Main Topic: Reactive GMing

No game ever goes to plan. Whether you have prepared for every eventuality or are running off the cuff, players will always do the unexpected. Improvisation is a key skill for GMs, from spinning narrative on the fly to incorporating whatever chaos the players come up with.

But what are some of the key techniques in making this work? How do you learn to let go as a GM? And are there ever times when you might want to keep a grip on the reins?

We have discussed similar topics in earlier episodes on player-led games and improvisation.

This episode was recorded live at A Weekend With Good Friends 2026. While it mostly follows the usual format, we do spend a bit of time towards the end answering questions from people who were watching live. You can see the video for this and all the other seminars on the AWWGF YouTube Channel.

Our Guest Host

We are delighted to welcome Ross Bryant back as our guest host for this episode. You may know Ross from The Improvised Shakespeare Company, Dropout TV, The Glass Cannon Network, or the many Call of Cthulhu games he and Scott have played together on Ain’t Slayed Nobody.

Most recently, Ross has launched his own podcast, called Push the Roll With Ross Bryant, where he runs fully improvised games of Call of Cthulhu, based on listener suggestions, for various friends from the worlds of comedy, improv, and tabletop gaming. You can find it wherever you get your podcasts.

Ross is currently in residence with The Improvised Shakespeare Company at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts until the 27th of July.

Ross has previously joined us to discuss:

• Bringing Historical Games to Life
• Carnival of Souls
• Narration in Call of Cthulhu
• The Birds

Links

Things we mention in this episode include:

• D&D
• Traveller
• The Dungeon Masters (2010)
• Active listening
• Heaven & Earth
• “The Meat Trade” on Into the Darkness
• “The Meat Trade” on Ain’t Slayed Nobody
• “The Burning Stars” from Terrors From Beyond
• “Crimson Letters” from the Call of Cthulhu Keeper Rulebook
• Romeo and Juliet
• The Long Good Friday (1980)
• Michael Clayton (2007)
• Shadows of Yog-Sothoth
• Shadows of Yog-Sothoth on Grizzly Peaks Radio

• Runequest
• Edge of Midnight
• Masks of Nyarlathotep
• Peru chapter of Masks of Nyarlathotep on How We Roll
• Upright Citizens Brigade
• The Forge
• GNS Theory
• Blades in the Dark
• Play Unsafe
• Katamari Damacy
• Dramatic irony
• Spirit of the Century
• “I Heard the Secret Loudly” — film noir scenario on Push the Roll
• Second City

News

ENnie Nomination

We were delighted to hear that The Good Friends of Jackson Elias has been nominated for an ENnie Award in the Best Streaming Content category. This is exciting and entirely unexpected. The Good Friends has been running for over 13 years now and we’re just happy that people are still listening!

The awards themselves are decided through a public vote. If you are a fan of the podcast and you’d like to vote for us (and earn our undying gratitude), you can find the form here. Voting runs between the 10th and 19th of July 2026.

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