Topic: GMs Try this d6 method. story telling made easy

[Druss_the_Legend]

I used this last night in a 3 hour online session and it worked surprisingly well.

Whenever a situation came up in the game I got one of my players or myself (if the story element was secret) to roll 1d6.
Results impacted on the direction of the story.
If it was a coin flip situation I used 1-3 and 4-6 to decide (my players didn’t know what they odds were - they just had to roll)

Most situations had more varied results as follows
1 worst case scenario
2 bad
3-4 neutral result
5 good
6 most favourable result

If any outcome was uncertain I used a d6 to guide the direction of the story.

Here’s a few specific examples that came up…
1 will that assassin walk into the ambush or wait and watch?
2 will that wounded enemy fall forward off that high wall or hang precariously over the edge?
3 will the rainy weather stop or not?
4 how swift is the current at the ford?
5 how many horses are in the stable when we arrive?
6 will that assassin flee now or follow the party?

Pro GM Tip. Before the session started I generated an encounter table with 6 encounters noting them down and just gave each a brief description eg. 2 people travelling together one is a priest one is a rich noblewoman. They’re are headed to a jewellers shop nearby. I gave them names. One of the encounters was No Encounter. I’d thought about the location the party were in and place a few possible encounters there that would make sense. The prep of these took 15 minutes at most but I did have some other encounter tables to help me decide on what 6 encounters I wanted as Possible Encounters. The setting was a city.

During gameplay there were d6 dice rolls made by me and by the players. The players didn’t know whether they were rolling for an encounter or for a certain outcome that was driving the session, they and I were just rolling for “something’. When I was rolling secretly I often just explained what was happening which was sometimes nothing at all eg. you are hiding and waiting to ambush the person following you and they don’t come around the corner. (GM secretly rolled a 3). The tension was high and my players weren’t sure what would happen next (GM did not know either!)
This d6 method is random and its fast and it takes much of the thinking out of your hands. It’s ok to let the dice tell the story.it’s less taxing on the GM and takes the pressure off them.

Of course there will be situations where you as GM will decide what outcome happens but there are lots of situations we’re letting the dice decide for you is a useful method to have in your  back pocket. This keeps it fun for the GM as well who isn’t quite sure where the story is going themselves. Give it a try. It worked well for me and my players were pretty engaged with the dice rolling and twists and turns in the story.

[Druss_the_Legend]

Sometimes just the GM rolling dice for no reason can cause fear amongst your players. It’s cruel but it’s another string to your GM bow.

[Druss_the_Legend]

EDIT made to #5 example

Here’s a few specific examples that came up…
1 will that assassin walk into the ambush or wait and watch?
2 will that wounded enemy fall forward off that high wall or hang precariously over the edge?
3 will the rainy weather stop or not?
4 how swift is the current at the ford?
5 will our allies arrive at the agreed meeting point or has something delayed them?
6 will that assassin flee now or follow the party?

[intothatdarkness]

I occasionally roll dice just because to get the players thinking, but I'm not a fan of randomized encounter directions like this. I get they work for some people, but I've played adventures that use them and don't care for them. A tool to have on hand, but not one I'd use.

[MisterK]

I occasionally roll dice just because to get the players thinking, but I'm not a fan of randomized encounter directions like this. I get they work for some people, but I've played adventures that use them and don't care for them. A tool to have on hand, but not one I'd use.

Ditto. I don't like the idea that I leave what happens to randomness - as a GM, deciding what happens in the world is literally my job description. If something happens, it is either because the PCs made it happen or because I deemed it logical or interesting.

In the next game I GM, I plan not to roll dice at all. All the random factor will be on player's side. Keeps them busy, and make them feel like they always have a say (even through their dice roll) in what happens to them.

[jdale]

Sometimes the needs of the narrative make the answer obvious, but sometimes they don't. When I have an arbitrary decision to make, I'll often make a quick list of possibilities and roll a die to pick. What kind of person is this, where are they from, what languages do they understand, were they present for such-and-such event, what guild/society are they a member of, etc. I think that's useful for keeping things from being too predictable. I also make heavy use of random generation (NPCs, treasure, etc). But even when randomness is involved, I have editorial control -- if I don't like the outcome, I can always reroll. For these quick decisions during play, if I don't like a possible outcome, I just don't make it part of the list of options.

Making those lists also forces me to think of more possibilities, so I end up with more different ideas than if I just picked the first thing I thought of.

I always use d10's though.

[Druss_the_Legend]

I can see how this might appear too random for some but the setting of a city lends itself to random encounters and in truth they are not totally random as they are often pre-generated before the session meaning the encounter table has been created with GM guidance based on plot and session objective. Im running a long running campaign based in an off the shelf setting complete with well established NPCs and about 10-12 detailed location maps which is pretty handy when the party revisit locations. New locations such as 3 new enemy strongholds have been added over time (50+ rpg sessions)

I think because its really a sandbox campaign (based in and around a single city) thats well laid out with players able to choose where they go and what order to complete adventures in the random elements help keep them guessing and keeps the setting developing. I also use plenty of intrigue, misinformation, spies, traitors and shifty protagonists like crime lords, master assassins leaders, a thieves guild, an evil cult and the odd scheming evil wizard so the overall feel might appear random but everything has its place and makes sense, its just very layered and frequently changing as various protagonists work towards their various goals. Each of the factions have allies and common goals but also their own agenda.

Randomness like this perhaps works best when you know your players goals, the party goals and have a linear plan mapped out already - which I do. NPCs encountered can also be known to the players from previous adventures or by reputation and usually will be linked to the larger story in some meaningful way. You can be sure your players will mess up your carefully laid plans often. Thinking on your feet and reacting to your players actions are just as important as having a plan for the session.

In the example above I knew the party were travelling to a set destination in the city, I knew they would be followed by spies and I knew their goal was to investigate a known enemy stronghold just outside the city.
The dice decided the order of the encounters along the way and the level of skill of the spies tailing them.
As GM your random dice rolling is always balanced by asking yourself "How would this NPC normally behave?" "What is their likely demeanour/attitude/purpose" "How friendly are they towards the party" etc

In summary, you still need a plan, an overall plot and consistent themes in place. This lets you hand the reigns for the direction of the story over to the players a little more and let them experience the world/setting . Your job as GM is to keep them engaged in the story and having fun. How you do this will vary from game to game. rpgs have 3 story tellers. GM - Players - The Dice. Find the best balance for your game and use what works for you. You know when you have got things right when your players are excited to come back for more adventures.

[intothatdarkness]

I run my espionage games in a city setting, and do use a handful of random encounter tables (based on time of day and the district they're in), but to me those aren't the same thing as deciding the outcome of that encounter based on a die roll. And even then I really only use the tables in certain circumstances. As for outcomes, I prefer to determine those through play and not rolls. If my players are taking solid precautions they can evade surveillance based on their own efforts and not a roll of 3 or 4. Likewise, the NPCs have a certain amount of agency as well. If an encounter is going to end well, badly, or become a non-event, I'd rather have that happen through actions (or lack thereof) of players instead of a roll.

It just comes down to personal style.