super_rats
I will be a DM for two separate groups using my campaign setting. I'm wondering what the best way to handle it on OP would be? The main problem I foresee is with the forums/log and notifications. Checking/unchecking half the respondents each time someone posts a message in the forum looks like it is going to be cumbersome. I could have two separate campaign sites, but then that means maintaining two separate wikis for the same setting. It's not an insurmountable barrier, but it's sort of not an appealing thing.
If there's a nice trick or way of doing this in one OP campaign or somehow get both campaigns to link to the same wiki, I'm all ears.
Right now I only have one group logged into the campaign site, while the other isn't, just to keep the notifications sane for all groups involved so that they don't turn off forum notifications because half of the messages don't apply to them.
Comments
1. You become ascendant so you have multiple campaigns at your disposal.
2. Create a main, all-encompassing "campaign" which would be more like a campaign setting that your groups all play in (see Wyrmshadow)
3. Link your various group "campaigns" into the "main" one so that the members of the adventures have their own campaign to engage with but still linked up with the "world" you've created for all groups to be a part of.
Granted this is a lot more work for you as a GM, but if it's simplicity you're looking for for your players, that's the trade off. And it really wouldn't be all that bad, actually, because you could explore the different areas of the world (within the areas that your individual groups are involved), and then develop the "main campaign" using the elements explored by those groups, and in a sense, let hem build up your world for you, and link in their adventures to that site.
I've never done this...just picturing it in my head. Kinda sounds like fun.
Now you've got me thinking. Or wait...did I do that on my own?
I am running two seperate groups in my Star Wars campaign as well (Jedi and Sith), but rather than split the group into seperate nights, I run short arcs of Jedi story, then shift over to do a short Sith arc. This is mostly due to my desire to continue running Wyrmshadow while I run Star Wars, and my inability to devote myself to three nights of gaming a week with any kind of consistency (see Dark Queen of the West).
Actually, speaking of Star Wars...
I've toyed with the idea of running the exact same story-arc with two (or eventually more) groups just to see how all the different variations turn out.
This is currently stymied by a sudden realization that there are several combinations of people I do not want at a given gaming table. So I'm not even sure I could put the first group together. But it's still a dream of mine.
Anyway, when I finally get that rolling, I intend to go Ascendant and make *darned* sure all my campaign iterations are private. (I really like the Paladin's idea of tying them together somehow, but I don't think it'd work for me because I really want the iterations to grow in a relative vacuum - I don't want group A inadvertently learning something about the Bas-Lithan dwarves because of something group B did and so I updated the main wiki page to reflect it.)
I've never actually ran two campaigns at once before. Group B starts in a week. Some odd happenings led to the original GM of group B to burn out and I'm stepping in to keep the group together because I have such a good time whenever we get together. Two weeks ago I had no idea I'd be running a second campaign. Had I planned to run two groups, I might have had more time to sort out how I wanted to present things...though to be honest I'm procrastinating and Dragon Age 2 has been stealing a good bit of my time.
Megamice, don't allow yourself to get caught with your pants down! Running a multi-party game is challenging to say the least. DA2 isn't going anywhere, so put the controller down and get to planning that game! :D
Note to self: two arcs running concurrently sounds like a great idea compared to six individual stories that are only marginally connected at the moment... I need to get on with the combining... :)
that is how our campaign world works. not only is there separate player groups in the world operating at the same time but we also have multiple DMs developing it making the world truly collaborative. as DMs we tend to riff on each other as well with events that one party undergoes effecting events in other parts of the world. for instance, a regional conflict began by one set of adventurers that I was DMing ended causing our group havoc in another part of the world when the next GM took over at the end of that adventure.
just a thought, but i know that everyone organizes things differently.