Ten Ground Rules for Becoming a Great Game Master | Part 1

[@HowtobeaGreatGM]

Thanks for watching! Let us know in the comments below your thoughts on the ground rules for becoming a Great GM. Pre-order your copy of The Practical Guide to Becoming a Great GM here: bit.ly/3EDNbmK Find each chapter of the video easily by clicking on the timestamps in the description.

[@Tony-lc5kc]

Your name is "Guy"?...could of been worse I suppose, could have been "Dude" I mean its still lazy parenting, the day you are born and they look down at your junk, "hu? its a Guy" Is that a name or a pronoun? Could be so much worse, my mother calls me "Bastard" (that's not my name, its completely different on my birth certificate)

[@error707detected]

I feel like gming hasn't been fun for me lately, I worry if I'm wasting my players time, I worry if my story is not too stupid. You said that you'll make a video someday about reducing planning stress and getting more confident as a gm and by God it's exactly what I need, I won't say I'll subscribe to your channel to see it because I already have, it's honestly my favorite channel, so informative! And Guy is so charismatic

[@damianspence]

100% feel the same way

[@wogumator6565]

Honest question: what is keeping you from asking your players about their experience with you as a dm? Do you suspect they won't be honest? Especially close friends can be quite helpful if you simply ask them.

[@damianspence]

@@wogumator6565 For me, I have have talked a lot with my friends, and I've just found that I stress way too much and I haven't found a breakthrough. My enjoyment of DMing has gone steadily down over the last couple years. The whole thing just feels like stress now. I'm taking a break from DMing, but my hope is that this series and distancing myself from the stress helps me feel more confident again.

[@stevebreedlove9760]

@@damianspence I have done virtual no planning in advance and so far the feedback is good. We're playing Star Wars so there's already a galaxy to explore and I've made a point to bring in elements of galactic events they know so they feel part of a bigger story and it has worked. I have leaned heavily on them by helping me interpret dice rolls in terms of cinematics and by emphasizing that the game we play is a cowritten story and I don't want the burden of it. I provide enough to keep them on their toes, but otherwise don't stress. My preparation consists of a few ideas in my head for elements and I may prep some basic stats for npc. We also only play two hours every other week, so there isn't a need for a strong plan.

[@InAVallee]

As someone who has backed the kickstarter, I wish the text was available to us before this series started. Similarly to a book club or a class in school, we could read the text associated with the next video, then try to understand it better with your analysis and lecture. Can’t wait to have the book in hand!

[@HowtobeaGreatGM]

The PDF is coming soon... soon! So soon... I'm not saying end of March...

[@AnA10Pilot]

Rule number 5 I find extremely important. In the group I'm currently in my Fighter is the only character who has goals. He wants to become a well renowned fighter, try to find one of the legendary weapons, and eventually with the money he has made, start a fighting school or academy. The rest of the group just kind... meanders from plot point to plot point...

[@nicholasromero238]

I have another player be the "table attorney" (usually another player that loves learning the rules as much as I do) so if we get stumped, I have a pov from their side of the table to help determine fairness, and I usually talk about spot rulings with the whole table to see if we all like the result

[@swillsswil4817]

The surrender/run away point brought me back to 2nd ed D&D when you saw the morale stat. It gave a decent indicator of how brave the average specimen was. I liked that because it made the DM think about such things more often.

[@MrMJ965]

So I was having a Session of DnD and I, as a GM, wasn't satisfied with the monsters straight from the book. Now I know why. I didn't change the Numbers! Your tipps are helping me once again! Thank you!

[@sebastiankala1093]

What about goal being finding your goal? Your purpose, what you want... Thats a real struggle of more than many people.

