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<blockquote data-quote="Iosue" data-source="post: 6319160" data-attributes="member: 6680772">Yup, just what I was thinking of.&nbsp; Also, though I don't know if this was true for you in particular, but I suspect a lot of folks got involved with RPGs through established groups, which likely had a veteran DM and their own group dynamics that made a caller unnecessary.&nbsp; Myself, OTOH, I was introduced to the game playing a solo game (player-and-DM), after which I borrowed the rules, read them, and then got my sisters, brother, and best friend involved.&nbsp; Since the rules called for a mapper and caller, we naturally followed suit.&nbsp; Possibly why I'm one of the few mid-80s Caller Experienced players.Hehe.&nbsp; You and I have the exact opposite approach.&nbsp; At least when I'm playing B/X.&nbsp; My goal is turn gargoyle.&nbsp; If the game is in &quot;turn mode&quot;, I try not to speak unless spoken to.&nbsp; My job is simply to smoothly and accurately relate to the players what their characters perceive.&nbsp; In an encounter, if I'm actually playing a role, then the funny voices come out.&nbsp; In a combat, I'm pure referee -- making sure the playing field is clear, adjudicating corner cases, announcing results, keeping the flow of play moving.I have found that if I gargoyle up, the caller does NOT take charge.&nbsp; All players feel free to ask me for clarifications.&nbsp; They talk to each other without one person taking charge.&nbsp; If a &quot;leader&quot; does appear, it's generally due more to outside-the-game social dynamics than the fact that someone is the caller.&nbsp; We rotate the caller, so often &quot;leaders&quot; and &quot;callers&quot; are two different people.&nbsp; I suppose if people are in groups where those &quot;natural leaders&quot; tend to take the caller role, then there might be a feeling of the caller taking too large a roll in the game.&nbsp; But truly in my XP, the caller is just a relater of a certain kind of information in certain modes of the game, no more and no less.&nbsp; I'd have to play with more diverse groups to really be sure, but I suspect that rotating caller duties might even mitigate a lot of that &quot;natural leader&quot; stuff.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Iosue, post: 6319160, member: 6680772"] Yup, just what I was thinking of. Also, though I don't know if this was true for you in particular, but I suspect a lot of folks got involved with RPGs through established groups, which likely had a veteran DM and their own group dynamics that made a caller unnecessary. Myself, OTOH, I was introduced to the game playing a solo game (player-and-DM), after which I borrowed the rules, read them, and then got my sisters, brother, and best friend involved. Since the rules called for a mapper and caller, we naturally followed suit. Possibly why I'm one of the few mid-80s Caller Experienced players. Hehe. You and I have the exact opposite approach. At least when I'm playing B/X. My goal is turn gargoyle. If the game is in "turn mode", I try not to speak unless spoken to. My job is simply to smoothly and accurately relate to the players what their characters perceive. In an encounter, if I'm actually playing a role, then the funny voices come out. In a combat, I'm pure referee -- making sure the playing field is clear, adjudicating corner cases, announcing results, keeping the flow of play moving. I have found that if I gargoyle up, the caller does NOT take charge. All players feel free to ask me for clarifications. They talk to each other without one person taking charge. If a "leader" does appear, it's generally due more to outside-the-game social dynamics than the fact that someone is the caller. We rotate the caller, so often "leaders" and "callers" are two different people. I suppose if people are in groups where those "natural leaders" tend to take the caller role, then there might be a feeling of the caller taking too large a roll in the game. But truly in my XP, the caller is just a relater of a certain kind of information in certain modes of the game, no more and no less. I'd have to play with more diverse groups to really be sure, but I suspect that rotating caller duties might even mitigate a lot of that "natural leader" stuff. [/QUOTE]

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