What's the problem?

>no barrier for entry
>allows you to request whatever insane autism setting/system/home brew you want
>zero requirements for players to bath or dress themselves in order to participate

>>52964726
>he doesn't play wearing nothing but a smile

>>52964706
More sperglords per square mile than groups who meet in person

Bunch of lazy folks, they have stores they can play in but are too lazy to do so.

>>52964706
You can't punch people through internet
Things >>52964726 said
Miscommunication, always that damn misunestanding in definition of the word "fun"

>>52964706
On roll20 or on tg?

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I dunno. I'm playing an Unleashed game literally as I'm typing this. We're having a great time.

You just have to know what groups you're joining. Go for the lesser known systems. Joining any V:tM games is a gamble but can be good. D&D and PF are huge gambles too.

>>52965781
>>52964706
I don't know why I asked, the answer is the same.

Why do people search for online games with strangers? Because they are starved for roleplay.

This leads them to join games that may not fit with their true interests. (Although this may happen in real life, too, you usually have an easier time communicating your plans beforehand).

Unlike "real life" games, you don't start off with a bunch of shared interests / history with the rest of the group.(other than roleplaying and searching for online games).

Maybe they can't find any real life games because they are anti social or something like that.

This will usually mean that a group of strangers are at a disadvantageous starting position when it comes to the health of their group.

My friends and I are in college and got into D&D by having the one guy who had played the game before DMing for us on Roll20.

Ive joined a couple other games on roll20 and keep using the site because ive been told to avoid tabletop or dnd clubs like the plague because they usually attract the smelliest, anti-social weirdos. Is there any truth to this?

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>>52965851
I had fewer problems playing with groups of people online, since it's easier to schedule the game. IRL my buddies always have something or other to do that interferes with scheduling.

We play something like every blue moon.

>>52965940
Both formats attract terrible people. Both formats attract some normal people. It's hit-or-miss, and the ratio of good to bad in both is unknown. You roll the dice, you see what happens. I had terrible luck IRL, then I had terrible luck online until I hit gold. Now I'm in good games online with a combination of IRL and online friends. Some met through roll20. All of what we say will be anecdotal.

my friends IRL are too lazy to play dnd
is roll20 that bad?

>>52965775
>always that damn misunestanding in definition of the word "fun"

That one really needs to be highlighted. What one person considers fun is another man's "no fun allowed." I personally get my kicks roleplaying my character down to the bone with 100% seriousness, others want to be wacky and fart on goblins. We don't and won't have fun with one another, but we both have a certain game in mind that we can enjoy and provide to.

In the end, the biggest problem is with miscommunicating what game you want to play/run. Then you'll be getting in a game that you aren't enjoying.

>>52966078
Nope. I found two pretty great groups there.

>>52966078
It is exactly that bad, and worse.

>>52966005
I described the general trend, and I left room in there for people like you.
>starved for RP

Of course there will be plenty of good online-stranger games and lots of shitty real-life groups.

>>52966223
meme
>>52966159
Kinda like that. If you know what questions to ask and aren't randomly joining everything you stumble upon, you will be set. I've met a lot of people I can rely on for a good game there.

>>52966120
Fucken truth.
I have one game that I said fromt he get-go was inspired by the greece tragedies.
That is, NO FUCKING HAPPY ENDINGS.
The gods are assholes and the heroes have epic human virtues and equally epic flaws.
The world will cry at your passing, because you have better things to do than make sure this city likes you. You simply do not have the time, energy or interest in being liked.

I was very honest about this. But two players have broken down crying because they can't figure out how to make sure the local lords into being an ally.

It was literally impossible to make him like you. He can never understand your quest, he won't back down because he will look weak in front of his other subjects and he will not like what you want from him. Because your army is camping on his ground. My players meeting with him was basically an introduction to make sure this robbery did not turn into a murder.
Two players break down crying, one rage quits because I portray slavery as something that I expect them to use and another 4 salute me for this being the best damn campaign they have ever seen.
Fun is subjective. Talk to your GM and talk to your players. And most important, talk to the other players when you are one of them. Because that will make it less likely of you being the edgelord or the whimp.

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>>52965807
This kinda.

When you post (or join) a game using a popular system, you're running a higher risk of having some shitheads. The problem is popular games (Pathfinder, D&D 5e, Apocalypse World games, etc) have a large, VARIED audience. Lots of people and lots of ways to play the game. Much higher chance of having clashes in personality and game play styles.

I only run OSR-style games, so the audience tends to me smaller. OSR games denote certain ethos and play styles, so I tend not to get the retards. Really the only time I've had any issue was when I advertised a Labyrinth Lord game in the Roll20 LFG forum. This lead to people who'd never played OSR-style games joining and trying to push their snowflake agendas.

I've had the most luck finding compatible players when I stick to the LFG tool. People seek out the game specifically. And then I usually lay out in the game description the underlining code of conduct. Vetting applications helps too. Ask them to submit a "perfect" character concept. 9 times out of 10 you'll get all the info you need just from that.

>>52964706
I think the main issue of course is lack of communication, but I've also noticed that players and DMs sometimes don't really care about other people in a group.

They are often heavily invested in their own enjoyment. What I mean is they care more about roleplaying their character, or having the best stats, rather than trying to be a productive member of the party.
And being online just makes it easier since they can just avoid any attempt at discussing actions, and just stay in-character the whole game, and are never around when the game is over.

Well that's just the problems that I've seen at least. I haven't even tried a real life game before.

>>52966159
how did u find them?

>>52966267
For all those who would gm as you, I salute them.

>>52964706
There are excellent groups on roll20. You won't find one.

The problem is that every unwashed lard so vile that even the shittiest LGS won't let in, every THAT GUY so creepy that his name isn't spoken aloud, every autist who can't escape his handlers, every 12-year-old edgelord, every FUCKING FLAKE WHO CAN'T COMMIT... This is where they come to find groups, for they can't get one in person.

If you know how to ask and how to look, you can find the good players who just live somewhere without an LGS. But everything needs a careful eye.

>>52964706
shit people and severe lack of session 0

>>52966749
Don't forget its also easier to let your bad sides show online.
Either from different cultures. Imagine listening to a christian from texas and swedish atheists and a muslim from turkey play together. Completely irrelevant wether or not they're good players they WILL shit on each other if religion comes up.

Or from misunderstandings. Most people won't vocally or written take up their issues online. BEcause they are used their expressions and mannerisms doing that for them. Being online makes all of us autists since we can't read that for shit. So what is at first an annoyance spreads into full on 'that guy' behavior because no one corrected them.

>>52965775
>You can't punch people through internet

However.......roll20 is the only thing that's made me TRY to punch people through the internet.

Since it's a roll20 thread, time to share some ThatGuy/horror stories from Mr Nolan's House of Rollans?

>>52966005
>I had fewer problems playing with groups of people online, since it's easier to schedule the game. IRL my buddies always have something or other to do that interferes with scheduling.

We're running into that.

There's only 4 of us, with me as foreverdm. We used to do regular games, 1-2 sessions per week, Sat and sometimes a wed night game.
Now, 1 player's work has fucked up his schedule, and he's working wed nights, and sat day......

One player is stuck at home on Sat's with kids since his wife is now working weekends.

So that just leaves me and one player.

I'm thinking about maybe running a roll20 game, and 'checking the water'.

>>52964706
People who look for games on this kind of sight can be divided in a few broad categories.
>People that are too socially awkward to play a face-to-face game
>People with levels of autism/other mental hangups that got the kicked out of RL groups.
>People with too pushy schedule for a RL game, making them very stressed, demanding, and with a very high possibility of flaking as well.
>People with no game stores nearby or friends interested in the hobby, that mostly have very skewed ideas and expectations of how an RPG looks like since they probably have very little contact with the hobby whatsoever.

All of them have their issues as you can see.

>>52968334
So seeing as you have to had some experience online to confirm any of this. It means that you are talking out of your ass or more likely: You fall into one of these.

Which are you anon?

>>52968391
>Which are you anon?

Not that anon, but I don't fit into any of those slots either.

Of course, I've long suspected that I'm the only sane person here.

