Zinovia
Explorer
Well, the time has come to change chairs. I have evicted the DM from his chair at the end of the table, and will be sitting behind the screen for the first time in over ten years. Needless to say, I'm a bit nervous. Not only will I be running the game, but I'm overseeing the transition to 4E. Eep.
Change is in the Air
My hubby has been DM'ing our 3.x campaign for the past six years. He's the only DM some of the players have ever known. We're in the midst of our last great adventure now, and are all about 15th level. After we save the world from the demon peril, we will be transitioning to 4E with a new campaign. So not only will they be getting used to a new DM, but a new game at the same time. Nothing like a challenge to brighten up your day.
A Matter of Style
Our DM won college speech and debate tournaments in the improvisational and extemporaneous categories, which means he can pull stuff out of his *** with the best of 'em. I tell you, the man should'a gone into politics. I need to prepare in advance, and have copious notes. I can certainly wing it when the players do something unexpected (as they always do), but I can't craft an entire story line from thin air the way my husband can. The group actually thinks that he prepares in advance for the sessions. I live with him, so I know better. I happen to think that preparation is a strength I have as a GM. I like to plan things out, but I sometimes wind up railroading a bit. That's all well and good if the characters want to go along for the ride, but I need to try and keep some options open for them.
The Group:
The former DM: Frankly I think my husband is relieved to have someone else put on the DM hat after he's been wearing it for the past six years (I'll wash it first
). He's the only one in the group who has played in games that I ran in the past such as my famous "Elves Out to Save the World" campaign in 1E (yes, they were all elves). In the past he's been partial to magic-user types (we're old). He's likely to wait until the others make a decision about their class and then pick up the slack to round out the party. Style-wise I'd say he's mainly looking for a good story and a fun character to play, but he wants to be effective in combat as well.
The Pessimist: He's always moaning about how we're all going to die, and how unbelievably scary the encounter against a 16th level caster is (we're all 15th level). He complains that he never gets critical hits, his dice never roll well, and we're never going to figure out the puzzles set by the DM. To put this in perspective, we've only had one character die in the entire campaign to date. Nevertheless to hear him tell it, we're always on the verge of death every time we get into combat. He plays a paladin now, but I think he'll go with a rogue or a caster of some sort for the next game. That will be new to him - he's always been a tank in every RPG he's played. I foresee more dire prophecies of impending doom in the future when he doesn't have that heavy armor anymore. He wants a character that is effective in combat more than one with an interesting backstory. Roleplaying is good, but kicking butt in combat is better.
The Roleplayer: Married to the Pessimist, she was brand new to gaming when we started our current campaign. Her bard's story arc took up a huge segment of the campaign, although we're now on the "saving the world from demons" part of the story. She is used to being the focus of all eyes due to her 20+ charisma and is the chief negotiator for the party. Like many new roleplayers, the character is someone that she wishes she were like. I'm not sure what she will want to play to replace her beloved bard. Your first character is special. She has said more than once that she hates combat and always has, but I think that has more to do with playing a bard than anything else. She's all about the roleplaying aspects of the game and would be happy if combats were all resolved by clever negotiations and the batting of eyelashes.
The Casual Gamer: She played white box D&D back in the day, but never really got into the hobby in any serious way. She started her druid character when we were well into our current campaign, so began at 12th level or so. She's had difficulty learning what spells to use and agonizes over what to memorize. She is sometimes devastatingly effective, but gets frustrated when she doesn't have an obvious spell to use, and turning into a dire bear and smashing stuff won't work. The lack of system-mastery is tough on her in our high level game. She's looking for a new beginning, regardless of system or class. She wants to have fun kicking in doors in the old school style, but likes to roleplay some of the time.
The Friend of a Friend: We're going to probably be adding a new player, known to the Pessimist and the Roleplayer, but not to myself. I'll talk to him first, but it sounds like he wants a heavily story-oriented game with plenty of roleplaying opportunities. He's younger than the rest of us (average age 40+). He'll be filling in the slot left by our ever-rotating cleric player. Like drummers in a rock band, we've had some difficulty hanging onto our clerics. They have kids, they move away, they decide to game with people closer to their age (my son abandoned us for a Warhammer game!). I'm hoping this guy will fit in well with the group, but only time will tell.
The Campaign
I will be running War of the Burning Sky, converted over to 4E. I don't want to play more 3E right now, especially in a campaign that is intended to reach high-level play. I feel that WotBS has tons of roleplaying stuff which will make some members of the group happy. I just need to ensure that I include enough exciting combats to keep the power-gamers and kick in the door types happy as well. Keep in mind that none of this group is pure power-gamer; they each participate in roleplaying in our current game. I want all the players to have fun with combat as well as with skill challenges. I have some changes in mind, but haven't done the conversion work yet. I'm hoping that it's a story they will enjoy.
Advice?
How hard is it to switch DM's when a group of players is used to the same person doing it all the time? My concerns are that they won't like my style of DM'ing, that they won't like the new game, or that complaints about rules changes will overwhelm the fun of the game. I'm planning to keep a tally sheet behind the screen to count all the times that my Pessimist player says, "We're going to die", "This is just like WoW", "They dumbed it down", "It's not D&D anymore" and "My dice hate me". Should I request that comments about the system be reserved until the end of the game session? (Not rules queries, but complaints or criticisms). I want to make this game a fun experience for everyone, myself included, and I'm scared that I'll screw it up. Help me ENWorld Community, you're my only hope!
