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Message: <blockquote data-quote="EzekielRaiden" data-source="post: 8428644" data-attributes="member: 6790260">0. Foremost: always encourage genuine, non-abusive, non-coercive player enthusiasm. I need to be able to step back and say, "even if this doesn't appeal to me, it makes my player(s) happy, and doesn't cost anyone else their happiness."1. As Dungeon World puts it, "draw maps, leave blanks." Provide enough details to make the world come to life, but not so many that the players can't make choices. This is a little hard for me, as I tend to go HAM on worldbuilding and detail, but my players seem happy with how things shake out.2. Draw the players into the action. I like a story where the characters matter--where you really can't just have one character die or disappear and have that mean nothing. So I tend to hand out items that draw toward a purpose, or drop hints about mysteries in a character's backstory, or in some other way weave a grand plot from the threads the players give me.3. Always be willing to accept defeat. If the players outsmart me, they deserve that victory. I won't take that from them, even if it means a fight ends up being a nothingburger or a social interaction goes weird. It's okay for the players to get lucky or clever and not get the "full experience" I intended.4. Make a bright world, but one threatened by darkness. It's a good world, one worth living in--and one worth protecting. Mercy works, kindness pays dividends, doing the right thing isn't stupid. Ordinary folks are weak and there are forces that are ready and willing to exploit and pervert the goodness of the world, but they can be stopped if people work for it. Heroism is what keeps the world from falling apart.5. Give the players allies they can care about and opponents they can enjoy opposing. Obviously not easy for all players/groups, but you might be surprised (I certainly was!) at who gets fired up when beloved(/hated) NPCs merely get thrown into the spotlight.6. Again as DW puts it, "Be a fan of the characters." You don't want pointless, dull ends for the PCs. Make events matter and have weight. If death is what will do that, go for it--but keep the cost in mind.</blockquote>

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