How Not To Join A Game

You may or may not know that I am currently running a multi-player, multi-party game on Discord. It is very much open to just about anyone, but (for obvious reasons) everyone cannot play at once. There is currently one closed expedition, two active expeditions, and one expedition in the planning stages. There are also a number of people waiting in the wings to get into a game, and some open spots in the Fourth Expedition.

I received a PM in Discord a while back, and this is the absolutely wrong way to go about joining a game. Anyone who has read my blog (I should hope) knows that I strongly believe that the GM has obligations to their players, and that players have obligations to the GM. Expecting the GM to respond within 24 hours to your expression of interest? Expecting the GM to tell you what rooms in a Discord channel contain so you don't have to look yourself? Not the way to go about it.

I believe that the roles of players and GMs are based on mutual respect. They are not entirely the same roles. The GM is not just another player, and the GM has to put in more work than any given player if the game is to be satisfying. But both sides of the screen deserve respect. And both sides have both expectations and obligations.

Because the GM does most of the heavy  lifting, finding guides to help you be a better GM is not difficult. As of this writing, I have written six volumes on that topic.

Finding advice on how to be a great player is a little bit more difficult. I address it in Dispatches from the Raven Crowking, now available. 

Within, you will find advice for players of these games. I also try to show how the game differs from the players' and the GM's perspectives, which I believe is useful for anyone to understand.

It is currently only available in pdf, but the pdf is Pay What You Want, so feel free to give a copy to all of your players! And, if you think the contents are worth it, leave something in the tip jar when you do so.