I am so angry

Uzumaki · Mar 25, 2003

I hate my group. I HATE my group. Hate them. I've complained about them before. But this, is, frankly, the last straw.

The campaign that I'm playing in is almost at an end. I offered to DM a game afterward in a homebrew campaign of mine. After several dropouts and a lot of reluctance, I've managed to scrounge up four people out of about 10 to be the players. I sent them an e-mail describing character creation guidelines and the rules for playing. At the end, I told them that we would set up an anti-table talk system akin to Piratecat's.

Well, they totally lost their

with that one. Thought I was charging them to have fun. I said it wasn't like they were going to be paying me to DM for them, because if I slipped up, I would pay, too. They said to dock XP because XP isn't real. I told them that I would be putting in real time for them, and I expect some consideration. They said that would be fun for me if they had fun. It wouldn't be fun for me if I put hours into prepping for a session and they sit around and chat the whole time.

I am a nanometer away from calling off the whole thing entirely. Guilt Puppy, I emailed you weeks ago and I never got a reply. Please, please reply. I'm really a very reasonable person.

Zaruthustran · Mar 25, 2003

Yikes man! Sounds like you've got a real in-depth game brewed up. But it also sound like your players want a less intense game experience.

As DM, one of your jobs is giving the players an entertaining game.

So, I suggest you find a new group of players for your "no table talk" homebrew game. And either give your current crew the ol' heave ho, or give them what they want.

-z, who's been in your situation. You can't force hardcore gaming.

William Ronald · Mar 25, 2003

It might be wise to recruit a new group of players. However, first have a heart to heart talk to the players about what you want as a DM and listen to what they want as players. Hopefully, compromise is possible.

If any of the players are your friends, remember friendship is more important than any game. So, listen closely to any friends in the group.

Arthur Tealeaf · Mar 25, 2003

how is Piratecat's system?

Uzumaki · Mar 25, 2003

Basically put up a small fee, we're talking a dime, here, for comments that are meta. The cash collected this way goes toward getting gaming food. Nobody really loses.

S'mon · Mar 25, 2003

I think that's the kind of thing that can only be done by consensus. OTOH if players turn up and disrupt the game by chatting about non-game stuff, the DM needs to kick them out.

Uzumaki · Mar 25, 2003

Yeah, well, we've had 8 hour sessions dwindled down to about 3 of actual game time there's so much talk. I really didn't want to kick anyone out before the game actually started, but I don't think this is turning out the way anyone intended it to.

mistergone · Mar 25, 2003

Yeah... don't charge people for stuff like that. Piratecat is a groovy guy, I'm sure, and that trick might work for him, but that's him and his group, not you and your group. It MAY not be a good idea to some people. You kinda need to be able to see that here. If the people you want to game with are also people you feel the need to make a "pre-emptive strike" against for things like OOC banter, well, maybe these aren't the people you want to game with, eh? And if you REALLY hate them, then no way, don't game with them.

I see it as you have three options. Demand they follow this rule you've made, which may take out your game before you start. Make up a new rule that is more agreeable with your prospective players, and maybe they'll still be willing to give it a shot. Or, find some people that will agree to this rule.

Personally, I think little rules like this are bunk. The way I see it, you just say up front something like "While we game, let us game." And then remind everyone that you're there to game and not just chat. I've never ever EVER seen a game (that was any fun) that didn't have at least a wee bit of "table talk". Even in teh really good games I've taken part in. However, chances are the better the game is, the less likely players are to go off topic. But some people just gotta babble on, ya know? Gaming is a social event, and talk happens. Ideally, yeah, everyone would be rivited to your story and hang on your every word. But that just don't happen not much at all. If players start getting out of line with off-topic chatter, remind them that you'd like them to focus on the game. If they don't get it, it's their loss. Look for another group, or adapt. I'm not saying that you can't lay down the law and try to keep everyone focused, but you have to do it in a way that people won't think you're a tyrant or egomaniac, or just a plain nutter.

Besides, this could lead to some jerkoff bringing all his spare pockchange to the game just for the sole purpose of abusing your clever lil system.

hong · Mar 25, 2003

Uzumaki said:
Yeah, well, we've had 8 hour sessions dwindled down to about 3 of actual game time there's so much talk. I really didn't want to kick anyone out before the game actually started, but I don't think this is turning out the way anyone intended it to.

The problem here is that you have a whole bunch of casual gamers as players, and you're looking for a more intensive RPing campaign. Piratecat's system works because everyone (presumably) is already committed to spending as much time as possible on the game, and as little as possible on idle chit-chat. Your group is different. Their priority is simply to hang out and talk, and D&D is simply the excuse to get together.

You should either look for a completely new set of players, who are similarly committed to the game, or accept that your current players aren't interested in the same things as you are. In the latter case, you should give serious consideration to just giving them what they want. Forcing players to play in a style contrary to their own rarely works.

S'mon · Mar 25, 2003

When my players turn up to play, we play, not chat. Of course these are mostly players I advertised for and the reason they've made the effort to get there is to play a D&D game. If your group is basically friends who are there more to socialise than to play, you're out of luck - you need different players. But you can try to run a game the way you want. I'd suggest short sessions - 4 hours max - and tell them that no non-game related discussion is allowed at the table for that period. You can then run a 4-hour serious session and see if they like it. If not, too bad. If they like it, hopefuly they'll be willing to stick with it.