Organizing Games: Do’s and Don’ts
Warning: this post is a bit of a reaction. Back when I decided to become a profession GM, the ‘call to action’ I had involved moving to a new place and starting up some new campaigns. Almost every single player had a poor experience finding a new game, especially those who tried to find their games online. This post is a little less applicable to starting up a game with a group of existing friends (though that poses its own challenges, namely a sometimes insurmountable disparity in commitment and the lack of distant respect a GM requires).
I found that there were three issues:
In many cases, promising games required potential players to get screened or even submit an application and character proposal.
Even when a player was able to get into a game, the games often failed after only a few sessions (at least partially related to: good GMs don’t post many games because their games don’t have high turnover while bad GMs are constantly starting new games and probably getting too comfortable frequently organizing new games).
If the game didn’t fail, the player didn’t find the group to be a good fit.
What a cruel joke, I thought. When I first participated in RPGs in college, my experience was poor enough with the normal challenges of group dynamics. Other people, it seemed, not only had to deal with that issue, but also with very unreliable games and an application process!
Games are there to provide enjoyment, and as GMs we assumed responsibility for that in our groups. Sure, you might have a great table presence and command of the rules, but it should never be work to find something to play, especially not to the point where people think about giving up the game search and losing hope. Worse still, many of these people are new players and haven’t experienced this kind of gaming before. What kind of impression are we leaving? That finding a group is like applying for jobs? That GMing and managing a group is so difficult that only an elite few can do it!?
Here is what I think should go into organizing and running a game in a way that is equitable and fair, fast, and fun.
Before you post.
DO Create a list of every variant rule and house rule you want to use, as well as your goals for the group (including things like genre, tone, and the consequent character creation guidelines). Even if you are dealing with new players that don’t know what any of it means, it’s important that they understand why you are using the rule you are using (I’ve met so many players that were totally unaware that something they’ve been doing for years is actually a house rule).
DO Create enough pregenerated characters that you could give one to every player. Even if no one uses one of the pregens, the pregens set the precedent as to what constitutes a playable character in your game and the process of making them helps you define your expectations. Having pregens available is always a good thing. You never know if a character will die, if someone brings their SO, or you roll ‘rival NPC party’ on the random encounter table.
When you post.
DONT force people to fill out an application. This is unfair, exclusive, unfun, raises expectations, and is just NOT NORMAL. You also put in way more work to get a group that isn’t actually going to be better than a normal group with first come first serve recruitment. Enjoyment is all about expectations vs. reality. Forcing people to interview and submit backstories and pitch themselves is never going give you a proper idea of how this potential player is going to act when they are relaxed and committed to your game (ie. having fun).
DO communicate honestly about your expectations, level of commitment, and group. I’ve met too many GMs that will say anything and lie through their teeth to get a player to sit down and play the session. Post your house rules and variant rules and expectations that you wrote earlier as a document accessible to the people you want to recruit for your game. Let players know if there is any significant chance that you’ll miss sessions and approximately how often you have emergencies and unexpected conflicts. I know, for example, that in a weekly campaign I miss one session a year, on average, normally due to injuries or other medical issues.
DO continue to recruit until you have about twice as many players as you think you want. I normally recruit 10-12 players because I know that big groups accomplish a lot (early victories can make the difference between people deciding to make a long term commitment and flaking), that I’m more likely to grab good players if I recruit a lot of people, and that some players will probably leave.
Furthermore, when you are running a game, many groups cancel session if the group size drops below a certain number (most GMs won’t run for 2 or 3 players, which I think is ridiculous). Assuming that a player misses one session for each 5 that they play (4/5 or 80%), you’ll almost never have all your players and youre actually more likely to have 7 or 8. More importantly, there is like a <1% chance of only have 2-3 players. If you have only 5, then on average you’ll have to cancel a session about once every two months.
During Your Game.
DONT let one or two players hold your game hostage. A cynic might say that if players learn that nothing of importance will happen if they are gone, then there is no real cost to them flaking (this is the number 1 reason I don’t milestones for experience when I run D&D). If the player generally enjoys the game and they call in sick and miss the bossfight, you are more certain they are being genuine in that absence. To put it another way, it’s irresponsible to renege on your commitment to run the game because someone else didn’t meet theirs to show up.
DO give as much notice as you can if you are going to be absent. I try to give at least 6 weeks notice. This also helps discourage flaking. Players are more likely to communicate their plans if you are keeping them updated with yours. Before the first session, I ask if everyone is free Christmas week and learn how they feel about running games during holidays. I’ll also look ahead on the calendar and point out potential conflicts and ask question: do you do anything special on Memorial Day? etc.
DO make your party’s friends and family welcome in your game. Most parties end up with a few NPC hangers on anyway, why not allow another player in once in a while if your going to impose DMPCs anyway. This also takes the pressure off for recruiting and often results in a more committed group.
While there might few scary things in there: big groups, running for unscreened strangers, planning ahead… all of them are worth it. Being afraid of big groups is something a lot of GMs should get over. Having 10 players means you have to talk less, parties can accomplish more, your game is more resistant to ‘life happening’, and new players at the table don’t have to feel ‘in the spotlight’ if they don’t want to. Same thing running for strangers. In fact, a lot of times, the polite distance you have for strangers makes it easier to establish yourself as the impartial arbiter and referee of the game. It also makes it less difficult if you really do have to ask them to leave (something I’ve only done twice in my entire time GMing).
Remember that the #1 reason a campaign continues is you. Lose players? Recruit more. Life happens? Make time. The world is saved? Find a new villain. Get burnout? Change it up or find a co-DM. Don’t quit! Don’t give up! Fake it till you make it! Keep growing, never stagnate!
Do you have any advice for organizing a game? Do you disagree with any of the above points? I know there are some really cool formats out there, West Marches games, LARPS, dedicated roleplay servers, and whatnot. Is there anything that might be applicable to making a traditional campaign better?