starting a gaming group

[Elf Witch]

I have made the decison to take the DM plunge and I have a couple of questions.

I have had a rough year in a group made up of role players and people who say they want to role play but really only want to hack at things. And so there has been a lot of tension at the table.

I would like to avoid this in my new game. So here is the dilema what kind of questions would be good to ask people who would like to join, It is not enough to ask do you like to role play because a lot of people say yes and to them role play is just something you do by saying my character stops and says a short prayer to his diety now where do I go to kill something.

So what would be some good questions to ask about role playing to see if they are the kind of players I want to DM?

 

[nopantsyet]

Good luck starting a group. I have been tenaciously keeping a group going the past three years, despite numerous losses to moves.

Since most of my initial contact has been over the internet, email has allowed me to judiciously find quality gamers. In my first email, I mention a bit about the game. We're playing 3.5E in a homebrew world with a few non-standard elements. Then I'll ask them to tell me about their roleplaying style. I also handle the schedule up front as well, since it is fixed.

When I get a response, if they sound like a potential fit, I'll give them some more information about the game. Specifically, I willl tell them about my DMing style. I try to be correct, but I am not rules strict; I run a moderate amount of combat, but try to make the combat more challenging and interesting. And I tell them about my campaign. I run a homebrew; I do not make the standard assumptions of racial distribution, religious organization, or the use of magic; I try to run a game that is unique and fun.

If I'm deviating from the standard assumptions in my current game, I will mention that. Sometimes I run low magic, and typically I run gritty. I am also sure to mention the maturity level of the game. I do not run graphic or explicit games, but I do get into some dark areas. Evil is twisted and disturbing; evil is incomprehensibly cruel. I also tell them that we're a snacks and beer (in moderation) game, but that we keep focused on the game.

I'll ask them if that sounds like the type of game they're looking for. And I'll probe deeper into their gaming style. Since gamers like talking about their games, they'll usually give some examples in response to my initial questions, which makes it really easy to get specific with your follow up questions. You can make a good assessment of whether they're a good fit for your game. I've had very good success doing it like this.

But I could just be very lucky, as well. Only had one misjudgement, and it was the second player I found this way.

 

[S'mon]

So what would be some good questions to ask about role playing to see if they are the kind of players I want to DM?

Maybe tell them about your world, then ask them what kind of character they'd like to play. The answer should be revealing.

 

[Silver Moon]

I took a different approach when forming my group. The game was secondary, it was having people who were comfortable with each other that was the primary focus. In fact, about half of my players had never even played before. If you have the right mix of people the game mechanics can be taught.

 

[Argent Silvermage]

Explain that the game is going to be very story driven. let them know there will be combat but more than that there will be actual interaction with the NPCs of the world and they will need to be more than just battle machines.

 

[der_kluge]

My own group has this kind of problem. I suspect if you asked them all, they would each claim to be big role-players, but in fact, only about 2 of them really role-play, and the rest are kind of wall-flowers. The rest are mainly content just rolling lots of dice. And while I would not categorize them as munchkins, or power-gamers, or anything like that, big role-players they are not. Perhaps it is my fault as a DM for not encouraging it more, but I specifically am running the style of game (dungeon hack) that I am, because I knew most of the players would get into it more.

That said, I would think asking about what kinds of characters they like to play would be the best indication. If someone says, "My last character was a barbarian with monk levels", you could rule them out as a power-gamer right away. If you're wanting someone that is a true role-player, look for folks that describe their personality, or the goals of the player, rather than those who express the character as a set of skills. "I have a drow witch hunter with double-specialization", for example.

Also, I wouldn't penalize people who might have higher level characters. A 13th level wizard can be role-played just like a 1st level one. So, be careful not to associate high-level to munchkinism.

 

[pogre]

Having them describe their favorite three moments in gaming might be revealing enough to give you a sense of their style.

 

[Mark]

So what would be some good questions to ask about role playing to see if they are the kind of players I want to DM?

Ask them if they'd mind leaving their dice at home for a session every now and again, as sometimes you believe they will not be needing to roll them. See how they react to that!


Not that you really have them leave their dice at home, or anything. Or maybe...

 

[Myris]

Ask them if they'd mind leaving their dice at home for a session every now and again, as sometimes you believe they will not be needing to roll them. See how they react to that!


Not that you really have them leave their dice at home, or anything. Or maybe...

I agree! And it helps if you run a game that will make them WANT to put those dice away. Play a campaign setting or game that stresses playing the roll over rolling the dice (though the occasional fight, etc will not harm anything and can help to break up any "boring" parts of the storyline). Might I suggest a World of Darkness game? Or, if interested in d20 alone, there's a game that just came out called ElfClash that's hard enough that your players will want to put those dice away for awhile (they'll eventually get tired of having to make up new characters).

I know that I, personally, rarely run with battle scenes. My players typically gain experience through roleplaying.

 

[Elf Witch]

These are some good ideas thank you. Has anyone else found it hard to mix groups. The reason I want to try running my own group is because of the issues thta havebeen cropping up in my regular group. Is it possible to run a mixed group of different stuyles of players?