Questions tagged [absent-players]
For questions about players missing sessions. This covers questions about how to handle player characters when the player is away, and questions about handling missed progression from sessions where a player was absent. (See also: the [attendance] tag.)
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"Astral Flu" mechanic for scheduling problems
I am DMing 5e for a group at my job, but we are finding it very hard to find a suitable schedule for everyone. We are all very busy with unpredictable schedules and frequent work travels. Currently we ...
9
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Should I postpone Session Zero, so an irregular player can attend?
I am currently trying to start a campaign with a group of friends and our Session Zero was scheduled for next week.
One of my players has now told me, that he is unsure, if he will be a part of our ...
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My sister wants to play every other week at our weekly table. How do I fix the issues that come with this?
My sister and I both play at the local game shop once a week. It costs five bucks for anyone to get in.
Recently, my sister has started attending a church program every Wednesday and wants to play D&...
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How do I DM for this group when we can't handle a large group properly, but also can't count on any smaller group all attending?
I just concluded an online game with my players. (We played 5E, but I want to move to Dungeon World.) I started with four players, and that has since grown to around ten people wanting to play, which ...
6
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2
answers
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Player shows up inconsistently
I am a DM running Waterdeep: Dragon Heist (soon to progress to Undermountain). There are three players, I play a generic paladin, and we play via Zoom. One player, however, is inconsistently showing ...
user64719
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As a DM, how can I manage a group with different amounts of free time?
I've started playing D&D 5e with a group of friends recently. I'm the DM and there are four players. One is still working and is only available during weekends, while the other three (and I) have ...
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How to handle not being able to attend as often as I'd like
I've been playing with a group for about a year. I have no complaints about my group, I'm the problem. I'm the only one who has kids, and unfortunately for me my wife is not exactly supportive ...
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How do I deal with a player that doesn’t play, but says they want to? [closed]
Forewarnings, there are a lot of very long reasons behind answering the question, but in short, this is it:
In short, I want to kick this player, my other four players want him kicked, and the player ...
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3
votes
3
answers
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When a player has drama and won't communicate
Right now, a player seems to be upset with events of a session he missed and hasn't responded to my messages.
Background
About a month or two ago, a player began to be dissatisfied with how I ran the ...
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21
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9
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A player left the group at a moment's notice, and I am at a loss for what to do with his character
I had a player message me a few hours before our 5e session, "Hey I'm quitting the group, would it be too much of a hassle to kill off my character tonight?" I said that's fine, thinking I would fudge ...
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How can I quickly adjust encounters for variable party sizes?
Problem
I'm running a campaign with 6 players, but they can't always show up1. That, by itself, would not be a problem, if I knew how many would come with enough time to prepare for it. The thing is: ...
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6
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answers
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How to handle a party member spontaneously not showing up?
I am the GM of a party that consists of two family fathers, one guy working on a oil platform and another freelancer working in the film industry. So it happens quite often that one member ...
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8
votes
3
answers
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How to keep Bonds relevant when players are absent?
Some time ago I GMed Dungeon World for a group of friends -- the first time any of us tried DW, though we'd played Apocalypse World before. The campaign only lasted 5-6 sessions because of multiple ...
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8
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Missing players don't spend daily resources
Last year, my D&D group attendance was really good. All 6 non-DM players were frequently available on game-day and the campaign progressed quickly.
Recently, 3 people with a nearly 100% ...
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12
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1
answer
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Dungeon World with a variable group
I'm starting a role playing game group, and I expect (and specified in my “looking for group” ad) that people will be attending irregularly.
I am going to run it at a local games cafe (taking the “...
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