What is Holding You Back from Being a Game Master on Myth-Weavers?

[Powderhorn]

I don't know how I missed this thread, but I want to say at least for myself, I was able to jump in not knowing a system and somehow still running it just on the theory that 1. I can learn it, and 2. Players will be happier for me to run something I don't know than not run anything at all.

I'm still learning the system I'm running, btw: I get corrected on things all the time :D But I am learning! And I think sometimes people may think their players have higher expectations than they do.

[Papa Bear]

I am very prone to mistakes, but I enjoy GMing. I try to make sure my players know my shortfalls so that if they don't want to deal with that, they can politely decline or just not apply. That said, I am thinking about starting a new game but I am so torn in what I want to run.

[Spacesong]

13 hours ago, Papa Bear said:

I am very prone to mistakes, but I enjoy GMing.

This is the GM life TBQH!

[Pink Jedi Ranger]

A combination of not being comfy with the new Mythweavers setup yet, not knowing how many of my former players crossed over to the new Mythweavers, and massive anxiety about the burnout potential that comes from trying to translate the ideas in my head through the tangled mass of vicious circles that make up my psyche, and get them into understandable narrative fun on the page are why I haven't tried reviving any iteration of my Star Wars Saga game.

Crippling Depression and anxiety has made me hella rusty. 😳

[Phntm888]

24 minutes ago, Pink Jedi Ranger said:

A combination of not being comfy with the new Mythweavers setup yet, not knowing how many of my former players crossed over to the new Mythweavers, and massive anxiety about the burnout potential that comes from trying to translate the ideas in my head through the tangled mass of vicious circles that make up my psyche, and get them into understandable narrative fun on the page are why I haven't tried reviving any iteration of my Star Wars Saga game.

Crippling Depression and anxiety has made me hella rusty. 😳

If it helps, I've seen a lot of handles I saw over on OGMW here on new Mythweavers, so a good number of your former players might have crossed over - maybe more than you think.

[bwatford]

Considering it is only 10 days from going read only, a bunch more will be showing up once the old site closes.

[Pink Jedi Ranger]

Very true. Which way will my creative urges flow?

[Malkavian Grin]

21 hours ago, Powderhorn said:

I was able to jump in not knowing a system and somehow still run it

I kind of did this with my first ever game I ran. As all my grand ideas took form and I learned the system (D&D 3.5), I actually think I had less fun. Like, most of my original ideas in that campaign were well outside the scope of in-game spells and power levels. I wanted something to happen so it did. I have been chasing the high of my very first campaign ever since. Ironic.

At some point I let the rules being correct ruin some of the fun for me. I had to step back from that. It's why I don't play much rules-heavy stuff anymore.

4 hours ago, Pink Jedi Ranger said:

A combination of not being comfy with the new Mythweavers setup yet, not knowing how many of my former players crossed over to the new Mythweavers, and massive anxiety about the burnout potential that comes from trying to translate the ideas in my head through the tangled mass of vicious circles that make up my psyche, and get them into understandable narrative fun on the page are why I haven't tried reviving any iteration of my Star Wars Saga game.

Crippling Depression and anxiety has made me hella rusty. 😳

I think I can safely say there's those of us on here that have been where you're at. Step back and remember why you liked playing the game in the first place. It can help to refresh your creativity and desire for it. But also your head sounds similar to mine (never a good thing--hopefully that doesn't come across as rude). I found GM tools of various kinds to be of massive benefit in lifting the pressure from being GM. Mythic GM Emulator is great for just giving me some words to chew on in literally any context.

[cailano]

9 hours ago, bwatford said:

Considering it is only 10 days from going read only, a bunch more will be showing up once the old site closes.

Welcome, change-adverse friends!

[Roughtrade]

Your poll needs a spot for "I am running games but want to be included in this conversation about the difficulties I have encountered"

[Melkar]

Honestly, I tried to run a game, actually I tried to ad the same game twice but in the end it was the new forum itself that meant I didn’t go through with it. I want to GM but the issue I have is that trying to learn the new forum vs the old one is overwhelming to me and trying to juggle that with running a game is too much.

Truth be told I also find applying to games here overwhelming as well. Again, I’ve tried but since every 5e game particularly has dozens of applications to them, and I’m in the place where my input on the site over the last year and a half has been limited it inevitably feels a little pointless since there’s absolutely no way that I would ever get picked over someone who has been here consistently on the site over the years. It’s catch-22 really, you’ve got to start somewhere to get involved but there seems no easy way to be able to do so.

[Vladim]

4 minutes ago, Melkar said:

It’s catch-22 really, you’ve got to start somewhere to get involved but there seems no easy way to be able to do so.

Maybe non-5e games? They're usually less competitive...

[Michael Silverbane]

1 minute ago, Melkar said:

I want to GM but the issue I have is that trying to learn the new forum vs the old one is overwhelming to me and trying to juggle that with running a game is too much.

So, I have had some difficulty with the new site that has prevented (or delayed) me from running a game, as well. But I have come up with a potential solution to that.

I went ahead and created a game, but left it closed or private or whatever, meaning that there's no ad and people won't stumble on it randomly. I have used that game forum to just kind of poke around, get used to the way things lay out and how they function, while doing some light planning in preparation for one day getting some players and opening up the game for real.

[Bobcloclimar]

28 minutes ago, Michael Silverbane said:

I went ahead and created a game, but left it closed or private or whatever, meaning that there's no ad and people won't stumble on it randomly. I have used that game forum to just kind of poke around, get used to the way things lay out and how they function, while doing some light planning in preparation for one day getting some players and opening up the game for real.

I heartily second this approach. It definitely takes some getting used to, so having a safe place to poke and prod was very helpful.

[Papa Bear]

4 hours ago, Melkar said:

Truth be told I also find applying to games here overwhelming as well.

A few years ago when I first arrived, I was kind of angry about the application process, but realized the necessity of it. I had come from small PbP sites. For the first month or two I studied other people's applications that were accepted (not always possible, some games went private and I never knew who got in) to try to see what people were doing 'right'. I soon started getting in any game I applied. Since that first year, I've pretty much gotten into every game through recommendation from the 'network' of people I've gamed with here. I am actually a little worried that my skills at apps have waned because I've not really applied to a game that didn't only have a few apps. Its a skill you probably have to keep up on.

That said, the advice to apply for non-D&D games is sound. Pathfinder and 5e especially get a LOT of apps. When I advertised my last 5e game, I was only looking for a few players (I had deals made with a couple other players who would be in my game for being in theirs). In less than 8 hours there were over 15 completed applications and another dozen WIPs. I closed it right away. One, there were some great apps just in the list of completed apps (and I really hate turning people away) and two, there were some apps from people I knew to be great players.

I took only two people I didn't know and one of those was kind of a 'mercy' admission because they were SUPPOSEDLY new to MW and I wanted to give a newb a break. Turns out the dill-weed had been banned several times and kept trying to come back... so when staff found him again, he was banned (again) which left us wondering what happened to him.

Anyway, the point is, its a lot easier to get into less popular systems... but then, you also feel like you have to have those books, which sucks because that usually costs money. The good news on that front is usually a GM running a lesser known system is trying to promote a system they love and is usually willing to teach and guide new people to the system.