What makes a good con game?

Discussion in 'RPG Discussion' started by a flannel shirt, Apr 2, 2011.

  1. a flannel shirt

    a flannel shirt Footpad

    I've never been to a con and I was wondering what do you guys expect in the games you play/run at cons?

    Are there prizes you give to people? Is that expected?
    As a GM do you prepare a lot?
    As a player do you expect to have a pregenerated character?
    As a GM do you generate all the characters?
    What was the best game you've ever ran / played in and why?

    I understand that these questions are mostly dependent on the system, I was just looking for opinions based off experience. I've become a sponge for information and opinions lately. As cheesy as it sounds due to only being on this forum for a short time, but I respect the opinions here more than other places.
     
  2. JediSoth

    JediSoth Troubadour

    When I play a game at a con, I usually expect to be provided a character (unless part of the point of the session is to generate one, or character generation takes 10 minutes or less). I don't expect swag for playing, though it's not unusual for there to be swag for the "Best Player" or sometimes for the whole group if someone is trying to promote the game they're running.

    As a GM, I prepare the adventure as I would for my home group, keeping in mind which parts I can cut out or add to, should I need to for time considerations. I always provide pre-generated characters that are tailored to the adventure.

    The best game I ever ran is hard. It's a toss up between one of my Paranoia games, "Killer Robots from AFU Sector," which had a kick-butt session at Gary Con last year (I ran it twice, but one session was heads above the other) and at Gen Con (and featured Ivan the Door Nazi kicking out one of my players for not having a badge; and it was in the Open Game Area where all games were free!), and my D&D Rules Cyclopedia game from this year, "Temple of the Mountain God." Actually, I'll award it to Paranoia, because the D&D game would have been better with more minis and props, I think, and I just ran out of time before the con to pull them together.

    It's even harder to pick the best game I ever played in at a con. I can easily tell you about the worst games I've ever played in. There were two, they were both at Gen Con, and (at the time) both featured the most recent edition of D&D. On the bright side, those bad experiences taught me a lot about GMing at a con and not to pay for that type of game again.
     
  3. a flannel shirt

    a flannel shirt Footpad

    Paranoia? I've had that game on the back burner for almost two years. I've been dying (and hope I'm not out of clones) to play that game but my group really only wants to play Star Wars Saga. If you run it next year I hope I can get in.

    What "type" of game are you referring to in your last sentence? Did you mean the system, GM style, or how the game was advertised?
     
  4. dndgeek

    dndgeek Troubadour

    Don't give the players too much to do for the time alloted. One or two typical dungeon levels is plenty for a 4-hour slot. I always give out prizes when I DM, but I don't expect them when I play. And make sure that the players can get to some sort of conclusion, regardless of whether they "finish" the adventure. I always bring out the "level boss" in the last twenty minutes or so, regardless of where they are, so the game can go out with a bang.
     
  5. a flannel shirt

    a flannel shirt Footpad

    Have any of you guys witnessed a bad reaction (player) to a character death?
     
  6. Totan

    Totan Spellbinder

    Prizes depend on the Con. At some there are prizes for every event, others not. Don't really care about prizes as a player too much. Often times people play with friends, so voting for best player tends to be in loyal blocks, not on actual game play. As a GM I would always try to have something, so I guess I'm a hypocrite :)

    GMs that know their material are best and ones that aren't ready are noticeable and a bit frustrating.

    Always expect pre-gens unless otherwise stated. Pre-gens tend to allow for and create much more interesting characters, with quirks, and pre-defined character histories. Allowing home-gens can get unbalanced, although that is less of a concern amongst mature crowds.

    Probably the best game that I've ever played in was a Stargate SG-1 game run by an absolute genius GM. The guy puts together all these very complex interwoven story lines and then runs them at the Con such that what you do in one event alters what happens and is observed in the subsequent events - it is amazing the level of detail that he retains and incorporates from all the prior games. Each game has detailed character interaction guidelines, and sometimes a double agent or two (alien or otherwise). If you play in multiple events, you get to see your other teams from new eyes, which are sometimes a time-travel clone. He keeps things moving, exciting, and always let you have enough grenades to have REAL FUN, errr I mean get yourself in real trouble! Folks tend to leave these games on an adrenaline high.

    Right behind the above guy I might put Shalaban's Dangerous Journeys game from last year - also a very good, complex, well run game.

    Things that contributed to both of the above games is that both GMs know their game systems inside and out. Both create complex, interesting stories.
     
