Hey Ive been GMing Whitewolf for about 7 yrs and Harry Potter for about 8 yrs... im just now starting D&D(have been playing for ever).... but im could really use some advice, I have 3 other GM or DMs in our player group... none of them are runing it , i am, but problem is that they all think they know everything and that because im a female GM that they know better then me and like to fight with each other over rules... even still after ive looked them up double check went online to double check then just gave up and said the old "GM runs it, Gm says what goes... but it seems that they only respond to stuff in the game.... plz help I need it badly and really soon

On a game I play with some very experienced players and DM's there is a simple way to run diputes. THey person who thinks that the rule says something else bet eXP points that he/she is right and then has to prove it my looking ot up. IF they are right DM gives them ESP if they are wrong they lose the ESP bet. Mostly anywhere from 50-500 depending of level of sharacter. This was DM rules hold until they prove it and you don't have to waste your time or effort, especially if you feel you are in the right. However be perpared to give way gracefully if they are right.

Great Idea But its not me fighting with them its them fighting with Each other

I use to have players like that, first I asked them to stop, then I told them to stop then I started deducting experience from all there kills ect, it was mainly combat based, and that go the message through to stop correcting me.

Remember that the GM is all powerful in his/her own game but there must still be a reason for doing something.

yes of course I always have a reason if im bending or braking a rule but like i said its nothing to do with me fighting its the other gm's/players of our group they all seem to think they know better then each other.. also there isnt as much fighting in my games as most i make players think

I like to make my players think but these people won't even get 10X10 to make 100.
Use a combination of both suggestions already, give them an reason to behave and a punishment if they don't.

I find 3.X DnD easily lends itself to rule-layering and can easily decend into petty fights about "Well, is that really what the rules say? I think they mean this..."

Still, I think a real foundational agreement that the group needs to make is Rule 0 "The Dm makes the final call."... that, and that FUN is more important than getting every rule right. If you're a fair DM, and the group REALLY does care about FUN more than rules, then you're sitting pretty good as a group.

Maybe having a sit down chat with the group, reaffirming the group's commitment to fun, fair play and the giving of "authority" to the GM might be a place to start.

1) Reaffirm your relationship with your friends -- tell them that you've loved playing with them so far and want to continue with them.

2) Thank them for the trust that they've given you to moderate your current campaign. Tell them how excited you are to be preparing these adventures for them

3) Admit to them that you feel somewhat under-qualified to DM a 3.x game. Admit that they seem to know a lot (more) about the rules and that you sometimes feel intimidated by this.

4) Share with them honestly your frustrations about how your game sessions seem to be getting derailed by arguments/ discussions about the rules.

5) Share with them your vision of how you would like to see the gaming sessions run. Share with them your primary goal is to ensure that they have a great time roleplaying, interacting with the world you are creating for them.

6) Share with them that you understand that during game play there will be questions about how certain rules come into play. Tell them that if it won't take too long and you can find the specific rule easily in the books that you have on hand, you'd be happy to look it up and make a ruling. However, if the rule is not readily accessable during gameplay, tell them that you will make a ruling that you think will be fair for this gaming session, and will further look up the rule before the next gaming session. This, you hope, will help game play continue smoothly.

7) Ask them if they are willing to trust you to make judgements regarding the rules, with the understanding that if they were running the game, they might rule differently. If they agree, then ask them to affirm Rule 0 - "If I make a judgement call on a rule, I need to know that, even if you disagree with my ruling, you will accept it and together we can move forward."

Invite them to give you suggestions about GMing and to offer to help you to find specific rules outside of the gaming session... preferably, after the gaming session.

9) Assure them, that when you make judgment calls regarding the rules, you're not looking to the best interests of your NPCs, your pet villians, or your ego. Affirm that when you make judgement calls, you are looking to the best interests of your gaming group as a whole and to what will make the gaming experience fun for all.

10) Tell them that you are excited to see how their characters will develop and grow and you help them explore this word you have created.

11) Affirm the relationship once more, sharing with them that you hope this group will be gaming together for many more sessions.

