Indeed. I won't even attempt to emulate Matt's dispassionate response portion, I'll just attempt to address things from my personal perspective. But before I dive into it, let me say that I believe the game should be fun for everyone, including the GM. If you're not having fun, that's serious biz and I want to help you fix it. (Even though I am part of the problem.) However, if 'fixing it' involves changing other people, the first step is finding out if they want (or are at least willing for) things to change. Otherwise you will end up trying to change things on the face of opposition, conscious or un-, and that's going to be harder. The status quo is nearly always to someone's advantage, and any specific change is nearly always to someone's advantage. Finding out who is in each camp will give you an idea of how the factions are likely to line up.
I'm probably one of the worst offenders as far as the 'inattention' goes. And I admit the problem has been growing for a while. I can offer some explanations and my perspective on the issue, but of course these will come out sounding like excuses. I am not making excuses -- my actions are my responsibility -- but sometimes it helps if you want to change things if you know how they got where they are today.
1) The referring to notes thing is minor -- when the notes are to hand. It may be time to reorganize your personal GM's manual, and recopy it in a larger typeface. ^_^ It may even be time to find someone to perform data entry on it, so you can the print it out and update the accumulated log of 'not-quite-rules-change-rulings' that have grown over recent years.
2) Combat is inherently slow. Spend time praising people who role-play 'at the speed of sound'. Award EPs for not stalling the turn. Deny the 'good role playing EPs' to players who habitually wait until their initiative comes up before they even start considering what their move will be. Be consistent about saying 'You delay until next initiative while you make up your mind'. 'Good role playing' is an award for being a good player, not just for having a character who makes amusing remarks and talks in a funny accent. However, on the flip-side, some things in the initiative system need work. And, although the GM does get a 'pass' because she has lots more things to think about than the players, use that pass judiciously. Make it clear that you are holding yourself to at least the same standards to which you are holding your players. (This relates to a lot of things: punctuality, preparedness, rules knowledge, etc.)
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A Reply in Parts
Date: 2005-03-15 07:14 pm (UTC)Indeed. I won't even attempt to emulate Matt's dispassionate response portion, I'll just attempt to address things from my personal perspective. But before I dive into it, let me say that I believe the game should be fun for everyone, including the GM. If you're not having fun, that's serious biz and I want to help you fix it. (Even though I am part of the problem.) However, if 'fixing it' involves changing other people, the first step is finding out if they want (or are at least willing for) things to change. Otherwise you will end up trying to change things on the face of opposition, conscious or un-, and that's going to be harder. The status quo is nearly always to someone's advantage, and any specific change is nearly always to someone's advantage. Finding out who is in each camp will give you an idea of how the factions are likely to line up.
I'm probably one of the worst offenders as far as the 'inattention' goes. And I admit the problem has been growing for a while. I can offer some explanations and my perspective on the issue, but of course these will come out sounding like excuses. I am not making excuses -- my actions are my responsibility -- but sometimes it helps if you want to change things if you know how they got where they are today.
1) The referring to notes thing is minor -- when the notes are to hand. It may be time to reorganize your personal GM's manual, and recopy it in a larger typeface. ^_^ It may even be time to find someone to perform data entry on it, so you can the print it out and update the accumulated log of 'not-quite-rules-change-rulings' that have grown over recent years.
2) Combat is inherently slow. Spend time praising people who role-play 'at the speed of sound'. Award EPs for not stalling the turn. Deny the 'good role playing EPs' to players who habitually wait until their initiative comes up before they even start considering what their move will be. Be consistent about saying 'You delay until next initiative while you make up your mind'. 'Good role playing' is an award for being a good player, not just for having a character who makes amusing remarks and talks in a funny accent. However, on the flip-side, some things in the initiative system need work. And, although the GM does get a 'pass' because she has lots more things to think about than the players, use that pass judiciously. Make it clear that you are holding yourself to at least the same standards to which you are holding your players. (This relates to a lot of things: punctuality, preparedness, rules knowledge, etc.)