No Story Survives the Players

Our gamemaster has never told the story he wanted. He has been a gamemaster for 17 years and not one of his stories have gone as he wrote it. The ones that were painstakingly prepared, were effortlessly sundered. Why? He always says "Players; you can plan for every freaking thing, but not the players."

This is of course an exaggeration. The games were fun while they lasted, despite us taking the story off the rails. Still, a common complaint from any gamemaster will be, "I couldn't get my players to follow my beautiful ...". Then they will wax poetic about the intricate plot, their favorite little GMPC that didn't shine in the right light, or the villain that got hosed because things didn't go the way the plot was demanding.

It stinks, but it's unavoidable. It is written in the by-laws of the Lake Geneva convention. The treaties signed between player and gamemaster long ago (the 1970's, you know LAST MILLENNIUM) that outlined proper gaming etiquette. Not really. The Lake Geneva Convention treaties aren't real. Just a nod to TSR. Ha Ha how old are we?

Players will go left when you want them to go right, they will fight when you want them to flee, and most of the time win against all odds. That's heroics, it's what makes role-playing worth playing. For that chance to become legends and the opportunity to taste it with friends. Being a gamemaster is a tough role  but it serves as the mediator between the game and the players. We're not there to make you into heroes or villains, we simply give you the world with all it's muck, grim, dirty places, people and things. We give you the tools, but gamemaster puts it into perspective and the players bring it all to life.

If you don't believe us, look it up. In the Lake Geneva conventions.