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15 questions about your gaming style


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Since my group has enjoyed these questions, I decided to post them here too. The idea is to help a gaming-group to determine stylistic issues and avoid clashes in the game. I'm no analytist or anything of the sort but I hope you find these questions helpful. Any criticism is always welcomed.

Question 1
Which of these genres interest you the most? (choose one or more)
Sci-fi, fantasy, modern, historical, horror, humor/satire, realistic shooting, superhero, surreal, detective, post-apocalyptic, multi-genre, other?

I presume that this sort of questions will be mostly handed out by the DM to the players in order to setup a game, or even brought at the table by a player. In such case, the "genre" of the game is probably already decided, so this question may be moot within a specific gaming group.

This is rather a question to ask gamers in general to collect some statistics, for example a FLGS may ask these questions if they're going to organize some games in their premises.

Question 2
What sort of emphasis would you like the game to have? (choose one or more)
Troubleshooting, action, tactics, plotting, wackiness, story, character growth, technical stuff, business-simulation, epicness, survival, other?

Absolutely important question! I would even expand this question to assigning two different levels of empasis, so that each gamer can say e.g. Action = major emphasis, Tactics and Story = reasonable emphasis. Just so that you get a better understanding about which are "must have" and which "nice to have".

Also I would make an effort of including as many as I can think about (I would add resource management, historical realism, mass scale battles, political affairs...) to help players not to forget any.

Question 3
Will you be willing to get to know the game and learn to understand the game-world? Will you read the GM’s e-mails and hand-outs outside the game?

Should be separate questions...

Maybe a question about willing to get to know the rules and willing to get to know the settings & world (could be one or two questions). Also might be spelled out better to distinguish whether these will be possible or required.

The other question should focus on how much the players are willing to work on their own and to work together with the GM outside of gaming sessions.

Question 4
Which of these are you and how much?
Gamist
Narrativist
Simulationist
More info here: GNS Theory - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ok, but might be a little hard to answer from the casual gamer, if they need to first read and understand the GNS theory.

Question 5
What guarantees a good game? Short answers please.

This is hard... it's quite a lot generic. But probably good to force the player to think about it.

Question 6
What is the ideal size of a gaming group?

Ok, but I wonder how the DM is going to adjust that... might not always be possible.

Question 7
Do you prefer a designated GM or a GM hot-seat?

Ok.

Question 8
How challenging the game should be to player characters? Please note that this has nothing to with how challenging the game is to players.

Question 9
Can bad dice rolls kill characters? Can characters die at all? (already discussed in a separate thread)

Probably these can be combined, they are both about lethality. This is a very important question anyway!! Must always ask everyone before starting a campaign!

Question 10
How much the GM should help players in game? With rule-questions the GM must help of course but if the character is in a tight spot and should make a decision, should the GM offer an option (thus putting words in the players mouth – “ok, I’ll do that!”) or should the player be given the right to make his/her own decisions, whether right or wrong? Should the GM have a GMPC which guides players through difficult spots?

Ok.

Question 11
What do with a PC when the player can’t come?

Very good question, better to set this before it happens.

Question 12
Do you like traditional gaming (whatever that is?) or do you enjoy groundbreaking, innovative games.

Ok.

Question 13
Do you want the GM to prepare the session and to write the story or would you like the characters to create the story themselves? Script vs. freedom, which do you prefer?

Ok. Can also be expanded to ask how they feel about railroading, and what do they think about a sandbox campaign. While we're at it, it can also ask if they prefer a linear & simple plot, or an intricate plot with side-quests and dead-ends.

Question 14
How fast-paced the game should be? Can we stop to buy equipment for an hour or should the GM be ruthless and skip over the parts that he doesn’t deem vital to the story? (referring to “guards at the gate”)

Another good question. Could be expanded to ask how much the player is interested in detailing downtime vs just going straight into adventures.

Question 15
How do you feel about having off-game discussions about in-game-issues?

Good, and should also mention if the players want these discussion to happen remotely (e.g. email), or at the table, and in the latter case if they think the game should stop for discussion or if instead all discussions should be avoided and delayed until the end of the session.

Additional questions that could be asked (here just drafts, need some elaboration):

16- how much do you want the DM to enforce the RAW vs adjudicating on the fly?

