Rules Index | GM Screen

Starting Characters

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 58
While the Game Master takes on numerous responsibilities vital to the smooth running and group enjoyment of a roleplaying game, his efforts focus on only half of a game’s aspects. The other half—the creation of characters, the narrative drive of the campaign, and a thousand other major decisions—rest to a large extent on the shoulders of the players.

If the game were a movie and the GM its director, then the players would be both starring actors and audience. All the fearsome monsters, nasty traps, elaborate dungeons, and sinister plots in the world are wasted without a dynamic band of players to confront them and aid in developing an exciting story. By sharing a measure of responsibility with the GM for a game’s story and the group’s greater enjoyment, players go beyond the role of mere bystanders, and become both the stars and the coauthors of their heroic epic.

This chapter details the part of a Pathfinder game the Game Master does not directly control, discussing the elements of an adventuring party, players’ rights and responsibilities, ways to involve newcomers and reengage veterans, and suggestions for how to work with gamers of all types toward the creation of more exciting stories and more enjoyable games.

The Face of the Enemy

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 58
The Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, at its simplest level, begins with an easy animosity: one player controls the “bad guys” while the others control the “good guys.” Add to this the fact that GMs control behind-the-scenes elements, actively concoct schemes to challenge the players, and hold the final say on rules arbitration, and there’s ample opportunity for competition, frustration, and hurt feelings. In the best roleplaying groups, both the GM and players figure out ways to avoid these problems.

All participants—especially new players—should be made aware that the GM-player relationship is not a competitive one, and that the players have roles just as important as the GM. While the GM serves in part as judge, his or her rulings should strive toward fairness, the continued flow of the game, and group enjoyment. At the same time, players share the responsibility for the group’s entertainment—including the GM’s—and should remain aware that time disproportionately spent on their characters, rules concerns, or out-of-game digressions potentially detracts from other players’ opportunities to participate.

Should a player have a concern about the game, a GM’s rules arbitration, or any other game-related quandary, he should be encouraged to bring such matters up at a time when it doesn’t detract from the group’s fun, perhaps immediately following the current game session. In the best campaigns, players should feel like they have a stake in the ongoing story, and a good Game Master keeps in touch with what game elements the players enjoy most, tailoring the campaign to take advantage of their preferences. In the end, though the GM always has the final say, it’s important for everyone involved to remember that it’s only a game, and a bit of flexibility here and there results in a more enjoyable experience for everyone in the end.

Before the Game

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 58
Prior to sitting down to create characters, the players and GM should have a discussion about what sort of game they want to play. Although most campaigns using the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game fall within the sword and sorcery genre, other options abound, and the GM should make sure the players are aware of what sort of game they’re headed into. If that means a world where wizardry is outlawed, or all druids have been driven underground by the depredations of an industrial revolution, they should know this before the game begins. Getting a sense of the types of characters each player would enjoy running helps the GM tailor the game from its outset— for more information on this aspect, see Chapter 6.

Group Composition

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 58
The traditional fantasy adventuring party includes four characters: a fighter, a cleric, a rogue, and a wizard. Such a party allows for a balance of abilities, complimentary class features, and distinct roles wherein each character shines. Though the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game offers a much wider selection of classes, the respective roles these archetypal classes represent—combat, healing and divine casting, stealth and skill mastery, and arcane casting—are still a good checklist for making sure the party can handle a wide range of challenges.

This group structure is not the only possibility, however, and player preference often leaves one or more of these roles unfilled. With a little foresight from the GM, a nontraditional group can flourish. While it might take some effort to adjust to the group’s strengths and account for any weaknesses, unusual parties can result in unique and memorable campaigns. How much strategy players put into rounding out party composition is often best left to them, so long as no one is pressured into playing a character he isn’t interested in solely for “the good of the party.”

Occasionally, a GM might restrict available character types. In these campaigns, such as the example mentioned above where wizardry is outlawed, it’s important to decide whether or not you’re interested in allowing exceptions. A sorcerer on the run from government officials who think he’s a wizard makes for a great PC, but ultimately players must abide by the tropes of your world.

