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Gamemastering 201
This document is for Game Masters, coordinators, and store owners and builds on material found in Gamemastering
101. You should be familiar with the Core Rulebook, and Guide to Pathfinder Society Organized Play.
CONTRIBUTORS • KYLE BAIRD, JOHN COMPTON, JOSHUA FOSTER, AND NANI PRATT
Creative Director • James Jacobs Director of Sales • Pierce Watters
Editor-in-Chief • F. Wesley Schneider Sales Associate • Cosmo Eisele
Senior Editor • James L. Sutter Marketing Director • Jenny Bendel
Development Team • Logan Bonner, John Compton, Adam Finance Manager • Christopher Self
Daigle, Rob McCreary, Mark Moreland, and Patrick Renie Staff Accountant • Ashley Gillaspie
Editorial Team • Judy Bauer, Christopher Carey, and Ryan Macklin Chief Technical Officer • Vic Wertz
Editorial Interns • Jay Loomis and Cassidy Werner Senior Software Developer • Gary Teter
Lead Designer • Jason Bulmahn Campaign Coordinator • Mike Brock
Design Team • Stephen Radney-MacFarland and Sean K Reynolds Project Manager • Jessica Price
Licensing Coordinator • Michael Kenway
Senior Art Director • Sarah E. Robinson
Art Director • Andrew Vallas Customer Service Team • Erik Keith, Justin Riddler,
Graphic Designers • Emily Crowell and Sonja Morris and Sara Marie Teter
Warehouse Team • Will Chase, Mika Hawkins, Heather Payne,
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Publisher • Erik Mona Jeff Strand, and Kevin Underwood

Paizo CEO • Lisa Stevens Website Team • Christopher Anthony, Liz Courts, Crystal Fraiser,
Chief Operations Officer • Jeffrey Alvarez Lissa Guillet, and Chris Lambertz
OPEN GAME LICENSE Version 1.0a
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6. Notice of License Copyright: You must update the COPYRIGHT NOTICE portion of this License to include the exact Foster, and Nani Pratt.

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GAMEMASTERING 201 ADVANCED ROLEPLAYING

Advanced Roleplaying
In Pathfinder—most roleplaying games, really—the players Realizing the right amount of accent, inflection, and personality
portray characters of their own design with personalities, in one’s voice is a tricky balance and varies slightly for each
backstories, quirks, and a host of rules mechanics to back it all group. Like so many aspects of GMing, each group is different,
up. Many players can jump right into character, keeping each bringing with it different needs and expectations. What might
other amused with their in-game banter and antics. Others work for one group could be distasteful to another. Put some
require a helpful nudge in the right direction to see how things ranks into Sense Motive, and be prepared to adjust on the fly
are done. Both types of player rely on the GM to paint a picture when GMing for strangers.
of the world, illustrate the results of their actions, and present
non-player characters that are engaging and memorable. How
does one do this? First, let’s take a quick look at what you
Distinguish, but don’t distract
probably already know. Each of these techniques is a double-edged sword; you can
use it to great effect with some practice, but if you apply it too
carelessly, the technique is apt to harm the table’s experience
A Quick Recap from more than help it. If you make a mistake, apologize and move
on to get the game back to being fun.

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• Stand up: This gives you full range of movement, command

Accent
of the table, and keeps you focused. When assuming an accent, far more often than not, less is more.
A subtle shift in accent helps to distinguish a new NPC, reinforce
• Use gestures: Communicate in more than just words. that the PCs are in a new area, or just provide a change of
pace. People notice subtle changes like these. Avoid using silly
• Keep eye contact: We connect through eye contact; accents such as always adopting a forced falsetto voice for
if you’re not looking at your players, then your players female characters or using a preposterously caricatured French
probably aren’t looking at you. accent; instead of paying attention to what you are saying,
players will have trouble looking past how ridiculous you sound.
• Liven up dialogue: A GM reading text in a monotone is If the players’ groans seem to be anything but good-natured,
tough on a player’s ears and attention spans. it might be time to back off the present accent and move on.

All of these are important starting assumptions, and in

Advanced Roleplaying the aim is to further explore and
Attitude
expand on these and other ideas. Humans are usually responsive to others’ emotions, and a
GM can use this to her advantage. Try calmly describing the
appearance of a room and the people inside, and then jump
Getting to Know You into an excited or angry NPC’s dialogue. In the short term
In creative writing there are three commonly recognized ways this establishes something for the players to remember: the
to learn about a character: NPC’s attitude. In the long run it also allows the GM to create
engaging contrasts later in the campaign; when the same
• What the character does
excitable character acts timidly, the players take note (to the
• What the character says adventure’s benefit).
• What others say about the character
Exercise some restraint when first experimenting with NPC
All of these are powerful tools in introducing an NPC to the attitude. Not everyone at the table might be completely clear
players and convincing those same players to actually care as to when the GM is acting a certain way and when it is instead
about the NPC. the NPC’s behavior.

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Expression
tried and true, but exercise your creativity by coming up with
So much of the information conveyed in roleplaying games is something truly unique.
done through speech, maps, and random number generation
that it’s easy to forget how much we say with our bodies. “The zombie’s intestines writhe like a shovelful of indignant
Start with the face. An NPC might have a perfectly normal worms unearthed in a backyard garden.” Ew.
voice and attitude, but perhaps he always smiles in a certain
way or silently assesses the PCs’ words with a raised eyebrow.
Because the players and GM are fairly close to one another,
Multiple Personalities
changes in expression don’t have to be exaggerated. Even so, If you have a good sense of who your NPCs are, you can even
it’s quite gratifying to make a scary face while half-describing, switch between several in the same encounter to the players’
half-pantomiming the horrific beast that just emerged to eat delight. The players can learn about an NPC through other NPCs,
the adventurers. and seeing how two NPCs interact with one another can show a
lot about the two characters very quickly. Be careful about how
often you use this tactic and how much you might dominate the
Posture dialogue; the players should have a chance to participate, too!
This came up in GM 101. Stand up so that you can use your body Roleplaying games should not be spectator sports.
convey an NPC’s actions and appearance. Does your NPC slouch,
hunch over, stretch regularly, or move around in a peculiar way?
Remember: Consistency for an NPC is key. Make the
You can tell the players that that’s the case, but it’s much more
character’s typical quirks short, sweet, and memorable so
effective to show them. Don’t force the issue; otherwise you’ll
that you can reinforce it later or break from the character’s
end up with a campaign setting full of hunchbacks.
normal behavior to signal that something’s the matter.

Gestures
With some variation between cultures, there are gestures to When Players Won’t Lead
express a wide range of attitudes and feelings. Again, show
and don’t just tell the players how your NPCs react. A single No matter how charismatic their characters are, sometimes
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gesture may carry much more impact than a simple sentence. the players just don’t want to take the lead in roleplaying and
Always having a hand or arm in the same position (perhaps dialogue. This often leads to an overreliance on dice-rolling to
the NPC always holds a wine glass) can also be enough to resolve social situations. For some groups that’s just fine, but
distinguish a character. for GM 201 we’ll assume that it’s suboptimal.

Be careful with your gestures. Some mean completely It may be that the players don’t know how to say something
different—and possibly rude—things to players of different as well as their characters would. If that’s the case, try to
backgrounds and nationalities. figure out what a player’s intentions are. Just like in combat,
where a new player might struggle to come up with a solid
strategy, the player may be having a problem coming up with
Idiosyncrasies a social strategy. Try to draw the person out of his shell by
Most of the above is about visual and audible behavior, but having an NPC ask follow-up questions, but be forgiving; with
the strongest hook for an NPC is often a single idiosyncrasy—a some frequency the PC is more eloquent than the player.
quirk, habit, or shtick. Does the character make a point of
complimenting the PCs equipment? Does she always compare Not everyone has patience for roleplaying. Know when
the present predicament to an eccentric family member? to back off the issue and move on; pushing the players to
Does he begin or end every other sentence with the same do things that are not at least somewhat fun for them is a
phrase (e.g. “wouldn’t you agree,” “So the thing is,” or even sure way to bring a scenario to a grinding halt. Here’s where
interjecting “um” between every clause)? a bit of flexibility pays off. Groups with little patience for
noncombat might approach social situations with Intimidate.
Let them. Don’t force PC to be polite unless the adventure
Analogies requires they act with respect. Also let the NPC(s) react
When in doubt, change things up with a bit of creative telling intelligently. Fireball can’t kill every creature, and Intimidate
to augment the showing. A few choice adjectives can do can’t solve every problem.
wonders, and every Bestiary entry begins with a one- or two-
sentence description of what a creature looks like. One of the
most successful techniques is the choice analogy, metaphor, or
simile. The now-cliché “his head explodes like a ripe melon” is

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GAMEMASTERING 201 ADVANCED TACTICS

Advanced Tactics
The Pathfinder system includes hundreds of pages of Players sometimes lump RAI together with the Rule of
rules, creatures, and character options, making it virtually Cool philosophy.
impossible to predict every combination you might see as a
GM. Compound this with the many distinct player personalities What is right?: When running a home game, a balance of the
you are likely to meet, and anything could happen. That’s why two philosophies is usually right. Players and the GM should
the game needs a GM; there’s plenty of room for creativity, be comfortable discussing their interpretations and coming to
interpretation, and spontaneity in every game. a compromise.

Advanced Tactics deals primarily with balancing the extremes In an organized play setting, it’s important to stick closer
of GMing, employing subtlety, and managing high-level games. to RAW. Those players who use an option based around a RAI
interpretation may find table variation when different GMs

The Balancing Act rule differently on whether a particular ability works in the
player’s favor. Be cautious about embracing a 100% RAW
Rules are both a blessing and a curse. They provide structure perspective, especially when adjudicating in-game effects
for the game, allowing players to predict a path and assess that do not rely on character build. The game does not have
the likelihood of accomplishing a task. They provide you with a a rule for everything, and on occasion it’s more important to
framework for controlling the action and adjudicating success create a quick ruling that everyone will enjoy in the short-
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or failure. On the other hand, rules dictate how a character, term. Just don’t set up false expectations about how the game
ability, or feature behaves in exact terms, leaving little room works with a one-time ruling.
for interpretation. Sometimes a rule is left intentionally vague
or open-ended to allow each group to decide for itself how to Whatever your stance, remember that it’s not a crime to forget
interpret the rule. a rule or be wrong. A lack of perfect rules knowledge or system
master is not synonymous with cheating. Be civil, discuss a
This probably would not be so big of a deal were it not point quickly, and shift the focus back to the fun adventure.
for myriad characters’ builds depending on a particular
interpretation of a rule being correct. Arguments about Rules
as Written and Rules as Intended are the cause of many
Table Management
verbal scuffles at the table, and it’s important to know how to Everyone’s different, and not everyone gets along. These are
balance them to have a fun time. two of the earliest lessons that a GM learns. The following are
common player types that can cause problems at the table—
Rules as Written (RAW): RAW at its extreme is the practice of they are not always a problem and require the GM’s judgment.
determining how a rule behaves based only on what its rules For all of these, remember that each player is a person and
text says, often involving grammatical dissection and other close deserves to be treated as a person.
analysis. A supporter of RAW has the logical high-ground because
no matter what was intended originally, the final text is ultimately Chronic power-gamers: This player always plays the most
what is important. On the other hand, RAW can come across as powerful character type on the market. In turn he might
rigid, expressing “if it isn’t explicitly stated, it isn’t allowed.” dominate encounters, making others feel irrelevant. A variant
of this type is the Critic, who tries to push people to match his
Rules as Intended (RAI): RAI endeavors to understand what level of system mastery, which not everyone might appreciate.
a rule intended to accomplish, even if its rules text might
inadvertently make the intended effect difficult. Sometimes The chronic power-gamer wants to win and often seeks
this interpretation is based off of an ability’s flavor text, which recognition for his excellent rules knowledge. Sometimes
might imply an effect not supported by the rules text. RAI tends it works just to take this player aside and request that he
to be more flexible in allowing more and prohibiting less. allow others a round or two to shine before he trashes the
encounters. Curiously enough, this player is often one of the
best GMs. Recruit him to help you run events.

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Socially disruptive players: There’s an unspoken social inappropriately around the child, including but not limited to
contract shared by players who sit down together. The socially swearing and bullying.
disruptive player either inadvertently or purposefully breaks
that contract through loud complaining, rude or domineering “Low-hygiene” individuals: A stereotype of gamers is that
behavior, or even unwelcome physical contact. Assess whether they have poor hygiene, and sometimes a player embraces this
the player is doing this on purpose or not. If the behavior is on status rather than fighting it. Assess whether the appearance
purpose, take the player aside and establish what you expect. or smell of a player causes problems for the other players. If
If the behavior continues, repeat yourself and state what will it does, consider whether there is an easy and subtle fix, such
happen if the player does not correct his actions. If it continues as sharing mint gum with everyone at the table. If there’s a
more, eject the player from your game. It is not worth making serious and continually unresolved issue (body odor that wilts
others uncomfortable just to accommodate a jerk. flowers or breath that can stun a insect in flight), take the
person aside and politely describe the problem. Usually the
Accidental misbehavior is harder to correct, especially if it best time to do this is after a game; that way the player has
stems from a mental disability. Ideally, speak with a friend or still had fun and can actually do something about the issue
family member of the player and ask for advice about how to without having to worry about missing out on the game.
handle the problem. This is a delicate issue, so be polite and
willing to make accommodations to help the player both feel
welcome but also respect the rules of the community.
The Art of Conspiracy
It’s hard to run certain tropes—mystery, suspense, investigation—
Dominating/Submissive Couples: When a player brings his when everyone can hear the dice rolling and the GM asks
or her spouse to a game, sometimes the more established everyone to make a Sense Motive check. A GM is also hard-
player dominates the actions and character choices of the pressed to keep a fun game moving along if the dice are against
other. In more extreme cases, the second character might be the players. Here are some techniques for pulling the wool over
built primarily to further augment the first, leading to an “I your players’ eyes for everyone’s enjoyment.
play two characters, and my partner watches” phenomenon.
More often than not, this stymies the growth of the less Fudging Dice: Fudging dice refers to a GM’s altering, disregarding,
experienced member as a roleplayer. or inflating die rolls for her own purposes. When the players know
that the GM is fudging, they have little reason to believe that
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As a GM, make a point to ask the less experienced player what they have any control over the game; the GM is just deciding the
(s)he wants to do. Politely request that the more experienced results according to her own whims. It’s not a big leap to seeing
player allow the other to make decisions. Although most couples the act as antagonistic, with the GM fudging in order to “win.”
prefer to play together, occasionally they might be willing to
split up for a game. Use this as an opportunity to build the less That said, there are many reasons why a GM might want to
experienced player’s confidence and system mastery. fudge dice—reasons that are not to the players detriment, but
rather to increase the enjoyment of the game. The most common
Taking big steps to correct a perceived problem in a couple’s example is to prevent player death/dismemberment/incapacity,
table behavior is risky business. Be polite and know when to especially for first-time players. Another common example is to
back off the issue. So long as it’s not causing the other players increase the drama of story moments. Keep in mind that fudging
consternation, it’s not a problem that begs correction. for dramatic purposes is tricky, especially when what the GM
thinks is the most fun is not necessarily the most fun for the
Young players: Players under the age of 15 are among the players. Fudging is just one tool in a GM’s arsenal, and like any
most enthusiastic roleplayers, and there is little reason to other power, should be used sparingly and judiciously.
exclude them from a table. That said, a younger participant
might also be disruptive on purpose or on accident. Use the Regardless of if you choose to fudge or not, there are plenty
guidelines for socially disruptive players above, but remember of completely legal ways to alter the results of a roll to get a
that the player’s perspective is not necessarily going to be the desired result. Read your NPC or Monster stat block carefully,
same as yours. checking especially for feats and special abilities. A few great
tactical choices that you can make to secretly help out the
At least at the table, promoting and rewarding good habits players include fighting defensively, forgetting to flank, not
is often more effective than punishing bad habits. Show casting defensively, using Power Attack (the penalty might
children how much more fun they can have when they respect reduce the attack’s chance of hitting from “unlikely” to “nigh-
the community’s rules than when they break them. impossible”), and Combat Expertise.

People who can’t stand children: Not everyone enjoys Elicit skill checks without raising suspicions: Certain rolls
gaming with children, and that’s fine. Ideally your event always set players on edge: Knowledge checks, Sense Motive
is large enough that you can seat this type of player away checks, and Will saves. Just asking for any one of these can
from children. This only becomes a problem if someone acts

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ruin an encounter by inviting metagaming, particularly if the Be prepared to improvise. If you need more time, give the
players can see their low results. players a small break and consult the most relevant rules. Most
of the time, you can simply accept their solution (if it seems
Try asking for these rolls beforehand, ideally at the beginning reasonable). Don’t give victory to them for free; make them
of the scenario. If you anticipate needing plenty of these work for it via roleplaying or skill checks. If the players were
rolls, pass around a chart that requests 3–5 results each for supposed to pass through a gate by convincing the guards to
Perception, Sense Motive and saves. Usually the players won’t let them through but instead choose to catapult themselves
remember what they rolled earlier. If you suspect they might, over the wall, use the time that would have been taken up by
roll a die to determine which of their pre-rolled values you use. the social interaction to ask for Knowledge and Craft checks to
Cross off these values as you use them. You can also ask to see help you adjudicate the final result. In this case, the creative
character sheets beforehand and write down relevant modifiers solution doesn’t take anything away from the game.
so that you can roll them as appropriate. This works especially
well for a rogue with the trap spotter rogue talent.
Other times, players can attempt to use their cleverness to
utterly thwart an adventure. Just as you should be prepared
Hiding your own dice rolls in this way is a great way to
to reward their creativity, be also prepared to hand down the
manage player suspicions, but the best method is to exhibit
consequences. If the players bypass two encounters, then
casual nonchalance; if players don’t spot you smiling evilly
they might lose all of the loot from those encounters. Worse
or intently staring at a certain stretch of dungeon, they are
yet, when they engage the mastermind, she might be able
less likely to put up defenses. Just to keep them on their toes,
to call in all of the encounters at once. Use your creatures and
consider adding in a few red herrings, such as asking for a
NPCs to react naturally to the situation.
Fortitude save, nodding sagely at the result while making a
note of it, and then never addressing the consequences. Used
sparingly, this helps to throw off metagamers who would
otherwise watch for cues from your behavior.
High-Tier GMing
Once characters reach level 7 or so, the nature of the game
Thwart Metagamers: It can be very disappointing as a GM if begins to change in subtle ways. Spells that definitively end
you’ve been building to a climactic encounter, only to be deflated encounters become more common, and these are not only
by players who already know all there is to know. Or, players save combat spells. Teleportation and divination magic allow the
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their resources as “this is only Act 3!”. Traps, storyline, and more PCs to potentially bypass entire encounters. Non-spellcasters
can all be disrupted by the use of player knowledge. How can you gain abilities that catapult their combat effectiveness, Armor
deal with this, or better yet, take advantage? class, skill bonuses, and more to impossible values. What’s
more, the stronger the PCs become, the less they have to
Like above, being an unreliable narrator is one way to turn kowtow to NPCs in the setting; many GMs have horror stories
metagamers’ skills against them. Describe monsters in broad of the PCs rampaging around the world after realizing they
terms (“It’s sort of a skeleton!”) or describe them in ways that were each powerful enough to take on a small nation.
are slightly different than their Bestiary entries. A creature can
have different coloration, accouterments, or other physical On top of that, your creatures become increasingly powerful
attributes. Insert yet more red herrings...if you have a crowd and complex. This, at least, you can prepare for. Look up
of identical skeletons, give the one in the back a flimsy crown creatures’ spells ahead of time, and consider writing out the
and have it wave its arms around. most important information on notecards. When a creature has
five or more abilities scattered throughout its Special Abilities,
Secondly, truly enforce the identification rules. Remember that Special Attacks, Special Qualities, and Special Defenses, it
common creatures like goblins and skeletons start at DC 5, so it is might help to write out a one-sentence summary of each on a
in fact entirely reasonable that most adventurers know something notecard, allowing for easy perusal when the clock is ticking.
about them; however, most creatures start at DC 10 plus the
creature’s CR, and rare ones start at DC 15. Players may protest that Players’ turns often become very long when rolling handfuls
their characters have encountered that type of creature before, but of dice and/or having to choose one spell to cast out of five
in return you can tell that that fighting a creature once is not the dozen. If combat turns are dragging on and on, don’t hesitate
same as spending hours learning about it. to institute a time limit for a player to complete a turn. You
might even ask for a quick estimate of the damage a character
Handling extremely creative solutions: Always be prepared might deal with her attacks, estimate that the target will still
to roll with the punches. Your job as a GM is to give your players be alive, and move onto the next player’s turn while the first
the best experience possible, and there’s always the chance calculates the exact damage. Players are often as interested
that the players will attempt a completely unforeseen solution. as you are in speeding up the action, so whatever you suggest
They should be rewarded for their creativity, not punished. will be received well.

