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The Practical Guide to Becoming a Great GM – Digital
£19.95
The Practical Guide to becoming a Great GM is the book that brings all the areas you need to know as a Game Master into a single space and shows you how to do all of it better, faster, clearer, and with confidence to know your game will be awesome.
Digital Version
332 Pages
Learn more about the Kickstarter here
Description
Ever fancied running a tabletop roleplaying game where the whole thing practically runs itself? Imagine sitting back, a knowing smile on your face, as your players navigate a world that unfolds with a life of its own. That’s the core idea behind this detailed and useful book.
We’re talking about building your game in such a way that you, the esteemed Games Master, can genuinely enjoy the ride, watching how your carefully laid plans play out. It might sound a bit like magic, but it’s all down to understanding and implementing constraints right from the get-go. Now, you’ve likely been doing this on some level already, that little voice in your head guiding your decisions. But this practical guide to becoming a great GM is all about bringing those subconscious thoughts into the light, making them conscious tools you can wield with precision.
Master these constraints, and what are you left with? The good stuff, naturally. You’ll be free to focus on the real artistry of game mastering: making your players shiver in their boots, squirm with delight at a clever twist, or sit utterly transfixed as you paint a vivid picture of those forgotten temple ruins. And fear not, this book delves deep into that too, showing you how to truly bring your world to life with compelling descriptions and atmosphere.
Inside, you’ll find chapters covering all sorts of essential know-how, including:
- Where do good ideas actually come from?
- How to truly expand the boundaries of your imagination.
- Discovering your own GM style – understanding its strengths and, dare we say, its weaknesses.
- The crucial constraints of a GM and why they’ll actually make you stronger in the long run.
- Expectations – how to identify them and use them to your advantage.
- How to set goals that genuinely work for your game.
- Choosing your world – whether you’re crafting your own from scratch or adapting an already beloved setting.
- Creating a world that feels alive and breathing.
- The art of making your own campaign from the ground up.
- Exploring different campaign styles and choosing the one that fits your group like a well-worn glove.
- Designing campaigns with longevity in mind.
- Crafting truly amazing and memorable adventures.
- The concept of autonomy within an adventure.
- And even a peek into the fascinating world of NPC AI, and much more!
The book itself is structured in a sensible way, broken down into three distinct phases, each colour-coded for easy reference when you need a quick reminder down the line:
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Phase One: You
- Looks at understanding our game at its core: why we play it, and how we interact with it from a social perspective. It’s rather important to be aware of the fundamental reasons behind our shared enjoyment.
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Phase Two: Your world
- Shifts focus to the practicalities of creating a fantastic gaming experience for both yourself and your players. Understanding how to build a compelling world, design a campaign that keeps everyone engaged, and maintain that interest over time are the key areas we explore here.
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Phase Three: All the pieces
- Brings all the elements together. We’ve got the foundational understanding, we have the big picture in mind, and now we look at setting up your game in a way that, dare we say it, practically runs itself. This frees you up to truly play the game alongside your group, rather than being bogged down in endless preparation.
Now, this isn’t just a load of theory, mind you. “The Practical Guide to Becoming a Great GM” is meant to be exactly that: practical. Every chapter includes at least one or two tasks, which we’ve called “encounters,” that you can actually complete. These are designed to help you really embed the ideas and principles of the book into your own personal method for preparing and running your games. Think of them as little exercises to flex your GMing muscles.
And here’s a rather important point: this guide is designed to work with absolutely any roleplaying game system. Doesn’t matter who wrote it, when it was written, or what its specific rules are. The fundamental principles of how we run a game remain the same, regardless of the mechanics. This book focuses on those clever and cunning ways to make your games better, no matter what system you happen to be using. So, whether you’re slinging spells in a fantasy realm or navigating the gritty streets of a cyberpunk metropolis, this guide has something valuable for you.
Pages: 332 pages
Written by: Guy Sclanders
Remaster release: 27 July 2022
ISBN: 978-1-7395978-0-1
Reviews (39)
39 reviews for The Practical Guide to Becoming a Great GM – Digital
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Erik E. (verified owner) –
Noah S. (verified owner) –
Anonymous (verified owner) –
What I REALLY want is a audio copy of the Campaign book but it is not on the store for selection. This Book on GMing starts with a lot of self-awareness tasks that I was not expecting. Probably a good thing.
