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Faramicos
Senior Scribe
Denmark
468 Posts |
 Posted - 31 Oct 2006 : 15:04:45
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I am in the middle of a long adventure, with me as DM, but have been forced to take a long break due to the fact that i have started at the University of Copenhagen. We used to play rather frequently so i came to think that it could be interesting to hear about your experiences with frequent and rare sessions in a longer adventure-plot... Positive and negative.
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"When dragons make war, worlds can only tremble in the shadow of angry wings" |
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Kalin Agrivar
Senior Scribe
Canada
956 Posts |
Posted - 31 Oct 2006 : 15:10:32
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there realy is no positive IMO...
from my experience if you play less than 1/week people will forget important story/plot/campaign facts the DM gave them, they will not bond as much with their characters, there is more frustration in not really accomplishing anything (it could take a month to gain a level, a player of mine played the Temple of Elemental Evil for 2 years, playing once/2 weeks with his uncle's group) and there is a much greater chance of players losing interest...
this can be heightened with players that have other games going with other DMs |
Kalin Xorell El'Agrivar
- High Mage of the Arcane Assembly
- Lore Keeper of the Vault of Ancestors
- 3rd Son of the Lord of the Stand |
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WalkerNinja
Senior Scribe
USA
577 Posts |
Posted - 31 Oct 2006 : 22:08:20
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| IMHO, if you are going to do Rare Sessions, each session should be self encapsulated, and probably run twice the length of a standard session. Ed only runs one game a year for his group... |
*** A Forgotten Realms Addict since 1990 ***
Treasures of the Past, a Second Edition Play-by-Post game for and by Candlekeep Sages--http://www.rpol.net/game.cgi?gi=52011 |
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Kaladorm
Master of Realmslore
United Kingdom
1176 Posts |
Posted - 31 Oct 2006 : 22:45:11
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| It's not possible for us all to be together anymore, so we now run our campaign by pbem |
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Reefy
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
892 Posts |
Posted - 31 Oct 2006 : 22:45:22
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| We've never played quite as actively as once a week, and given the age mix in the group and the fact that three years ago two of us started university the other side of the country, play sessions have not been frequent. When we do get the chance to play, it's been fairly intensively though. And we're trying to continue things via email in between tabletop sessions - it might move slowly, but it keeps people up to speed on what's going on better. |
Life is either daring adventure or nothing. |
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Conlon
Learned Scribe
Canada
132 Posts |
Posted - 31 Oct 2006 : 23:52:17
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The group I play with is lucky to get together once every three weeks or so. Occasionally we will play 3 times a month, but it is rare.
I am the DM and I have four players. I am married and work some shiftwork, two of the guys have kids, and one of the guys is out of town occasionally. In an ideal world we would be playing more often, but this is working out pretty well.
At the end of each session, I record a summary of important points and I try to keep it colorful. Before we start playing the next time, I read the summary to everyone and make sure everyone is up to speed. Our sessions tend to be around 4-6 hours in length.
Good luck, and keep playing! |
My hopes are ashes, my dreams are dust. All my intentions mean nothing unless they are followed by action. |
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EvilKnight
Learned Scribe
USA
162 Posts |
Posted - 01 Nov 2006 : 01:32:17
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I actually run a game once a month at the library for teens. I usually include time for recap at the beginning. I also do little story viginettes of things going on that involve talk of their characters or group (a little behind the scenes thing that acts as foreshadowing). I also did away with experience points, instead we do Hero Points that can be spent for re-rolls. I allow everyone that shows up for the game to advance a level every 2-3 sessions (miss the session where this happens and you are stuck at the lower level).
EvilKnight |
Danali Index |
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Dart Ambermoon
Learned Scribe
Germany
253 Posts |
Posted - 01 Nov 2006 : 05:08:55
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| Our group is in the situation as well, that we can only play infrequently. Sometimes we manage twice a month, but sometimes there are two months in between sessions. I agree, that this can be very difficult in the scope of a large campaign/story arc. As stated before, details are forgotten and especially if you run numerous subplots (as I always do), this can become a problem. The only things I found helpful were the players brainstorming and talking about what had gone on before and my players taking a lot of notes, which helps them immensely in preparing for such sessions. I believe without the willingness to "go the extra mile" and put some preparatory work-hours in, it simply wouldn´t function. If they re-acquaint themselves with "the story so far" prior to a session, it usually works out surprisingly well. Our sessions tend to be very long (up to 12 hours are possible) and I always take care to e-mail or hand out some form of summary, furthermore reminding players of important issues that have taken place in the following pre-session (verbal)summary. |
~ In Finder I trust, for danger I lust ~ |
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Sian
Senior Scribe
Denmark
596 Posts |
Posted - 01 Nov 2006 : 05:30:09
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| well ... the group i'm attending is playing every second weekend ... okay ... i'm also in another group (with the same group but another one of us as DM) the other weekends :P |
what happened to the queen? she's much more hysterical than usual
She's a women, it happens once a month |
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Dhomal
Senior Scribe
USA
565 Posts |
Posted - 01 Nov 2006 : 07:49:40
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Hello-
I agree - more frequency would be best.