[@steveandjanemessianics]

Hey there. I'm 43 and used to play TMNT and Ninjas and Superspies back in the early 90s through early 2000s. Haven't played a pen and paper RPG in many years but have purchased dice and a copy of TMNT. I'm planning to run a campaign with my three children, 6, 8 and 11, all very sharp and mature and ready to play. I'm brushing up on the rules and thinking about how to GM a game after not doing it for two decades. I watched your video and am about to watch part 2 and just wanted to make sure I left you a sincere compliment. This really reminded me of all those years GMing TMNT and Superspies and will benefit our little group, which I hope will be fun. The part about the GM roleplaying the NPCs and monsters and deciding to surrender or run away was an excellent point and makes a huge difference in a fun campaign and one that isn't. It adds to the story and makes the game more fun when the GM roleplays the NPCs well. Loved your approach in this video and how you kindly share your ideas on making the game fun for everyone. Thank you for this video. I really enjoyed it and am so excited to get back into pen and paper RPGs. Blessings, and Shalom, Stephen

[@kaylaa2204]

5:38 yes this! The way I put this to people the few times I’ve been asked for tips, is plan scenarios not plot points. That’s what some early RPGs called individual adventures actually, scenarios. You’d have some group or individual with a goal and motivation, maybe even groups and individuals opposing those of the first, or some variation thereof. The players are somehow affected by this happenstance, usually inconvenienced or simply having the promise of reward. And then you stop and run a game with a good number of these ranging from as simple as your fetch quest to as complex as political intrigue. Run that and then see how the players interact with that situation. And the way they interact with it and the fallout of it are what creates adventure. At least that’s how I’ve been doing it.

[@InsightCheck]

These are some really great pieces of advice! Making sure everyone at the table understands that the game is a collaborative experience is so critical to a successful game! The DM is playing too!

[@hyschara]

Homework for this week, find a goal for each of my current characters🖊🖊

[@michaeltorrance]

I started playing/GMing back in the late 70s using the 1977 Basic Set then pretty much stopped at AD&D and took a long hiatus. When trying to get back into the game using 5E I found myself interpreting rulings as they were written in those older version rules. Over the past few years, I have had a few players wanting in on my games ask if I was a "Rules as Written" DM. I tell them right up front, Nope, I'm a "Rules as Remembered" DM. 😁

[@JustInTimeWorlds]

I've just started running my first L5R game in a while. You know, there is nothing like running samurai politics to remind you that everyone must have a goal. Of course they're also all in love with their own deaths, so less on the running away side, more on the where is my white towel side :)

[@seamuspetrie6650]

I like this approach a lot. I started DMing for my kiddos (7 & 9) recently, and I started with some basic ideas, but I really don’t know what happens next. I was nervous to not have more overarching things planned, but after the first dungeon, I simply asked my kids: “What do you think is going to happen next in your adventure?” I now have a spine to work from.

[@AvenueStudios]

Haha loved the dramatic zoom in on saying the GM is a player! I wish I had had this advice decades ago when I first tried running games especially about not needing to know all the rules! I still have to fight against that thought every time I think of trying a new system. It always feels daunting but I am so glad when I just dive into a game with good friends and wing it! Trying to convince my wife to run some games as she has expressed desire to do so but feels intimidated by the rules - here's hoping she takes the reins soon! -Dan

[@orcishhorde]

I've noticed a bunch of board games in the background. Could you make an offtopic video about those? Basically a rapid-fire reviews/opinions - what you liked, what you didn't, and why.

[@plasma-]

Doubt anyone will read this but if you do, have a nice day!

[@DrHerculesReal]

Likewise!

[@slintirreg]

U2

[@DatGoodSir]

You too!

[@plasma-]

@@DrHerculesReal thank you!

[@plasma-]

@@ork44 why thanks!!

[@serendipityamazes]

This is fabulous. I know it's not, technically, Life Advice ... but this core concept of "understand the essential mechanic and you can wing it and then figure out the nitty-gritty when you're off the clock" applies to so many things. Thanks, y'all! I'm feeling so encouraged.

[@kaylaa2204]

9:30 early games including one I’m running now had morale mechanics and I’m pretty sure 5e does too that are just ignored. Basically if it was reasonable to assume that circumstances are dire enough that you think your NPCs would consider running, you would start making morale checks. This varied a little but the basic concept was fail morale check, run. It would be stuff like you killed their leader, the enemy or leader took a ton of damage from you all at once, or any other dire circumstances. Because yeah people don’t exist to be xp dispensers, they want to live.

[@jonathanowen9917]

These are all really helpful, but the two that I really need to work on is making sure everyone has a goal (including my NPCs and monsters) and everyone is responsible for the story.

