How Do You Recruit and Train New GMs?

[Bill]

So the real consensus on how to get more people to play was to run more games. We're only human though and running more than a couple sessions a week turns the hobby into a job quickly. So the obvious solution is to get more people to run the game.

How do you do it?

What tips and tricks would you offer others interested in recruiting game masters?

Are there any resources available to make the job easier?

Please share your ideas and feedback, but try to keep it positive.

[Zamion138]

At our table, when people are missing the gm gets to play an some one elses runs a one shot or a short game of a few rounds......usaly this is not the most experinced gm and gives the gm a chance to unwind....we let the new gm of course pick the system and setting and if they are real "green" help them alot with rulesl..if they ask....try not to correct the new gm.
"No way dude i can hold my breath for blah minutes" " tolkeen does not have a laser defense grid and a massive nuclear power plant.".......its there game let them run it as they envision it.

[The Dark Elf]

My brother and I alternate. I don't think any of the other players in our group are interested in gming but at least we both still get to play alternately.

The best way to get someone to GM is to make them want to....

How did you want to GM?

I have found that it is normally when you are reading a book and that idea pops into your head! "Oh man, that would make a great villain/scene/plot/magical item!" Then they wish they could play out that idea- so they GM.

Unless you're reading the books you won't get the ideas, you won't get the WOW's from seeing all the cool stuff your GM is keeping to surprise you with.

So in summary: lend them the books you have and let them read them. I've bought sourcebooks and let others read them without ever opening them myself so I can be surprised!!
The isolated world books are great for this: England Japan Africa Australia etc. can all be used for these one off new GM adventures.

[Bill]

Grab 'em off the street, tie them to a couch, and make 'em watch episodes of "My Little Pony" back to back for 48 hours while The Dark Elf stands behinds them and whispers in their ear: "You want to be a GM. You want to be a GM. You want to be a GM..."

They'll GM after that: I gurantee it.

Interesting approach...a little felonious, but points for thinking outside the box!

[Grell]

Grab 'em off the street, tie them to a couch, and make 'em watch episodes of "My Little Pony" back to back for 48 hours while The Dark Elf stands behinds them and whispers in their ear: "You want to be a GM. You want to be a GM. You want to be a GM..."

They'll GM after that: I gurantee it.

No, this will end in "Pony Pathfinder" or "RIFTS: Equestria." I guarantee it.

[Goliath Strongarm]

Grab 'em off the street, tie them to a couch, and make 'em watch episodes of "My Little Pony" back to back for 48 hours while The Dark Elf stands behinds them and whispers in their ear: "You want to be a GM. You want to be a GM. You want to be a GM..."

They'll GM after that: I gurantee it.

No, this will end in "Pony Pathfinder" or "RIFTS: Equestria." I guarantee it.

Aaand minus 10 bajillion points in every category for even knowing that equestria is the name of their kingdom.

[Grell]

D'oh! It's my kids fault, I swear!

[Bill]

I guess this is a tougher question than I thought. Not terribly surprising though. I think most of us came to running games because of our own interest in doing so and didn't need to be recruited per se. So, how would you train a GM, if you needed to? Besides waiting for the bug to bite one of our players, how can we incentivise taking the GM's seat?

[Grell]

Have you tried just offering them a chance to run? My experience has been that a potential new GM is more apt to run if they know there are people who would be willing to play and support them as they learn the ropes.

[SmilingJack]

How do you do it?

First of all Set an example by GM'ing,

And listen to players when they offer to GM, and actually give them the chance,
Let go of the reigns, you'll be a stronger GM because you did

I started gm'ing because I wanted to tell a story

Encourage others to tell their story and be enthusiastic about them building an adventure



What tips and tricks would you offer others interested in recruiting game masters?

1. No adventure is perfect, if you're having fun telling it, your PCs will have fun playing it

2. It's their game, the story doesn't matter, what does is the shared experience, let your PCs build the narrative

3. Use elements you're excited about and intrigued with, it'll be much more interesting because you infused it with your passion


Are there any resources available to make the job easier?

