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GMing: What Keeps Long Running Campaigns Exciting?
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<blockquote data-quote="toucanbuzz" data-source="post: 8085353" data-attributes="member: 19270"><p><strong>Touc's Tips for Long Running Campaigns:</strong></p><p></p><p>I've run 2 campaigns to level 20 in AD&D after roughly 2+ years of play apiece. In 3.5, ran one to 16th level after almost 2 years, then quit to run Pathfinder. In Pathfinder, ran <em>Kingmaker </em>to 15th level, then quit when a key player went back to school. In 5E, completed 2 pre-written campaigns (<em>Out of the Abyss </em>& <em>Curse of Strahd) </em>at almost exactly 1 year apiece with the same players.</p><p></p><p>So, that's my resume. Here's my findings:</p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>Consistency. </strong>The AD&D days were during school and grad school. We had a lot more free time then, before kids and full-time jobs and pulled some all-nighters in the dorms. So, I credit that with the ability to game every week and keep the stories and characters fresh in our heads. I ran nothing more fancy than a hodge-podge of pre-fab modules and encounters that I mashed together into a barely cohesive narrative. Today, I'm very lucky if it's 3x a month, but it's the expectation that every week, we aim to go.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>We're all Friends. </strong>Like consistency, it's easier to play long-term if people are friends and look forward to seeing each other every week. When you lose one to a job or move, it can be a catalyst for starting over so you don't have to introduce a new gamer to an ongoing campaign where s/he won't get things like those inside jokes. I don't have the same players as I did in high school, but it's essential.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>Breaks. </strong>You've gotta take a break every couple months and do something non-D&D: a bad fantasy movie from the 80s, a cooperative board game, a night out at the bar, and so on. Recharges everyone's batteries and contributes to friends.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>Love of the Game. </strong>If you offer to take a road trip to a gaming convention (when they resume, obviously), and your fellow gamers are psyched about it, you've got some love of the game. For long-term campaigns, I've found those types of gamers are in it for the long haul.</li> </ul><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>It's not really what you run. It's who you run it with that makes for greatest success in a long-term game.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="toucanbuzz, post: 8085353, member: 19270"] [B]Touc's Tips for Long Running Campaigns:[/B] I've run 2 campaigns to level 20 in AD&D after roughly 2+ years of play apiece. In 3.5, ran one to 16th level after almost 2 years, then quit to run Pathfinder. In Pathfinder, ran [I]Kingmaker [/I]to 15th level, then quit when a key player went back to school. In 5E, completed 2 pre-written campaigns ([I]Out of the Abyss [/I]& [I]Curse of Strahd) [/I]at almost exactly 1 year apiece with the same players. So, that's my resume. Here's my findings: [LIST] [*][B]Consistency. [/B]The AD&D days were during school and grad school. We had a lot more free time then, before kids and full-time jobs and pulled some all-nighters in the dorms. So, I credit that with the ability to game every week and keep the stories and characters fresh in our heads. I ran nothing more fancy than a hodge-podge of pre-fab modules and encounters that I mashed together into a barely cohesive narrative. Today, I'm very lucky if it's 3x a month, but it's the expectation that every week, we aim to go. [*][B]We're all Friends. [/B]Like consistency, it's easier to play long-term if people are friends and look forward to seeing each other every week. When you lose one to a job or move, it can be a catalyst for starting over so you don't have to introduce a new gamer to an ongoing campaign where s/he won't get things like those inside jokes. I don't have the same players as I did in high school, but it's essential. [*][B]Breaks. [/B]You've gotta take a break every couple months and do something non-D&D: a bad fantasy movie from the 80s, a cooperative board game, a night out at the bar, and so on. Recharges everyone's batteries and contributes to friends. [*][B]Love of the Game. [/B]If you offer to take a road trip to a gaming convention (when they resume, obviously), and your fellow gamers are psyched about it, you've got some love of the game. For long-term campaigns, I've found those types of gamers are in it for the long haul. [/LIST] [B]Conclusion: [/B]It's not really what you run. It's who you run it with that makes for greatest success in a long-term game. [/QUOTE]
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