GQuail said:
Inviting prospective players to obsereve a single session (And perhaps help out in some DMly duties, like looking up a monster's AC for you or finding enough D^ for the spell the NPc just cast, to help break the monotony) would be something I'd consider: I do think that showing the game in actual swing can say way more about your play style than anything else, as well as showing the group in action before the player considers what new PC to make. Unlike th etime required to stage a one-off or mini campaign to test someone out, a spectator can just turn up to your next session as normal..... I gotta hand it to you, merelycompetent, consider I don't like your rule, I seem awfully keen on adapting it for myself. ;-)
Due to limited time, I didn't go into the nitty-gritty details of how we do it. Since you seem interested, here are a few more details that I hope you can adapt for your own use...
Potential player shows up for the game, gets a seat at the table next to the DM (usually me, for the last year). We spend the first 30 minutes socializing and getting the latest Pointy-Haired Boss stories out of our system - and usually ask the new person about their past gaming experience (if any), what they like to do besides gaming, and so forth.
Start the game. DM gives a "When last we left our heroes..." recap. Usually takes only 5-10 minutes, and covers the high points (humorous, climactic, plot development, character development, and the like) of last session.
Action begins. New person gets dice to roll for non-critical NPCs, and rules-lookup duties. If miniatures are in play, new person gets to move the critters around. We also have a wipe board in use for initiative, spell durations, quickie map sketches - new person gets to help with that, too. General consensus is that my handwriting is awful, so just about anyone's scrawl is more legible than mine and a help. The players also help out - loaning dice, books, or explaining what's going on while the DM is busy handling another player.
Break times for food, drink, call of nature, call of family. We take a breather, answer the new person's questions, goof off a little. (This is all typical for game spectators where I'm at - the peanut gallery, kibitzers, whatever you want to call them.)
That usually takes care of the first night.
Second night is more of the same. But if the new person is invited back, he or she usually gets to run some monsters during combat. This is another good indicator of how the person plays, depending on game experience: Does he/she take vicious glee in damaging PCs (pretty much a pre-requisite for DMing, IME, but can be taken too far)? Does he/she charge into combat or hang back and snipe? And so forth. The dice-handling, book-handling, and wipe board duties continue. Along with more story-swapping as everyone gets more settled and comfortable.
Third night adds in an NPC for the new person to play, usually one of the hirelings the PCs have with them, but can also be an important henchman - it depends on how the first two nights went. By this point, the new person should have a good feel for how much role-play/roll-play is going on. If they're a new gamer, they're starting to get a handle on the rules (and we cut back to a more managable set - AOO's are a *pain* for most people). Usually, if they're invited back for a third night, it's a given that an invitation will be made.
(edit: Removed line because it was misleading and poorly-worded.)
This isn't a set-in-stone formula. Some people have gotten along so well that they were running the most valued NPC henchman in the party before the end of the first night. We use it as a guideline and method for making sure that a potential new player is really going to fit in. It also offers the new person a chance to check *us* out. We have had people drop out after the first two nights because they were looking for more combat, or more role-playing, than we do. I still go to movies with one of them 5 years later - he became a good friend.
I hope this helps.
Right now, new players are vetoed by the current players beforehand and then again after a few sessions: so new players are admitted on the understadning it's a "trial period", and it might not work out for various reasons. (My current group is 7 players, so a new player let on might be told "we find 8 players just too slow" rather than "Dave and Jo think you're creepy" ;-) )
