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Well talking to them and asking them if they have room in their group for another player is a good first step. Perhaps that 5th grade drama has bee put behind you both so it won't be an issue. 8th Grade is a problematic year when it comes to boys and girls, but if you don't make an issue of it hopefully they won't either.
So my advice is basically: Ask them if there's room in their group as you'd like to play with them. Don't take it too hard if they say no, just politely ask them to keep you in mind if something opens up.
As to the group you normally play with - perhaps you might want to try a round robin style of GMing. I don't know how regularly you can get a game together (but a regular game, either fortnightly or monthly) is a great way to get them more focused on a consistent game. I recommend GMing the style of game you'd like to play in. It takes a while but if the way you run games is fun, and you encourage the players to give it a go themselves then eventually they'll try it too.
Anyway good luck, and good gaming.
Hello. I am a newbie.
Looking back, I realize that I've been playing (or trying to play) Pathfinder for about a year. And I've been on these boards for not much shorter than that. I have never had an off-line game where I haven't had to DM, where the other people were quite as serious about the game as me, and where the adventure was very consistent in the long run. Not to say that I don't enjoy getting together with my friends and just goofing off in-character, but...
I'm not the only person in my (8th) grade who plays Pathfinder. There is a group of people who play Pathfinder, and seem to enjoy it and are fairly serious about following the rules, so far as I know. My dillema is a.) they keep to themselves, which is understandable b.) they seem to be afraid of girls and c.) a part of the group really hated me in fifth grade, and I hated them. If you're not tired of me complaing by now, I'd like advice on how to somehow join the aforementioned gaming group, and how to get my existing players more interested in consistancy, rules, storyline and combat without boring them.
Go talk to them. A lot changes between 5th grade and 8th grade. Since they keep to themselves they probably won't go out asking others but you never know till you talk to them and ask about playing. Since they are afraid of girls if you are a girl then you taking the initiative will work.
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Dudemeister and Voska have some good advice. I was shy around girls when I was that age, but I would have been quite happy to have had some girls playing D&D with us – if a girl had asked us to play then (as happened a few years later) I think most of us would have been thrilled. And its amazing how things can change in school, I ended up being really good friends by the end of high school with some people I really did not get along with in earlier years.
Remember also that you have the rest of your life to play serious games – sometimes it is fun to goof around while you play. With some more experience, the friends you play with now might get to enjoy the game more and take it more seriously.
It’s strange, after 20 years of roleplaying I am now in several games, some of which are really very serious, others are very light hearted and involve a lot of ‘in-character goofing around’ – and I really quite enjoy both styles, though there was certainly a period in my life where I avoided the latter type of game like the plague.
Your challenges sound formidable.
1) Try the direct approach. If your peers are typical for their age group it just seems likely they have a fair amount of insecurity about their social position. A typical response for introverts in your age range is to build up barriers towards outsiders, and to stay in a small clique. They are probably are nice people once you break those barriers, you just need to have a thick enough skin an be forceful enough to persevere.
2) They are 13 and 14 year old boys. It's natural that their afraid of girls. Relations with the opposite sex is a complicated thing, as most of us tend to get segregated into "boy" and "girl" category when we're very young and (subtly or bluntly) told to steer clear of the other until we're old enough. If you know one of them has a sister of similar age you might try talking to him first (or even their sister first); I often find that boys who grow up with sisters have less fears or misconceptions regarding such things.
3) If you feel that you have too many issues with them, has it occurred to you to seek a group elsewhere? Of course, that all depends on how big a city you live in, and if you or your folks are comfortable with you playing with people with a large age or maturity difference. I've known a number of people your age who played in "official play", like RPGA or PFS, and found it pretty fun.
4) As a last ditch effort, you could try online play. There are a number of online groups that play pathfinder modules or pathfinder socity which wouldn't give a darn your age, gender, or experience with the rules, as long as you were serious and committed.
Good luck! Maybe someone with more direct experience could chime in too...
Jake
Staigh up ask and bring food all game lovee to eat.
Another option you might consider is attempting to find a teacher that looks favorably on the hobby, and try to start a club. You'll need to look into your school's policy on student organizations, but generally if a teacher is willing to facilitate such a group, the school will approve. You'd not only have an "official" voice, but you'd likely have a neutral meeting place, usually a classroom after school hours, where you can meet. You could approach the boys to see if they would like to help form your club, or even ask your facilitator to invite them on your behalf; they may be intimidated if a girls approaches them, but a teacher may be another matter. You may also end up with people coming forward to join your group, who otherwise would keep their interest in the hobby to themselves.
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Find a Pathfinder society game at an FLGS (Friendly local gaming store)or other place and join up. I have had only friendly and helpful experiences. Those who GM I find especially like to teach and meet new people. Bring a friend or parent if they are interested in the hobby so you don't feel completely alone. I wish I started at your age I didnt get into tabletop gaming until my late 20's. Dont dip your toes, dive in to the deep end.
Wow, when I was a young teen and a girl showed up to play we were like WOW!
We had a couple come through over the years, and they were great players who added a lot to the table - and actually brought the guys up a notch in their behaviour.
5th grade is 5th grade, and you have't really liked a girl at that point unless you have thrown at least one rock at her. We move on eventually :)