Assembling a Group

Understanding what qualities make a good GM, and what responsibilities a GM should be willing to take on (as well as what a GM should not), is only the beginning of GM’ing a game of My Little Pony: Roleplaying is Magic. The next step is to gather together a group of players; a GM can’t play an Episode by themselves, after all. In many cases, it’s easy to find a group of players; your friends, family, or other loved ones probably already want to play, and that’s why you’re reading this book in the first place.

However, sometimes you’ll need to put together a group of players from groups of friends at school, or at a convention or other social gathering. Sometimes, you’ll need to restrict the size of your group, or ensure it has the right balance of player types for the style of game you want to play and the players involved. You may even have a few new players who want to join an existing game, or you may need to recruit players to fill the gaps left by absent ones.

In any of these cases, this section can help to guide you in ensuring that you get the right number and mix of players, and help you understand each type of player—what they may be looking to achieve by playing in your game, what situations interest them the most, and what aspects of gameplay are more fun to them than others.

Getting the Right Players

Although—of course—it is ideal to let everyone play who wants to play, the reality of GM’ing is that sometimes it is just not possible. The first thing to remember as a GM is that there is a limit to how much you can handle, and that if you’re getting bogged down by having too many players, everyone’s level of fun will decrease; in a very real way, the enjoyment of the game hinges on the stress level of the GM. Because of this, the GM also needs to be able to collaborate in a friendly way with the players, and depend on them for certain responsibilities; just as important as having the right number of players, is having the right type of players.

Over time, and with experience, all GM’s eventually learn what to look for in a potential player, and how many players they can reasonably handle. This section is designed to help newer GM’s, giving them a head-start on this process and explaining a few of the more widely-accepted standards GM’s use to make sure they have the right group of players.

Who’s Best for the Litter

Every pen and paper roleplaying game is designed with an ideal player group size in mind; many mechanics are designed around this group size, and the play balance may change if more or less players are involved. For example, Dungeons & Dragons is designed for a group of four to five players; too many more and challenges may become too easy, too few and challenges may become too hard. However, the more malleable and versatile the rules become, the more variation in group size can be accommodated; for example, World of Darkness can handle group sizes from three to six—or even seven—due to the more narrative focus of the ruleset.

My Little Pony: Roleplaying is Magic is no exception to this rule, though it is designed to follow the cartoon as much as possible—and from time to time, there are episodes which focus on only one singular character, as well as episodes which feature the entire mane six at once. For this reason, My Little Pony: Roleplaying is Magic is designed to handle group sizes from one to six players; this allows for ‘solo’ Episodes, as well as large ensemble adventures, though many adventures will feature a number of players somewhere in between these extremes.

Bright Eyed and Scaly Tailed

Something that many GM’s struggle with is ensuring their players are on-time, ready to play, and remain focused. Of course, it is the nature of a social gaming experience to include getting sidetracked and going off on tangents of conversation; some of the most entertaining play sessions are made fun by the discussions and jokes of players surrounding the game and story itself. These elements are important to the experience, and should not be stifled.

However, it is equally important that when the focus needs to shift back to the story, it does. Interruptions and lack of punctuality can ruin the pacing and flow of an Episode. The key is to strike a balance between game focus and tangents. First, look for players who have a natural inclination to stay on-track; players who can carry on a conversation while playing a video game, for example. But it is also your duty as a GM to come up with a ‘focus device,’ or some signal to the players that it is time to get focused on the game and story again.

Chances are that you already know some examples of ‘focus devices;’ they are regularly employed by many teachers and educators of young children. Some examples of a ‘focus device’ include: When you raise your hand, everyone else should raise theirs and stop talking. Having an auditory signal such as a gavel or a chime, or even a whistle. Using a phrase, such as ‘Attention, everypony!’ Among others. Whatever it is, your group’s ‘focus device’ should be known and agreed to by everyone at the table.

Tied for Last Place

The group dynamic in pen and paper roleplaying games can be different from system to system. Sometimes, a group is designed to be competitive with each other, or even designed to encourage players to struggle for power and control, or leadership, or limited resources. In My Little Pony: Roleplaying is Magic, the group dynamic is designed to be cooperative and friendly, with allowances for competition.

When recruiting players for your game, it is important to look for these tendencies in them. Do they tend to be highly competitive, or try to dominate the other group members? Or do they set aside their own advantage in order to work as a group? The latter is the kind of player you want, as a GM—though, depending on the theme and style of your Episode, other group dynamics might be more appropriate.

