Interest check for 1-2 games?

[DecoyGirl]

I'm... REALLY kind of wanting to run a game.
Maybe something long term maybe something short.
Maybe something short that can tern into something short.

But both have the issue of having a few things I might want to run.
And not knowing what people want to play.

I know that Mutants and Masterminds and Pathfinder1E always get a lot of attention, and I know and like both of those a lot.
But also kind of want to do Star Wars Sage or Star Trek Adventures.
May actually consider two games.

But more wondering what everyone is feeling at the time.

[Eric]

Are you looking for advice from fellow GMs on whether/which to run, or interest from potential players for one or more of the systems?

[DecoyGirl]

On 12/5/2023 at 12:31 PM, Eric said:

Are you looking for advice from fellow GMs on whether/which to run, or interest from potential players for one or more of the systems?

Yes....

But for real, players.
But also advice from other GMs as to what tends to get players on the site.

[Basil_Bottletop]

Put some thought and effort into your campaign and write it down where people can see it (read: post the info bits in your game forum). That's it. That's how you get people to be attracted to your ad. An ad that shows up and there's nothing in the forum for the players to grasp to is the easiest ad-killer out there, and even then there's enough thirsty players out there that it might not even stop them from just tossing out a character concept anyways.

So my suggestion is to pick one you want, put a solid hour-ish into info dumping in your forum (more if you have more). Post the ad. Players will show up.

[Vladim]

In my experience, people want fantasy, 5e and published modules. Those rarely fail to get interest, especially when combined-even half-baked ads will attract several applicants.

But more important, perhaps, is what you want. Pathfinder gets good interest too, so it seems to me like you won't have a problem.

Edit: that being said, more niche games may also attract a smaller pool of applicants, but those make up for it by being a bit more reliable, at least in my experience.

[Michael Silverbane]

They don't happen as often, but every Saga ad I've seen has attracted quite a few (half a dozen to a dozen) prospective players.

[hakootoko]

Despite being a minor system, I think Star Trek Adventures will get enough interest to run. The last time I saw an ad for it, it got a dozen players. 2d20 in general has interest; I recently joined a Fallout 2d20 game that got nine people.

So if you're concerned about what will get or not get players, there's no worry here.

 

(As an aside, why do I have no cursor on MW today?)

[cailano]

Ultimately, you don't need twenty apps to run a game, you need three or four dedicated players.

I've had great luck with ads for smaller systems. The MW community is large and active enough that you can usually find a group.

Go with the game you're most excited about and make sure your recruitment conveys that excitement.

It also doesn't hurt to talk about the system you want to run in Gaming Discussion for a couple of weeks before your recruitment starts. Gotta get that buzz going.

[TheFred]

On 12/7/2023 at 1:39 AM, Vladim said:

In my experience, people want fantasy, 5e and published modules. Those rarely fail to get interest, especially when combined-even half-baked ads will attract several applicants.

People want those things, but I don't know that they want them more than they want other things, or that it matters that much. A D&D 5e or PF2e adventure path or whatever will get applicants... but so will most PF1e, D&D 3.5 or M&M games, adventure paths or not.

I would echo the advice: run what you want to run, don't worry so much about what people want to play. There are too many players and not enough DMs so it's rare not to be able to find enough players (even for less common systems).

[DecoyGirl]

4 hours ago, TheFred said:

People want those things, but I don't know that they want them more than they want other things, or that it matters that much. A D&D 5e or PF2e adventure path or whatever will get applicants... but so will most PF1e, D&D 3.5 or M&M games, adventure paths or not.

I would echo the advice: run what you want to run, don't worry so much about what people want to play. There are too many players and not enough DMs so it's rare not to be able to find enough players (even for less common systems).

Thanks, that's good advice all around really.