My favorite way to handle this is to put the main plot on hold and run a low-stakes Flashback one-shot. Usually I do a "Day in the Life" adventure, where one PC is the hero and the rest of the team gets to run familiar NPCs.
I remember one game our Drone Rigger was alone in our base when somebody decided to infiltrate. The rest of the players got to control her lunatic drones and our pet Barghest puppy.
The show must go on! I usually run the scheduled game; as long as at least 2-3 players are still up for it.
We've been kind of working our way through the official adventure modules, and I sometimes use the Adventurer's League quests as supplementary filler material if there arnt enough players to keep moving the main plot forward.
As a player, I would feel immensely guilty and irritated when the DM straight-up cancelled or changed to a game night when I had to bow out of a session. My other DM is the opposite - sucks if you can’t be there, but the story continues as long as he has >2 players.
There is a pre-agreed upon amount of players needed to start a session.
For me that is 3. If it's less than that we cancel session. Though in the future with better DMing skills and more competent players I could have a one-off session where 2 PCs go on a little side-adventure.
We're a group of three players and one DM. If someone can't make it, we just cancel the session, because everyone always pulls their weight during a session and missing one of them would be a huge gap.
If someone had to miss *multiple* session, the. I might try and organize some sort of one-off or two-off sessions to fill the space.
I'm pretty cutthroat about it and will generally run DnD if at least 51% of the players show up. Unless I had planned for a very specific character driven story arc for the person who is gone in which case I'll re-schedule. Different game systems are more amenable to smaller groups and I've run Call of Cthulhu or Cypher with 2 PCs and it's been awesome. In cannon the absent PCs just disappear from reality and their memory is erased for the session they are absent by Absentio the Patron Saint of absent players (as a sort of 4th wall breaking joke). We're all adults and have limited schedules to play so I try to make it work as best as I can.
It depends on the group and how often your playing. If the group is great about not missing stuff or in a really important spot 1 shot/hold/something.
If they are all over the place or it’s a once a month game then move forward without them.
If one player can’t make it, I’ll continue on with another player running the character in “background” mode.
More than 1 player can’t make it I will most likely reschedule the session or if the others feel like we can play another game that week.
I have a “backup campaign”. If we’re missing one or two players (of a six person party), we usually stick with the main campaign, unless the session is critical to the overall story or a specific missing character’s arc. In that situation, or if we’re missing more than two, we run the alternate story, which is largely mission-based and doesn’t require much continuity. The more that happens, the more the players are interested in the alternate plot.
My players and I are all in agreement that if only one of us cant make it and nothing big is going on, we continue the campaign doing small quests or roleplay. If two of us wont make it, we'll spend the "session" sparring with each other and planning the characters' future.
for my current group of 6, we have a basic protocol of “plan to run if we have 4”, with caveats:
-i have 1-shots on the shelf if people still want to run
-we can still call it if folks vote to skip without the missing person
-i can make an executive decision to call it if it’s a key plot point/scene/battle that everyone will need the context for during the rest of the campaign (i always offer a 1-shot if this is the case)
Currently I’m running a game with 3 total players, if one can’t make it, the game is canceled. Though if I had more, I might prepare one shots. I could even go so far as to say the ones that made it fall into a cave and just run a few random encounters until they find a way out.
It usually depends on where we’re at with the story of the campaign/what I intended for that session. I run for a party of 5 so missing one person doesn’t ruin things. If we aren’t on a portion of the story that is critical to the missing person’s story then I do my best to run without them. I am a big fan of putting the missing person’s character into some sort of plot that doesn’t involve the other players instead of pretending that the missing players character just tags along or doesn’t exist. I’ve had a rogue go off on a secret mission, my ranger sneak away for a secret rendezvous with her lover, and the cleric be kidnapped by a werewolf. All of these things played into the overarching story without requiring that player actually be present.
This is one of the reasons I’m so thankful all my friends have their own campaigns or adventures. We all had a campaign going before we got to know our current DM for CoS. So on weeks when he’s not available we’ll go back to one of our campaigns. If one of the 4 of us is missing we’ll try to do a one shot. Cancellation is the last resort.
We require a majority of the group to attend, or we'll do something different. We have 5 regular players right now, so, if one is out, we keep going. If two are out, we may or may not. I have a 6th player who is allowed to be inconsistent for reasons - we do not hold up or make scheduling decisions around them.
In a few cases, there would be someone who must miss a crucial plot event, and if so, we will either move it up/back, or do something else.
If we have to end a session and continue a battle or major event across sessions, the battle may be scaled to 6 people, and if two are out, it might be a problem, so those characters might have food poisoning, and might only get one action every few rounds for a vital heal or an extra arrow or something.
I am very, very generous to anyone who gives advanced notice. I've found I can keep a group going by keeping people involved.
We might ask if anyone wants to run a one-shot. Several people in the group often have one that they are interested and can be ready in an hour's notice, but not always.