Character Creation

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 59
When it finally comes time to create characters, players face several big decisions, and it’s the GM’s job to help guide them. When designing their characters, players and GMs should consider not just what characters people want to play, but also how those characters might mesh with a larger adventure group in a thematic rather than mechanical sense. Some of the most common inter-party conflicts, both in character and out, stem from issues of disparate alignments, inflexible viewpoints or goals, class prejudices, or racial enmities. While no player can be expected to create a character that meshes perfectly with all the others in his party—and indeed, a bit of tension between characters makes roleplaying more interesting— every player should seek out ways and reasons for a group to work together, rather than focus on bickering that detracts from the adventure.

During the pre-campaign discussion, the GM should make sure that all players are on the same page regarding character creation basics such as how to generate statistics and what, if any, special character options might be used. This is the time for GMs to discuss what material beyond the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook new characters might employ. Unless an option clearly conflicts with the tone of the game, or the GM feels the power level is unbalanced, it’s often a good idea to honor player requests, but ultimately the GM makes the call as to what rules can be used, and this information needs to be available to all players up front to avoid disappointment. When in doubt, you can always allow a power on a provisional basis, with the understanding that you’ll help the player rebuild his character if you later reject the rule.

Character Backgrounds

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 59
Every player is different when it comes to creating character backgrounds. Some like to write whole novels, while others just want a name and a weapon. Both approaches are completely valid, but come with their own particular pitfalls. The player who writes out an overly complex history might be possessive and irritated when the GM tries to work that twists and revelations that manipulate that history. At the same time, the character with no background runs the risk of being bored or feeling disconnected from the campaign.

In general, a good character background serves two functions: getting the player excited about roleplaying, and giving you as the GM something to latch onto at the beginning of the story. As a result, regardless of how much extra work they want to do, encourage each of your players to give you a physical description (to inform NPC reactions), a basic reason for adventuring, and at least one hook involving an old vendetta, personal ethos, relative, or other core detail you can weave into the campaign.

During the Game

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 59
It’s been stated before, but it bears repeating: as long as everyone’s enjoying themselves, the game is working. Some groups want nothing but combat after combat, while others crave in-depth roleplaying or elaborate plots. Each player around the game table brings his own unique skills and preferences, and it is the job of the Game Master to play to each player’s interests while balancing the needs of the whole group—including himself as world-builder and chief storyteller—to make sure everyone is having fun.

Fair Gameplay

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 59
In a game featuring as many rules and options as the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, the concept of “fairness” has a number of different interpretations. For players, though, fairness largely relates to their interaction with the Pathfinder rules and the group at large.

In terms of the rules of the game, the same aphorisms that held true in grade school remain true during gameplay: No one likes a cheater. In most games with experienced players, the GM doesn’t need to check over every player’s character sheet or double-check the math on every bonus. A game operating on dozens of different subsystems requires honesty and goodwill, as the fun of the game lies in the simulation, not the calculations behind it. Misreporting dice rolls, ignoring a vulnerability, or bending the rules in any of a thousand other ways puts the game’s integrity in jeopardy, and is ultimately pointless— a character’s story is made interesting by the failures as much as by the successes. The danger lies in losing the other players’ trust, forcing the game to slow down when the GM inevitably does note discrepancies, and even potentially being asked to leave a game. Yet even though players may give lip service to these ideas, or the fact that there’s no such thing as “winning” a roleplaying game, sometimes players succumb to temptation, and it’s the GM’s duty to deal with such players quietly, gracefully—and firmly.

Beyond simply obeying the rules, however, fairness can also mean sharing the spotlight equally, and ensuring that all players are getting the chance to perform. While not every player is going to be on the edge of his seat every minute, it’s a GM’s job to watch and see if anyone is hogging the spotlight or being left out. Compromise and sacrifice are needed to keep the game going smoothly, and you should avoid letting players monopolize your attention with their characters’ individual needs or interests. Similarly, sometimes characters are knocked out of combat or killed. Although it’s no fun to sit out for a portion of a session, players should remain positive and understand that sometimes the dice roll against them—and that you as GM will get them back into the action as soon as possible.

Player Knowledge

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 60
Separating the information a player knows from the facts a character possesses regularly proves one of the most difficult challenges players face. “Metagaming,” or making decisions based on player knowledge as opposed to character knowledge, quickly erodes the group’s belief in the world the GM creates. It often frustrates both the GM and other players when an interesting adventure cracks because a given PC acts on information the character has no way of possessing, and such issues should be dealt with quickly and calmly when they come up.

