In a campaign/chronicle, what, as the GM, is the minimum amount of effort you expect from players?

• Remember to bring your own charsheet.
• When updates to the PC are necessary, try to do so between sessions.
• Bring some dice.
• Play nice with others.
• Try to let me know ahead of time if you're going to miss a session.

That's all I can think of off the top of my head.

what about in terms of creative input?

or should the GM do all the work, however much that may be (or however much he desires).

Quote from: jrients

• Remember to bring your own charsheet.
• When updates to the PC are necessary, try to do so between sessions.
• Bring some dice.
• Play nice with others.
• Try to let me know ahead of time if you're going to miss a session.

That's all I can think of off the top of my head.

bingo.  as minimum, creatively speaking, make sure to name your character.  if you want to do a backstory so i can use the data for campaign building, all the better.  try not to be anachronistic or use knowledge your character wouldn't have.  

please pay some attention to any world details i may give out.

Quote from: signoftheserpentwhat about in terms of creative input?

I like the players to name their PCs, but I will come up with names if necessary.  Past that, I expect the creative input of the players to happen mostly during play.

Given the reality of the situation, my bare minimum is pretty low.  But for me to have fun as a GM, I expect the players to have a pretty good general idea of what is going on in the world around their characters and to have a sense of what their characters want and who they are (though I appreciate that this can be a developing thing).

Quote from: jrients

• Remember to bring your own charsheet.
• When updates to the PC are necessary, try to do so between sessions.
• Bring some dice.
• Play nice with others.
• Try to let me know ahead of time if you're going to miss a session.

That's all I can think of off the top of my head.

I would say that in terms of social effort.  In terms of creative effort, a name, a short backstory and some goals for the character (even if they are generic like become more powerful, wealthy, etc.)

Quote from: signoftheserpentIn a campaign/chronicle, what, as the GM, is the minimum amount of effort you expect from players?

Show up.  Have your character behave like they would if they were a real person.

personally i don't understand how any gm can function without this?

Not unless he enjoys the lions share of the workload wihtin a group. I don't like that balance of power.

Quote from: signoftheserpentwhat about in terms of creative input?

or should the GM do all the work, however much that may be (or however much he desires).

Personally, I don't think "should" enters into it. On either side of the fence. If you come to play, be prepare to invest in the game and help make it successful. As a player, that might mean basic things such as those Jeff outlined. It might mean having a hand in co-creating the game. But that level isn't necessarily pre-determined by some pre-set paradigm.

Seanchai

I'm not sure what work you're doing that is so onerous.  We come to the table, we play the game, it's fun.  What do you think the players SHOULD be bringing to the table that we're not seeing?

I expect my players to play their characters, to take the game seriously- at least to an extent, and to provide me with snacks and drugs.

Quote from: signoftheserpentpersonally i don't understand how any gm can function without this?

You lost me.  Without what?

QuoteNot unless he enjoys the lions share of the workload wihtin a group. I don't like that balance of power.

You asked the minimum expected.  I shoulder the lion's share of creative effort if that's what the players want.

Quote from: HalfjackI'm not sure what work you're doing that is so onerous.  We come to the table, we play the game, it's fun.  What do you think the players SHOULD be bringing to the table that we're not seeing?

by work i mean preparing adventures, background and setting (degree of which of course depends on the game).

my personal preference is for players who want to involve themselves in that work rather than do nothing except show up and play (if that).

it's a case of input and output. If i the gm do all this work i better bloody well get something out of it. i believe gaming is about a group synergy and while i don't expect players to write lengthy treatises on this and that regarding thier characters, i do expect them to come up with more than just numbers and a name.

otheriwse whats the point? how can you create anythign with depth that's interesting? (game dependant again of course; seomthign like feng shui doesn't require much).

Quote from: jrientsYou lost me.  Without what?



You asked the minimum expected.  I shoulder the lion's share of creative effort if that's what the players want.

see the post above the one you quoted.

if youre happy to shoulder all that work then great; for me it's crossing the line between rewarding and tiresome. For a couple of hours a week's worth of game that means i get less than i put in.

I want to create games with depth, but with players who don't provide the minimum it becomes less fun and more work and that's not good.