Does being a DM make you a better Player? Does being a player make you a better DM?
- Thread starter Creamsteak
- Start date
Vaxalon
First Post
Being a longtime DM gets in my way of being a good player.
I tend to take over too much, I become a spotlight hog. I also tend to have "boundary issues" with my player, and find myself running both sides of a conversation with an NPC.
OTOH being a player once in a while helps my DMing a lot.
I tend to take over too much, I become a spotlight hog. I also tend to have "boundary issues" with my player, and find myself running both sides of a conversation with an NPC.
OTOH being a player once in a while helps my DMing a lot.
Henry
Autoexreginated
Can you be a better network admin by spending time with other admins?
Can you be a better actor by watching other professional actors?
Can you become a better poker player by watching professional gamblers?
The answers are, of course, "yes."
And the solution is not just in learning by example - it's also the fact that every player needs to get a feel for "the other side of the table" once in a while. Although some people are more comfortable playing than DM'ing, and vice versa, In my opinion it's a good thing for EVERYONE to give it a go, both as player AND as DM. At worst, you've spent time rolling up new characters for a game. At best, you've just planted a spark of creativity in someone, that wasn't there before, that will never die.
Can you be a better actor by watching other professional actors?
Can you become a better poker player by watching professional gamblers?
The answers are, of course, "yes."
And the solution is not just in learning by example - it's also the fact that every player needs to get a feel for "the other side of the table" once in a while. Although some people are more comfortable playing than DM'ing, and vice versa, In my opinion it's a good thing for EVERYONE to give it a go, both as player AND as DM. At worst, you've spent time rolling up new characters for a game. At best, you've just planted a spark of creativity in someone, that wasn't there before, that will never die.
Psion
Adventurer
Wicht said:Other DMs get to be players?!?
Its been so long, I can't remember if it helped my DM skills or not
Know that feeling.
I think I've played like 4 or 5 sessions of 3e. I do occasionally play d20 SW, though, and one of my player has a spycraft game in the works.One DM I ran under in my high school years had never played.
Anyways, I think that as a DM, I am exposed to more character creation options and get to playtest more character ideas than the players do... and get to see how the players character concepts work from the other side of the screen, so I think DMs have a different vantage point on character creation.
Mathew_Freeman
Adventurer
It's given me more confidence to start DMing, knowing that my previous DM was now a player. I found that for the short time I DM'd for 3e, the most imaginative player was the former-DM.
I'm about to start DMing the Buffy game. It should be...interesting.
I'm about to start DMing the Buffy game. It should be...interesting.
Furn_Darkside
First Post
creamsteak said:
A little bit-
1) I try to avoid doing things as a player that would annoy me as a dm.
2) I can be more communicative with the other players on their characters without feeling I am stepping over a line as a dm.
Only in the sense that the few times I have played over the last few years- it reminds me not to do things that annoy me as a player.
I don't think there is any real connection between the two- one can only improve the other if the person is looking to improve.
I have known a couple of people who are good dm's, but no such good players.
I have know a lot of people who were good players, but horrible dm's.
FD
Rel
Liquid Awesome
This is a fantastic topic for discussion and I hope it gets a lot more replies.
As for me, I do think that the roles of DM and Player help develop one another. I am blessed to be in a gaming group where most of the players are also pretty good DM's so I've gotten to be on both sides of the screen with fair regularity.
I think that playing helps my ability to DM because it reminds me about the sort of things that really make the game fun for the players. I sometimes otherwise get a little too caught up in some of the things that I prefer as a DM. For example, when I DM, I sometimes catch myself spending the lions share of the prep time working on one of the overarching plotlines that the party will probably not catch wind of for quite a while, when what I should be doing is adding the nice little details that really make the world come alive for the players.
I also think that being a player reminds you that somtimes the "obvious" clues the DM leaves for the party to pick up on in order to lead them to the next phase of the adventure are not so "obvious" after all. Basically it reminds me not to be "too clever by half".
And I'm not sure that it qualifies as making me a "better DM" but playing gives me some time off to let me focus my creativity into just one character instead of spreading it across an entire world. That helps me avoid feeling burnt out.
I think that being the DM helps me be a better player in many of the ways that have already been mentioned.
I try to avoid doing things that I think would irritate me if I were DMing. And I think I'm better able to sense where the DM wants the game to go and try and facilitate that with the other players.
DMing has also made me a better min/ma...er, ahem, better at "character design". I get to try out lots of NPC's against the party and I think that gives me a feel of which feats, skills and spells work synergistically together.
I also find that DMing forces a good grasp of all the rules and it makes me better at the tactical aspects of being a player. I more easily see the "best move" that my character could make in terms of drawing fewer AoO's or achieving flanking or cover and I find that my knowledge of what constitutes a free, move equivalent, standard or partial action also results in more efficient play.
On the downside, I have a sometimes forceful personality that lends itself to hogging the spotlight. When I DM, this is a good thing because it keeps the players attention focused on me and the story. But when I play, I sometimes tend to run roughshod over the less outgoing players. All I can say is that I try to stop myself from doing it when I notice and pay attention to when their characters should be taking the lead role.
Anyhow, in short, I think the two skills compliment each other and I look forward to hearing more responses.
As for me, I do think that the roles of DM and Player help develop one another. I am blessed to be in a gaming group where most of the players are also pretty good DM's so I've gotten to be on both sides of the screen with fair regularity.
I think that playing helps my ability to DM because it reminds me about the sort of things that really make the game fun for the players. I sometimes otherwise get a little too caught up in some of the things that I prefer as a DM. For example, when I DM, I sometimes catch myself spending the lions share of the prep time working on one of the overarching plotlines that the party will probably not catch wind of for quite a while, when what I should be doing is adding the nice little details that really make the world come alive for the players.
I also think that being a player reminds you that somtimes the "obvious" clues the DM leaves for the party to pick up on in order to lead them to the next phase of the adventure are not so "obvious" after all. Basically it reminds me not to be "too clever by half".
And I'm not sure that it qualifies as making me a "better DM" but playing gives me some time off to let me focus my creativity into just one character instead of spreading it across an entire world. That helps me avoid feeling burnt out.
I think that being the DM helps me be a better player in many of the ways that have already been mentioned.
I try to avoid doing things that I think would irritate me if I were DMing. And I think I'm better able to sense where the DM wants the game to go and try and facilitate that with the other players.
DMing has also made me a better min/ma...er, ahem, better at "character design". I get to try out lots of NPC's against the party and I think that gives me a feel of which feats, skills and spells work synergistically together.
I also find that DMing forces a good grasp of all the rules and it makes me better at the tactical aspects of being a player. I more easily see the "best move" that my character could make in terms of drawing fewer AoO's or achieving flanking or cover and I find that my knowledge of what constitutes a free, move equivalent, standard or partial action also results in more efficient play.
On the downside, I have a sometimes forceful personality that lends itself to hogging the spotlight. When I DM, this is a good thing because it keeps the players attention focused on me and the story. But when I play, I sometimes tend to run roughshod over the less outgoing players. All I can say is that I try to stop myself from doing it when I notice and pay attention to when their characters should be taking the lead role.
Anyhow, in short, I think the two skills compliment each other and I look forward to hearing more responses.
reapersaurus
Explorer
Great thread, cs
barsoomcore
Unattainable Ideal
Word. I was graduating from university, actually, but 1992 was the last time I played. Shadowrun, I think. I think I had an elf with a machine gun. Must have been Shadowrun.Wicht said:
