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I am looking to play at a place tomorrow (Sunday) and noticed the place has a list of people playing (not names). It says there are two DMs available and twelve players and they are "waitlisting". From what I understand, this means that they have twelve players guaranteed and you're pretty much SOL unless one doesn't show. I was under the impression from several other GMs that if you show up it is on a first-come-first-serve basis so long as your character meets the requirements for the campaign. Is it valid to "reserve" a spot a week or two in advance assuming it is legitimate Pathfinder Society?
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I assume the game is listed on Warhorn?
PFS certainly does *not* have a "first come/first serve" policy; that would make organizing games quite problematic; players are ALWAYS encouraged to sign up for games in advance (sometimes weeks in advance).
That said, it's pretty uncommon for a walk-in to not be seated at a table; indeed, in many dozens of gamedays I've attended and/or organized, I don't recall that ever happening. If there are a dozen people, that can as easily be 3 tables of 4 as 2 tables of 6 - there are enough seasoned PFS folks out there that a judge can usually be rounded up from the existing players.
So - go to the game day! In future, now that you'll be a seasoned player, watch the game postings and sign up in advance when you can, but I think many of us wandered into a gameday unexpected and sat down to roll dice.
Venture-Captain, Michigan—Mt. Pleasant
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I am looking to play at a place tomorrow (Sunday) and noticed the place has a list of people playing (not names). It says there are two DMs available and twelve players and they are "waitlisting". From what I understand, this means that they have twelve players guaranteed and you're pretty much SOL unless one doesn't show. I was under the impression from several other GMs that if you show up it is on a first-come-first-serve basis so long as your character meets the requirements for the campaign. Is it valid to "reserve" a spot a week or two in advance assuming it is legitimate Pathfinder Society?
Different organizers have different rules for game days. Some have a "show up and play" policy, while others have a "if you didn't sign up, you're SOL" policy. You'd really want to ask the organizer for the particular event you're asking about to find out for certain.
I know there are also many that will give preference to new players over experienced players as they want to help the community grow. Others might not (though they'd risk a slow death of the community if they didn't give newer players preference.)
RPG Superstar 2014 Top 32
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In practically every case, I believe that most VCs would schedule an emergency third table. The only exception that I could think of is that my lodge recently held an anniversary game day in which we were running modules all day, and we had a TON of people, including from out-of-state, show up. I don't think we could have fielded a sixth table. On a normal Sunday, though, I am sure that you can find a spot, so long as you aren't late.
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I just state using Warhorn and am still trying to figure it out. It is really simple, but I am a bear of little brain, LOL. There is a setting which will "clear" an attendee, if the moderator does not check his e-mail or follow through, players will not be able to sign up for an event.
I think it is nearly criminal that some PFS Events do not have the option for new players to drop in. It is my impression that PFS is designed for new players to learn the system, as well as a method of structured play for veterans. I mean no offense to anyone by advocating or using this, so please don't flame me with your indignation, but I think there has to be room for new players!
Yes, our present system - see other thread - is chaotic and can waste significant time, but we always have room for new players, and it seems to work well for us. I am hoping the Warhorn thing I am starting addresses some of the shortcomings, time will tell.
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There can also be an issue if it's scheduled somewhere with limited space or tables for PFS. So even if you had enough GMs to cover another table there's nowhere for them to physically sit. And if it's last minute walk-ins that cause the overflow it's almost impossible to find them another location quickly.
If it happens too often as an organizer I'd look at other locations (or a contingency for a nearby overflow location such as a restaurant or gamer who lives close). Or buy a large van or better yet a box truck and convert it into a mobile PFS room.
We're lucky to have a large area at our local FLGS that's dedicated to game play - board, rpg, card, 40k, etc. But we also have conflicts to work around - it's too full Friday evenings & most of Saturday with other events, so we schedule our game Sunday when we know there's plenty of space available.
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My policy is that players who register on Warhorn are seated first at the tables. After a few months of near constant reminders, most people are now registering. It really helps to know what kind of attendance to expect so I know when I might need to call in an extra GM for overflow. I'll ALWAYS find room for new players.
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My personal view is Warhorn does exactly what it is set up to. It lets you create an event and get an idea of who is going to be able to attend so the dm can plan for tiers and table makeup (more the first, if you need to run high tier you need more prep time to read up on feats and high level spells (esp spells!))
I myself have been running tier 1-2 games of late because A) We have had an influx of new players locally and B) Im not quite confident enough (just ran my 5th game) to start cranking out the demons with their summon abilities and high level sorcs to fireball the party.
I am also trying to run the season 0 stuff as I like to find out the history of the society as well as trying to get the characters out of 1st into 2nd and beyond.
I have also noted that so far Ive never had everyone who has signed up via Warhorn turn up to the actual event. Other new players have dropped in though.