Change is in the Air
My hubby has been DM'ing our 3.x campaign for the past six years. He's the only DM some of the players have ever known. We're in the midst of our last great adventure now, and are all about 15th level. After we save the world from the demon peril, we will be transitioning to 4E with a new campaign. So not only will they be getting used to a new DM, but a new game at the same time. Nothing like a challenge to brighten up your day.
A Matter of Style
Our DM won college speech and debate tournaments in the improvisational and extemporaneous categories, which means he can pull stuff out of his *** with the best of 'em. I tell you, the man should'a gone into politics. I need to prepare in advance, and have copious notes. I can certainly wing it when the players do something unexpected (as they always do), but I can't craft an entire story line from thin air the way my husband can. The group actually thinks that he prepares in advance for the sessions. I live with him, so I know better. I happen to think that preparation is a strength I have as a GM. I like to plan things out, but I sometimes wind up railroading a bit. That's all well and good if the characters want to go along for the ride, but I need to try and keep some options open for them.
The Group:
The former DM: Frankly I think my husband is relieved to have someone else put on the DM hat after he's been wearing it for the past six years (I'll wash it first
). He's the only one in the group who has played in games that I ran in the past such as my famous "Elves Out to Save the World" campaign in 1E (yes, they were all elves). In the past he's been partial to magic-user types (we're old). He's likely to wait until the others make a decision about their class and then pick up the slack to round out the party. Style-wise I'd say he's mainly looking for a good story and a fun character to play, but he wants to be effective in combat as well. The Pessimist: He's always moaning about how we're all going to die, and how unbelievably scary the encounter against a 16th level caster is (we're all 15th level). He complains that he never gets critical hits, his dice never roll well, and we're never going to figure out the puzzles set by the DM. To put this in perspective, we've only had one character die in the entire campaign to date. Nevertheless to hear him tell it, we're always on the verge of death every time we get into combat. He plays a paladin now, but I think he'll go with a rogue or a caster of some sort for the next game. That will be new to him - he's always been a tank in every RPG he's played. I foresee more dire prophecies of impending doom in the future when he doesn't have that heavy armor anymore. He wants a character that is effective in combat more than one with an interesting backstory. Roleplaying is good, but kicking butt in combat is better.
The Roleplayer: Married to the Pessimist, she was brand new to gaming when we started our current campaign. Her bard's story arc took up a huge segment of the campaign, although we're now on the "saving the world from demons" part of the story. She is used to being the focus of all eyes due to her 20+ charisma and is the chief negotiator for the party. Like many new roleplayers, the character is someone that she wishes she were like. I'm not sure what she will want to play to replace her beloved bard. Your first character is special. She has said more than once that she hates combat and always has, but I think that has more to do with playing a bard than anything else. She's all about the roleplaying aspects of the game and would be happy if combats were all resolved by clever negotiations and the batting of eyelashes.
The Casual Gamer: She played white box D&D back in the day, but never really got into the hobby in any serious way. She started her druid character when we were well into our current campaign, so began at 12th level or so. She's had difficulty learning what spells to use and agonizes over what to memorize. She is sometimes devastatingly effective, but gets frustrated when she doesn't have an obvious spell to use, and turning into a dire bear and smashing stuff won't work. The lack of system-mastery is tough on her in our high level game. She's looking for a new beginning, regardless of system or class. She wants to have fun kicking in doors in the old school style, but likes to roleplay some of the time.
The Friend of a Friend: We're going to probably be adding a new player, known to the Pessimist and the Roleplayer, but not to myself. I'll talk to him first, but it sounds like he wants a heavily story-oriented game with plenty of roleplaying opportunities. He's younger than the rest of us (average age 40+). He'll be filling in the slot left by our ever-rotating cleric player. Like drummers in a rock band, we've had some difficulty hanging onto our clerics. They have kids, they move away, they decide to game with people closer to their age (my son abandoned us for a Warhammer game!). I'm hoping this guy will fit in well with the group, but only time will tell.
The Campaign
I will be running War of the Burning Sky, converted over to 4E. I don't want to play more 3E right now, especially in a campaign that is intended to reach high-level play. I feel that WotBS has tons of roleplaying stuff which will make some members of the group happy. I just need to ensure that I include enough exciting combats to keep the power-gamers and kick in the door types happy as well. Keep in mind that none of this group is pure power-gamer; they each participate in roleplaying in our current game. I want all the players to have fun with combat as well as with skill challenges. I have some changes in mind, but haven't done the conversion work yet. I'm hoping that it's a story they will enjoy.
Advice?
How hard is it to switch DM's when a group of players is used to the same person doing it all the time? My concerns are that they won't like my style of DM'ing, that they won't like the new game, or that complaints about rules changes will overwhelm the fun of the game. I'm planning to keep a tally sheet behind the screen to count all the times that my Pessimist player says, "We're going to die", "This is just like WoW", "They dumbed it down", "It's not D&D anymore" and "My dice hate me". Should I request that comments about the system be reserved until the end of the game session? (Not rules queries, but complaints or criticisms). I want to make this game a fun experience for everyone, myself included, and I'm scared that I'll screw it up. Help me ENWorld Community, you're my only hope!
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