GMs: How long is your typical campaign?

[catsclaw227]

Normally, I would say 1-5 years, as that was what I was during the 1e, 2e days and well into hte 3e days, but between moving away from my California game, then running 3.5 AoW until 9th level, then changing it to 4e and running it to 15th (which I consider a change), then switching to Scales of War, these past 3-4 years have been more like 6months - 1yr each.

I am hoping our current one goes into the 1-5yr range.

 

[Ahnehnois]

I'd say several months to a year; don't think I've gone longer. I think starting new campaigns and switching DMs on this timescale was great, but I'd like to run a long-term game, if only I had people who were going to be around for that long.

 

[alleynbard]

My previous campaign lasted two years. It was quite an epic affair, taking place in Monte Cook's Ptolus. In fact, that campaign laid the groundwork for the cosmological changes introduced in 4e. The PCs literally unmade reality and became the first gods in a new multiverse, one where law and chaos were more evenly balanced.

For our current campaign, which could be considered a follow-up in a roundabout way, the Elemental Chaos represents the force of chao (of course), the Astral Sea represents law, and the middle world is the embodiment of balance.

 

[Piratecat]

Piratecat from reading your ongoing plot and how your weaving a fun story I wonder with your multiple year campaigns. Do you stick with a single story arc the whole way through, or is it less the campaign is the story arc and more simply the stories the PCs get involved in.

When I first started my 16 year long Defenders of Daybreak game, I'd say the first 2-3 years were just running adventures from Dungeon Magazine and finding ways to link them together. Slowly this made me think about how bad guys might be linked. I always avoided big overarching plots; I finally tried one about five years in, and embarrassingly a plot I thought was going to take six months took 18 months instead. Ridiculously fun, though.

So I started thinking about other big plot arcs. I never planned too far ahead; I'm one of those DMs who have far more fun when the players surprise them, and a lot of my game sort of accretes based on what the PCs accomplish or kill.

The trick for me is not to use one giant plot arc. I think that gets boring and really one-dimensional. Instead, it's a little like jazz: you have a theme, and lots of variations around that theme, and sometimes the music wanders off and gets totally distracted for a while before it returns to the main tune. So you want to have a mixture of big-plot-related adventures and completely extraneous adventures, including some that are simply just fun to play. Making sure that you have a variety of emotions - joy and easy kills and hard kills and despair and oh crap we're all gonna die and whee treasure bath! - helps keep the game feeling fresh.

In my current campaigns, each of the two groups have a vague plot arc that I know about. In some of their adventures they're seeing the echoes of that plot trickling down to them at 2nd-3rd level. I don't like hitting players over the head with the plot-stick, though, so I throw out about four times more plot threads than I need, and follow up the ones that the PCs bite at.

You expressed some concerns about one adventure messing up the feel and themes from the last. Don't be afraid of this, embrace it - it's a good thing. Think about how Buffy the Vampire Slayer or X-Files handled their seasons: some shows were about the overall plot, and some were self-contained episodes that were unrelated, but even these kept the same continuity (hopefully). The funny episodes were a welcome respite from the scary or tense episodes. By making people laugh, they make scary episodes more disturbing in comparison. D&D is exactly the same way. If I tried to keep a mood (especially a dark and oppressive theme) up all the time my players would revolt and go play Paranoia instead.

To get back on topic, my current campaigns will be 6 years each (leveling 5 times a year, once every 5 sessions) because I realized that if I keep running 15+ year campaigns, I'll never have more than another two or three before I kick off from old age.

 

[Fallen Seraph]

Hmm, sounds like we actually have somewhat similar style, the main difference being I just I have a little bit more plot focus and as such I like to end the game when the plot is resolved. So that another loose plot and themes/atmosphere to go along with it is fully supported by that campaign (I don't really build settings I built themes and atmosphere pieces that go along with the story).

So is it more a "when the PCs get there they get there" deal, in that once a major plot arc no matter how initially loose it is. Do you continue in that campaign with new plots hooks or start a new one.

I don't like the plot stick either which is why I run my games as mysterious, the players unravel the plot at their own pace. But when it is fully unravelled off to a new campaign we go. With side mysterious too unravel too.

Edit: Saw your Edit: I should note I don't run just one campaign at a time, I usually got a couple going. So it is more, "so do you guys want to go with the "noir game", or "high action game" tonight, sorta deal.

 

[Tinker Gnome]

Mine usually end up being a few months long at most. Usually something happens to stop my group from getting together at that point. We never seem to continue any old campaigns and instead start a new one.

 

[Agamon]

To get back on topic, my current campaigns will be 6 years each (leveling 5 times a year, once every 5 sessions) because I realized that if I keep running 15+ year campaigns, I'll never have more than another two or three before I kick off from old age.

Now there's a sobering thought. Can't keep the campaigns too long, I might die before getting around to everything I want to play.

 

[pogre]

My campaigns usually last around 18 months to two years. I have had an eight-year campaign and a couple of four year campaigns. We try to meet weekly with a three-month hiatus every fall.

 

[Lanefan]

So is it more a "when the PCs get there they get there" deal, in that once a major plot arc no matter how initially loose it is. Do you continue in that campaign with new plots hooks or start a new one.

Not P-Cat here, but I'll lob in an answer if I may:

A single plot arc is but a piece of an overall campaign; and its conclusion can often easily serve as the jumping-off point for another series of adventures, possibly using the same characters and certainly keeping the same players if they're willing.

For example, my last long campaign started off with a defeat-the-plot-to-overthrow-the-throne storyline (which the party sometimes paid attention to and sometimes ignored) that lasted about 20 adventures - of which at least 7 were merely a *long* side-trek - and once that played out there were 3 more overarching plotlines waiting for them: a) restore a fallen goddess to divinity, b) do something about the invading Giants, and c) do something about all the high-tech Hobgoblins thawing out of the northern icecap. Oh, and a 4-adventure Norse-ish saga to rescue a wizard trapped by a Loki prank. And never mind a raft of unrelated side adventures, red herrings, and diversions.

I wouldn't even consider stopping the campaign once the overthrow had been thwarted. Hell, it was only just getting nicely going!

I don't like the plot stick either which is why I run my games as mysterious, the players unravel the plot at their own pace. But when it is fully unravelled off to a new campaign we go. With side mysterious too unravel too.

After starting with a couple of non-plot adventures, I'm using the plot stick rather hard at the moment in my current campaign as a means of both developing long-term interest and tying things together; with luck I'll be able to back off on it quite soon and let the plot (or plots) develop itself depending on what the characters end up doing.

I'm running two-and-a-half parties concurrently in the same world; each sees (or doesn't) some of the plot from a completely different angle than the others. If early indications hold up for the long run, it's quite possible two of the parties could end up working in opposition to each other; and won't that be fun!

Lan-"and the same players are in both parties"-efan

 

[Jhaelen]

I'd be really interested in seeing a corollary poll to this one where it is asked:
"GM's, when designing an average campaign, how long do you intend it to run?"

Well, my 1E and 2E campaigns ended earlier than what I'd planned for (each ended after 2-3 years) due to players dropping out or DM burnout.

My current 3E campaign is now into its 6th year, and I'd rather it didn't last much longer, but apparently it will take at least another year to conclude (assuming enough players stay interested). THis campaign is pretty slow-going because we only meet every 3-4 weeks.