Volunteer DM's..no incentives? Conventions off our backs?

[Emirikol]

Bit of a rant here. I feel used by convention and gameday organizers. We volunteer our time with no incentive or reward.

Some conventions will give you reduced cost to get into the convention (so you can DM and they can make money off your back).

Some gameday organizers will give a gift certificate to the DM at the store that they do the work at (this is a pretty good thanks).

Most of the time, it's just volunteer DM's taking crap from players who don't appreciate them.

Anybody else want to vent a little or share?

jh

 

[tarchon]

The groupies aren't enough?

 

[billd91]

Gen Con used to be pretty good for this. If you showed up to run at least 3 events, you got your registration fee refunded AND you got a buck per ticket you turned in that you collected from your players.
Now, you don't get that, but if you volunteer for a lot of RPGA events, you can get a share of a free room. That doesn't help some of us family people, but since the hotel room is the biggest single cost of going to a con, it would be a pretty good perk... though the number of events you have to volunteer for could lead to a gruelling schedule.

All in all, I don't mind running stuff for little reward. It's playing the game, isn't it? And that's the fun part of going to a convention.

 

[Desdichado]

The groupies aren't enough?

Not unless the groupies are hot, nymphomaniac chicks that get really turned on seeing you peering over at them from behind the screen.

 

[Mark]

Bit of a rant here. I feel used by convention and gameday organizers. We volunteer our time with no incentive or reward.

Some conventions will give you reduced cost to get into the convention (so you can DM and they can make money off your back).

Some gameday organizers will give a gift certificate to the DM at the store that they do the work at (this is a pretty good thanks).

Most of the time, it's just volunteer DM's taking crap from players who don't appreciate them.

Anybody else want to vent a little or share?

jh

You might want to speak in specifics rather than slamming all gamedays and convetions. I have a feeling that by not focusing your anger you will always be a bitter non-participant.

Gencon offers a free four day pass for a DM who handles four slots or more. Always has (or similar), as I recall, and I've been going off and on since 1976 or there abouts.

The EN World gamedays are free so there's no real opportunity to give free passes but I believe that everyone gets some sort of prize(s) for participating whether as a DM or as a player. Sometimes DMs get a little something extra but I doubt that's motivation for signing up as a DM and rather just a nice little thank you.

So what are the specifics of your problem, Emirikol? Maybe you need to take a break from DMing for a while if you are getting too much grief for it.

 

[Rel]

I think that if you're in the GMing business for the massive material rewards, you might want to consider another line of work.

My experiences have been very different than what you describe. Most of the "con" type GMing I've done and seen has been at the NC Game Days, populated primarily by ENWorlders. Perhaps it's because we know each other online and will continue to be in contact through these boards, but every single player I've ever had at an NC Game Day has been appreciative and openly thankful for my efforts as a GM. I try to be equally thankful in return.

It is unquestionably a lot of work getting ready for such games. One shot games can be labor intensive because they have no "foundation" that you can build upon like a regular campaign game session has. And at least once in every period of adventure design I say, "Why did I agree to do this?!" But I derive great pleasure in presenting the final product to the folks I see at the gaming event and letting them "unwrap the present" that I've packaged for them. That is the point at which I answer the question above:

"I do this because I love it! So what if there's some work involved."

If that isn't the answer you are getting for yourself, maybe you should take some time off from Con GMing and just enjoy playing for a change. You should be enjoying the experience, not having to feel that it's a chore.

Good luck.

 

[pogre]

I expect a discount or reduced admission for a Convention if I run games there. The vast majority of Cons do this. However, a new trend I have witnessed is cons giving referees more chances to win in raffles for prizes donated to the convention. FlatCon in Bloomington, IL does this for example - there are others, but it's the one that comes to mind at this second.

So these organizers send me e-mails "Hey Pogre, why don't you run an ancients game or your big castle siege or even your chariot races."

I usually say, "sure that's great, what do I have to do?"

They respond, "You need to send in your entry and entry fee."

Then I ask, "Will the entry be refunded?"

Their response, "No, but you get extra chance for prizes."

