Following up from the previous post, I wanted to share some of what I do to get my game going.
The first obstacle you have in front of you is starting. As you wait for everyone to arrive, chatter about all manners of topics take place. Normally this is great. RPGs are at heart social games, so you want your group to feel comfortable enough to converse out of game too. The best groups have chemistry amongst the players. But you have a problem. You want to start the game. You try to interject:
“So guys, let’s start –”
“…and then I landed a three-hit combo and won it with a sliver of life left!”
“That’s awesome.”
“Yeah, and the next game –”
“Guys, let’s start”
“Did you see the Lord of The Rings super-mega-HD-bleeding-eyes cut?”
If you interject too fiercely, you disrupt the chemistry. This can cause players to either try to keep chatting about the interrupted topic during the game, or just take that energy level down to a point where you’ve given yourself more work to do in picking it back up.
So what do you do?
My technique is to ask a question.
Questions rock. Proper questions open the conversation to something new. Questions easily refocus attention and can instantly get players head into gamespace. The right question ( or series of questions) can build character, supply you with hooks for future use and drive the game forward.
The question about questions you have now is: What questions to ask?
There’s a range, and what you ask depends mostly on how far from game-readiness the group is. The shape and function of the question though, is something that gets people thinking about the game. even better is to ask a question that forces a player to expound on what his character is thinking about the game world.
“What does <character name> think about this situation you guys are in?”
It’s simple, but the second you ask it, you are directing the thoughts of your players away from the distractions and towards your game. If players are recalcitrant, or at a loss (expect this the first time you do try the technique) gently guide them with follow-up questions. Don’t let players off with mono-syllabic answers. Build and fill in the gaps where you can.
“Joe, What does Thor think about the noble’s refusal to send aid?”
“He’s not happy about it.”
“Did he expect the noble to send aid?”
“Not really.”
“Does he just not trust nobles?”
“Yeah, he doesn’t like them.”
“Why? Did something happen to him to cause that distrust?”
(thinking) “…maybe his family had some problems with them?”
“So maybe, say, a noble killed your brother for something frivolous?”
“Yes, he was mistaken for a poacher on the noble’s land.”
“What was the noble’s name?”
“Franz Ferdinand” (hehe)
“cool. ” (scribbles notes) “Jane, what does Illiana think of the noble’s refusal to help?”
Do you see what’s going on in this exchange? In order to answer your questions, the player must shift their attention on their character’s mindset. You build some detail of a character’s past, link it to the present ( The past is most important for stories in how it informs what the character does right now), and create hooks for later use. Franz Ferdinand or someone from his family could make an appearance in the future.
Once you’ve run everyone through this, you should be ready to go. You’ve seamlessly transitioned from out-of-game banter and thinking to in-game, in-game character thinking, and now the game is really ready to start.
If anyone already does this, or tries it out I would love to hear some other examples of this technique applied to other gametables besides mine.
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About gamefiend
A Jack of All Trades ,or if you prefer, an extreme example of multi-classing, Gamefiend, a.k.a Quinn Murphy has been discussing, playing and designing games straight out of the womb. He is the owner and Editor-in-Chief of this site in addition to being an aspiring game designer. As you would assume, he is a huge fan of 4e. By day he is a technologist.
We’ve had this problem in my group a number of times. I can sit there and hear the DM say “Ok guys, let’s get start- guys? Seriously stop quoting Holy Grail, it’s retar- Dude, shut up that’s not what Frodo was thinking when he kept the ring!” and then everyone starts arguing over something not even tangentially related to the game.
I wonder if this tactic would help. It’s an interesting idea in the least, to help get people to think as their characters, and would even work outside of just trying to get everyone to focus. An interesting post to say the least.
Interesting idea. Would use it to see how it works.
Although my first question would probably be, ‘Guys, can we start now?’
Hi guys! Sorry for the delay getting back to you.
@Dadamh –I find it pretty helpful. Something else you can add to that are just general “icebreakers” that are appropriate for the game. Asking a question like, “What has your character done up to this point that he’s most proud of?” gets you going and again, can provide you with some great hooks for later.
@Questing GM –heh. If you try this out, would love to hear how it works!
[...] At Will, a blog I discovered via the RPG Bloggers Network, offers up a nifty article about getting any session started smoothly — and with a bang by asking your players questions. Not, “So…you guys remember what happened last [...]
[...] Trouble Getting Started? The Answer is a Question. [...]
You know, I do this sometimes without even thinking about it, it’s a standard teacher trick for starting class. Works for the same reasons.
I’ve also had success with asking players to -do- things. Remember positive reinforcement works better here.
“Ok, so I’ve got two figures, that’s a good start” “Can everyone fill out an initiative card?” “Can you clean off the mat?” and so on.
I’ve heard two other ideas, that might be of interest.
1) Have campaign theme music. Of course, selecting that music is hard, but after a few sessions, playing the music is a signal that ‘we’re starting’
2) Plan a short encounter of 20-30 minutes, that can be done by half the party. This way, you can start with the people who are on time, and the latecomers will be there to reinforce when it gets harder.
(Yes, I’m assuming that some of your fellow gamers are late, and I don’t think I’m wrong about that. Staggered arrival makes this problem much worse.)