[@anastasiia1683]

So good at mentioning "run away" and goals! It gave inspiration to the adventure I want to make. I've never played desktop RPGs as it isn't very popular in Ukraine, but definitely want to try it, and be DM more than a player. Right know I don't completely understand how it works, especially with the checking. So I'm learning rules and basics. Thank you for your videos!

[@kaylaa2204]

5:00 these days I’m a big fan of rules light games for this reason. Don’t give me a textbook of hyper specific rules someone needs to remember, give me the bones of a system I can quickly flip through, and let me call for what’s necessary. It’s way more straight forward that way. I love me a complex system, but the simplicity of a concise set of rules is very endearing. Stuff like early D&D, Traveller, I’m doing 1e Gamma World for my players atm. Sometimes I’ve seen systems that are too light though. I like games with meat without much fat I guess is a way to put it.

[@Darkalen]

Totally with you on this. Following completely. My DM played very similarly, and it always (mostly) translated to great sessions for me as a player.

[@HowtobeaGreatGM]

*Thanks for watching!* Let us know in the comments below your thoughts on the ground rules for becoming a Great GM. Pre-order your copy of The Practical Guide to Becoming a Great GM here: bit.ly/3EDNbmK Find each chapter of the video easily by clicking on the timestamps in the description.

[@priestesslucy]

What happened to Chapter 1.2 it's completely gone...

[@LandonTheDM]

Guy taught me to run with misspoken words and give them a meaning. I do this in my games, especially if someone calls me out on a silly mess up.

[@gaelickledoher4773]

Love it. « Everyone should have a goal !! »

[@davidgolfspro]

I mean if i were playing a PC who had the same goals, views, and commitment to carrying out the dastardly evil plot of gathering magical crystals and trying to release Tiamat to take over the world. And I as the PC believe in this to the extent that ill allow myself to fall in the name of the cause then it makes perfect sense to do so as a GM playing a NPC in that manner.

[@Slasher837]

About not knowing all the rules: one of the strongest moments in the campaign I'm currently running happened because of/thanks to me making a mistake on an NPC ability who ended up being overpowered. It led to an incredible duel similar to the Moutain vs Oberyn Tyrell in Game of Thrones, which the character ended up losing (but not dying) and which led to a great story arc with the character's being outcast with a new tyrant ruling the town they were in. I told my players about my mistake, they were totally okay. If I had known the rule better, it would have been just another "random" encounter.

[@myzookin6158]

The first part of the video on rules: I will admit, I never fully read the rules never had. I run so many systems that I have come to quickly understand 90% of the rules are not gonna be used all the time and they do come up I address its. Good to see I am not the only who does this.

[@thebronzemanticore]

The most fun I had was rp'ing a mighty half-dragon who kept engaging players, giving them a hard time every fight, realizing they got new tricks and getting close to defeating him and running away. People were thrilled to finally crush the dude

[@seop1721]

Interesting. I am looking forward to the series. I like the concepts here, as they reflect psychological flexibility. We shouldn’t get too rigid. I think concepts from coaching would be useful for groups, such as eliciting values with prospective players. ‘What’s important to you in a game?’ and ‘What will you see, hear, and feel when you have X [value]?’ This gets the values and how THEY define them for themselves. Two players may share the value of ‘glory’, but one defines it by wealth, and one by magical power or reputation in the world. This is a useful approach to PCs and NPCs, too. But mainly it can be a good way to deliver a game that everyone enjoys, by knowing what everyone finds important in RPGs…and how they specifically define those things.

[@almyit]

I’ve played D&D but I'm going to take a shot at being the DM for my family! Think D&D makes for an exciting family game night! Hopefully we can start a cool new family tradition! Thanks you for making this guide!😊

[@FlimsyRanger]

There is so much wisdom in his words, but there is also just as many exceptions. D&D really is fascinating.

[@tomaswiklund8898]

I´ve seen you GMing. You are truly Great. Got 30+ years experiance of it myself. You give us all Inspiration. Well done GM. ♥

[@boringblackbird8433]

I find the first one so interesting, like in my first campaign it was about pirates, and we couldn’t find good drowning rules, so we just made them up, and we haven’t had any trouble with it yet!