Whew... wow... that became a lot longer then I had planned! Anyway, hope this helps!

BTW... welcome to the Inn!

Ayrn

Im going to try the punishment game... nad as for teh Chat.,.I do that after ever game sesion..i try to make everyone happy

mean, but just what I did
glad to help, I think

how do u find wour way around the red dragon inn

I thought it was "you vs them" when I wrote the above.

Some of my suggestions will still apply.

More specifically though, when you talk to them about what you'd like to see happen at your gaming sessions, share with them that you are finding the discussions/ arguments regarding rules are taking away for the gaming experience and slowing down the real reason you all came together -- which was to roleplay and have fun. Ask them to keep to discussions/ arguments regarding rules to a minimum at the table. If they'd like to continue their discussions after the gaming session, so be it.

good luck ive been hit or miss

Well, if punishment is your cup of tea, here's a trick based on Brianna's idea of betting XP: Let them bet XP. 50x their level is a good base. If they are right and the House (the DM) is wrong, they get the price XP if they can prove it. If they are wrong, they lose that XP even if the DM isn't right. If they are arguing between themselves, let them bet between themselves in the same way, but if neither is right, they both lose the XP.
This may, or may not, get you hated by the players, but it is more likely that they will be discouraged to continue arguing when they are starting to lose levels because of it.

You have to remember though, if they are not respecting you as the DM they obviously do not know the rules as well as they think. The Golden Rule is that the DM has the last word, even if that word does not appear in the book. If they can't accept that, they shouldn't be players. I sometimes hit that wall myself, which is why 95% of my roleplaying experience is as the gamemaster.

As for getting around, because of the great minds of the admins and modorators, all the subforums (or what they are called again) are colorized. The Common forums are orange and are mostly for everything that does not fit the other ones. Q&A threads are green, like this one, and are for questions and answers (which I think you already knew). They are often used to provide information out of character for certain games so if you are playing make sure to check them out. Following is the yellow threads or the recruiting threads. If there is a game that need players or players that need a game, you can find it there. I'm recruiting for two games myself, one has already started and the other will hopefully start soon

Following the General Forums is the Gaming Surveys. They hold the questions regarding your favored gaming experiences, characters, settings or the like. With me being Icelandic, I can't remember the name of that color

After that are the Creative Forums that hold both your own creations (be they stories, poems or game related) and posting games. These are purple. The posting games can be really fun if you know the rules (they are posted on the first page).

Then come the games. The red ones are rule based games, like D&D and White Wolf. Most of the time they require recruiting, which you can find in the yellow/recruiting threads. These games can, and most of the time are, a lot of fun. The blue ones are free form games. You don't have to be recruited to play in them unless it specifically states that you need to (usually in the first post).

Hope this helped at all, and remember that when you look into a thread you are always immediately transferred to the last page.
Oh, and welcome to the Inn

I have had this problem before myself. It was mainly one guy who always wanted to pick apart the other players ideas and made comments about the rules and such. What I did, and this might not work for you, but I wanted to provide a visual for their distraction, was this:

I took I cup and placed it at the table. Every time a person said something negative or argumentative out of character I dropped a coin in the cup (a chip or marble or anything would work .. you want it to make a sound though) I didn't even tell them what I was doing.

Eventually they asked .. What are you doing? I said .. it's the argument cup. They said what is it for. I said to punish you later for being argumentative and wasting my time. They said .. oh .. hum .. how are we going to be punished? I said .. depends on how pissed off you make me. Ever heard of the DM Dragon? I asked.

Needless to say, they got the point and whenever they would start to argue I would just get out the cup and they would usually say .. hey guys .. lets get back to the game.

Like I said .. this probably wouldn't work for every group .. but the cup gave my group a visual aid and I didn't have to yell at them at all. Let me know how it goes

Just wanted to let you know that I moved your topic here as it was not a Q/A thread for an ongoing game and it fit in better here.
Enjoy the Inn and I hope you find the advice your looking for.