>>52968334
I am part of the 1st and a small bit of 3rd and 4th groups. How fucked am I to find a good group?

>>52968647
Not very.
Not at all if you're honest about it and find someone willing to take in and mentor a newbie. The 4th is seriously something that is not a problem unless they are to assured of themselves to learn.
The 3rd is a problem, but no one has a completely empty schedule these days. So unless the "small bit" means "only thursdays between 1800 and 2100" or something you're set.

The 1st is a not really a problem, but more a type. The first campaign or the first two campaigns even might be a problem. Give it a few goes and you'll figure it out.

>>52968391
Number 3, unfortunately, until I finish my civil engineering degree that is.

>>52968334
the 5th
>way to much spare time and plays in different campaigns to recruit decent players to my own campaigns.

>>52968334
Lost 2 good players to something similar to 3. I wonder how they're doing sometimes. Army and work changes. Sucks. They weren't demanding, were very upfront about the changes that were happening.

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Please tell me someone in this thread has that screencap of the /pfg/ roll20 game about being "lewd" kitsune ruling over a city on the back of a giant fae fox.

>>52968334
Mostly 4 with a dash of 1. I did meet up with a couple online friends last year and we played some stuff and it was fine. But mostly there's no one around here.

The main problem comes when you accept just anybody. The GM needs to interview potential players and have immediate red flags that would drop somebody.

Also if you don't play d&d or pathfinder 95% of the problem players disappear

>>52969322
>The main problem comes when you accept just anybody.

Rule 1 of DM'ing a roll20 game.

Don't be scared or worried about upsetting someone that you need to remove, or not allow in.

>"Yea, I don't think you're a good fit. Thanks for applying, but the answer is NO."

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People who regularly play video games coming in, and thinking that you can put not real time or dedication into a RPG and just play. Honestly the white supremacist furries branching out from their forum ERPs are a minor issue compared to the genuinely lazy and unreliable players who plague it.

The service itself is fine though. Not as much automation and Maptools, but it is easy to set up as it gets. If you have friends you know beforehand who want to play online, and you need a grid to play your game, then go for it.

>>52970377

The Ketchup one is great.

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>>52969322
Yeah but, serious question, what does a player "red flag" in roll20 even look like?

>>52971481
Absurdly edgy characters
Unironic use of OwO or XD
Clearly ripped out of an anime
Clearly an OC of some sort
Clearly their fursona
Base character around being "random"
Wanting to play a child
Wanting to play a neko/magical girl

You can probably pick a couple other things out of >>52970377

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I keep a list of the good and bad players/GM's I've ran into on roll20.

Enjoy

>>52971664
>the ratio of good to bad

Seems about right.

>>52971743
>Good players:
>

Kek

>>52971664
>Good players
>empty
It hurts because its true.

>>52971664
>I recognize half these names
I feel your pain. Roll20 D&D is a crapshoot of the sort you would expect, but roll20 WoD is suffering in its purest form.

Shadowrun tends to be pretty good, though. Dunno if its the game or the crowd, but in my experience I've yet to have a completely miserable Shadowrun session online.

>>52964706
I don't know what it is about the internet, but fuckers tend to not communicate whatsover during the game.
There's never a discussion about what the party should do. The DM just makes this worse by doing nothing, but enable everyone to do whatever they want at anytime.

Manage to think up a good idea that you can tell the others? Too bad, because some dimwit just declared that he was gonna do something that will fuck up everything.

>>52965851

>Why do people search for online games with strangers?

Because roleplaying online is more fun then roleplaying in person- specifically roleplaying through text is significantly more immersive then roleplaying verbally.

For me, anyway. It completely takes me out of the immersion to hear some fellow mouth-breathing nerd voice the actions and dialogue of their character.

>>52972074
My only gripe with that is people can take a very long time to do anything. I understand that many people can type as fast as they can talk, but most cannot. Otherwise I would have to agree. All the games I run mandate roleplaying via text, even if it does turn off potential applicants. I have many fond memories of RPing over IRC. It depends on the game that you are trying to run I suppose.

>>52972074
You shouldn't be playing irl with random "mouth breathing nerds" either, you're supposed to be playing irl with friends you know and enjoy the company with.

It's a social hobby holy shit

>>52971664
Any way to get in touch with you? I have a bunch of names I'd love to contribute to this list.

>>52972222
Throw them in here and I'll add them

>>52964706
Most of the groups are bad, but try to play with furries. They are a bit autistic but usually very nice.

>>52972199
congrats u found tthe autist

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>>52969092
Seconded

>>52972199
>being this casual

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>>52968251
>join Stars WIthout Number game
>on gameday the gm brings in "the GM"
>excuse_moi.wut
>the starmap gets deleted
>new GM wants to run Polythreme (cyberpunk) instead
>old GM plays the most literal murderhobo I've ever seen in my life
>leave after a single session

I'll post more later

>You have to pay me $10 to have the privilege of being a player in my game

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>>52974362
never forgetti

I use Roll20, but I don't interact with the community. Rather, my friends and I segued into 40k Roleplay from 40k tabletop. We're all really good friends, going on 10 years now. We love it. We use Roll20, even when we meet in person, because we think the site itself is super useful for all the bookkeeping that rpgs require. Our games go much faster and more smoothly now.

So I obviously recommend what I did; get your friends into the games you like, and then watch at all the fucking fun you have.

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>>52974242
>join another SWN game
>this time triple check the game happens in space
>game day only 3/5 players present
>one guy doesn't even have a character ready
>first 30 mins are an airport "cutscene"
>the current plot is "we are taking a spaceship to our spaceship"
>suddenly REDRUM IN SPAEC
>we have no time to do anything not related to the murder
>other guy finally rolls a character that can help with this
>my character is needed only for 5 minutes total in a 4 hour game
>a lot of repeated info and sperging out about space physics from the GM
>all the jokes are cancerous memes
>we are still "2 sessions away" from space exploration
>ditch the game the very moment we wrap up

>>52974362
One guy I knew has built a donation empire out of what started last year as a simple come-and-join game. Now it's a huge spanning world (that ended up getting a lore wipe and is now playing out the exact same events of the original months) and people are still feeding the machine. It's full of awful people and awful characters though.

Got invited to a game on /tg/.
Was pretty good, then turned to shit.

Made a new game, GMing for part of said game.

So far, no complaints of roll20.

>>52964706
You, typically.

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>>52964706
I did an Interview with a roll20 applicant once. This is what happened.

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>>52975059

>>52975059

What sort of campaing was this?

Like, I need to know the context.

>>52970377
>obvious troll characters
yeah

>>52973173
>>52969092
>https://app.roll20.net/lfg/listing/65518/a-fluffy-fairy-tale-2-electric-boogaloo
There were like 25 applications which is like 1/4th of the general.

t. /pfg/ anon.

>>52975210
Campaign was a medieval sandbox, pretty low magic lots of historical realism and grounded characters with the occasional mythical creature. This guy showed up to an interview and went on about his edgy OC that has to defeat hades and shit.

I thought it was wonderful obscure and absolutely autistic. Incredible what you can find on roll20.

My experiences with roll20 have been pretty okay. You can usually smell the shit shows a mile away just from the description in the LFG page.

>>52975539

This somehow makes it worse.

Hades being evil, godess of life(?), "having fun" are pretty bad on their own but, of all things, his actions towards the thief are all absolutely retarded.

I like to repeat this story any time I catch a roll20 bitch thread.

Tried to run a game in a fairly obscure system great for gritty medieval no magic campaigns.

Pleasantly surprised to get like 3 applicants.

Immediately dejected when 2 of them straight up told me in the interview they wouldn't actually join unless I switched the system to Pathfinder.

>>52975806
This pains me

>>52975806
This should be screencaped and used as the next thread pic the /pfg/fags use.

Just a friendly reminder of their autism.

>>52975823
>>52975837
If they had just SUGGESTED a similar system, it wouldn't have bothered me at all.

But no, they pretty much fucking DEMANDED I change my campaign to a system that was nearly the EXACT OPPOSITE of my system of choice in every possible way.

>>52975806
>>52975837

I tried pitching a a more gritty game in pfg once. In response I got a wall of autistic screeching in return because it was impossible / boring / not real pathfinder.

