How to Gamemaster
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A manual for running any tabletop roleplaying game using any system¸ setting¸ or genre.
My first experience with tabletop a roleplaying games was as the gamemaster. It was 1979¸ and my friends and I had pooled our money to buy the Dungeons & Dragons Basic Set. None of us had ever played before. There was no one else to run for us¸ or teach us how things were supposed to work. I read the rules and made up some characters¸ but I had no idea what I was supposed to do. After picking some monsters that looked cool to fight¸ and drawing a rudimentary map¸ I made it up as I went along. It was a lot of fun¸ but it took a while before I felt like I knew what I was doing.
If I'd had a book to show me what to do¸ I wouldn't have spent so much time figuring things out on my own. I could have been sharpening other skills¸ rather than sorting out what the fundamentals were. That's why I wrote How to Gamemaster. It's my attempt to create the how-to manual I wish I'd had over 40 years ago.
How to Gamemaster includes the following chapters:
- An overview of the gamemaster's role¸ with an explanation of the many jobs you will take on.
- What materials¸ both required and optional¸ you'll need in order to run a game.
- A guide to identifying different types of players and what they're looking to get from a game.
- How to prepare for adventures¸ game sessions¸ and campaigns.
- What Session Zero is¸ why it's important¸ and how to successful run one for your group.
- Advice on how to run a game session from start to finish¸ based on decades of experience.
- How to let yourself be human¸ dealing with inevitable mistakes¸ and managing player issues.
- Tips on teaching new players about roleplaying¸ the setting¸ and the mechanics of the game.
- A glossary of commonly used tabletop roleplaying terms.