D&D 5E Is D&D becoming TOO popular (More DMs Needed)?

[CritNerd]

Absolutely.

I played all through the 80's up to 3E and dropped it then because life happened. The rules and mechanics were really challenging for new players in 3/3.5/4E. 5E brought back all the goodness I enjoyed about the story telling from 2E with much more refined rules and evolved mechanics that are quite easy for new players to pick up. A modern tenet of good game design is Bushnell's law "Easy to learn, difficult to master". In my opinion, this is where 5E is excelling.

Now, a couple years in and there's a constant stream of people who've never played before and are interested. We cycle newbies in to our campaign constantly. In my opinion, MMORPG popularity mainstreamed the genre and online play has definitely helped with accessibility but FtF is also growing like crazy!

I attribute a lot of that to MMORPG mainstream acceptability and great productions like CriticalRole & Acquisitions Incorporated popularity. Having well spoken DM's and players with professional acting and/or writing experience who can really step into their characters can turn a cringeworthy slog into an entertaining session people will watch for 3 or 4 straight hours and because it's so accessible now they seek it out because they want to have fun like that too!

 

[aco175]

I wish I had the problem of too many players. Sound like a good problem to have.

 

[JeffB]

I recently had several couples in our neighborhood ask me to DM a game for them. I am running 2 separate groups to try and accommodate everyone. Few have ever played before. Yesterday, several more neighbors asked if I could run a game for them too. So, I am looking at starting a 3rd game. Our church youth group leaders asked if I would run a one-shot D&D game for their teens as an activity. Maybe this is just a fluke, but I cannot believe how popular D&D is in my area. There seems to be lots of people who want play (most with no RPG experience) because of watching games being played online. I have been playing D&D for 37 years and I have never seen anything like this wave of interest in RPGs. I don't think I can take on another group and so others will have to step up and DM at some point. I am wondering if anyone else is having more requests from friends to play than they can handle or if this is just an isolated situation. It seems like a "golden age" of D&D to me.

OK Mearls...we get it..5e is doing well

 

[Sacrosanct]

Generally speaking, DM's are the bottleneck of the hobby. Most people have no idea how to fix that. Mearls is trying though.

Maybe they don't for ALL of the reasons, but I think they do know for some of them. Two of the biggest ways to get more people to DM is:

* Make the game easier to run. Streamline it and try to remove some of the complexity, which they have done with 5e.
* Empower the DMs. 5e's rulings over rules approach definitely helps this.

I know this probably isn't all that popular of a thing to say, and I know it's purely anecdotal from my observations, but there is a definite correlation between how many people wanted to DM, and how much the game stressed rules over rulings. That doesn't mean they are related of course, but IMO I think they are. DMing is a lot of work. The DM easily puts way more of an investment into the game than any of the players do, from both a time and work standpoint. There needs to be some trade off there, where the DM can feel like they truly are in control of the campaign, and not someone who has to continually face their creativity get stymied because rules over rulings. I get how a lot of players prefer rules over rulings, and I'm not saying allowing the DM to make rulings means they can be dictators and not be fair. Bad DMing is bad DMing regardless. But as someone who usually DMs over the past 35 years, if you take away my ability to come up with rulings on the fly, or if you tell me I have to allow certain build X Y Z because a published book somewhere has that as an option, my incentive to DM is going to be less. Why would I put in all the extra work just to be told I can't run the game how I want to? If you take away my creativity and freedom, then it feels like I'm just there to make sure all the players get what they want while my fun doesn't matter even though I'm the one doing almost all of the work.

I've said it a million times, and I'll say it again. If you don't like my DMing style, then DM yourself. I consider myself a pretty decent DM because I'm always in high demand to run games and most of my players seem to have a great time, but occasionally I'll have a player who constantly criticizes my rulings over rules approach (which is fine), and when I tell them they are more then welcome to DM themselves, they all refuse. Every time. If you want more DMs, you have to allow them freedom to run games how they like.

 

[Jeux Fictifs]

I do not think it is because of the 5th edition but it is that this activity is better known than in the 1980s. When I started playing it.
Henceforth, it is much more diversified and more accessible to the public.
My little club of french role-players at Montréal, is very full in the 1990s.
But a good master for that role-playing game is all time very difficult to find.

 

[Terry Herc]

I've moved cities a few times in the past decade, and each time I've had to build a new group from scratch. My strategy has always been online ads and local game shops, and usually I get lots of first time players. I run something short, with a plot horizon of two or three months, playing weekly. It gives everyone a chance to level up their character, have some good stories, and the arc is long enough that it has a satisfying end.

BUT. About a month before the planned end, I start dropping hints about how much fun it is to DM, and without fail someone chimes in about how they want to try DMing. Then I spend as much time encouraging them as possible, helping them with their story, giving them tips and such. By the time my game is finished, they are ready to start running theirs. The next week after finishing mine, we start theirs.

It's never failed to work. And I've met a number of cool people as other players have joined the new DMs game. The key is to have a definite end for your game so someone else can carry the torch.

-Terry

 

[steeldragons]

No such thing....as being "too popular," I mean.

When we're using D&D as curriculum in schools to teach/foster/further:
Tolerance & Group Building: a world of multiple different "races," different religions, different ethnicities and/or nationalities, different languages, et al. that, generally, work TOGETHER to accomplish goals
Appreciating Diversity: of race, of religions, of financial as well as occupational means, of different "classes" that all have value and purpose
Critical Thinking
General Creativity/"Thinking on your feet"/Improvisational thinking
Interpersonal & general Communications skills: up to and including so far as developing/honing Diplomatic & Leadership skills.
General Vocabulary & Language skills
Math skills
Creative Writing
Just about any and all kinds of Visual and Performing Arts...

THEN, it will be "popular ENOUGH"...but it can never be "too popular."

 

[Jeux Fictifs]

Very good Terry,
May be you have what is not done ...helping the new Game master.
I have to much games to run ( 5 games in three days ) to take time to help a other master.
That is why my little french club is not very well in 2000s because i have not help from other master.

 

[Terry Herc]

Very good Terry,
May be you have what is not done ...helping the new Game master.
I have to much games to run ( 5 games in three days ) to take time to help a other master.
That is why my little french club is not very well in 2000s because i have not help from other master.

Thanks Jeux Fictifs, my little program has been pretty successful. Sometimes I find myself as a player in a disjointed and poorly planned game, but even that helps me with my games. It keeps my ideas fresh. And if the new DM decides to stop for whatever reason, I can always step in and bring the story around for a conclusion. And at least they tried.

-Terry

 

[hejtmane]

I recently had several couples in our neighborhood ask me to DM a game for them. I am running 2 separate groups to try and accommodate everyone. Few have ever played before. Yesterday, several more neighbors asked if I could run a game for them too. So, I am looking at starting a 3rd game. Our church youth group leaders asked if I would run a one-shot D&D game for their teens as an activity. Maybe this is just a fluke, but I cannot believe how popular D&D is in my area. There seems to be lots of people who want play (most with no RPG experience) because of watching games being played online. I have been playing D&D for 37 years and I have never seen anything like this wave of interest in RPGs. I don't think I can take on another group and so others will have to step up and DM at some point. I am wondering if anyone else is having more requests from friends to play than they can handle or if this is just an isolated situation. It seems like a "golden age" of D&D to me.

May be I DM my sons group then he started a group at school and is help start a a new one at church this last month and he and several friends that play with me is helping the DM as he learns the rules and helping the players