-What’d'ya mean I ***NEED*** the night off?!?!?

While I know that it might seem initially contrary to consider NOT THINKING of GM’ing as a way of becoming a better Game Master, but in fact, it is one of the best tactics of which I know to improve your story-telling, world-authoring, and role-playing skills. How many of us have heard of the oft-mentioned and greatly feared malady known only as “GM Burnout”; as well as of the tragic tales of grandiose campaigns lost now to the dark days of the past because “our GM needed a break, and we just never got back together again…”.

Now, I know for some groups, this is a moot issue. There are those wonderful blessings to the gaming world known as “eternal groups” - that is, those groups who have simply been together “forever”, or rather those groups who no matter how many members move away, are transferred, or fall out of love of the game, seem to have regenerative properties that would make a troll, well…green-er…with envy! It is not to these groups to which we direct this missive, but to the rest of us.

However, it is from many of these “eternal games” that we find the proof of our proposed pudding: the fact that the longevity of many of these groups contain not one but many GM’s, all of whom communally share the torch-bearing responsibility for leading the group. This way, once a single GM nears “maximum game density”, an emotional klaxon sounds and another GM, fresh from his (or her) turn on the bench, can step up to the game mastering plate with dice, eager and ready, in hand. Further, it is an advantage of this sort of gaming arrangement that allows the exploration of different gaming styles, systems, or settings - but that is an entire article all its own, and for another time.

This “GM Down Time” gives our bedraggled Game Master the chance to recharge his (or her) creative batteries, reflect on the current state of the campaign, the characters and all of the various and sundry plot lines that have been woven into the game. This time also allows our GM to relish one of the ultimate joys of the game - that of creating and role-playing a character of his own, for a time. This alone is often more than enough to supercharge a GM’s batteries and propel them, at breakneck speeds, down new and fresh creative paths that will (almost without fail) make their way into the game when it again emerges like a phoenix from the ashes.

Speaking from a purely personal perspective (due to a recent and glorious treat of playing the game under the watchful eye of a masterful GM), another aspect of taking a break from the role of GM allows one to experience another’s style of handling the finer points of the game. This can be a very eye-opening experience and open pathways of possibility that, to a feeble and option-exhausted mind, simply did not exist before. The chance to see another GM in action often gives one a new look at dealing with “age-old” campaign issues and possibly some solutions as well.

For example, in my current Misfits campaign, one of the most frustrating things for me to deal with personally, of late, was the seeming waning of interest on the parts of my players. To hear them talk and to see them play, one would have little doubt of their interest in the game, but during the down times between games or at the completion of a session, there was just something missing.

Recently, I was fortunate enough to have a “guest GM” come and sit-in for the group. Masterfully, he was able to weave a stunning, eye-opening session into the current campaign both without altering its progressing timeline, as well as providing some interesting back-story and generating some potential hooks for the future! Furthermore, he was able to do something that simply left me in awe - he was able to, by wrapping up the session into a nice little package, complete with a bow tied neatly on top, provide my players with something that I could not: immediate closure.

To see their faces light up at the end of the session, when the enemy was defeated and their characters had emerged victorious on the other side, was a stunning realization for me! It was not the game, but simply the lack of immediate closure for some “long standing storyline issues’ that were dragging their role-playing spirits into the abyss of campaign drudgery. Immediately, I vowed to make some minor changes in my overall game, but those same small changes will likely add many months of spirited enjoyment to the campaign as a whole; as well as serve as a reminder for me for future games.

They say absence makes the heart grow fonder. I think that this well might be in the case in terms of GM’ing as well. So, if you see your GM with a long face, why not ask him if he would like to play a character for a couple of nights, instead of the normal fare. Alternatively, if you are a worn out and tired GM who is dreading his next game more than your annual visit to the dentist, perhaps it is time to think about turning over the reins for a bit and just enjoying the scenery instead of worrying about what lurks behind it?

-Written as a part of Martin’s Blogging for GMs Project