To determine if a character’s action is appropriate, have the player justify his decision using only information the character knows. For example, if no one in-game has mentioned anything about vampires, but the player knows the GM loves vampires or was looking at vampire miniatures earlier, it’s metagaming to have his character stock up on wooden stakes and holy water. If, however, the character remembers the strange marks on the victims’ necks and the fact that all the attacks occurred at night (and perhaps makes a skill check to recall any information he has about monsters fitting those criteria), buying wooden stakes is a perfectly justifiable action.

Metagaming isn’t always intentional. If a player isn’t certain where the line between player knowledge and character knowledge falls, have him explain in-character why he’s making a decision. If he resorts to using game terms or vague statements (or sophisticated concepts that clash with the voice of his Intelligence 7 barbarian), the information likely comes from player knowledge.

This certainly doesn’t mean that characters have to be as dumb as posts, never making decisions unless they are blatantly obvious, but rather that players should strive to process information in the same way their characters would. This is the essence of roleplaying. For example, suppose a wizard character says, “The orc used sneak attack on us—therefore, he’s got to be a rogue, so I won’t cast fireball. I’ll cast charm person instead; he probably has a weak Will save.” This is clearly player knowledge: the player described his reasoning using game terms and rules knowledge. Contrast this with the player instead saying: “The orc is wearing light armor and doing an awful lot of damage with just a short sword. This reminds me of the wererat murderer we fought in Korvosa. That wererat avoided my fireballs like they weren’t even there, so I’m going to try charm person.” Here the player performs exactly the same action, using the same information, but justifies it with character knowledge instead of directly metagaming. Of course, this isn’t an excuse for players to fast-talk their way into metagaming, and if a character has too many justified epiphanies, you may still want to have a talk with the player.

One particularly sticky area of metagaming has nothing to do with game mechanics, but rather realworld knowledge and intelligence. Sometimes the player who’s a genius at solving puzzles and riddles wants to play a dumb brute of a swordsman. This is great—so long as his character isn’t still solving all the puzzles. In this situation (or the reverse, where the player who’s terrible at puzzles has an Intelligence score of 22), let all the players work together to solve the puzzle, but use skill checks and Intelligence checks to offer hints or determine who actually comes up with the solution. Similarly, don’t fall into the trap of letting a player’s knowledge base inform the character’s beyond what’s reasonable. Just because your player knows how to make gunpowder out of bat guano doesn’t mean his uneducated halfling cleric does.

Plot Development

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 61
In real life, players might be justifiably suspicious if a stranger approached them at a bar and offered them money to perform a dangerous task. In a game, however, players who scrutinize plot hooks too closely can cause a GM a lot of stress. These players sometimes make the case that blindly accepting a plot hook (or rushing into battle, or delving into the dungeon) when their character wouldn’t likely do so goes against the whole idea of roleplaying. If the player knows the GM wants him to follow the hook and the player accepts, isn’t that metagaming?

In a way, yes. While a good GM is often capable of presenting incentives and circumstances that allow PCs to float seamlessly and justifiably from encounter to encounter, sometimes the GM needs a little help. In these situations, it’s important for the players to remember that the rule against metagaming is subordinate to the rule about having fun, and if you as the GM need them to work with you, it’s their responsibility to do so.

Thankfully, no matter what the situation, there’s never a time when a creative GM can’t help his players find a believable way to undertake a given action. Though it can be frustrating to deal with a player who stubbornly proclaims, “My character would never do that!”, take a moment to look at the character’s backstory and see if there’s a potential rationalization, or a previously “unrevealed” aspect of the situation that can get the character invested once more. A paladin might normally reject a sinister dark elf ’s offer, but perhaps in this case she pretends to accept in order to find out what the dark elf is up to. Conversely, maybe the drow forgot to mention that there’s several innocent lives at stake, making accepting her offer the only righteous option.

This doesn’t mean that players should always bend over backward to accommodate the GM—if none of the players take to the adventure hook for some unforeseen reason, you’ve failed to adequately read your party, and it’s up to you to repackage the adventure in a more appealing way. Alternatively, if a player genuinely can’t think of a good reason for a character to work toward an adventure’s ends, saying so might spark a lively in-character discussion and lead other characters to convince him.

