Writing Every Day 18: Information flows both ways

Asking your Players Questions

I used to think of Game Mastering as a one-way flow of information. The players asked me questions and I filled in the details in my answers. In recent years, I've come to appreciate the results when you ask the players questions instead.

I listened to the One Shot podcast a bit at work this afternoon, and I was impressed by a technique the Game Master used. She very briefly set up the situation, telling the group the time of day, setting, and gave a bit of color, then turned to one of her players and asked him "Where are you?"

Question Choice

The Game Master's choice of question was smart. Often I hear Game Masters ask "What are you doing?" That's a fine question, but I don't think it's where you want to begin. That question can be too open-ended and leave a player struggling to come up with something interesting to say. By asking a narrower question, or a leading question, the player doesn't have to think as hard and the pace of the game flows smoothly.

When you set out to ask your player for information, you need to be ready to let them narrate. Choosing your questions wisely can keep them from over-narrating and placing you in an inextricable situation that derails your game. Even the above question could have led into some murky waters if the Game Master didn't first set up some parameters. (e.g., "You are all aboard the good ship Venus through the outer rim, travelling from planet Limerick to the Obscure Reference spaceport").

Even a carefully chosen question can lead you into trouble, so sometimes it is in your best interests to do the leading first.

Leading Questions

A leading question can force someone to respond in a narrowly defined way and restricts some of possible responses; probably the reason it isn't allowed in a court of law. For Game Masters, though, it has a lot of potential.

Asking a leading question forces the player to consider the question and respond within the boundaries of the narrative. It can be a heavy-handed technique that not all players are fond of, so I advise caution, but with the right group it can lead to some interesting roleplaying. An example of a leading question is something like, "Flames from the containment core burn through the corridor and a desperate maintenance crew struggles to fight them. Billy, you're close enough to feel the heat; why aren't you helping?" or "Captain Cousteau receives a verbal dressing down from the port authority. Billy, how does that make you feel?"

The first example is more extreme because it suggests player action. Maybe Billy wants his PC to assist in the firefighting effort, but your question tells him that he isn't. You might get a response that contradicts your question, or outright denial of your proposed scenario. The second is a bit more subtle and still leaves the player an out. Billy might decide that it doesn't make him feel anything, which is a fine response, but asking that leading question lets him know that you want him to consider the situation. It lets him know that you expect something from him, one way or another.

Questions as a Memory Tool

Okay. Last thing on this topic.

Often one of the PCs in my games will have a pet or sidekick or robot or something. While technically an NPC, I am terrible at remembering they are around and should be participating in the action, so I don't worry about it. During that PCs' turn, I'll simply ask them what their buddy is doing.

I like doing this because it allows me to worry about the dozens of other things a Game Master has to worry about during a game, but I also like it because it puts the control of that resource squarely in the player's hands. It's their sidekick/pet/whatever and the player probably has a cool mental image of how it interacts with the PC. Having the player decide when his or her hunting hound cowers and whines or begs for scraps by the table is totally fine. The most I'll do is add some color to the situation or ask for an Animal Handling roll for complex actions the PC wants the pet to perform, or what have you.

Giving the player control over this kind of incidental NPC frees me up and gives the player more control, both things that I wholeheartedly support.