I don't think a year has gone by in my participation with the RPG a Day experiment that I haven't talked a little about Ryuutama. This system is a traditional rules lite fantasy TTRPG coming out of Japan. It is whimsical in tone and described as Miyazaki meets Oregon Trail due to its focus on travel. The feature that I'm going to talk about is the GM character called the Ryuujin.
The Ryuujin are small, lesser Dragons in this setting that are raising what are called Seasonal Dragons. These powerful Seasonal Dragons grow by hearing the Ryuujin tell stories about the adventures of the party. The Ryuujin come in four colors: Green, Azure, Crimson, and Black. Each color has its own features and also gives a hint to the tone of the campaign. Greens are general, Azures are love/family, Crimsons are action, and Blacks are sorrow/death.
Many TTRPG commentators will tell you that the DM/GM should never have his own character as a part of the party. I can see that--especially when it comes to leveling up a DM/GM character alongside the other PCs--as these types of characters potentially steal the spotlight from the players. What's more the GM/DM character knows all the secrets if GM/DM wants him to. The Ryuujin is a bit different and works to put the spotlight on the PCs. I would say they are about as helpful as 'Dungeon Master' in the old D&D cartoon except they do level up--on their own scale--and the powers that they have can help or hinder the party...whatever makes for a more interesting story.
I've taken to using the gimmick in every campaign I run. Having a Ryuujin in a fantasy setting fits seamlessly, but even in a setting like Cyberpunk, having a similarly powered permanent NPC embedded in the group gives the GM/DM a voice within the narrative that is distinct from his role as arbiter and lessens the burden of coming up with a parade of NPCs that just happen to be there right in time when the players need them.
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