  7. Totan

    Totan Spellbinder

    Yes, I've seen a passive aggressive type attitude / tantrum to getting hammered and then killed.
     
  8. JediSoth

    JediSoth Troubadour

    In both cases they were tournaments. In the first case, the game was little more than a string of combats (it was the D&D Open run by the RPGA). Any RP opportunities were summarized by the GM "You enter the keep and talk to the Lord. He tells you blah blah blah and you agree to whatever and stuff. You head to the dungeon and in the first room you encounter orcs. Roll for initiative." (That was greatly paraphrased.) It was like 5 minutes of the GM reading us the non-combat encounters in between major fights. We also got a late start because the tournament was using classes from a book that just premiered at the convention (Player's Handbook II for D&D 3.5) and no one at the table was familiar with the classes we were supposed to be playing, so the GM had to round up copies of the class descriptions so we knew what our abilities were. It really irritated me because the event description said NOTHING about using books that weren't out yet.

    The second case was Goodman Games Dungeon Crawl Classics Tournament. The tournament policy was to NOT allow players to use their own d20s, so we all had to pass around this huge d20 that needed more table space to roll than you typically have when you're sitting at a round table. As a consequence, the die basically just dropped to the table with a thud and didn't really roll. My character was taken out (petrified) at the beginning of the first combat and since this was D&D 4E, there was no way to un-petrify me in combat (it takes a Ritual which cannot be cast in combat). Without the Paladin and the Fighter, the combat took 3 hours. I literally sat there for at least 3/4 of the time slot watching other people play until I was able to be revived. NOT fun. Needless to say, our group barely made it past the first encounter.

    Now, some people might argue that it's a suitable challenging encounter for a con game. I say it's piss-poor encounter design to allow the possibility of one or more players to get knocked out in the first encounter in such a way that they don't actually die so they HAVE to stick around for hours waiting to be revived. I really felt like the whole event was a waste of my time and money, and as for the money and time that event took, I was really resentful of that. So much so that it put me off D&D 4E as a player pretty much forever. Plus, I vowed never to play in that company's tournaments again; my time at Gen Con is too valuable for that. Also, if cheating is a big enough problem at your event that you don't let players use their own dice, then I don't want to play in your tournament with those types of players.
     
  9. a flannel shirt

    a flannel shirt Footpad

    As a GM I always feel bad when someone gets turned to stone or paralyzed. I would modify the next room or two that would "free" them of their ailment. Something to make a little side quest for the players that remain. Probably why my games tend to last so long. If I were to have that happen at a con I might make that room come sooner.

    As a player would it upset you guys to have a GM fiat a room/statue/quest/puzzle to free you?
     
  10. jeffery st. clair

    jeffery st. clair Troubadour

    I'd rather just be handed a different character and "popped" into the party. Gary killed someone in the first room of a D&D dungeon he ran a few years ago (failed save against a giant spider bite) and 10 minutes later the guy was back in the fray with another PC. Frank killed some guys at GaryCon I, and when we ran back to town to rest and heal, we picked up their "long-lost cousins" or something.

    Never isolate a player - they get bored too fast (I know this first-hand).
     
  11. dndgeek

    dndgeek Troubadour

    Yeah, I got accidentally stabbed in the back by another player in Frank's POVT at GCI and died within the first couple of rooms. (We were first level, so it didn't take much.) I was gathering my stuff up and saying thanks for the game when Frank told me to take a seat. A little while later, the party ran back to town and I returned with his cousin, who miraculously had the same exact stats. ;)
     
  12. geekpreacher

    geekpreacher Spellbinder

    It's not expected but when I run a slotted game (not a pick up one) I usually give out a prize or two. If you're running a game for a company such as Kenzer, they will probably have swag for you to give the players. For example, this year anyone who played in a Learn to Hack game got a free copy of the Hackmaster Basic rules with the Erol Otus cover.

    You bet. That's why I often run just pick up games. If I'm running a slotted game, I make sure I prepare months in advance because I want it to be a good experience for everyone.

    These go together. It really depends on the system. For example, if you play a Hackmaster game and you generate the characters you will probably spend 25-30% of game time generating it. For many people, this is part of the fun of the game and I tend to agree. However, some people don't like it so it's good to have both ready.

    So, what do I do? I have some pregens ready and let others generate their own characters if they feel like it.