In hindsight they did me a favor. The community is deeply toxic unless you're playing a lewdgame.

>>52976022
To be fair they are correct, it is impossible to run a gritty game with Pathfinder, the system isn't built for it and any attempt always ends in frustration and failure.

>>52976014
I've heard similar stories. It's frustrating that people behave like that. There are tons of shitty Pathfinder games for them to go shit up, why would they do this? God, I hate the Roll20 "community" so much.

>>52976052

It's completely possible. In a way that is liked by the community? Less so.

>>52976198
>It's completely possible.
I mean, I guess if you remove most spellcasting ability and lock the game at level 1, sure.

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>>52965025
This. The biggest thing affecting this hobby is the want to play, people like the idea of playing, but it always fails to measure up.

This is because the hobby is only ever going to be as much fun as you put in to it. People read some truly exciting and amazing stories, real or otherwise, and want that, but do not understand the many sessions that lead up to it.

Further, if you suspect a player is a flake/bitch/austist/retard/moutbreather kick them at the first break of an agreement.

Any time I've ever played on roll20, the games die 3 sessions in, either due to bad DMing or lack of interest in the players. All and all, it's still a good site but you gotta find good people on there.

>>52976590
You're lucky, most of the games I've tried to join fell apart during the character creation phase.

The trick is, much like in any other social hobby, you'll have to put in time to find people you like.

Join a random group. Maybe it goes well. Maybe it doesn't. Either way, you can probably get a sense for who in the group is or isn't retarded - or to put it nicely, who is or isn't compatible with you. Even if another player isn't a retard it is possible you and they just have different wants, after all.

Keep doing this. Keep making friends. Invite them to subsequent games you're trying out. You may have to refine your friends list a little over time. That's fine.

Once you have a large enough pool of like-minded friends of similar interests, skill levels, and style as you, you won't need public groups. You can just ask enough of them to join until you get enough yes's to organize one yourself.

That's how most people build their groups.

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>>52970377

Is that Youmu?

>>52968334
Is there a slot for "Old Group fractured over unrelated social shit/people moving town so we use Roll20 to recollect some of the originals and spread it to other interested parties"?

Join/run oneshots, 4-week-long campaigns, stuff from really obscure systems you love and can't get set up in your local groups, try to have fun and if things get frustrating or awful just make an excuse and leave the group.

While doing this, keep tabs on the players and gms who you like and click with. For gms, send them a pm saying you really like playing with them and you'd love to have a heads-up if they're running anything else. For players, when you're running something or when one of your compatible gms reaches out to you with their campaign, send them a message saying you've had fun with them and you were wondering if they wanted to join you in this new group. Soon enough you'll have 1-2 good campaigns rolling.

You just gotta network. Takes pretty much the minimal social interaction for networking, as people are generally flattered to be called a good gm/good player and generally as eager to find a good/compatible campaign as you are.

>>52971654
>Clearly an OC of some sort
???

Does that not mean "original character", or am I missing something?

>>52972074
I don't know if it's just me or what, but I'm far more fluent in writing and thus prefer to do my GMing in text.

Not to mention, it's a lot easier to throw out details and look them up when they're written on the screen, rather rthan having to rely entirely on memory for things like names of NPCs, directions, etc.

Honestly the shittiness of roll20 is why /pfg/ started hosting so many games.

>>52975465
Still can't believe so many people fell for that obvious bamboozle

>>52975806
What a bunch of cunts

>>52976022
Pathfinder literally doesn't operate at your 'muh gritty low magic' level, trying to play pathfinder like that is like pulling out your own teeth

I suggest literally anything else.

>>52979287
It's usually used for a character created not explicitly for the game in question. Like somebody made up a character for some other setting or purpose, then shoves that character concept into every game they join.

>>52979287
I presume he means an OC based off something else.

Like if you tried to join a PF game but made your character "Half Vampire" with skin that shines in the sun.

>>52978923
>You just gotta network. Takes pretty much the minimal social interaction for networking, as people are generally flattered to be called a good gm/good player and generally as eager to find a good/compatible campaign as you are.
This. Let's be honest, most other people are doing the same thing you are.

>>52979342
>>52979350
So as far as the game is concerned, they're not original, they're 'ported' from somewhere else.

Yeah, I never understood people who do that either. I literally have more characters I want to play than I will ever be able to actually play. I don't get how the hell people can 'recycle' and not get bored.

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I think the problem is you're playing Russian roulette if you're jumping into totally random games on the web.

Even if you're playing online, it's best to play with people you're at least vaguely acquainted with, or feel out the group first before diving in.

Like, the "randomest" group I've joined was from a discord server I visit, but I had a long ass conversation with them beforehand which pretty much established our mutual interests and mindset.

>>52979358
The thing is, they're usually really attached to the character, which is why OCs are a red flag. Anything bad happening to an OC is worse than it happening to something you made for the game, since it serves as an extension of the player. These players will get biblically buttmad if a character so much as disagrees with their OC. If you want to play something constantly, whatever. I really don't care. But as soon as it becomes an issue for your character to face any adversity, you can fuck right off.

>>52964706
there is no problem I just use it as a platform to hold an easy weekly game with my group of many years, it ain't maptools but it works just fine

if you're recruiting off of it for a game then fukken lol you got it coming

>>52979287
Its this oc donut steel business.

For some reason people like creating a character that they pretend to be. I don't mean just roleplay as, they act like their characters, they create internet personas of their characters.

There's no telling how deep a person's commitment can be to a stupid character.

>>52979382
I can understand wanting to play characters that you've already played, like if you had a campaign end with your character at level 9, you join another that starts at level 9 and just play that person, you've gone through months play as that character of course you're going to be attached to them in some way. Hell I've done it on occasion because we needed something and a character I have saved away filled that role

But I won't be taking that entire character over, his past feats likely didn't happen or won't have any part in the new one and I doubt he'll be keeping all his fancy magical items he's gotten before

>>52965807
This sums it up pretty well. I've played Dark Heresy, Earthdawn, Only War, Stars Without Number, A homebrew and now Traveller. About the 50ish people that I played with online I've only ever had to kick 3. One because he was munchkining pretty hard and he was making me GM-ing for a system pretty hard (I was new to the system and he didn't want to stop), one because of a language barrier (I couldn't understand what he was saying most of the time) and the last one because he was an insufferable prick.

I keep getting messages from people saying they've got a group, can I GM for them? I wish they'd cut it out. Worse are the ones who have a system, time and day or more in a long list of demands.

>>52979587
>and the last one because he was an insufferable prick.
Storytime?

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How accepting of new players is roll20?

>>52980185
There's an "Allows New Players" tag you can put on your game. Just look for games with that.

>>52980185
Typically a game will say if they're looking for new or experienced players or both. There are plenty of newbie-friendly games, though they may not be the best. You should have plenty of publicly-listed games to choose from if you're looking for anything popular.

>>52979624
Ask them to pay you.

Either they'll fuck off or you might make some money phoning in a campaign. Either way, you win.

Why do so many Roll20 players expect that any GM is going to want to GM for an already existing group with preconceived notions of the exact sort of game they want?

So many listings with a massive elaborate campaign detailed, and then a big "LOOKING FOR GM" in the title. Does anyone bite this shit?

>had never roleplayed before
>crippling anxiety over real life roleplaying
>want to get a few practice games on the web first so I don't embarrass myself
>interested in WoD
>pick roll20 to find groups on

i am questioning every decision that lead to this point

>>52980285
I'm the opposite. I feel I could roleplay really easily irl as long as I knew one of the people there, but I can't bring myself to search for random groups online because I'm too autist.

>>52980285
My advice is to try and find players from whatever forums you may visit or whatever, rather then going complete anonymous and rolliing the dice with a random party on roll20.

>>52971664
Is anyone else struck with some kind of morbid curiosity to see what happens if a game was run entirely consisting of people from this list?

>>52980208
How does it work, do you get real money or is it Roll20bucks or something?

>>52980490
From what little I've heard Roll20 is entirely hands off about it, people have to organise payment on their own terms. Which makes sense, there's not a big enough cut to make it worthwhile monetarily in comparison to the shitstorm of customer service shit they'd be opening themselves up to otherwise.