Rifts adventure guide, and the palladium forums

[Razzinold]

Grab 'em off the street, tie them to a couch, and make 'em watch episodes of "My Little Pony" back to back for 48 hours while The Dark Elf stands behinds them and whispers in their ear: "You want to be a GM. You want to be a GM. You want to be a GM..."

They'll GM after that: I gurantee it.

No, this will end in "Pony Pathfinder" or "RIFTS: Equestria." I guarantee it.

Aaand minus 10 bajillion points in every category for even knowing that equestria is the name of their kingdom.

And double that for you Goliath for knowing that Grell was right when naming the kingdom.


In my current situation I wanted to GM, but also if I didn't GM then there would be no gaming because there would be nobody else to GM.
So it's lucky I wanted to do it, but I wouldn't mind just being a player again as well.

[Goliath Strongarm]

Grab 'em off the street, tie them to a couch, and make 'em watch episodes of "My Little Pony" back to back for 48 hours while The Dark Elf stands behinds them and whispers in their ear: "You want to be a GM. You want to be a GM. You want to be a GM..."

They'll GM after that: I gurantee it.

No, this will end in "Pony Pathfinder" or "RIFTS: Equestria." I guarantee it.

Aaand minus 10 bajillion points in every category for even knowing that equestria is the name of their kingdom.

And double that for you Goliath for knowing that Grell was right when naming the kingdom.


In my current situation I wanted to GM, but also if I didn't GM then there would be no gaming because there would be nobody else to GM.
So it's lucky I wanted to do it, but I wouldn't mind just being a player again as well.

My daughter is going on 3. Trust me, I know I lost those points. I know more about Dora, Mickey, Minnie, Ponies, and Strawberry Shortcake than is good for my sanity.

Back on topic though, honestly, over the years, I've found that while you can train someone to be a BETTER GM, you can't really turn people into a GM.

[Razzinold]

Grab 'em off the street, tie them to a couch, and make 'em watch episodes of "My Little Pony" back to back for 48 hours while The Dark Elf stands behinds them and whispers in their ear: "You want to be a GM. You want to be a GM. You want to be a GM..."

They'll GM after that: I gurantee it.

No, this will end in "Pony Pathfinder" or "RIFTS: Equestria." I guarantee it.

Aaand minus 10 bajillion points in every category for even knowing that equestria is the name of their kingdom.

And double that for you Goliath for knowing that Grell was right when naming the kingdom.


In my current situation I wanted to GM, but also if I didn't GM then there would be no gaming because there would be nobody else to GM.
So it's lucky I wanted to do it, but I wouldn't mind just being a player again as well.

My daughter is going on 3. Trust me, I know I lost those points. I know more about Dora, Mickey, Minnie, Ponies, and Strawberry Shortcake than is good for my sanity.

Back on topic though, honestly, over the years, I've found that while you can train someone to be a BETTER GM, you can't really turn people into a GM.

I'm not convinced, I think you know so much about ponies because you like ponies. I have two girls (10 and 5) and I don't know what pony land is called, lol

I think you could turn someone into a GM. They could know the rules inside and out, but stink at weaving a story, or they are awesome at story telling but can't keep all the rules straight.
Either of those just takes practice.
So maybe you can't force someone to be a GM I think you could train anyone who had the desire to be one, I think that's what it boils down to. You either have the desire to GM or you don't and you can't train someone to want to be a GM, only train them on how to be a GM.

[Icefalcon]

I usually suggest it to players who have a good grasp of the rules and have highly creative ideas when they play. A good example of this would be my wife. She had never run a game before but had played for many years. During the second ever game that I ran for her, which started out just her and then included two others months later, I based the whole game off a dream that she told me about. I thought the content of the dream (which cast her as a slave caste bodyguard for royalty) was imaginative and inspiring. After running that particular game for two years (and several others along the way plus a couple games run by others) and having my wife contribute to the growth of the world setting itself, I suggested to her that she should run a game. She took up that challenge by running in the same world (although a different continent) that we had created together. And after two years (exactly 45 sessions), she ended the campaign on a high note. Even a year or so later, we are still talking about events in that game and trying to get her to run another one.