    At a Con? Aces & Eights. Jolly Blackburn was running it at GenCon a few years back and it was a blast. Lots of fun in the game and a lot of freedom for the PC's. By that, I mean that many of the PC's were given different goals but still had to work together. You weren't sure if someone's goal was close to yours or not.

    The game ended in a shootout throughout the train and it was great. I tried things in that game no one was prepared for and so did others. It was a blast. While I didn't make my goal, I did make it out alive and when you play a game like that one that says something!

    (Oh, and there were lots of jokes and Blazing Saddles references. The humor mixed with serious role play and combat made it worthwhile.)

    I've done something very similar. This is why "retainers" are good to have around during a Con game. When a PC gets killed, petrified or paralyzed, they can pick up one of the NPC's and run them. It may be a different class but thems the breaks.

    PC mortality can be high in some of the games I run but I do my best to make sure there are always plenty of NPC's to choose from.

    One thing the Kenzer guys did this year in their Hackmaster game was to let someone come back in right away if they got killed. Of course, that's part of the fun playing with those guys. It's not seeing if your character will live.....it's seeing HOW LONG it will live. :twisted:

    Most importantly, I try and make sure everyone at the table is having fun. This is why I don't run a game with more than 6 people if I can help it. It's hard to keep an eye on more players than that and I don't want to leave everyone out. I'm very big on pulling in the quiet people and getting their opinion.

    FWIW
     
  13. a flannel shirt

    a flannel shirt Footpad

    Thanks for all the advice guys. I ran my "possible" marvel super heroes game last night and it went pretty good. My notebook is full of things I should change when I run the game again. I am just reminded of the rules in that game is so open for interpretation, especially with powers. This I feel is going to require a lot of work on my part. I am not as concerned about character deaths in MSH. It is VERY hard to die in that system.

    Also on my plate is a basic red box game of D&D. I plan to write all of that up and test that in two weeks. Using everyone’s advice on character deaths I am feeling very comfortable running that game.

    My last endeavor would be a Star Wars Saga game. I know this system like the back of my hand. I just need to play test my game idea.

    My hopeful plan at GC IV would be to run these three games and play in as many others as I can.
     
  14. Emperor Xan

    Emperor Xan Troubadour

    I often sketch out how I'd like the story to go and then build in contingencies in case the players or NPCs (dice rolls, poor PC decisions in how to talk to the NPCs, etc.) short circuit scenes that would move the action faster towards the end than what would be considered fun. In such cases, NPCs, ships, gear, and what-have-you might get recycled so I don't have to make a bunch of things on the off chance things go horribly wrong. I also like mostly harmless encounters that make players slow down when they think a small area for the scenario will be a cakewalk.
     
  15. howandwhy99

    howandwhy99 Level 0 Character

    Normally I don't bring prizes, but I did manage to get an old 2E DMG and Dragon Magazine (in the late 100's) to give out this time. I put them on the table and told players to take 'em, if they wanted 'em. I don't expect or usually give out prizes.

    As a referee I prepare for a con game differently than for a campaign. It's basically the first session of a campaign game, but the detail only needs to account for everything capable of being explored within the allotted game time. I ran a 6 hour session this time, which broke after 5. It all depends upon the group. For the session as it ran, I had more than enough. With other groups they may have reached the end of what I prepared within the time limit.

    As a player I expect the GM/DM to be prepared. As you say pregens are system dependent, but I don't scoff at either way. I like a fun pregen and I like to make up my own.

    As a ref I normally don't pregen PCs as the system is very fast for character generation. However, I think I can trim that down as it did take a bit too much time this last go around.

    The best 1-shot I ran was a game of Dread. It is a little like Paranoia with a lot of potential character death, so the system is suited to the "1 and done" convention game format rather than D&D's "Bigger, and bigger, and bigger" style. The best game I ever played in at a Con? Let's limit it to GaryCon. Tavis' OD&D running of the Paul Jaquay's Walking Wet ~ probably more last year than this year's, but both were excellent. Much of that has to do with the system, the DM, and the adventure. Mostly, I'd say, it's about the players and how we are all engaging with each other.

    To your title question "What makes a good con game?" I'd say it depends upon a lot of factors. It's subjective to be sure, but, like the con itself, a good game needs a GM to be organized and prepared. The players have to be inspired by the material. The material is best when inspiring in its own right. The only complaint I would have against Con games that I don't see a means of overcoming is the noise factor. Games ask for a lot of focused concentration and loud, noisy, hard to think in convention halls can make this very difficult to do.
     

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