God-modding is a type of character, player, and game manipulation that is highly frowned upon in roleplaying. God-modders act according to their own needs, wants, and desires for their character and gameplay instead of considering the group as a whole.
Now, there are exceptions to this. GMs typically drive events that may seem to have god-modding components. However, there is a difference between god-modding and helping drive the story. God-modders do things for their own benefit. Good GMs care about their game and players and want their players to face challenges and have fun. It wouldn’t be a fun adventure if everything were easy for the characters, right? GMs have to present some forms of challenge, and at first, those things may seem insurmountable. But eventually, players will grow in skill and power, and eventually defeat their foes. GMs have to possess a form of power over the game realm - it's expected and shouldn't be considered god-modding. Unless a GM is abusing their power, then that is a serious problem - and certainly god-modding.
Also, some characters in a story may have what seems like god-like powers. While this could seem like god-modding, it’s not. There is a big difference between a master and an apprentice, after all. However, players should always be realistic with their abilities, and be careful to not cross into god-modding territory. Even if they are a super-powerful individual, all mortal beings are fallible.
With that said, god-modding comes in a variety of flavors. They can be a mere annoyance to severely problematic. Here are the god-modding subtypes:
Metagaming
Metagaming is by far the most common type of god-modding because it’s easy to do and easy for other players to overlook. Metagaming happens when a player is gives their character 'their' knowledge, things they know from chatting with other players, reading posts, OOC, solo, and/or private chapters, etc., and using it to essentially cheat.
A very common example is a character reading the thoughts (internal dialogue) of other characters. While the players may know what a character was thinking, their character should not. Another example is knowing what's to come in the quest ahead and having their character act upon said knowledge. Their character knows something bad is going to happen, or that someone is evil, just because. These god-modders are breaking character, which can lead to inconsistencies in their character’s personality and overall story. Just because a player knows something does not mean their character does.
I can’t tell you how many countless D&D sessions we’ve played where the rogue character was terrorized by fellow characters for being an ‘evil’ thief - when the characters should not have known their fellow character was a thief because it was never disclosed. Yet because the players knew, their characters magically knew as well. That is not role-playing, it is metagaming and a form of gameplay manipulation. It can create a lot of resentment and really ruin adventures when characters metagame.
Invincibility Complex
A character is in a battle, and they take no injuries. Sure, maybe they were lucky. Another battle happens, and no injuries. Again and again, this character manages to luckily defy the odds. Fifty thousand arrows could be flying at them and they manage to dodge every single one. No matter how large the fireball, regardless of how much that boulder weighs or how fast it's falling, despite who's doing it or how well they're trained, they always manage to avoid it. Always. They're capable of dodging, swaying, flipping (in full suits of armor), and/or skillfully avoiding any form of attack because they are just that good. They never get sick. Poisoned? They are immune! They are physically perfect and indestructible. All mortals are capable of getting sick or injured. Even the best of fighters would get injuries, minor to even severe, in any battle. Your character can still be a complete badass and also take hits or get ill. Just because this world is fantasy-based does not mean it is illogical.
Heroic Resilience
The opposite of the Invincibility Complex, Heroic Resilience is the master of defying the repercussions of injury. So they've been struck by an arrow, but it only pierced through a lung. Hell, they've got two of those, they can do without one. Of course, they also don't bleed as much as anyone else. They soldier through, no matter how many foreign objects invade the sanctity of their body. No matter how much blood they lose, they endure and shrug off the pain with every motion. On another level, they are hit, yet they just continue to completely ignore the consequences of being hit. That arrow lodged in their shoulder can't prevent them from lifting their six-foot sword of epicness! At this rate, they might as well not have been hit at all.
Players who do this don't understand physical pain nor how injuries can hinder body function and movement. Or perhaps they do and just don’t care. The human body has six pints of blood. If a character gets cut they will bleed, and yes, possibly die without healing or aid if they are injured enough. Yes, this is a fantasy world, but it also pertains to natural laws that can't be ignored. If you get shot with an arrow, it's going to hurt like hell and players expect to see realistic reactions and consequences to injury. That's how the mortal body works, for any creature/race.
Skillz Master
This god-modder is the know-it-all, best of the best, they have every skill there is. They know all there is to know about the world and any skill, have infinite power, and magically know skills that they shouldn't. These characters don't need to study, they already know by instinct. If they don't they just pick up the skills of others by only seeing them do it once.
If players are at the receiving end of a god-modder's mega skills, it can intimidate them to place their character into a submissive role when they otherwise wouldn't do so. It also creates a vicious cycle, for it can entice other players to compensate for the abusive player, and do as they do... gain more skills. This makes things complicated and messy for any story plot.
There are exceptions to this ruling, like leading villains, who are supposed to be a challenge to the characters of the story. Also, some characters are just stronger or more powerful, knowledgeable, or skilled than others. This does not make any character less important than another in the story. It just means each character is different and brings different skills and assets to the game.
Inexhaustible Magi
This character can cast a thousand fireballs the size of a small house. Nothing will slow them down, they never tire, because they are magical-wielding masters with infinite magic capabilities. However, magic is a straining sport and they are testing the endurance of the mortal coil. Just about every game's magic system has limitations and consequences to overuse. Magic takes time and one's own personal energy to weave or hold together. A character could cast a lot of spells generally, some characters who have larger pools of magic could cast a lot. However, like a gun with an extended magazine, a magus will eventually run out of energy. There is an end, and in the case of our world, that end can be brutal.
Characters in our realm who are capable of using magic are essentially using their own life force to cast spells. This life force we call velanil. When velanil is fully depleted the character will die, painfully and horrifically. Read our Magic section for more information.
Rule Trolls
These players push the limits with their characters, seeing what they get away with and who they can manipulate to get what they want. So they twist, turn, and warp the rules out of proportion and then make a big scene when they are told to stop. Some even break the rules blatantly, just to see if they can get away with it. When caught they then attempt to make excuses for it. The excuses are endless, but the results are always the same. They clean up their act, and then the cycle starts over and they twist and or break the rules again. They ruin game morale, try to pit players against each other and make players doubt their GMs.
