Is "finding the right players" a solvable problem, or just luck?

[AstroArtificer]

- Firm session 0 building on above. Find out what excites the players in the campaign doc, get everybody cohered with connections with each other and the world. Ensure the table environment feels like a safe and inviting space to unleash our shared imaginations.

I like that! I know it sounds obvious to figure out what players like, and what gets them excited, but sometimes it's hard to figure that out (or even for the players to know themselves).

 

[AstroArtificer]

What are you looking for in players??

Good question. To be fair, availability is a big thing. But bar that, I really am picky with the kinds of players I want to have at my table. Personally, I understand myself well enough to know that I want players who are willing to actively roleplay and create the story for me. I want them to come up to me with hooks, backstory threads, and ideas for the direction of the campaign. I want to throw that back to them and see what they come up with. I could get more specific, but I figured out that I really enjoy players who are Storytellers (EAPPl)

 

[AstroArtificer]

It's a solvable problem especially with experience.

You simply must filter hard. Actions and behavior that seem innocuous at first are often indicators of big problems down the road.

In your opinion, doesn't that filtering drive away a lot of new folks? Some people here would rather run a big tent game where everybody can join, and people who don't fit simply leave. In your experience, how worth it has it been to filter hard for players?

 

[AstroArtificer]

Advertising for a campaign and just selecting from a handful of players is luck, and it probably won't work out, though it might. But, taking the time and investing the way I did, has more than paid off. We don't have player drama, we don't have constant scheduling conflicts (sure, we have conflicts, but run about 45-50 session a year).

Luck seems to be a running thread in this forum, which I know I shouldn't be surprised at, but that also makes a lot of sense. I wish it did not need to be so luck-based, or random chance.

 

[AstroArtificer]

It's part finding the right players, which takes both luck and sifting. It's also part of developing the right players, which involves turning yourself into the type of GM that rewards and encourages the traits you want to see. Which is especially true when you have new players.

But how do you sift in a way that makes sense? How do you develop that personal barometer?