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First post!  Some questions.  :)

Posted by DocSportello
DocSportello
member, 1 post
Tue 13 Jan 2015
at 06:46
  • msg #1

First post!  Some questions.  :)

Hello all!  I thought I'd introduce myself.  I also have a few questions.

About me: I've been playing boardgames, especially wargames, all my life.  I played D&D a bit when I was younger, many moons ago, but not much since, until the arrival of the 5th edition.  I've GMd 5e for my kids a couple times, and I've played one enjoyable session with strangers on Roll20.  I've got somewhat more experience with the FFG Star Wars series; I've DMd several games for my kids, and I recently played one session of Age of Rebellion on Fantasy Grounds, which was great.  I haven't played any PbP anywhere, ever.  I'm debating about joining a PbP game here on in RPG Geek.  Now on to my questions:

1. Would you say GMs are more in demand here than players?  Or the other way around?  I'm especially interested in GMing, but I assume playing first is a good idea.

2. Is GMing a significantly bigger time commitment than playing?

3. What's an optimal party size here?  In my limited experience as a player, I've found that a party even as small as four sometimes makes me feel left out or not useful.  But a countervailing consideration in the PbP environment is that people stop posting, for whatever reason.  How big a game should I look to join or start?

4. The two games I'm interested in are the FFG Star Wars games and D&D 5e.  I'm thinking Star Wars might be a bit easier to manage in a PbP environment, since it has less emphasis on grids and whatnot -- though I understand that 5e doesn't strictly require grids either.  On the other hand, the player base for 5e is probably somewhat larger here.  Which game would you start with here?

5.  Perusing games here, I see only a handful of games going for 5e and Star Wars.  Lots more games start and fade away.  That's true elsewhere, of course.  Do you think games are more likely to endure here than on other role-playing sites?

Many thanks in advance for any answers you can provide.  :)
icosahedron152
member, 407 posts
Tue 13 Jan 2015
at 07:10
  • msg #2

Re: First post!  Some questions.  :)

Hi Doc, and welcome to Rpol.

1. If you take a look at the sizes of the Players Wanted forum (199 pages) and the GMs Wanted forum (97 pages), that probably answers your question.

2. If you've GMed and played before, you shouldn't need to ask this. GMing is always a much bigger commitment than playing. A player only has to control one character. A GM has to control every other character in the universe, the universe itself, and has to design every building and concept within that universe, on top of designing an exciting and fulfilling plot and interacting with each of the other players.

3. I find that a party size of 4 to 6 is optimal. Any less than 4 and your game will stall when two or three inevitably drop out. If you need to be more centre-stage than that, I'd consider looking for a GM who will run a solo game for you.

4. Not my genre, I'll leave that to someone else.

5. Nope. Players vanish and GMs vanish and, even if they don't, sometimes the games just falter for other reasons. The grass ain't any greener here.
But it ain't any browner, either. :)

Hope that helps.
pfarland
member, 369 posts
Tue 13 Jan 2015
at 10:28
  • msg #3

Re: First post!  Some questions.  :)

Welcome!

1) I would say it really depends on the game system and setting.  Just comparing the numbers of wanted ads doesn't give an accurate picture because usually a game will require 1 GM and multiple players.  Plus a player wanted ad can always just be for a replacement player where a GM wanted is for a whole game.

2) By all means, no doubts about that for not just the above listed reasons.  I GM a game and I spend considerable amounts of time more on that than the three games I play in.

3) Really much of that depends on the game, PCs, and the GM.  I run a 12 player game, though it's somewhat expected that the players will break down into three 4 man squads. 
quote:
I've found that a party even as small as four sometimes makes me feel left out or not useful.
  Most likely the GMs fault.  Unless you have a character with a very focused and specialized skill set, the GM should always give a time for each character to be in the spotlight.  Now if you make a fighter pilot in a game where there isn't any jet fuel, that's your fault.  (I've seen that exact thing happen.)

4) Not a clue, I despise D&D and have only played D6 Star Wars.  If a game requires a grid map, you can post the map in the game with updates and there are off site pages that host maps that players can move their pieces on.

5) I think slightly more.  With a MUCH larger player base, it's easier to find better players and find replacements for the inevitable dropouts.  My game I turned quite a few players away and have always found a replacement in a short amount of time.
Gaffer
member, 1209 posts
Ocoee FL
40 yrs of RPGs
Tue 13 Jan 2015
at 13:14
  • msg #4

Re: First post!  Some questions.  :)

What's up, Doc? (had to)

For background: I GM and play and I've been on Rpol for almost five years. I've been active in the hobby for almost forty years (yep, OD&D) and played and run a lot of systems.

1. I think the need for GM is always high; no GM, no game. On the other hand, no players, no game either, but it's the GM who gets things rolling and keeps them rolling. There are a lot of both on Rpol.

I'd recommend playing in a few games first, just to get the feel of things.

2. GMing is always a bigger time commitment than playing, no matter the place.

3. I think optimal party size depends a lot on system and genre, but I would never start a game with fewer than four (unless it's specifically intended as a solo/duo game), just because of attrition.

I've started with as many as nine players and ended with two several months later. Part of that is because I run story-intensive games and prefer not to try to work new players into a months-long story with hundreds of IC posts.

4. I don't know either system or the base on Rpol. If I were a D&D player, I'd probably be itching to play 5e.

5.  I only have experience with one other PbP site, but it suffered from the same issues of GM/player fade. I think it's endemic to the mechanics of play-by-post.

Best wishes for great gaming on Rpol.
DocSportello
member, 2 posts
Tue 13 Jan 2015
at 17:28
  • msg #5

Re: First post!  Some questions.  :)

Thanks for the replies!  Very helpful.

One thing I've noticed already: most posts here are reasonably well-written.  I don't claim to be the world's best stylist, and I'm sure I make my share of grammar mistakes.  But written role-play obviously benefits from good writing.

Anyway, I'll see about getting into a game to get the feel of things, and then maybe I'll try GMing.  Thanks again.
pfarland
member, 371 posts
Tue 13 Jan 2015
at 18:47
  • msg #6

Re: First post!  Some questions.  :)

No problem.

Another thing you can do is look for interesting games and request to "Lurk".  Basically you are asking to just read through the game.  Some GM's don't mind, some do.
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