Rewarding and Encouraging Players

It's kind of like this, but it costs you nothing.

Types of Rewards

Just about every RPG game has some sort of mechanic by which you can reward players for their actions. Whether it's experience points that help the characters level up and gain new powers and abilities, or fate points that can be spent to upgrade the results of individual rolls and actions. There is always something that can be used to motivate players to get involved and be creative with their actions.

There are many things that can be used as bonuses that can be provided during the game. They might be included in the core rules, or added as your own house rule. Here are just a few examples:

• Loot that is tailored to the player's interests, something that they have specifically expressed a desire for.
• Experience point bonuses that can be used to upgrade a player character.
• Fate points that can be used to add modifiers to a roll, or re-roll a failed result.
• Action points that can be used to make additional maneuvers during a turn.
• Allowing a special exception to the rules, like letting a player roll 'charm' instead of 'deception' because the player role played their lie in a really charismatic way.

Maintaining the Balance

It's important to keep these rewards in mind when running games, because positive reinforcement is the best way of getting the best performance from your players. Rather than punishing them when they do something that disrupts the game, you may bestow special benefits upon them for doing things that enhance it. Just remember a few basic principles when you provide these bonuses to your group...

First, don't play favorites. Give everyone an equal chance to earn special rewards. Give each player a chance based on their greatest strengths in the game. For instance, you might reward one player for role playing their character well, and another player for a very wise tactical decision. Let the players work to earn their rewards, but be sure you are giving each one a fair opportunity to do so. Don't let the loudest or most outgoing players monopolize these benefits, actively present the more shy players with their golden opportunity and then encourage them with their prize.

Make sure the rewards are infrequent enough that they enhance your campaign rather than unbalancing it. Too many bonuses will become a distraction. The whole game will become more about winning points than enjoying the experience, and players could become overly competitive with each other. Additionally, some special rewards might be powerful enough to throw the odds heavily into the players' favor and take away any sense of challenge or suspense. Rewards like an XP boost or special token should be infrequent enough that the players are pleasantly surprised when they appear. They should be used to pique the players' attention and get them interested in doing whatever they were being rewarded for.

Make Rewards Matter

These rewards should have tangible benefits. In-game money or a flashy suit are only as good as the bonuses they provide. Make sure that every one of these rewards is paid off in some way through demonstrating its utility in the game. Provide a marketplace to spend the money on useful tools and weapons, or show how the fancy suit commands extra respect from subservient NPCs. Don't provide players with rewards that are superficial or irrelevant to the game. Even if it's just a minor bonus, let the players see how their reward affects the game world.

Rewarding Complications

It's up to you when you give these rewards, so keep in mind that this is always an option. Remind yourself to hand out some bonuses to encourage the kind of participation and gameplay that you would like from your group. And remember especially that you can also reward the players for actions that create complications for themselves. This is the best way to goad your players into helping you with the job of DMing. When a player takes an action that would make things harder for themselves, but is is fun and interesting from a gameplay perspective, that's the best time to give them one of these bonuses... Such as when a greedy thief lingers in the bank vault to gather more gold while the alarms blare around her. There's no practical reason for the player to do this, so it is the perfect time to reward their good role playing with some kind of special in-game benefit.

There are lots of RPG gaming systems that have built-in rules for doing this, but you can apply this idea to any game or campaign. What kind of actions or techniques do you like to reward your players for? Consider what is best for your own group, and don't forget to hand out prizes when they've earned it. Your players will appreciate it, and their satisfaction will motivate them to do their very best.

Happy ventures!