Help Wanted

[Wraith]

Party is looking for 1 or 2 people wanting to play a spellcaster or rogue type character. Mature group of serious players looking for an arcane caster and a lock/trap expert. Game has already started and just finished their first quest. For more information check out...
https://www.fantasygrounds.com/calendar/index.xcp?id=57

or

E-mail me at [email protected].

We will be taking a two month break while I am away at school for 9 weeks, but will pick up again in Oct. I will also require a rough background of your character at least one week prior to play to place the character in the story. New players will start at 1st level as humans and will be voted on by the group.

Thank you
Shawn

[Pellegro]

What day/time do you typically play?

Calendar entry appears to say Fridays at 2:00pm EST?

[Wraith]

What day/time do you typically play?
We play Fri. at 8:00pm GMT+1 (= 3:00pm EST), we have a standing agreement that if something comes up we can shift once and a while to Sat. same time.

[FlatNineSharpFive]

Consider my application delivered. I've applied at the campaign page.

[Wraith]

Any calendar applications are for announcement reading only. New players are subject to a party vote, and are not final. After reading the announcements send a one to two paragraph background to, [email protected]. I will fit you into one session and the party will vote on weather or not to keep you. This will also let you see our style of roleplaying and see if it is a fit. I have also posted in the announcements that you will have a private session to link you up with the current group so I can see how you roleplay. This will happen before you play in a regular session. If you have any questions please send them to my e-mail listed below.

[Wraith]

I have a rogue slated to start this Friday but we are still looking for an arcane spellcaster. If anyone is interested please contact me at my e-mail address below.

[Wraith]

Well I changed my mind on the needing of an arcane caster, so parties full at the moment. Check back later.

[Wraith]

Well it would seem that there are quite a few flaky gamers out there.

Again I am in search of a reliable gamer for my campaign. We have one opening for either an arcane spellcaster or a rogue. Either would be helpful but neither is demanded. I will except any class to make a four person party, but a spellcaster would help the party the most. Specially the knowledgeable, wise, and powerful type of arcane spell caster.

Please serious gamers only!

My group seems to be more "hard core" then some people like, and we are die hard. We meet almost every week rain or shine. One player showed up to a game only hours after his wife gave birth to his son. If you have better things to be doing then playing this game, don't reply.

[kalmarjan]

My group seems to be more "hard core" then some people like, and we are die hard. We meet almost every week rain or shine. One player showed up to a game only hours after his wife gave birth to his son. If you have better things to be doing then playing this game, don't reply.

LOL!

Is the guy still married? I can think of a few things that are a little more important than chicking some multi-colored chunks of plastic around.

Seriously though, you need to think about things this way:

When you are playing over the internet, you have to expect that some people will abandon the game on the drop of a dime. There is just nothing to do for this, and a lot of times it's just the way things go.

What I do counter this is think of games inside FG as being different than the table top games we love to play. It takes longer for a session/combat than face to face gaming, and there is a lot more roleplaying going on.

If player attrition is a problem for you, consider shortening your adventures to four acts per level, and four scenes per act.

It is radical, but that will ensure that it would only take about 4 sessions to get to a finish in one act. To demonstrate this, take this example:

I am currently running Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil. If I play it out just like it is written, it would be about a year in play time before the players even got to the end of the first of three parts.

Now, I break up the action for the first part into 4 Acts. One scene per session.

Scene 1: Visiting Hommlet/Story hooks/Moathouse.
This is purely a roleplaying experience. There may be some combat involved, but that is all good.
Scene 2: The party goes to the moathouse. They meet up with someone who advances the story. The scene ends as the party encounters a dragon, and start the battle. I end this in a cliffhanger. (That way, I am pretty sure that most will want to show up again.)
Scene 3: The party defeats the dragon, and pick up their dead and head back to Hommlet.
Scene 4: The party has their companions raised. Now, I was missing a few players, so I inserted a bonus scene for the players who attended, and a spot for some extra XP.

These 4 scenes made up the very first Act. (The discovery of what was going on in the Moathouse.) The players are very close to getting to the next level. That is all good, because it keeps them interested. Who would not want to see thier character advance?

A couple of things to think of when you do this.