>>52980208
I did this. I ask for a tiny amount and I donate the money to Doctors Without Borders. If they ask why, I say simply it's to filter out people who just chuck out applications everywhere in hopes they'll get something.

If they're opposed to DWB, then they can GET THE FUCK OUT.

>>52980589
There'd probably be legal issues too.
It could be used as whitewashing money!
>1 million per session, I am a famous GM after all!
>Several games per day
>cocaine money goes through roleplaying games, US to ban pen and paper

>>52980589
Well it's worth a shot. Next time I'm asked I'll offer for payment. Like >>52980608 said it'll filter people out.

>>52980608
What was the turnout like though? Sounds like a cool idea which wouldn't work in execution.

>>52980248
People with a foreverGM problem?

>>52980739
Nah usually it's "none of us know how to GM" type bullshit. As if new GMs just emerge from the soil fully formed and ready to run the greatest campaign you've ever seen.

>>52980758
All mine have just been ''''scared'''' to or just didn't want to. If you have problems getting a GM just rotate through adventures, damn.

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>>52971481
>what does a player "red flag" in roll20 even look like?

Being less than 25ish years old is a bad sign. Anyone whose age begins with a "1" is a hard no. That might not be a red flag to you if you yourself are that age, but wait a few years and you'll understand.

It's a good idea to ask some questions of prospective players that require them to have actually read your campaign summary. Anyone who clearly did not actually read it you should drop.

Ask them to describe their ideal character/favorite past character/the character they want to play in this game/a favorite moment in past roleplaying games, one or all of those. If their character sounds horrible to you, or their idea of a great time seems horrible, that's a no.

Generally, if their character description is only one sentence, or one long, rambling paragraph, no.

If they have really bad spelling, grammar, punctuation, sentence fragments, lack of capital letters, etc., avoid them. That is usually an indication that they are not very eloquent, or that they do not give a shit about the game.

If they start asking you to change time and day, change system, change setting, change much of anything, really, hard no. If they are applying to the game, they should have already read the specifics. So either they didn't, or they are the sort of person who expects the world to change to fit their desires, which is a bad sign.

If they reference or use a picture from an anime, hard no.

>>52981144
Dubs of truth.

I'd also test them to make sure they knew how fucking time zones worked.

I swear if I had a nickle for every fucking moron on roll20 who didn't know how time zones worked, I'd have the cash to buy roll20 itself and implement a basic intelligence test and evaluation that one would have to pass before they were even allowed to begin browsing LFG.

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I've played with 3 groups of randoms so far without having much of the problems described here. My pet peeve is the people who don't know the rules for their spells or class features who simultaneously quibble over single 5-foot spaces.

>>52971664
I don't really like the idea of keeping a list of people you do or don't like and allowing others add to it because most of the time this shit boils down to " I didn't do anything bad at all (X) is shit and I'm the best"

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>>52981533
Saw yourself on that list, boyo?
Because I think you saw yourself on that list.

>>52981533
So I'm guessing you're either Yvon R, or one of Zentha C's cucks.

Roll20 taught me that racism is real. I have a black guy name on there, Darnell. We had to look for a player to top up a group and I only received about 4 applications. One was a BRBR, an Indian with a standard application for everything he tried to join (everything), a so radnum XD type and a gay jewish furry.

The gay jewish furry is pretty top notch though. As someone said earlier, go for the furries on roll20. They tend to be autismal, but they're nice people.

I've joined a few games as a player on roll20. One guy pm'd me at the start of the first session and told me that he was the party leader now, and if I disagreed he would kill my character. I disagreed. He killed my character. Fucking roll20.

>>52971664
>Text only somehow a bad thing
Plebs, all of you plebs.

>>52981579
>one of Zentha C's cucks
is the most likely. Once played with one of them and he was the most obnoxious "inclusivity for everyone" hippy fucktard I've ever seen in my life and the only person I feel comfortable calling a beta without cringing at my use of /r9k/ lingo.

>>52976590
While I'm enjoying the campaign I'm in now, I can see this happening. Dm started us out as all being adventurers attracted by the region. Only my character and one other knew each other, and that's cause he has this 'secret society of monks' who protect the known world from anything outside of it (the known world is literally one flat on a d20), and make sure that no one knows whats going on outside. We've gone for 3 sessions now, 1 player literally couldn't read the start time, and realized he couldn't play at 4:30 Central European time. One player left after the first session because he started too far away, and didn't enjoy seafaring and talking to npc's (which I would've enjoyed thoroughly if not for the fact that the DM is kinda slow typing) while on his way to the main island where everything is supposed to go down (if I understand our GM well enough).

Second session was fun as hell, we literally went on a wild goose chase through the mapped area of the city, chasing after the animal companion of the.. Ranger or something IIRC. Next week we skip because it's supposed to be every other week. Session later we find the next hook in our quest, kill a mook and convince the other to help us, and social the rest of the session.
I literally forget the next session and find nothing in my inbox, no one even tried to contact me (which I find odd, seriously, if someone doesn't show up, contact them, they might just have forgotten like I have. I wouldn't blame them if they were angry, but not getting anything just irks me). Now another person left cause his work schedule doesn't allow him, and I'm just left poking the GM to get new blood, since having just 2 players doesn't make that much of a campaign.

>>52981651
>SLOW and text only
That is the problem here, buddy-o pal.

As someone else said in this thread do not invite young players(>20) if you aren't around that age yourself.
I say this as someone around that age and I tried to GM for 5 people in a completely homebrewn campaign for 5e. A single player basically ended the campaign as his shitty antics and personality on top of creating an awful 3cleric/2barbarian multiclass which drove away at least 2 players.
Also if you want to DM online you have to have enough experience that people respect you or be alpha enough to tell people to fuck off when they're causing problems. I had neither of those things so when we had lost 3 players I just sent a message to the remaining party saying the campaign was done and then deleted my account.

My biggest gripe with online groups is people leaving without a word. A simple "I don't feel like doing this anymore" would suffice but instead they just stop showing up and don't respond to any communication. I've had this problem with both GM:s and players.

I see alot of people saying that Roll 20 players play online because they are to autistic to play IRL.
You're forgetting that, in most countries, tabletop RPGs aren't nearly as popular as in the US or UK. I live in Greece, and I've never met anyone who plays TRPGs. I found no shops to play in, and there's no community to speak of. So im forced to play online, and i must say, Roll 20 has been good for me! Sure i have a couple of horror stories to tell, but most of the groups have been good, if short lived.

>>52982043
>You're forgetting that, in most countries, tabletop RPGs aren't nearly as popular as in the US or UK.
You're also forgetting that even in the US and UK where tabletop RPGs are much more popular, unless you live in a major city you're just as likely to find a new group as you are in Greece.

The lower the population density, the lower your chances are of finding other tabletop gamers.

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>>52982096
>tfw in your country LFGS is a meme

>>52964706
With groups on roll20 specifically? Nothing. The problems you find on roll20 are prevalent throughout the entire hobby.

Join a random game from the Game Finder thread and tell me how well that goes. That Guy and That GM threads are frequent staples of this board. People tell stories of their terrible games for years and years afterwards.

The fact is that the problems everybody has with roll20 are problems with the entire fucking hobby. It's about playing games of fantastical pretend. This attracts certain kinds of social awkward people who want some form of escapism for their shitty normal lives or an outlet for their strange fantasies that people look at them weirdly for normally.

It doesn't matter where you go for your game when the majority of the people who compose the pool of potential players are socially awkward neckbeards who don't fit into society. You're going to have a hard time finding a group that isn't shit.

>>52983413
I recognise that title. I swear I've received the same message!
>Entertain us! We can't be bothered to learn the rules though- that would be effort on OUR part!
>This system, this day, this time.
Fucking cancer.

>>52983413
Does shit like this actually work? I remember seeing a ton of these kinds of posts.

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>>52983760
I guess if you keep taking shots in the dark, you're bound to eventually hit something.

>>52966267
>I have one game that I said fromt he get-go was inspired by the greece tragedies.
So who fucked their mum?

>>52983413
I'm going to start finding those, and offering to run games, but only if they buy obscure, odd systems that they will never otherwise use, like Wu Xing, or MonsterHearts.

