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1. Take a shower.
2. Brush your teeth.
3. Put on a clean shirt.
1.be cool
2.have decent hygiene
3.know the basic game rules
4.don't be unproductive
5.have fun
1a or just wash up carefully and wash hair if hadn't done so yesterday.
4. Put on clean socks.
7. Don't bring your problems with you for an airing.
When responding to "how ya doing?" Its ok to share that your wife is pissed at you, you are getting fired, chemotherapy is hard etc - the group is likely your friends... Its GOOD to share, they probably want to know and help with your woes, but when the game starts, lay aside the troubles of the world and focus on the game.
- I am glad I managed to get at time, I was afraid I would have to call off the session...
- Why?- Grandfather died tonight - I had to go to hospital, pick his things, get the death certificate issued and make preparations for burial... I barely made it in time.
- We don't have to play if you are not in the mood for playing.
- Nah, I can play, I will be a bit distracted at worst.
> Bring your stuff. Nothing slows a game down more than the guy who always forgets to bring his character sheet, his dice, his book(s), etc. If you can't remember it more than two or three times, you need to leave it with the DM.
> Contact the DM with any out-of-game inquiries. Questions about builds, how certain rules work, what XP you should be at, etc. If all these questions are answered before the game starts, it makes starting without distractions smoother.
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13. If the GM gives you a task between games such as a short session write-up then make sure you do it.
14. Level up your character, if you need help contact your GM or a fellow player to help you level up your character.
15. Give your GM an updated copy of your character.
-> The GM does a lot of prep work, so as a player do your little bit.
16. If you're the GM read the adventure. Even if you wrote it, read it again!
6. Dont be drunk or under the influence.
The gaming group MAY do that sort of thing as part of the game session but its bad form to show up drunk/stoned even if the group is gonna do it later. Its worse form when the group won't.
+1
We have a player who will forever be known as his Orc name "Drunky." I refuse to run a game where he's a player, or play in a game where he's the GM because of it.
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The GM puts a lot of work into the game, and more often than not hosts it at their house. Don't arrive empty-handed and ask if there are snacks. Bring a dish, or at least spring for a two-liter of Mountain Dew. Also, treat the house with some respect. Cheetos wars are best left to the middle schoolers.
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The GM puts a lot of work into the game, and more often than not hosts it at their house. Don't arrive empty-handed and ask if there are snacks. Bring a dish, or at least spring for a two-liter of Mountain Dew. Also, treat the house with some respect. Cheetos wars are best left to the middle schoolers.
YES.
I've been going broke feeding my group, even when I wasn't the GM.oh, and speaking of this. I better get to cookie making. Gotta go buy chocoalte chips first, and some sugar.
The GM puts a lot of work into the game, and more often than not hosts it at their house. Don't arrive empty-handed and ask if there are snacks. Bring a dish, or at least spring for a two-liter of Mountain Dew. Also, treat the house with some respect. Cheetos wars are best left to the middle schoolers.
The group I usually play a home game with, we treat it as a pot luck. Everyone brings something when they can. No one in the group has come more than once without bringing something, and that includes the two teenagers that are members.
As far as PFS goes, I do have a list of rules that I hope that people that I GM follow...
1. Wash yourself. You are in a room full of other people, we don't want to smell you if you haven't.
2. Be respectful to the GM and more importantly to the other players. This is especially important when reading the VC Briefing at the beginning of the scenario.
3. Limit the table talk. A lot of time, Society sessions during the week take place in the early evenings. We don't want them to go to midnight because you feel the need to talk across the table instead of taking your turn.
4. Know your character. At lower levels, I'll let this slide. Once you hit level 4, I don't. If you have a spell, know what it does. I'm tired of someone asking me "What do I roll for Cure Light Wounds?"
5. Do your math before calling out your roll. I frequently have players that go I had a sixteen, no wait, eighteen. It starts to slow things down in later levels when you are doing it 3-4 times during an attack.
6. Clean up after yourself. If you are drinking a pop (soda for you non-Midwesterners), take care of it afterwords. I already have to clean up the mess of minis and dice I use, paperwork that I need, maps, and books as well as my own personal garbage. This goes back to the respect issue.
7. Unless I tell you otherwise, or there is limited space, DO NOT SIT NEXT TO ME. I have a set way that I lay things out, and it takes up most of one side of a table.
7. Don't bring your problems with you for an airing.
When responding to "how ya doing?" Its ok to share that your wife is pissed at you, you are getting fired, chemotherapy is hard etc - the group is likely your friends... Its GOOD to share, they probably want to know and help with your woes, but when the game starts, lay aside the troubles of the world and focus on the game.
