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Stop me if you've heard this one before: the guy whose usually your GM contacts you and tells you that he's got an idea for a game. He doesn't really describe it, saying that he doesn't want to ruin the surprise, but all you have to do is make characters and he'll do the rest. So you guys get together, and, the GM tells you what system he's going to be using (odds are these days it'll be Pathfinder), and ya'll make characters. Everyone just makes a character, with very little talked about when it comes to anything but mechanics. Combo's are talked about, and a lot of laughing is had as people remember past campaigns and the awesome moments from said campaigns (most of which mysteriously don't seem to use the rules-they do get in the way, after all). So, the characters are made, and ya'll play.

What're the chances that it's actually really boring, and that at least one player will start making trouble simply because he actually wants to do something?

I'm gonna rate those chances at 90%, modestly. And that's me using manners.

Well, relax, it's a pretty common problem. And that's what this blog is about: fixing bad games. I"m not going to say I'm a genius or that I don't run bad games from time to time. I am human, after all. GMing is an art, not a science, and no one produces good work 100% of the time. But I can help cut down on the number of bad games, and isn't that good enough for a start?

So, what gives me any right to talk about GMing? What the heck do I know? Well, I've been GMing for almost 10 years now, and during that time I've played the following games: DnD 3.5, 4th, Pathfinder, 13th Age, Dungeon World, Marvel Cortex Plus, Burning Wheel, Burning Empires, Mouseguard, Torchbearer, Tenra Bansho Zero, Fiasco, and Misspent Youth. That's a pretty good spread of games, if a little focused in the Burning Wheel and DnD family. I think I've got a pretty good breadth of experience to draw on, and I think that I can do a decent job at actually teaching the craft of GMing.

Which brings me to my last point: I'd like to have a weekly letter column in this blog, where people send requests for "fixing" their games to me for consideration. So, for everyone who sees this, spread the word! Email me at spyderswebbing@gmail.com.