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<blockquote data-quote="Argyle King" data-source="post: 5187935" data-attributes="member: 58416"><p>Personally, I do feel it's important to speak to the players about what their characters were doing before the 'official' start of the game. There are many players who won't care where you start them, but there are just as many players (myself included) who would feel somewhat cheated if my character joined the campaign via some sort of circumstance which is at odds with my character's story and personality. Usually, for me as a GM, this goes one of two ways.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The first way is that I as a GM have a starting point in mind. In this instance, I would speak to the players pre-game and give them a brief idea about where they are, what's going on in the campaign world, and what things a typical character would know. I then might say that they will all be starting in the tavern. Going this route, the players already know where I plan to start, and they will create characters they want to create, but characters who also fit into what I've already established.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The second way typically occurs when I don't have a starting point in mind. In this instance, I only give the players their mechanical character creation guidelines - level of character and such. I usually also encourage the players to detail where they are from and their background, and I allow them to create some of the campaign world by doing so. Going this route, I know where the players plan to start, and I will create something around what they have established.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>In practice I usually do some amount of each, but these are two different styles which I've noticed that I seem to perform. In either case, I feel it's important for a GM to speak to the group about what they want. It's also important for the players to understand what the GM wants; many people forget that the game is supposed to be fun for the GM too. A lot of problems I've seen occur in games tend to be a result of either a lack of communication or a miscommunication.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Argyle King, post: 5187935, member: 58416"] Personally, I do feel it's important to speak to the players about what their characters were doing before the 'official' start of the game. There are many players who won't care where you start them, but there are just as many players (myself included) who would feel somewhat cheated if my character joined the campaign via some sort of circumstance which is at odds with my character's story and personality. Usually, for me as a GM, this goes one of two ways. The first way is that I as a GM have a starting point in mind. In this instance, I would speak to the players pre-game and give them a brief idea about where they are, what's going on in the campaign world, and what things a typical character would know. I then might say that they will all be starting in the tavern. Going this route, the players already know where I plan to start, and they will create characters they want to create, but characters who also fit into what I've already established. The second way typically occurs when I don't have a starting point in mind. In this instance, I only give the players their mechanical character creation guidelines - level of character and such. I usually also encourage the players to detail where they are from and their background, and I allow them to create some of the campaign world by doing so. Going this route, I know where the players plan to start, and I will create something around what they have established. In practice I usually do some amount of each, but these are two different styles which I've noticed that I seem to perform. In either case, I feel it's important for a GM to speak to the group about what they want. It's also important for the players to understand what the GM wants; many people forget that the game is supposed to be fun for the GM too. A lot of problems I've seen occur in games tend to be a result of either a lack of communication or a miscommunication. [/QUOTE]
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