NPCs in play

Part of your job as the GM is to portray NPCs. What they do, what they say, how they feel—that's all up to you! Practically, you portray NPCs as part of the core loop of play The core loop.

As you establish a situation, say (or ask) what NPCs are there, what they look like, how they're dressed or how they carry themselves. Say (or ask) what they're up to. Speak in their voices or summarize what they say.

When you make a GM move, you can use NPCs to make it. Announce trouble by having a follower sidle up to the Marshal and whisper, "we're being followed." Put them in a spot by saying, "He's about to scream bloody murder, what do you do?" Show a downside by saying, "Mari got all handsy with the waitstaff again, and got a pitcher of ale over her head, again, and she's about to lose her temper—again."

When you resolve player actions, you decide how NPCs react or are affected. When the Fox passes off a barrel of swill as fine whisky, you decide whether the merchant just falls for it, or would never believe it, or might believe it but only if the Fox Persuades them. When the Marshal has her crew Clash and gets a 7-9, you decide who among them suffers the enemy's attack.

When PCs do something that doesn't trigger a move, you say what happens, and "what happens" often involves how NPCs react. When the Would-be Hero says, "I love you" to his sweetheart for the first time, there's no player move that tells you how she responds.

The point is: portraying NPCs—framing scenes with them, describing them, making moves with them, saying how they react is a big part of running the game.