How does a Player contribute to the overall tabletop RPG experience?

[erk_fwd]

What are the tools a player has to shape, add to, and mold the experience of everyone at the table during a tabletop RPG session? What are some pitfalls you'd warn a player against using to try to command the table?

inspiration: Who Tells the Story in a Tabletop RPG? The Player?​

 

[Bill Zebub]

Just going by the thread title, I was going to say, "Venmo the GM".

But maybe the question was not quite that open-ended.

 

[TiQuinn]

As a player, I try to pick up whatever the DM is laying down for the campaign, and then support that. Like, if I'm playing a Mothership adventure like Another Bug Hunt, and I'm playing a Marine, I want to play that Marine like one of the tropes that you might see in Aliens - cocky, confident, competent / incompetent, scared when the crap hits the fan, whatever. I want to try to support the feel of the game.

 

[Reynard]

They give me something to target, at least.

 

[billd91]

• Be reasonably attentive even when the spotlight is on someone else.
• Be a fan of the GM and the other players and their characters and help them to play at their best.
• Don't be disruptive (within reason, a joking aside every once in a while helps the fun, but don't over do it).
• Share the spotlight - actively when it's necessary (which might mean helping draw out the wallflowers).
• Advocate fairly for yourself and the other players.
• Gamely accept reasonable adversity. Yes, bad things sometimes happen at the table because of die rolls, opposition from NPCs, etc. Take it in stride.

 

[Reynard]

What are the tools a player has to shape, add to, and mold the experience of everyone at the table during a tabletop RPG session? What are some pitfalls you'd warn a player against using to try to command the table?​

​

inspiration: Who Tells the Story in a Tabletop RPG? The Player?​

Being more serious:

Adding to the experience has nothing to do with "command" and is probably antithetical to it.

A player should be a fan of the other players and their PCs, and a fan of the GM's world and adventures. That means being supportive.

A much rarer skill is knowing when to sit back and let someone else enjoy the spotlight. One group of folks that generally do this really well is the Critical Role cast. Of course, they are professional peerfromers and are trained to do it right, so one should not hold themselves or their fellow players to that high a standard. But you can still take some inspiration from how they do it.

Finally, above all, be present. Nothing kills momentum like a player who is on their phone or whatever and has no idea what is going on when their turn (in or out of combat) comes up. If you don't want to play, don't show up.