trader jim
SOC-14 1K
at this time we all should consuder ourselvs lucky just to get two or three people togather....just look at the recruiting section...and read some orther sections....nobody is talking about large groups any more... 
Group Size for Traveller-RPG
- Thread starter s-feige
- Start date
RabidVargr
SOC-13
Right about that TJ... Maybe I should think about telecomuting to a game, maybe via Roger Wilco or something. Or netmeeting? That'd actually be kinda cool. 
RV
RV
trader jim
SOC-14 1K
i would like to know if the recruiting section is effective....is it working....is it getting groups togather??? 
For me, I find that I need 2 players to have my gming "Wheels" keep turning; one player doesn't provide enough sparks.
My ideal group is about 5 players.
Maxmimum useful group size, for me, is 8. Any more and thee's too much overlap.
I know a gent who ran a game with 22 players. FTF game, not PBEM. For a PBEM, there really is no limit.
My ideal group is about 5 players.
Maxmimum useful group size, for me, is 8. Any more and thee's too much overlap.
I know a gent who ran a game with 22 players. FTF game, not PBEM. For a PBEM, there really is no limit.
TheColonel
SOC-9
I ran a Pirate campaign where the players each had two characters. That way the crew of the ship was fully crewed by PCs'. The only down side of this situation was when you split up in groups, you had to have those two charcaters go together or one of them would become a NPC. Having to GMs is a must ofr any large group.
Lord Iron Wolf
SOC-12
I like to run games where there are 3-5 players with 8 being my comfort limit. I've done up to 14 and I find it very draining for a four hour session. Any lower number and I have to have the players roll up a second character to run (This is also good when you are expecting a high body count for the particular scenario.)
Traveller is rather unique in the fact that skills are randomly rolled and you may not get anyone with the right skill or killed in character generation before the skill is at a usable level. A quirk of the generation process. That quirk also gives me my own special view of Traveller--the very first character I rolled up was a pirate that was killed before he reached the end of his first term lol.
Here's to a Great, and occasionally Quirky, Game;
Lord Iron Wolf
Traveller is rather unique in the fact that skills are randomly rolled and you may not get anyone with the right skill or killed in character generation before the skill is at a usable level. A quirk of the generation process. That quirk also gives me my own special view of Traveller--the very first character I rolled up was a pirate that was killed before he reached the end of his first term lol.
Here's to a Great, and occasionally Quirky, Game;
Lord Iron Wolf
For D20, four to six players seems about right (from the player's point of view). Fewer, and you absolutely have to multi-class....
I ran a fairly long Shadowrun (2nd ed) game. I preferred running with four for most game sessions, could run with six okay, tried ten once and hated it (it was a one-shot game, thankfully). I also had some very fun solo sessions.
I ran a fairly long Shadowrun (2nd ed) game. I preferred running with four for most game sessions, could run with six okay, tried ten once and hated it (it was a one-shot game, thankfully). I also had some very fun solo sessions.
P
Prometheus
Guest
well in my opinion... a 3-4 guys and a Hot role playing chick (lisagb there is always room at our table for you). Also I suggest the group go easy on the soda and the fast food or else it will smell like a vargr ship before long.
I think the sweet spot for roleplaying groups is quite narrow.
If you have a group of n people, the number of possible interactions between people in the group is proportional to n (n-1) /2.1 This is a quadratic relationship.
My experience is that the sweet spot for most games is around 4-6 players plus a referee unless you have very high-initiative players that are really in tune with your game world. I don't think the genre makes a lot of difference, but a party that's too large can get a bit unwieldy in Traveller.
1 Note that this is an upper bound of sorts. It describes the number of possible paths of interaction rather than the number of actual interactions.
If you have a group of n people, the number of possible interactions between people in the group is proportional to n (n-1) /2.1 This is a quadratic relationship.
- For two players there is one path (1 <-> 2)
- For three players there are three paths (1 <->2, 1 <-> 3, 2 <->3)
- For four players there are six possible paths
- For five players there are 10 possible paths
- For six players there are 15 possible paths
- And so on ...
My experience is that the sweet spot for most games is around 4-6 players plus a referee unless you have very high-initiative players that are really in tune with your game world. I don't think the genre makes a lot of difference, but a party that's too large can get a bit unwieldy in Traveller.
1 Note that this is an upper bound of sorts. It describes the number of possible paths of interaction rather than the number of actual interactions.
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Timerover51
SOC-14 5K
I have run anywhere from 1 to 6 players, and think that 3 is about the minimum for a good session. However, I do allow each of my players to run 2 to 3 characters in the game, so the party can be larger than that.
creativehum
SOC-14 1K
I agree with everything you wrote.
I've found that with only two players things tend to fall a bit flat.
Three to six players is a good size for me. (I've never been one for huge player groups the way some people like. My current Monday night group consists of seven players total, with one Referee and six players at a session.)
When I get around to running my Traveller game I'll be having everyone roll up two three PCs. They can either have the extra PCs be part of the team, or hired on as crew to handle needed positions, or held offscreen until needed.
I think having additional PCs along for the ride, like the Hireling rules from D&D makes a lot of sense. They can help aid in lots of situations, and are on standby if a PC bites the dust.
But too many Players can bog down an evening -- at least for me.
i think 3 is a minimum, but 4 or 5 is optimal. 6 is the most players I would want to deal with, it can get bogged down with larger groups.
for traveller, the number of crew staterooms on the ship you intend to use is another issue to consider. the free trader and far trader both have 4 crew staterooms, which puts crew from 4 to 8. a smaller crew has fewer costs, but about 5 can be useful in combat easily (pilot, engineer, 2 gunners, and damage control). the ship designs tend to push towards that 4 or 5 player group size.
for traveller, the number of crew staterooms on the ship you intend to use is another issue to consider. the free trader and far trader both have 4 crew staterooms, which puts crew from 4 to 8. a smaller crew has fewer costs, but about 5 can be useful in combat easily (pilot, engineer, 2 gunners, and damage control). the ship designs tend to push towards that 4 or 5 player group size.
Condottiere
SOC-14 5K
Hammocks in the gangway.
Timerover51
SOC-14 5K
Habitable pod in the cargo area.
Condottiere
SOC-14 5K
Why does this keep resurfacing, without having a fresh post?
people voting in the poll.
