Absent Players

[Owen E Oulton]

One of my Players couldn't make it to our session today, so he played via Skype. Worked great. Was just like he was in the room. We tended to keep more on track than usual, so it was a successful experiment. Wouldn't want to do it all the time, but in a pinch, it's great! Anyone else here ever try it?

[Dan Gurden]

Nice.

Got to be a vast improvement on the time I played FASA trek back in the 80's, missed a session and found that upon my return that my character had been mind-wiped and his conciousness sold to the Orions as the conciousness of a sex robot slave and left behind...

Apparently the narrator always did this or something evil to kill off a character should a player ever miss a session, but always got the players to decide thus bringing them into the cabal. Until of course someone missed a session...

Not exactly my favourite gaming group ever. But a great learning experience on waht NOT to do.

[Owen E Oulton]

That sucks. I hate that type of adversarial GMing. I prefer my style. When players are absent, I usually treat their characters with limited script immunity. I do NOT like victimising people for having a real life.

[Dan Gurden]

...When players are absent, I usually treat their characters with limited script immunity...

I am of a similar mind... Mostly I would use the opportunity to either gloss over their absence if the plot was completed in a sitting, if it was mid plot then yes they end up as an NPC and narrator plot device at worst... But always still as the player left it (any wounds taken as an NPC will 'heal' by the time the player returns, should the group dive head first into combat)

Well, it was a long time ago, but I guess it was my fault, wot with having a date with a Girl or something equally exciting!!! But I have to admit that even after all this time it annoys. Dammit it took me longer to generate the chraracter and develop the background than it did for them to kill me!!!

[Nuclear Fridge]

Gah. This brings back a few bad memories!

Without going into incredible detail... I've been a GM for 25-odd years, since no-one else I gamed with could be bothered. I've always laid out one ground rule - give me 24 hours notice if you CAN'T make a session.

I had one guy who didn't show a few times... and left me hanging at the game table. Literally. Then expected me to 'paper over' his absence when he showed up.

He got upset when I'd finally had a gut-ful of his antics and I wasted his science officer in a fight with a Borg Cube. Turned out his Bridge console was the target of the Borg cutting beam. Oops!

[Sarge]

When a player couldn't make it to my game, I usually told the others that the missing character had gotten some bad chili out of the replicator and was confined to quarters until further notice. The character always got better as soon as the player returned. I wouldn't let anything bad happen to the character, but they didn't get any XP either.

[Doug Taylor]

Ouch, Dan, that GM did you dirty!

We've long had sort of a house-rule (for my supers campaign, anyway) that one's PC can't die if the player can't make it. If they're required to be present (like if we stopped the last session in the middle of a fight), then they are basically an NPC that can't die.

My Trek group has always had perfect attendance, other than my son who only joins us occasionally. He joined the game late and is just an Ensign, not fully part of the Bridge Crew per se.

[Sea Tyger]

In a 4e game a few years ago, we had a friend of the GM who was somewhere on the East Coast. He played via Ooma. It was mostly successful, but there were times when the connection was a PitA.

I think it went mostly well, especially considering the limits of the program at the time. I think Skype today is much more robust and versatile than Ooma back then.

For absent players, as a GM who dislikes killing characters without good reason, I usually NPC said player's character and limit their role in the session. They're not invulnerable, per se, but their limited role puts them at lesser risk.

[selek]

I'm currently headquartered out of Kearns, UT (essentially south-west Salt Lake City), and support monthly games in Northern Utah (near Clarkston) and South-Central Idaho (near Twin Falls) via Skype.

We've tied in players from as far away as Denver, Colorado- and carried on just fine.

We've also played multi-party Serenity games via Skype and Google Plus, and networked players in from all over the state.

So long as the microphones are sufficiently sensitive and neither the players nor the GM is probe to mumbling, then it's a great way to link the hobby.

Out of six sessions or so played this way, we've only had connectivity issues when there was a major thunder storm in one of the areas being served.

I may be (slightly) mistating the technical issues, but I believe Skype is best for a single connection, whereas GooglePlus allows for multi-party "conference calls".


As far as absentees go, I'm with Owen. I'll usually come up with a convenient/temporary disability ("raging Purple Spots" is a favorite) that leaves them in Sickbay for a session or three and remove them from the action that way.

This becomes fun when the party is on an away mission and has to decide whether to leave the unconscious officer behind or lug him along....

If absenteeism becomes a chronic problem, however, then the Universe becomes increasingly less patient. I tend to follow a "three strikes" policy. If a player misses three sessions in a row without a valid excuse (work, illness, child care or family problems or the like) then the character is transferred off the ship (and out of the game).

[Thakowsaizmu]

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Got to be a vast improvement on the time I played FASA trek back in the 80's, missed a session and found that upon my return that my character had been mind-wiped and his conciousness sold to the Orions as the conciousness of a sex robot slave and left behind...

Apparently the narrator always did this or something evil to kill off a character should a player ever miss a session, but always got the players to decide thus bringing them into the cabal. Until of course someone missed a session...

Not exactly my favourite gaming group ever. But a great learning experience on waht NOT to do.

Wow, that guy sounds awesome. Can you give me his number so I can play with him?

[Omega1967]

Yes Skype is great. I did an entire meeting via Skype not even wearing pants.

[Dan Gurden]

Yes Skype is great. I did an entire meeting via Skype not even wearing pants.

Im not wearing pants right now...

Which is a bit of an issue as the computers in the living room and its 5 in the afternoon.

[Omega1967]

It was not that I was not dressed. I was sent to Hawaii on assignment and finished early and reported via Skype. I waswearing a Tie and jacket and Diving Shorts. After the meeting I went Snorkling.