How can DMs improve? What makes a good DM?

[Crothian]

This comes from another thread with a poster asking for how to prepare as a DM. Buyt I figure with the wide varietyy of DMs here it might be fun to come up with some ways that DMS can improve.

I'm not a good a DM. So, I need to improve. But it can be hard to self evaluate oneself to figure out what I do wrong, where I am weak, and what parts of the game I don't use. So, we'll start this off with a shotgun approach.

What makes a good dm? What traits does a DM have, what little tricks have you learned? Obviously different DMs of different games require differnet traits and approaches. Or is that wrong? Doea what makes a person good at running D&D also make a person good at running Vampire?

Secondly, how can a DM improve himself? Is there a checklist of things a DM can try and see how it goes in his game? Are there different approaches that people have to the game that can be m,entioned so a DM can try differnt ones to see what works for them? Sure we have books with DM hints and ideas and little things but I'm not sure any DM Guide or similiar book truely goes far enough.

Are there common mistakes that DMs make? For people that have seen and indtroded the game to lots of potential DMs are there things people new to the game tend to do wrong that they might not realize?

 

[ForceUser]

It's important for a DM to know what his group likes, and for him to listen to his group's wants regarding the game. Every good GM adjusts to his players' preferences, and finds a happy medium between what he wants to do and what the players want to do.

The most crucial talent of a good GM, however, is people skills. Good people skills matter more than rules knowledge, more than adventure prep, and more than world-building. A good GM is personable, flexible, easy-going, supportive, descriptive, critical (in the evaluative sense), level-headed, quick-witted, strong-willed, and accomodating of the players' personal tastes. A good GM is not a pushover, a nervous wreck, an arrogant bastard, a rules-lawyer, an adversary, a curmudgeon, a sluggard, or a know-it-all, and most especially, he is not a novelist using the medium to tell "his" story.

The most important thing a GM can do to improve his game is to listen to his players. If players are unhappy, they'll express it one way or another. Know your players well enough to pick up on non-verbal cues and aside comments. An open-minded and humble GM will make the necessary adjustments to increase everyone's fun.

 

[painandgreed]

I don't think there is any list of things that makes up a good DM. There are too many variables known as "players" and different players want something different out of their DM. It's all a matter of getting the right players under the right DM to make things work. There are certainly tricks to be taught and learned but they will not work for everybody and some that work well for one DM might end up being detrimental to another.

Anyway, my suggestions:

TIPS
1) Know your players. Know what they like and what they respond to. Know what they will pay attention to and what will bore them. Know how to read their mood and to tell when they're having fun or not. Once you do that, give them what they want or at least what they'll have fun putting up with.

2) Know yourself. Figure out what you can run and run well and do it. Don't try and run in a DM style that you don't like or can't do to the players enjoyment. Realize that not everybody is going to like your DMing style and don't take it too personally when they don't.

3) Prepare. Prepare. Prepare. The more you sit before the game and stat out creatures, work on maps, plan ahead, and even write out speculated conversations, the easier things will be for you when the game happens.

4) Don't be afraid to wing it. Sometimes in the middle of the game, all you preparation just doesn't seem to be workign out, the plot seems weak, the players are uninterested, but then you get an epiphany (or the players offer one) and a much better idea presents itself to you. Don't be afraid to dump your preparation for the new idea if it feels right. You just have to last the rest of the game and then you have till the next game to re-prepare and build up the new idea.

TRICKS
1) When in doubt, drop into combat. If the game is slowing down and you're faltering, start a combat. It will take up the rest of the game session most likely or at least give you time to think and at that point you've got till the next game session to come up with something, including a reason for the combat.

2) You can entertain most players by letting them make money. Figuring out trade routes, food costs, hired help wages, what they can buy low and sell high may seem like a boring logistics nightmare, but if the PCs are making money off of it, chances are they'll have fun doing it. Want to get them from one sid of the map to another or to adventure through areas they normally wouldn't go, set it up so they'll make money doign it. Treasure or resources (exotic animal bits for spell components) that they know can be sold for much higher price over at spot B is a good way to let them decide they want to go to spot B. Same goes with gambling even if it's just skill checks or consulting charts from random die rolls. Little encounters like that add spice to otherwise boring stops.

3)Base NPCs off of people you really know. They're easier to remember and you have a set personality ready built to portray for the PCs. If they know the person in question, even better because they will fill in the bits that you don't do right. TV and movie stars also work. Don't be afraid to say "he looks and acts just like actor X from movie Y", just present the idea once when appropriate and let it sit in their heads.

 

[sniffles]

As a player, I'd say:

1) Always remember you're there to have FUN.

2) Said fun should be for everyone, not just the DM.

