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Arglebargle III posted:Post-crisis Stellaris is a great kitchen sink setting. You could have anything from psychic energy beings to genetically engineered plant humans to nanobot swarm characters. Yeah for race options I went with human, near human (mechanically same as human but with bumpy forehead or fur or whatever), virtual intelligence, or make your own alien and here's a list of bonuses to take in lieu of a first level focus. If they picked human or near human they could additionally choose to be ascended. They could be a cyborg (free cybernetic implant up to 50,000), a person put in a robot body, psionically gifted, or biologically ascended (give up focus for all physical stats to be 14 exactly). I used the chapter on transhuman campaigns as a guideline for power level. But I didn't use grails.
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Oct 11, 2023 04:54
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You could lean into the magic- technology element. This piece of jewelry lets you teleport, or this machine makes perfect copies of people, and nobody remembers how any of it works. It's practically magic.
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Oct 11, 2023 12:37
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How do you politely & appropriately end a campaign early? Our group, all irl friends, was getting burned out on 5e so we switched to P2e, and the transition has been a lot to take in in terms of rule complexity. Of late, I’ve personally had a lot less time, am in other games, and am still having to prepare a game on spec. Which would typically be fine but lately about half our session time has been spent talking instead of playing. So we don’t make as much progress and I have to spend a little more time preparing between sessions that do not get as far as I would have hoped. As DM I could be a little stricter- but these are friends who I love dearly and there exists an important therapeutic dynamic here that I don’t want to stifle. But I’m losing interest in my own game, and sensing the players may be as well. Perhaps it is time for a change. Admittedly, I’m beginning to feel a little disrespected and disappointed waiting for a break in conversation to get started so we can fumble through rules and Character Sheets they have not learned. The creative and motivational wells are starting to run low here. Is it better to raise it as an issue & solicit feedback, tell the group in a group chat in advance or explain that this campaign session will be our last at the top of our next session? Once the conversation has ended, of course.
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Oct 12, 2023 14:17
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"I'm really enjoying the time we're spending together but am not really feeling this game. Should we switch this time to just hanging out or try a new game, with possibly a new person at the DM helm? If y'all want to continue with this game, can we agree to some changes on how these sessions are going and maybe offload some of the ancillary game tasks I'm currently doing such as..." Put it in your own voice.
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Oct 12, 2023 15:06
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Dameius posted:"I'm really enjoying the time we're spending together but am not really feeling this game. Should we switch this time to just hanging out or try a new game, with possibly a new person at the DM helm? If y'all want to continue with this game, can we agree to some changes on how these sessions are going and maybe offload some of the ancillary game tasks I'm currently doing such as..." 
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Oct 12, 2023 15:51
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As forever DM i just straight up tell the group, yo I'm done if someone else wants to take the reigns of dming a campaign i am more than glad to help. they never do.
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Oct 12, 2023 16:14
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it's only taking the REIGNs if you're running a Greg Stolze game 
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Oct 12, 2023 18:12
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Why did you switch to Pathfinder 2e?
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Oct 12, 2023 19:50
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Kumo posted:How do you politely & appropriately end a campaign early? i'd just say 'really not feeling this, shall we do a few one-shots?' that way you get to hang out and play but everyone's coming at it fresh. Grant hewitt has a bunch of hilarious ones.
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Oct 12, 2023 20:21
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Dameius posted:"I'm really enjoying the time we're spending together but am not really feeling this game. Should we switch this time to just hanging out or try a new game, with possibly a new person at the DM helm? If y'all want to continue with this game, can we agree to some changes on how these sessions are going and maybe offload some of the ancillary game tasks I'm currently doing such as..." Thank you. Defenestrategy posted:As forever DM i just straight up tell the group, yo I'm done if someone else wants to take the reigns of dming a campaign i am more than glad to help. I know this pain of which you speak. You can remain resolute and decline to DM further, or perhaps you can find other groups to play in with or without that one? Pollyanna posted:Why did you switch to Pathfinder 2e? Fond memories of Pathfinder 1, I think. Second edition has a lot more depth to it, which isn’t a bad thing necessarily but not everyone is as committed to learning a new & detailed set of rules. sebmojo posted:i'd just say 'really not feeling this, shall we do a few one-shots?' that way you get to hang out and play but everyone's coming at it fresh. Grant hewitt has a bunch of hilarious ones. Happily, this group is not lacking in rotating DMs so I expect someone will come up with something they want to run shortly. You know that thing where players in a group sort of line up to be next in line to run a game?
