New-ish GM here
How do I get past the crushing despair that my players might not like my campaign and hours upon hours of work might fall apart in an instant, ultimately making the whole endeavor worthless?
Huh? Are you afraid that they won't like it? Or you are sad about that they already didn't like it?
In case 1, JUST DO IT! Talking with players also helps.
In case 2, git gud and learn from mistakes. Or find a group of less privileged players.
>>48193981
Well first of all, realize that almost everyone hates the shit they make because a creator is really good at seeing the flaws in his creation. Everything you've ever liked has someone who thinks it's the worst shit they've ever made. This realization has never actually helped me, but maybe it'll work for you.
Second is to just decide you're probably lying to yourself and get out and just run the damn thing. Just keep running it even if you think it's awful. How bad can it really be if they've shown up 10 times? How about 100 times? This won't solve the issue on its own but it does help you strengthen yourself over time.
>>48193981
There is no solution.
We all suffer this.
Asking for feedback is useful. Even the most damning critique is better than eternal uncertainty.
>When you ask for feedback and they say
>'Yeah it was great, I had fun!"
>And you can't believe them, they must just be putting up with you
Wake me up.
>>48196108
>>48196384
Not OP, I kind of needed to hear this.Thanks
>>48193981
>>48196108
this. all those flaws in story? gaps in reasoning? plot holes, timing errors, and NPC out of position incidents you're papering over in the desperate hope your PCs won't notice the gaping holes in everything you've created?
Your players can't see it. Any of it.
I'm running a semi-silly floating islands air pirate game with !!politics!! for my players. I've, so far...
1. failed to introduce multiple NPCs in a timely manner
2. accidentally outed the secret BBEG if my players ever start cross-referencing and fact-checking what I've told them trying to cover lost ground for those late NPC introductions
3. flat out forgotten many subplots and sidequest things that would give them the clues and equipment to locate and solve the main threats
I feel I'm generally running the ragged edge of not telling them half the things I think they need to know to make judgement calls for what things happening in the setting are serious. Because the last thing the players want to hear in a game session is the gm sperging wordswordswords at them for an hour or two straight. At least I can strip out and reuse most of the passed over content, because it's not like they saw it where it was supposed to be in the first place.
When I ask them how they think the game is going, they praise the worldbuilding and politics, and generally have the strange and mistaken idea that I'm doing a good job keeping things in check and on the path to victory.
I'm not sure I trust my players at all. For one, the last time I tuned out the PC planning conversation for a couple minutes to check notes and try to salvage my remaining plot threads, I came back to find the conversation had shifted from "I'm not really sure I trust the holy order we're working with" to "What do we need to do to waterboard a necromancer?"
>>48193981
a good setup can be reused in other endeavors, both in TTRPG and in other things.
>>48193981
Are you me?
>>48193981
My best suggestion is to discuss it with them. If they are friends, you should be able to trust them to give you genuine feedback when asked to do so.
If they are not friends, trying playing with friends if possible as this will result in a better experience for all involved (in my experience). If they are but you cannot trust them to give truthful feedback, you have deeper issues that require the attention of people other than a random assortment of fuckfaces from 4chan.
>>48193981
>clinical depression
There's a cure, and it's 100% effective.
There are a few solid rules of RPGs;
If you think you're a good DM, you're not.
If you think your players are having a great time and everything is amazing, it's probably shit.
If you think your group is awesome and perfect, both you and all your players are shit and too dumb to realize it.
>>48193981
>>48198753
It's very simple. If they're coming back for more, they're enjoying it. Even if it's shit, they're enjoying it.
