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I am feeling the pressure from all directions. Work has laid some extra responsibilities on me (including an annual review), my application for graduate studies is coming due, and of course I am working on getting a new campaign ready to take off. As I work through all of this, I cannot help but be excited.
Going through school and projects at work, I have come to realize I work well under pressure. I can become more creative when I hyper-focus on the task at hand. “Just get something down on paper, you can fix it later,” I tell myself. Most of the time, when I take a second look, only a little adjustments are needed to complete the assignment. This is a huge relief of course since the deadline is probably in five minutes. It is commonly known that if you want something done, usually ask the busy person to do it. They are often the most focused since their schedule is packed. I am that busy person right now. So much so that I hesitate to turn in my application for school since I may have to give something else up. I am not willing to give up anything in my life right now, so should I even go through with it? What does this have to do with being a GM? Well, nothing really. I just wanted to share a bit about what is going on in my life. Perhaps you are feeling the same way. Too many things you want to do and not enough time (or money) to do it. I do know regardless of my future plans, I will continue gaming on Tuesday nights with my friends and family. Why? Because that is my fun time, my release from the stress of the world, a chance to play pretend and forget about any responsibilities.
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I’ve been running on fumes of late. I need a chance to stop by the station to refuel and refresh. Tonight was my chance to play “catch up” and I’m trying to take full advantage of it. Checking off the boxes of my list is quite satisfying…until I discover more that should get added.
The last couple of gaming sessions were semi-prepared. All the notes were in my head, but nothing was written down. I had no monsters picked out, no loot to find, no real plot points to hit, but that rarely stops me from coming up with something. I felt good after the session and hoped my players didn’t realize I had nothing ahead of time (I’m making up this story as we go along, just like they are). Am I too comfortable with this? Probably. All those missed plot hooks, all the monsters not encountered, they’re coming out now! My GM tool box is getting used generously. Sometimes my players benefit the most when I’m underprepared as I just pull out the loot table and make rushed decisions on item abilities. These will come back to haunt me later, of that I am sure! If you find yourself in this position, you could go either way. If you are comfortable with improv and coming up with a story on-the-fly, then go for it! Your players will have fun and you’ll have given yourself another week (or more) to prepare for the next session. On the other hand, if you are not comfortable with this, it’s okay to cancel or pull out a board game. This still gives you more time to prepare and your players will be okay with this decision too. It really is about getting together with friends and having fun! So we have announced our next campaign. We are playing in Shadowrun 5e, a system most of us are only vaguely familiar with (one has no clue). We debated over a title, but everyone seems to believe I am the one who should ultimately decide. I’m staring at the books without any clue as to what kind of story to tell and thinking to myself, “What did I get into?!”
Character backgrounds are a life-saver! With only two of my players’ backgrounds submitted, I have been able to at least formulate a title for the campaign. (No, you’ll hear it when everyone else does.) I have talked through another’s background, and am patiently waiting for the fourth player to get on board. He doesn’t have long though, we play another session soon to test out our changes from the first time. I’ve read through so much of the books that information has begun to swim about in my head. I do have a better grasp at some of the bad guy stats, and how they work. Fingers crossed it comes out in the game. The exciting part of this session (0.2?) is that the players will be using the characters they will bring into the stream. Sure, there may be some further minor adjustments, but for the most part, they’re done. It will not be long now. In a few weeks, 6 at most, and we’ll be jumping into a whole new adventure, in a new era. Here’s to post apocalyptic vibes in a postmodern sixth world of Seattle! Alright, you’ve read this far, so I’ll throw you the bone. You read it here first, the title of the next campaign is: Dark Allies: Shadows of Honor You arrive at the table and sit down to play with an eclectic group of people. Sure, some definitely do not align with your style, and maybe you’d never approach them in the hall, but now you have to work together. There may be differing opinions, style of play, even friend groups, but remember they are here to enjoy this game as much as you…common ground already.
