#DMing might be fun; I enjoy worldbuilding and power

[alsogiraffes]

@clockworknomad @graymaven @chemicallywrit @iamherculesmulligan @shaulahinspace

[ill-be-istj-if-no-one-else-is]

DMing and MBTI, part III

So now we’ve reached the last and most important part: making sure your players - and you - are enjoying the game.

In the end this rule takes precedent over all. If you’re not having fun then there’s no point to playing tabletop RPGs, which are, you know, games.

Having fun relies on the other two rules: you should be worldbuilding in a way that is fun for the players, and you should have a rule system that works for them.

This starts before you even sit down to play: what sort of game should you play? D&D is the classic and the one I’ve been talking about, but there are other options - I haven’t played many others, but I’m generally familiar with the Powered By The Apocalypse and Dread concepts from media and so if you want a more flexible, story-driven game that is either super-adaptable but especially good for episodic storytelling (like Monster of the Week) or a horror game, one of those respectively might be better than D&D for your group.

Then, once you’ve decided, maybe you have a premise (like I discussed in worldbuilding) or maybe you don’t. If you have a premise, great! Make it clear that’s the game you’re running. Otherwise, discuss what kind of game your players want - combat and monsters? Political intrigue? Saving the world? Robbing everyone blind? Figure it out - and figure out what restrictions you need to ensure that people will get along (eg: no evil alignments helps cut out players being assholes for no reason and claiming it’s in character).

There are tons of other things that are important before you even play too: how will death work in this game? Why are these characters together? Do players have any triggers that you should avoid? Do the players want to be seriously challenged, or have a relatively chill game?

Once you’ve started, you then sort of need to make sure all the above is being respected and the game evolves to fit the players. Note that this is different than fitting the characters, though they’re intertwined.

To distinguish between the two: Fitting the characters means that if you have a player who’s playing a rogue, throw in some fun thieves cant bonuses and opportunities for stealth as opposed to open combat all the time. Fitting the players means that if the player who plays the rogue hates shopping expeditions in-game, you either keep those to a minimum, or if the player who plays the cleric loves shopping expeditions you let the player who plays the rogue go fix themselves a snack during the shopping expedition and fill them in on the essential details later.

Additionally, when you need to make a difficult rule call, that’s a case where ‘is this fun for the player’ is absolutely crucial, and in fact, when in doubt, go with what makes it fun for the player - and don’t confuse ‘fun’ with ‘a success.’ Part of the fun for most characters is that there are stakes and consequences, so don’t just give in, but let the player at least try something weird and creative.

Finally, keep an eye on how the players seem to be reacting. Again, that doesn’t mean you can’t do things that are scary or upsetting! But there’s a difference between watching a horror movie voluntarily and being forced to watch one and you need to respect that difference. (For a lot of really thoughtful and good discourse on this: check out the Geek and Sundry GM tips that began with Matt Mercer but later were hosted by Satine Phoenix are good, especially Satine’s longer-form shows with guests). If someone gets really quiet, or seems to not be having fun, talk to them and find out what’s going on.

It’s my guess that a feeler DM will be more focused on player experience naturally, but anyone can learn to do it. In fact, my last paragraph makes that point - reading people in terms of knowing how they actually feel is bullshit, but you can and should learn (in life in general) to recognize basic “I’m potentially uncomfortable signs”, like someone getting really quiet. And sometimes they’re just quiet because they’re tired, or they need some time to process but they’re enjoying themselves, or they feel like it’s someone else’s turn. But sometimes they’re quiet because they’re not having fun but they want to be polite. Your job as a DM is to be a facilitator and listener: give them the space to raise objections and concerns, and act accordingly if they do.

I do think that similar to world-building a high Si or Ni DM will try and plan ahead making note of player habits and likely reactions, whereas a high Se or Ne DM will improvise more based on the players in the moment. I also as mentioned think that thinkers will have to work a little to overcome their ‘but those are the rules’ or ‘it’s just a game, compartmentalize’ tendencies when it comes to respecting player feelings, but they certainly can learn - and feeler DMs are just as capable of steamrolling over a player’s feelings if they’re not careful.