How to Organize a Small Group Roleplay Event

Have you ever attended an event in your favorite online game? Whether it is something like a meeting for members of the same house or city, or something that involves characters from other houses and cities from across the realm, someone has to do the work to put these events in motion.

Some events might seem unnecessary, regardless of which group of players they target. They eat up time that people could be questing or hunting and a lot of them do not seem to have any reward other than emotions associated with its inevitable end. Regardless of how you feel at the end of the event, there are some real benefits.

Events require people to interact and team up. No matter if it is the good side versus the bad side or everyone teaming up to serve a single purpose, an event gives you the opportunity to interact with players that you might have not met otherwise. Events are also a great way to attract new players into the game.

The 5-Point Event Planning Checklist

Just because you are not a Divine or serving in some other kind of administrative position in an Iron Realms game does not mean that you can’t set up an event. Just like with real life, hosting something spur of the moment that you failed to think through will not go over as well as something that is well planned. Here are some tips for setting up your next RPG event.

• Planning – If you need help from others, try to set up a meeting with interested parties before doing anything else. This gives you an idea of what skills and talents people on your planning team can offer, what type of budget is necessary to pull off the event, and when is the best time to hold the event.
• Venue – The venue is where you will hold your event. I cannot stress this enough – always have a backup venue. What happens if ogres storm in and smash the tavern where you planned to hold a drinking contest? Or what happens if the city where you planned to host a series of lectures is swallowed up by the sea? This saves you the embarrassment of looking unprepared.
• Invites – Who do you want to invite to your event? Is it just players in organizations where you hold membership? Is this something worldwide? Do you plan to invite the Divine? Once you nail down the guest list, how will you invite them? Will you use the news, post office, or messages? If you are selling tickets, you might use an advert and also the market channel. Although if you are inviting Divine guests, I highly recommend providing them complimentary access!
• Divine – Do you need Divine help to plan your event? Perhaps you are hosting a city festival and want a denizen to sell special items to commemorate the happy occasion. Maybe you need a denizen to interact with you in a special way to help get the event started, or as part of the closing. Be sure to contact the Patron of your organization first, and give them plenty of notice. And always, always remain in character!

The Big Day

Now that the big day is here, you have to obsess over every little detail and micromanage your team, right? Wrong! The reason why these people are still in your committee is because you have some level of trust in their abilities. The cliché that there is no “I” in “TEAM” is overused, but in this case it totally applies. Besides, after all that hard work in planning for the event, you deserve to kick back and enjoy it, too!

After the event, give yourself a day or so to relax and recharge your batteries. Then meet with your team to evaluate how things went. What can you do to improve next time? Were there any complaints you heard through the event? Did you hear any compliments of things you want to be sure and repeat in future events?

While running an event can be stressful, if you plan carefully and delegate the work to committee members who you know you can trust to get the job done, then it can be very rewarding. If you like working with different types of people, have a healthy respect for time management, and do your best work under pressure, then what are you waiting for? Let’s plan an event today!

About the Author 

Annie Foster has been leading roleplay events since her freshman year of college when she led a group of newbies through a cavernous lair, straight into the gaping maw of a ferocious dragon. As a freelance writer, Annie plays her favorite MUDs no matter where her job leads, whether it is from a mountain lodge several thousand feet above sea level or in a hotel room that overlooks the ocean.