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Weem's "Grade your DM-skills" Challenge...
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<blockquote data-quote="Thasmodious" data-source="post: 5535608" data-attributes="member: 63272"><p>I missed this thread in both of its previous runs somehow. I'm glad you necromanced it, weem, it's an interesting topic. It's been fun reading through the responses.</p><p></p><p>A - Running a game that is fun for all - my best skill comes from my profession (poker) - reading people. I stereotype and observe people every day and am really good at reading body language and verbal behavior. As such, I know my players cold and can quickly assess new players. I know what they like and what bores them to tears, so I focus gameplay around the things they enjoy and tailor situations to suit the strengths or weaknesses of different players. Couple this with -</p><p></p><p>B - Winging it - I don't plan much of the game out ahead of the time. I like to let the players dictate the action, story and direction of the game and fill in the details. I'm pretty good at this and am working on getting better. One area of weakness, I would grade it a C, I think, is specifically NPC-PC improv, I do "ummm..." more than I would like. I've been reading up on classic improv techniques for actors and comedians to work on getting better and more natural. </p><p></p><p>C - Prep. As for how my prep works out at the table, probably a B, but compared to how I dream of my prep working out it's a C. I fantasize about running a completely smooth game through the application of perfectly organized and accessible prep. But it never seems to work out that why. I shuffle papers, forget some detail I really wanted to come up, or have to spend a couple of minutes looking for exactly the thing I worked on because I knew it would come up eventually, but now its buried somewhere. My prep is both the strength of my improvisational style and a source of slowing the game down. </p><p></p><p>D - NPC RP - making the NPCs unique and memorable through mannerisms, voice, or style is something I struggle with. There are a few shining examples of me getting it right, but just a few. It's usually good enough, but the fully formed NPC in my head rarely seems to spring to life at the table. </p><p></p><p>F - game pacing/seriousness - similar to what several others have mentioned. Years ago, I would have given myself an A or a B here. I ran a tight game - if you said it, your PC said it; I used a timer for turns, when we sat down to play it was to play and not good around. But that was a long time ago. As we've gotten older, the social aspect of our game sessions has become just as important as the gaming. My friends and I just enjoy hanging out, talking about the past week, complaining about mid-30s domesticated life, and so on. This is really a group F, but it works for us. Other gamers would be put off by how we can go from in-voice RP to off-topic chatter in the same sentence. It makes building mood, dread, or suspense difficult, but we all enjoy the relaxed atmosphere.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Thasmodious, post: 5535608, member: 63272"] I missed this thread in both of its previous runs somehow. I'm glad you necromanced it, weem, it's an interesting topic. It's been fun reading through the responses. A - Running a game that is fun for all - my best skill comes from my profession (poker) - reading people. I stereotype and observe people every day and am really good at reading body language and verbal behavior. As such, I know my players cold and can quickly assess new players. I know what they like and what bores them to tears, so I focus gameplay around the things they enjoy and tailor situations to suit the strengths or weaknesses of different players. Couple this with - B - Winging it - I don't plan much of the game out ahead of the time. I like to let the players dictate the action, story and direction of the game and fill in the details. I'm pretty good at this and am working on getting better. One area of weakness, I would grade it a C, I think, is specifically NPC-PC improv, I do "ummm..." more than I would like. I've been reading up on classic improv techniques for actors and comedians to work on getting better and more natural. C - Prep. As for how my prep works out at the table, probably a B, but compared to how I dream of my prep working out it's a C. I fantasize about running a completely smooth game through the application of perfectly organized and accessible prep. But it never seems to work out that why. I shuffle papers, forget some detail I really wanted to come up, or have to spend a couple of minutes looking for exactly the thing I worked on because I knew it would come up eventually, but now its buried somewhere. My prep is both the strength of my improvisational style and a source of slowing the game down. D - NPC RP - making the NPCs unique and memorable through mannerisms, voice, or style is something I struggle with. There are a few shining examples of me getting it right, but just a few. It's usually good enough, but the fully formed NPC in my head rarely seems to spring to life at the table. F - game pacing/seriousness - similar to what several others have mentioned. Years ago, I would have given myself an A or a B here. I ran a tight game - if you said it, your PC said it; I used a timer for turns, when we sat down to play it was to play and not good around. But that was a long time ago. As we've gotten older, the social aspect of our game sessions has become just as important as the gaming. My friends and I just enjoy hanging out, talking about the past week, complaining about mid-30s domesticated life, and so on. This is really a group F, but it works for us. Other gamers would be put off by how we can go from in-voice RP to off-topic chatter in the same sentence. It makes building mood, dread, or suspense difficult, but we all enjoy the relaxed atmosphere. [/QUOTE]
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