Free to choose?

[Argent Silvermage]

My first D&D experience was like that. It was either be in a game of bad DM and hack and slash players when I love to Role play or have nothing at all. Thankfuly since then I have been blessed with a few very good DMs and I'm broad enough to try anything once.

 

[nopantsyet]

I'm going to cast my lot with the "DMing is work" crowd.

I have great players, and despite busy schedules (3 are engaged, one travels a lot for work, etc.), they try to put in the time to work on their characters out of game. But in the end, they're spending a couple of hours between bi-weekly sessions.

Meanwhile I'm no less busy (one kid, one on the way) and I put in 10-12 hours a week in campaign preparation and reviewing the rules, etc. Mostly in the later hours of the night after my three year old is in bed.

Make no mistake, I do it because I love it. I choose to DM; I don't feel imposed upon by the disparity. Also, I check in with my players from time to time to get a feel for how they're enjoying the campaign and I consider any suggestions they make. But in the end, I'm going to run the game I want using the house rules I want. And I'm going to do that because that's a lot of hours to spend developing something you're not interested in.

Threads like this have caused me to put a lot thought into this topic because I want to be a good DM for my players. But in the end, he who bakes the cake picks the flavor.

Personally, I would find it pretty offensive if I found one of my players talking the way I've seen some people talking here. Be grateful that somebody is spending the time to put together a game and letting you sit at their table. Furthermore, put some thought into how you can make it fun for yourself. Play a race or class you've never tried before. Find an interesting hook for your character. Own your part of the game.

If it's a case of an unskilled DM, offer suggestions. Or better yet, offer to help. If it's a case of a jerk who happens to be DMing, that's tougher to resolve. But ask yourself, am I taking issue with the DM or with the game he has created? If you cannot enjoy his game, make room at the table for somebody who will. Otherwise stop playing "Blame the DM" game and play D&D.

I say to players who are so insistent that the game fit a certain mold, let them eat CRPG.

 

[Ao the Overkitty]

Ah, you've hit something there: You almost never hear of a GM "stuck" running something he doesn't want to run, but you often hear of players stuck playing something they'd rather not play. Theory: GMs have the power because they are a rare commodity!

Well.. I'm one of those "stuck" DMs. Namely, I'm stuck running D&D. I've got 2 groups I play with and would have no problem starting up a D&D campaign. But, any attempt of my to get something besides D&D started has ended in failure.
We did have a brief stint where another of the players from one of the groups ran an Urban Arcana game, but the games were infrequent and haven't happened in many months. But, for the most part, all they want to play is D&D, so, if I want to game, that's what its gotta be.

 

[James Heard]

I dunno. Sure, GM'ing is hard work but actually I find the other side of the table just as difficult most of the time. I've ran a lot of games and I've got a lot of ideas, and as a player I'm suddenly without restrictions on 'balance' and 'playing fair'. I've drove away far more players as a fellow player than as a GM.

I can't imagine what it would be like to find myself completely at the mercy of demographics though. Most of the people I've played with over the years have at least attempted to run a game once or twice to varying degrees of success. There are a few people who aren't allowed to run games for us all anymore, but that isn't strictly a lack of availability. The gaming community here is big enough that the hard part isn't getting a game together but figuring out the scheduling conflicts. Occassionally alternating campaigns every week have kept the 'best' games on choice nights like Saturday and Sunday when the most people can show up and so everyone can play and give maximum prep time to the respective GMs. Luckily I think everyone's pretty much figured out the various equations of GM X and Players Y and Z that are needed to sort different types of games and run them best. It's all about social networking I think, which I don't find particularly hard especially if I'm willing to invest in some booze.

 

[S'mon]

I dunno. Sure, GM'ing is hard work but actually I find the other side of the table just as difficult most of the time. I've ran a lot of games and I've got a lot of ideas, and as a player I'm suddenly without restrictions on 'balance' and 'playing fair'...

Err... what makes you think that?
Going all out to defeat the GM's monster NPCs is considered fair in most games. Trying to sneak in some splatbook crap past a poor overworked GM to make your uber-PC dominate the game definitely isn't playing fair IMO, and is not acceptable behaviour in my book. I expect players to 'play fair' just as much as I do.

 

[John Q. Mayhem]

I am the only DM anyone around me knows! I have the power! They must play whatever I want to play, or not at all! Mwahahahaha!

It kinda sucks. I still haven't gotten to play in even one campaign (DMPCs don't count).

 

[GoodKingJayIII]

I generally agree with this statement. I think a lot of people feel stuck with their DMs and perhaps their groups as well.

But there are a lot of different ways to get in touch with other people who play: websites and your FLGS are the big two. It's hard to branch out, meet new people, and try and find a new group to play with. But it can be done. The best part is, if you find a group you don't like, you can leave without hurting anybody. And if you find a group you do like, chances are you've just made at least 4 or 5 new friends

I would say that perhaps many times, a player "feels" stuck with a group more than he actually is stuck. With such high levels of communication technology I think there are a lot of things a player can do to branch out and find the right DM/group they're looking for.

 

[Ferret]

I don't know anyone who "plays" solely or more as a DM then I do. I play the games but most of the time it is made up on the spot..