What makes a good DM?
 

As the title states; what traits do you find desirable in a DM?

Well, there's really several things:

1. An ability to handle the players. Very important, because if he or she can't give an equal amount and quality of attention to each player, someone's going to be pissed off.

2. Creativity. Huge factor. Player actions shouldn't hinder the game because "they weren't supposed to do that." A good GM can take any player action and turn out an appropriate reaction on the fly, be it in conversation, touching forbidden treasure, or any of the other crazy things the players might do, making it seem completely natural, like it was planned that way. It also helps with creating the world for the players.

3. Not having an agenda. Seriously, because no one likes a GM who throws in a Mary Sue self-placement NPC who is faster, stronger, smarter, more powerful, and better-looking than all the PCs, and then expects the players to adore him/her as much as all the minor NPCs dropping at his/her feet as the ground beneath them blossoms with flowers. Having a major NPC is fine, but they should never direct the story through their sole actions and/or blindingly outshine the player characters.

4. Above all else, knowing when to bend/break/exempt players from the rules. People can be so afraid to toss a rule out that they allow stupid rules to burden gameplay. A player shouldn't have to roll dice just to say "hello," so if they've got stats high enough that it could reasonably be expected to complete an action, it's faster and easier to just let them do it and not break up gameplay. Also, if a spell or something has a silly restriction you don't like, ignore it. Rules are there to provide structure, but it may not be the structure that best fits the aim of the campaign or the preferences of the players. Also, things can be allowed if they are dramatically appropriate. Say a big bad possesses the ability to transform others, but only if their environment can support the new form. This can be ignored if, say, it is scarier to have him transform an NPC into a fish and laugh evilly as it lays there suffocating before disappearing in a cloud of bats. The NPC fish has no chance and is good as dead, but it's just for dramatic effect and wouldn't be allowed on a player.



Basically, a good GM makes a smooth-running story, free of hiccups, and populated with interesting world elements.

Dont be an asshole. Just becasue you think something will be totally hilarious (Like say, having a full grown dragon attack the new party from out of nowhere) doesnt mean the players will.

I have to concur with the free flowing rule.

There's been times, a PC tried my patience and I allowed somethings just to see where it would end up.

Suffice to say, getting pissed on by a werewolf, and finding out your own NPC sister was a werewolf that hid her lycanthropy from you for 3 years makes for entertaining stories later on. :D

1. Sense of humour

2. Doesn't mind sparing the lives of PCs that just had really bad luck

3. Incorporates multiple play styles

I guess a good DM is pretty similar to what I envision a good person to be. Oh!

4. Organized

Azisien, truly #4 takes an act of the Gods... I've DMed for a good few years, and keeping up with just 4 characters is the most difficult I've seen, plus a monster list and everything else. But then again, when you're running an almost daily game vs. a weekly game it can become quite difficult. :) Fun challenge, though.

Rules flexible and good at math, good memory is a plus..

That's really all I need.

There are basically two kinds of DM extremes.

Anal people who roll up the number of rats in a cellar in a small village on the other side of the world, who have everything scripted and planned down to the most minute detail.

And the people who wing everything.

I think a good DM is a combination of both, someone who has the foresight to pre-plan enough to keep the story rolling but not get bogged down in useless details, and the adaptability to roll with all the wrenches that players can, and will, throw into any play session.

Also, a sense of humor tempered with an on-task mentality really helps.

Okay, yeah, keeping organized for daily games might be a mess, but I've been a weekly DM off-and-on for most of my pen and paper gaming experiences and it's directly proportional to the experienced you have, to me. So you could almost call my #4 "Seasoned" as well. I mean, the more I DMed, the more headaches I got with dice and encounters and remembering little things the PCs had going, the better I got at shorthand notes.

Unless you're playing Paranoia style game, then this should happen atleast once a week.