[@Aucacoyan]

Thanks guy! It's giving me great insight on my mistakes on my games. Watching a video instead of reading a book makes me pay more attention. Normally I skim all the initial chapters of "101 Tips to be the best GM ever"-kind of book, and I miss the point, because I don't nearn nothing new, I only reinforce my knowledge of "I am well versed in GMing". Thanks so much! Greetings from Argentina

[@TheAciddragon069]

i once played a Dwarf barbarian who always wanted to fight to the death as his clan felt running away or surrendering was a sign of weakness. honestly he was the funnest character i've ever played

[@Wolfsspinne]

Rulings is way more important than rules. If you know the rules you know what happens in predetermined situations, if you know how to make rulings you know what happens in all situations.

[@dm4life579]

I like these videos. Feels like the old days of this channel.

[@oliveroffer3699]

Been hanging out for this episode since last week. Thanks!

[@aaronclift]

I absolutely agree with the surrender/run away part of your video and have used that option many times with the enemies in my campaign. In session 1, the players ignored one of the enemies running away during combat. That surviving enemy went on to report the PCs to his superiors, which has had far-reaching consequences for the rest of the campaign.

[@kekpao5975]

i started my 5e campaign and my players fucked up my plans so i "rebooted" the worls using some god of time and reality mumble-jumble and they bought It. Now I'm making them rule over a Goblin village and its going fine

[@DrHerculesReal]

I love your videos, Guy! Very organized and informative. I like the structure.

[@evanm8972]

Subscribed! I don't play anymore, I only run games, because gm's are terrible. I have so many comments about every item on your list. I'm forever asked to run games I know little about. I once ended up in another city running a Warhammer 40k game on 15 minutes notice. I barely knew the system, so I wrote a few quick lines of plot and years later the players still reach out to remind me it was one of the most memorable and fun games they'd ever played and it was for me too! Running a game isn't about the "rules"

[@GreenBlueWalkthrough]

Very true! I to haves noticed that these are the realities of the TTRPG space and have been devloping my game around that... Which I have let the players kill an enemy quickly with in 10 points of the correct numbers becuase it's had for me to keep track of the numbers at the table live while gaming... I have also had enemies run away when it's clear they can't win... I just think of it as a new objective for which they can now win. Which is very realistic as in most wars fought on this Earth it is normal for warrors to surrender when the morale is broken this is even a machic in Wargames like Warhammer 40k and Total War.

[@kasane1337]

2 views? Wow, I'm early. Oh, and btw, I love how "to nearn" accidentally became an important part of this series ;-)

[@michaelczaiczynski3604]

Love the Guy The V portrait in the background!

[@zonegamma8197]

very good i will follow the series

[@Starham2000]

“Will a player fight to the dead?” From my experience, yes, but I do get what you’re saying.

[@aschaff3995]

Yes usually, yes they fight stuff till it's dead or they are dead.. damage is too hard for them to work out.. oh we should have run last round.

[@Rikus68]

I'm currently working on an adventure for Arcanis: The World Of Shattered Empires. The advice that everyone should have goals just fits the setting so well

[@Ginzzzu]

Everyone should have a goal!

[@alexpeterson5809]

Year long series! Woo hoo!

[@FiLtheThriL]

Great video!

[@cloudsora]

Btw the surrender or run away can ABSOLUTELY be used as a character building moment of morality because no, usually the "good" good guy doesn't execute the underling of the enemy after they accepted the surrender and questioned them. That's a much more grey or anti-hero style character and can definitely be used in way more interesting ways down the road.

[@justinparry1621]

"You do not have to learn all the rules." Balm to my soul.

[@haliniakpierre5877]

Amazing video and great advices.

[@perrywmoore9346]

Roborally is the best game, and you have a very good version. Respect.

[@qwe1231]

EVERYBODY SHOULD HAVE A BOWL, I MEAN GOAL.

[@Wolfsspinne]

Let your character be a Football-Player and they can have both.

[@BoojumFed]

@@Wolfsspinne Or a children's cereal-box character. ;^)

[@freddaniel5099]

Brilliant advice!

[@stevekirkby6570]

Brilliant advice as ever.

