I am sorry, but you should show your entire ass

I am playing more ttrpgs now that college seems to be more stable. I recently went to Gaelcon and played games with people with very different levels of familiarity. So when Prismatic wasteland put out the call to give the players some advice for once, I had to do something. So here are a variety of bits of advice I have collected over my time on both sides of the screen. 

1. You will start to know the other players better over time.

I see some players think they can focus solely on the mechanics and their character, discarding the other characters and the world around their character. This is not possible. When you sit down to play with 4 or so people you will talk to them, and you will get to know each other. The attitudes and experience 10 minutes before the session impacts play in a fundamental way. If you want a better session talk to your fellow players. Gms are always advised to talk to their players but so should players talk to each other. 

2. The other players are human too. 

Similarly, you don't need to be perfect and the funniest/coolest person in the room. Sometimes a joke doesn't quite land or maybe something you said doesn't get the reaction you are hoping for. That's ok. All of you are human and in a competent table, you should all at bare minimum like the other players enough to show up to the same place for a few hours to be in a imaginary world. GMs are told they don't have to be like Matt Mercer and player don't have to be like Lou Wilson or Laura Bailey. 

It's okay if this is what ttrpgs are like for you

3. You should show your ass sometimes.

What I mean by that is you should go for big emotional swings if it feels right at the table. Don't worry about the people at the table judging you negatively for how you feel. If your table is competent, the other players are people that you can talk to (crazy right?). Go for a big swing, show off parts of yourself you might not be able to show off very often. Worst comes to worst, you can talk about it. The most memorable tabletop sessions I had made me and other people at the table emotional. The worlds we make at the table cannot be archived by physical artifacts alone, they need feeling and emotion to stand the test of time. These swings can big and obvious or small and discreet. 

4. Be respectful when other players show their ass.

When another player goes for a big emotional swing, don't judge them too harshly. It's hard to be vulnerable so if a player goes for a big emotional moment, hear what they have to say. If it was out of place or off putting, talk to them about it. Talk to the GM. Feel sympathy/empathy as your fellow player has an amazing moment. A hidden piece of advice throughout this post is players (including the GM) are human like you. Remember that. Whether it's a quieter player making big moves or a louder player letting everyone else take the spotlight, all big moves are valid.

 

Every at the table (as it should be)

Clickables

Dungeon Mecha talks about the minimum viable city. 

Narramblings breaks down why Final Fantasy's "Square Princesses" work as a blueprint for RPGs. 

Nik does a great guest post on Patchwork Paladin building better 5e boss monsters.