I almost opened up a game store in the 1980s designed to focus on being a place to play games, not just buy them. For different reasons it didn't happen. Since then, one of the ideas my partners and I were looking at has become more common—a professional game master (GM). We thought it was a great idea to allow a group of friends to game together on adventures without having to decide who was going to run the game. We even did a couple of games for others, but the timing wasn't right.
At SaltCon (website) this year Dax Levine, a professional GM, invited me to participate in a game he was hosting. We were playing in the setting The Wy'rded World, a 5e compatible campaign setting from Gooey Cube (website). In this game we were playing the start of The Darkest Dream, Chapter One of The Red Star Rising Campaign.
This article is about how our game played and what Dax brought as a GM. I also received copies of the gaming material from Gooey Cube and I will review that in a later article.
Full disclosure, I've known Dax for over a year as part of a writing group we belong to. We have talked about gaming, but this was the first time I've played a game with him. Dax is a professional GM with the business name of Dungeon Master Direct. I know that Dax has been playing and GMing role-playing games (RPGs) for at least ten years. He has also told me he was involved with an improvisation group while in college. I had high expectations going into the game.
What to Expect From a GM
Don't get down on a GM if they are learning these skills. The most important part of being in a game is having fun. If there are some struggles, but you're having a good time, please give your GM credit for what they brought to the table.
A GM present a storyline. When it is a preset adventure, the storyline is usually pretty well established. Even then, the GM needs the flexibility to deliver the story for the players and the characters in the specific game being played. They help guide the story, but aren't responsible for telling it to the rest of the group. It becomes a shared experience of creation.
They get all the players involved. A good GM will find out what the players are interested in and provide something to draw their interest and get them involved in the adventure. If players are off doing something else, physically or mentally, the GM will provide something to bring them back.
Presentation becomes an important part for keeping the story going and everyone involved. This means the GM needs to know the game they are running. Not just the particular adventure, but the larger setting and the system. There are times when the GM needs to make a call on something and keep things moving. They need to know enough about all of this so when they need to deviate for the story, they can without losing the rest of the players at the table.
Again, I want to remind you these are objectives to work towards. Every GM is constantly improving their game. And, if you are learning how to GM, or playing in the adventure, be kind. It can be tough to be the person running the game and there already is a lot of pressure.
What We Got
The storyline was provided by Gooey Cube. Dax met the guys from Gooey Cube the day before at SaltCon. He offered to run their system and had one day to prepare for the adventure. They helped him with overview information. But one day to prepare a game session that would go for several hours is a tight turnaround.
We had six players using pre-generated characters. Two people knew each other from being in a common gaming group. The rest of us were from other home groups. Two of the players I had sat on tables with in previous years at SaltCon. From the initial chatter I knew we had a group of experienced players, some with more experience in 5e and none of us were familiar with this setting. Dax started by asking each of us about the style of gaming we liked so he could establish a balance of role-playing and combat.
Dax set the stage with a scene with an important non-player character (NPC), the leader of the larger travelling band we all belonged to (and father of one of the characters). As we moved into the adventure and were taking actions is when he had us provide descriptions of the characters we were playing. This worked well to get into the action instead of taking the time for each person to give a description.
He ensured every player had opportunity to add to the story. He knew who was looking for more role-playing and who was looking for more action. When the opportunities were presented, he quickly allowed the rest of us to take over the story with minimal direction. His hints and clues were enough to keep everyone involved and moving along the storyline. There were scenes that allowed players to build their own character up and provide new details that were then incorporated into the rest of the adventure.
His presentation was fun. Each of the NPCs had some characteristic Dax played on, including description, voice, and quirks. He flowed with the story as players introduced commentary. When he needed to give narrative, he presented the information instead of just reading it. He used voice inflections, gestures, and moved around the table. He didn't sit down during the entire game.
I was impressed. One of the players at the table mentioned it was the best game they had during the entire weekend (we played near the end of Saturday, day three of four). We ran out of time, but I know if this was played when there wasn't another group needing the table, we would have kept going.
Dax brought his theatrical and improvisation experience to the game with great success.
I would recommend Dax Levine for players who are looking for a game master to run games for their group. Or if you are unable to get a group, he runs online games that players can probably join in on.
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| Dax Levine |
You can find out more about Dax Levine and Dungeon Master Direct on
I would like to extend a thank you to Dax for the fun game. Every role-playing game should be a unique experience. Dax made sure we got one.
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