Let Your Players Ruin Your Story, Not Your Game

Part of the job a Game Master undertakes is to outline a world and populate it with characters to interact with, places to explore, and events that drive the story. It’s a lot of homework, which plenty of people find intimidating. For those undaunted by the task, it’s a wonderful creative outlet to explore. You get to create this whole epic fantasy tale with a rich storyline and inspiring villains and you gather your friends around to whisk them away on this journey you have lovingly crafted for them.

And then they start doing things.

The thing is, your carefully crafted story is a house of cards, and the 4 or 5 people you sit down with every week are jet engine fans ready to hit that little pile of stacked up paper full-bore.

The saying goes that no plan survives first encounter with the players. They’re going to slap the NPC you created as a sleeper agent for the secret society of ultra cool good guys you wanted them to join. They’re going to spit at the king and seduce his daughter, and his wife, and his son. They’re going to BURN DOWN THE ENTIRE TOWN — and if you think they aren’t you’re kidding yourself because it’s such a well documented catastrophe every single group goes through that nobody even bothers to make memes about it because it’s cliche. They’re going to throw your arc into a woodchipper by killing your epic recurring villain with a totally improbable critical hit the first time they cross paths.

They are going to ruin your story, but you’re a fool if you let them ruin your game.

Coming through your plot like a wrecking ball isn’t the players’ fault. That’s what players do because they’re playing a game. If you can’t accept that and have fun with it, it’s because you’re probably not playing a game. You’re using the game as a way to realize some grand vision and that’s not going to end well for you and your friends.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s easy to treat your story as precious. Your idea is probably pretty cool and fun, and there’s nothing wrong with reigning your players in when things are just getting right out of hand. However, there is always a line between being a storyteller and being a diva, and you really want to stay on the right side of it because one of the most important aspects of your game is the players’ agency. You create a world but you aren’t creating the main characters. The protagonists in your fantasy epic are out of your control, which is great because it means you get to discover things about the story that surprise you almost as often as you get to create shocking moments for them.

I’m definitely not trying to imply that the players are infallible. If a player isn’t attempting to engage with your world in an honest way then they really aren’t contributing to the game and that stuff needs to get shut down. A player going hog wild with ridiculous and silly actions can ruin things for the table just as easily as you trying to micromanage your plotline.

What I am saying is that when players insult the king or kill some NPC you were hoping to make an important ally, you gotta be flexible. You need to adjust your plans and let them carry the story in a different direction for a little bit. Be prepared to adapt, and be prepared to let the players tell you a story too.

I’m James Rodehaver, check out how well my own advice works for me every Friday night at 6pm PST on Dragons and Things.

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