[@sitnamkrad]

I respectfully disagree with point 5 (everyone should have a goal). The disagreement comes from the examples being provided being in total opposition to my number 1 rule about playing TTRPGs. Everyone plays for a different reason and that's completely fine. There are players who come to the table expecting to play a mostly combat oriented game. Their characters go into dungeons, killing monsters, avoiding traps, and getting treasure. Why? Because it's there and they like rolling dice. And this is totally fine. Stating that it is a ground rule for players and GMs to have a goal that is more than just "killing stuff" is basically saying that this style of play is bad. Realizing there are different styles of playing, which style(s) you like, and which ones your players like, that is in my opinion the basis of what makes a great GM. Or a great player for that matter, because in the end, no amount of ground rules are going to fix your game if the play styles of everyone at the table don't match.

[@r.h.3084]

#2 really depends on the type of group you're playing with. And not taking the time to talk to each person about what they expect from the game, which results in huge clashes in play styles, is the core reason why each group I've been a part of that fell apart didn't make it.

[@nicklazaroo]

Another great video! Loved the last tip 😘

[@hermesalexandria]

"If you don have one (a goal), I don't want you at my table." I dislike this take immensely. Early in a campaign many players won't have enough information to the world to have strong goals, unless goal creation has supporting mechanics during character creation. Many games systems, especially older ones, simply don't have this narrative focus.

[@ryankeith8455]

"Everybody should have a goal!"

[@benjamineisenhofer8174]

"Change numbers to make stuff fun" - what does that "fun" mean? Making it just easy or hard enough that the outcome is always "challenging, but they made it"? I think that bears the danger of denying the players a part of the experience (the GM included). "Surrender or run away" - I really dig morale checks. Makes it even more of a game to the GM.

[@sqoody7invegas625]

In future can videos , for example this video is chat 1.3, that are in a series....can the "1.3" be included in name of video, so things don't get confusing in the series of videos

[@russelljacob7955]

Your #3 section of video! OH SO IMPORTANT! "We all play a little differently" The lack of this is what completely ruined Pathfinder Society GMing for me. "We must all GM exactly same way. You cannot make calls or interpretation. If something has potential variance? Well we must Errata it and put it in writing" It was the culture in the Society venture program. We MUST all GM the same. Lest somebody is upset and complains cause a GM ran a monster or something a bit differently. The GM is no a player. The GM is to present everything exactly as written. Any personal interpretation or style? Very frowned upon. It was quite toxic to be a part of and almost completely killed the joy I used to have GMing. I still GM and play, but not as a member of Paizo Society.

[@haliniakpierre5877]

Those extreme simulationists players ... They don't need a GM, they need a computer game.

[@russelljacob7955]

@@haliniakpierre5877 Yeah. It is pretty bad. So fixated on perfect rules that Pathfinder 2.0 and starfinder have so many errata that nobody even has the same rules. X player has a first run printing. Player two has a two year old PDF, and player 3 checks errata religiously. It is so disruptive how much there was. Most of it not even actual errata like typos. But balance and clarification of the smallest ambiguity of interpretation. Fun came second to the theory of fun. I told my GM that my expensive print books are my reference. I want to enjoy my game, not have an additional 30 pages to sift through to verify print is valid.

[@haliniakpierre5877]

@@russelljacob7955 That's part of the reason I stopped playing pathfinder. The community is broken.

[@russelljacob7955]

@@haliniakpierre5877 I remember the specific question that was asked of an upper Venture member of society. "Can players downcast cantrips as a spontaneous caster? My players wants to be sneaky so caster wants to cast light at level 1 strength" "No, rules say that cantrips cast at highest spell level, so they must cast light heightened accordingly" Seriously? But the same higher lvl people tended to he hypocritical with manipulating similar ambiguities to their opinion. It was quite disappointing to be a part of. And then a big debate about how they must need an errata if we wanted to be able to let players downcast cantrips.

[@haliniakpierre5877]

@@russelljacob7955 There are other games and community out there. If pathfinder or the community isn't for you, try an other one. The main goal is to have fun.

[@KootFloris]

Kill or be killed is very American movie concept. I can advice everyone to (re)watch Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. In this movie almost all fights are dialogue: "Let me teach you!" slash. "Oh, yeah, are you good enough?" slash. Or introduce cowardly minions who just joined the leader, for some income, and who run easily when their lives are at stake. Now will the players kill them all anyway? Then later let them meer their mothers, who cry over their sons bad choices. Such meetings may make players reconsider killing sprees, because, hey, 'it looks cool in a game'.

