Tips and Tricks to Running a Con Game

[Koloth]

Seriously, it's not that hard. Just call a 5 minute bio-break so other players can leave the table and ask the X-card invoking player what triggered it. You CAN and may need to ask that since it may not be obvious. You don't need to ask why they feel that way, just what needs to be changed. And then you change it.
It's not likely to be that one player is a pacifist in a game that typically involves combat like D&D. That's a straw man. Other things, as unlikely they are to be a problem (particularly in a con game - who builds in time for a lot of flirting in a con game slot?), you fade to black or elide over specifics. Rather than steaming plates of meat - it's the entrée. Same thing, less specific.

Why not a possibility of flirtation? It doesn't have to be 10 minutes verbal dialog any more then combat needs to involve the players picking up swords and shields and physically playing out combat, live on the floor. Fred the Fighter says he is flirting with the barmaid. "Make a diplomacy(or relevant skill) roll." Success, Fred and the barmaid exit stage left. After which the barmaid asks Fred "My brother is missing, can you search for him Pretty Pleeeeeese???" while batting her eyelashes. Fail, the scene continues with one play path option no longer available. There is still: 2 - the barkeep asking the party to stop the fight, 3 - thinking to complement the cook, and if they fail all of the above, 4 - being hauled to jail for starting the problem in the bar, because that is what adventurers do. (2 - success, the barkeep gives the party a supposed treasure map as thanks, 3 - the cook is out of meat and asks the party if they can please get some more <critter Y> in valley Z, 4 - the sheriff will return the party's valuables when they capture alive Villain Bart so the Mayor can have a public trial and hanging.)

As for asking the player doing the X-card thing, there are folks on here stating that you can't ask. You are just supposed to change things until you magically remove the objectionable thing or skip over the whole scene. But if the above mentioned bar scene isn't just a whistle stop on the 500 mile rail track but is instead a major switch yard with multiple paths out, you can't just bleep over the bar scene.

As for the spider thing, that should be easy to fix IF you can ask the kid what the problem is. Just sub in a different mini and refer to it as the monster. In this case, it is an easy fix. IF you can ask. (You did have a backup mini?)

 

[MGibster]

As much as I don't care for the X-Card myself, I understand why people might recommend it for a con. I think maybe we don't want this thread to turn into a discussion about the X-Card when it's supposed to be about advice on how to prepare a game for a con.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

That only happened the one time. I did have players who were disruptive enough that I had to bring out my RPG Director badge. Some of them were just idiots, who, for example, hadn't read the AL guidelines and so created illegal characters -- one dude created a 5th level aarakocra ranger from scratch for a particular scenario. He was somewhat disruptive, because he believed the ability to fly should trump my DM ability to edit the adventure on the fly in logical, plausible ways. At a bridge ambush he flew up in the air to get out of reach of a bunch of bandits; so, naturally, the bandits all pulled out bows and targeted him, since his character was not under cover (what kind of cover can you have in the air in the open, over a gorge?) He complained bitterly that their stat block didn't have bows; I reminded him this was a bandit gang in the Forgotten Realms; if they had absolutely no ranged capability, they would soon have been ex-bandits. He ended up fleeing a number of encounters for similar reasons.

At the end of the module, he wanted to vote on the distribution of certificates. So I asked him to provide me the paperwork for his character, since I had "suspicions" it wasn't a legal character, and couldn't just sign over certs to players who didn't play by the rules. That would have included log sheets showing the adventures he'd played, along with campaign documentation showing he could play an aarakocra (at that time, not a legal character). Of course, he'd just made the character just before the slot, so he couldn't. He was steamed, but I guess he realized those were the breaks. I still tried to run an entertaining adventure for everyone -- including him.

I've had instances where people have clearly not understood what "AL legal" meant, or outright lied about it. The arguing about the stat blocks is metagaming, plain and simple. I hate when people do that. Heck, I was at a con playing 1e, and someone at the table would crack open the Monster Manual and start telling everyone the monsters' strengths and weaknesses. I've no idea why the DM didn't say something about that.