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Oct 12, 2023 20:54
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Kumo posted:Thank you. I am probably literally cursed to only DM. I have like ten friends who all want to play TTRPGs who I've dm'ed for, none of which will DM even when prompted to or outright asked. I've gone on oldschool meet up sites where you play at a game store with a bunch of randos, and that's always gone...poorly, either because the DM is real sketch or just outright quits after a session. I've waited for games on SA to kick off, all of which playing a game I've wanted to play and doing it non-playbypost have imploded just on a scheduled basis, hell I've even tried LITERALLY PAYING for a dm and the three times I did it, two where obviously some sort of burn and churn scheme where you cram like 8 players paying 10$ a pop into a mess of a game blandly running a module and the third time the dude was excellent and the three other dudes in the party was great, but apparently real life issues had the dm disband the game and the business.
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Oct 12, 2023 21:21
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Have there been any studies done on why it’s so hard to get this poo poo rolling? Does the success rate and average lifespan of games just hit a brick wall as soon as babies are made or something? Or are people just too tired and burnt out now?
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Oct 12, 2023 21:27
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There're a lot of things to do nowadays, either for recreation or for necessity. Which is to say the breadth of poo poo people can have as hobbies is huge but also people have to make ends meet and that's harder and harder these days. Babies add a huge penalty modifier, yes.
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Oct 12, 2023 22:16
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Pollyanna posted:Have there been any studies done on why it’s so hard to get this poo poo rolling? Does the success rate and average lifespan of games just hit a brick wall as soon as babies are made or something? Or are people just too tired and burnt out now? You gotta over-ask and commit to bringing new people in. Troupe play is where it’s at.
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Oct 13, 2023 00:49
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Pollyanna posted:Have there been any studies done on why it’s so hard to get this poo poo rolling? Does the success rate and average lifespan of games just hit a brick wall as soon as babies are made or something? Or are people just too tired and burnt out now? I think time and energy available is a lot of it. All of my campaigns, as a player or DM, end early either because scheduling gets too difficult or player interest drops (usually because of not having time). It's hard enough having time to play when you work full time, but if, like a lot of people, you have to pick up gig work or a second job or overtime to make ends meet, forget it. I'd love to DM again, but I just don't have capacity after a full day of work right now. What I'm saying is, you gotta fight for your right to party.
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Oct 13, 2023 01:03
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Update: Well gently caress. The group talked for an hour and a half before our session ended and I didn’t get an opportunity to explain the end of the campaign as I’d planned for tonight. I figured I’d let people talk and settle in for some gaming, not to make a big deal about ending things abruptly. But every time there was a break in conversation it got filled by a new topic- a video game or a book or movies. And then about 45 minutes in to a typical two hour session, it sort of became a game in and of itself- like, how long can this go on for? Not to make it awkward, or force a conversation- but out of a perhaps perverse sense of curiosity. What are the limits and dimensions of this? You invest the time, you accept the vulnerability of telling a story seriously and despite everything else going on at the moment. Frankly feeling a little bit disrespected by friends and not sure I want to keep gaming with this group in the future as of now. And also that I absolutely made the right call. No gaming is better than bad gaming.
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Oct 13, 2023 03:29
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Sounds like the right decision but you got owned, TBH.
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Oct 13, 2023 03:42
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I'm sorry, that sounds like a real poo poo time. Maybe it'd be better to make it a board game and beer night if folks are only really interested in the socializing aspect. Let someone else choose the boardgame and organize it.
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Oct 13, 2023 03:46
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Kumo posted:Update: These people seem to have a interest in gaming but mostly just enjoy each others company. Pivot to a board game where there is less need for prep and investment.
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Oct 13, 2023 03:46
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Pollyanna posted:Have there been any studies done on why it’s so hard to get this poo poo rolling? Does the success rate and average lifespan of games just hit a brick wall as soon as babies are made or something? Or are people just too tired and burnt out now? The reality is that it's a time-intensive hobby and people's personal schedules often just don't allow for dedicating 4-6 hours every week for years on end without something interfering. Just sort of think about it on a general scale - take a group of 7 adults (6 players + 1 GM). Assume you're playing bi-weekly and on a designated day (probably a weekend). What are the odds that all seven adults are going to be available on any given week? Even if everyone commits to keeping alternate Saturdays open for gaming, emergencies happen and other things are gonna take priority periodically - called into work, appointments, etc. What are the odds that someone doesn't end up changing jobs and moving out of state/life circumstances dictate that they can't be free on the chosen day anymore? You can probably imagine this working out for about six months before someone has to drop out entirely. Once kids enter the picture, it becomes much more difficult. They take a lot of time and energy and even if your partner is willing to handle childcare solo for a few hours every other week, that sort of arrangement tends not to last forever.
