The game table can be a lonely place. Everyone else is running around, having fun exploring their pet plots or doing cool things, but no one seems to be interested in the thing you want to do. So you sit quietly and wait, and you get more detached and disinterested in the game. You drop […]

“Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive…” –Sir Walter Scott Lying to someone in roleplaying games often goes something like this: “I want to convince the guy these are not the droids he’s looking for.” “Okay, roll.” >roll roll roll< "I win!" It's simple: you have a goal and […]

You’re a good player. You’ve got all the basics down pat: you understand your character, when it’s your turn you make decisions (even bad ones) rather than hold up the game, and when you sit down at the table you are ready and eager to play. You’re definitely holding up your end, but as you’ve […]

A good GM asks questions. A good GM doesn't say “this is what happens” unless they follow it up with “what do you do?” A good player asks questions. A good player asks how high is the wall, how far is it to the shore, does the innkeeper seem irritated or just busy? A GM […]

Gaming is a social contract. Everyone has agreed to show up and spend their time participating to the best of their abilities. Just as the GM has agreed to not (intentionally) create a situation which automatically wipes out the party, or precipitously violate the framework of the imaginary world by having German tanks roll out […]