- I am glad I managed to get at time, I was afraid I would have to call off the session.../QUOTE]
I had to do something today that I've had to do a couple of times, but hate how it affects our infrequent game nights. I have what my doctor terms "treatment resistant General Anxiety Disorder (along with a couple of other things), and I'm the DM for our group. I had to text, email, and call people today to postpone our game tonight, and of course it made me feel even worse. One of my guys makes a nearly 2 hour one way trip for our game nights. I've even very recently lost a long time friend and gamer because he sent out a very unpleasant mass email to the group telling everyone I "just do this for attention". I don't. I wasn't supposed to know this, but he forgot to take me out of his cc address bar.
I guess what I'm getting at here is I'm agreeing with the OP and others that bringing all your troubles to the table isn't a good thing. That's why I had to cancel a very long overdue game night because otherwise I'd have sat there in front of everyone shaking and stuttering, making for a really unsatisfactory game.
I'm not sure but some of the recommendations here do not make for a fun night of gaming...being a responsible drinker goes out the door after 3rd maybe 4th hour! smoking..and the like...that up to the individual..Ok now maybe Im a sheltered player but everyone Ive ever played with did not need to be told to "take a bath" or "brush their teeth"! Um as far as feeding people we almost always make a meal or one is brought(if you read this you know who u r....made props!!!!!!!!!)Yes things get out of hand and yes I can be a challenging player to deal with..but Its So Much Fun. maybe my sheltered gaming life has enabled me to play the way I like and not worry so much about the other folk..Why would they keep coming back for more if they weren't having fun also? I have 1 rule I would enforce "Dont Search for 15 F-in minutes in real time when we know nothings around!!!!!"or "dont take half an hour to take your turn..Attack Attack Attack....Talk later!". I look at it like this..if you come to our game (not just the GMs game/ we play together)Be Cool chillout and expect some sh@t to go down! Long Live Peasantsbane!
Yeah a couple of these could be totally "Things to do before going out in public", and it's a bit sad they should be stated as rules.
Well still your tellint people to take a bath & brush their teeth. I dont understand that. My bad..Why wouldn't you bring your own stuff? Like Ive written before "maybe im sheltered but telling someone to take a bath is .....Um retarded..If you need to say "take a bath you dirty hippie" Thats ok Its your right 1st Amendment right. But who are these people your playing with???? I need a list to turn into the "Man". We must keep gaming clean....NO DIRTY HIPPIES!!!!!!!!!!Long Live Peasantsbane
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When I host a game:
- Please refrain from smoking in my rooms.
- Yes, the balcony is open and available if you need to have a smoke. The stairbase and my bathroom aren't. (Sheesh, why must people smoke in the bathroom? Does the unique... aroma add to the experience?)
- I'd greatly appreciate if you took your cigarette butts with you. Putting them into a beer bottle you'll throw away anyway is ok. Tossing them into my flower pots is not.
- Time your smoking breaks in a way that does not disrupt the game. If you need to run outside for a cig mid-combat, I am not going to pause things on your turn and have everyone wait until you come back.
I reserve the right to show up un-showered on my day off to game, with friends anyways, if it's a "public" event, then I expect not to smell myself nor others.
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Well, there's also a big difference between unshowered after a day at the office and unshowered after a day in the mine.
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I'm not sure but some of the recommendations here do not make for a fun night of gaming...being a responsible drinker goes out the door after 3rd maybe 4th hour!
If that's what your group does more power to you. I myself find I have enough trouble keeping sober players on task sometimes.
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I'm not sure but some of the recommendations here do not make for a fun night of gaming...being a responsible drinker goes out the door after 3rd maybe 4th hour!If that's what your group does more power to you. I myself find I have enough trouble keeping sober players on task sometimes.
Irresponsible drinking after the third or fourth hour was a compromise that our table forged. Before that, Peasantsbane would usually start drinking irresponsibly three to four hours before the game started.
At least he doesn't come to the table with loaded weapons anymore.
EDIT: In case it isn't already clear, although our game works very happily for us, I wouldn't recommend anyone else use Anklebiter house rules.
Bringing loaded weapons is a house rule in my group.
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"Coming loaded for bear... acceptable.
Coming just plain loaded... not so much."
;)
No one brings firearms to our games, but there is one guy who has at least 3 concealed knives with him at all times.
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Bringing a loaded weapon is just common sense. Bringing an unloaded weapon would be irresponsible.
But, on a etiquette note - there are some people that are just clueless about societal norms or proper etiquette, and too few people are willing to bring it to their attention. I suspect that this is what created the problem in the first place - either an upbringing that never made clear the need, or friendly mentions that it needed done.
There's a couple people I've gamed with that needed to be told that, unless they fixed their hygiene problems, they would no longer be welcome.
They fixed the issue, and it's never been a problem since.