17- how much do you want the DM to stay faithful to the dice vs fudging them to save your sorry bottoms?

18- are you willing to accept some randomness in character creation or not?

19- how do you think the game should handle the case of a player becoming dissatisfied with his PC?

20- what are the sensitive topics that you are not willing to accept in the fiction of the game? (here suggest topics such as detailed violence, ambiguity in the morals of religious characters, rape, violence against children, torture...)

21- how much presence should ethical issues and discussions have in the game? do you want the game to present clear & simple good vs evil scenarios, or do you accept/prefer shades of gray?

22- how much do you want the rule to enforce your PC's ethical behaviour after you have chosen his alignment? do you prefer an alignment system to provide hard constraints (i.e. DM will tell you "you can't do that"), soft constraints (i.e. DM will tell you "if you do that, there will be rules-defined penalties"), or guidelines (i.e. DM will tell you "if you do that, there will be story penalties, and you probably should consider shifting your alignment")?
 

I think the best way to encapsulate your GMing style (or the style you'd prefer on the other side of the screen, if you want to answer it that way) is the GM Merit Badges dealio from a year or so ago. They are very succinct, yet also suprisingly comprehensive, IMO.

But like I said, I'm a sucker for questionaires, and I always like to approach a question from multiple angles to see if something pops as a better way to describe something than has been done before.
 

Question 1
Which of these genres interest you the most? (choose one or more)
Sci-fi, fantasy, modern, historical, horror, humor/satire, realistic shooting, superhero, surreal, detective, post-apocalyptic, multi-genre, other?
Sci-fi, fantasy, mult-genre, horro

Question 2
What sort of emphasis would you like the game to have? (choose one or more)
Troubleshooting, action, tactics, plotting, wackiness, story, character growth, technical stuff, business-simulation, epicness, survival, other?
Actions, story, character growth

Question 3
Will you be willing to get to know the game and learn to understand the game-world? Will you read the GM’s e-mails and hand-outs outside the game?
Yes!

Question 4
Which of these are you and how much?
Gamist
Narrativist
Simulationist
I don't know how to rate these numerically, but I'll say: Narrativist 60, Simulationist 20, Gamist 20
Although I prefer games with numbers and other gamist concepts (like use of minuatures and a grid).

Question 5
What guarantees a good game? Short answers please.
All players involved emotionally in the story.

Question 6
What is the ideal size of a gaming group?
6 people.

Question 7
Do you prefer a designated GM or a GM hot-seat?
Designated GM

Question 8
How challenging the game should be to player characters? Please note that this has nothing to with how challenging the game is to players.
I want combat to be scary most of the time.

Question 9
Can bad dice rolls kill characters? Can characters die at all? (already discussed in a separate thread)
Yes to both

Question 10
How much the GM should help players in game? With rule-questions the GM must help of course but if the character is in a tight spot and should make a decision, should the GM offer an option (thus putting words in the players mouth – “ok, I’ll do that!”) or should the player be given the right to make his/her own decisions, whether right or wrong? Should the GM have a GMPC which guides players through difficult spots?
GM involvement in decision making only when the GM feels that the players were not informed on all aspects of the decision because the GM forgot something (not because the players forgot something) or if there was a setting-specific response that the players would not know (Dont assume killing the orcs is a decent way to kill some time - Orcs are people in this particular setting, not monsters). I rarely see GMPCs work out so I avoid them.

Question 11
What do with a PC when the player can’t come?
Someone else controls them. I offer the players a choice - they can have their character immune to death if they are not there, but they will get significantly less XP (30% to 50%, depending on if there was lot's 'o combat). Or they can choose to have their character be just as susceptible to threats like the present PCs and they will (75% to 100% depending on combat). No RPing XP is given to a missing player.

Question 12
Do you like traditional gaming (whatever that is?) or do you enjoy groundbreaking, innovative games.
I like to see what's new out there but I often migrate towards more traditional methods.

Question 13
Do you want the GM to prepare the session and to write the story or would you like the characters to create the story themselves? Script vs. freedom, which do you prefer?
What they are comfortable with, but no "scripted" response from the PCs. Never tell me what my PC is thinking or doing unless he is dominated.

