Hi all, I’m running a campaign for some very busy professionals across some big time zone differences, and I’m looking to move to a game that will be flexible for players to drop in and out of. I’m thinking something mission based like Blades in the Dark or The Sprawl would be a good choice but I thought I would ask all you smart people in case there were some cool alternatives I missed.
Hi all, I’m running a campaign for some very busy professionals across some big time zone differences, and I’m…
Hi all, I’m running a campaign for some very busy professionals across some big time zone differences, and I’m…
Epidiah Ravachol’s Swords without Master is written with this sorta thing in mind. Drop-in is easy and it has a loose sense of continuity (session 5 could take place before 1), and designed to have a contained experience in each session. Session pacing is determined by acknowledging cool things people make up and reincorporating them.
Epidiah Ravachol’s Swords without Master is written with this sorta thing in mind. Drop-in is easy and it has a loose sense of continuity (session 5 could take place before 1), and designed to have a contained experience in each session. Session pacing is determined by acknowledging cool things people make up and reincorporating them.
Episode 45 of Discern Realities (http://www.gauntlet-rpg.com/discern-realities/episode-45) discusses this problem by incorporating love letters. It needs a bit of work on the GM’s side of things but would be doable in almost any game, but especially PtbA one.
The only game that I know of which has drop-in/out play as a part of narrative is the Suzerain setting for the trad RPG, Savage Worlds.
gauntlet-rpg.com – Episode 45
Episode 45 of Discern Realities (http://www.gauntlet-rpg.com/discern-realities/episode-45) discusses this problem by incorporating love letters. It needs a bit of work on the GM’s side of things but would be doable in almost any game, but especially PtbA one.
The only game that I know of which has drop-in/out play as a part of narrative is the Suzerain setting for the trad RPG, Savage Worlds.
gauntlet-rpg.com – Episode 45
Having played both Blades in the Dark and Sprawl, I can tell you that both are very suitable for what you have in mind.
Having played both Blades in the Dark and Sprawl, I can tell you that both are very suitable for what you have in mind.
It may not be your or your party’s cup of tea, but World Wide Wrestling is perfect for a rotating cast. You can come up with long-running plot arcs and have involved character stories, but it’s very easy to handle if someone is just not in that episode.
It may not be your or your party’s cup of tea, but World Wide Wrestling is perfect for a rotating cast. You can come up with long-running plot arcs and have involved character stories, but it’s very easy to handle if someone is just not in that episode.
Tyler Lominack Agreed! It is very good for just such a thing but my group has zero interest in pro wrestling.
Tyler Lominack Agreed! It is very good for just such a thing but my group has zero interest in pro wrestling.
Anything you can set up to “return to base” after each adventure would work. That’s how I’m running my current DW West Marches game. It allows me to have characters from across three groups (yep, you heard that right) to come and go from any game, and also allows for one-shot adventures. If you run out of time, put a pin in it and see if everyone can make it to the next run. If so, pick up where you left off, otherwise narrate that the other group had to return for some reason. It’s a little hand-wavey but it works.
Anything you can set up to “return to base” after each adventure would work. That’s how I’m running my current DW West Marches game. It allows me to have characters from across three groups (yep, you heard that right) to come and go from any game, and also allows for one-shot adventures. If you run out of time, put a pin in it and see if everyone can make it to the next run. If so, pick up where you left off, otherwise narrate that the other group had to return for some reason. It’s a little hand-wavey but it works.
Edward Hickcox has a good point. Playing something that brings folks back to an HQ can solve rotating cast. Maybe a supers game like Worlds in Peril. As far as fantasy-like, Blades in the Dark might provide that pretty well. Just run it like whichever of the crew is there goes on the job.
Honestly, back in college I used to just meta it. I’d have a guy walking into the scene we ended with, open a backpack, throw out some paper, and just walk off as the characters present rose from the sheets. If we could rationalize being elves and orcs, we could rationalize why a character was there one minute and gone the next…lol
Edward Hickcox has a good point. Playing something that brings folks back to an HQ can solve rotating cast. Maybe a supers game like Worlds in Peril. As far as fantasy-like, Blades in the Dark might provide that pretty well. Just run it like whichever of the crew is there goes on the job.
Honestly, back in college I used to just meta it. I’d have a guy walking into the scene we ended with, open a backpack, throw out some paper, and just walk off as the characters present rose from the sheets. If we could rationalize being elves and orcs, we could rationalize why a character was there one minute and gone the next…lol