One thing to note: When mentioning the "Thou Shalt Bathe" commandment, you need to look at it's buddy, "Thou Shalt Wear Fresh Clothes (Especially Undergarments)".
Some people don't get it, and need the reminder. If they continually fail to get it, well, sorry, bye.
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Sad thing is that most of these rules can be applied to the more general category of "Before you go out in public." Ours is a hobby which attracts the socially retarded, apparently.
The guns bother me far less than the alcohol heh, all the players I have that own firearms are responsible enough to know how to use them properly.
And +1 to Shadowborn... then again such is the nature of the beast. We do what we can, but sometimes it falls on deaf ears.
Having been approached by a couple of guys looking for a game because "they just couldn't seem to find one with openings", I can relate. I've mentioned this on other threads, but I'll toss it out here again for the heck of it. One of them smelled like rotten meat and the other had lice visibly crawling around in his beard.
Why, God? Why?
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My favorite GM kept a small pencil case to discourage bad gamers.
Inside was an OLD Snickers bar, a bar of used Dial soap, a set of grungy dice, and a chewed-up pencil.
"If you forgot any of these things, you can use mine."
....Nobody needed a reminder after that.
As the gaming folk get older, i can't help but think something like this would be an excellent addition to the front page of a group's House Rule section.
Something like:
We meet at John's house. John has 3 kids. While usually you are free to help yourself to drinks, he does ask that the milk is off limits. Also- his wife hates dirty shoes tracked all over the floor so please take off shoes. Since there are 3 kids in the house we try to keep language at a minimum and limit alcohol comsumption until after they've gone to bed. You are, of course, welcome to bring things to put into the fridge until you consume them. The group typically orders out (pizza or whatever) and the average bill per person is 7 dollars a head. (counting tax and tips).
Please come prepared accordingly, thanks.
I think something like that could be very effective and handy as something that the entire group has, in writing.. and if they made a character already its a fair assuming they read the house rules.. or at least had access to them.
-S
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I would only feel comfortable handing a note like that out at a game where not everyone is friends with each other. I tend to only play with people I'm already friends with/planning on making friends with, so something like that would feel awkwardly formal to me.
Eh, we've started formally codifying house rules in a document hand-out, and since we've regularly needed to recruit new folks due to the job schedules or out-of-area moves removing large parts of our group, we've included a few similar statements to good response from new recruits.
They've appreciated having the group etiquette rules spelled out since they're new to the group. It gets a lot of stuff out of the way early, and lets us quickly get to gaming and getting to know each other.
And for those, like myself, who get inspired to be an extra-good guest by the advice of this thread, I'll add another: If your GM doesn't have your phone number, and you regularly call to make sure the game is still on and get responses like "Yes, of course" delivered in a tone that says "do you think I wouldn't tell you? Do you have to do this EVERY week???"
...be aware that the ONE time you don't call, and show up with a big smile holding a large amount of snacks for everyone and having paid extreme attention to your physical presentation, the game will be canceled and your GM will look at you in frustration and say "You call everyone week! Why didn't you call today?"
*Sigh*
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In modern times and with modern technology:
If you agreed to do side quests or forum RP online between game, you do it.
On a related note but covering a broader area of life: If you said you would do something, you do it.
The excuses that "I didn't have time," or "Life got in the way," are horrible. You have time for what you make time for. Life doesn't get in the way, you are just horrible at organizing it. I am a little friendlier when I talk to people about that in person, but the message is the same.
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The excuses that "I didn't have time," or "Life got in the way," are horrible. You have time for what you make time for. Life doesn't get in the way, you are just horrible at organizing it.
Sorry to contradict you, but during the time when both of my parents were hospitalized, myself being the only family member who lived close enough to come over, Life got in the way for roleplaying for me.
Just saying.
And for those, like myself, who get inspired to be an extra-good guest by the advice of this thread, I'll add another: If your GM doesn't have your phone number, and you regularly call to make sure the game is still on and get responses like "Yes, of course" delivered in a tone that says "do you think I wouldn't tell you? Do you have to do this EVERY week???"
...be aware that the ONE time you don't call, and show up with a big smile holding a large amount of snacks for everyone and having paid extreme attention to your physical presentation, the game will be canceled and your GM will look at you in frustration and say "You call everyone week! Why didn't you call today?"
*Sigh*
Wow, sorry to hear that.
But if you call him every week his should have it logged in his phone! (especially if it's a mobile)
The kicker is- he's called me before. He just never saved the number.
I made him write it down before I left, so at least it shouldn't happen again.
The excuses that "I didn't have time," or "Life got in the way," are horrible. You have time for what you make time for. Life doesn't get in the way, you are just horrible at organizing it.Sorry to contradict you, but during the time when both of my parents were hospitalized, myself being the only family member who lived close enough to come over, Life got in the way for roleplaying for me.
