|
So you’ve been asked to run a game (or campaign) in a system you are unfamiliar with. Sure, you’ve played it a few times, but nothing extensive and someone else told you the rules as you needed to hear them. The GM was loosey-goosey with some rules while more strict with others, so your perception of the game is askew. How do you navigate running a game of your own?
Well, I’ve basically been asked to do just that! I am reading the core rulebook now, along with a couple supplemental books for the setting, and find it a bit overwhelming. (Remember the trash compactor in Star Wars….yeah, I’m in that.) I try to take it in bite size pieces, but have found myself getting confused. At some point, I just have to go with what I know and understand up to this point, and learn the rest as I play. Thankfully, my players are basically doing the same thing. I think session 0 is even more important at this point. Not really understanding the entirety of the system will make it more difficult to adjust things on-the-fly. A session 0, and even a one-shot to go along with it, helps to get my players aligned with each other and myself as we begin this new campaign. We can work through some issues that may arise, and discuss how to handle looking up rules (there is no way for one person to know them all). If you find yourself in this situation, do not be afraid to rely on your players. They can help you sift through which rules are quintessential and which ones are not necessary. You can also hold them responsible for knowing how their character works and the rules that go with it. You do not have to know everything to sit around the table and have fun!
0 Comments
So I found out my players are addicted to this game. Even when it makes sense just to call off a night, they are begging to make it a different night instead. We all look at our schedules to see if it will work and find that we could actually make it work. This makes them all happy and we move on.
I am not going to lie, this makes me feel good. I’m running a game they enjoy and don’t want to skip a week for any reason (if possible). I am thankful to have a group so willing to run around in a world I am creating, with an ending that has yet to be solidified. I am touched that they trust me to show up and be prepared to run a good game. I hope I don’t disappoint. Although we go to various places for work, family, or just to get away, this group has been a blessing for me. They have always encouraged getting together to game regardless of circumstances or surroundings. Even when one player has to step away for a week (or more), they encourage the rest of us to game on and then return when they are able. I find it hard sometimes to take the backseat. When I am a player in a game, I can tend to spout out the rules for a situation without being asked. If you are with a good group, this really is not too big of an issue, but it can step into the GM’s space. They can find it difficult to enforce their own rulings and it can cause them to stifel their own plans.
As a GM, I do appreciate being reminded of the rules when it is noticed I’m trying to look things up. I am also okay with my players discussing rules and how they interpret them. This often gives me a deeper insight to the rules and sometimes helps me to understand them myself. I cave pretty easily if a player can logically argue their point about a rule or circumstance in the game. It is hard to set aside that GM hat though, and just be a player. I make a conscious effort to bite my tongue when questions come up. If there seems to be a long pause, or I am asked, I let it loose. I do my best to still be respectful of the current GM, and often end the comment with, “but that’s up to you.” I am not perfect at this by any means, but I continue to strive for my best each time I sit down at the table. I recently heard a podcast about when it is a good time to stop a campaign. I agreed with him, but what stood out to me was when he talked about running something simple while preparing for the next great thing. I find myself in that same position right now. I am working on wrapping up our current campaign while, at the same time, reading and building a new world for the next one.
Let’s just start by telling everyone that I don’t have to do a lot of preparations for our current campaign at this point. I’m quite familiar with the rules and can come up with the story and encounters on-the-fly. This is almost on autopilot now and I only have to tweak it slightly. I can now take the time I would normally use to prepare the next session and familiarize myself with the next world we are going to run around in. This takes time and energy. Since it was already announced we are switching systems, I can share that I’m learning new things and refreshing some others long forgotten. Yes, I have played in this system before, but I never really grasped it. I only knew what my character could do, and even that was a bit dicey. I know that when we start, I’ll still be feeling clueless on the rules and even some of the aspects of the genre, but I’m still excited to give it a try. I just want to encourage you game masters out there. It is okay to “put a pin in it” and shelve the campaign until you are prepared to come back to it. In the meantime, play something more familiar so you can have the free time to work on the next thing. If you want to switch systems entirely, use the time to read and research what you want to move into. Above all, give yourself grace and don’t feel guilty for pausing (or even dropping) a campaign. |
AuthorJodie 
Archives
April 2025
Have a question you would like the GM to give her thoughts on?
|
RSS Feed