Hello all,
How do you go about figuring out which players will fit with your style of play? In other words, what is your recruiting process like? Do you do a face-to-face interview? Have them write a character background? Run a scenario and decide afterwards?
I always have trouble with this point in the process, because I am loathe to start the official campaign and then make cuts based on incompatibility.
Thoughts?
Thanks!
Most players know what type of games they like to play in. Some like more RP as opposed to combat. Some think a GM should never kill a character and so forth.
I tell them how I GM, and what changes will be made to the campaign that will differ from I normally run.
Normally that takes care of it. Those that would not enjoy my style of GM'ing generally don't reply. I have only not invited a player back when it was obvious he did not read whatever I sent him.
Our group has been fairly successful with taking on new recruits. When we're short a player or two we do a posting on a game site about an opening in the group. Once someone has responded our GM explains the sort of game (s)he likes to run: the rate of experience gain, expected level spans (if applicable), meeting times, combat to social encounter ratios, etc. (S)he also takes the time to explain any house rules. If the potential member is still interested we invite them to a group "interview," and let them know that this is strictly to gauge their ability to jive with the current members. The interview is usually really informal: dinner, a movie, some local gaming thing, or even sitting in on a session- it doesn't matter. So long as we can get the whole group together in a social setting it works. Afterwords the group gets together and discusses the potential recruit before offering an invitation to join us or tells them that we don't think they're a good fit.
Honestly, we find that the social aspect of the game is as important, if not more-so, as the actual game aspect. We've had some people decline the offer to join us, and others that we've had to turn away. But on the whole it's been a really positive experience and very few people have gotten butt hurt about it. The whole process is really open and honest, and it lets any new people know exactly what they can expect from our group. For the most part we've probably accepted 80% of the people who've done this.
We've had to ask a few people to leave our table over the last six years (that I've been part of the group), but it was always a case in which it was absolutely necessary and never out of the blue.
Sean FitzSimons hits it pretty much 100% on the head for my preference. That said, the last gaming group we started was more of who the host was willing to invite and have up in his place that we game in. Now that the group is established, we would likely pick from existing friends first, then open it up as Sean described.
Sean Mahoney
Step 1 - Do I like to spend time with said new player? If yes continue.
Step 1a - If i dont know the player well enough to determine the answer to step 1, find time to spend with player away from the gaming table.
Step 2 - Invite player to game session.
Step 3 - Play roleplaying game with new player.
Step 4 - Had fun? If yes invite player back.
Worst case scenario you disrupt one game session. Now mind you this is with a long established game group that always has more then on campaign going at a time, so its different if you are trying to create a new group, or bring in multiple players at once. In that case I would run a one off adventure and see how things go.
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I second a meeting outside of gaming, if possible, followed by a night with a board game or card game.
If someone is inclined to be a tool at an RPG, they'll likely reveal the same tendencies elsewhere.
Apart from obvious issues that apply in all social situations (politeness, cleanliness, respect for others property, etc) there are specifics that trip up a lot of potential gamers.
Do they take it personally, if they are targetted, in-game, in-character?*
Do they have stupid, die-rolling rituals?**
Do they constantly try to take other players turns for them?
Do they try to deliberately misinterpret rules out of any obvious context?
If so, it's best to find out early, when all you lose is a few nights of non-sequential gaming.
Rather than starting some long-term campaign, which has to be stopped and started, to allow PCs to be rebuilt to accomodate the now-absent PC, or undo the results of some dickish behaviour on the campaign setting. You can only really ever start each campaign once; having to rewind time, and pretend the last few sessions never happened isn't satisfying for anyone.
*Within reason, and assuming the game is about PvP, like Risk or suchlike. I admit, I have little patience for players who always tagteam with their BFF or SO, regardless of the tactical situation.
**I don't have all night, for you to bless every die, shake them a hundred times, roll up your trouser leg, invoke the Dice Gods, stand up, spin three times while rubbing yopur stomach and patting your head, before spazzily throwing the dice behind you into the sink.
Nor do I want to see the effects of your 'hilarious' half-kilo monstrosity on my table/maps/figures/drinks. If it can put a dent in any of them, we'll see if it makes a dent in your head as we hurl it after your fleeing ass.
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I have found asking what previous characters they have played can be a good tell.
If they bust out with: oh well this one time my half gnome/thri-kreen psionists/bard was stuck in a dungeon looking for his lost orange wig, because you know he totally couldn't (random inappropriate topic to bring up with someone you just met) the BBEG without it. I put them in the not being invited column.
Thank you for the advice all! There is no magic wand when deciding on new players, but I think the process can always be improved upon.
My situation will be recruiting an entirely new group, which is why I happened to thinking of the issue in detail. As a side note, isn't it funny how this process resembles a job interview? *chuckles* Back in the day, our parents never realized that we were in fact auditioning for our adult careers
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Color me curious. What sorts of games do you mean?
Showing my UK roots here, but Heroquest? Space Hulk?
Games Workshop were always good for a fantasy/scifi game, when I was a lad.
Warrior Knights
Fury of Dracula
Rogue Trooper
Judge Dredd
Talisman
Basically the sort of games that 'gamers' would like the theme of, as opposed to stuff you'd play with your Gran*, like Monopoly, Scrabble and Cluedo.
*Unless your Gran was super-cool, obviously.
I have found that inviting a person over to make a character with me is a great way to interview a new player. I first start out with info about the group, play style, current characters and then any house rules we use.
I then go over the character creation rules. At this point most gamers begin talking about what kind of character they may want to play and I get a good sense of what kind of person/player they are.
I have also learned that the above process goes much smoother and faster than trying to do it across email. Any questions the player has are answered right away and they get a in person sense about why we have certain house rules.
The point being that its a no pressure way to get a new person talking and communicating which is a great way to judge if they will really fit in with the group.