You're starting up a new game and you've got a couple of folks totaly new to roleplaying who are interested in what all the fuss is about.

As GM, is there anything you do differently when running a game with some newbies? Any tricks you use to gain and keep their interest that you don't use with regular gamers? Do you need to treat them differently at all?

Hmmm...my girlfriend started playing a couple months ago when I hooked up with GrimJesta's group.  Before our first session, I walked her through the character creation rules after she'd read the fluff text for the game we were playing, and she came up with an awesome concept and grokked how to choose bennies, powers, etc. to fit it.

We're playing a steampunk Savage Worlds game now and she was able to make a character quite easily with a bit of guidance.

Mer roleplays very well...better than I do, I think; she's getting used to the mechanical aspect of playing, but that's to be expected (we still have to tell her which dice are which).

Looking back, I can't think of anything really special that was done to ease her in.  Character creation started with concepts, then either I or Grim pointed out what attributes she might want to fit those concepts.  The only thing we didn't do was make her read the rules, just gave her a quick rundown of the basic mechanic...we're walking her through the specifics as they come up.

I'd be more lenient if they make some odd in-game choice and try to perhaps steer them to more logical conclusions.  I'd also try to encourage them to try and play a more straight forward character at first like a fighter or thief over something that has lots of extra rules like a magic using type.

Like has been mention, defiantly want to minimize the impact of decision they make if they go badly because of their lack of knowledge or familiarity with the system. If a system that relies on good character builds to survive, you might want to go with pre-gen characters the first time through to help them get  a grasp of the system.

I think it's best to show up to the first session dressed only in  a viking hat and a diaper made of clear plastic wrap.

Quote from: Aos;265964I think it's best to show up to the first session dressed only in  a viking hat and a diaper made of clear plastic wrap.

Not a fan of newbie gamers, huh? Or were you planning to run Maid?

If a player hasn't roleplayed before, I will often omit all the dressings of the game in favor of what I find interesting. So no dice, no mechanics, no system, no character sheet: I tell the player everything I can remember about the setting [usually over dinner, since it usually boils down to an hours-long Q&A session] until they've thought of a character they find fascinating. Then the group gets together and just plays entirely in their head, with the GM adjudicating results. As they begin to get characterization - the important bit, as far as I'm concerned - down, we work on introduction to the system by making a character sheet and starting to ease into die rolling.

It's my favorite way to get players, because they haven't yet been "ruined." [Read: taught how to play by someone who likes to play in a different way I do.]

We tend to provide characters for the first game, prefering new players not get bogged down in the mechanics. Other than that, not much is different from our regular games.

Interesting, Dan. I've been thinking about this since I started playing D&D with the kids (and a couple of neighbor kids).

I will say the lenience is a balancing act. My son pulled a crossbow on the innkeeper in The Keep, and I gave him a chance to back out of it (the lenience part). But when he refused, it turned to an intra-party struggle and then all of them being carted off to jail.

None of it planned, btw - just the way I let it played out. But now I have to have a "trial" in front of the Castellan. It ought to be fun; I'm going to try to recruit my wife to play the Castellan (in the 3.5 conversion I found, the Castellan is a woman!).

I do find myself pointing out little things here and there - be it rules, or abilities, or tactics. Not a lot, and always in a way to help them learn (the game, their characters, or thinking more tactically), but I find I do it more than I would with experienced gamers. It's like training wheels.

What will be very interesting is when I take the training wheels off...

Cool, James. After you stopped posting about the game with your son, i presumed it had come to an end.

Quote from: One Horse Town;265978Cool, James. After you stopped posting about the game with your son, i presumed it had come to an end.

No, we've been playing a bit more (what - you don't follwo my posts on both forums to keep up?!?!?!), and they are asking to again. Perhaps next week!

I have quite a bit of summary AP done, but quite a bit more to go...I owe...

Well, there have already been excellent suggestions, so I'm pretty much going to echo some of them.

Genre archetypes- I would recommend playing an archetype of the genre as their first character.  So, let's say it's a standard fantasy game, then I would recommend playing a fighter or thief to the character.  This will allow them to become familiar with the combat basics of a system.  I would recommend that the player stay away from a magic using character as their first character, unless they're hell bent on it.  I think that it would be easier for a new player to see how magic works in game either from the GM or another experienced player.

Leniency- I would recommend that the GM be very helpful and explain consequences of an action OOC to the new player as situations arise.  The new player has to wrap their mind around the fact that the world around their character is *real* and that their actions will have consequences in game.  The player has to become aware that there are a multitude of ways to deal with a situation, and that instantly jumping to combat can be a very bad choice for a number of reasons, some of which may not be readily apparent.

Introductory Session- I would like to run a very short mini introductory session just for that player.  Something simple where they are presented with some choices and exposure to some minor system mechanics.  Something like gambling in bar, getting into a fist fight, etc.  Does anyone remember Burly Bob from the old BRP booklet?  I would do something like that short story; the new adventurer travels to town with an experienced player and has some small encounters or situations.  

Solo Time- A new player needs to have solo time and focused time from the GM in their first several sessions.  Don't just throw a new player into a group of experienced players and forget about the new player.  The new player may be intimidated by the experienced players and the fast pace and flow of the session.

Quote from: James J Skach;265979No, we've been playing a bit more (what - you don't follwo my posts on both forums to keep up?!?!?!), and they are asking to again. Perhaps next week!

I have quite a bit of summary AP done, but quite a bit more to go...I owe...

Oops, caught out! I must admit there's so little traffic, i only check it out when i remember. Say every week or so...

Quote from: Drohem;265982Solo Time- A new player needs to have solo time and focused time from the GM in their first several sessions.  Don't just throw a new player into a group of experienced players and forget about the new player.  The new player may be intimidated by the experienced players and the fast pace and flow of the session.

Depending on the individual and the group involved, i think this can be pretty important.

Quote from: One Horse Town;265966Not a fan of newbie gamers, huh? Or were you planning to run Maid?

I've been running maid since the day I got married. Honestly, i find the skirt a little uncomfortable in this weather, but the lace knickers feel nice against my shorn genitals.
Seriously, I have not introduced anyone to RPGing in at least two full decades. I will teach my boys to play in a couple of years (as a part of a larger birth control strategy). Truthfully, I have never been comfortable introducing people to RPGs. It's just not my thing.
Well, look at that; it's time to go and clean the toilet.