[@TheOnlyToblin]

I don't mind people looking up rules during gameplay, unless it's going to be exceptionally disruptive. So if I don't know a rule, I check it up quickly.

[@noaharaldsson703]

I can see that you have a great taste of boardgames

[@N0stalgicLeaf]

Surrender or Run Away: I'm Overseer of a Fallout game and this is something I've been thinking about. I've had the party mostly fighting mutated beasts and insects and the occasional raider or cultist. In the games hardly anyone surrenders due to the nature of an apocalypse and scarcity and the grim existence of fighting to survive one moment to the next. Also video games and xp machine go brrrrrt. Most aspects of the Fallout world I'm trying to preserve because I just love it and the players love it, but there were always parts that I struggled to believe. Now that they are getting pretty tough and well equipped I'm trying to find better challenges than just monsters that might kill them. I also like the moral ambiguity of the games that is unfortunately often forced or only presented in a mediocre way. I think I can do better.

[@DarthSears]

Incrementally increase difficulty, in my opinion. Go from beasts, to more Humanoids. When they outpace the Humanoids, give them the lesser Super Mutants. Then Mutants with Centaurs. And when they're outpacing those, give the Raiders some scavenged, cobbled-together power armor that has to be broken to kill the raider save for very specific targeting. Just general ideas from an actual Fallout game like that. You could also find arbitrary ways to disarm/weaken them, like making them unable to draw their weapons in certain locations, unless they want a gunfight with the local guard, and make the town hostile.

[@akku4819]

I know the basic rules and leave the specific ones to the players who need them.

[@Shielzy]

Hey 👋🏼 does your point around not needing to know the rules true for if you are charging money for games too?

[@Micsma]

this is some good stuff

[@Zand3rParkour]

Quick feedback: I assume the occasional zooming in and out was done to add some visual variety, but I found it pretty distracting.

[@PRGidaro]

I believe that the gm is the one giving the place for the player characters to live in. They do not determine how the npc reacts to the characters or what the adventure actually entails. The players decide where to go and how they interact with the world. The world is run by the gm. I want players to take some license with what is happening in the gut they can't say "the king gives us the treasure map because that is what I want." The world has to live with or without the pc's. They will help mold the world into what they want through the adventure the gm creates.

[@brycecoughlin3044]

In the beginning of fantasy high, the entire cast misread the rules for Spirit Guardians or something like that, and it was over powered as hell But they all still had fun and rolled with it until they realized the real rule. Just have fun is my take away.

[@kendiamond7852]

Sadly, it has been my experience that nearly every player I've seen is willing to fight to the death. I have DMed Monster/NPC Surrender several times but very rarely the opposite.

[@oz_jones]

Our party fought a bunch of insane cultists. I gave the last one a chance to surrender, he declined. And then died.

[@mikhailchuev8715]

Like Yoda DMs must be. Educate willing players they should. Art of TTRPG pass on they will. Only ignorant players cast out shall be.

[@TheSmart-CasualGamer]

DMs should be like Yoda. You have to get into a fight with Christopher Lee.

[@thegiantmimir4664]

"Everybody should have a goal." I don't disagree about monsters and NPCs having goals - if they are intelligent at least. However, I know many players, particularly players new to a group, or shy players, or beginners, who would baulk at being asked for goals, plans, and a table expectation of character happiness/sadness in relation to achieving said goals. Starting games without a clear player character objective is not a bad thing. It's also, arguably, more realistic as I know plenty of folks in real life(tm) who are not strongly goal-orientated. Turning players away from a table (even as a hyperbolic hypothetical statement of opinion) for being uncertain about a character goal might result in a group of players who are all super-engaged and helps generate dramatic motivated action, but you may have just stopped someone from blossoming into an advocate for tabletop roleplay and learning skills, or just having fun being involved. Are you a Great GM because you only welcome players to your table/your game that already align with your idea of a Great Game? In my opinion, a Great GM should be able to accommodate playing styles that may not align with their own. Welcome players who may not yet have the skills or will to fully inhabit a goal-orientated character. TTRPGs can be a vehicle to help the player develop those skills, or simply because some people have fun just being a small part of everyone else's stories and get stressed when they are asked to engage further. If Better Stories are the overall objective, then drama may be increased by having every thinking actor having goals, but if Having Fun is the overall objective, I'm not sure "Everybody should have a goal" is worthy of a chest tattoo. Maybe a discreet badge?