I had stupid behavior ruin a GURPS Fantasy con game I was playing in a few years ago. On two separate occasions some players, and not the same ones both times, went of on pointless tangents that obviously had nothing to do with the scenario. As a result, we didn't finish the scenario within the allotted time. It didn't cost me anything to play, but it was a colossal waste of my time. As a GM, you might need to reign some players in when they go on a tangent and time becomes an issue. Use your best judgment.

There should be time for the PCs to role-play, do thing that they find interesting that aren't directly a part of moving the adventure forward...provided they're not sidetracking that progress, and you have the time to do it. At a con, that sort of thing should really be no more than a handful of minutes. Anything more and you're probably not going to be able to finish it, or have to seriously chop out parts to do so.

 

[RealAlHazred]

I guess the upshot of these terrible examples is to warn people starting to run convention games that there is a category of gamer that we (the staff at the local convention I was at) called "griefers." These are people who derive their enjoyment only from ruining the expectations of other players. They do exist. They don't frequently have stable home groups, because who would want to play with them regularly? They are willing to pay the entrance fee so that people will be forced to run for them. They're willing to pay their $50 for a day-pass because they can't find people who'll play with them for free. Prepare for them. They can still have a good time in spite of themselves, by taking proactive approaches to them; but you're going to need to deal with them on a case-by-case basis.

 

[Reynard]

How do you find a system and prepare an adventure to run a scenario during an event slot at a convention with tabletop RPGs as an offering? What tricks do you use to prepare the game, run the game, and manage the table?

inspiration - Run a Con Game the Cleric Cabin Way

Also, you really want to get @Reynard to offer some tips!

Thanks!

So, I run a lot of con games. There are three basic types that I run:

The One Shot: Usually I try and reserve a slot for a one off game of something I think is popular AND I really want to run, or is thematically appropriate (a horror game at the con I regularly attend that always falls right around Halloween). For these kinds of games, more often than not I am not an expert in the game (it is new or not something I run regularly). In those cases, I lean on the internet: I find good cheat sheets for both myself as GM and for the players, I look at analysis from those who do run it, and I watch some people playing it on YouTube. I also make sure the idea is pretty simple and easily communicated in the blurb. Although this has relaxed in recent years, for a long time you had very little room to pitch your game in the con book. So, for something like my go-to zombie con game "Clean Up In Aisle 13" I keep it to a couple core sentences: "It is 2 AM and you are in the BigMart: worker, customer or potential robber. But when the old lady die in aisle 13 just before getting back up hungry, everything goes awry." Like that.

The Con Campaign: I also run 3 to 5 slot "con campaigns." These are built to be episodic, to accommodate folks that only sign up for one slot, but also have a big story to tell. Exactly what that looks like changes every con (although I have run a couple that have continued for a whole year aka 3 regional cons). For these, i definitely pick a game I am comfortable with because I am going to need to improv. I have a defined setting and situation -- tropey stuff that, again, can be easily communicated in limited time -- and I do have an idea of where it is going to end up, but I expect to roll with whatever happens at the table. I use the time between slots to revise "plans" for the next slot. When I am lucky, I have a lot of continuity of players between slots, which really helps in making it feel like a campaign.
By way of example, a recent con campaign was a Sahdowdark game called The Arclands, which was basically a riff on Barrier Peaks. The Arclands were a place where "wells" would open up following electrical storms originicating from the ground. inside were technomagical ruins, mutants, robots and treasures. A whole economy existed to mine those wells for "manacruystals" (the only things the yokels up top could actually do anything with). I leaned heavily on the Shadowdark dungeon generation system (flavored for the setting, obviously) and it turned into the riff on The Space Seed Meets The Morrow Project thing. It was GREAT.

Finally, a bunch of fellow GMs and I do at least one charity game every year -- a big themed multi-table event that raises money for Children's Miracle Netowrk by allowing folks to purchase (with real money) advantages or (more often) F-Us to other tables. A great time is had by all and we raise a lot of money typically. There are usually 20 or 30 players at 5 or 6 tables. Recently, every table was a different saturday morning cartoon cast translated to D&D.

One thing I HATE is creating pre-gens. I am lucky though that one of my regular players at 2 of the 3 cons I always run con campaigns at LOVES making characters and goes all out, with great looking sheets and table tents, and reference packets. Love you Rob!