Newbies Beware!

When recruiting players, GM’s often must struggle with the question of whether or not to recruit players who are new to pen and paper roleplaying games. This is a matter of personal taste, as ‘newbies’ require more help, coaching, and assistance than most veteran players do. However, newbies can also bring a fresh perspective to the group, and often have an eagerness that some veteran players lack. Ultimately, this is a decision you will need to make for yourself; if you are a new GM, it may be best to keep the number of newbies low—though it may be fun to learn the game side-by-side with fellow newbies. If you are a veteran GM, it may be best to encourage newbies to play, and teach them—though you don’t want to get too bogged-down with it, unless teaching gameplay is the point of the Episode itself.

With Friends Like You…

Another decision GM’s are faced with from time to time is whether to play with their current group of friends, or to branch out and play with strangers and players they haven’t met yet. Both have advantages and drawbacks; playing with friends, you know them well already—but they also know you, and may predict the story of your Episode. Playing with strangers, you have more freedom, but also must learn their tendencies and interests. Ultimately, there are pros and cons to both, and many GM’s find it best to play with a mixed group; a few friends for familiarity and a few strangers for freshness. In this case, however, it is important to make the new players feel welcome.

Knowing Your Mane Cast

Knowing what to look for in a player, and knowing the player themselves, are two different things. The aspects which make a good player help you as a GM ensure that the game and story can progress smoothly, and limit disruptions and negative elements. However, the knowledge of a player helps you as a GM to ensure that everyone at the table has the opportunity to have fun and contribute.

Generally speaking, there are seven ‘archetypes’ most players fall into. For the sake of ease of explanation (as well as because it’s fun), they are categorized according to which of the main characters from the cartoon they most resemble.

Rainbow Dash, The Go-Getter

The Go-Getter is a player who tackles situations head-on, disregarding nuance and danger in favor of forging ahead with boldness and courage. This can be an admirable quality, as it means that the Go-Getter is less likely to shy away from difficulty or try to find a more efficient (but maybe less interesting) way to solve a problem. However, it can also get them into trouble, putting them in harm’s way more than is strictly necessary.

Fluttershy, The Reactionary

The Reactionary is, put simply, often the last player to act. This may be for any number of reasons, including timidity to lead for fear of making the wrong decision, or a cautious desire to see what everyone else is doing before making a decision. This makes the Reactionary a player who considers carefully their actions before taking them, but this may also cripple them when an important decision falls solely on them.

Rarity, The Rules Lawyer

The Rules Lawyer, earlier in this book, was stated as someone to avoid. However, there is a potentially invaluable place for a Rules Lawyer in a group; the Rules Lawyer seeks to do things in their own way, in their own time, and has a strong sense of what is proper and correct to do; they are often orderly, if not necessrily organized. However, a Rules Lawyer may be contentious, and quick to call something unfair or cheating.

Twilight Sparkle, The Power Gamer

The Power Gamer is the player who looks through every rule and book in a game system, does the math to figure out the most effective way to do something, and then does it. They can be vital to a group facing a daunting challenge, as they often are the one who finds the way to accomplish what seemed impossible before. However, they also often have the most trouble setting aside efficiency for the sake of story or plot.

Pinkie Pie, The Prankster

The Prankster is all about having fun, and making sure everyone else has fun, too. From silly interactions with their character, to humorous table commentary, the Prankster makes things lighthearted, and is always fun to have around. However, the Prankster also has a tendency to change the tone of the story for the sake of humor or silly fun, even when it isn’t appropriate to do so; they must be kept on track from time to time.

Applejack, The Anchor

The Anchor is, more often than not, the one who becomes the unofficial group leader. They have an innate sense of what makes a good story, and what their character should do in a given situation to add dynamic weight and make things interesting for everyone else, without drawing attention to themselves in the process. However, the Anchor sometimes has problems letting others make bad decisions; they may adopt a ‘my way or the highway’ mentality.

Spike, The Assistant

The Assistant is the one who helps the other players learn the game, make their characters, remember what numbers go where, and helps the GM share the load they bear. The Assistant can be a great boon to a group of players, as they are naturally inclined and eager to help out with anything the players or GM may need. The problem is that sometimes, this takes the focus away from them as a player, and their own gameplay suffers.