Question 14
How fast-paced the game should be? Can we stop to buy equipment for an hour or should the GM be ruthless and skip over the parts that he doesn’t deem vital to the story? (referring to “guards at the gate”)
Slow it down for RP. We do not need to know every marble you buy but I would like to hear several characters discussing things outside of the adventure.

Question 15
How do you feel about having off-game discussions about in-game-issues?
It's fine as long as everyone is in character or out of character. I do not even mind when a player declares that his/her character is doing something that the player does not agree with (an alien concept to some, as I have witnessed over time). I actually have little tolerance for rules discussions and arguments compared to OOC chatter.
 

Question 1
Which of these genres interest you the most? (choose one or more)
fantasy, Sci-fi, superhero, post-apocalyptic. probably in that order.


Question 2
What sort of emphasis would you like the game to have? (choose one or more)
Troubleshooting, action, tactics, plotting, wackiness, story, character growth. Seems like that'd be enough to keep me happy.

Question 3
Will you be willing to get to know the game and learn to understand the game-world? Will you read the GM’s e-mails and hand-outs outside the game?
To a point, yes. But there's only so much effort I think a player should be expected to invest in order to grok a game system or appreciate a game world. This is not RPG appreciation class - it's just entertainment. As for the latter question - again, to a point. A dozen pages or so of house rules and useful information seems fine. 100 pages of setting history and completely re-written game rules? Not likely.

Question 4
Which of these are you and how much?
Gamist
Narrativist
Simulationist
Theory is fine for forum discussion but not for naval gazing.

Question 5
What guarantees a good game?
Players invested in their PC's and interested in ongoing plots. DM's who are good at creating player interaction, not just dictation.

Question 6
What is the ideal size of a gaming group?
4-8

Question 7
Do you prefer a designated GM or a GM hot-seat?
Depends on the DM's. Depends on the schedule of rotation.

Question 8
How challenging the game should be to player characters?
Depends on the game. In Paranoia? I have no problem with PC corpses piling up in the halls. In a typical game of D&D? PC's should generally be expected to succeed. Greater risk = greater reward. The threat of death should never be safe to just ignore.

Question 9
Can bad dice rolls kill characters? Can characters die at all?
Can they die? Not only can but should. The death rate should drop as they level up but never vanish. Bad die rolls can certainly kill PC's but this should preferably only happen when characters are already facing significant dangers, not just out of the blue at arbitrary moments.

Question 10
How much the GM should help players in game? With rule-questions the GM must help of course but if the character is in a tight spot and should make a decision, should the GM offer an option (thus putting words in the players mouth – “ok, I’ll do that!”) or should the player be given the right to make his/her own decisions, whether right or wrong? Should the GM have a GMPC which guides players through difficult spots?
Of course the DM should help players - but he can also mislead or outright lie to them about what might be good or bad ideas. Players need to understand that. Not all players are equally adept at such planning and decision-making. No reason the DM can't subsidize some players and challenge others as needed. DMPC's have their uses - and their pitfalls. It's a tool that not all games need and not all DM's have the understanding or skill to use appropriately.

Question 11
What do with a PC when the player can’t come?
Several ways to handle it. Discuss with players before the question ever comes up.

Question 12
Do you like traditional gaming (whatever that is?) or do you enjoy groundbreaking, innovative games.
<tevye>Tradition!</tevye>

Question 13
Do you want the GM to prepare the session and to write the story or would you like the characters to create the story themselves? Script vs. freedom, which do you prefer?
Both.

Question 14
How fast-paced the game should be? Can we stop to buy equipment for an hour or should the GM be ruthless and skip over the parts that he doesn’t deem vital to the story? (referring to “guards at the gate”)
DM's should concentrate on those portions of the game that the players most enjoy without simply ignorcing the often uninteresting underpinnings that make those portions enjoyable.

Question 15
How do you feel about having off-game discussions about in-game-issues?
As a DM I want players who are willing and able to question rules and rulings. It makes me a better DM. As a player I want to be free to question the DM and the game rules if it's MY character who's being hosed in the name of keeping the game flowing. Either way I don't want to spend an evening of gaming discussing or arguing rules. As much as they need to be willing and able to deal with player objections, a DM needs to be able to continously weigh the impact to the game versus the time being spent on the question, as well as the impact to the player and his enjoyment of the game versus sticking to your own guns. This is the JOB of the DM.
 

