Game Masters, Be Careful of The Behaviors You Reward in Your Game

Games have rules, and RPGs have more rules than most games to try to cover the wide array of situations and conflicts that might arise. However, very often the rules are written in such a way that they enforce certain ideas, and certain courses of action at the table. As a Game Master it's important for you to be aware of these things, and to ask how they're going to affect your game. Because if you don't pay attention to these incentives (whether they're put there by the original designers or via your own house rules), you may find yourself scratching your head about why your players take certain courses of action, or choose certain options.

The actions your reward are the actions you will continue to see.

Before I go any further, remember to sign up for my weekly newsletter if you don't want to miss out on any of my updates. And if you haven't seen it yet, consider checking out 5 Things You Can Do To Be A Better Ambassador For Your Hobby, as I feel it dovetails nicely with this particular topic.

What Gets Players Their Rewards?

The most basic question regarding a game is what actions will get the players rewards, and which ones will not. While some players might not put it into words, these are the things they're paying attention to, and what they see will drive their actions going forward.

Numbers look good on that strategy. Repeat until it stops working!

As a basic example of this practice in action, look at XP in your game. In a lot of RPGs you get XP for disarming traps, or for defeating monsters, because it's expected that the players are going to do those things. However, say your players use an alternate method to bypass a trap (turning ethereal, leaping over the pressure plate, tumbling past the triggers, etc.), do you give them the XP reward for that? What if they bluff their way past the monstrous guards instead of fighting them? Or sneak past unseen and unheard? Do they still get XP for those actions?

A lot of that will depend on you, as the GM.

For example, do you give the players the reward no matter how they solved the issue, ensuring their XP stays on track and they can level up appropriately? Or do you insist that they don't get the experience unless they roll initiative and do things the bloody way? Because whichever choice you make, players are going to take a cue from it, and incorporate it into their future strategies.

And it's one reason you'll see players become murderhobos. Not necessarily because they aren't creative, or can't think of situations beyond extreme violence, but because that is the requirement the GM sets (knowingly or unknowingly) for the players getting their rewards. And when you realize that using persuasive rhetoric or stealth isn't getting you what you need to advance, you stop trying, because it's been discouraged.

This is, honestly, why a lot of GMs have switched to Milestone Leveling (which I talk about more in Run Smoother, More Enjoyable Games (By Removing XP) for those who are interested). It removes the need to keep track of numbers, yes, but it also means that players are given the freedom to decide which strategy they want to pursue based on their skills and talents, rather than worrying about not leveling up if they don't do things the expected way.

This Applies To All Aspects of a Game

No matter what aspect of a game we're talking about, you can often get a new perspective on it (and on your group's behavior) by asking what actions you're encouraging, and which one's you're not.

For example, if players can talk to intelligent monsters, bandits, etc. and find some solution without combat, there's a good chance they'll at least try that option more often. If taking prisoners, or disarming and releasing beaten monsters leads to a growth in their reputation (see Character Reputation in RPGs: The Small Legend for more information), or if they can recruit/reform those NPCs, then mercy is going to seem like a viable option instead of just a chance to let the GM stab you in the back. If they are rewarded for solving issues and finding solutions (say with gifts from the quest givers for a job well done), instead of only being able to get monetary rewards from looting corpses, you'll see players broaden their thinking when it comes to finding solutions.

It all depends on which options you as a GM reinforce, and which ones you don't.

I'm an ambassador... I'm supposed to talk to people!

While there's plenty of advice out there about which actions you should actively discourage, and how to deal with problematic players, a lot of the time you can find solutions in asking how to better use the carrot instead of the stick. Especially if it turns out you (or the rules) are actively rewarding things that, in retrospect, aren't actually the directions you want your players to go.

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