Treasure Tables is on hiatus as of December 13th, 2007. After two years of daily posts, I needed a break; that break might turn out to be permanent. In the meantime, I invite you to check out the hundreds of GMing articles in TT's archives, and to join our friendly, active GMing forums. If you're a longtime TT reader, thank you for your support. If you're new to the site, welcome -- there's plenty of GMing advice here to keep you busy! -- Martin

Being a Player is Like Using a Flashlight

Sat. August 5, 2006 

I’ve touched on this subject here on TT, but it’s never resolved itself this clearly for me.

Being a player is a lot like using a flashlight: You can see things in front of you, and maybe a bit to the sides, very well. On the edges, things are pretty indistinct. Further away (and behind you), you can’t see anything at all.

In other words, what seems clear to you as the GM may not fall under the players’ collective flashlight beam. They might be seeing it indistinctly, at the edge of their cone of light — or it might be behind them, effectively invisible.

When you GM, the key is to put as much fun, important stuff as possible in the flashlight beam. You should also leave some interesting stuff outside the light, in case the players turn in that direction.

More posts about: Common Problems, Players

Comments

6 Responses to “Being a Player is Like Using a Flashlight”

  1. maikeru on August 5th, 2006 4:25 pm

    That is actually a pretty good analogy. Never really saw it like that, but never-the-less true. Will keep it in mind, thanks.

  2. Spleen23 on August 5th, 2006 6:44 pm

    My group does write ups covering the game for posting on the web page, games are sometimes weeks apart, so a review is handy.
    Lately we have been including a “Things to remember” section covering new information learned and lingering plot lines, this might be usefull for clueing in a GM what clues the players din’t catch pick up.

  3. ScottM on August 6th, 2006 8:58 pm

    Good point– it’s often hard to tell what you’ve successfully transmitted. If your players talk around you between sessions, sometimes you’ll figure out what clues they’ve decoded.

  4. Martin on August 7th, 2006 7:50 am

    maikeru: That was pretty much my experience with it — “Hey, this sounds about right!”

    Spleen23: If you’ve got a group that can maintain that level of organization through an entire campaign, this problem can fade into the background almost entirely. That rocks. :)

    Scott: Those discussions can also be a great source of ideas for future sessions, too.

  5. Being a GM is Like Using a 150 Watt Bulb - Treasure Tables on August 8th, 2006 6:55 am

    […] If being a player is like using a flashlight, being the GM is like sitting under a 150 watt lamp. Everything is fully illuminated (sometimes too fully), and nothing is hidden from view. […]

  6. Stealing the Flashlight - Treasure Tables on August 15th, 2006 7:10 am

    […] This is a guest post by TT reader Nick Bell (who goes by lebkin in the comments). It’s brilliantly simple, and it speaks for itself. - - - - - Because being a GM is like using a 150 watt bulb, it is easy to get lost in your self-created sea of knowledge where everything seems perfectly clear. To counter this, one needs to build up a set of tools in order to understand the players’ views on what is going on in-game. The best tool is actually the players themselves. Simply put, you can find out what the players remember by stealing their flashlight. […]