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GAMEMASTERING 201 BUILDING A ROLEPLAYING COMMUNITY

Building A
Roleplaying Community
The “traditional” community for roleplaying games is
typically small, often not stretching beyond a single gaming
Starting from scratch
table. RPG enthusiasts might chat, GMs swap notes, and Find a location: A participant’s home is usually easy to reserve,
players occasionally jump between different game groups, but it’s a poor choice for community building. Ideally find a
but ultimately there’s little reinforcement of a larger local public place that already attracts roleplayers: a game store,
identity. In a home game, players are informally bound by comic book shop, library, or bookstore. Sometimes less obvious
an easy-going social contract to regroup regularly to continue venues can be wildly successful depending on the region’s
one storyline. Everyone knows whom to expect at the next demographics; some areas host wildly successful weeknight
session, and dropouts are usually infrequent. Recruitment games at local pubs.
might be piecemeal and even clique-ish, and a group can
readily close its door to curious outsiders. Are these people Get permission: You will be a guest in someone’s place of
doing anything wrong? Absolutely not. Ultimately it is more business, so be sure to speak with the owner or another official
important that everyone is having fun. to explain what you would like to do. Prepare ahead of time
so that you can suggest a date for the event (or a schedule
Organized Play offers a different spin on the isolated group for the first several events), what resources you need access
paradigm by encouraging players to mingle and play RPGs to, and what hosting the occasional organized play event can
with a wide variety of people with no long-term commitments do for the venue. Attracting roleplayers to a business often
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to a long-running campaign. It is an extraordinarily rewarding boosts sales of game-related products and refreshments.
strategy, but it also comes with difficult challenges. Players Building a positive working relationship with the business is
may come and go, leaving players with higher-level characters an important step, and you should check in with the store
without enough friends to tackle higher-level scenarios. Many representative regularly to maintain this relationship.
organized play events take place in public places, making it
difficult to control who attends events. As recruitment takes Venture-captains and storeowners on the messageboards
off, more participants must step up to be GMs, all of which at paizo.com are often available to suggest other benefits that
assumes that recruitment is strong in the first place. An might help someone convince a store to welcome organized play.
organizers area might not even have anyone else who seems
inclined to play RPGs. Get started: What is arguably the hardest part about building a
community can also be the easiest: just start playing. So long as
There’s a lot to cover, so let’s break it into pieces. it’s obvious that you and whomever you’re with are having fun,
passers-by will become curious. Invite them to join in, if possible.

Why Build a Community? Even if they cannot or are too busy, have a business card or a
sheet of information about the game and the schedule handy
This is a lot of work and often requires a lot of patience. Why go to hand out. Sometimes it takes just a few minutes to gather
to all that effort? By creating a community of roleplayers, you enough people for a game. Other times it might take a few
create a large pool of players and GMs who show to play games, months of playing a small game before you recruit a critical mass.
ensuring that whenever you want to participate in Pathfinder
or any other game, there’s somebody available to join you. A Sometimes there’s just nobody who is willing to dive right
healthy community also takes turns at organizing and GMing into a roleplaying game. RPGs have a bit of a learning curve
so that no one person shoulders all of the responsibility and and do not come naturally to everyone. Instead of forcing RPGs,
workload. A community allows many different roleplayers to start with board games—not a traditional “roll a die, move that
meet one another, encouraging friendships that might extend many spaces, end your turn” style but instead something with a
beyond the game table. Finally, a community can provide a bit more strategy and involves slightly more robust rules. Once
safe environment to have fun and a positive support network. your community enjoys board games, you can introduce them
It’s worth the investment. to the Beginner Box and expand their interests with Pathfinder.

