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TTRPGs are vehicles for improvised, collaborative stories. Basically, we’re all just making it up as we go! And the idea of making up a compelling story on the spot can be a little intimidating, but it doesn’t need to be. There are a few basic skills you can practice to feel more comfortable and confident when you’re improvising. And once you feel good about what you’re making up, it’ll be all the easier to focus on making the story the best it can be.

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Listen

The first step to being a better improviser is being a better listener. It sounds simple and, quite frankly, it is! Improv is all about adding to a scene and playing off of the choices made by the GM and the other players. And the only way to know what choices were already made is to make sure you’re engaged in the story and paying attention when it’s not your turn to speak. Be present, take notes, and remove any distractions. The most clever improvisers I’ve ever played with are always the best listeners because they are paying attention to every little thing the other players do. This allows them to connect disparate threads of the scenes, create a crazy theory, or contextualize the other player’s actions to show them in a new and interesting light. 

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Yes, and…

“Yes, and…” is the core tenet of all improv and it’s incredibly effective. First, affirm the choice that a player made. Then add to that choice either by including more detail, heightening the decision, or incorporating the decision into something that was already established. This doesn’t mean you can’t disagree in-character—half the fun of playing TTRPGs is playfully arguing about what to do next—it just means that you don’t reject the basic premise someone else has introduced. For example, if the GM tells you the bartender remembers you, you shouldn’t say that you’ve never been to that tavern before. Instead you should add to that interaction:

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GM: Welcome back! Still drinking whiskey?

Player: I’m surprised you’re still here! Last time we were together you got so drunk you swore you were going to quit this life and pursue your love of painting landscapes!

GM: I did! Sold 20 paintings in three months and you know what I did with the money? I bought this bar! That’s one of my favorite paintings hanging over there. And I’ve got you to thank for it all. 

Player: So do I get to drink for free?

GM: Sure. Right after you pay the tab you skipped out on last time. 

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You see? With every new response we are learning more about the characters and helping their relationship to evolve. They aren’t always agreeing, but they’re always accepting the basic idea that the other puts forward. The conversation flows and by the end we know a lot more about both of these characters and the environment they’re in. 

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The goal of saying, “Yes, and…” is to keep the story moving forward and always adding more detail. While there are certainly times to say no when playing a TTRPG, try to focus on saying “yes, and…” Every session of a TTRPG is a runaway train where the GM and players are frantically laying the tracks immediately in front of them like in Wallace & Gromit. Saying “Yes, and…” means you are laying more track and allowing the train to keep moving forward. Saying no stops the story in its tracks. 

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Be a Good Audience

Good improv isn’t only happening when you’re speaking, it’s also happening when the other players are in the spotlight. When you’re not in a scene you are the audience to whom the other players are performing. Be attentive! Laugh loudly! Cheer even louder! Celebrate the choices your friends are making and get excited about the story when the GM makes a big revelation. Think of it this way: don’t jokes seem funnier when you’re watching them in a crowd? An engaged and reactive audience enhances the emotion and impact of whatever is happening in the story. It amplifies it and makes big moments feel monumental. Be a good audience member and help make the story you’re telling feel even more epic.

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Share the Spotlight

Improv is not a monologue and it’s not a pre-written story. It’s a conversation between a group of people that is constantly evolving. Sharing the spotlight is a vital skill that is just as important as coming up with the witty one-liner or making the optimal choice in a combat. Half of the fun of playing TTRPGs is to listen to the stories that your friends create at the table and they can’t do that if you’re the only one talking. 

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Sharing the spotlight doesn’t just mean getting out of the way so others can play; it also means teeing up your friends so they have the opportunity to do something cool. If you’re facing off against an enemy that destroyed one player’s hometown, let that player lead the combat since this is the climax of their story. When you make your attack, describe how it helps the spotlight player find the opening for the finishing blow. The player who sets up an alley-oop isn’t the one to score the point, but they make their teammate look damn cool when they slam dunk. 

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Be Specific and Provide Detail

TTRPGs are stories that we are building in our collective imaginations, but that means we are all seeing things differently in our own minds. The more we are able to be specific and add in more details, the closer we get to sharing the same mental image. Humans thrive on sensory detail, so when you’re describing a scene or an action use all the senses you can muster. What does the tavern smell like? What sound does the wind make as it blows through the abandoned castle? What do the scales of the baby dragon feel like as you hold it in your arms? You don’t need to add paragraphs of detail to every scene, but just one or two little details will make it easier for everyone to imagine the same scene and sink even deeper into the story. 

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Adapt and Be Flexible

Whether you’re the GM or a player you are bound to have your idea for a scene conflict with another player’s plan. Don’t try to force a square peg into a round hole. You’ll make hundreds of decisions about the story every single session of your campaign so don’t be too precious about any one thing. Synthesize your ideas with whatever your friends are adding to the world and create something new. As your ideas evolve through play you’ll be surprised at how often they only get better as they change. 

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Have Fun!

The most important thing to remember is this: we all know how to play make-believe. We did it naturally as kids and we didn’t need a rulebook or for anyone to teach us how. You’re already able to do it and getting better is just a matter of intention and practice. Go into a session with the intention of doing one of these things a little better—listen better, react more to other player’s actions, or add more detail to the world whenever you can—and after just a few sessions you’ll find yourself more comfortable and more capable of improvising an incredibly captivating story. 

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Brian Flaherty is a co-founder of Many Sided Media, a TTRPG podcast production company which produces award-winning shows like My First Dungeon, Talk of the Table, and Bitcherton. 

image By: psyche-ange 

Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License

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