Why DON'T you want to GM?

[GrimCo]

While i don't mind DMing and quite enjoy it, it won't run games longer than 5-10 sessions maximum, but i prefer 1-3 sessions and done. I only ran one game, 2 sessions of Cairn, in entire 2023 and thats it. In 2022 i ran 6 session game of 5e. Last real campaign i ran was in 2018-2019, and that was mostly on the monthly basis, so about 20 sessions for full campaign.

One major limitation is my group. They play 5e. Thats it. And we have one weekly time slot for gaming. When it comes to D&D, i'll only run horror games, grimdark and lethality cranked to 11. So for that kind of games, shorter stories and one shots do better than full on campaigns.

If i would ever again run full on campaign, that would be under some specific conditions. First, it's eather VtM revised or nWoD core only. Second, regular weekly or at worst bi weekly, but emphasis on regular and in person. Third- serious gameplay, heavy emphasis on role play and exploration of mature political, social and personal themes. And my current group isn't interested in that kind of games.

 

[Orius]

Not want to? I'm gladly a forever GM.

I do enjoy an occasional break though.

 

[Meech17]

I was really hoping there were some forever/only players around who might chime in.

It does seem that EN World tends to skew DM heavy.. I wonder if that's due to the nature of being a DM. Perhaps DMs are looking for more interactive content, like a forum where we can post questions and engage with the answers. Maybe players are more into the consumable type of content like YouTube videos.

 

[Thomas Shey]

It does seem that EN World tends to skew DM heavy.. I wonder if that's due to the nature of being a DM. Perhaps DMs are looking for more interactive content, like a forum where we can post questions and engage with the answers. Maybe players are more into the consumable type of content like YouTube videos

There are some only-players around here, but I suspect forum engagement tends to heavily select for people who GM at least some of the time because of the extent of the concerns discussed.

 

[gametaku]

I've only GM a few sessions, back in collage two sessions of D&D 3.5 and then 2 or 3 sessions of D&D 5E in 2018.

To answer your question, about why I haven't GM more over the years there have been a few reasons.

Not having enough time or thinking that I don't.
Having no inspiration for ideas on what a short campaign should be about.
Not knowing a system that would encourage the type of game I would want to run and that I would feel comfortable teaching others.
and for simplicity, lets just leave it at that I tend to be withdrawn.

 

[Meech17]

I've only GM a few sessions, back in collage two sessions of D&D 3.5 and then 2 or 3 sessions of D&D 5E in 2018.

To answer your question, about why I haven't GM more over the years there have been a few reasons.

Not having enough time or thinking that I don't.
Having no inspiration for ideas on what a short campaign should be about.
Not knowing a system that would encourage the type of game I would want to run and that I would feel comfortable teaching others.
and for simplicity, lets just leave it at that I tend to be withdrawn.

I want to start by saying I'm not trying to change your mind or talk you into being a GM.

I bolded a part of your response. What do you think about pre-written adventures/modules? Something that held me back for a long time was also the general feeling that I didn't have the inspiration for a campaign. I had a handful of ideas/scenes I thought would be cool, but I couldn't think of a way to potentially turn them into a whole campaign.

I also didn't know that modules were a thing for the longest time. A lot of my current DMing is taking adventures I've found online (Or in Dungeon Magazine) and stealing the bones/general structure for my own games.

If you had a desire to GM, do you think running a pre-written adventure could help you overcome this particular obstacle?

 

[Doc_Klueless]

I know this board is populated by more GMs than players-only, but I wanted to ask anyway:

If you do not want to GM, why? What about it makes it unpalatable to you? Have you tried and decided not to do it any more? Have you not tried? Do you imagine some day GMing?

Other folks are welcome to comment too, of course, and it is fine to talk about how you felt before you decided to GM, but I would like this discussion to focus on those that don't and won't. Thanks.

I've been the primary GM for my groups since about 1987. I'm tired of it. I burned out. It rapidly became a JOB to put together things for the players. To cater to their wants and wishes over mine.

I'm frequently amazed by the number of players who will bitch about their GM and their game but won't have the gumption or drive to take up the reins and run a game. Who will come into my groups and demand that I alter something to fit their needs. But when I say, "No. But I'm willing to play in the game that you run" because I think it'd honestly be fun to play in, I get a lot of guff about how I'm inflexible or gatekeeping or some such nonsense.

I usually end the conversation with [paraphrase]: "Stop. You're not paying me and I'm not selling my services. This is free so feel free to stay or go. Either way is fine with me."

Because so many players want to play and not GM, my tables (VTT or otherwise) are always full. I don't need them as much as they need a GM. And, really, with the explosion of VTTs, they don't NEED me either.

But I must be providing a good game because my player roster stays pretty stable.

 

[MGibster]

While i don't mind DMing and quite enjoy it, it won't run games longer than 5-10 sessions maximum, but i prefer 1-3 sessions and done. I only ran one game, 2 sessions of Cairn, in entire 2023 and thats it. In 2022 i ran 6 session game of 5e. Last real campaign i ran was in 2018-2019, and that was mostly on the monthly basis, so about 20 sessions for full campaign.

While my campaigns aren't typically that short, that's a completely valid number of sessions to run for a campaign. Or a mini-campaign if you prefer. When I design a campaign, I typically have some sort of end goal in which when completed signals the end of the campaign. We're not going to be playing the same campaign for years, we're going to play it for a few months and move on to something else.

 

[MGibster]

I've had a lot of good luck over the last decade. While I'm the primary GM, there are two other players who occasionally GM and they do a pretty good job of it. For those of you who are hesitant about running a game, I would encourage you to bite the bullet and give it a shot. Start small if you must, with a one shot or something, but give it a try. If nothing else, just seeing things from the perspective of a GM will be a nice change.

 

[SJB]

Player here. My game group has two excellent regular DMs who mix things up between long running campaigns and trying new systems and genres. We develop and test our own systems.

Our games club also has plenty of other DMs who do everything from straight D&D 5e to anime story games. All this happens within ten minutes walk from my house.

I very occasionally run short series when the DMs fancy a break or need some prep time.