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Author Topic: 1001 REAL GM Tips  (Read 8115 times)

Draignean

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #15 on: December 16, 2012, 11:57:18 pm »

24. Prepare to make your apologies when you have to do something that gives your players less game.
25. Do not begrudge the aforementioned apologies.
26. Just because a dungeon is beautiful in your head and patterned off of real designs doesn't mean it's going to be fun to slog.
27. Killing players makes the survivors more creative.
28. Occasionally it's okay to let a slightly broken mechanic slide instead of reinventing the wheel to fix it.
29. Incorporate player insanity as far as is feasible.
30. Let players screw up horribly.
31. Sandbox areas are fun until the players forget what they were supposed to be doing in the sandbox.
32. Player observance scales inversely to the list of items you want the player to notice.
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Thecard

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #16 on: December 17, 2012, 12:03:34 am »

33. No matter how infallible your logic is, some asshole is going to find an error with it.
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rabidgam3r

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #17 on: December 17, 2012, 12:17:14 am »

34. If someone finds an error in your logic, try to see their point.
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freeformschooler

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #18 on: December 17, 2012, 12:31:13 am »

35. The amount of effort put into a game scales inversely to the amount of time between turns. Consider your own balance carefully.
36. If the effort isn't fun, it's work. Run something fun.
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IamanElfCollaborator

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #19 on: December 17, 2012, 05:37:38 am »

37. Shipping is expected. Don't stamp it out exc-wait wrong RP.

37. Don't overprepare, you'll lose enjoyment.

javierpwn

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #20 on: December 17, 2012, 06:03:59 am »

37. Shipping is expected. Don't stamp it out exc-wait wrong RP.

38. Don't overprepare, you'll lose enjoyment.
Fixed that for you
39. Do not underprepare, as details will occurr
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10ebbor10

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #21 on: December 17, 2012, 07:30:43 am »

40. When your rolls start using multiple constants, functions and requires a special program to roll, it might be better to simplify
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Skyrunner

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #22 on: December 17, 2012, 07:41:36 am »

41. Nine hundred dice rolls a turn isn't quite easy. (Looking at adwarf :P)
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weenog

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #23 on: December 17, 2012, 01:50:03 pm »

41. Nine hundred dice rolls a turn isn't quite easy. (Looking at adwarf :P)

Heh, reminds me of a crossbow minigun setup I ran in a D&D game.  Each bolt split into two with separate attack rolls, threatened critical on natural 15 or higher (and then confirmed a crit automatically), each threat granted a free extra attack (also split) against any target, and each confirm granted an additional free attack (also split) against the same target.  Also each confirm granted a stacking +1 hit and damage to subsequent attacks.
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SeriousConcentrate

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #24 on: December 17, 2012, 02:42:58 pm »

PTW.
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kaian-a-coel

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #25 on: December 17, 2012, 03:50:32 pm »

42. All questions shall be answered. Be it your riddles or the "how does it work" from your players.
43. If your game involve useless loot and money, put shops every 1,27 dungeons.
44. NPC allies. Players are often glad to have people to interact with. Developped beyond quest givers and shopkeepers that is, but not XP-stealers. Quest givers that actively help from time to time are good.
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GreatWyrmGold

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #26 on: December 17, 2012, 05:30:08 pm »

41. Nine hundred dice rolls a turn isn't quite easy. (Looking at adwarf :P)
Reminds me of You Are Islanders. So many dice...

45. Make sure that you can make something up for anything. You know we'll find a way to get through some stone wall or force field eventually.
46. Write that made-up stuff down.
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Thecard

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #27 on: December 17, 2012, 11:27:02 pm »

46. Write that made-up stuff down.
47. AND DON'T FUCKING LOSE IT.
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I think the slaughter part is what made them angry.
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Those hookers aren't getting out any time soon, no matter how many fancy gadgets they have :v

freeformschooler

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #28 on: December 18, 2012, 02:07:38 am »

Oh yeah.
48. For the love of God, make and use maps. Decently-made MS paint ones work, flashy drawn ones are nice too. The top things players tend to get confused about: "Where am I? What is this? What can I do?" A properly-made, updating map can answer two or more of these in one fell swoop.
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Skyrunner

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Re: 1001 REAL GM Tips
« Reply #29 on: December 18, 2012, 02:10:29 am »

I don't have maps though D:
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