Question 1
Which of these genres interest you the most? (choose one or more)
Sci-fi, fantasy, modern, historical, horror, humor/satire, realistic shooting, superhero, surreal, detective, post-apocalyptic, multi-genre, other?

Sci-Fi (space opera), fantasy, post-apocalyptic and alternate history

Question 2
What sort of emphasis would you like the game to have? (choose one or more)
Troubleshooting, action, tactics, plotting, wackiness, story, character growth, technical stuff, business-simulation, epicness, survival, other?

troubleshooting, action, occasional tactics, story, character growth, occasionally survival. I try to avoid wackniness, but it always seems to creep in.

Question 3
Will you be willing to get to know the game and learn to understand the game-world? Will you read the GM’s e-mails and hand-outs outside the game?

Yes, but it tends to take longer for me to get through that stuff than it used to. Please, no novels.

Question 4
Which of these are you and how much?
Gamist
Narrativist
Simulationist
More info here: GNS Theory - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Definately narrativist with a dash of gamist.

Question 5
What guarantees a good game? Short answers please.

DM flexibility and player buy-in

Question 6
What is the ideal size of a gaming group?

10 is the limit, 6 is best, 3 is minimum


Question 7
Do you prefer a designated GM or a GM hot-seat?

designated (me)

Question 8
How challenging the game should be to player characters? Please note that this has nothing to with how challenging the game is to players.

To tell the truth, I hate extremely challenging games. I like casual danger, where you really have to make a deliberate, bad descision to screw up.

Question 9
Can bad dice rolls kill characters? Can characters die at all? (already discussed in a separate thread)

Not any one bad roll, but a streak could. Yes, death must be a risk

Question 10
How much the GM should help players in game? With rule-questions the GM must help of course but if the character is in a tight spot and should make a decision, should the GM offer an option (thus putting words in the players mouth – “ok, I’ll do that!”) or should the player be given the right to make his/her own decisions, whether right or wrong? Should the GM have a GMPC which guides players through difficult spots?

Player should always have the choice to go their own way, but the DM should do all he can to ensure the players are aware of what is at stake and the relative likelyhood of success or failures as the character would percieve it. If that means suggesting a course of action, so be it, as long as it isn't rammed down the PCs throat.

I loathe GMPCs, especially when they are secretly (or worse, overtly) the star of the game.

Question 11
What do with a PC when the player can’t come?

Indisposed, as quickly and for as long as required.

Question 12
Do you like traditional gaming (whatever that is?) or do you enjoy groundbreaking, innovative games.

Traditional. Too many systems running in the head to add much more, which are rarely innovative anyways.

Question 13
Do you want the GM to prepare the session and to write the story or would you like the characters to create the story themselves? Script vs. freedom, which do you prefer?

Give me a module to run, but let the players approach or skirt it as they deem appropriate.

Question 14
How fast-paced the game should be? Can we stop to buy equipment for an hour or should the GM be ruthless and skip over the parts that he doesn’t deem vital to the story? (referring to “guards at the gate”)

The group moves at the speed of the majority of its members. Won't slow the game because one player wants to do X, but if everyone's on board, sure.

Question 15
How do you feel about having off-game discussions about in-game-issues?

Its a social activity - if we're not pressed for time, it's their time they're taking up.
 

Question 1
Which of these genres interest you the most? (choose one or more)
Sci-fi, fantasy, modern, historical, horror, humor/satire, realistic shooting, superhero, surreal, detective, post-apocalyptic, multi-genre, other?

All of the above. Though Fantasy and Supers above the rest.

Question 2
What sort of emphasis would you like the game to have? (choose one or more)
Troubleshooting, action, tactics, plotting, wackiness, story, character growth, technical stuff, business-simulation, epicness, survival, other?

Exploration, problem solving, survival, story, mostly.
Question 3
Will you be willing to get to know the game and learn to understand the game-world? Will you read the GM’s e-mails and hand-outs outside the game?

Yep, I'm usually the GM, so when I play, I know the work that goes into it and make sure the GM knows I appreciate it. And knowing what I'm supposed to know is a plus.
Question 4
Which of these are you and how much?
Gamist
Narrativist
Simulationist
More info here: GNS Theory - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ah, labels. I'm probably somewhere in the the chewy nougat center of those.
Question 5
What guarantees a good game? Short answers please.