 

[MGibster]

I've had instances where people have clearly not understood what "AL legal" meant, or outright lied about it. The arguing about the stat blocks is metagaming, plain and simple.

When I used to run Living Greyhawk adventures I ran into problems. Some players simply viewed me as a rubber stamp for gold, magic items, and experience points. I finally lost my patience and combined with 3.5 it drove me away from Living Greyhawk. Several of them even offered to purchase the 3.5 books for me so I could continue DMing but I had to say no thanks.

There should be time for the PCs to role-play, do thing that they find interesting that aren't directly a part of moving the adventure forward...provided they're not sidetracking that progress, and you have the time to do it. At a con, that sort of thing should really be no more than a handful of minutes.

You're absolutely right, there needs to be time for people to role play during the role playing game. When I'm running a con game, I want the PCs to interact with NPCs and otherwise be engaged with the game. In the GURPS fantasy game, one of the PCs was a ranger type character who decided his character wouldn't be sleeping in an inn making it very difficult for the typical "Your party is in an inn when they're approached by a mysterious stranger with a job" adventure to begin. It took 10-15 minutes for us to get the ball rolling just getting this PC to come to the inn and was maddingly frustrating.

 

[aramis erak]

That's definitely a take I've not heard before regarding the X Card. I'm confused by your meaning:

It's a stance I've taken in D&DAL play... when every other player groaned at the objection.
In that case, it was spiders. I asked if they wanted to sit out the scene in the hall and come back; they did.

In your example, is that person who plays the X Card not also a paying player? Who decides what's important to the plot?

I've not had pay-to-play players in 34 years now... not counting the low-cost local cons' door fees.
The GM has control over plot important, save in tournament play; that's a different beastie than standard con play.

Now, that said, every table there's an obligation to not traumatize players; sometimes the way is to exclude them.

Have you had an experience like this? I'm having a hard time imagining a player X Carding a topic so vital to the story being told at the table that it can't be pivoted or modified slightly to make everyone comfortable.

Had a player have flashbacks to 'Nam from Horde of the Dragon Queen Chapter 1. Specifically, the dragon attack. Justifiable, but it was a key element of the chapter. I'll note he didn't X-card... he did take a smoke break and have his partner run his character, handing me a note explaining.

Had a trek player object to Transporters. Was a store demo.

Had a bystander complain about what was, to me, a minor issue: running ALIEN: Chariot of the Gods. The issue was the use of beer by a PC being rewarded by stress reduction. The bystander then heard the alien's birth scene, and left. It didn't help that the player was clearly too young for alcohol, and was drinking a non-alcoholic "ginger beer"...

Had a bystander complain about word choices... ones which would, indeed draw an infraction here... And it had been bugging me. Threatened to put out a swear jar. It got dialed back.

In a home game of John Wick's Blood & Honor, a player had his character attack another, then tried X-carding their declared head shot back... after he failed to get the 10 needed to participate actively in resolution. Didn't work. About an hour later, with children in the room, same player went very graphically into a particular scene and disemboweling an NPC; everyone else was x-carding... including his mother, who was listening in. We ended that campaign. That very evening.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

You're absolutely right, there needs to be time for people to role play during the role playing game. When I'm running a con game, I want the PCs to interact with NPCs and otherwise be engaged with the game. In the GURPS fantasy game, one of the PCs was a ranger type character who decided his character wouldn't be sleeping in an inn making it very difficult for the typical "Your party is in an inn when they're approached by a mysterious stranger with a job" adventure to begin. It took 10-15 minutes for us to get the ball rolling just getting this PC to come to the inn and was maddingly frustrating.

That's one of the things about being a good player in organized play - you need to balance playing your character and playing ball with the adventure. Same goes for regular at-home play, but doubly so for con games.

 

[Gorgon Zee]

Yeah I think most of the examples, the spider included, are eminently reasonable. I'm just responding to the absolute nature of the comment above.

Probably I wasn't as clear as I could have been. When I stated "if a GM cannot replace any element of their game, they are not a good GM and need to learn that skill" it was indeed meant to be a strong statement. But I do really believe that if you don't have the ability to modify pretty much any element of your game on the fly (except a few critical ones maybe) you can at best call yourself an average GM.

