.
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garhkal
Sovereign Protector
Joined: 17 Jul 2005
Posts: 14215
Location: Reynoldsburg, Columbus, Ohio.
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| Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2008 6:57 pm Post subject: |
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| scott2978 wrote: |
9. The GM should always let the dice fall where they may, but always behind a screen.
10. The GM should never let the dice ruin a good story. |
These 2 seem contradictory..
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Revenant
Sub-Lieutenant
Joined: 27 Dec 2007
Posts: 73
Location: Tennessee
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| Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2008 7:17 pm Post subject: |
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| garhkal wrote: | | scott2978 wrote: |
9. The GM should always let the dice fall where they may, but always behind a screen.
10. The GM should never let the dice ruin a good story. |
These 2 seem contradictory.. |
Not really. What he means is that the GM should always remain fair about die rolls but at the same time make sure that he is compassionate to the characters who may be having a bad day with their rolls.
The thug hits... and should have killed the PC, but instead the GM simply drops the PC to INC. A story shouldn't be ruined by Thug X just because the PCs have a run of bad luck.
Look at The Empire Strikes Back... every Good PC in that flick flat out lost... seriously it was the most craptacular day they had in a long while, but it didn't ruin the story.
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garhkal
Sovereign Protector
Joined: 17 Jul 2005
Posts: 14215
Location: Reynoldsburg, Columbus, Ohio.
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| Posted: Sun Jan 13, 2008 5:23 am Post subject: |
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So go by the dice unless they are going against the pcs?? Why use them then?
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Gry Sarth
Jedi
Joined: 25 May 2004
Posts: 5304
Location: Sao Paulo - Brazil
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| Posted: Sun Jan 13, 2008 6:45 am Post subject: |
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It's not about the dice going against the PC, it's a bout the dice going against the story. Sometimes the direction that a game takes could be improved considerably, if only that monster hadn't rolled so well, so you fudge it. PCs failing and dying are often great to the story, it's not about that.
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jmanski
Arbiter-General (Moderator)
Joined: 06 Mar 2005
Posts: 2065
Location: Kansas
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| Posted: Sun Jan 13, 2008 2:51 pm Post subject: |
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Exactly.
Luke: I'm going to use the force and shoot my proton torpedoes.
GM (rolls dice): Eh, you rolled a.... 12. You miss. The Death Star fires and destroys the moon along with most of the rebel alliance.
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PsiberDragon
Commander
Joined: 31 Jul 2006
Posts: 260
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| Posted: Sun Jan 13, 2008 3:16 pm Post subject: |
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| jmanski wrote: | Luke: I'm going to use the force and shoot my proton torpedoes.
GM (rolls dice): Eh, you rolled a.... 12. You miss. The Death Star fires and destroys the moon along with most of the rebel alliance. |
I have to agree... sometimes, cinematics do take precedence over dice...
However, with that example, I'd love to see the expressions on the player's faces... 
It'd definitely let them know that they're not on Tattooine anymore... 
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vong
Jedi
Joined: 30 Aug 2006
Posts: 6699
Location: Ottawa, Canada
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| Posted: Sun Jan 13, 2008 3:21 pm Post subject: |
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| jmanski wrote: | Exactly.
Luke: I'm going to use the force and shoot my proton torpedoes.
GM (rolls dice): Eh, you rolled a.... 12. You miss. The Death Star fires and destroys the moon along with most of the rebel alliance. |
Im not sure what I would do in this case. Since the player rolled the dice, He knows the result. If I fudge that one, then the players know I was gonna make then succeed all along, and they arent really needed to help the story along. It lets them know that no matter what they do, I have a story in mind that they will follow.
Off the top of my head, I would let Luke fail, and have a good chunk of the rebellion die. Then he feels personally responsible for it and has to go seek out the remainder of the alliance, and bring them together
Its much harder to fudge set DCs when players roll. Sometimes I do fudge the DC if they are close, but if they are way off, and they know they just failed, its hard to say "Oh yea, the DC just got easier, you made it. A 2 year old could have made it"
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Ankhanu
Vice Admiral
Joined: 13 Oct 2006
Posts: 3089
Location: Nova Scotia, Canada
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| Posted: Sun Jan 13, 2008 3:52 pm Post subject: |
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This is a prime example of my "Be Flexible" rule; it applies equally well to PCs as it does to GMs. Yes, failing that roll will alter the story, but, if you're flexible (and, as Vong said, the roll was WAY off, too far to reasonably allow success), you can still work with it, perhaps making a more interesting story.
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DarkBlade
Cadet
Joined: 11 Jan 2008
Posts: 10
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| Posted: Sun Jan 13, 2008 9:35 pm Post subject: |
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My rules are simple.
1. As listed several times before in this thread "Have Fun"
2. Let the Players make their own decisions...(as an inexperienced GM, I am trying to rid myself of the bad habit of dropping hints as to how I think things should go, and just sit back and see what the players come up with.)
3. Do remind the players of things their characters would know...(which can conflict with number 2 at times, but helps keep the players from doing something stupid...like walking out an airlock without a space suit) |
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garhkal
Sovereign Protector
Joined: 17 Jul 2005
Posts: 14215
Location: Reynoldsburg, Columbus, Ohio.
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| Posted: Mon Jan 14, 2008 12:11 am Post subject: |
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| Gry Sarth wrote: | | It's not about the dice going against the PC, it's a bout the dice going against the story. Sometimes the direction that a game takes could be improved considerably, if only that monster hadn't rolled so well, so you fudge it. PCs failing and dying are often great to the story, it's not about that. |
If you are going for a story though, why even use dice? Heck, why even have character sheets... Just sit by a fireplace and tell a story.
| Quote: | | Im not sure what I would do in this case. Since the player rolled the dice, He knows the result. If I fudge that one, then the players know I was gonna make then succeed all along, and they arent really needed to help the story along. It lets them know that no matter what they do, I have a story in mind that they will follow. |
Agreed. When they see/know you are fudging to 'keep the story going' it removes a lot of the fun out of being in a game. I have left several groups before cause i found out the gm was fudging for the sake of the story... If i wanted to be in a story i would read one, or watch one... If i want to be in a game i will play one..
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Alcon
Commander
Joined: 12 Dec 2007
Posts: 253
Location: Bloomington, IN
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| Posted: Mon Jan 14, 2008 2:02 pm Post subject: |
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To clarify: "Have fun" is the goal. The "cardinal rules of roleplay" are the rules you use while roleplaying to ensure that you meet that goal.
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Gry Sarth
Jedi
Joined: 25 May 2004
Posts: 5304
Location: Sao Paulo - Brazil
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| Posted: Mon Jan 14, 2008 2:09 pm Post subject: |
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| garhkal wrote: | | If you are going for a story though, why even use dice? Heck, why even have character sheets... Just sit by a fireplace and tell a story. |
Don't take it so radically. I meant that once in a blue moon it's alright to fudge it a little if it's going to enhance the player's enjoyment of the game. It certainly should be very rare and very subtle, otherwise the players would sure feel cheated and there wouldn't be much point in playing a game like that.
But on that note, it is still lots of fun to play RPG with no dice rolling whatsoever. We had a couple of very memorable games where we would just talk it out, and the story was great, the roleplaying was great and we all had a lot of fun. As stated above, anything goes, as long as it's fun.
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