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>>52984128

>>52984128
>buy
They even say they don't want to learn rules. They'll just keep asking you
>What was that ability again?
>What dice do I need again?
>How do I roll?
Again and again, never learning.

>>52984216
How are they going to make characters if they don't get the rulebooks?
I'm not going to provide the information for them.

>>52983413
>someone please step up and play with us

they can't be the bad at self-awareness

>>52980185
don't join games that say you must be experienced, and preface your first session with 'hi guys i'm new to roll20, please bear with me and advice is appreciated'. ez

>>52983413

Got any more examples of horrible roll20 shit? I'm in the mood to cringe and rage.

I think it's more that the people who advertise on roll20, because it means that they've exhausted every other community they're a member of, or they don't really have any online friends that want to spend that much time with them, so you get groups of awful individuals because that's regular to them.
Or this: >>52983413

>>52984128
Post results.
>>52984016
More like who didn't?

>>52984128
They probably will just download the system.

>>52984665
If you can find a copy of her majesty's arcane service somewhere online, I will be impressed.

>>52984719
You mean for free, or just a PDF? Because I found a pdf for like, 10 bucks.

>>52984780
Buy it, and you'll never use it again.
Though you should, it's an interesting system and setting.

>>52976198
Anything is "possible, but that's also saying it's "possible" the hammer a screw instead of using a screwdriver. Yeah it's possible, but you're a retard for doing it like that instead of the right way.

There are other games that are better for this. "We're going to do a gritty, low-magic political intrigue campaign in Pathfinder" isn't quite a death sentence but you might as well lobotomize yourself. Screwdrivers are better for driving screws than hammers are.

I understand Pathfinder has warped an entire generation's perception of RPGs, making them believe every game is a 500+ page tome with literal thousands of pages of supplements and that regularly involves looking up obscure rules for every little thing and doing basic algebra every few minutes. And from that perspective I understand why people are afraid to learn new games and instead hammer screws with the one tool they know.

But the thing is, Pathfinder is the RPG equivalent of an arc welder or lathe, a very complex tool that requires a lot of preparation. Some games are as simple as screwdrivers or hammers, people are just scared to learn them because the insane expectations of Pathfinder are all they know.

>>52984840
>Some games are as simple as screwdrivers or hammers
Any recommendations? I've tried these 'simple' systems before and they have invariably got boring within literal minutes of play.

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>>52984802
Nah, I have a shitton of systems I'd love to use but never will. If you're into players asking others to GM for them...

This guy wants to pick the players and the GM, but doesn't want to do any of the heavy lifting.

>>52984873
It's very possible the simplest games just aren't to your taste, and that's fine.

>Risus
>FATE Accelerated Edition
>Polaris
>Warrior, Mage, Rogue
>Barbarians of Lemuria
>Dharma 6
>Schema system
>Microlite hacks
>Lasers & Feelings hacks
>OSR hacks
>Dogs in the Vineyard hacks
>Fiasco hacks, arguably

There are other games designed to model low-magic that are more complex, and they might be more to your liking.

>Savage Worlds with a low fantasy supplement
>Mythras (including Imperative)
>Ryuutama can easily be tweaked lower magic
>Game of Thrones RPG (though it kind of sucks)
>Shadows of Esteren
>Song of Swords
>Symbaroum
>WHFRP

These lists are just from skimming my own collection. For your purposes, I would recommend the free Low Fantasy Gaming OSR hack.

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>>52984336

>>52985336
FAST HEALINNNNNNNNNG

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>>52981144
>If they reference or use a picture from an anime, hard no.
I BROGUHT FRESH MEMES

>>52985336
That's a pretty reasonable discussion out of context, they don't call each other names or anything.

>>52985336
>At the beginning of each of the creature’s turns, it heals a certain number of hit points (defined in its description).
How hard is that to understand? God damn it.

>>52986731
You don't understand, anon. Just because every example follows a pattern doesn't mean that pattern will continue. IT'S TOO VAGUE.

>>52986731
I don't know, the GM seemed pretty retarded to me. The guy should have dropped it.

>>52964706
In my experience? Two majour things: flakes. The worst time was when I had to find a replacement character for someone every week for over a month straight 'cause one of the players dissappeared off the face of the planet and wouldn't respond to any messages sent to them.

The other problem is people making stupid, annoying meme characters like rip-offs of that wrestler dude or the bear

>>52986911
Are there Los Tiburon and Sir Bearington players on roll20? Reason implies they should be decent once you let them play their joke out.

I wish Oscar was still a character archetype.

>>52986938
I ran into a Deadpool, and he did not stop. GM had no backbone, wouldn't kick players. Gods, but it was horrible.

>>52986938
>Reason implies
I don't agree. If they start with as a cringey autistic, odds are they'll carry on that way.

>>52986938
>Are there Los Tiburon and Sir Bearington players on roll20?
Yes. I've ran into several people trying to be a luchadore in a setting where they don't even exist, someone flat-out trying to be Shrek (his name was Kerhs) and a couple other meme-tastic crap

>>52987131
So on the topic of cringey autists, one thing I hate about roll20 is when people use bad mics, and don't use push to talk. Sounding like they have something in their mouth all the time when the speak also enrages me.

Had to deal with an autist who did all three of those at once. He didn't even talk much, and the rest of the game was fine, but i almost quit because of him.

>>52986911
Flakes are the worst. I can respect someone who plays a session or three and says "Look, it's just not a good fit for me," fine, it happens, especially with strangers. But when they just disappear out of nowhere, that's the worst. Don't be a fucking dick.

>>52986938

Oscars only work in settings plagued by edgy, god-modding bullshit.

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One of the easiest ways to filter out most, not all, but most problems is with a short 1-3 session intro campaign.

Remember, they're trying you out as much as you're trying them out. If you don't like their dumb random meme humor, they probably just as much think you're not "fun."'

A short intro arc allows you and players to mutually see what each other is like, what the campaign is likely to feel like, how good you are, whether or not you communicate and get along well, and gives flakes a chance to drop early when a replacement can still be sought for them if needed.

More autistic groups call this tryouts, but that term is a little too little-league baseball for my tastes. Just call it an intro. A demo, if you want. Besides, a strong focus on hooking people in the beginning can hardly be a bad thing for a campaign.

I think its fine if you're doing it with friends

If you're playing with randoms theres a good chance theres one guy who might ruin the game and that can really fuck up 4 peoples days

>>52982043
>>52982096
The truth right here.

>>52982096
>The lower the population density, the lower your chances are of finding other tabletop gamers.
While any social activity is going to be boosted by higher density just due to simply having a higher selection, that isn't necessarily the biggest factor. Local demographics help a lot, too. Younger, whiter, and relatively affluent communities tend to have a lot more game stores and the like than dense urban communities if said dense urban communities are older or have more blacks and hispanics. I'm not trying to /pol/, simply, they don't play them as much.

Your average college town is going to have way more tabletop gamers than most inner cities.

I had a very good game on r20 that I couldn't stay with due to scheduling problems.
Most of the other games had the potential to be good, but I am an awful flake piece of shit so I dropped those games before I could get emotionally invested.

I feel really bad about being a flake. I'm a player who puts next to no effort into the game yet I still can't be bothered to play in them.

>>52988265
Then don't fucking join them, you asshole.

>>52984719
Took me about 5 seconds. DC++, dude.

>>52988288
I've stopped joining games despite really wanting to join a group because I'm aware of my problem

>>52975837
I DID IT

>>52988330
For free? Because please provide.

>>52988330
Wait, that's still a thing? Thought it died out in the oughts

>>52971481
The easiest red flag for GMs is that the game info lacks basic, important shit, like how they want character generation to happen. Shitty English is another good tell.

>>52974362
Bitch, I'm charging $10 an hour per person to put up with the kind of people who infest Roll20.

>>52988465
I always feel like an ass asking about allowed material, since I feel it makes it seem I'm asking with something specific in mind, but I hate when GMs don't tell you the allowed material because if I roll something 1pp, then somebody else comes in with Path of Weeaboo Fightan Magic, I'm going to be less effective.

In short, please list what supplements you're using.

