Comments on: Bottling GM Skills http://arsludi.lamemage.com/index.php/47/bottling-gm-skills/ art of the game, roleplaying game theory from the brain of ben robbins Thu, 09 Feb 2012 22:54:46 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 By: Kenneth Gauck http://arsludi.lamemage.com/index.php/47/bottling-gm-skills/comment-page-1/#comment-2183 Kenneth Gauck Thu, 09 Aug 2007 05:32:36 +0000 http://www.lamemage.com/proto/wordpress/?p=47#comment-2183 One key GM skill is the bag of tricks you have for your villains. While you can certainly broaden your villain tricks by planning villain activities during game planning time, a better way to broaden your tricks is by finding someone else to "play" the villain. Unlike your PC's they won't be the villain. You have to be the villain when the PC's are there. But your friend can come up with ideas you would never have thought of. The best such people are people you know and your players don't. Perhaps people you played with but one of you have moved. This can really enrich your villains. One key GM skill is the bag of tricks you have for your villains. While you can certainly broaden your villain tricks by planning villain activities during game planning time, a better way to broaden your tricks is by finding someone else to “play” the villain. Unlike your PC’s they won’t be the villain. You have to be the villain when the PC’s are there. But your friend can come up with ideas you would never have thought of. The best such people are people you know and your players don’t. Perhaps people you played with but one of you have moved. This can really enrich your villains.

]]> By: scholz http://arsludi.lamemage.com/index.php/47/bottling-gm-skills/comment-page-1/#comment-961 scholz Thu, 21 Dec 2006 08:41:11 +0000 http://www.lamemage.com/proto/wordpress/?p=47#comment-961 As a reader of the GM tips, the value comes from a sympathetic "oh that's it!" sort of thing, rather than like reading an instruction manual. <br />When I read about Revelations I thought "hmmm, this reminds me of the time I forgot that the party didn't know the paladin could levitate.. and their entire plan was ruined." (Not that that moment wasn't hilarious... for me). I should write down the things they need to come out knowing at some point. <br /><br />When I read about action shticks, I thought "thank god I don't need to worry about how to stop the missiles if the flyer goes after them." I use the same mechanism for more specific things in my adventures (but it is nice to have the general reference). This makes me thing a nice PDF would be an action shtick reference in a nice little 5"x8" folding booklet. As a reader of the GM tips, the value comes from a sympathetic “oh that’s it!” sort of thing, rather than like reading an instruction manual.
When I read about Revelations I thought “hmmm, this reminds me of the time I forgot that the party didn’t know the paladin could levitate.. and their entire plan was ruined.” (Not that that moment wasn’t hilarious… for me). I should write down the things they need to come out knowing at some point.

When I read about action shticks, I thought “thank god I don’t need to worry about how to stop the missiles if the flyer goes after them.” I use the same mechanism for more specific things in my adventures (but it is nice to have the general reference). This makes me thing a nice PDF would be an action shtick reference in a nice little 5″x8″ folding booklet.

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