Doing something you don't want to do, so you can do what you want to do

Bit of a long title and it refers to many aspects of life, as any reasonable person will understand. However, in this context it's referring to games mastering role play games. It's something I've never wanted to do, but with so many exciting RPGs out there, in particularly, the Star Wars RPGs coming from Fantasy Flight games, I've been forced to figure out how I can play them.

I haven't done much GMing, as this blog will verify, but I've had a go a few times. I've run the prescribed beginner adventures from 2 of the Star Wars RPG beginner boxes, which are fantastic value for money for anyone interested in Star Wars and RPGing. I've run a couple of other things, but they've never been great. The important thing is that I've learnt a little each time and it's sort of compelled me to keep trying and I've found that I can enjoy the game in a different way. I've also found videos and guides to give me ideas and there are loads of resources out there; the youtube channel Geek and Sundry has just started a series of videos with useful tips for GMs, hosted by Matt Mercer.

As a kid I never wanted to GM games, but my friends and I were interested in RPGs, particularly me, and no-one else would do it. Back then we'd run very free-form games with no particular rules or even die rolls, it was all adlibbed and kept in our heads. I craved a chance to be a player in a game and not have to run it, but it never happened as a kid. Luckily, in recent years I've been able to be a player in Pathfinder and some D&D, which, in a way, brought me round to biting the bullet and trying my hand at GMing a proper RPG.

The title of this blog post also brings me onto the subject of other games too. I'm a big believer of the idea that if you want to play something, sort it out yourself, then find people who want to play. Then, if people get their own stuff, it's because they really want to, not because of any pressure. As a kid I used to try and rope people in, but all I ended up with was a guilty feeling when they didn't enjoy it as much as me.