I want some opinions... (gaming topic)

[Treebore]

Lets say you had something come up to where you could no longer run a game you had been running. Lets say that all but maybe one of your players really like the game system your running, and the other only plays it because he likes the people and the adventure/story itself.

Lets also take into account that at least 2, technically 3, of the players are playing this game in the first place specifically because they wanted to try out the system to see if they like it.

So you ask one of the other players who says they love the system, and is a capable DM, to take over the reigns of the game and they say, "Sure. Be happy too."

What would you think of them then immediately turning around and giving the group a choice of playing other games instead of the one everyone signed on for? Before even running even one more session of the game they agreed to take over?

What would you think of that?

Would you think it was very uncool? In very bad taste? Bad form?

Or would you think its OK for the new GM to blow off the whole reason I asked them to take over the game, and other players are even playing, to push their own personal agenda of games they have been wanting to run?

Personally I think its pretty bad. A total disregard of the faith and trust in which I asked them to take over the game, and extremely unfair to at least 2 of the players who were in the game to play that specific RPG.

So am I unreasonable in my reaction? Or am I right to feel the person is acting in very bad faith, let alone taste?

I have yet to talk to them about what they have done, because right now I am angry, so probably would not talk very nicely to them at this time.

So help me judge my reaction, am I wrong? Should they be able to do what they are doing? Or am I right in that what they are doing is wrong, completely uncool, and absolute breach of faith?

 

[Doug McCrae]

push their own personal agenda of games they have been wanting to run?

You see a lot of that.

 

[Diamond Cross]

If he or she discussed it with the players ahead of time and they all agreed to it then it's fine. Otherwise to just arbitrarily decide to change games without any kind of consent is not cool,

 

[nedjer]

Dude's way out of order. Not for running whatever system he likes but for not being honest and telling you that's what he's going to do. You might have offered it to someone else or put it in the freezer for another time.

Hardly worth major conflict. But wouldn't trust him again.

 

[Crothian]

The Dm gets to run whatever he wants to run. The players get to choose if they want to be in that game or not. Sure when you talked to him he said he would run one game but it seems to me he changed his mind and people do that all the time.

 

[ruemere]

There could be many reasons for this action. The positive ones:
- the new GM may feel unable to meet your expectations,
- the new GM may feel unable to rise to your level of quality,
- the new GM may feel unable to take over on such a short notice,
- the new GM may feel that everyone needs a breather,
- the new GM may feel that a short break may help people get accustomed to new style of playing.

Of course, he (or she) may be cackling maniacally due to his evil plan bearing fruits, but given your experience, I find it unlikely.

IMHO, the worst thing you could do right now, would be to act. Let the whole thing fly, watch the developments, remind yourself that you're not the GM right now.

Another thing is that long campaigns tend to make people long for a change - loyalties aside, this is all about shared fun. Getting a breather (a different system or campaign) is one of the best ways to refresh customer's ability to enjoy the original.

IMHO, in the worst case, you will be free to pick up the pieces and run the game for someone else (I may be assuming too much, of course, however I believe that your inability to run a game is hopefully of a temporary type).

You may also be able to return to GMing where you left off - I've had that happen to me. The break lasted around 4 years (nobody felt like stepping in) and now I am back in charge with 6 happy players under my supervision.

So...
... chill down. If you feel machiavellan, act classy, smile a lot and rewatch Godfather.
... find different things to enjoy. Put down on paper things you want to remember year or more from now.
... talk to people, including your former players. Be cool about everything.
... do not do anything. Sometimes taking passive approach is for the best.

Regards,
Ruemere

 

[Treebore]

This game was specifically started to play this RPG, it is what everyone signed on for.

I asked him to specifically take over this game, and asked if he was willing to continue it, he agreed too.

He knows why everyone, except for the one guy, is in this game. I didn't ask him to take over in order to push his own personal agenda, I asked him to take over to fulfill my promise to these guys to run this specific RPG for them. The only people showing any interest at this time in his other preferred games is the one guy who decided he doesn't like this RPG, but stays in the game because he likes the "adventure" as well as the other players, and one other guy who dropped out long ago. So 3 of the 4 remaining players are in this group to play this specific RPG because they like it, and the GM in question frequently swore he loves it as well.

So I think it was completely in poor taste to even ask the others if they want to play something else, when he knows darn well why the majority of them are even in the game to begin with.

So he is breaking his promise to me, and totally ignoring why 3 of the 4 others are in this game to begin with.

 

[Nifft]

So you ask one of the other players who says they love the system, and is a capable DM, to take over the reigns of the game and they say, "Sure. Be happy too."

What would you think of them then immediately turning around and giving the group a choice of playing other games instead of the one everyone signed on for? Before even running even one more session of the game they agreed to take over?

It really depends on whether he understood himself to be taking over the reigns of your specific campaign, or if he would be taking over as DM for the group's weekly game slot.

I'd suggest communicating with the guy privately, expressing your desire to play whatever it was you were DM'ing before, and see how he responds.

Hopefully it was just a misunderstanding.

Cheers, -- N

 

[cdrcjsn]

So he is breaking his promise to me, and totally ignoring why 3 of the 4 others are in this game to begin with.

Did he promise to continue with the current, specific campaign?

Or did he say he'll take over as GM for the group?

Totally different things.

Unless you had it all written down in a contract somewhere, it's fair to say that there is some miscommunication here. The fact that you're writing for advice on a forum rather than speaking with the person directly to clarify things gives me the impression that there's something more going on here, like a conflict of personalities.

 

[pawsplay]

Are you still in the game as a player?