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Put others first: Even if you have a perfect game going when Deal with troublemakers: You’re likely running a public
a handful of excited newcomers arrive, be prepared to smile, event, but that doesn’t mean that you have to allow everybody
step away from that game, and run something for them. A few to participate. Some players make a negative impact on the
sacrifices like these make a big difference. It shows newcomers community for any number of reasons, but typically one can
that they are welcome. It shows other players that it is important correct these issues by taking the player aside, talking things
to reach out to first-time players. Start the interaction with a out, and coming to a compromise if need be. On rare occasions
smile, focus more on everyone’s having fun than getting the a player fails to recognize his problem, cannot accept that
rules 100% correct, and follow up with the players afterward. there is a problem, or continues disruptive behavior despite
Let them know that you had fun, that you look forward to seeing complaints. It is this type of player that you may have to ban.
them again, and that they can find more information online.
There are several steps to take when banning a player,
Both in execution and presentation, this is so much easier if assuming you have already attempted to correct the difficult
you have pregenerated characters already printed out, spare behavior. The first step is to gather information. Players may
dice, and extra Pathfinder Society player numbers. have already approached you about the troublemaker; jot
down notes about the experience and save those emails.
Push preregistration: Early on, it is not important to announce
what scenario you will run ahead of time. Beginning players will Second, discuss the issue with your contact person in charge
all be able to play low-level scenarios, and there are enough of of the venue. Storeowners typically dislike disruptive clients—
these scenarios that it’s unlikely that a community will need especially those who chase away other business—and will
to run one a second time. Planning ahead becomes important endorse your group’s self-policing decisions. If the venue is
when players’ characters reach level 5 and when a location a convention with paying customers, you might not have any
needs more than one GM. At that point certain players either power to ban an attendee.
can’t always or won’t want to play alongside one another.
Third, inform the player that there is an issue and that he
Preregistration alerts the community when games of various gets several warnings. Tell him what the effects of failing to
levels will occur and allows you to coordinate who is GMing, shape up would be, but avoid being accusatory. Just state the
how many spaces are left in a game, and whether another facts. If he continues to cause trouble, let him know when
table needs to form. Not using preregistration typically leads each warning occurs. Finally, ban him from the events that you
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to chaotic shuffling of players between tables, underprepared run. Some players will actually improve after realizing that a
GMs, lost time, and sometimes players being left without a coordinator is serious about banning someone, and you may
space at a game. find it is worth issuing a temporary ban, allowing the player
back after several months, and seeing if he has improved.
Promote GMs: You can’t run the entire operation by
yourself; you will need at least a few others to handle GM If you have a venture-captain nearby, he or she can provide
responsibilities. Ideally, nearly every participant should try his you additional support in policing your community. If an issue
or her hand at running a table at least once, and some of the seems particularly serious, you may also contact the Campaign
healthiest communities are those in which at least half of the Coordinator Mike Brock for guidance.
participants serve as GMs at least part of the time.
You’re the face of the RPG industry: Whether you realize
Pathfinder Society Organized Play already rewards GMs by it or not, you are an ambassador of the gaming industry
giving them character credit, but you can help to make your when you organize a community. When you are professional,
GMs feel appreciated in several other ways (depending on your organized, and courteous, your actions encourage others to
budget). One popular strategy is preferential seating; those view RPGs—and often the particular system you want to play—
who GMed a game at the previous event get to sign up to play with interest and respect. Should you be sloppy, unprepared,
before others. Other coordinators like to reward GMs by running or rude, it reflects poorly instead. This hurts everyone because
“Slot 0” events, referring to running a new scenario for a group if no one respects the games you love, no one will play them
of players who then intend to run it for others. A Slot 0 is with you, either.
attractive because it allows others to experience a scenario first
by playing it before spoiling the surprises by reading through it.
If you have a bit of a budget, you might even purchase small
amounts of store credit for GMs as a thank you gift.

What matters most is that participants learn to see GMing

as fun and as an important means of contributing to the
community. Instill this in new players. Develop a culture of
thanking the GM after every game.

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GAMEMASTERING 201 PROPS

Using Props to
Enhance the Experience
Props play an important role in tabletop RPGs. They serve to
fill the voids between an adventure’s text, the game master’s
Going Beyond the Typical
ability to describe the scene, and each player’s imagination. • Condition Cards: Whether they are custom made
While not usually considered “necessary” to play the game, or preprinted and purchased (such as GameMastery
props add value to the game by: Condition Cards), having handouts for the myriad of
conditions in Pathfinder is one of the best tools a GM
• Inspiring awe at the table. can have. They remove the burden of remembering the
details of each condition and can force the responsibility
• Helping to convey information in a loud room. for tracking the condition on to the player. These cards
can have a dramatic effect on the pace of play in addition
• Speeding up game-play. to making a visual impact.

• Assisting the visual learners at the table.

• Reducing the need to repeat information.

• Making up for a lack of descriptive ability.

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Typical Props
• Flip Mats and Map Packs: Pathfinder Society Scenarios
are written with a limited custom map budget and thus
rely on preprinted GameMastery Flip Mats and Map Packs,
usually chosen by the author, to represent many similar
environments. • Spells & Buff Cards: Much like condition cards, having
cards with the details of the most common spells and class
• Battle Mats and Custom Maps: When an adventure calls abilities will speed up the game by reducing the amount of
for a custom map or a preprinted map isn’t available, draw time spent flipping through the rule books. Paizo does sell
a map on a battle mat or on large gridded paper. Drawing a GameMastery Buff Deck with the most common spells,
a map before the adventure starts significantly speeds up but it is more limited in its versatility when compared
game play. Taking the time to draw most of the small to the Condition Cards due to amount of vast quantity of
details of a map adds to the experience for players. It spells and class ability variations.
helps set parts of a scene that may be missing from a
verbal description and the inclusion of some objects like
tables or beds, can inspire players to come up with creative
tactics.

• Miniatures: Pathfinder Society Scenarios assume the use

of miniatures to represent both Player Character’s and their
adversaries on some form of gridded map. Much like how
using a detail map fills in the gap between the description
of a room and the player’s imagination, an accurate or
appropriate miniature can help immerse the players into
the encounter.

