The first question to ask in establishing your idea, is what do you want to run? The passion and interest of GMs in what they’re running is one of the most fundamental ingredients in a good game.

Of course, roleplaying is a collaborative experience. Which is why the board will take into consideration interest from the player-base, as well as the number of other games already running when you submit your proposal, when assessing game submissions for approval.

You may consider talking to other players online or at events to gauge interest levels, and check to make sure your game idea isn’t too similar to something else currently running. You can also check out our archived games, and ask around the club for indications of the performance of similar styles of game, including general player attendance levels and overall satisfaction.

This is also a great stage to start creating a team to support you; or at least consider what size you want that team to be. Game size and types of mechanics can both have an impact on how many GMs or assistants a game can require in order to run effectively, and what type of team structure you might be considering or skills needed to make it work. Which brings us to the next step:

Our Game Coordinators (aka Storyteller or ST Wranglers) exist to help prospective GMs prepare for pitching and running a game. They can find ways to support you by looking at props, advertising, venue booking, and other support questions or queries. They can also put you in touch with more members of the club to help you run your game, if you decide you need a team of a particular size to bring it to life and don’t already have people in mind to help out. Our game coordinators are all experienced at running successful games and are a great resource for helping your game make a connection with your players.

You can contact the coordinators through our email, or by posting in the relevant “idea incubator” channels on our various social media. We have dedicated channels for this on Discord, the Wiki, and on Facebook so that you can use the space that feels best for you.

If you have run games before, it may be that this conversation is more simple; what the conversation with game coordinators at this stage does for more seasoned larpwrights is in allowing the club to understand how we can support you, whether the game is a good fit for our current or future roster, and how we can mutually align towards a successful game outcome.

When your idea seems sufficiently developed enough to run and the game coordinators have given it their stamp of approval, they will then direct you to the next stage: game submission.

Once you’re ready to submit, you will be asked to provide a short document illustrating the following information:

• The idea of the story
• The name of the chronicle
• The length of the proposed game (eg. oneshot, four games, one year)
• The format of the game (for e.g. large freeform, smaller teams in regular contact, capped vs uncapped limit to player numbers)
• The system of the game and what rules sets you will be using
  • Remember it is not always feasible to have an entire game rules set in use, as many tabletops were not designed for larp game flows and needs. Please indicate here if you’re seeking assistance play-testing your rules system.
• An introductory blurb, about a paragraph long, setting the tone and feel that may assist in setting player expectations.
• The names of any Co-GMs and/or Assistant GMs
  • Because we like to look after our GMs 🙂 Teams are often a good way to go and we encourage each game to be a group effort, building on each other’s strengths, communication and delegation skills.
• Proposed start date of the game
  • The actual start date will be negotiated with the Game Coordinators but will NOT occur earlier than the indicated date.
• Proposed Session timing (monthly, bimonthly etc)

This document can be submitted with any formatting or flair that you wish, providing that the above information is present and legible.

Note that to run a game, everyone on the team must be a member of Caligo Mundi.

In addition, it is important for game balance and player satisfaction that each member of an GM team be familiar and comfortable with the rules that will be applied in a game. This is important regardless of whether the game is using a known system, an adaptation of a system, or a homebrew rule set specifically designed.

We encourage all games within the club to observe the following steps, as these have been developed to foster a positive and enjoyable club environment.
Before starting a game the GM team needs to ensure that:

• GMs establish ongoing lines of communication with each other and players which are regularly updated. This often includes:
  • Setting up an email which all GMs can access
  • Setup of a dedicated channel and/or roles on the Caligo discord for your game
  • Creation of a Facebook group connected to the Caligo Mundi FB group
• Ensure that all relevant game information is available on the wiki in a timely manner.
  This often includes:
  • Game rules and setting – whatever players need to know in advance in order to play the game and immerse in your world.
  • Character creation information
  • Event details (time, date, location.)
• Play testing has occurred – especially if a modified or home made system, to ensure that characters will be balanced, that the system is functional
• We also strongly encourage documentation for the game premise and session planning, as something which we find reliably facilitates good outcomes for games.

Unless your game has pre-written characters, you will likely need to set aside a day to ensure people create their character. This allows you as the storyteller to know what people are bringing to the game and whether it fits with what you want to run, and negotiate with players if you’d like to steer them in another direction. (It’s also a great way of making sure people actually sign up to be players, and don’t put it off or forget.) It gives players a chance to ask questions in person if need be, to understand the system you’re running within.

Before holding the character creation day, please double check:

• Booking of the venue
  • Coordinators will reach out after game approval to discuss venue booking details and availabilities; please ensure you respond to their enquiries for bookings to be confirmed.
• All GMs know the setting and system to answer player questions
• Players are recruited
• Advertising date of character creation
• Advertising date of first session (if known)
• Find or develop a character sheet for players to use at the character creation day.
• Ensure that copies of rules/character sheets are provided to players to use on that day.

Often the first session will set the tone of the game. It is important to get a good first session.
When leading into the session we advise that you:

• Familiarise with venue access and etiquette (eg. key drop-offs, conditions of room use)
• Organise props – including ways of getting them to and from the venue
• Arrange any special requirements
• Give adequate notice to your players on when and where to attend the game.
• ensure Players have submitted character sheets to the GM/ST Team, and that these have been vetted for any play compatibility issues.
• All STs know the scenario and rules

A session checklist can be found here for considering basic set-up and pack-up needs.

Other expectations that Caligo has for GM Teams include:

• Communicate regularly with the club organisers about how the game is going
• Monitoring and prompt responses to questions on relevant social media or email
  • Note: by prompt, we do not require 24/7 monitoring, but rather an adequate reply within a contextually appropriate time frame.
• Listen to player feedback
• Teams will need to meet regularly to plan sessions
• Ask for Help if it is required

GM teams need to allocate appropriate time and resources to managing player queries, plot preparation and session advertising and preparation.

The Caligo Board expects the team to work together to produce a good experience. Games which struggle to retain sufficient players to cover venue costs, or which face other issues that the Board may reasonably believe would cause a detriment to the club or its members, may have their game approval revoked and events cancelled. The board will review game progress via player participation and satisfaction, in order to uphold a cooperative and welcoming club environment.