Thoughts on player responsibility vs. GM responsibility

#1

Just noodling. I listened to the latest podcast, about NOT JUST WORDS!! and it got me thinking about the GM as authority model. I wonder how much our GM/player dichotomy gets in the way of our creativity. Are there ways to play RPG’s that save the GM role but are more egalitarian in the distribution of responsibility? Here are a set of rules for improv, modified for RPG use. What can you find wrong with this list?

These rules are adapted from the 11 Commandments for Improv, attributed to Del Close .General Principles

  • You are all NPC’s.
  • Always check your impulses.
  • Never rp in a scene unless you are NEEDED.
  • Save your fellow characters; RP it later. When you call in a favor or embarrass them publically.
  • Your prime responsibility is to support.
  • Work at the top of your brains at all times.
  • Never underestimate or condescend to fellow players.
  • No jokes (unless it is tipped in front that it is a joke.)
  • Trust… trust your fellow players to support you; trust them to come through if you lay something heavy on them; trust yourself.
  • Avoid judging what is going down except in terms of whether it needs help (either by entering or cutting), what can best follow, or how you can support it imaginatively if your support is called for.
  • LISTEN
#2

Ok so I’ll try to analize this in order.

  • what does this means? NPCs are there to interact with the players and bring worlds to life, if there’s no PCs then no NPCs can exist.
  • fair enough, sometimes the immersion is such that people just can’t control what they do in character.
  • i agree, but who dictates who needs you for that scene? Everyone wants to play and the GM directing the game plus the game’s rules ensure everyone get their fair share (ICRPG excells at this because of it always being in turns). So it is kind of necessary to have a dedicated referee for this
  • not sure what this is meant to mean… I guess acting first and RPing later is the correct way to proceed during tricky narrative scenes?
  • i would reword it to “your prime responsability is to support fun for others and you alike”.
  • yes pls! Lazy players only create boring characters
  • yes pls! X2 we’re friends and respect each other
  • why? Jokes are fine in most games. Even in meme-heavy games where humour can get cheesy really quickly jokes are a great part of the fun, specially when they are completely meta (out of the actual game)
  • yes pls! X3 “we’re friends and bla bla bla” xD this also applies to the GM.
  • yep, trying to keep the conversation about the game and your opinions about the events outside the actual game time is healthy.
  • Many players get desperate to play and try to always react to what’s going on… Most of the time you should LISTEN carefully until you are able to participate, the spotlight works better if you share it.
#3

Good points all.

Edit: TL:DR Games play better when the adults all act like adults. D&D was created by Gary in part to have something to do with his kids. The role of DM is somewhat parental, for good or ill. The DM as the stage manager who controls the spotlight grows from this. All of these rules are meant to get players to take responsibility not just for their own fun, but for the their significant impact on the total experience.

Here’s the long bit:

“You are all NPC’s” isn’t literal; it means that you are all supporting characters in each-other’s stories. In other words, Tralfaz the Mysterious is the protagonist of his story, but he’s an important supporting character in Sigfreid the paladin’s story. The concern, the generative element of the hobby, is the synergy of the table, and the synergy only happens when the players are generous with one another…and the more generous the better.

A lot of this comes down to: be polite. Beyond Whedon’s rule, actively seek to make the session better. Don’t focus on your character in a stubborn or disruptive way; use your character’s foibles and desires to further the action for everyone.

I just read the book “The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups.” It details a lot of what works and what doesn’t in group dynamics, including an improv troupe called The Upright Citizens’ Brigade. These rules are adapted from a set they use.

Regarding jokes: yes, jokes can be part of the fun. They can also ruin a moment or disrupt the flow, and they are usually opportunistic. I remember a recent session where our GM was describing something being formed out of streams of blood. Tension was building, and it was supposed to be scary. One player interjected that it was Voltron, and we all lost it. It was hilarious, and I’m smiling while I write it, but the tension the GM was trying to build was ruined, and the game never recovered. It turned into something other than the horror-fantasy he had envisioned.
We had fun, he was a good sport, but it was an ungenerous thing to do. That’s what I’m getting at.