Quote from: TonyLBWhat things can your fellow players do that really make you happy during the game?

What really pleases me is when the players discover their characters. By this I mean when any preexisting notions of who their characters are (the ones they deicde upon before play) suddenly radically changes when it comes into contact with the setting/events. Presupposed relationships between the characters changes. Personality quirks emerge . I guess it's breathing life into the game through their characters.

Regards,
David R

Quote from: David RWhat really pleases me is when the players discover their characters. By this I mean when any preexisting notions of who their characters are (the ones they deicde upon before play) suddenly radically changes when it comes into contact with the setting/events. Presupposed relationships between the characters changes. Personality quirks emerge . I guess it's breathing life into the game through their characters.

Regards,
David R

With you there, David!

BTW, welcome back, Tony, and thank you for this thread!

-clash

Quote from: BalbinusAnd Tony, good to have you back, I was wondering where you'd got to.

Sold a house, bought a new house ... between the internet disruptions, the computer-packed-away disruptions and the sheer mass of practical, non-computerized stuff to be dealt with it delivered a pretty solid hit to my posting time.

Still, I'm now within easy walking distance of a lake ... not so easy (but still doable) carrying the new family kayak, so I'm thinking it's well worth it.

Did you know the Inuit light cooking fires in pots on their boats? Apparently you can have your kayak, and heat it too!

Just thought I'd share...

-clash

I like it when I have fun, leave the session feeling totally pumped and hyper, and can't wait till the next session. :chestram:

I don't really care what (specifically) happened durring the session.  As long as I leave feeling like that it was a success IMHO.

Clever play. Things like using the spell Grease to totally fuck up my plans of attacking bullywogs who leaped right onto the area of effect and slid off a sloping deck. I can't say its not a bit annoying, but in the end its a cool thing to behold.

I love it when my players go off in their own direction, when they take aspects of the setting they know have no impact on the plot and run with it. I enjoy watching them concoct schemes for personal advancement, character embellishment or sheer bloody-minded desire to interact with the game world.

Great characterisation always wins me over. I like seeing events take an unexpected twist because a character reacts in a unforeseen yet plausible way. Taking pity on a prisoner they have every reason to execute, commiting an opportunistic crime because that's what people do.  

I also enjoy players bringing their own idea to the setting. I intentionally keep characters, events and locations on the periphery vague, rewarding intelligent, creative additions to the world by incorporating them. I like players to feel that they have a personal stake in the development of the environment, and get a huge buzz when they contribute to it.

After a 20 year "hiatus", I took the GM reigns a couple of weeks ago.  It's a Castles & Crusades game and I was using the A1: Assault on Blacktooth Ridge module.  At the entrance to the big dungeon, there was an inscription of a small, three line poem that was a clue in how to handle one of the big bads.  It's not a make or break the game clue, but watching the players struggle with interpreting that verse with various degrees of accuracy, being in similar situations as a player myself, made me feel extremely happy.

I simply love those moments where everything is in the zone, those times when I wing it, everything falls into place, and the excitement is contagious.  I have memories of such moments in my gaming life but the first time was when we played rolemaster and used the middle-earth setting from I.C.E.  I had to fudge things hard even though I tried to give them every advantage (high stats, better than average starting equipment, etc.) because the published adventure I had was for characters of a higher level.  Still, they escaped with injuries of various sorts but I was kind enough to let them actually hire a healer back in town.  More importantly, they had fun and we talked about that adventure for quite some time.

I also like it when the players are willing to try new games and give it at least one good shot.  CoC was one such game.  We ended it with a battle with a group of mi-go.  They managed to defeat one such group but used up/destoryed every resource they had.  In addition, a random roll had both of them ended with basically disbelieving the supernatural on the sanity table.

Finally, just being able to create such moments and being able to talk about them after the game is done.  In other words, just being around people who are into their characters, the settings, and looking for a good challenge.

PS.  I misread the thread about "things that ticks you off in play."

When players form fun, interesting, and reasonably realistic (within the setting and genre) relationships between their characters, and you see their inner child sort of take hold and really have a go at playing pretend.

When players, characters, good roleplay and a GM willing to say "fuck the book" all conspire to bring together a cataclysmically awesome session that's talked about for years.

When the audacious action you've just taken in desperation with every penalty in the book stacked against you gets rolled and you critically succeed when you have no business doing so, and it just happens to save the day  or your buddies character.

When rules are ignored or not used at all in the presence of an idea that ends up being more fun than any dice rolling could have made it.  (Great story there, btw, I think I might even have a picture).

Quote from: BalbinusI love the fact that when I sit down, I never know what the hell is going to happen, and most of the time whatever does is better than anything I would have scripted if I were inclined to scripting play.

And Tony, good to have you back, I was wondering where you'd got to.

Otherwise, I love in character repartee, when people get in the zone and come out with some genuinely cool and funny stuff in character.

That, and I love it when things go wrong, because there's nothing like a fumble or a clusterfuck to bring out both comedy and drama in game at the same time.

As usual, Max says it better. And more exactly.

I like rules that inspire me, as a player/GM, to do more with the setting and the ideas behind it. For instance, the way Feng SHui has it's difficulty levels scaled so players can do wuxia madness.

I really like to hear my players talk about the game in between sessions, with me or with each other.  It lets me know I'm at least making things interesting enough to provoke some thought and discussion.  

Pete

As a player:

• I love when I can get to be a Hero; when I make the hard choices even though I'm certain that my beloved character will be seriously messed up or killed.
• I love when I manage to make it through and win.

As a GM:

• I love when my players are really getting into the game, with big grins -- or with expressions of horror!
• I love when they seem attentive and interested even when another player has the spotlight.
• I love when I can use their clever ideas to make the game better.
• I love when they throw a curve at me and I catch it and bounce it back.
• I love saying yes to their ideas.

As both:

• I love hard moral choices.
• I love it when a plan comes together!
• I love playing with fun, smart, cooperative players (even if their characters are not!)
  
• I love adventure.
• I love visiting interesting, exciting, mysterious, or scary settings.
• I love when we're having so much fun, we forget the book and the dice, or use them without having to stop to think.
• I love when everyone is still buzzing with comments about the game afterwards.