I'm burning out, again....

[Dog Moon]

Next time I burn out, I'm in serious trouble 'cause I have a gaming madman's company logo tattooed on the back of my head -- I'm in for life, now!

Oh, was that you? How'd that ever turn out anyway?

 

[jdrakeh]

Oh, was that you? How'd that ever turn out anyway?

So as not to derail the thread, I direct you here.

 

[The Thayan Menace]

Yikes!

Next time I burn out, I'm in serious trouble 'cause I have a gaming madman's company logo tattooed on the back of my head -- I'm in for life, now!

Dude, I was just joking.

-Samir

 

[Aus_Snow]

I'm just fed up with it. I put so much effort into my own adventures, and they just fizzle out....

(Someone always has to ask this. . .) Have you tried talking with them about the issue(s)?

I mean, as tactfully as possible, of course. Just kind of talking it through, and seeing where people are at, and what they are actually wanting from the roleplaying experience, side by side with what you want from the same thing. I dunno, but it seems like a good way to go. . . from this perspective, and distance. . .

(. . .) or, should I just tell them that if they want to play D&D, someone else is going to have to DM?

Perhaps. Unless you really like DMing, that is. In that case, see above, or maybe try a different (and rules-lite-er?) system. . .?


Seems to me, pretty clearly, more a conflict of wants though. So yeah, what do they want?

 

[Glyfair]

(Someone always has to ask this. . .) Have you tried talking with them about the issue(s)?

I mean, as tactfully as possible, of course. Just kind of talking it through, and seeing where people are at, and what they are actually wanting from the roleplaying experience, side by side with what you want from the same thing. I dunno, but it seems like a good way to go. . . from this perspective, and distance. . .?

I was just about to post a similiar comment. Especially because of the below quote.

I'm pissed off, I guess. I'm burning out again as a DM. I'm tired of thinking up some great, original plots and have the players show absolutely no interest in what I'm doing...

If they have no interest in what you are doing, then you are running a game for you and not them. If you change and run a game for what they want and you don't want it, then you are running a game just for them.

Roleplaying is a group endeavor. Sit down, discuss what you are each looking for and try to find some common ground. If it's not there then either find something else to do, another group to roleplay with, or content yourself with being frustrated.

 

[Doug McCrae]

The problem is you're putting in a lot of effort and the players aren't appreciating it. Solution? Stop putting in a lot of effort. Run a low maintenance game. As you yourself suggested, you could use prepackaged modules. No templates or advanced monsters/npcs, just stuff from the books. Simple plots. Set limits on the amount of time you spend each week on prep work, maybe 1-2 hours.

 

[taliesin15]

perhaps try very simple adventures. make the game as dumb as possible, then when they ask for more advanced stuff, slowly give it to them.
QUOTE]

*now, there ya go! That's exactly what I would suggest, if you don't want to take a long break. I was thinking of some sort of temp subplot where say the party gets captured by some high level wizards, gets put in their underground prison, without weapons, spellbooks, etc., and has to escape using their wits and things like unarmed attacks.

 

[bento]

Yep, they sound like casual players. They would be getting together to shoot the bull at the end of the week, whether it's over D&D, poker or a hockey game.

The problem is you are much more serious about playing and have aspirations for the game that they simply do not. Getting them to change sounds like it would be going against their nature.

Rather than banging your head against the wall, how about first finding something to do with these friends on a regular basis. Could be coming over to watch DVDs, play console games, or the occasional D&D adventure module. Nothing big and serious, just a good time to be together.

Outside of this group, go find yourself a second group of RPGers who really care about serious gaming.

This way you get to keep your old friends to hang with, and a second group who really share your passion about the deeper aspects of RPGs.

 

[Odhanan]

I suppose I should state that as DM, I love rules and crunchy bits and everything. No problem there. The players just don't seem to get a lot of them.

If they don't get a lot of them then that means there is a problem somehow. Maybe a compromise could be reached on this issue? If you feel like you're doing a lot and people just don't care, maybe that's not because they don't care for you and your work, but don't care for that level of detail -which is perfectly fine really.

That's why I suggested C&C. It still allows for some options and d20 feel, but is much "digestible" for the kind of players you're talking about, I think. You could then import some crunchy bits from D&D where you think its necessary for you to have fun. It's better to have less crunchy bits with interested players rather than stick to your guns and become more and more frustrated, don't you think?

 

[MINI]

I would say try to run something else with another group or play in another group. if your group really matters to you you will still want to run it at this point and if your having too much fun in the new group you might just up and decide to do something else besides gaming with your old time friends after all.