Shared Responsibilities at the Table

Traditional TTRPGs often place a big responsibility on a single person—GM, DM, Storyteller, whatever the title might be. They are all too often solely in charge of the world, rules, schedule, social dynamics at the table, and many other things. Since few people feel equipped or even capable of taking on all this responsibility, GMs are incredibly rare—and even rarer if you discount power trippers, who are all too often drawn to this role. This imbalance is even greater in online play, where a single GM easily gets hundreds of applications for a game they’re running, even when it’s just a published module. This problem has spawned whole categories of GM-less games or games where responsibilities are rotated, which is certainly one good solution.

I would also like to argue that even in traditional TTRPGs, the responsibility doesn’t have to be so centralized. Or better, it shouldn’t be. I believe some of this sharing often happens naturally at good tables. It makes the game faster and more enjoyable for everyone. Players themselves feel responsible for a good session and contribute to the game in various ways. But even if it hasn’t already happened naturally at your table, it might be just a conversation away.

Following are some roles you can think about during your next session zero—or just ahead of your next regular play.

Artist

Groups that have people providing "fan art" are incredibly lucky. Seeing characters on paper (or screen, as it might be), or having nice figurines to play with, simply increases identity and improves everyone’s shared vision of what’s going on. (No more “I brush my fire-red hair…” - “Oh, I thought your hair was jet black!”). In addition to character art, there are also various combat trackers, status trackers, damage trackers, custom terrain pieces, and so many other things that can really elevate everyone’s experience. Of course, those can usually be bought, but having custom pieces for the table is just that much more awesome.

Chronicler

It is very valuable for a group to have a dedicated chronicler who takes notes on sessions, locations, names, story beats, available side missions, etc. It’s even better if that chronicler takes charge of recounting the previous session at the start of a new one, allowing everyone to submerge back into the story. It also helps when a player couldn’t make it to the session, so they’re brought up to speed quickly and reliably.

It is probably ideal if a group can decide on some form of shared chronicle that allows everyone to add notes as needed, creating a campaign diary (oh, the memories!) in the process. But this should probably not be left just to “whoever can”—responsibility shared is no one’s responsibility. While the GM usually has notes on all sessions, they are not the best person to also be the chronicler—after all, they know things the players don’t, and might confuse what is and isn’t known in the campaign. Additionally, listening to a session recap can help spot any misinterpretations by players that might hinder play in the future.

Coach

In groups with various levels of familiarity with TTRPGs, especially the one being played, it is good to have more experienced players coach less experienced ones. Ideally, the coach and trainee would sit together to disturb the game as little as possible, whispering questions and explanations back and forth.

Combat Assistant

This is a diverse role, or even a number of roles, that can be performed by players during what is usually the most structured and taxing part of many TTRPGs. GMs are often trying to run a number of creatures whose stat blocks are far less familiar to them than what players have in front of them, all while keeping flavour and tension going. Some examples of things that can be done by players include:

  • Initiative tracking, if a system has one – This includes warning players and GMs about upcoming turns so they can prepare.
  • Field artist – If you play on dry-erase boards or similar, a player can volunteer to draw/set up the field with some guidance from the GM.
  • Mob runner – Many bosses come with a bunch of minions who usually have small health pools and one or two simple abilities. These can easily be run by a more experienced or tactically minded player, allowing the GM to focus on the big-hitting named creatures. You could argue about the player not doing a good job on purpose, but the thing is... GMs are just as much on the players’ side as the players are, so I would argue there shouldn’t be much difference in how those minions are run.
  • HP tracker – It is often beneficial (though certainly optional) for everyone involved to have a common, open tracker of remaining HP, allowing them to make more informed decisions in combat—such as retreating, target selection, healing, etc.

Host

This obviously only applies to groups that meet face to face, but the hosting responsibility shouldn’t necessarily always fall on one person. Even if it is usually one person hosting—because of available space or location, or if you're playing in a local game store—the group can share responsibilities for snacks and drinks. And yes, everyone can bring their own snacks, but the best chocolate is the one you share.

Rule Lawyer

Usually, a person who knows the rules of the TTRPG being played the best—or at least second best after the GM. Unless your chosen TTRPG is very rules-light, it’s essentially impossible for anyone to really know all the ins and outs of every rule. The Rule Lawyer should be ready with reference material when it’s needed. Of course, the final call is still on the GM, as story needs might override rules-as-written, but it’s always good if the GM can just say: “Can you check the rules for when the creature is rooted and on fire, please, while we move on with the combat?” and have that taken off their plate.

Team Lead

TTRPGs often require group decisions. Without some gentle guidance, making those decisions can take literal hours, dragging the story down and removing any tension from the moment. While ideally those decisions should be discussed in character, it’s often good to have a person in charge of moving things along. They don’t make decisions for other characters, and they don’t have to play the most charismatic character in-game, but just having someone go: “OK, we’ve been discussing this for a while, let’s go a round of closing arguments and then vote,” has been a lifesaver on many occasions.

Additionally, if your system does things like group stealth checks or similar, the Team Lead can pre-gather all the values, presenting the GM with a ready-to-use median, saving them some intellectual labor while they also roll on their encounter tables and enemy perception checks. If something like travelling requires a “standard” set of checks (navigation, perception, etc.), the Team Lead could also take charge of collecting those values every time the group starts their journey—saving the GM even more time.

Treasurer

Most every TTRPG system has some sort of item system. This often means that a party has some shared resources such as money, health potions, and whatever else. Each table can greatly benefit from having a dedicated Treasurer who is in charge of those shared resources. The Treasurer could also help the GM plan shopping sessions by simply saying: “We are arriving in the city next session—we should stock up on bullets, health potions, and maybe look for a way to heal cobra bites more efficiently next time.” One of the hardest things to do as a GM is conjuring up entire stores of items when players don’t know what they want to spend their money on!

Conclusion

Granted, not every group should have all of these roles, and some systems might not even require them. There are probably groups and systems that benefit from other roles, too. Still, everyone playing TTRPGs in any role should think about things that can be made shared and more democratic at the table.