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To clarify, no one takes calls at the table. Its the g!~$@+n Facebooking and MySpacing and Redditing and every other social or picture driven website surfing that infuriates me.
This is important and changes the tone of this whole thread. Obviously looking up rules doesn't apply anymore, and collecting phones at the door makes (more) sense.
You said you can't ban them - why not?
At some point you need to be able to say, "if you're going to use your phones for anything other than looking up rules or for emergencies, this is the last game you'll be welcome to join, for the sake of my sanity and everyone else here who's wanting a good time and doing the right thing. Please."
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Part of the pre-game ritual is everybody turning their cellphones (and similar devices) off.
My players families are given my personal number so they can still reach their loved ones in the event of an emergency.
See, that'd be a deal breaker for me. If I've got family or friends who need to contact me in an emergency, I want them to be able to use the number they've got saved in their phones so they can call me without having to try and find or remember a new number.
And like some other posters, I sometimes do on-call work. Or the people doing on-call work that week might need to call me for something if it falls under my particular area. So no way I'm turning off my phone. I'll happily step away from the table to take a call, but I have a phone to be contactable. Turning it off defeats that purpose. If someone calls me and it isn't an emergency, I'll explain that I'm at a game, and I'll call them back the next day.
Yeah, I'm sorry but if my wife and/or son need to reach me in case of emergency and I have to choose between access to them and an overreaching host I'd just as soon as NOT play with those people.
Youre not entitled to confiscate my property because then you start down a slippery slope. What do you feel entitled to next? No thanks.
You deal with this sort of thing on a case by case basis. If you have someone who is constantly on their phone facebooking, tweeting, G+ing or whatever then you deal with THAT player.
I'm not sure if you were addressing me Shin, but just in case I feel I should probably respond to you.
Yeah, I'm sorry but if my wife and/or son need to reach me in case of emergency and I have to choose between access to them and an overreaching host I'd just as soon as NOT play with those people.There was never any sacrifice of access, there was always a line kept open.
Youre not entitled to confiscate my property because then you start down a slippery slope. What do you feel entitled to next? No thanks.How did you come to that conclusion?
I said the ritual was turning them off not turning them over.
Yeah, not responding to you specifically.
It was someone else I think who had mentioned basically having everyone ditch their phones at the door, which is pretty much the same as confiscating your property.
Also how is there is a line of access open if you make everyone turn off their cell phones?
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Yeah, not responding to you specifically.
It was someone else I think who had mentioned basically having everyone ditch their phones at the door, which is pretty much the same as confiscating your property.
I think Hama has his home wrapped within a Faraday Cage anyways O.o
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I don't. I just find that people can't stop fiddling with their crap if it's within easy reach. So a phone basket is a must. It's near the table, and if it starts ringing, the owner can get up, answer and we stop playing till he gets back to the table.
I actually had to ask a player not to bring his laptop any longer because he kept watching Heartstone streams on it. Then I had to ask him not to come to the game any more when he refused, first not to watch heartstone, than not to bring the laptop.
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My concession to the phone bit is to keep in on vibrate, in my pocket and out of sight. If I should get a call from one of the three people that have my number, it is probably important and I'll check on it in the most polite way possible.
The problem is less about having the phone/device -- even if you need it for work, for children or whatever -- and having to play with the #@%#@^#$@^ thing every second that you aren't rolling dice. I loathe people that don't pay attention whether I am GMing or playing. If I have to prod you multiple times a session because you are Facebooking/Twittering/Texting/playing a game and everyone else seems involved, I tend to believe the fault lies outside of myself -- that is, I seem to be capturing everyone else's attention except the person with the toy. I've asked people who cannot put the toy away to go home before, and I'd do so again. You are a distraction to everyone else and you aren't contributing. You seem to have someone you'd rather do. Go do that and if/when you want to be with us, then come do so.
Back in the day, before cell phones, we had similar problems with people bringing friends/dates to the game and being distracted, or going to play pool while another people was dealing with something or whatever. If you don't want to be at the table or are that easily derailed, I'm not sure tabletop is for you. It seems harsh, perhaps, but I guard my free time and game time jealously and find myself highly irritated that Captain Cellphone cannot put it away and roleplay for a while.
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I think we can all agree if a person can't pull himself away from a cell phone or any similar device they should not be doing tabletop gaming. So far unless a person gas no social skills I have yet to game with anyone who is addicted to his or her devices. At my table all it takes is one warning as a DM. Those who refuse will be asked to leave the game,
I don't. I just find that people can't stop fiddling with their crap if it's within easy reach. So a phone basket is a must. It's near the table, and if it starts ringing, the owner can get up, answer and we stop playing till he gets back to the table.
I actually had to ask a player not to bring his laptop any longer because he kept watching Heartstone streams on it. Then I had to ask him not to come to the game any more when he refused, first not to watch heartstone, than not to bring the laptop.
Ah - you game with 12 year-olds then! (seriously who does that? Refuses to not watch videos while the game is running? That is a lot over 'the line' even by my lack standards around cell phones).
This hasn't really been an issue at our table. Everyone uses cell phones, laptops, whatever. If it became an issue, I would ask the offending players to please not use their device. If that didn't work, I'd probably suggest we end the session for the night as it was too distracting, and see what the rest of the group thinks.
If all of the group was willing to put their devices off to the side, that could definitely work.
Overall though, I think this speaks to the complete lack of respect that some players have for the GM. Those players that are never behind the screen and don't understand the time commitment GMs put into making the session are usually the worst.
I run my games from my phone. Most of my players have their characters on their phone, tablet, or other device. I understand that may not be fun for everyone, but at my table it's the 21st century.
I would love to be able to do this. I've seen a few people manage it well. However, I've seen several attempting it with various degrees of success.
I occasionally game with GM that tries to run from his phone. But we can't see the pictures and maps he tries to show us. And the scrolling back and forth (and waiting on the scrolling) have made it difficult to follow what he is saying sometimes.
I know a couple guys that try to run whatever X program for the PC on their phones. We are constantly waiting on them while they are waiting for the other page to load. They insist it is sooo much faster, but they are the ones we are always waiting on, not the guys with a paper print out.
The concept is there, but I don't think the tech is quite advanced enough yet.
Somehow I've never had a problem with it. IIRC, TOZ had his characters and the rules open simultaneously on his gadgetry, so that everything was always a keystroke away -- that saved time, rather than costing it. Houstonderek would occasionally step out to smoke a cancer stick or make a booty call or whatever, there was never an issue with that.
There are several cases:
- An important call. Of course they can answer, it is important, and life always takes precedence.
- An unimportant call. An unspoken rule is that the call be terminated as quickly as possible, or the ringtone silence and the call unanswered.Since most of my players now use phones/tablets for rules reference, i cannot really use the "phone basket" thing that i used for years (namely, everyone puts their phones in a basket that is near the table but far away not to become a distraction.)
I can, however, and do, put MAC filtering on my wifi so that only sites one can access are PF srd and PRD. during the session.
Also, if someone is playing games on his phone while it is not his/her turn, they are warned twice, and then asked to leave the game for the day. I just sent my best friend away from the last session because of that.
Same thing happens for facebook/watching videos/anything that is not gaming really.
I come to the game with a 100% dedication for those next 5-8 hours. I expect the same from everyone else. If they don't want to play like that, they are welcome not to play with me.