Prizes that usually consist of product - much of it RPGs I do not play, that I have little to no interest in. I know why they run things this way, but I also can see why they are scrambling for judges every year.

GenCon on the other hand treats judges very well as does WinterWar here in Champaign and many, many other fine conventions. I also enjoy gaming days - and where no entry charge is demanded I expect no recompense.

 

[Henry]

It is unquestionably a lot of work getting ready for such games. One shot games can be labor intensive because they have no "foundation" that you can build upon like a regular campaign game session has. And at least once in every period of adventure design I say, "Why did I agree to do this?!" But I derive great pleasure in presenting the final product to the folks I see at the gaming event and letting them "unwrap the present" that I've packaged for them. That is the point at which I answer the question above:

"I do this because I love it! So what if there's some work involved."

*Henry looks up from his Corel Draw-designed map he's creating for the NC Gameday*

I heartily agree. We do it because of the fun it brings when Gameday comes, for the enjoyment people get at a game table for a neat prop, or for a well-crafted story. Often times I do it for the "that was fun, Henry!" and I'm just as happy to hear, "That was neat; y'know, I used to have this GM who would do this-that-and-the-other, and it worked even better at the time. Maybe you'd want to think about that, as a suggestion."

If I got a hearty round of "well, that sucked", then I might think differently.

Largely it's about the non-material reward, distantly kinda like a parent giving their kids Christmas Day. You've just busted your thumbs putting that new bike together, you've figured out the next six loan payments for that brand-new computer you just bought, and you have had two hours of sleep between finishing putting the presents just so, and pretending to wake up because Santa came by during the night. None of it matters a darn, because your child is glowing from ear to ear.

It's rewarding to see new friends and acquaintences laughing and enjoying themselves, it's rewarding to see a player take charge of a role with gusto and deliver a performance that would make a community theater proud, and it's rewarding when you get to experience the attention to detail that OTHER people have put into their games, because they want to show you the same courtesy.

Would it be nice to get material goodies? Darn right! But if I get 'em it's secondary to the purpose.

*Returns to scrutinizing his Gameday props*

 

[Varianor Abroad]

Sounds like a bad experienceC. an't speak to a Game Day, but I'd like to get to one this year or next. So far, my convention experiences have been positive in the past two years.

(Except for one tiny little CT event where the organizers thought I was some sort of marketing plant. I won't mention the convention, but they were real snotty about my event when I emailed them, and then never wrote back after I gave them their program book blurb. I never went. Saved me time and money. They lost out on me bringing probably at least 3 people.)

I-Con: SUNY Stony Brook NY. Very nice, friendly people. Automatic free admission. They've had free water and pizza for the DM. Free DMs t-shirt every year. This past March I got a free screen that some local artists had put together. Nice! Plus they had some discount tickets for the dealer's room. Overall, I am very impressed by them. The gaming's tucked out of the way in a lower level, but I've had really good players there. Got to meet Ed Cha last year and Monte Cook and Sue the year before.

GenCon: I ran four events for six people over four days and will be getting a refund (hopefully.) While they weren't as generous as I-Con, I found all the staff to be really helpful, especially after I screwed up my signoffs and they fixed it without giving me a hard time. Space was nice and clean and I had a really fabulous time meeting people. The players were top notch. The convention itself had great swag for everyone, so I consider that a pretty reasonable outcome. It just wasn't targetted toward me.

I do think the trend toward "no free admission" does conventions a disservice. Sure, I may have had to do a little extra at GenCon to get a refund, but I understand. Prior years they probably got burnt by one or two bad apples getting in and never doing what they said. But not refunding admission? Come on. If you're DMing you're working. You're there making it happen for the players. Think of DMs as mini guests of honor. These people spend anywhere from 2 to 20 hours preparing before they get there! What happens when no one shows up to run games?

 

[Henry]

...On the other hand, I can see the point of view where conventions are concerned, especially when you pay a large fee ($35 to $60) and spend a good chunk of your time commited to certain events instead of wandering around. But even then, I find I'm still getting something out of it - the interaction with other players and GM's and learning some of their tips and tricks for good gaming. So even in those cases, I'm not walking away shafted.