Hot topics are some of the main things I try to keep away from the table (especially of the political variety). We don’t sit down to discuss what is going on in the world around us, we are here to escape it for a while. Remembering this alone, will negate a lot of unease and tension between others. We are playing make believe without running around in the yard with the neighbors. (Pausing for nostalgia.) I do this every time I run a game at a convention. These simple one-shots could have anyone sitting down at my table. It can be challenging to run a game not knowing what may cause someone else to feel uncomfortable. As a GM, it is up to me to read the body language of these strangers without any kind of base comparison, then adjust on the fly to accommodate for the release of tension. When I am able to do this, everyone wins!! Playing with strangers is just as rewarding. You can do the same thing as a player as well. Read your party members and aid in directing the party through the tense parts of encounters. Be the protector, the jokester, the care-free one, or even the careless one that the rest have to now rescue. All of these types of characters can redirect the one feeling uncomfortable to worry about something else entirely. I love my home game with close friends and family, but playing with strangers has allowed me to learn more about myself. I think this is fantastic! I’ve met some really great people simply by opening myself up to strangers. I skipped an entire month of GM Corners. My fans must be missing me!
*Looks into the void and hears crickets.* I was busy, okay! A trip to Ohio for a visit, trip to Kentucky, two cons, trip home, family in town for a week, day job stuff…they’re only excuses, but I think they're good ones. The stream took a few weeks off too. Life sometimes happens, besides, it was game related. Taking time off of gaming can be refreshing, this was not. I was still gaming at the cons and loving every minute of it. Tried out a homebrew one-shot for the first time and discovered I needed to tweak some things. The biggest of which is the gathering of information. I wanted the players to ask around and persuade people to share their knowledge of the creatures they were about to face. Instead, I just casually had a player roll a check and gave them most of it. Granted, we were on a time crunch and that’s a great way to shorten the game. Most people who sit down at my table during a convention usually are looking to experience snippets of the game. I have a little interaction with NPCs, some exploration to find the bad guys, a simple-ish battle, then a conclusion. Sometimes I have to cut things short because I have an end time that I need to meet. Less often, the players go through things so quickly a secondary battle and/or location must be added. Being familiar with the system makes adjusting things on-the-fly much easier. If you sat with me at a table, let me know. Leave a comment under this little blog. Also, feel free to send me questions of things that you’d like to hear me rant about…I mean talk about. I have covered quite a bit so far, but I’ll gladly revisit a topic or perhaps you’ll give me an idea about something new. There is a lot going into preparing oneself for game night. Not only do you have to prepare for the game, but you have to take care of yourself as well. I think about everything that goes into having a good session throughout the week prior, but what about the day of?
Game Prep: I’ve talked a lot about how to prepare your game session. There are many videos that you can also find about the best practices. Getting your players engaged in the action and setting up relatable NPCs are just a few ways of having an excellent game night. Physical Prep: Maps, monster stats, and technical equipment needed for the evening must be prepared ahead of time. On the day of the game, it is usually a bit too late to gather all the needed materials and put it together. There are a few exceptions to this of course, but I don’t have an extensive library of miniatures and maps. This also applies to a physical space. Tables, chairs, snacks, and drinks are just a few items that make playing in person more enjoyable and we have to think about those as well. Mental Prep: I have so much going on in my head during a game that I do not want the random, “Did I take care of…” to pop in and muddle everything else. I have to make sure my to-do list is manageable prior to the game and this includes making dinner for my family. There have been several times that I have declared that I am not making dinner on game night, but more often than I’d like, I still do it. When these things are taken care of, I am more free to truly enjoy my evening. So, when planning a game night (even if it is weekly) prepare yourself accordingly. As much as can be done prior to that day should be done, and don’t be afraid to recruit others to help. Assign snacks, ask another family member to cook dinner, take turns running the game…whatever helps you and your group make the best night possible. 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! 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 
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October 2025
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