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• Spell and Effect Templates: Another type of prop that is stairs. However, a couple of other images from other Paizo
more commonly purchased instead of crafted are spell and resources, show a different view of the stairs, helping
effect templates. These templates, often made of plastic immerse the players in the environment.
coated wire provide a quick visual reference for various
common cone and spherical effects such as a fireball’s blast
radius. These templates are a great way to educate new
players to the unique shapes of spells within Pathfinder
and usually speed up game play. Occasionally, however,
some players will focus on placing their spell in the perfect
location to get the best possible effect which can slow the
game down and often pulls players out of the moment.

• Flight Indicators: Nothing complicates game play quite

like characters and creatures taking flight. While an
aerial battle with an ancient wyrm is one of the most
epic scenes in all of fantasy gaming, adjudicating such an
encounter can be a nightmare. When running any game
with characters of about 5th level or higher, be prepared
to track flying characters or creatures. Simple methods for
doing so include placing a die near or under the appropriate
miniature. Placing a miniature on top of an empty dice
box gives a stable base while giving a clear visual of flight
and allowing for small miniatures to fit underneath. There
are many commercial options available as well, including
Combat Tiers from Paizo.

• Creature Images: A picture is worth a thousand words.

In gaming this comes into play the most when describing
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rooms and creatures. When detailing what the player

characters are encountering, it’s best to back that
description up with a picture, especially if the miniature
or map being used isn’t entirely accurate. Most creatures
player characters will encounter come from published
sources with full color pictures. Simply showing the • Important NPC Handouts: Ever have players forget the
page of a Bestiary to the players is quick and easy, but name of an important NPC? Forget which Venture-Captain
this often increases the amount of metagaming at the sent them on their mission? Ever repeat parts of the initial
table. To minimize this, try extracting the image from a mission briefing? End that by creating individual handouts
pdf or copying the page from a book while omitting the for every important NPC in an adventure. Include any
creature’s name. information about each NPC the players need to know

Taking It to the Next Level

• Region Specific Maps: Pathfinder Society Scenarios take
place all over Golarion and beyond. It’s often difficult for
players, both new and experienced, to keep track of where
in the world they are traveling. Almost every Pathfinder
Society Scenario includes a “Where in Golarion” section
for the GM. Bring this to life for the players by printing
sections of the world map or maps from a region-specific
supplement. Additionally, images from other resources
can provide a different perspective for a given area. One
good example of this are the Storval Stairs. Featured in
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4–04: King of the Storval
Stairs, these stairs, built by giants are massive in scale.
The top-down battle-map type image provided in the
scenario fails to adequately illustrate the grand scale of the

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beyond their name, even going as far as including the entire ladder or bridge which the characters can physically move
mission briefing. These handouts save the Game Master’s or remove as necessary. While there is no denying the
voice during a long convention, spark interest in the NPC, visual impact of 3D terrain, it’s important to make sure
and put the responsibility of understanding and interpreting the terrain doesn’t distract the players from the story or
the information on the players. This is especially important prevent the players from viewing or interacting with the
in adventures that contain several NPCs and a high level entire scene.
of intrigue. See an example below, from Pathfinder Society
Scenario #3-16: The Midnight Mauler which 5 key NPC
contacts the players must remember.

• Important Information Handouts: Often, Pathfinder

Society Scenarios include a series of knowledge checks at
the beginning of a scenario to aid the players with their
mission. Much like the NPC handouts mentioned above,
including this information in a handout removes the need
for players to memorize or write the information down
and eliminates the need to repeat the information by
the GM. As an example, here is one knowledge check
from Pathfinder Society Scenario #3-20: The Rats of Round
Mountain—Part I: The Sundered Path. It’s presented as
four handouts, each successive handout offering additional
information based on the best result of the knowledge
check achieved at the table.

• Unique Miniatures: Some encounters can be taken to the

next level by the use of a creative miniature. For example,
modeling clay can be used for various ooze type creatures.
In this example, if the characters cause the ooze to split,
it’s easy to rip the clay in half and move it around the
map. Using a unique miniature can add visual impact to
the game, however, it can also break the verisimilitude for
some players. Use with caution.

• Three Dimensional Terrain: Perhaps the biggest prop

(literally) a GM can bring to the table is 3D terrain. There
is no bigger draw to your table at a convention that
reproducing a scene in three dimensions. 3D terrain can be
made from carving foam or wood, folding cardstock prints,
using ceramic castings, or be made of fake grasses and
plants from a local hobby store. It can also be as simple
as adding a few popsicle stick to a 2D map to represent a

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