What is your favorite zero-prep game for ongoing campaigns.

[R_J_K75]

What is a good number of players?

I don't have any experience with any zero-prep RPG games, but I'd imagine though that with any RPG you'd at least have to read the rules at least once to familiarize yourself with them. As far as number of players are concerned, I've found in cases like this where prep time is limited or non-existent 2-3 players work best for me. It's easier to keep track of PCs abilities, the game moves faster and unfolds more organically as there's less players vying for the spotlight or deciding what to do. Write down 2-3 sentences for a premise of the adventure/session and just wing it.

 

[Tonguez]

I don't have any experience with any zero-prep RPG games, but I'd imagine though that with any RPG you'd at least have to read the rules at least once to familiarize yourself with them. As far as number of players are concerned, I've found in cases like this where prep time is limited or non-existent 2-3 players work best for me. It's easier to keep track of PCs abilities, the game moves faster and unfolds more organically as there's less players vying for the spotlight or deciding what to do. Write down 2-3 sentences for a premise of the adventure/session and just wing it.

Pretty much if youve got a random encounter table and encourage players to improvise you can roll a game out of zero-prep. Some games just provide better tools to do it - Ironsworn is good for that

 

[R_J_K75]

Pretty much if youve got a random encounter table and encourage players to improvise you can roll a game out of zero-prep. Some games just provide better tolls to do it - Ironsworn is good for that

Im gonna have to check out Ironsworn

 

[BookTenTiger]

Im gonna have to check out Ironsworn

It's free! But also buy the books if you like it. I recommend starting with a solo game to get a feel for the system.

 

[Reynard]

Pretty much if youve got a random encounter table and encourage players to improvise you can roll a game out of zero-prep. Some games just provide better tolls to do it - Ironsworn is good for that

I think that's true if you know the system well or the game is pretty simple and built for it. I have certainly been successful with D&D, Savage Worlds and a few others off the cuff, mostly because I am familiar with them.

But, again, I am interested inthe idea of sustained zero prep and no one has really addressed that part of my question yet.

 

[pointofyou]

I think that's true if you know the system well or the game is pretty simple and built for it. I have certainly been successful with D&D, Savage Worlds and a few others off the cuff, mostly because I am familiar with them.

But, again, I am interested inthe idea of sustained zero prep and no one has really addressed that part of my question yet.

To an extent it depends on how literally you mean "zero prep." I prep a situation once and it takes a few sessions for the players to work through it and that leads to another situation which takes a few more sessions. These days I barely write anything down unless I'm generating a new situation.

A thought about running persistently no-prep: Maintaining consistency will become a mental load if you do not have someone at the table who takes notes about what happens in the game. You can almost think of it as moving the workload from prep to remember. Some people are better at remembering than others. This is not advice not to do it.

 

[Reynard]

To an extent it depends on how literally you mean "zero prep." I prep a situation once and it takes a few sessions for the players to work through it and that leads to another situation which takes a few more sessions. These days I barely write anything down unless I'm generating a new situation.

A thought about running persistently no-prep: Maintaining consistency will become a mental load if you do not have someone at the table who takes notes about what happens in the game. You can almost think of it as moving the workload from prep to remember. Some people are better at remembering than others. This is not advice not to do it.

Yeah. I already offloads my memory to players (giving bonus XP for keeping notes, or whatever is appropriate for the game). Mostly I don't like having to pause to write down things because it messes with the flow of the game at the moment.

Forged in the Dark games, which are intended to be minimal prep, have built in short runs. i think that's because even with zero prep, ongoing games are likely to coalesce around certain storylines that interest the participants. But I would think of those things more as adventures than campaigns, or at least single seasons of a television show. There's no reason not to do multiple seasons (at least up to a point). But if there is significant mechanical progress with a built in cap, you are going to run into trouble with a perpetual game.

I kind of like the idea of figuring out how to eliminate hard advancement and make "xp" a session resource rather than permanent improvement. But I have not thought it through deeply.

 

[pointofyou]

Yeah. I already offloads my memory to players (giving bonus XP for keeping notes, or whatever is appropriate for the game). Mostly I don't like having to pause to write down things because it messes with the flow of the game at the moment.

Forged in the Dark games, which are intended to be minimal prep, have built in short runs. i think that's because even with zero prep, ongoing games are likely to coalesce around certain storylines that interest the participants. But I would think of those things more as adventures than campaigns, or at least single seasons of a television show. There's no reason not to do multiple seasons (at least up to a point). But if there is significant mechanical progress with a built in cap, you are going to run into trouble with a perpetual game.

I kind of like the idea of figuring out how to eliminate hard advancement and make "xp" a session resource rather than permanent improvement. But I have not thought it through deeply.

Something to keep in mind about Story Now play is that long-term consistency is not as high a priority of the games. You get more immediacy in exchange which might make it a thing to consider in the situation you've found yourself in.

 

[Reynard]

Something to keep in mind about Story Now play is that long-term consistency is not as high a priority of the games. You get more immediacy in exchange which might make it a thing to consider in the situation you've found yourself in.

Right, but the built in limited run aspect remains. Also, the couple of groups of more trad players I have run FitD games with or tried to incorporate play-to-find-out elements with have not really enjoyed the "writer's room" feel that can come with PtFO. Most of them prefer immersive roleplaying and exploration which is, in my experience so far anyway, harder to do with PtFO.

 

[pointofyou]

Right, but the built in limited run aspect remains. Also, the couple of groups of more trad players I have run FitD games with or tried to incorporate play-to-find-out elements with have not really enjoyed the "writer's room" feel that can come with PtFO. Most of them prefer immersive roleplaying and exploration which is, in my experience so far anyway, harder to do with PtFO.

I can absolutely believe that was your experience and I agree that what your players prefer is going to be harder get from Story Now play.