As for other people, I will tell them that they are ready to try running a game when I think it is time. I will offer to back them up as much as possible while they are running. I also make myself available for the to come by and bounce ideas off of me while they are writing their campaigns. I will offer as much advice as they want and sometimes I have been known to sit out for a few sessions and help the GM run their games. I do so by handling things like rules and NPC's while the new GM is taking care of the story. Over time I will turn more and more of the responsibility of the game over to the new GM and then I can join the game as a player.

[say652]

by creativity and the ability to tell good exciting stories. i am terrible at typing and barely computer literate BUT, i am a great story teller skilled at public speaking and have the ability to captivate an audience. my gm folder is a bunch of half crumbled papers i hardly ever use books other than the corebook for whatever i am gm'ng and i can honestly say i have never had a bad game i ran.

[Noon]

There are dozens, if not hundreds, of ways of even playing just one particular RPG.

It depends on which way you want to play, in regards to how you train a new GM.

[Tyberius]

I have 2 daughters, I can attest to knowing more than a grown man should about 'My Little Pony'.

[flatline]

I have 2 daughters, I can attest to knowing more than a grown man should about 'My Little Pony'.

Both of my critters like it, too. As far as a kid shows go, it's pretty tolerable.

--flatline

[The Dark Elf]

I watched this today:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vbA7Bk6-pI

It could be a good way to show new GMs that they are better at ad-lib storytelling than they believe without the pressure.

[Razzinold]

I have 2 daughters, I can attest to knowing more than a grown man should about 'My Little Pony'.

Both of my critters like it, too. As far as a kid shows go, it's pretty tolerable.

--flatline

I'm fairly well versed in children's shows (maybe not as well as some),I know all the characters names from Dora, Bear in the big blue house, etc., but luckily for me they don't watch a lot of tv and when they do it's usually on after school and off by the time I'm home from work.

I have introduced them to classic cartoons like Carebears, Transformers, G.I. Joe.
We just started watching G.I. Joe Renegades on Netflix.

I also like watching Disney/Pixar films with them as well.

[Goliath Strongarm]

on topic, did anyone catch the latest episode of Big Bang Theory? Shows some good GM action, and that sometimes games may not go as planned, but can still be epic in their own way.

[arthurfallz]

To begin, I wait for a player to show interest. Without the drive to become a GM, there is little point. Occasionaly I will note a player who has the potential to GM and ask if he or she has ever thought about it.

To begin, I make sure they start off with a game they are interested in running, and make sure it's a straightforward kind of game. In Palladium, I would suggest Palladium FRP, Rifts, Robotech or Heroes Unlimited. More open kinds of games with less structured plots (N&Ss, BtS, NB, AtB) I would urge them to pass.

Then I would hand them the main book and say "read this, cover to cover. Three or four times."

After that, it's showing every tip and trick I have. Sit in on a few sessions, not playing or anything, just to help out and keep the game flowing. Suggest they take breaks, do short sessions.

But I'm going to go with Razz here. They need to want to do it. It's a thankless job so often (to be a GM), that without the desire to be a GM on his or her own, the GM-in-training is not going to thrive.

[Warwolf]

I've found that simply running good games for them long enough ends up with someone eventually wanting to try G.M.ing. Then, just be open to letting them (I let two of them run their own side-adventures as part of my campaign) as well as offering encouragement and support. Three of my players who were first-time G.M.s went on to start their own groups and even run adventures at various Open Houses and other conventions.

Of course, you can also take a shortcut and recruit a G.M. from another system. That way, they already have the experience of running adventures and maybe even campaigns. Then all they need is familiarity with the different rules and settings.

[arouetta]

Wine. Lots of it.

I had a desire to GM. I had a really good GM that I had to measure up to. Improv's not my strong point.

So I was pretty tipsy my first session. It relaxed me, and that session gave me confidence to approach the next one sober.

[Bill]

In vino veritas.