How do you read your players interest during a game session

[WheresMyD20]

Just ask them if they're having a good time. Ask them what they like about the campaign and what they don't like. Ask them what they want more of.

Every group is a little different, some like lots of hack-and-slash, some like RP & character development, some like puzzles and thinking. Some like a really serious game, some like it silly. Figure out what they respond best to and tailor your game to their preferences. If you have a mixed group, then try injecting some puzzles or RP between the sessions. Drop a puzzle or character development on them right at the end of a session. The ones that want to think about it between sessions will and the ones that don't like it won't get bored.

I know a lot of DMs don't like cross-talk at the table. When I'm DM, I'll let my players cross-talk for as long as they want, provided no one is bored and waiting to get on with the game. My #1 priority as DM is to make sure that everyone is having a good time at the event, so if they want to talk about something other than the game, that's fine with me.

Players tend to understand and interact more easily with a generic D&D setting than with a heavily customized one. I've found that it's important not to fall in love with your campaign world. Don't try to maintain 100% creative control.

For example, don't tell a player "you can't play a dragonborn in my world." Tell him "you can be a dragonborn, but you're the only one. You're an oddity. You're wierd. You'll have a very hard time fitting in. Still interested?" If they still want to do it, they're going to feel like their character is special and they'll probably be even more engaged in your game. Don't worry about the fact that you wanted your game to be dragonborn-free.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Here's an additional challenge - what do you do when it's an online game? It's difficult to look for body language when all you have is voice chat (but at least you have that).

I figure most of the signs come from the players posting in the forum and exchanging ideas or making plans. Question might be - how much can I reasonably expect?

 

[Blackbrrd]

Question: How do you pick up the pace in a game that's entirely player-driven?

For my groups, it's fairly easy since I've been playing with them all for some time now (some a very long time), and included in them are my wife, three relatives and two of my oldest friends. Each of them has different indicators, but I know that and it helps in reading their moods.

And yes, I'm saying that I can actually read my wife's mood. When it comes to gaming, I mean. Otherwise I'm as hopeless as any other guy.

Player driven doesn't mean the world doesn't know about the PC's.

 

[TheClone]

Hi. I'm the reason for all this posts, the friend of Mustrum. thanks for all those tips. As Mustrum said, it's an online campaign so, some tips won't help in my case that much, but I'll try out the rest.

In retrospective listening to the players talk is a good hint. I remember them talking at length about how to approach their main problem (which is supplying food to their bunker). That was really cool, because they spent quite an effort to solve that problem, so they really wanted to solve it. But then I remember also that they discussed the problem again often, which seems like the solution to the problem maybe is too foggy and should have been more obvious.