Avoid random encounters like the plague. They add nothing to the story, and they eat up too much time.
Erase any encounters that really adds nothing to the story. (The encounters that are just there to "weaken" the players) Consider adding the filler to the main encounter at the end of the act.
Have your players accept the fact that there will be attrition. Come up with an ingame reason to explain things.
Always have something ready, even if it is just a couple of lines in your notes to be ready for the ineviatble time when all of your players are unable to attend.

The reason this is so long winded? I think that asking a potential player to commit to a game where they potentially do not even know the people involved is asking a little much. I also think that asking them to forsake everything in their life for the game is a little much as well.

A good DM is adaptable. No matter what, the story goes on. No one says that you can not play the character as an NPC for the session. (Ask my players. One time I played out 4 missing player's characters to end a combat that had already started.) I think you will find if you change up your paradigm for game play, you will find it easier to attain a player for the long haul.

Hopefully, that helps.

Sandeman

[Sir Bayard]

I agree with Kalmarjan there. I was interested in playing, but when I read the part about the guy sessioning after the birth of his child, I was like "Nope, can't be that dedicated. Daughter takes precedence to game, any day." I can't comit to a game like that. Even the game I'm about to run I told the players "Hey, I have a real life, and I'm gonna do my best, but I have a 4 month old daughter, so bear with me." Which, to my old time buddies they were amazed since I used to pressure THEM all the time about not being comitted enough. heh heh

There's been several campaigns where I've had players drop out (or, they turned evil, tried to assassinate a fellow player in their sleep, uge battle, ended up dying, need to be replaced) and I ran NPC's until we could get a new player into the fold. And the party was a bit more willing to get the new player who works for free than the cleric for hire they were paying for. ;)

[Wraith]

A good DM is adaptable. No matter what, the story goes on. No one says that you can not play the character as an NPC for the session. (Ask my players. One time I played out 4 missing player's characters to end a combat that had already started.) I think you will find if you change up your paradigm for game play, you will find it easier to attain a player for the long haul.

OK, first off. I am very adaptable, my schedule is flexible and I can play at the drop of a hat. Second off, if I wanted to sit around and play four characters at the same time why would I need players? I could play a game all by myself. I'm not going to sell out on my believes to land a player that is uncommitted, unreliable, or worse. If you look at this as business, and are trying to get customers, while you have 100 customers that show up 1 time a year I will have 1 customer that shows up 100 times a year. In other word to each their own.

When you are playing over the internet, you have to expect that some people will abandon the game on the drop of a dime. There is just nothing to do for this, and a lot of times it's just the way things go.

Well, I think that I do understand that, maybe that is why I am still looking for a player. If I didn't understand that then maybe I wouldn't be trying to get a player. I am putting this thread out there so I can at least weed out the players that know they wouldn't want to be that committed. Scare them off so to speak. And that would get me the player I want and my players deserve.

All though my characters don't level as fast as Kal would like I think they enjoy the game and that is the important part. I am just looking for a person to fit our group. I'm not looking to change my group to fit one player. I thank Kal, and Sir B for your words, but I have been doing just fine. If my players suddenly read this thread and realize they hate the way I DM, then I'll think about changing, but every game I have ever had the players always said the one thing they liked about me is, I'm consistent. They knew I would be ready to play, they knew it would always be the same time, and they knew I would always treat them the same if they canceled at the last minute. Thanks again

P.S. can't believe I'm high-jacking my own thread back.

[Wraith]

:mad: I read around the forum today and have gotten the impression that other people think that I am a crazed DM that thinks that you should show up every week even if you get in a car wreck and die. That is not the case I would like to play every week, but yes RL comes first. The problem I am having is someone saying yes I will play in your group then not ever playing in my group and I wined up playing 10 NPC characters with one PC as the party and I'm tired of that. My players can vote no all day long on the calendar and they know that, but they have enough manners to vote no, or not vote at all if they are iffy about playing. They don't get kicked out of the group for not playing one weekend. Hell we aren't playing until the new year cause everyone is off doing their own thing in real life. So before you go judging someone how about talking to them first.

[Ram Tyr]

Wraith,

I understood your meaning immediately and find no fault with your position. Finding a truly reliable group can take some effort, and it can be frustrating. The issue is that everyone defines reliability differently. Patience will allow you to find a group suitable to your expectations.

Later.

[kalmarjan]

OK, first off. I am very adaptable, my schedule is flexible and I can play at the drop of a hat. Second off, if I wanted to sit around and play four characters at the same time why would I need players? I could play a game all by myself. I'm not going to sell out on my believes to land a player that is uncommitted, unreliable, or worse. If you look at this as business, and are trying to get customers, while you have 100 customers that show up 1 time a year I will have 1 customer that shows up 100 times a year. In other word to each their own.

