Some of you guys have interesting posters and stuff...pretty impressive.

Regards,
David R

Jesus god almighty.

Last night I pitched, it went like this "guys, do you want Victorian horror or something medieval?"

I got asked what system, replied CoC but light on the supernatural, and everyone voted Victorian horror.

That's pretty much the extent of my pitching, I say "I was thinking of running x" and if the response is lukewarm I come up with something else.

Quote from: JimBobOzBut if you write a little checklist, whether it's bullet-pointed words, or words with numbers, it looks like a character sheet and players are used to reading those

Do you have a general writeup of that format?

Quote from: BalbinusJesus god almighty.

Yeah. But, for example, we have three active GMs in our group. We play a bunch of different games in a year. So while it's not a competitive scene exactly, we're not...bored and looking for something to do.

Seanchai

Oh, an additional piece of advice: triple-proofread your pitch (especially if it's in poster form), and then have somebody who can spell proofread it again.  Twice.  Big typos in the pitch detract from its impact.

Quote from: AnemoneOh, an additional piece of advice: triple-proofread your pitch (especially if it's in poster form), and then have somebody who can spell proofread it again.  Twice.  Big typos in the pitch detract from its impact.

Geek!

Seanchai

Quote from: Casey777Do you have a general writeup of that format?

Yes. It goes as below, but I want to emphasise that the categories are entirely arbitrary - you could as well use horoscope descriptions or football plays to describe your campaigns. The point is to describe your campaign in detail, but in about half a page of text, no more. The categories you come up with will be as valid as any I've come up with - they'll tell your potential players what sorts of things are important to you, what you as a GM think of in a game session.

Each campaign pitch could have the following format:

Subject line: Campaign name, game session location by suburb & city, and possibly game frequency. For example, "Greyhawk, Sunday fortnightly, Nth. Melbourne"

Promo image, if any.

Tagline, and summary in fifty words or less.

GM - here put your contact details. We recommend just using the private messaging feature, since putting up your email attracts spam; but it's up to you.

Game system used

Number of sessions. Here at Game Circle we promote Closed-Ended Campaigns. But run whatever you like, it's your game, not ours.

When & where played; it is expected that GMs will usually be happy to run their game less often, e.g. the first Sunday of every month instead of every Tuesday. But in general assume that the GM cannot adjust the time; they list that which is most convenient for them.

Also note here if your game is to be face-to-face, through irc, IM, or whatever.

Minimum and maximum number of players


GAME STYLE

Rate each of these three pairs according to which side the campaign will swing most towards. You get 4 points to put into each pair. Rate it like "Cinematic (1), Realistic (3)", which would mean "mostly realistic."  

Cinematic vs Realistic
"Cinematic" is not just whether characters can die, but whether what they do is governed by laws of physics and common sense. Hong Kong Action Theatre is cinematic; Millenium's End is realistic.

Hack vs Thesp
Hack is not just the kind that goes with "& Slash", but also the depth of characterisation. So the actors in Friends or Seinfeld are Hacks, even though their characters never slay anyone. Thesp is for characters which are realistic, have different personality traits, etc.

Schtick vs Drama
This is laughs vs tears, fooling around vs taking things seriously. Paranoia is schticky, Pendragon is dramatic.


WHAT HAPPENS
Rate from 1 to 4 the overall themes of the campaign. "1" is "hardly ever appears", while "4" is "happens just about every session."

Action & Fights
These needn't be to the death... Jackie Chan beats lots of people up, but hardly anyone dies.

Building
This is as in city management computer games, or as in a long tv series... the characters are building something which will last longer than them.

Character
A focus on personality and relationships.

Character Power
A focus on the characters improving in their abilities.

Destroying
The opposite of building, obviously - the characters are going to bring something down.

Exploration
Discovering new things, a sense of wonder or awe. This is a broad theme, and could include everything from a Call of Cthulu game to a medieval fantasy game where the characters are mapping the far reaches of an empire.


HOW IT'S DONE

Note which of the following character abilities will be most useful in the campaign. Ideally, at least four of the twelve should be significant. This gives potential players the chance to figure out what sort of character they could play in the game.

Athletics,Combat, Communication, Detection, Driving, Gadgeteering, Intrusion, Magic, Medical, Persuading, Scholarship, Wilderness

Detailed description

Here put a description of a few paragraphs, giving some background to the campaign.


An example campaign pitch,


Now the king's thane
who kept in his memory
recalling at will
legends and lays
who was laden with speeches
and knew virtually all
of the venerable sagas
found instead another
story to tell.
- Beowulf

to be played February 6th - May 1st, 2007

Looking for 2-4 players.

GAME STYLE
* Cinematic (2 parts), Realistic (2 parts) – there shall be magic, a source of wonder and awe
* Hack (2 parts), Thesp (2 parts) – the characters are real people, with real feelings and thoughts, but sometimes they are pretty shallow, and just chop.
* Schtick (1 part), Drama (3 parts)
 

WHAT HAPPENS
* Action / Fights (3) – heroes do things, they don't just talk about them!
* Building (1) – how can mere adventurers change the fate of a kingdom?
* Character (3) - real people, again
* Character Power (2) – you strive for glory and honour!
* Destroying (1)
* Exploration (3) – the Cyning sends you forth.


HOW IT'S DONE
* Athletics, Combat, Magic, Persuading, Scholarship, Wilderness

DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Years ago Cyning Berchtwald rose from being a mere fishmonger to Cyning of all Eron (Tiwesdæg Clíewen). After putting down the last rebellious Eorl, and subduing the savages of the mountain clans (Tiwesdæg Clíewen 2), now he would have his lands know more of the world, and trade with them. He would also have his bastard son find some place of honour, but he must needs earn it by his deeds. And so he sends forth a party to the mainland, to explore and send back reports, and seeks those who are lofgeornost, most eager for glory, as was Beowulf.

As times goes on, more information will appear on the campaign wiki page here

Quote from: JimBobOzYes. It goes as below, but I want to emphasise that the categories are entirely arbitrary - you could as well use horoscope descriptions or football plays to describe your campaigns.The point is to describe your campaign in detail, but in about half a page of text, no more. The categories you come up with will be as valid as any I've come up with - they'll tell your potential players what sorts of things are important to you, what you as a GM think of in a game session.

:cool: Excellent! I'd seen several campaign writeups and have a vague idea of what the numbers meant but your post really helps. I'll keep the arbitrary point in mind, though even just editing a copy of your post has already helped flesh out some campaign ideas. If you don't have this posted elsewhere/in your big list I'd recomend it go there.

Thanks. :keke: Once I flesh some out more I'll post them.

Quote from: Casey777I'll keep the arbitrary point in mind, though even just editing a copy of your post has already helped flesh out some campaign ideas.

Well, that's the thing. It's like Balbinus says about GNS - any kind of list of elements of a game is like astrology - however true or untrue the descriptions and the underlying theory are, it helps you because it prompts you to think systematically, or methodically, about your game play style. Of course, if the list actually represents something related to reality then it helps you even more...

Quote from: Casey777If you don't have this posted elsewhere/in your big list I'd recomend it go there.

Naw. I only put in stuff that at least a few people have said, "cool!" to. You're about the only one who's said, "cool!" to that. I find potential players of mine just scan over it until they get to the pictures.