Brave Halfling Publishing made a post to the Swords & Wizardry forums,
calling for articles to aid in putting together an introductory Whitebox product. Coleston is asking for several articles, with instructions to post submissions to the relevant thread.
The Introductory Product will contain a mini-setting, adventures and some introductory articles, as well as a basic version of the Whitebox rules.
My own submission, is for an article, which introduces basic game-mastering to a new or young gamer.
I temporarily removed this, after hearing back from John, that he wanted my article. (Woo-Hoo!) I didn’t think it was an issue, as the instructions were to post the articles publicly, anyway. But, I wanted to check with him, first. Any feedback is still welcome and thanks to those who sent a reply, last night.
An Introduction to Game-Mastering by James A. Smith 2nd draft.
Imagine you're the designer, builder and caretaker of a magical place. A playground, of sorts. This place is built in your imagination. Like any other builder, you have some instructions and guidelines, in the form of this book and others you may choose to utilize.
You’re building this magical place, to entertain and delight your friends. You'll have a lot of fun yourself, but as the caretaker and host of your playground, your most important goal is providing your guests with adventure, thrills, challenges and a whole lot of fun!
You can name your playground, whatever you want. We use a French name, to refer to RPG playgrounds in general. We call them a Milieu. It's just a fancy word for "setting" or "environment." You may guide your friends through an adventure, or a series of adventures, connected by a common theme, goal, or the use of the same characters. A series of adventures, sharing a common play history and creating a larger tale, is called a Campaign. The use of the terms "Campaign" and "Milieu," comes from the Miniature Wargaming hobby, from which the first Fantasy Role-Playing Game, arose. If you've read The Lord of the Rings, by J. R. R. Tolkien, then you're already familiar with these ideas, as they appear in the form of a novel. Middle-Earth, is the Milieu. The action, which unfolds and creates the story, is the Campaign. The Fellowship, of course, is the Adventuring Party, which will be comprised of your players’ characters.
Through playing in your game, your players will build the Milieu in their imaginations, as well. Allowing them to contribute ideas to the Milieu, is a good idea. If a player creates a Fighting-Man and thinks of a cool, cultural, or historical background for his character, consider incorporating his ideas. Remember, you're not writing a novel. You're helping your players, create their adventure/story. To do so, you'll be creating the history, characteristics and personality of Everything Else, existing in the Milieu.
During the game, the players will describe their actions, to you and each other. They can do anything they imagine, within the guidelines given. They can walk to the next town, for instance, but can't fly there, without magical aid. If there is a question, as to whether or not they can perform a given action, a random die roll is used to determine their success. The GM (Game-Master) describes the actions of everything else in the Milieu, which the characters interact with and perceive. The same rules which apply to the players, applies to everything under the GM's control. When it comes to conversation, the players and GM, "speak in character," like actors in a play.
As the GM, It's your responsibility to create the various people, places, things and events, which provide opportunities for adventure. Perhaps, there's an ancient ruin, near the village where the Characters live. A place containing several underground levels, wherein live dangerous monsters, guarding fabulous treasures. An underground complex, containing monsters, traps, treasure and wondrous things, is called a "Dungeon." Adventures also take place aboveground. "Wilderness,” or “City" adventures, can come into play.
But, a Dungeon, Wilderness, or City, isn't a place with monsters standing around, waiting to be killed. It's a living, breathing environment. The inhabitants have their own goals, doings, friends, etc. Think of a Dungeon like it's an underground city, filled with monsters instead of civilized inhabitants. Ok, it's a very weird, sort of city. Different rules apply. As opposed to a statue in the town square, you may find a magical talking statue. Just remember that a Dungeon is not merely an Experience Point Machine.
The characters will meet all sorts of people, creatures, animals, etc. Some of these will become friends. Some may be business contacts, such as shop owner's. Some may become allies. Some will be enemies. It's your job, to bring all these Non-Player Characters (NPC's) to life! Give them personality, goals, plans, secrets. Often, these will be bit-players, with only a few thoughts, necessary for their portrayal. Other times, they will be more important and you’ll want to create more detail.
NPC's have their own goals and motivations. Here, the opportunity for conflict may arise, bringing into play one of the most important aspects of your role. Challenging the party. Your aim is to entertain and challenge your friends, not kill their characters. That's easy. You can kill a character with just a thought and a word. As a GM, you're doing this for your friends as well as yourself. The GM is pro-player and pro-campaign. Ultimately, you're on their side. Ultimately. But, to provide them with the experience they’re looking for, you need to challenge them. In short, you're going to try to kill their characters, but, you'll be doing so, within boundaries designed, to give them a decent chance at survival.
While playing out a battle against the PC's is fun, the GM's actions should reflect neutrality, whenever the player's are dealing with persons, places, or things, aside from themselves. Combat, haggling over prices at the market, dealing with local rulers, etc. NPC's and Monsters will do what's best for themselves. A friendly NPC may go out of his way, to help the characters. A hostile monster, may try to kill, cheat, or otherwise harm them. When you’re not playing an NPC, do what's best for the game and the enjoyment of the participants.
As the game progresses, you'll create more opportunities for adventure. You’re world moves along, independently of, as well as in interaction with, the Characters. Obviously, you can't plan out EVERYTHING. Stay a few steps ahead of the players, while working on a few longer ranged ideas. You'll soon find your own way of handling things.
A good idea, is to give the players more than one "adventure hook," or lead on where to find the next Treasure Hoard! They’ll start setting their own goals, giving you plenty of ideas. Always let the players choose their own coarse of action! This doesn't mean, that they won't occasionally find themselves boxed into a corner, or left with unpalatable choices. No one ever said, that adventuring was easy! This can be difficult, on a new GM, especially when players go off in an unexpected direction. Experience and practice will come to your aid.
After your campaign is under way and you have a bit of experience, invite your players over for an impromptu game. Roll-up some pre-generated characters, or let them roll, their own. Then, GM an adventure completely on the fly. Make everything up, right there, at the table. Some GM's let this idea freak them out. Don't! You've probably already discovered, that you can be just as creative while GM'ing, as you can while doing prep work. Your players will give you all sorts of wonderful ideas. Not verbatim, usually. It's like using a random table. Their conversations, speculations and plans, spark off all kinds of useful ideas, when your creative juices are flowing.
Do this several times, until you're comfortable with the experience. Then, try it during a regular Campaign session. Some GM's prefer this style, or a mixture of prepared encounters, combined with spontaneous happenings. Once your comfortable, flying without a net, you’ll be ready to deal with whatever your players throw your way.
