How to run a KUP game #6 - GM assessments

If possible, never give GM-only information; do not allow players to know what they are not supposed to know, since on these concepts is based the model of participation in the game. Care must be taken in handling cases of potential spoilers: for example, the PC takes an action that grants a +1 Morality modifier and this also increases SOM; while the former is hidden information, the latter is not and the GM should inform the player of this modification. However, if the GM communicates the increase in SOM due to the action that also increases Morality, the player can assume that his Morale has indeed increased.

In cases like the example above, the GM must be smart and use asynchronous communication to break the link between the increase and the event. If the GM keeps the information disjoint, then the benefits of the KUP model are preserved: in the example, the GM can only communicate about the increase in SOM in the following session and, until then, calculate the modifier instead of the player.

The above example facilitates the introduction of another topic: the handling of critical moral cases. An example is when a PC with the Path of Glory has to choose between a benefit to himself and a benefit to others: in such cases, the GM should not penalize the player too severely for facing a ‘lose/lose’ scenario. On the contrary, the cases to be penalized are when a PC deliberately commits acts against his morality (even worse if he repeats these acts). In cases like the one above, where the choice is "lose/lose," the GM should do the other way round: evaluate the quality of the player's choice in such a difficult context, and ‘reward’ him by not giving him a penalty.

Another area where the GM's judgment is crucial is in the evaluation of SS spells: with each spell cast, the GM is called upon to determine the magnitude of the effect drawn by the player. This is an element at the GM's complete discretion, so it is necessary for the GM to set a standard that applies to all PCs (and NPCs) under all circumstances; it is necessary to avoid favoring PCs with softer ratings depending on the situation, or vice versa. The same can be said for the handling of Reaction and SOM cases: again, the GM needs to find an objective and easily ascertainable standard to avoid cases of possible misuse.

With reference to characters’ actions, it is necessary to find the right measure to set the appropriate ‘calls’ on ARC results to players (in order to allocate growth points). There is no one-size-fits-all rule, but there are some situations to avoid: the player who always tries to do something new or different should not be penalized, while the player who abuses one of his ES by generating ARCs when unnecessary is a case where it is preferable not to award growth points. There are also circumstances in which the player wants a check to fail: even if he is aware of the failure, he wants it to have consistency in his role-play. In such cases, the GM should take into account the desire to disadvantage his PC for a high purpose, and grant growth points for that reason (I have to admit that this is not a frequent situation, however it is possible and when it happened to me, I happily provided the full result - a +2 - to the player without requiring him to ‘call’ the outcome of his PC’s action).

Finally, there are situations (such as an action that requires narrative fluidity and should not be interrupted) where the GM can assume the results of certain tests (assuming they are standard) without asking for an ARC: in this case, the GM must consider whether the test falls within the character's possibility (this by having a glance at his stats only). It should be added that the GM can deal with diceless parts of the game, such as the case above, using proxies: instead of rolling dice, it is always possible to use standards to avoid losing ‘momentum’ during specific in-game circumstances, and to consider those missed opportunities to roll dice as useful to characters' ES progress in any case, even if these have not actually required dice to sort out an outcome.