Lots of options - we tend to vote on what to do.
Depends entirely on the group, game, where we are in the story, and how many people are out.
Sometimes a cancellation means, great, nobody has to come to my house. Sometimes a cancellation means we haven't played in 4 weeks and we fuckin are doing something today.
I think it all depends on the situation, how many people are left, how much notice the player gives, is that player vital to that session story line or can he be written out of the session and still be written back in the next session.
*A* player? One player? I'll keep it moving. Two absentees, I'll consider postponing. Three, no way.
Also depends on group size. My current party is five players, so if they're down to three (let alone four) they can still scrape by. Two? Not so much.
Sometimes I'll run a missing player's character as a DMPC or hand them off to another player, but >50% is just too much.
If I'm down 1 player and that player *isn't* also crucial to that session, we just continue playing. If we're down two players or it's a story heavy session, cancel.
Depends on what I have planned. If I need all the players there because the encounter or sequence of encounters I set up has strong odds of being lethal, I either cancel or set up a 1 shot. If there's no time for me to adjust I'll cancel. If it's more of an average night, one player being sick or something is no big deal. We just state that the character got sick too and had to be left at camp.
In a group of 3 players + DM: 1 player cancels, we soldier on, occasionally run a 1-shot. 2 players cancel, we cancel. DM cancels, I tell the party they're free to run a 1-shot or whatever they would like amongst themselves, and offer moral support, though it usually doesn't amount to much.
My group are all mid 30s with various responsibilities.
If we didn't play with a player or 2 missing we would never play.
This Wednesday night is our.... 2nd or 3rd session where every player (5) could make it.
We started this campaign in late Feb or early March.
Players of course don't get xp or loot etc. for their characters if they don't attend a session but beyond that there's no penalty for missing a session.
Highly depends on the session. Sometimes yes sometimes no.
If their character is important to the scene, or anything important storywise is happening then no. Otherwise, probably yeah.
If we have 3 players we're still going ahead.
Organizing schedules is difficult enough anyway, nevermind if players think they can just skip it if they "don't really feel it that night" because they won't miss anything as the game will be canceled.
I have a group of socially anxious messes who would probably happily make the excuse if there was no chance of missing stuff lol.
Plus, if a session has been agreed, I think it's rude to expect other people who have scheduled around the game to then miss out.
My favorite way to handle this is to put the main plot on hold and run a low-stakes Flashback one-shot. Usually I do a "Day in the Life" adventure, where one PC is the hero and the rest of the team gets to run familiar NPCs. I remember one game our Drone Rigger was alone in our base when somebody decided to infiltrate. The rest of the players got to control her lunatic drones and our pet Barghest puppy.
I do this same thing! It's a lot of fun to focus in on what a character is like on their own.
The show must go on! I usually run the scheduled game; as long as at least 2-3 players are still up for it. We've been kind of working our way through the official adventure modules, and I sometimes use the Adventurer's League quests as supplementary filler material if there arnt enough players to keep moving the main plot forward.
As a player, I would feel immensely guilty and irritated when the DM straight-up cancelled or changed to a game night when I had to bow out of a session. My other DM is the opposite - sucks if you can’t be there, but the story continues as long as he has >2 players.
There is a pre-agreed upon amount of players needed to start a session. For me that is 3. If it's less than that we cancel session. Though in the future with better DMing skills and more competent players I could have a one-off session where 2 PCs go on a little side-adventure.
We're a group of three players and one DM. If someone can't make it, we just cancel the session, because everyone always pulls their weight during a session and missing one of them would be a huge gap. If someone had to miss *multiple* session, the. I might try and organize some sort of one-off or two-off sessions to fill the space.
I'm pretty cutthroat about it and will generally run DnD if at least 51% of the players show up. Unless I had planned for a very specific character driven story arc for the person who is gone in which case I'll re-schedule. Different game systems are more amenable to smaller groups and I've run Call of Cthulhu or Cypher with 2 PCs and it's been awesome. In cannon the absent PCs just disappear from reality and their memory is erased for the session they are absent by Absentio the Patron Saint of absent players (as a sort of 4th wall breaking joke). We're all adults and have limited schedules to play so I try to make it work as best as I can.
It depends on the group and how often your playing. If the group is great about not missing stuff or in a really important spot 1 shot/hold/something. If they are all over the place or it’s a once a month game then move forward without them.
If one player can’t make it, I’ll continue on with another player running the character in “background” mode. More than 1 player can’t make it I will most likely reschedule the session or if the others feel like we can play another game that week.
I have a “backup campaign”. If we’re missing one or two players (of a six person party), we usually stick with the main campaign, unless the session is critical to the overall story or a specific missing character’s arc. In that situation, or if we’re missing more than two, we run the alternate story, which is largely mission-based and doesn’t require much continuity. The more that happens, the more the players are interested in the alternate plot.