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Oct 13, 2023 04:52
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I get paid to DM and it's 90% because of the "I and everyone around me have kids" factor. My friend group meets like once a month and if we were playing RPGs it'd devolve into just socializing because we barely get to spend enough time together to catch up. The only way I can stay in the hobby is to do it online during normal people working hours, and the only way I can justify doing that is if it pays for itself somewhat. Lucked into a couple of really fantastic long-term groups that way, but as with anything involving online randos, it's a crapshoot, as another poster above mentions.
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Oct 13, 2023 09:49
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I had the same problem and my solution is to run a West Marches-style game: I wrote up a megadungeon, and then each session involves the players trying to get as far into it as they can before time runs out and they have to flee to the surface. That means I don't need a consistent player base, so each session is played by whoever can make it that evening. If only two players can make it then welp, guess you're running from combat a lot! It's been really refreshing and a huge weight off my mind not to have to wrangle logistics, and to have almost all the prep front-loaded so I don't ever feel like my time is wasted if we don't get to have a session.
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Oct 13, 2023 11:37
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Whybird posted:I had the same problem and my solution is to run a West Marches-style game: I wrote up a megadungeon, and then each session involves the players trying to get as far into it as they can before time runs out and they have to flee to the surface. That means I don't need a consistent player base, so each session is played by whoever can make it that evening. If only two players can make it then welp, guess you're running from combat a lot! is that online or irl?
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Oct 13, 2023 11:44
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Oh irl, I've no idea how it'd play out online.
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Oct 13, 2023 11:45
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Whybird posted:Oh irl, I've no idea how it'd play out online. agree about the relaxing aspect, i went through a period of running 1e modules (tamoachan, tohorrors, all of the slaver series) and it's great, you turn up, they walk into a room, you read out the description and say 'what do you do?'
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Oct 13, 2023 11:46
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Whybird posted:I had the same problem and my solution is to run a West Marches-style game: I wrote up a megadungeon, and then each session involves the players trying to get as far into it as they can before time runs out and they have to flee to the surface. That means I don't need a consistent player base, so each session is played by whoever can make it that evening. If only two players can make it then welp, guess you're running from combat a lot! This has been what I've been doing for my college students. No set players, a shared world, table time is adventure time. It's only been 2 weeks but I've had a lot of interest so far.
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Oct 13, 2023 15:15
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Our DM needed a break recently, so we suspended the campaign and everyone in the group took a turn DMing a one-shot of their choosing. We had a lot of fun and the DM got about two months off. I'm of the opinion that DMing makes you a better player. Everyone should do a little bit now and then just to get a feel for what it's like on the other side of the table.
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Oct 13, 2023 17:07
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I do think GMs make for better players as a general rule. But is it that GMing makes you a better player, or is it that people who GM are more likely to have a higher level of investment in the hobby?
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Oct 13, 2023 17:09
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Zonko_T.M. posted:
Yeah, that sounds about right. I've been lucky to have a core group of players that are all really into TTRPGs/hanging out with each other and we've played mostly uninterrupted every Sunday for 15 years, but it has required an increasing amount of effort on everyone's part due to work and kids and the like. We've attempted to get new players but most aren't really able to commit every Sunday to a TTRPG game and drop off after a few sessions, or they'll come once in a while and just kind of spectate. Out of our group of 4, 2 of the players have no interest in GMing and another one mostly likes to GM things like D&D and Starfinder which is a shame because there's a lot of games I'd like to try as a player. I've been the GM for maybe 85% of the time which I thought was fine because I always have a queue of like 5 new systems that I want to try, but I've been feeling the burnout a bit recently. The thing I've noticed about the players that have never GMed is they tend to be a bit more selfish. I don't think it's intentional, they just have less of an instinct for helping reduce the GM workload. Things like not helping a new player during character creation, and wanting to do solo stuff with their character when they could be coming up with plans that involve the whole party. Also, never ever looking up a rule or knowing how anything works.
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Oct 13, 2023 18:26
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Colonel Cool posted:I do think GMs make for better players as a general rule. But is it that GMing makes you a better player, or is it that people who GM are more likely to have a higher level of investment in the hobby? Both? Playing more makes you better at playing, GMs tend to play more than average players. It's an overdetermined link.