Well, I think that I do understand that, maybe that is why I am still looking for a player. If I didn't understand that then maybe I wouldn't be trying to get a player. I am putting this thread out there so I can at least weed out the players that know they wouldn't want to be that committed. Scare them off so to speak. And that would get me the player I want and my players deserve.

All though my characters don't level as fast as Kal would like I think they enjoy the game and that is the important part. I am just looking for a person to fit our group. I'm not looking to change my group to fit one player. I thank Kal, and Sir B for your words, but I have been doing just fine. If my players suddenly read this thread and realize they hate the way I DM, then I'll think about changing, but every game I have ever had the players always said the one thing they liked about me is, I'm consistent. They knew I would be ready to play, they knew it would always be the same time, and they knew I would always treat them the same if they canceled at the last minute. Thanks again

P.S. can't believe I'm high-jacking my own thread back.

I meant no offense to you my friend. I just gave a couple of suggestions that I thought may work for you in the long run using FG.

I am sure that there is nothing wrong with your playing style, as testified by your regular commited gaming group. If I looked at this as business, I would have 100 customers that show up 1 time a year and 1 customer that shows up 100 times a year. I do not descriminate. ;)

I have been running the RTTTOEE module since March of 2005. Since that time, I have gone through about 50 or so players. What ends up happening is most of them have RL concerns that crop up. They bow out of the game gracefully.

Then there are those who just drop off the face of the earth. No email, no PM, nothing. I used to get mad at this, but then I just accepted that this is what happens.

Another way to get around this is to have someone who is potentially going to join play an existing character. Perhaps you had a player drop from the game, but you still want to play with their character. Have the preposed player play a few sessions with the established character to see how the group meshes with him/her.

Once they get to the point where they are ready to "commit", then they can create a character.

As for playing the 4 characters? At the time, I had 9 players who regularly showed up. 4 could not make it due to RL concerns. Do I tell the other 5, "sorry there is no game because we are missing the other 4?"

That would be why I played them. I look at it this way: the other five showed up, and they wanted to play. So I gave it to them.

Lastly, I do not feel like you are a crazed DM. OTOH, if you are advertising for players to a game, perhaps something a little less than "My buddy came to play hours after his wife gave birth" will give you a few more biters. ;)

Sandeman

[acmer]

To clear things up a bit:
I'm the one that came to the session almost right after my boy was born.

The reasons:
We went to the hospital around 6AM. I got a boy around 7PM. In between I was home sleeping for a few hours (mother was sleeping at the hospital) and cleaning up our place. After the birth we spent a few hours together, and then it was late and I had to leave. Mother and my boy had to sleep/rest too and we didn't have a family room then. I came home about 9:30PM local time, so I might as well play. I didn't sleep much that night anyway.

So I'm not that hardcore gamer that I'd say "sorry, I have to go, we have a game tonight". Family always comes first. And my boy goes to sleep before 9PM and our sessions start at 9PM.

[Sir Bayard]

I didn't mean any offense Wraith, I was just saying I couldn't commit THAT much, mis-understanding the reference that acmer cleverly cleared up. :) I fully agree with your DMing style. When I ran face to face games we sessioned every week pretty much religiously, and I see no fault in that. And I was mad when ppl dropped out without even letting me know (I would've at least liked a phone call.. some ppl)

The NPC thing I was only refering to as Kalmarjan said, play breifly while waiting for a new player to join so as to not stop the game. Not as a permanent solution.

I got a bit of the wrong impression of how devoted you wanted a player to be by the whole showed up right after son being born comment. BUt I understood why you were looking for that devotion, and I hope you can find a player to fill your spot. (I could probably have done it if you weren't 7 hours ahead of me. I'm on duty when you start playing. I've been itching to play a spellcaster for awhile now too...)

Best of luck to you Wraith.

[Wraith]

Thank you Acmer you can always seem to find the right words to defuse a tense situation.

Kal and Sir B, thank you for being man enough to say your sorry.

And now I have to say I'm sorry for flying off the handle like that, but I was on edge because of losing a player then what seemed to be attacks on my DMing style. I am sorry that I directed my anger at you two great contributors to this community. Again sorry.