Hussar
Legend
I came across this really excellent line from @Celebrim in the https://www.enworld.org/threads/the-power-of-creation thread. I thought I'd pull it out here because I think it really deserves it's own examination.
I think this is something that gets lost in the conversation. For me, this is probably the primary reason I started DMing. I had a rather unfortunate string of really, really atrocious gaming experiences and I was sick of playing RPG's and then hating what was going on. So, I started running games. And I ran games with exactly the above quote in mind.
And, I do think there's a corollary here. Which would be:
Honestly, I think that 99% of the problems at the table would be solved overnight if everyone would keep these two things in mind. I think that most table issues stem from when one side of the screen or the other forgets that the game isn't just about them and is about everyone.
I hope I didn't make a terrible hash of the point I'm trying to make here. It made so much sense in my head, but, I'm having a bit of trouble finding the right words to express my point. What do others think?
@Celebrim said:Rule zero for me as a GM isn't, "I can do whatever I want", because while that's true it's not fundamental. Rule zero for me as a GM is, "Be the GM you would want to have if you were a player."
I think this is something that gets lost in the conversation. For me, this is probably the primary reason I started DMing. I had a rather unfortunate string of really, really atrocious gaming experiences and I was sick of playing RPG's and then hating what was going on. So, I started running games. And I ran games with exactly the above quote in mind.
And, I do think there's a corollary here. Which would be:
Be the player you would want to have if you were the DM
Honestly, I think that 99% of the problems at the table would be solved overnight if everyone would keep these two things in mind. I think that most table issues stem from when one side of the screen or the other forgets that the game isn't just about them and is about everyone.
I hope I didn't make a terrible hash of the point I'm trying to make here. It made so much sense in my head, but, I'm having a bit of trouble finding the right words to express my point. What do others think?