What is a DM, storyteller whatever you call "him"

*Zarkoneil* · 09-10-2004, 08:06 PM

What is DMs job ? Is he/her just to tell a story with some live pnj or should he be really involved in it ? I saw his job like :

"I'm a referee, I'm not here to kick PC ass if they don't wan't to play but to give somekind of groundwork on wich players should have fun developping their own characters"

but what do you think about ?

TheElf · 09-10-2004, 08:12 PM

The DM should make a world working around the characters, and the characters are responsible for their own adventures. Of course events in the background, etc. do help, and they are part of the world.

09-10-2004, 09:10 PM

Depends, in Paranoia the GM's job is to kill the players in new and interesting ways and to carry out the will of the computer.

In Call of Cthulhu the GM's job is to slowly drive the player's insane and then possibly kill them.

and so it goes, each game has it's own view on what duties the GM should perform.

TheElf · 09-10-2004, 09:38 PM

All of them are essentially running a setting, yes running a setting and making it work is different from setting to setting, but still it is the first responsibility of every GM to run the setting.

DragonDancer · 09-22-2004, 06:50 AM

I see the GM as the person that runs the setting and helps their players evolve within the boundaries of that setting. IE when my players start out on a mainly hack-n-slash session, I will have one or 2 higher level NPCs 'stumble' across them if they aren't doing well....

The important part as the GM/DM is not to have your NPC's take over the storyline - they should be fleshed out characters that the other charcters can relate to, and if necessary (when asked) they _may_ be able to provide advice. They aren't the ones that win every battel, not are they the ones that come up with the direction that the PC's should take... And they shouldn't be there for the duration of the game (unless it is a nice little plot-hook, maybe they were working with the bad guy all along!)

As a GM - is see my task as running the settings, helping the players advance their characters and severly kicking their assses if they continually do something STUPID!
But thats just my opinion

TheElf · 09-22-2004, 01:50 PM

The NPC can stay for longer if there is an in character reason for it.

09-10-2004, 08:06 PM	#1 (permalink)
Zarkoneil Dwarven Defender Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 118 Hírnév szint: 5	What is a DM, storyteller whatever you call "him" What is DMs job ? Is he/her just to tell a story with some live pnj or should he be really involved in it ? I saw his job like : "I'm a referee, I'm not here to kick PC ass if they don't wan't to play but to give somekind of groundwork on wich players should have fun developping their own characters" but what do you think about ?

09-10-2004, 08:12 PM	#2 (permalink)
TheElf Administrator Join Date: Aug 2004 Age: 32 Posts: 1,110 Blog Entries: 37 Hírnév szint: 27	Re: What is a DM, storyteller whatever you call "him" The DM should make a world working around the characters, and the characters are responsible for their own adventures. Of course events in the background, etc. do help, and they are part of the world.

09-10-2004, 09:10 PM	#3 (permalink)
AngryUz Guest Posts: n/a	Re: What is a DM, storyteller whatever you call "him" Depends, in Paranoia the GM's job is to kill the players in new and interesting ways and to carry out the will of the computer. In Call of Cthulhu the GM's job is to slowly drive the player's insane and then possibly kill them. and so it goes, each game has it's own view on what duties the GM should perform.

09-10-2004, 09:38 PM	#4 (permalink)
TheElf Administrator Join Date: Aug 2004 Age: 32 Posts: 1,110 Blog Entries: 37 Hírnév szint: 27	Re: What is a DM, storyteller whatever you call "him" All of them are essentially running a setting, yes running a setting and making it work is different from setting to setting, but still it is the first responsibility of every GM to run the setting.

09-22-2004, 06:50 AM	#5 (permalink)
DragonDancer Commoner Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Australia :) Posts: 1 Hírnév szint: 0	Re: What is a DM, storyteller whatever you call "him" I see the GM as the person that runs the setting and helps their players evolve within the boundaries of that setting. IE when my players start out on a mainly hack-n-slash session, I will have one or 2 higher level NPCs 'stumble' across them if they aren't doing well.... The important part as the GM/DM is not to have your NPC's take over the storyline - they should be fleshed out characters that the other charcters can relate to, and if necessary (when asked) they _may_ be able to provide advice. They aren't the ones that win every battel, not are they the ones that come up with the direction that the PC's should take... And they shouldn't be there for the duration of the game (unless it is a nice little plot-hook, maybe they were working with the bad guy all along!) As a GM - is see my task as running the settings, helping the players advance their characters and severly kicking their assses if they continually do something STUPID! But thats just my opinion

09-22-2004, 01:50 PM	#6 (permalink)
TheElf Administrator Join Date: Aug 2004 Age: 32 Posts: 1,110 Blog Entries: 37 Hírnév szint: 27	Re: What is a DM, storyteller whatever you call "him" The NPC can stay for longer if there is an in character reason for it.

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