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How big a group is too big?
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Fallon Kell
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PostPosted: Thu Apr 28, 2011 11:04 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Esoomian wrote:
Garhkal's breakdown seems to be based on the primary attributes.

Dex guy
Mechanical guy
Perception guy
Technical guy
Knowledges guy

With optional Force guy.

Aww. Poor mechanical guy got the short end of the stick!
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Esoomian
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PostPosted: Fri Apr 29, 2011 12:00 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Not quite a short as Strength guy Smile
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Raven Redstar
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PostPosted: Fri Apr 29, 2011 1:19 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

garhkal wrote:
At some of the Cons, i have had combats of 8 rounds for the 7 person table take a solid 50 mins or so. BUT 2 hrs for just 8 players over 4 rounds? WOW!


In their defense, most of the group was made of newer players. There was just a lot of time rolling/counter rolling, spending character points etc...
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Hellcat
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PostPosted: Fri Apr 29, 2011 1:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Esoomian wrote:
Garhkal's breakdown seems to be based on the primary attributes.

Dex guy
Mechanical guy
Perception guy
Technical guy
Knowledges guy

With optional Force guy.

I agree you'd often get some crossovers especially in a long running campaign when people have been forced to branch out of their comfort zones when the specialist has been unable to help.


Wouldn't intelligence fall under Perception? Seems like you'd be using the investigation skill to gather the intel.
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Esoomian
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PostPosted: Fri Apr 29, 2011 4:14 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

garhkal wrote:
Lets see. if we put it as "roles"..

Gun bunny
Pilot/ship operator
Face man
Techie
Intelligence guy

That gives us 5 slots to fill. 6 if you add in "force user".


Hellcat wrote:
Wouldn't intelligence fall under Perception? Seems like you'd be using the investigation skill to gather the intel.


I'd assume the Face man to be the Perception guy and if there is another guy who is called Intelligence guy then he'd be the guy who has the languages skills, the planetary systems knowledge and likely the streetwise too.
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Fallon Kell
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PostPosted: Fri Apr 29, 2011 6:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Fallon Kell wrote:
Esoomian wrote:
Garhkal's breakdown seems to be based on the primary attributes.

Dex guy
Mechanical guy
Perception guy
Technical guy
Knowledges guy

With optional Force guy.

Aww. Poor mechanical guy got the short end of the stick!

Esoomian wrote:
Not quite a short as Strength guy Smile

I think they have to share that short end of the stick! Crying or Very sad
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Rerun941
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PostPosted: Fri Apr 29, 2011 9:26 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I actually prefer a smaller group size: 3-4 is my sweet spot. 5 is okay, but 6 is really pushing it. I've even run a game for just two players which was actually a lot of fun.

One of the reasons that I enjoy smaller gaming groups is that it allows me to focus on individual character goals and stories. It's a lot easier to spotlight characters if there are only 3-4 trying to share the limelight.
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Hellcat
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PostPosted: Fri Apr 29, 2011 5:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Esoomian wrote:
Hellcat wrote:
Wouldn't intelligence fall under Perception? Seems like you'd be using the investigation skill to gather the intel.


I'd assume the Face man to be the Perception guy and if there is another guy who is called Intelligence guy then he'd be the guy who has the languages skills, the planetary systems knowledge and likely the streetwise too.


But you want to gather intelligence. Having language skills, planetary systems knowledge, and being streetwise is helpful, yes. But all those are also something your face man needs to better help them to blend in.

It's useless for gathering intelligence if you can't find the intelligence you're trying to gather. So your intel guy may very well need the ivesticative skills to find that intelligence.

Of course the face man and the intelligence guy can be the same individual. Someone who can blend in, disappear into the crowd once they have gathered their intel. So the Intel guy as number 5 could actually be replaced by a Tactics Man. The guy that does all the planning.
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garhkal
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PostPosted: Fri Apr 29, 2011 10:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Esoomian wrote:

Hellcat wrote:
Wouldn't intelligence fall under Perception? Seems like you'd be using the investigation skill to gather the intel.


I'd assume the Face man to be the Perception guy and if there is another guy who is called Intelligence guy then he'd be the guy who has the languages skills, the planetary systems knowledge and likely the streetwise too.

its a mix to me. Many good "face guy" pc's i have ran for, had both high know and Per skills. Some though were one or the other. So needed another spot.
BUT since i also run lots of military linked games, the Intel guy is the one with tactis, bureaucracy, law enforcement etc.
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Fallon Kell
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PostPosted: Sat Apr 30, 2011 4:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Rerun941 wrote:
I actually prefer a smaller group size: 3-4 is my sweet spot. 5 is okay, but 6 is really pushing it. I've even run a game for just two players which was actually a lot of fun.

One of the reasons that I enjoy smaller gaming groups is that it allows me to focus on individual character goals and stories. It's a lot easier to spotlight characters if there are only 3-4 trying to share the limelight.

I've never played with more than three players at a time, so I can't speak with authority, but my educated guess is that this would be true for me also.
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mdlake
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PostPosted: Tue May 03, 2011 5:36 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Praxian wrote:
depends on the experiences of the player-base.


Not just experience, but play style as well. If you're playing with an emphasis on "game," a well-oiled squad of eight is manageable hack-and-slash fun, with five or six being ideal. If you're playing with an emphasis on "role-playing," there's simply not enough screen time for more than five, with three or four being closer to the ideal.

Personally, I prefer three because it makes for a tighter focus on the plot at hand, or perhaps just because I'm a misanthrope. Four has a significant perk, though, in allowing players to pair off and maintain player interaction when they split up, whether because they want to approach a problem from different angles or because one PC is a liability to a given approach. My current group has 5 players, which is a bit of a handful, especially since they play RPGs for radically different reasons.

My con games aim for 6 players, with a careful eye to remaining workable with less than a full table. One-shots, lacking the time for plumbing deep characters or mysteries, lean much more heavily on stereotypes, which can find expression with far less screen time, and one of the joys of con games is the opportunity for cross-pollination of gamers, so I like a larger table. (Also, it's a habit from my first con games, where running two events for 6+ players got a GM free admission...)

I don't see the need to tailor group size to cover all the traditional RPG skill sets. If you've got three warriors, play a combat game; if you've got two sneaks and a diplomat, play an espionage game. Or whatever fits.
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garhkal
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PostPosted: Tue May 03, 2011 5:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

It also depends on the game itself. Running a heavy investigation type game (say investigating imp infiltrators), 3-5 is ideal, where as a high combat one, then 4-7 may be better.
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Bren
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PostPosted: Tue May 03, 2011 6:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

mdlake wrote:
Not just experience, but play style as well. If you're playing with an emphasis on "game," a well-oiled squad of eight is manageable hack-and-slash fun, with five or six being ideal. If you're playing with an emphasis on "role-playing," there's simply not enough screen time for more than five, with three or four being closer to the ideal.
Excellent point. And I have also found this to be a bit of a feedback loop. As the group size decreases, there is more scope for air time per player and the players learn to enjoy the increased role playing and character air time the smaller group size affords.
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Kilgore
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PostPosted: Fri May 20, 2011 7:22 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I myself have recently been asked to start a Star Wars D6 (ofcourse 8) ) campaign and was also asked how many players I would allow.

I decided that 5 is ideal and in the case of emergency I would allow 6 players. 5 is a nice number of players since the group is able to split up, you have a nice variation of characters and the Game Master is able to give each player the attention a players deserves and needs without the other sitting idly by having nothing to do.
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