I'm not saying you should do so every time anyone asks you to -- I think we're all in agreement that the scenarios that @billd91 brought up are good cases of when to apply this skill in practice; what I am pushing back on is the often-stated opposition to X-cards that to accommodate a player's desire to feel safe playing a game might be impossible because it requires the GM to change elements on the fly.

I completely agree that a GM is not required to do so all the time or for any reason. The absolute statement I made is that a good GM has the ability do so if needed. And I do think this is true. The good GM's I've seen are excellent at adapting content, changing direction or modifying elements to improver a player's experience. I do consider that a core skill that to call yourself a good GM, you need to have.

 

[Gorgon Zee]

Sorry, disagree. Not all GMs are telepathic. Or good enough to magically change the scene that will somehow fix it for the bothered player without knowing what the problem is. In a hypothetical bar scene, the barmaid has just delivered a platter of steaming meat and sides to the table with our party. Fred the Fighter starts flirting with the barmaid. A fight breaks out two tables over. Player A drops an X-card. Am I as GM supposed to mystically figure out if Player A is bothered by the meat(player is a vegan), Fred flirting with the barmaid(sexual content), or the fight two tables over(player is a pacifist)?

Well, this assumes that all the potential distressing events have happened and been described simultaneously. I'm not sure exactly how that could happen. Typically people would use the X-card pretty much as something occurs and in the cases I've seen it used, it's been because the descriptions have been too graphic for them -- so no way could this scenario actually happen without multiple people narrating all at once ... which would be weird.

But suppose for now that I have described this scene, and for some reason mix in graphic descriptions of meat, of flirting and of a fight breaking out all I together without any breaks or ability for people to butt in. Then sure yes, you may have a problem figuring it out -- but don't do this. Not just for x-card purposes, but it's terrible exposition. When you describe a scene, give an overview and then treat each element in turn. This is just much better for people to comprehend in general, as well as avoiding the situation you present.

How? And all of this in the middle of a convention game room with noise, random people moving around and time pressure? Now assume the bar scene is vital to the scenario. Can't just fade to black and assume the party succeeded, especially if the bar scene has several paths out, each resulting in a different scenario play.

So, summarizing your hypothetical. There are two cases. If the scene is critical, but the elements are not, then this is trivially easy. Drop all the elements and keep going. You might also retcon a little. I'd probably go with something like:
"Let's ignore those descriptions. Imagine a generic bar scene in the little hamlet of Ottershome, filled with food and elements that appeal to you" and then immediately introduce the elements needed for the scene.

The trickier case is if one of the elements is vital. Let's suppose the meat has an added hallucinogenic added that could be detected or eaten, leading to a dream scene, a chase or a combat. We could go with:
"Let's ignore those descriptions. Imagine a generic bar scene in the little hamlet of Ottershome, filled with food and elements that appeal to you. A bearded waiter brings a dessert to your table for you to try"

I'm struggling to think of a plausible scenario where it absolutely must be a meat product. OK, maybe the scenario is all about hunting; nope that won't work as the scenario description ought to mention that. How about an alchemist who is transforming animals into monsters and the food is an accidentally released experiment that was killed by a hunter? OK. Now this is tricky. I might have to call a 5 minute bio break to think it over (as you say, it can be hard to think in a con situation!). My thought would be to look at the skills needed to handle this situation and ask for players to roll them without specifying why -- or maybe invent rolls if the players were intended to use player knowledge to address the scene. So maybe this:

"Let's ignore those descriptions. Imagine a generic bar scene in the little hamlet of Ottershome, filled with food and elements that appeal to you. I'd like everyone to make Animal Handling and Empathy Checks, DC 17 ... OK, Sella, you made both. You realize that the food is tainted unusually, and when you notice that, you see that a woman in the corner who has been watching you sneaks out rapidly. If you immediately follow you could chase her down."

------

I've seen X-cards or similar used about a dozen times or so. Several times it has been spiders. Never an issue modifying that and always very clear what the issue it! A few times it has graphic descriptions in horror games. Again easy -- just skip them. Harm to children and unpleasant sexual descriptions have needed fixing also. I can't recall anytime the reason for X-card has been in dispute. Not saying it couldn't happen, but it does seem really unlikely.