>>52988351
Very for free, will upload somewhere shortly.

>>52983760
I humored a party like this once out of pity.
Now I say throw them to a pack of raid dogs and wait it out.

>>52988351
sendspacedotcom
file/1t1p2r

Sorry for dragging it out. My Internet had a fit.

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Misconception seems to be that only strangers use roll20 for some reason?

I use it all the time to play with friends who've moved away or live in different countries. Miscommunication isn't really a problem either because most people use Discord or something.

>>52981144
Somebody once straight up asked me what's in your picture when I was applying for a game, completely out nowhere.

I told him, "no, but I wouldn't tell you if I were", and he accepted that and let me in.

>>52989013
It's not really "using Roll20 with people you know" it's "Using Roll20 with people you found through it"

>>52988465
>>52988513
This is what I have for my roll20 game. Is this the kind of stuff you're talking about?
>https://pastebin.com/KgrYmR1j

I really have a hard-on for that chaos magic book, but nobody ever lets me use it.

>>52964706
every group is practically /pfg/.
There really needs to be a solid fucking wall between tabletop gaming and fucking anime/furry rp shit.

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>>52989142
What's wrong with /pfg/?

>>52989177
fucking anime/furry rp shit.

>>52989138
Yeah, that's nice. It lays out the splats being used, and what players need to make their character.

>>52989138
Yeah, that's good shit.

>>52989177
What ISN'T wrong with /pfg/?

>>52989303
It's an ok place for lewd stuff

>>52989364
leave

What should a new player like me do to find games?

I usually just go for D&D since its seems the easiest to understand.
But other than that I have no idea what the fuck to do.
Every time I get into a game, it just seems to fall apart for no reason.

And don't tell me to just find a group irl. I live about 20 miles from the nearest big city.

>>52989454
First things first
Buy or download a rulebook

>>52989142
>stop having badwrongfun

>>52989177
They're honest about their intent.

>>52989454
Then move to a big city you tit.

For real though, D&D is not the easiest to understand. You should give a shot to any Apocalypse World styled systems (minus DW) and the World of Darkness games. Other than that, games tend to die out very fast on roll20. Look out for any GMs that put a lot of effort in the application process and do at least a session 0. Those get invested enough in their game to not have it collapse that easily.

>>52989454
There are a lot of gamefinder threads on /tg/ now and then. I'd spontaneously offer to run a campaign on IRC or roll20 or something, but I'm going to be extremely busy here soon.

>>52989364
My point exactly.

>>52989576
In my experience the people in the Gamefinder threads a re just as unreliable as those on Roll20. Finding games online will generally approach the same hurdles.

>>52990474
I guess I and my groups were just lucky, then. We did have a problem player or two, but the GM ended up kicking them for their bullshit.

>>52990487
I think this is the point of effectiveness in any game: the GM having a pair and booting the problem players instead of letting them linger and ruin the game. The more I think about it, the two main reasons I had online groups dissolve so quickly are GM fuck ups.

>not booting players that don't mesh well with the rest
>not communicating on what game they want to run
>not willing to admit they didn't know about a rule that fucks them over
>refusing to let a failed game that everyone stopped caring about die

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>>52990977
>not willing to admit they didn't know about a rule that fucks them over

>ruleslawyering the gm, the final arbiter of rules

>>52991121
I don't have a problem with them saying "nah, it doesn't work like that now." I do have a problem with them sperging out and claiming I'm cheating because they didn't know about a single thing.

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>>52991164

Fair enough then. My bad. Have some tits.

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Well I can vouch for one thing if you're ever in a game with someone called Corylus on discord and Romi on roll20 just pass on it man

>>52964749
>not requiring business-casual dress code
It's like you're trying to be pleb.

>>52991454
What the fuck is hazel implying with this?

>>52992224
At the top
>You must inform me of every single detail or I don't agree
And the rest of it is
>Oh, and by the way, if the party agrees to something that makes them money, I still get a cut of it despite not agreeing to it

>>52992224
That she didn't scroll up like 2 minutes previous to read about the agreement.

It did not end there. I have never encountered such a volley of passive-aggression and stupidity ic and ooc out of the gate.

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>>52992395
Fun Fact: the gm actually had answered her yet another 2 minutes ago

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>>52992428
Imagine this for every movement your character took that was not pre-approved to benefit her specifically

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Started out strong, too, when the GM asked her to post a quick description of our characters to start off our text-based oneshot

I won't even get into the hell that was divvying the loot after

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>>52991454
>>52992428
>>52992456
>>52992509
I think I feel my liver shutting down as I'm reading this.

>>52964706
The problem is you, anon.

>>52987400

You think that's bad? Try playing with an obnoxious Texan who does all that and also eats constantly, chewing noisily (and wetly) over the mic, and talking with his big fat Austin mouth full too.

Fuck you Alex, if you're reading.

>>52992509
>>52992575

Same here, what servers is this person on? And what games do they play?

>>52991454
people who refer to their character in third person are literal cancer. Not calling themselves by the personal / possessive pronouns in the subjective form is the sign of a roleplayer who doesn't roleplay, and thinks they are playing wow or some other crpg garbage mmo

>>52989527

You mean 'stop pushing your cancerous, crass tastes onto people who just want an honest no-bullshit game'. Because that's what /pfg/fags do. That's what you mean, you giant fetid moose queef.

>>52992634
5e, and they joined up for a pick-up-oneshot-but-shared-continuity group.

I don't know how long they'll be around, though, as the loot divide fiasco at the end had two players threatening pk for their bullshit.

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>>52992795
A taste of which I provide

(for context - the 'lol I'm level 2' comment has to do with the several minutes of passive aggressive bitching endured when she found out levels would carry over (within reason) which I'm not a fan of myself but knew about ahead of time because I read the goddamn sticked forum post informing us that was the case.)

Also blocked out was our caster, she was playing fighter.

>>52968334
I'm an introvert so kind of number 1.
I moved across the country from my old game group and now live outside of a large city so 4.

Fuck me.

>>52990977
Well, it did take, uh, months for one of the problem players to be kicked. Most of the players were new to D&D, including the GM, this guy wasn't, and he was just generally horrible. Lying, cheating, raping NPCs... It was bad. Got toned down a bit after the GM told him to pack it in, but continued cheating and lying anyway. So he was kicked.

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>Forever DM
> Decide to play PC in a campaign because I never get to just relax and play one character
>Friends can't DM because they don't think they can hold a candle to what our regular sessions are like
>fair nuff
>desperate enough, look on roll20
>Start searching for systems I would love to play
>Only see 5e and pathfinder games
>Well okay, I'm not a faggot, so I guess I'll settle with 5e
>Read through hundreds of awful game synopsis or hooks to bring players in
>stop browsing
>cry self to sleep and prepare for my regular sessions as DM

Really sucks man. I saw this one campaign that was running some sort of "disney-esqued anthropomorphic beings with a tone of dark fantasy" Now if that just doesn't sound like some sort of furry hog man raping you in your sleep, I don't know what is.

>>52979379
At some point you have to understand that fear of failure is failure.

Dive in, sort out the good from the bad, do this a few more times, and you'll have enough good players to run good campaigns in good systems, whatever your preferences.

Unless you're into furry scat ERP, then you deserve to be shit on.

>>52980608
You know Doctors Without Borders is a CIA front, right?

You should be donating to Medicins Sans Frontieres.

>>52985336
That's just an autist GM.

There's an undefined range and his brain just goes "REEEEEE THIS IS ALGEBRA" and you get derp responses like that.

>>52992870
>>52992870
Jesus Christ.

My 13th Age group has one player tracking all the equipment and expendables because he enjoys that and the rest of them give no fucks.

But that's just Chaotic Neutral++ behavior right there.

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>>52994262
Doctors Pavels Without Borders? I'm CIA Front.

>>52992642
Not necessarily. It depends on if the game is written first- or third-person. For instance, in my game everything is written in paragraph form.

>>52971654
>Unironic use of OwO or XD
OwO is great but not for gaming time.

