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Slower pace..(need advice)

Started by TheMamluk, June 23, 2014, 08:39:33 PM

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TheMamluk

I have several ideas for group games I might want to run. I have been a gm now for over 15 years and would love to bring my ideas to this group. I have only one problem, I am not the fastest responder. See I am a fairly busy guy and I try to post at least once a day but sometimes that doesn't happen. I worry that my players will be moving at a much faster pace than me and I will hold up the games. Group games have a lot going on, how do I not ruin the game when I need a few days to play catch up.

Ariel

That's what co-GMs are for!

I highly reccommend you never start a group game without having a co-GM at the ready to GM while you're away. This should be someone who you trust (or have gotten to know well enough), has the same views/ideas for the game as you do, comes online everyday, is helpful and patient, and is someone who is as passionate about the roleplay group as you are!

If you post your ideas in this forum, you'll hopefully get some interest and will be able to pick a co-GM who fits all these categories. I suggest you start out with one idea, to not overburden you, but whatever floats your goat!

Does this help? :-)
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TheMamluk

That does help a lot and makes a ton of sense. I mean I am always able to stop in here to read stuff but it can be hard to write gm stuff when your rocking your baby to sleep or in a meeting. This way I can stay up on my game but the momentum doesn't have to suffer. Cool idea.

Lockepick

The most important thing that I see missed by GMs in group games is to simply set a precedent up front. I recommend every GM sets an expected posting rate -- even if they post quickly.

When you're advertising to your players, make it clear your usual pace of posting. You'll get more people who also post at your speed, and you don't have to worry about people expecting more than you can deliver.
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TheMamluk

That is also a good point lockepick. I have not really seen that in a lot of the group games that I have peaked at so I did not even think of it. I just know it has been a problem with me in other sites. I just don't move at a crazy fast pace and I had players leave frustrated.

Ebb

You should also consider that different sorts of games will require different amounts of GM input. A typical D&D-esque system game might require a GM post after every single player post, to resolve the results of that player's action. A more freeform game might have days and days of posts go by where the PCs are acting among themselves, having conversations and resolving things without the need for your input. There are tradeoffs between the styles, though, and if you're the sort of GM who doesn't want the players improvising details of the world, moving around the NPC's, etc. then that sort of hands-off approach probably isn't for you.

And as others have said, just be up front with your prospective players when you're recruiting so that expectations are matched.

Zillah

Pacing is the main reason I don't bother much with trying to run group games anymore. The ones I've run have been largely freeform, and the pace always seems to be quicker than I can manage properly. And I hate to dampen player enthusiasm by saying, "sorry, post slower", although that's realistically a more sensible approach. (Maybe I'll have to give that a try next time.)

My alternative would be recruiting a co-GM, of course, but for whatever reason I've never had any success with that. So unless I figure out what I'm doing wrong in that department, that's not likely.

TheMamluk

I dig the idea of a coGM but I need to play with folks for a while first. It's an interesting thing to have so many new people to possibly play with.