Obstinacy, however, is one of the quickest ways for a player to kill a campaign. A player who refuses to play his character any way but his own, fails to accommodate other players’ wishes and interests, or insists on heading off on his own is forgetting the cooperative nature of the game. In this case, it’s the GM’s responsibility to intervene and speak privately to the player. If working together to add additional plot elements, or coaching the player in more team-based play, doesn’t succeed in bringing him back in line with the rest of the group, then it might be best for him to create a new character or resign from the gaming group altogether— perhaps taking his headstrong character on a solo adventure.

After the Game

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 62
Between sessions, players still have plenty of opportunities to contribute to a game’s success. Engaging in good record keeping, maintaining up-to-date characters, participating in game-related projects, and giving feedback all help games run smoothly, take work off your shoulders, and keep a campaign fun even between sessions.

Keeping Current

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 62
As soon as a session ends, all players should consult their notes to ensure that all experience points, treasure, and important information has been accurately recorded. Some groups appoint one player to track treasure, another to list NPC names and descriptions, and yet another to note plot and adventure hooks. These duties might rotate, but every player should understand her responsibilities to the group, lest valuable details or resources be lost. Often players keep their own notes, sometimes in character, and these narratives form contrasting viewpoints that can make for fun campaign journals. Additional documentation, such as map sketches, tallies of slain enemies, folders of item cards, and lists of shared adventuring gear, helps keep the players focused and adds to the fun.

Players should also ensure that their character sheets stay up to date, adding and removing equipment, accounting for long-term effects, and updating character level adjustments as soon as possible. Decide ahead of time if you have any specific preferences regarding leveling, such as not allowing the players to level in the middle of the session, or insisting that they roll their hit points in front of a witness. Players should always arrive for a session with an up-to-date character sheet so valuable game time isn’t consumed by last-minute preparation.

Feedback

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 62
Gaming groups thrive on feedback. Enthusiastic players spur the GM to continue creating exciting adventures and make the daunting task of running a game worthwhile, while the GM complimenting a player on his roleplaying, strategy, or teamwork can help educate and make the party more cohesive. A GM or player who compliments others also inspires others to share positive feedback and are most likely to be taken seriously when offering criticism.

Constructive criticism is just as important as positive reinforcement, but it should be handled more carefully. When possible, raise any individual issues with players in private. Phrasing such criticism as a request for assistance often makes the process easier. For example, if a player is getting caustic toward a teammate over the latter’s limited rules knowledge, you might ask that he help educate the neophyte player. Similarly, if one player’s character is constantly disrupting the game by heading off in different directions, you could ask that player to help you keep the group on track—many players understand the difficulties of GMing, and may play differently if they see themselves as sharing that responsibility.

Creativity Between Sessions

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 62
Just because the session ends, that doesn’t mean the game can’t follow a player home. Many players make their most meaningful contributions to a game between sessions. Literary-minded or artistic players often keep some manner of in-character campaign journal or sketchbook, depicting the party’s exploits from their characters’ point of view. This might take the form of notes, an actual penand- ink diary, or posts to an online journal or forum, and can be anything from letters to another character, reports to a related organization, a scholarly work, or a bardic epic. Making such records accessible to the other players (or even the wider gaming community) allows others to share in the group’s adventures.

Although campaign journals serve as the most common creative activity between sessions, no GM should underestimate the imagination of her players. Artistic players might create sketches of their characters, portraits of their enemies, or illustrations of their exploits, while more craft-focused players might help the GM make maps or props of important items, or might fashion costumes or adornments based on their characters. If you have a player looking for such a project, consider bringing them in on one of the creative aspects you don’t have time for, whether it’s painting miniatures, making maps, or creating a playlist for the game’s soundtrack.

It’s not just artists and writers who can help the GM between sessions, either. If you have a trusted player who’s particularly adept with the rules (or maybe even GMs himself ), feel free to use him as a resource, perhaps vetting rules supplements proposed by other players and advising you on tricky balance issues, or educating other players in particularly confusing aspects of the game.

Archives of Nethys

Rules Index | GM Screen