Tony Helferich (verified owner) –
James Rickel (verified owner) –
Bryan J. (verified owner) –
Looks very thorough! I’ve only just begun to delve into it.
Drew C. (verified owner) –
Does exactly what it says on the tin. It both enthuses and supports GMs’ developmental journey. Guy’s light and warm tone reduces barriers to entry for newbs and veterans alike. Somehow caters for both as well – this is not easy. Recommend following Guy’s process then you can re-examine elements at will/need. On a personal note to Guy – a heart felt expression of gratitude, thank you.
Verified Buyer (verified owner) –
Suzanne (verified owner) –
I found the y-tube information to be very informative the book is great to have! All the information is here and I don’t have to remember where I put the notes!
Anonymous (verified owner) –
Michael F. (verified owner) –
Just what I needed, and well written!
Jack G. (verified owner) –
Great book made better by the video playlist that matches
Matthew G. (verified owner) –
Really interesting and helpful book on running ttrpgs. The advice was well-thought out and well-organized with examples of how to put theories into practice. I believe this will help me immensely for years to come. The excellent artwork is a welcome bonus.
Harry C. (verified owner) –
Exactly what I was looking for. As a new GM I was struggling with structure and pacing and the book is very helpful on those subjects.
Mark M. (verified owner) –
This book was exactly what I searching for. Thanks!
Eric May (verified owner) –
I am a somewhat experienced game master, but due to life splitting up my long term groups… have been out of the ttrpg scene for quite sometime. For instance, last group I was a player in had recently made the jump from D&D3.5 to Pathfinder (1.0) last time we regularly played around a literal table.
Marrying a girl I used to date in high school. And she is bringing with her to the table her children, ages 22 to 11. So … I am getting a new group and wanted to brush up on basics and possibly learn somethings anew.
Your tome is helping me already, and I just got to chapter 8!
Anonymous (verified owner) –
It’s Great.
Kathryn (verified owner) –
Helen L. (verified owner) –
Honestly, you’ve changed my game completely. I was always really unsure, and felt overwhelmed, especially when the players went off script. With your videos, with the charts from your books, I just create a living, flexible world, so that I can help the players play the game that they want. I am a much more confident GM now, and it’s a lot more fun and less nerve wracking to play!
Pierre Dassesse (verified owner) –
I love it !
Daniel M. (verified owner) –
A quite enjoyable read that carries the words of its writer as if he was speaking to you across a table (or a youtube video). Lots to take away from this!
Wolfgang Mair (verified owner) –
Antonio Canaparo (verified owner) –
The PDFs have some minor issues which make it a bit harder to write on them, or that might just be the program I use to open them. The book itself is nice.
Olaf (verified owner) –
It helped me a lot, it’s great writing and you can tell the author has put a lot of thought and effort into it
Anonymous (verified owner) –
Serhiy M. (verified owner) –
Love the book, helps me prepare for an upcoming campaign.
Ethan (verified owner) –
This is a genuine review from an individual that loves playing tabletop RPG games. This guide is the most inspiring and informational I have ever encountered. Although it was my first purchase of such things, I can say with heart that this guide has a great price worth its texts. I thank the author, publisher, and all those before its release for making such a wonderful guide that enhances our RPG experience.
Shelly (verified owner) –
Only part way into chapter 1 but loving how the info is presented.
Chris Seal (verified owner) –
ALFONSO MOIRON COUCEIRO (verified owner) –
Navid Amiri (verified owner) –
Still early in my exploration of the book but I know your videos tied to this are great. Keep up the great work.
Anonymous (verified owner) –
Anonymous (verified owner) –
Paul (verified owner) –
Still reading the book but enjoying it so far. With 40+ years of gaming experience, I can relate to much of the material!
Robert S. (verified owner) –
It is amazing advice even for longterm Gms.
Daniel (verified owner) –
Micheal (verified owner) –
This is a great read, I haven’t read a book on game mastering before. That being said, I was able to learn a lot. I read through it, took notes, and followed along with the videos on YouTube that tie into it.
Michael Z. (verified owner) –
The book is opening up new worlds (no pun intended) for me to craft stories and engage my players. Thank you for producing this!
Joshua Almonicar (verified owner) –
The book offers so much insight that I needed starting out as a new GM, but the 3D art style seemed a little uncanny which kind of detracted my overall reading experience but this might be considered a personal preference.