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Oct 13, 2023 18:27
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Colonel Cool posted:I do think GMs make for better players as a general rule. But is it that GMing makes you a better player, or is it that people who GM are more likely to have a higher level of investment in the hobby? I'd think DMing makes you a better player, because its more in the forefront of your mind that in most cases that the DM is trying to facilitate fun rather than being an adversary who is trying to actively spike your tires. edit: CHaKKaWaKka posted:. Also, never ever looking up a rule or knowing how anything works. I was a second away from killing off my latest Cyberpunk game because even with the handy cool cyberpunk red app and weapons cards that give you literally ALL OF THE INFO TO MAKE A RANGED ATTACK, I still had to tell them repeatedly how shooting works in that game. edit2: Seriously D10+Weapon Skill+Reflex Mod vs the range on the table. If I have high evasion I'll handle it just say if you hit and with what! Defenestrategy fucked around with this message at 02:05 on Oct 14, 2023 |
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Oct 14, 2023 01:57
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Defenestrategy posted:
I cancelled a Shadowrun campaign after 2 sessions because a played made a decker and then made zero effort to learn the rules, and another player did the same with a mage. Granted, it's Shadowrun so learning the rules is unpleasant but we followed that with a D&D game and the Shadowrun mage once again made a spellcaster and then never picked up the book to figure out his spell situation. I don't even necessarily mind if someone is not invested in the game and just wants to hang out, but if that's the case then why not just make a human fighter and roll your d20 when it's your turn?
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Oct 14, 2023 02:42
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CHaKKaWaKka posted:I cancelled a Shadowrun campaign after 2 sessions because a played made a decker and then made zero effort to learn the rules, and another player did the same with a mage. Granted, it's Shadowrun so learning the rules is unpleasant but we followed that with a D&D game and the Shadowrun mage once again made a spellcaster and then never picked up the book to figure out his spell situation. I had that problem when I ran Pathfinder 2e so I switched my group to more minimalist, rules light games like Knave. It was a good move because two of my players have specific learning disabilities and reading the rules takes longer for them. I got tired of reminding the rogue to try sneak attacks and how they worked and reminding the wizard how Vancian casting works and to use their class features. I'm also running Stars Without Number which is also fairly rules light.
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Oct 14, 2023 06:50
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Blades in the dark is very good for teaching people how to play I think
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Oct 14, 2023 08:50
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sebmojo posted:Blades in the dark is very good for teaching people how to play I think Love how slimmed down the rules are and the necessity of working with others in the group, but had a player who had an intestinal dislike for it due to numerical rolls not being in their favor starting out. Some of that is just luck, optimizing your chosen class for success and learning what the PC can do though. I noted it’s probably wise to emphasize the importance of clearing stress and maybe giving a little extra Coin to heal injuries between sessions to defray player frustrations. And after multiple jobs, the post-game resolutions get to be a nightmare for the GM to keep track of enemy organizations, consequences, etc.
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Oct 14, 2023 13:59
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Games like Pathfinder or Shadowrun or later edition DnD, or other rules heavy games that revolve around "builds" are good for groups of "nerds" who want to theory craft about the best builds or who talk about things like "feat taxes" or "action economy." They are less good for groups where the players don't want to read the rules at all and just want to get into the action or who want to play as a catgirl or cute little mouse boy and not think about the mechanical implications. My players are the latter. They don't want to read the rules, they'd rather I teach them. That can be burdensome when the rules are so heavy and I can't keep track of everything while also managing my own monsters.
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Oct 14, 2023 20:45
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My long time group (35+ years) scattered to the winds a decade ago and covid taught us that we could play online via discord and roll20. I’ve been the DM ever since because I’m the only one who could “manage the technology” while also prepping content and manage world building. But drat if sometimes they fall into the passivity trap and sit there waiting for me to hit them with the next plot device. When I ask for feedback, everything is “fine” and they are grateful that I create the space. But there are times I feel like the scene in Dorkness Rising when all of the PCs plus the Shadow are waiting to be played and are sitting bored in the room before a big reveal. I mean, one time I asked them what they wanted to do in game and they didn’t know, so I had the next step in the plot literally knock on their front door. So help me god they said they ignore it and hope the visitor goes away. At that point I halted the game and broke into real talk, “what the gently caress guys? What’s are we doing here if you won’t engage with anything I put in front of you?” Thankfully they were all appropriately chagrined and promised to engage better. It’s been going well so far, but I wonder how long it’ll last.
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Oct 15, 2023 03:23
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If online work meetings are anything to go by, it is nigh impossible to feel personally engaged over the internet.
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Oct 15, 2023 04:20
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Pollyanna posted:If online work meetings are anything to go by, it is nigh impossible to feel personally engaged over the internet. If work meetings are anything to go by it’s nigh impossible to feel personally engaged at all.
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Oct 15, 2023 04:33
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Yeah, our group had a hard time during the pando because RPing on a computer puts the biggest distraction in the world directly in front of you.
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Oct 15, 2023 05:03
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