GM's Perspective

By John Wommer

Hi gamers! I promised "Duplicate in Triplicate", and it'll be here soon, but as treat for Halloween I'd thought I'd drop in this quick "mini" GM Perspective on special events and atmosphere. Enjoy!

One of the things that I have done throughout my years of gaming has been to make real world special occasions such as holidays into a reason to have "special event" sessions of a game - usually a one shot session in a different system then the main campaign, or a side adventure that doesn't change the main campaign in any significant way, but still allows the players to use their characters in a different way which marks the occasion in their minds.

By John Grigsby, Staff Reviewer

DM: Having defeated the dragon, you loot it's horde and find, along with a few thousand coins of varying denominations, a dozen or so weapons of various types, some armor, and a finely-decorated sword that pulses with energy when you pull it from it's scabbard.

Player: Cool, a magical sword! We'll take it back to town and have identify and analyze dweomer cast on it if need be and if it's better than the +3 longsword I have, I'll sell my old one.

By John Wommer

Hello. My name is John Wommer and I'm going to be writing for GM's Perspective. As an introduction, I'd like to share a little about my background, to give you an idea of where I'm coming from, and why I'm here.

I've been gaming since 1977 - I started about a month before the first hardcover 1st ed D&D book was released (the Monster Manual) and have been going ever since. I have not only played but I have worked in the retail end of the game industry, most recently as manager of the Wizards of the Coast store in Puyallup, WA. It was in that position that I got to have a good look at the inner workings of the "giant of gaming", and to meet some great folks who are currently involved in various parts of the "modern" gaming industry. Most recently, I have had two articles published in d20zine!, my first published works.

By John Grigsby

If you're near a window, take a look outside. You're likely to see cars going by, or perhaps people going about their daily routines. Despite the fact that you are engaged in whatever it is you are doing, the world keeps moving around you. It doesn't stop just because you do. Why, then, should your campaign world be any different?

By John Grigsby, Staff Reviewer

Has this scene ever played out at your table?

DM: The dragon hisses angrily. "Prepare to die, mortals."
Player 1: (absently stacking dice) Yeah, yeah. I take out my sword and attack.
Player 2: (filing nails) Drinking my potion of invisibility.
Player 3: (watching television) ...

One of the fondest memories I have of a D&D session was when I was about 13. My father was running us through U1 The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh and we were sitting outside on the back patio, enjoying the fresh air and sunshine while we gamed. At one point in the adventure, our characters found themselves on the wrong side of a rather large pit and, given the dire circumstances, they decided to jump. Trouble is, this being 1st edition, there were no rules for handling such things.

By Steven Creech, Exec. Chairman

Every GM has encountered situations where the players make a choice that he is not prepared for. Give them option A and option B and they will invariably choose D. Trying to prepare for this is a sure-fire way to drive a GM insane. So, how do you handle it? This was the topic of an entire seminar at Origins where I served as a panelist. What follows is some of the solutions proposed by people such as Peter Adkinson, Ken Hite, Matt Forbeck, and myself...

By Nakia Pope, Staff Columnist

*Chairman's Note: This is Nakia's first column as one of our feature GM's Perspective writers. He would appreciate any and all comments regarding this article that you may wish to leave. -SC

If I had just one suggestion to impart to would-be game masters, no matter what genre, system, or setting, no matter if it's a one-shot game or a lasting campaign, it would be: communicate often with your players. On one level, this is not advice at all. Communication is a prerequisite for role-playing. It's a social activity, a collaborative work, so at some level communication is necessary. You tell the players: "You enter a ten by ten chamber. There is an orc guarding a chest." They tell you: "We attack the orc!" Such give and take is necessary for the game to proceed. I have found, however, that communication between players and game master before the game even begins can lead to a better game once the dice come out.

By John Grigsby, Staff Reviewer

Hi, I'm John Grigsby, one of our friendly Staff Reviewers here at d20 Magazine Rack and Ghostwind has invited me to fill in on this column for a little while to give you some of my thoughts on the GM's Perspective. So, with the introductions out of the way, let's get on with it, shall we? I'll try not to bore you too much.

By Morgan (TempesT) Grover

It's been quite some time since this section was updated, so I thought I would write up something small. Now I'm not exactly sure off hand what to write about, so I'll wing it a bit.

Combat

Silverscale's icewalking ability allows him to ignore the slippery surface conditions of his lair. It also allows him to cling to the walls of the lair as needed.