Everyone having fun? That's pretty general, but fundamentally is the truth.
Question 6
What is the ideal size of a gaming group?
4-5, leaning towards 4.
Question 7
Do you prefer a designated GM or a GM hot-seat?

I prefer to GM, so designated GM.
Question 8
How challenging the game should be to player characters? Please note that this has nothing to with how challenging the game is to players.

As challenging as the players are willing to take it. I'll often throw something deadly (often at random) in their way. I'll then offer in-game clues that they might not want to engage this deadly encounter. The rest is up to them.
Question 9
Can bad dice rolls kill characters? Can characters die at all? (already discussed in a separate thread)

Yep, and yessir. Games like 7th Sea or most supers games are exceptions. but in most other games, death is a real issue.
Question 10
How much the GM should help players in game? With rule-questions the GM must help of course but if the character is in a tight spot and should make a decision, should the GM offer an option (thus putting words in the players mouth – “ok, I’ll do that!”) or should the player be given the right to make his/her own decisions, whether right or wrong? Should the GM have a GMPC which guides players through difficult spots?

I'll make sure the player has all the info his PC would have when making a decision. And when the players get stuck, I might throw out a bunch of ideas without saying which might be best, just to keep the game moving. But their decisions are their own. And NPCs only know what they know, not what necessarily what the GM knows.
Question 11
What do with a PC when the player can’t come?

His PC is absent, doing something else, for some reason, no matter how flimsy.
Question 12
Do you like traditional gaming (whatever that is?) or do you enjoy groundbreaking, innovative games.

Yes. :)
Question 13
Do you want the GM to prepare the session and to write the story or would you like the characters to create the story themselves? Script vs. freedom, which do you prefer?

A little bit of both. The world should be alive, so the GM should make sure things are happening in the world, and the PCs can participate or not as they choose. But regardless, the PCs are the protagonists that help write their own story.
Question 14
How fast-paced the game should be? Can we stop to buy equipment for an hour or should the GM be ruthless and skip over the parts that he doesn’t deem vital to the story? (referring to “guards at the gate”)

Whatever everyone is enjoying. If it isn't fun, move along to the fun part.
Question 15
How do you feel about having off-game discussions about in-game-issues?

I'm a regular listener of Fear the Boot, and try to engage my players in the same types of discussions, though I often prefer that they be away from the table so as not to interfere with the game.
 

Question 1
Which of these genres interest you the most? (choose one or more)
Sci-fi, fantasy, modern, historical, horror, humor/satire, realistic shooting, superhero, surreal, detective, post-apocalyptic, multi-genre, other?

Sci-fi, fantasy and modern depending on my mood and current inspiration.
Question 2
What sort of emphasis would you like the game to have? (choose one or more)
Troubleshooting, action, tactics, plotting, wackiness, story, character growth, technical stuff, business-simulation, epicness, survival, other?
Troubleshooting were "trouble" can be solved however the players want including combat, plotting, etc. Definately not whackiness.
Question 3
Will you be willing to get to know the game and learn to understand the game-world? Will you read the GM’s e-mails and hand-outs outside the game?

As long as they stay reasonably short (3 pages at most at one time) yes.
Question 4
Which of these are you and how much?
Gamist
Narrativist
Simulationist
More info here: GNS Theory - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Simulationist by a lot.
Question 5
What guarantees a good game? Short answers please.

THat the GM and players want to play the same game.
Question 6
What is the ideal size of a gaming group?

4+GM
Question 7
Do you prefer a designated GM or a GM hot-seat?

Designated GM
Question 8
How challenging the game should be to player characters? Please note that this has nothing to with how challenging the game is to players.

Quite challenging. The opposition should be on equal footing and the PCs should not be automatically expected to win.
Question 9
Can bad dice rolls kill characters? Can characters die at all? (already discussed in a separate thread)

Not a single die roll, but yes.
Question 10
How much the GM should help players in game? With rule-questions the GM must help of course but if the character is in a tight spot and should make a decision, should the GM offer an option (thus putting words in the players mouth – “ok, I’ll do that!”) or should the player be given the right to make his/her own decisions, whether right or wrong? Should the GM have a GMPC which guides players through difficult spots?

