A message comes in from one of the players: “Sorry, gang, can’t play tonight.”
Player 2: “Should we cancel the game?”
Player 3: “There are only two of us! We don’t have enough players.”
You sigh. As the Game Master, you’ll end up canceling the game, though you had put in the time and prepared for tonight’s session. It’s one of the most frustrating things you come across as a Game Master, especially for professionals who count on the income, and for your players, who are ready to play. You also risk losing those players because you’re not consistent enough when you are forced to cancel sessions.
It is a normal part of life for players to experience unplanned family needs, internet challenges, late-night work, and emergencies, which encroach on their game time. Let’s presume last-minute absences will happen.
You’ve been running this campaign regularly for some time now. You haven’t had a new player join your campaign in ages. How do you, as a Game Master with only a few players, in a longer-running campaign, prevent canceling game sessions? If you and your party want to finish the campaign, the best option is to rebuild, so you have a solid party of players, and the absence of a single player, or two players, won’t sideline your sessions.
The trouble is, how do you bring in players, when you’re in the middle of a multi-year campaign?
You refresh the campaign, so it’s interesting to new players. Here are some constructive steps for a StartPlaying Game Master to restart a campaign, in the middle of it:
Work on your Title first. Find a natural story beat in your adventure which can become the focus of a reboot to your campaign, and make it part of the listing title. It could be the title of a chapter in a pre-written module (“Paths of Peril”), a made-up name based on a quest the party are about to undertake (“Quest for the Ice Shard”), or a dramatic event (“Battle of the Troganthars!”). Bonus: if you use a chapter name from a module, you may intrigue a player who only has played a portion of that module.
Indicate the level of play in your Title (“Level 9”). Experienced players might be interested in joining at a higher level because they love the challenge of high-level play. This can also attract players who did not finish this adventure.
Now take a look at your Session Count. Some players will see that you’re on your forty-ninth session, and scroll right by your game. It’s natural to want to be part of an adventure at the beginning. If you are going to do a reboot, you can reset your session count to reflect the launch of a new section of the adventure.
Review your Game Template.
Take a look at the art you’re using for your listing. Could it use a freshen-up?
In your Game Description, what is it you’re saying about the adventure? Re-read it with a critical eye. Are you long past the point in the story covered in the first paragraph of that description? It’s worth editing out unnecessary or past story elements, and focusing on the current and future story elements to draw in new players. In short prose, give them a taste of the campaign and hint at the heroic story to come.
Review the Gameplay selections. Do you have higher Roleplay with this group? Higher Combat? Are there more Puzzles at this level? Is the Experience Required set for Beginners and your game is currently at Level 9? Switch the experience level to Intermediate, or Advanced, which might be more appropriate for where your game is currently.
Launch the refreshed game by saving your changes. Talk to your players to get them excited about the new part of the adventure, and keep them updated as new players join the campaign. For players who join, hold a Session 0 or 1-on-1 to get them situated, let them know where the party is now, and what they might need to know from the story so far, so they’re prepared for this part of the campaign.
You may want to refresh your game periodically throughout the campaign to give it an extra boost as you have openings in your game.
Ajax DM is a full-time professional Dungeon Master with 49 completed multi-year Dungeons & Dragons campaigns.