[@priestesslucy]

Isn't that where a Great GM contributes to helping the player find a goal for their character? Walk them through the character's backstory (helping make one in the first place if the player didn't have any ideas) and thinking through the sort of goals that might lead to. Of course remind the player that goals are only temporary, you only keep them until you fulfill them or replace them and it's always ok to replace your goals if something different inspires them.

[@garrettwhite3922]

My only problem with monsters surrendering is my players enjoy torturing and maiming anyone they catch

[@MercuryA2000]

My first thought for if your encounter is getting beaten too badly is to have it suddenly start fighting harder. If its a group of bandits and the team 1 shots the first one to get in range, (either surrender or) have one of the others yell "LARRY! We can't let that stand boys!" And silently give them all +1 AC and 15 bonus HP. If its a monster that is just getting bullied, have it stumble backwards and make a pained howl, before suddenly lunging forward with a panicked frenzy. Give it +3 to hit and damage so it at least gives you something to remember it by. +100 EXP Total: 250 EXP

[@jyoh6764]

Were you ever in Ealing on Sunday? Saw someone who looked incredibly like you yesterday but I was in the car so I couldn't ask

[@HowtobeaGreatGM]

I live in Ealing :)

[@jyoh6764]

@@HowtobeaGreatGM oh maybe it was you then! The person was talking to someone while walking through the highstreet

[@aschaff3995]

Surrendering or running is fine to ask and say why don't dm's do it.. It's because players never take NPC's surrender they just kill them anyway.

[@PsychoWedge]

My players always complain if the enemies flee...

[@SkullDixon]

I wouldn't say that most RPG game systems follow a singular, similar thread. Not every game even uses the same dice. So your advice works if every game you running Like D&D. D20 game with AC, Classes, Levels, etc. If you start to run a new game that is not Like D&D, then yes you'll have to Learn the Rules. Knowing the rules for D&D won't help you run the new game. However, the rest of the advice is accurate nonetheless even if the game is not like D&D. You don't need to have a perfect memory as a GM to learn a game. As far as NPCs/Monster surrendering. I agree - but when it comes to D&D I think you'll find that the game style will cause the player to more likely kill monsters even if the monster surrenders or tries to flee. I guess you should think about it like this; Would the Players ever surrender or decide on their own to Flee combat? In my experience with D&D, players tend to never want to do this unless they are forced to. In Games like Runequest, characters Surrendering and Fleeing are normal possibilities. Its also a nice way to shorten combat. I'll also say that, I wouldn't boot someone from my table just because they didn't come with a goal for their character. Sometimes players like to develop goals for their characters when they have played the character for a bit - figuring out who this character is through play. Sometimes, they want the GM to give them one as well.

[@bigsarge2085]

👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

[@jessemccarter7939]

My players get mad when enemies run away or retreat.

[@colbyboucher6391]

One thing about rules, and maybe you'll touch on this at some point, is that along with understanding the core system you should understand the narriative contract (an extension of the social contract.) The rules will give you some idea of the story they're trying to tell. Will your protagonists be normal people, action heroes, or practically demigods? How grounded is the world supposed to be? Is there a focus on long-term story lines or "dungeon crawls"? How common is magic in this world, if it exists at all? Because you can do pretty much anything by just understanding a core system... but that system probably skews towards a particular sort of game.

[@sciverzero8197]

I feel like every time I click on one of these videos I'm slowly witnessing the radicalization of an ideology.

[@mrgunn2726]

Guy Flanders, Crapeau de Belgique. Le Hi Didly oo Monsieur voisine. That will teach them to get your name correct.

[@jccusell]

This would be a really funny video to do a sketch about. "How to be a great GM" and then 10 horrible examples acted out.

[@alkl4502]

While I enjoy the content I must say that the new camera movement is really off putting