Unless the players actively ask for help they should be allowed to make their own mistakes (in other words no help). And if they do ask for help give only a slight hint in character/game.
Question 11
What do with a PC when the player can’t come?

Hard question. Depends on the situation but most when possible he disappears or accompanies them but stays inactive.
Question 12
Do you like traditional gaming (whatever that is?) or do you enjoy groundbreaking, innovative games.

No idea what you mean.
Question 13
Do you want the GM to prepare the session and to write the story or would you like the characters to create the story themselves? Script vs. freedom, which do you prefer?

Prepare yes, but not a story but the world.
Question 14
How fast-paced the game should be? Can we stop to buy equipment for an hour or should the GM be ruthless and skip over the parts that he doesn’t deem vital to the story? (referring to “guards at the gate”)

Unless it is clear to everyone that absolutely nothing will happen and no one has currently the desire for some inter party conversations play it out.
Question 15
How do you feel about having off-game discussions about in-game-issues?

Indifferent.
 

Question 1
Which of these genres interest you the most? (choose one or more)
Sci-fi, fantasy, modern, historical, horror, humor/satire, realistic shooting, superhero, surreal, detective, post-apocalyptic, multi-genre, other?

Fantasy is probably my number one, although superhero is probably my second most favorite genre. Science fantasy is also pretty awesome (I can't really get into straight up sci fi).

Question 2
What sort of emphasis would you like the game to have? (choose one or more)
Troubleshooting, action, tactics, plotting, wackiness, story, character growth, technical stuff, business-simulation, epicness, survival, other?

Epicness and character growth. I love it when even normal attacks get roleplayed as random crap, like a longsword attack gets turned into "I duck around the orc, jumping into the air to slice the chandelier with my longsword; the chandelier falls on the unexpecting orc, incapacitating him." It isn't completely right by game terms, but it's narrative is so much more epic.

Question 3
Will you be willing to get to know the game and learn to understand the game-world? Will you read the GM’s e-mails and hand-outs outside the game?

Wholeheartedly, yes! I love reading about campaign settings and background information, especially reading about the backgrounds of my teammates.

Question 4
Which of these are you and how much?
Gamist
Narrativist
Simulationist
More info here: GNS Theory - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Narrativist, but only slightly. I love storyline and character growth, but I won't sacrifice my effectiveness in game. When we get into a fight with people I don't want to, I will still fight although my character will more likely take more attempts to incapacitate instead of kill.

Question 5
What guarantees a good game? Short answers please.

Fun players and little rules lawyering.

Question 6
What is the ideal size of a gaming group?

A gamemaster with four players.

Question 7
Do you prefer a designated GM or a GM hot-seat?

GM hot-seat, but I rarely get this option. I'm almost always the designated GM.

Question 8
How challenging the game should be to player characters? Please note that this has nothing to with how challenging the game is to players.

Challenging to overwhelming. A player might be okay with the challenges presented, but I love the idea of the characters losing a lot in their lives but persevering to do what's right.

Question 9
Can bad dice rolls kill characters? Can characters die at all? (already discussed in a separate thread)

Yes. Character should be able to die in big/important battles, but I generally offer redemption retries when it's an unimportant battle.

Question 10
How much the GM should help players in game? With rule-questions the GM must help of course but if the character is in a tight spot and should make a decision, should the GM offer an option (thus putting words in the players mouth – “ok, I’ll do that!”) or should the player be given the right to make his/her own decisions, whether right or wrong? Should the GM have a GMPC which guides players through difficult spots?

I let players make their own decisions, although particularly bad ideas are met with "are you sure?" when it threatens everyone in the group instead of just that PC. I'll drop a hint only if they take too long doing nothing.

Question 11
What do with a PC when the player can’t come?

That character falls into the background. If they are about to enter a dungeon and a player misses the game, their character might get sick and stay in town. If they are in the middle of a long dungeon, I usually just narrate it as having more monsters than what's on the board that the missing guy fights and lower their health around 1/3 for when they return.

Question 12
Do you like traditional gaming (whatever that is?) or do you enjoy groundbreaking, innovative games.

I generally like traditional games opposed to innovative ones because sometime sthe innovation turns out to be bad for our group. I'll research it before putting it in a game.

