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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Imaculata" data-source="post: 8155185" data-attributes="member: 6801286">The DM is simply a player with a different set of responsibilities. He is both a parcipant, and a sort of storyteller and a sort of referee.But do not make the mistake of thinking that just because we use the words "referee" and "storyteller" to describe what a DM does, that that is exactly what he is. We use terms that people are familiar with, to help explain and  approximate the very unique role that a DM occupies in the game. He is neither exactly any one of those two things.He is sort of a storyteller, in the sense that he often narrates, and writes plots and characters. But he does not always dictate every outcome of his plots, like a writer might. Because the other players can also sway the plot.He is sort of a referee, in the way that he makes rulings, and is expected to be most knowledgable about the game's rules. But he is not a neutral arbiter, and his calls are not the final words on everything. The ruling side of the game can be collaborative between the DM and the other players. And he is a parcipant in a way that a normal referee is not.It is easy to get hung up on those words we use to explain what a DM does. But the role of the DM is neither one of those things to the letter.</blockquote>