However - it does not always work out!
Of the 5 of us who game together - two of us work retail (me and another), one is going to school (college), and one has three daughters all 6 and under. Soooo - we game less that we all would like. We have done twice in a month - but its more like 3 times every 2 months or so. however - we did play last week - and will play this coming Sat too.... The holidays are likely to get hectic though....
Dhomal |
I am collecting the D&D Minis. I would be more than willing to trade with people. You can send me a PM here with your email listed - and I can send you my minis list. Thanks!
Successfully traded with Xysma! |
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Mace Hammerhand
Great Reader
Germany
2296 Posts |
Posted - 01 Nov 2006 : 08:49:42
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The campaign I've been running for the past 5 years has found its rhythm only in the last year, before that we played maybe every other month at best. Now we play every 3rd or 4th sunday of a given month. The older you get the less time you have...relationships, work, they have priority. When we all were younger we played once a week, but that is impossible now.
As for continuity, the players take notes and if they missed something I fill in the blanks.
Leveling happens, at this schedule, once or twice each year, which is fine by everyone in the group. |
Mace's not so gentle gamer's journal My rants were harmless compared to this, beware! |
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Ergdusch
Master of Realmslore
Germany
1720 Posts |
Posted - 01 Nov 2006 : 10:13:04
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I have very similar experiences as Mace. I dm my group for 5 years now and at the beginning we met every second month or so, sometimes even more often. However, now due to relationships, work and other factors we have to limit it to like 4 times a year.
There was a time however where I studied abroad at the university of Stokcholm. Even than we managed to play twice that year - at easter and at christmas! Guess how happy my family and girlfriend were!? 
To get some continuity into the sessipns I always write a one-page story to let my players remember what happened last time, what the names of their villians are, what they accomplished and where they ended up. THat way they have a much easier time to get back into the plot. They have given me only positive feedbacks and I like it too cause it is a much easier way than giving the information during the running session again and over again.
Hope to have been helpful. Ergdusch |
"Das Gras weht im Wind, wenn der Wind weht." |
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Zimme
Learned Scribe
Denmark
209 Posts |
Posted - 03 Nov 2006 : 08:44:37
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I have 3 groups of people that i game with, and we have sessions on holidays and so(luckyly my girlfriend is a gamer too, =) praises!). I have played for a very long time with these people and commitment is high, so we find the time to enjoy our hobby.
I buy small red and black notebooks from our local bookshop, and fill them with notes about the campaigns to a extent that I know exactly where we stopped last time and what happend. |
Sometimes I feel like Beshaba is sitting on my back, devoting her entire attention to me!
Rannek.
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Lord Nemes
Seeker
Canada
58 Posts |
Posted - 04 Nov 2006 : 02:19:31
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Hi,
Because of our different obligations, and about 600 km of road separating us, my original group play at about every 6 weeks. One of the players live half of the way so we play there all the weekend. Whit this frequency, it just takes good notes and a recap at the beginning of the weekend. I generally let the players do the recap, it refreshes their memory and I can add the things they forget. The fact that I still play whit my old-time friends permit me to keep a more frequent contact with them.
If you are going to play less frequently than you used to, make the game session a special event and it may works...
Lord Nemes |
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Lady Morbannaon
Acolyte
United Kingdom
42 Posts |
Posted - 04 Nov 2006 : 03:16:36
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Since most of our group is in school still we just game on a saturday at present although we run two campaigns that alternate. This seems to work pretty well as some of the group can't make it to every week. Then during the school holidays I also run a mid week session for those who can make it.
If we do play less frequently I will recap the last session or will run special on off sessions. |
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Session frequency