>>52971481
Also I'd say never join a game if the GM has written several paragraphs of backstory for the world

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>>52966451
Once I recruited players for a MAID RPG in Gamefinder.
Then a group started through the L5R Storytime general: we had a chat all together and so far everyone seems to be normal and an enjoyable person to spend an evening of RP with. No spergs, just us talking about what we want from the game and about what character we would like to play so we don't overshadow each other and keep a good balance.

>>52966451
>>52998892
Oh and as for the groups I found on Roll20: I joined a group that had a spot open, asked some questions to the GM about what kind of game they were playing and what they needed.

Second group much as the first: got to know the GM a bit by asking what sort of game he is looking for, kept staying positive and flexible in the approach and then met up with the group in the discord chat to make sure that we each have our role so that we can be good at different things for party balance.

Is there a secret to finding games online that aren't awful?

Is there a secret to screening applicants to online games that you're running so you don't end up running for awful flakey people?

>>52971664
>tfw you get on there and CTRL+F to see if you are on there

Are Gamefinder games more successful than Roll20, in your experience?

>>52999037
>Is there a secret to finding games online that aren't awful?
I have found none. I've joined games that I thought would be great and ended up in control freak central and next to badwrongfun Blv. You can't really tell if someone's game is well crafted or if he's just too in love with his own version of what should happen.

>Is there a secret to screening applicants to online games that you're running so you don't end up running for awful flakey people?
MANY MOONS AGO someone posted ten questions they ask people. I saved 9 of 'em.

>1: How would you react to your character permanently dying?
>2: Are you here to roleplay and talk, or roll dice and kill stuff?
>3: Do you like trains? Railroad vs Sandbox.
>4: Are you ok with political intrigue? Or are you playing games to get away from politics?
>5: Are you fine with grim settings and unhappy endings? Or would you rather have something more noble?
>6: Do you want to start at the bottom and go from there, or play a big damn hero/villan?
>7: What kind of pacing are you looking for? We can go fast-onward and upwards, or we can go through a slow slog.
>8: Do you want to be serious, or silly?
>9: How do you stand on horror? Keep in mind if you want a horror campaign, only you can let yourself be scared unless I pull dirty tricks.

>>52998599
>Also I'd say never join a game if the GM has written several paragraphs of backstory for the world
Kill yourself. Some people do prefer a setting with more depth than "Here's a dungeon, go loot it."

>>52999037
>>52999100
I'd like to add that as part of the screening, listen to what they are saying and how do they react to certain things said.

Once I allowed in my game a guy that kept going on and on about how much he loves China and just couldn't shut up. When I criticized a chick he was playing with for being a bitch and a control freak, he went off on a very anemic rant about how everyone should never be criticized about anything ever and we need to be more inclusive and yada yada he stop appearing without notice after a while and I kicked him.

>>52966267
I give you kudos, for sticking to your guns and not bending over to accomodate whatever shit the players throw at you.

>>52999037
>Is there a secret to finding games online that aren't awful?
see >>52987783

>>52968331
You will have to screen the players carefully. Get to know them a little bit before the game: absolutely get a session 0 where you introduce yourselves and each say what you expect and want from the game and what kind of feel you want to go with.

>>52999132
>Opinion I disagree with
Kill yourself.

>>52964706
Because you can't evaluate the person face-to-face. A fat, greasy, grimy neck beard will either need to clear himself up a bit or will immediately reveal his power level to all to see. A social autist cannot hide said autism when he is required to produce on-the-spot responses to questions, whereas an individual who has several minutes to consider a response on a forum post asking for candidates can more easily hide said power level.
Asking for candidates via a forum is how I ended up with a middle-aged woman who constantly told other players to shut up and couldn't get through half a sentence without tripping over her own words five or six times.
Unless you want to interview the candidates prior to the game you'll end up with a bunch of weirdos who can't get an IRL group. The sort of people who go looking for groups on Roll20 are generally not the sort of people who would agree to or could stand up to a twenty minute interview.

>>52974362
That's a good hustle, though.

>>52982043
>Sure i have a couple of horror stories to tell
And you are not... why?

>>52984889
Well, I know one such retard who said "I want to play M&M, who is with me? BTW, I am not GMing: if you want to GM, let me know."

And then he actually found a victim and other players
And then we played for a year and That Guy who actually started the whole game left because he was too flakey to play in the game he wanted to.

>>52992642
I felt a bit awkward when I randomly rolled a female character for a one-shot game, so I RPd in third person, getting in-character when the bantz were flowing.

I am the cancer

>Click somebody's profile
>GM of 20 games
>Over 10,000 hours

>>52999414
15 of those games are probably testbeds or campaigns which never got past the planning stage, speaking as someone who currently has 22.

>>52999414
I clocked in 1000 hours because I had a planning game open up along with my browser for 2 weeks straight, so it really doesn't mean much.

>>52999414
Most of those hours just account for leaving the tab open for 12 hours after a session ends.

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>>52999251
Alright.

>Get in a rotating Exalted 2e game (back then i din't know Exalted was shit.).
>Main guy has a fedora fag for an avatar. Should have clued me off really.
>Download the 2e books.
>Holy shit thats alot.
>We're playing as sidereals.
>Have to read the entire sidereal book.
>Im dedicated so i get on that shit.
>Make character, talk with others, things are going well, if a bit overwhelming.
>Eventually comment that i have so much shit to read, and post the Read Nigga Read gif.
>Fedora fag goes nuts, saying a cant post that.
>Ask why.
>Says it has an offensive word in it.
>I say "Nigga what?".
>Fedora fag goes extra salty.
>It should be noted that no one in our group was black.
>Start arguing that its just a word, and its not hurting anyone.
>Two players leave the game due to the arguing.
>Fedora fags pissed.
>Leave game myself.
>tfw you collapse a game of SJWs by saying nigger a couple of times.
Feels good man.

>>52999508
>Saying nigga in polite company
>Ever

Not to say they didn't overreact, but you were the first one to show their social ineptitude.

>>52999508
Nice going, my Nigerian.

>>52999549
>Some random Roll 20 group is polite company
Nigga what?

>>52999583

Can you at least include a trigger warning when you racially slur an ethnic group?

>>52971664
>Lion Hamster
I remember that guy, he threw a giant bitch-fit after he was not assumed to be with the other characters with his massively conspicuous super-van.

>>52999583
Look nigga, if you don't know the guys that well, then they're polite company. If you wouldn't say it around your coworkers, don't say it around a new RPG group.

>>52999486
>leaving the tab open for 12 hours after a session ends.
How do people do this? Do you just not go "oh, the game has ended, I'll close the tab"?

>>53000524
I once was in a game where one of the players NEVER LOGGED OFF
I press the link to the dead game some times just to shitscribble on the empty wall and he's STILL logged in 2 years afterwards.

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>>53000542
>he's STILL logged in 2 years afterwards.

>>53000542
>>53000569
Sounds like a bug, there ought to have been some kind of internet or power outage over two years, or a PC crash.

>>53000524
Multiple times as GM I've just left the tab open after a game ends late at night. I'll just switch off my monitor and leave the PC on and leave it to remind myself to do whatever post-game prep work in the morning.

I've also had the tab open for hours just because I had to go do other things while prepping.

If you GM it's really not hard at all to rack up hundreds of hours of "game time" as far as roll20's timer is concerned.

>>52999902
Fuck off Tumblr

>>52999508

>2e Sidereals

It was better that the game died.

>>53000634
This.

>>52964706
If you need forums to find a playgroup it's because you don't have friends. If you don't have friends, there are probably reasons why people wouldn't want to be around you.

>>53001552
what if you have friends but none of them are interested in roleplaying?

>>53001649
Find more friends. Honestly I don't want to sound like a normie, I'm a 20 yo virgin NEET, but I never had a problem finding groups IRL since I was 15.

>>53001683
I live in a country where the RPG scene is deader than dinosaurs and the concept sounds too alien to the locals. Your argument is shito.

>>53001683
How the hell do you just happen to find friends that wanna play rpgs?

>>53001683
I haven't met anyone that plays roleplaying games probably ever.
A couple of my friends smashed some dnd chick once but I don't think I was there for that one.

