"How formal or informal should a small club be?" Topic

I'm sure this has been discussed before, but I'd like some fresh views on this question please. For a small club, say 6-7 regular members, meeting once a week mid week in the evening, how formal or informal should things be for the ideal.

I'm not talking about committees, constitutions and all that knob and george, I mean more in terms of planning ahead, so that people can share a sense of moving in set directions.

Perhaps particularly useful in terms of planning games, a logical sequence of developing collective knowledge of a ruleset, or a campaign perhaps. Is it better to have a set calendar for the next few meets and what games will be played, so people can, if they want, read up on rules and do some research, paint towards a target, plan to paint opposing armies for a theatre.

Or is the ad-hoc approach better, just agreeing that week what to play the following week. Is this more creative, are people less likely to feel let down if nothing is planned so nothing particular happens? Would you feel pressured or hemmed in by a plan or schedule of games?

What about alternating planned games with ‘free evenings' – every other week the majority of players agree to get involved in a ‘club project' series of games, the alternate evening is free to plAy ‘pick up' games on the nod?

And if you have just joined a supremely informal club, even by Aussie standards, and you think some move towards a planning cycle, however low key, might be beneficial, how do you broach the subject without being labelled a ‘stuck up Pom'?

I'd probably just go with the flow, unless you have a campaign on the go, in which case setting aside every 2nd or 3rd week for the next campaign game may be a plan. Generally informal is the way forward though, especially when surrounded by Australians, I'd imagine…. ;-)

Our group just meets at my house.
We ask for volunteers for the next game.
Sometimes 2 or 3 games in a row!

We have a Yahoo group. That's how complex we are. It's main function is communication and the calendar notification.

We do have our Holy Days of Obligation, if we remember them.

Most clubs will have one or two "leaders", the folks that do the work to set up campaigns, scenarios, paint troops, etc. Once they burn out the club can fade.

The key is to get this "job" to rotate and give everyone a chance to bear the burden. This takes mentoring from the "leaders" and sometimes a gentle push.

Always wear blacktie to wargaming evenings……………..

I brought up a similar topic a while back.
TMP link
And I was roundly criticized for daring to suggest that all the members of the club should actually contribute to the club's activities rather than just showing up only to play.
I was told I was "lucky" to be able to babysit the others.

So, informal is probably the way to go.

Sounds like an informal group . I suggest at the end of a session while having s beer etc discuss the next week , month event " I want to play X" and set a date on the calander for everyone to prep .

Our loose association allows for members that collect a certain period to put on a game unless in a campaign. Even then, we have open invites to houses to play. Most campaigns everyone gets at least a small contingent to bring (such as WOTR's)so they can participate in some fashion. We did this with the AWI as well.

We found the laid back approach works best. We had a structured group at one time but it was complete chaos making many members quit/stop talking to each other.

I have some really good players in my group. Everyone contributes with scenarios or unit painting or what have you.

Though some players have to bow out now and then due to work, school or family obligations, we still manage to get a few payers together every month for a game at my house. Folks just rotate in and out.

When I read these posts, I feel very lucky to have a good group of players that I enjoy getting together with.

Matthew

somebody with a key to open the door , and somebody to lock it when you leave, any more formal than that is dangerous. If you are an over organise you will either be disappointed or driven into a lonely exile.

We've got a Delphi forum set up for our group of 7.

I propose a date for a session, and the rest reply and I decide on the game we will do that week based on the people turning up.

For medium and long term planning we talk about what period and rules we like to get into, and those who want to divvy up the work in terms of getting the figures, doing the terrain, and reading the rules. We keep each other posted on the progress by posting pics of our latest painted units and terrain piece and whatnot.

Ultimately it's about having fun with a group of friends. As a recent article in (was it) Battlegames advised: game with people you'd like to have a pint with, and don't hang with people you wouldn't enjoy a pint with just for the gaming. Or as they say in the RPG circle: no gaming is better than bad gaming.

We have a Yahoo group and discuss what we will play there. We usually have an idea of what we are playing 1-3 sessions ahead of time, but often have an idea of more games that have been proposed to play "soon". Sometimes we all play the same game, or sometimes we have two or three different games. We usually meet at member's homes, so we try to have a good idea who will show up a couple of days ahead of time. The most constant rule is that we use painted minis.

Yup. Tuxedos after six.

Thanks for the feedback so far, I think the informal approach has it.

I guess the thing with wargamers is, even though wargaming is approaching mainstream today, that almost by definition they are individualist iconoclasts, natural members of the awkward squad. Its a miracle we can ever agree on anything!

I believe the "herding cats" metaphor was first created with organising wargamers in mind…. ;-)

Who shot the Banana?????

that almost by definition they are individualist iconoclasts

I'm not!

Informal seems to work best, most of us have several project on the go, We usuall agree what we are doing next week, sometimes as much as three weeks in advance, for a really big game we'll put it in the diary.

People like to contribute things to the games so best to plan ahead a bit.

I'm more of an iconoclastic individualist!

Seriously, burnout will occur with players if you try to make things too rigid. I would keep it loose and informal.

Our group is so informal in reaction to the "club" we split from.
The BOD selected the officers who elected the BOD. They were not us. When I questioned this, I was asked incredulously "Do you want to bring POLITICS into this?"
But that's a long story…

Interesting that no-one has questioned my rather tongue in cheek assertion that wargaming has become almost main stream – perhaps it is so.

that almost by definition they are individualist iconoclasts

I'm not!

Shame on you Provost, thats the sort of humour I would expect from James!

Shame on you Provost

Once a Python fan always a word association football

Whilst the group (club would be too strong a word) I currently belong to opts for the informal approach, I have belonged to one that went for a more structured setup, with people, or groups of people, commiting to provide games weeks in advance. We rarely had anything as organised as people painting and planning to a common goal, but we did have phases where people would concentrate on a particular rule-set that had captured our imagination.

Shifting to a group that met on an ad hoc basis with little or no planning was a bit of a shock. The fact that we actually now, after four years, have a regular venue and night is pretty amazing :)