Question 13
Do you want the GM to prepare the session and to write the story or would you like the characters to create the story themselves? Script vs. freedom, which do you prefer?

I prefer a semi-scripted story that is written session-by-session, to allow for wildly altered story by character choices.

Question 14
How fast-paced the game should be? Can we stop to buy equipment for an hour or should the GM be ruthless and skip over the parts that he doesn’t deem vital to the story? (referring to “guards at the gate”)

Fast paced is better. Equipment should be bought in under ten minutes, otherwise time is being wasted. Stuff like customs checkpoints and such should be handwaved unless important to the story or a character (customs might not be important, but I'll roleplay it if one of the characters was sneaking into a different country or using a false identity).

Question 15
How do you feel about having off-game discussions about in-game-issues?

They are necessary.
 

Question 1
Which of these genres interest you the most? (choose one or more)
Sci-fi, fantasy, modern, historical, horror, humor/satire, realistic shooting, superhero, surreal, detective, post-apocalyptic, multi-genre, other?

Fantasy, humour/satire, historical, other

Question 2
What sort of emphasis would you like the game to have? (choose one or more)
Troubleshooting, action, tactics, plotting, wackiness, story, character growth, technical stuff, business-simulation, epicness, survival, other?

In no order: action, tactics, plotting, wackiness, story, survival, epicness only near the end of a very long campaign.

Question 3
Will you be willing to get to know the game and learn to understand the game-world? Will you read the GM’s e-mails and hand-outs outside the game?

I am willing to learn the game world. I am much less willing to learn a new rules system. Yes I will read what the DM writes.

Question 4
Which of these are you and how much?
Gamist
Narrativist
Simulationist

Vomitist, as that's what those terms and their associated baggage usually make me want to do.

Question 5
What guarantees a good game? Short answers please.

Players and DM having fun regardless how much actual adventuring does or does not get done. Beyond this, nothing else matters.

Question 6
What is the ideal size of a gaming group?

Varies depending on specific players - some do better in a small group, others shine when there's a bigger audience. Anywhere from 2-7 players plus a DM.

Question 7
Do you prefer a designated GM or a GM hot-seat?

One DM running a continuing campaign.

Question 8
How challenging the game should be to player characters? Please note that this has nothing to with how challenging the game is to players.

Deadly enough to ensure at least one or two PC deaths per adventure and sometimes more.

Question 9
Can bad dice rolls kill characters? Can characters die at all? (already discussed in a separate thread)

Yes, and yes; if characters cannot die where is the achievement in surviving?

Question 10
How much the GM should help players in game? With rule-questions the GM must help of course but if the character is in a tight spot and should make a decision, should the GM offer an option (thus putting words in the players mouth – “ok, I’ll do that!”) or should the player be given the right to make his/her own decisions, whether right or wrong? Should the GM have a GMPC which guides players through difficult spots?

This is two questions in one:
- the DM should let the players sink or swim on their own
- the DM is perfectly allowed to run NPC party members who are themselves perfectly allowed to be helpful, hurtful, or anything else they choose to the PCs.



Question 11
What do with a PC when the player can’t come?

It gets played as usual by the players present; if the missing player leaves instructions they are to be followed if reasonable and practical, otherwise the character is at the other players' mercy.

Question 12
Do you like traditional gaming (whatever that is?) or do you enjoy groundbreaking, innovative games.

Traditional all the way.

Question 13
Do you want the GM to prepare the session and to write the story or would you like the characters to create the story themselves? Script vs. freedom, which do you prefer?

The DM needs to start the car and get it on the road, but allow the players to decide where it goes if they choose to.

Question 14
How fast-paced the game should be? Can we stop to buy equipment for an hour or should the GM be ruthless and skip over the parts that he doesn’t deem vital to the story? (referring to “guards at the gate”)

The game should go as fast or as slow as required. If everyone's having fun spending an hour talking to the guards or stabbing each other in the back, go for it. The GM should only skip bits if the players give the OK.

Question 15
How do you feel about having off-game discussions about in-game-issues?

Depends what the issues are, though it's far preferable if the players and-or DM see each other out of game anyway to get their other socializing out of the way.

Lanefan
 

Into the Woods

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