>>52999175
>Upset at rude people on the internet
Kill yourself

>>53002511
In high school, mostly. Back then I was in some kind of clique of semi-autistic kids, one of them one day said "Why don't we try out DnD" and while being really embarassed at first I got into it. Also in high school I met most of my current playgroup, 3 years later we still play together. Sometimes I still play with that guy that introduced me to roleplay, and there are always different people in his playgroups. >>53002604
You could have befriended the girl without wanting to get in her pants, and joined her playgroup or at least meet the people that played with her. I don't know man, talk to people, I can assure you there's a grey area between normies and Roll20 freaks.

>>53000595
Maybe he's still there even now, waiting to game...

>>52999549

It's the fucking internet nigger

>>52999100
i know you aren't asking these, but i'll answer so you have the input of someone who just have played 2 times ever (one 5e session on Roll20 and one PF session IRL)

1- i'll let the party decide the fate of my character. if it's dead for good, i'll roll for a new char and ask the DM for a nice introduction to the party

2.More for roll dice, but not necessarily for killing. would be nice some puzzling or exploring where i can use my char abilities

3.As im a begginer, railroading, but with several branches on the outcome determined by the group actions.

4.For now, more like a backstory

5.Totally good with grim settings. in fact, i would love something like Fantasy No country for Old Men.

6.all the way from the bottom. i'll enjoy the rise to power

7. if the pacing is like a TV series, should be good. give me something satisfying at the end of a session but pique my curiosity for what happens next. My analogy is like, a session is an episode, an adventure is an story arch and a campaign is a season.

8. i'd prefer serious.

9. i'm more open to suspense than horror.

>>53002511
Go to a FLGS and ask if they have listings of local groups. See if a college campus has a club for it. See if a FLGS has an open gaming night. Introduce your friends to it.

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>browse through the list of groups looking for players
>maybe two or three look decent
>go to write application and see lots of other applications
>get too anxious and close all the tabs

why am I so autistic /tg/

>>53010126
I don't know. Now go write your fucking post and make it seem good. It doesn't matter how many applicants there are, if you don't post HELLO I WANT GAME D&D LOL XD then you'll get picked pretty easily.

>>53010126
you really underestimate how shitty the average application is.

>>52999175
>trying to reduce all arguments to floating subjectivities

KYS
Y
S

>>53011301
>4chan

>>53010126
I do the same, but I still send it cause most of the ones I browse are text only. Haven't gotten a response on them though, so I'm slightly anxious.

>>52998904

I've found good games too, but I find people are even more likely to flake than in an IRL game.
Every session has been really fun but it's been called off by the DM several times in a row and when it IS on someone won't show up.

Why don't people make time for the things they enjoy?

>>53013094
Life. Seriously. I have a game on Sunday at 5:30 PM every week. I haven't played in a month. First weekend too many players were gone (we'd agreed no games with less than 3 players, all must be there for boss fight). Then the next week our GM got called into work. Then I was busy with school work for the third and last weekend (finals).

We'd met IRL and used roll20 due to everyone moving and so on. First group I ever played with.

>>52981144
>>52980793
My age starts with a one and I can see why you wouldn't want one of us around. Most are annoying, including myself.

What's an appropriate amount of backstory to a character? I don't want to be lacking, but I don't want a Henderson

>>53013307
I had a three-year-long game once that always met on Saturdays. As usual, we decided on that because Saturdays worked best for us.

In the last year, it became really sporadic. There was always one guy who couldn't make it, or had to leave early, et cetera. We eventually realized Saturdays had gradually become a poor day for us, and moved it to Wednesdays. We had all just taken it as gospel that Saturday was our best day, but that advice had gradually obsoleted.

Don't be afraid to re-schedule. Maybe that won't fix your group, but it's worth asking.

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>>52981144

Red flags get easier to suss out the longer you play.

Had an interview with a player recently for an upcoming game. Avatar was a green carebear smoking weed. Not a dealbreaker, but a bad omen. At the least, it indicates this guy's sense of humor is immature.

We get into a Skype call. The guy's voice sounds like the voice of a lardass neckbeard. I've run through enough campaigns to know what they sound like.

Sure enough, after making an offhanded mention about neckbeards, he says in a defensive tone "I'm a neckbeard."

That's two warning signs in one. The guy is not only a neckbeard, a group with a lot of astigmatisms attached to it, but he's defensive, meaning he has a fragile ego, and is probably a bit whiny.

We go on. I ask about his experience. Shadowrun and Warhammer 40k Dark Heresy, or whatever it's called. As a long-time Shadowrun GM, one of the main reasons I quit running that game was it's mostly INSUFFERABLE player base. I also suspected, from conjecture and by reading the generals, that the 40k roleplay was populated entriely by neckbeards and autists, with maybe a few actually decent people playing it.

So, this man is the quinessential denizen of two awful communities.

We continue. He mentions that he 'has an edgey sense of humor', and that some people may not be cool with it, as he makes paedophile and rape jokes.

More proof that his sense of humor is immature.

I ask about his character concept. He says at first that it's too early, and he didn't have a hard idea in mind, but then admits he made a whole, functional character sheet. He offers to send it, and I accept.

Female character. Using options from non-core sourcebook that basically makes him into a slug/snake-person, depending on how you fluff it.

Cont.

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>>53014061
>The guy is not only a neckbeard, a group with a lot of astigmatisms attached to it

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>>53014061

The game is about transhumanism. It is a great venue for exploring identities, and playing with one's physical form separate from its conscious. For mature players, it is a playground for serious thought on the nature of identity, and a fountain of creative freedom for those able to make use of it.

But I've been talking with this guy just seven minutes, and I've already deduced this is not a serious, mature player. This guy just wants to play a sexy lamia.

I politely end the call, leaving it vague as to whether he'll be accepted or not.

Afterwards, I laugh internally.

The sad thing is, players like this are a dime a dozen on roll20. You must be vigilant, and make sure they don't slip through the cracks, lest they ruin your tables with their disgusting autism.

>>53014141
Was it Eclipse Phase?

>>53014115

This is what happens when you just click the first option in the spellcheck.

>>53014159

Aye, it was. Got a bunch of cool players so far, honestly, but I felt like he was a good example of >>52981144 in what to watch out for.

>>53010126
I only did this if there's just one spot available.

But after a while, I found out you're not safe just for being first. So do it anyway. They might even glance at it.

>>53013454
Not that guy but I'm also getting annoyed by these 22 year olds at work. Maybe 25 really is a cutoff.

>>53014537
Once you reach a certain point it's all down to individual personality and development. There's a lot of obnoxious shitstain dudes who are 30+ at my FLGS, doesn't mean I'd make it so my game requires everyone to be 40 or over.

>>53013454
Try a paragraph. By which I mean three or four sentences.

>>53014043
Can't reschedule sadly. Both GM's (we run two game at once, alternating each week) are on call for their job. Same with three of my buddies. Since we only have 5 players (including the guy who isn't GM'ing that week), if they all get called in, then we're SOL for that week. I have been considering subjecting them to playtesting my Fallout homebrew.

As for my personal experience, it's been limited to helping other elegan/tg/entlemen learn Shadowrun 5e. At least if you disregard me playing with my friends. Anyway, we're doing Shadowrun. I was going to give a quick introduction in two sessions (character creation and a crash course in gameplay). Well I didn't pay enough attention to one of the character sheets and one person was playing "I'm a mute who follows orders and never talks". That would be about the worst. The second worst would be the guy who played the edgy "I don't care about the others" animu shit. Which wasn't far out of line with Shadowrun in my opinion. Plus he played it well.

>>52991989
>business-casual
Filthy casual.

>>52964706
Only used it once with my friends. The game turned out ok but the GM didn't like it because it required more work than his usual preparation.

>>53013454

Ask your GM about backstory length. I prefer a detailed but focused intro, maybe half a page on what the character does, why she does it, important life events that led to this choice and ultimately what she hopes to achieve. I also encourage players to work their backstory in to the campaign somehow, even a vague open ended statement like a close friend who cut contact mysteriously years ago, then I can work each character in to the story instead of just plopping them down as outsiders in my world.

On the other hand some GMs want a few lines that outline your character's temperament, others want a fucking novella. Avoid the ones who want a novella.

If you ask your GM what she wants from you as a player you're already in the top 10%.