Confession...It's good for the soul.

[Evilhalfling]

Hiya Bobitron, Rhun, Scotty,

Boy I'm glad to see so many understanding players. I have abandoned a few games myself,
one as a player 2 that I was running, but have too much attachment to my screen name to abandon it before starting up a new game.

I would say that two were dropped because I would get stuck either in the plot or waiting for a player to post, and get out of the habit of checking it every day, After a while I am just too embarrassed to return to it. I am glad Eddie from halfling quest went on without me,
he was probably my all time fav. pbp character.

Abandoning games is also about how much other gaming I am doing. I like running games, and am the primary dm at my in-person table. Sometimes I need a break, or someone else is revved up to run a game. Then after a month or so I get antsy, and want to try out new ideas. Thats when I start PbP games. If the pbp game is still going on when its my turn to run the real table I get over-burdened very quickly.

The one game I finished felt great though, 6-7 months 3 replacement players, ending with the death of a dragon, A lot of times I had to breathe on the embers to keep that one going, but it was worth it. I think the PCs gained one level in game and one at the end. Not particularly epic.

Edit:
Dragonslayers ran 11 months. Maddgoths Castle ran 6, then another TWO months with the characters just sitting around, talking and drinking with no DM, they even ended it in character. I had never gone back and read the end before. frankly I'm amazed and ashamed at once.

 

[Creamsteak]

And that's exactly the kind of mentality we need to curtail here at ENWorld. Because big and epic is not better. Not in the least. Because big and epic DOESN'T FINISH. And you yourself are proof positive of that.

"Small and completed" is much, much, MUCH better than "big and abandoned". And so long as you, Malvoisin, and others like you keep disbelieving that... and keep thinking that your game has to be this huge, multi-plotted, multi-level, end-all-and-be-all roleplaying extravaganza or else it's not worth playing... then most games here on ENWorld are going to suck. Don't be a part of it anymore. Learn from your past mistakes.

Those who do not follow history are doomed to repeat it, as they say.

There's really no right and wrong here. You can't say that what one player or DM likes is better or worse than another. To raise a somewhat lame internet phrase, you're just accusing some people of having "badwrongfun." If people enjoy it, then they are welcome to do it. I see no reason to look down on another person's methods.

You're welcome to your opinion, and to play and run whatever games you want. However, I think it's not fair to expect everyone else to enjoy the same kind of "fun."

 

[Jdvn1]

And Jdvn1, Dowlee the Favored Soul got abandoned twice. I'm so sorry.

What for? I enjoyed playing her both times!

I'm positive I've had at least two of your aliases as GMs. Probably more, but the memory is a bit dusty...

No hard feelings t'all. Though, I think I may find this the funniest thread on TtT ever.

 

[Scott DeWar]

Am I allowed to link this thread to Mortality.net? therre is a game there i am wishing to be resserected and would like a prior dm to know there are no hard feelings so it can be picked up.

thank you,
Tetsubo on Mortality.net

 

[kinem]

You can't say that what one player or DM likes is better or worse than another. To raise a somewhat lame internet phrase, you're just accusing some people of having "badwrongfun." If people enjoy it, then they are welcome to do it. I see no reason to look down on another person's methods.

No, what he is saying (correctly) is that many people keep trying to have fun in a way that (as experience shows) usually does NOT WORK for the people who try it.

Your taste can't be wrong or right, but your belief that "this is worth trying because it has a NON-negligable PROBABILITY of working" can certainly be dead wrong.

 

[Malvoisin]

Am I allowed to link this thread to Mortality.net? therre is a game there i am wishing to be resserected and would like a prior dm to know there are no hard feelings so it can be picked up.

thank you,
Tetsubo on Mortality.net

It's fine as far as I'm concerned!

 

[Malvoisin]

Let me ask this question...

If a game you play or DM is fun for you, but then for some reason it ends earlier than you hoped...does that nullify the fun you had while it lasted?

Obviously, I've never had the good fortune to bring a game to a desired conclusion. Some games I've started up never really got off the ground...but some lasted quite a while. Regardless, I had fun running most of them while they lasted. I think there are plenty of people who have already stated on this thread that they had fun playing in those games. If that's the case, why is it a bad thing for this community? Sure, I can see being disappointed that the game ended earlier than hoped (and certainly, the way in which the games ended, usually, wasn't right...hence the existence of this thread in the first place). But does that undo the enjoyment gained from participating while the game lasted? I think different folks would answer that question in different ways...but for me the answer is 'no!' I don't regret my ambition in trying to run the games I did...only the way in which I failed to own up to the fact that they had to end.

 

[Rhun]

Let me ask this question...

If a game you play or DM is fun for you, but then for some reason it ends earlier than you hoped...does that nullify the fun you had while it lasted?

No, absolutely not...it never nullifies the fun that was had. It is more of a disappointment that the fun won't continue.

Take your Savage Tide game as an example, Mal...that was a ton of fun. The players all had a great rapport and worked well together, and you were a great DM. I will fondly recall all of their adventures, including the two or three times that Anar found himself unconscious from the ravenous zombies chomping him down.

I will always remember the fun that we had there. It is just sad to know that the fun won't continue.

Hopefully that answer makes sense.

 

[Creamsteak]

No, what he is saying (correctly) is that many people keep trying to have fun in a way that (as experience shows) usually does NOT WORK for the people who try it.

Your taste can't be wrong or right, but your belief that "this is worth trying because it has a NON-negligable PROBABILITY of working" can certainly be dead wrong.

I think the common sense here is, "If the DM and the Players think it is worth trying, it becomes worth trying." That's as far as it really ever needs to go.

 

[James Heard]

It's oysters. No matter how gross and wrong it might seem to some people, someone else is going to treat it like a luxury item to consumed at all cost. People have different tastes and expectations.