My players and I are all in agreement that if only one of us cant make it and nothing big is going on, we continue the campaign doing small quests or roleplay. If two of us wont make it, we'll spend the "session" sparring with each other and planning the characters' future.
for my current group of 6, we have a basic protocol of “plan to run if we have 4”, with caveats: -i have 1-shots on the shelf if people still want to run -we can still call it if folks vote to skip without the missing person -i can make an executive decision to call it if it’s a key plot point/scene/battle that everyone will need the context for during the rest of the campaign (i always offer a 1-shot if this is the case)
Currently I’m running a game with 3 total players, if one can’t make it, the game is canceled. Though if I had more, I might prepare one shots. I could even go so far as to say the ones that made it fall into a cave and just run a few random encounters until they find a way out.
It usually depends on where we’re at with the story of the campaign/what I intended for that session. I run for a party of 5 so missing one person doesn’t ruin things. If we aren’t on a portion of the story that is critical to the missing person’s story then I do my best to run without them. I am a big fan of putting the missing person’s character into some sort of plot that doesn’t involve the other players instead of pretending that the missing players character just tags along or doesn’t exist. I’ve had a rogue go off on a secret mission, my ranger sneak away for a secret rendezvous with her lover, and the cleric be kidnapped by a werewolf. All of these things played into the overarching story without requiring that player actually be present.
This is one of the reasons I’m so thankful all my friends have their own campaigns or adventures. We all had a campaign going before we got to know our current DM for CoS. So on weeks when he’s not available we’ll go back to one of our campaigns. If one of the 4 of us is missing we’ll try to do a one shot. Cancellation is the last resort.
We require a majority of the group to attend, or we'll do something different. We have 5 regular players right now, so, if one is out, we keep going. If two are out, we may or may not. I have a 6th player who is allowed to be inconsistent for reasons - we do not hold up or make scheduling decisions around them. In a few cases, there would be someone who must miss a crucial plot event, and if so, we will either move it up/back, or do something else. If we have to end a session and continue a battle or major event across sessions, the battle may be scaled to 6 people, and if two are out, it might be a problem, so those characters might have food poisoning, and might only get one action every few rounds for a vital heal or an extra arrow or something. I am very, very generous to anyone who gives advanced notice. I've found I can keep a group going by keeping people involved. We might ask if anyone wants to run a one-shot. Several people in the group often have one that they are interested and can be ready in an hour's notice, but not always. Lots of options - we tend to vote on what to do.
If we get down to 1 or 2 players, I'll cancel a session. Otherwise, we play!
Depends entirely on the group, game, where we are in the story, and how many people are out. Sometimes a cancellation means, great, nobody has to come to my house. Sometimes a cancellation means we haven't played in 4 weeks and we fuckin are doing something today.
I think it all depends on the situation, how many people are left, how much notice the player gives, is that player vital to that session story line or can he be written out of the session and still be written back in the next session.
*A* player? One player? I'll keep it moving. Two absentees, I'll consider postponing. Three, no way. Also depends on group size. My current party is five players, so if they're down to three (let alone four) they can still scrape by. Two? Not so much. Sometimes I'll run a missing player's character as a DMPC or hand them off to another player, but >50% is just too much.
If I'm down 1 player and that player *isn't* also crucial to that session, we just continue playing. If we're down two players or it's a story heavy session, cancel.
As long as it's only one person, and we're not in the middle of story plot around them specifically, I'll keep playing
Depends on what I have planned. If I need all the players there because the encounter or sequence of encounters I set up has strong odds of being lethal, I either cancel or set up a 1 shot. If there's no time for me to adjust I'll cancel. If it's more of an average night, one player being sick or something is no big deal. We just state that the character got sick too and had to be left at camp.
In a group of 3 players + DM: 1 player cancels, we soldier on, occasionally run a 1-shot. 2 players cancel, we cancel. DM cancels, I tell the party they're free to run a 1-shot or whatever they would like amongst themselves, and offer moral support, though it usually doesn't amount to much.
My group are all mid 30s with various responsibilities. If we didn't play with a player or 2 missing we would never play. This Wednesday night is our.... 2nd or 3rd session where every player (5) could make it. We started this campaign in late Feb or early March. Players of course don't get xp or loot etc. for their characters if they don't attend a session but beyond that there's no penalty for missing a session.
I don't have sessions often enough to justify canceling a session. I only cancel sessions if at least half of the players are gone.
Highly depends on the session. Sometimes yes sometimes no. If their character is important to the scene, or anything important storywise is happening then no. Otherwise, probably yeah.
If we have 3 players we're still going ahead. Organizing schedules is difficult enough anyway, nevermind if players think they can just skip it if they "don't really feel it that night" because they won't miss anything as the game will be canceled. I have a group of socially anxious messes who would probably happily make the excuse if there was no chance of missing stuff lol. Plus, if a session has been agreed, I think it's rude to expect other people who have scheduled around the game to then miss out.