Just saying.
This.
Things happen. Unexpected surprises come up. Nobody (or at least, nobody with sense) should blame someone for having to deal with such circumstances.
Now, when "stuff happens" every two weeks without explanation, then there's another issue entirely, and it's not "life getting in the way". But the way your original comment is worded, it's hard to differentiate.
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The excuses that "I didn't have time," or "Life got in the way," are horrible. You have time for what you make time for. Life doesn't get in the way, you are just horrible at organizing it.Sorry to contradict you, but during the time when both of my parents were hospitalized, myself being the only family member who lived close enough to come over, Life got in the way for roleplaying for me.
Just saying.
There are exceptions to my rules. If you told me your story I would understand and even go out of my way to help you. If you are part of my regular gaming group, I show up at your house unexpected with soup if you are sick. Not just any soup, my wife's chicken noodle soup that takes her about a day to make.
However, most of the time when someone tells me that life got in the way of doing something they told me they were going to do their answer to, "What happened?" is often along the lines of, "Work, family, and life stuff. You know." That is when life didn't get in the way, you just didn't organize it well. I am kind, tactful, and gentle when I tell you how disappointed I am, and how that you may have made things harder on me for not doing whatever it was you didn't do.
I don't often give 'homework' assignments, but when I do, they are important to the game. As in: you don't do them and the next session is going to be stalled for an hour or more while you do the assignment. I allow people to say no, but I want them to say no when I have a week to do something about it.
This all just boils down to accountability. If you say you will do something, you need to do it. Yes, there are times when life does throw huge obstacles in your path and those I easily forgive. It is when you had the ability but didn't take the action that bugs me.
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...There are exceptions to my rules... However, most of the time when someone tells me that life got in the way of doing something they told me they were going to do their answer to, "What happened?" is often along the lines of, "Work, family, and life stuff. You know." That is when life didn't get in the way, you just didn't organize it well...
I don't often give 'homework' assignments, but when I do, they are important to the game. As in: you don't do them and the next session is going to be stalled for an hour or more while you do the assignment. I allow people to say no, but I want them to say no when I have a week to do something about it.
This all just boils down to accountability. If you say you will do something, you need to do it. Yes, there are times when life does throw huge obstacles in your path and those I easily forgive. It is when you had the ability but didn't take the action that bugs me.
It sounds much better the way you said it the second time. When I saw the previous post, I started to get a little hot under the collar.
I occasionally have a week where I work 80+ hours. I literally go from work to bed the whole week. I also somtimes have to travel for work and I am not going to drag an extra suitcase full of manuals incase I happen to have some time in the evening. Both occur because of emergencies, so I simply cannot plan for them.
On the other hand, I do know some people who claim to not have time but they did buy the new 'Y' video game and played non stop for 3 days until they beat it.
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I actually had a chat with a fellow gamer about this recently. I would change my first post to reflect the result of that conversation if I could.
Most often "I don't have time," means "This isn't a priority for me." This is perfectly alright, as game shouldn't be a priority over most things in life. The problem comes when they committed to do what was asked of them and were excited to do it and then made playing the latest video game or some other similar task a top priority.
In this day and age, you can often tell where people's priorities are by looking at Facebook. If they almost never post, and when they do it is about events at work or family life, it is pretty clear they can't make your game a priority. If they are constantly posting, and posting about anime, cats, video games, or other similar stuff, I would expect them to have the time to do what they agreed to do and make doing such a priority.
The kicker is- he's called me before. He just never saved the number.
I made him write it down before I left, so at least it shouldn't happen again.
I used to drive around 45m one way to the weekly game, and every week I called 'em up.. "Game still on? Ok, awesome, see you in an hour".
Nowdays we handle it with a forum calendar that tracks attendance. makes it so much easier.
(I readily recommend obsidian portal for that, btw, its awesome for games)
-S
Hmmm... rules...
1- Clean yourself and wear clean clothes. I know it was said multiple times already but it is important. I had a farmer in one of my games and he always smelled like he just came in from rolling in the manure. And I have been to Cons where the people smelled like they hadn't bathed in four days.
2- Don't drink or do drugs before or during the game. They don't make you a better player (even though you may think so while under the influence) they just make you disruptive. Although I did break this rule for one guy. But then he saved me from an attack and so I would damn near let him do whatever he wants in my game. He shattered his wooden Japanese practice sword across the back of my attacker and now if he wants to drink at my game I let him. I would gladly suffer his poor role play and have him around if I ever need him again. My safety is more important than my game. Although I am glad I wasn't hosting the game the one time he puked all over the table.
3- Respect peoples boundaries. I had one player who would show up at my place and invite himself inside any time he felt like dropping by. He also had a habit of helping himself to my food or drinks ...or anyone's food or drinks really.