 

[fafhrd]

3) Prepare. Prepare. Prepare. The more you sit before the game and stat out creatures, work on maps, plan ahead, and even write out speculated conversations, the easier things will be for you when the game happens.

This is Crothian we're talking about here. The guy can't have much time on his hands.

 

[Crothian]

This is Crothian we're talking about here. The guy can't have much time on his hands.

Preperation is not my problem. Over preperation might me, I slowed down my preperation since what I had at the set up at the beggining of September is still going strong and the players are not through it all yet.

 

[ThirdWizard]

ForceUser took my most important thing: people skills. Being able to read others. Are they having fun? Are they annoyed? Knowing what they're thinking without asking will get you far. Knowing what they like and dislike will also help. Talking about the game afterward is a good way to go about this, but realizing in game their mood is even more important, I think.

Doea what makes a person good at running D&D also make a person good at running Vampire?

I would say... yes, and no. Parts are the same, and others are different. The ability to improv and to read others remain, but if you don't understand the flavor and know how to bring out the flavor that the game is intended to perform, then you can't effectively do it. A GM who is good at running high fantasy games, isn't necessarily good at running horror games.

Secondly, how can a DM improve himself?

Practice practice practice.
Ask the Players for constructive criticism.
Play under another DM and note what its like.

These are the three keys, IMO.

Obviously, practice. If you do it more, and you're conciously looking at how you are doing, then you'll do better.

The Players can be very good helpers, assuming they can give constructive criticism. Other DMs who are playing are better at this, in my experience. They can tell you what they're looking for, what they're missing out on, and so on.

I'm a horrible Player. For some reason I can't play a PC with the same ability as I do an NPC, for whatever reasons. However, the little time I spent on the other side of the screen has helped me tremendously.

 

[RangerWickett]

Are we asking how to be a good game master (which implies providing a reasonably entertaining experience to everyone), or being a great one (which requires a lot of practice and honing of skills)?

Good GMing means knowing what you and your players want, and importantly, knowing what you don't want, and what the difference is. The basics of GMing are discussed all the time, because running a game is, indeed, difficult to master. However, a lot of people do it, and when people hit snags that trip up the game, it's easy to give advice on how to get the game moving again.

What is hard, though, is going beyond good, going beyond just being a game you play with your friends to pass the time. What is hard is running a game that is entertaining, that weaves the players into a story that entertains them and touches them, making the game take on as much significance in the lives of you and your players as your favorite movies.

I've played games that I think were better than Star Trek, than Lord of the Rings, than Star Wars -- but so far, they surpass only in the realm of drama and action. So far I have only rarely touched upon deeper meaning -- emotional, intellectual, or spiritual -- in my games. While not all players are interested in games with meaning, it is a challenge game masters may rise to: to run a game that is both action-packed and deeply affecting, both visceral and sublime.

Of course, there is always the threat of taking ourselves too seriously. Few sins in game mastering are worse than railroading, and few types of railroading are worse than when a game master wants his players to learn or to feel something specific. Gaming is a group activity, communal storytelling, and at its best, a compelling game will be so because the game master gives it the potential to have meaning.

It is the players themselves (the game master too) that make that meaning real.

 

[Kuld]

Also, broaden your knowledge. Read many books on many subjects. I found that the stories of old can inspire some beautiful colors in the game. I love to read about different professions, traditions, mythologies, you name it. I also take some classes, like right now I go once a month to blacksmith through the California Blacksmiths Association. I’ve studied brewing, bladesmithing, making armour, Oakeshott’s weapon typology and well, just about anything that I have time to study (beyond the scope of what I must for my profession).

It’s important not to impose too much on your players, though. Just use your knowledge to help describe the story, background, etc.. It adds a certain realism and depth to the game.

 

[Acid_crash]

GMs can improve by running games. The more they run, it's expected the better they will become. They can improve by being a Player in another GMs game, preferably one with a different style of running a game than him. By seeing a different style, you can pick up on different things. GMs can improve by communication with players, understanding them, and figuring out what makes them tick and what they enjoy about gaming. GMs can improve by reading these boards, other boards on other websites, and reading books, watching movies, and talking to other GMs on how they run their games.

A good GM is a GM who can grab the attention of his players, keep that attention for a session, and get the players to WANT to come back of their own initiative, and be excited about coming back. A good GM is a GM who pays attention to his players, focusing his game on the characters (each character, not just one or two), and intertwining the lives of the characters together from session to session.

Of course, to also be a good GM... a GM needs players. Players that are attentive, willing to show up, and give the GM a solid chance to run the game. Players that are willing to abide by the rules the GM sets forth, and willing to cooperate with the other players. Players that make characters within the structure and guidelines set forth by the GM without arguing.

No matter how good a GM is, all it takes is one player to ruin a game, no matter how awesome it could become.