Path is the topic for Day 12 of the RPGaDAY 2025 Challenge. I kind of struggled with this really generic prompt. I was thinking about blogging about the different paths prevalent in the missions for the Star Trek Timelines mobile game. There is also a lot of good information in the X-Treme Dungeon Mastery 2nd Edition book about the path that the GM can provide for the players at the table that I’d recommend reading. However, I think I’m going to take a controversial take on an RPG topic regarding the player’s path.
When is it a good idea to “railroad” the characters in a game? For those not familiar with the concept, a railroad plot is one where there is a beginning and an end, but very little wiggle room for the players to take the shared story-telling experience in a different direction. A lot of players dislike being railroaded because it feels like they are being taken along on the journey instead of helping to develop it through roleplay. Hence, there is only one track for them to travel down. This would be very bad for a campaign.
And that is where our answer comes into play. When a game is not part of a campaign, but a one-shot with limited time. I used this when I was GMing for the 5e group being introduced to OSR gaming because it was a one-shot that lasted for over six hours. I’ve also been both a GM and a player at several SaltCONs. At the most, we have four hours for a time-slot and we’ve got to get to the conclusion of the game. Sure, we may be able to turn left or right in a maze-like dungeon, but the goal was still the same. Get out alive or find the item we came to get. Hence, the railroad. There have been some games that I’ve run in a one-shot where I’ve apologized in advance about the fact that they will be railroaded at the start to get the story moving along. But I remember a couple of one-shots where the GM didn’t keep the game on track and the players got bored, or worse, let the players get really out-of-control derailing the whole story (we never made it out of the house of the noble trying to hire the party). That last example was one of the weirdest sessions I had ever experienced at the gaming table.
So, if you are running a campaign, give the plot some wiggle room (with the appropriate bumpers to keep the collective storytelling moving forward) but with a one-shot, don’t feel guilty about railroading the players.
What are your thoughts on this? Am I incorrect in my thinking or on the right track (Pun? Yea it’s a pun) Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com with any comments.