How Often Do You Cancel Sessions?

[kitsune9]

I run, so right now I put my campaign on hiatus because my wife and I are in the closing phase of buying a house and all next month will be dealing with contractors and movers.

However, my own policy is that if I have two players who cancel, then the game is postponed until the following week (we play every two weeks if possible for eight hours). For me, I just postpone the game for the next weekend if I need to.

Overall, cancelling or postponing is a rare occurrence. I'd say out of the 10 years or so running between all the campaigns we played and run, maybe less than 10 altogether.

 

[PowerMaster]

My last campaign's weekly sessions were canceled at a rate of 3/4 to 1. That means, three or four cancels, a session, then another 3.

The sessions was reduced to a mere 1 hour, 1 hour and half max (of course this time is not GAMING time... just the time where all the players were actually inside the house so include chit-chats, preparations... etc.)

Of course, I canceled the campaign...

 

[MinistryOfGame]

Most impressive!

As for the surgery part- no, that doesn't count. You have to have been given a post-op script for the GOOD stuff. Y'know the kind of painkillers that turn your day into a slideshow.

Danny, did you work your voodoo magic on me? Because pretty much right after reading your post, I had a kidney stone tear up my insides, and had to go to hospital, and was given some hardcore pain meds.

Still went out to dinner that night, though. Didn't eat anything, but hey.

 

[Umbran]

My current game has been running since July, twice a month. We've had to cancel two sessions - once due to people not being able to make it, once due to weather so bad I didn't want anyone traveling.

 

[saskganesh]

two games, small groups, we cancel if someone can't make it. all in our 40's, we try for biweekly, 4 hr sessions, all on weekends. in the middle of a good arc, this becomes weekly.

recently no gaming for a month because cancer is killing parents for players in both games. anyhow, the second game started up again and we are seemingly going weekly. it's my newbie game, and while the personalities involved are most likely to flake, they are having a good time, so it does not seems like an obligation to them.

my grog game isn't fun right now, so I am taking a long break.

 

[jhallum]

We've only really cancelled in the past few months for the week of Christmas, and for any bad snow or ice storms. since all of the players live more than 5 miles from the host's house.

We rotate DMs on a bi-weekly basis, and if one isn't around, the other can easily take over. Add to that the fact that we have 8 players right now, that pretty much means that we never cancel because of personnel issues. I don't think we've cancelled for a non-weather reason since sometime in 2007 or so.

 

[TheYeti1775]

My main game. (Weekly Friday Nights) I think I've bowed out twice in the last year.

I had conflicting obligations. But being as it's a SW Saga, it was easy enough for the GM to arrange the game for the other players without me there.

There are times we have moved the game to accomadate my mixed schedule. Going through a divorce and have a kid, so he comes first.
We game at my place on some nights that we need to so I don't have to worry about him. I usually buy the pizza to make up for the 2 blocks difference and gaming location.

Now the other game (Pathfinder every other Saturday) we just started, I've had to bow out twice out of four, for the same reasons. That's a Saturday night game, and when the ex just takes off and leaves me with our son I just simply say I can't make it and go do things with him instead. It's well understood with my group. They know to go ahead without me, GM handles me as a deaf mute healer and goes on with the game.

Group Dynamics 20-40's.

I think in the Friday game there was one full on cancellation and that was due to the GM taking a Disney vacation for a week. We knew about that for months though.

We also use a forum board for a lot of RP'ing of background stuff shopping, NPC interactions, progressing storylines so even if you miss a session you can easily make it up on there. Your character might not have been there, but you could easily write up something cinematic enough to make up for it.

 

[amnuxoll]

My group just plans for cancellations. We try to play weekly with the expectation that some sessions will not work out and that our frequency will end up being more like biweekly. When we are lucky enough to get, say, 3 sessions in a row then we'll sometimes cancel just to honor the expectation of a cancellation. It may sound odd but I think just setting expectations helps a lot.

 

[Goonalan]

In my present run on VTT- never, although only been going for just over four months.

For my face-to-face game, been playing approx 14 months now- never.

With my previous VTT game which lasted about two years I think I remember cancelling once or twice, I tend to play even when I'm feeling bad/run down- often a game of D&D, particularly via VTT, can result in a Lazerus like effect.

Goonalan

 

[A flannel shirt]

It Depends on the situation

For my group it really all depends on the situation.

We are currently running a group of four that I call the “core” of our group. If by any chance one of those four calls off the game will continue with three. The only time the game won’t continue with three is if we were playing at the place of the person that called off. My group does have about 1-3 that are not part of the core that easily fill in. Most the time we have a group with a minimum of four and a maximum of seven.

Even if the GM/DM is the one that cancels I can easily whip something together for the group to play. My games are run on a little to no preparation as I like the players to guide the story.

But to answer the question, maybe one in every six sessions we will have to cancel.