[yaysunshine]

I'm part of a university-based LARP group, and we run year-long, self-contained chronicles so that the ST team can switch off from year to year so people get a chance to both play and be in charge. I'm going to be one of the STs for the Requiem chronicle we're starting in the fall—thing is, I'm the least-experienced roleplayer out of all six of us, and have never GMed or STed before, even in a tabletop game. Obviously, this is kind of a big step for me, and I really want to do a good job at it.

Basically, I'm looking for advice from more seasoned STs. Tips, advice, pitfalls to avoid, useful resources, things you wish you'd known going into your first time as an ST, etc. are very much appreciated.

[zenten]

OK, the biggest issues aren't rules based, but social. You don't want infighting amongst the organizers to make things fall apart, and you don't want players to rough roughshod over other players. The game rules can sometimes make these issues worse, but they won't fix or prevent them.

Beyond that, figure out what you want the game to be about, and make sure that is communicated with every single player in big bold letters that even a four year old couldn't miss it. And then prepare for some of the players still not getting it. Also understand that what you want the game to be about is not objectively better than what some other people want, it's just a matter of making things compatible.

Also, comprehensible and easy to remember rules are *much* more important than "good" rules. Don't start getting into crazy house rule territory trying to fix every single flaw by throwing a rule or three at it, because very few of your players will even remember what those rules are in play.

Keeping organized is also really really good. Make sure that you have a good system for tracking what needs to be tracked, like character sheets, who shows up, whatever downtime rules you're doing, and so on.

Also, most important of all, have fun. A bitchy and burned out ST is not a good ST