Player Retention/Growth for 30K

[Dono1979]

Ok, so I made this offer quite a while ago when HH started getting some solid traction and though I would remake it now with some groups feeling the brunt of the 8th edition drop and player migration.

 

I am by no means stating that I am an expert on the topic, but just giving you my tactics and points of view on the issue to see if that help some groups grow their scene.

 

 

We (my Canberra group) started playing Heresy pretty much a month or two after Book One dropped. We had a reasonable sized group who had previously been playing Apocalypse and 40K Narrative Campaigns and we had the advantage of having sizeable collections which enabled to field 30K units pretty much straight away. I transitioned a lot of my 40K event structures across to 30K and found that it gained traction exceptionally fast and proved to solidify the community very well. There were four primary focal points which I stuck to and I believe that they are what work for me, others may use some, none or all of them and find similar results, so it is certainly not the be all and end all.

 

 

Player Expectations

Potentially one of the most important aspect; making sure the players are fully aware of the events expectations in THEM. Is it a tournament? Is it a Narrative event? Is it open lists? Are there restrictions? Be sure to communicate this to the player base clearly in a player pack. 

Our events were very clearly aimed towards Narrative, non-tournament/competitive styled games. Players were encouraged to run with the mindset of 'Just because you can, doesnt mean you should' for list building, in other words, dont bring curb stomping lists. I also tried make it clear that while I was managing the event, I was not a Tournament Organiser, if there were issues, the players should TALK to each other, if someone thought someone elses list was OP, they should TALK to their opponent about it over a pint in a friendly manner.
If the players expectations of the event and my expectations of the players match then everyone enjoys the event more. People rocking up to one of my events expecting a ranked swiss elimination would be exceptionally disappointed.

No Podium Finishes

Something which helps the above to a huge degree is the open and obvious fact that there are no podium finishes or prizes for best General. There are no ranks for individual players and the emphasis is on team results rather then players. While a lot of the events will have prizes, these were often distributed on player votes or even lucky door prizes (or combinations thereof). 
I saw straight away a clear divide in players interested in my events the moment they heard that there was not a Best General or Podium finishes, those players were more interested in a Tournament style environment (and there is nothing wrong with that) and either elected to stay with 40K games, or sought other means to play more competitive styled 30K.

Regular Gaming Days

This is essential to help grow your player base. A gaming session/event on a regular date, whether this is weekly, fortnightly or monthly; there just needs to be some clear pattern to the sessions so that newer (or busier veteran) players can always know when the next game is going to be. Bouncing your events around from the first weekend to the third and then the next month on second weekend, makes it harder for players to reliably book in time to attend. They forget, get mixed up dates and miss games.
I run my campaigns on the 3rd Saturday of the month.... every month... for the last 5 years. Our local scene knows that the 3rd Saturday is campaign day, it makes it easier to let newer people know. They might not be able to attend the next one, but at least they know that the following month it will be the same, or three months after that etc.

Narrative..... and more Narrative
While this is not something unique or exclusive to 30K, the format certainly lends itself to a more narrative focused play style. But more than that; I use an ongoing Campaign setting to create a Narrative. A planet, a city, a System, what ever, a SETTING in which the players will fight games, gain territory cause damage, DO things which carry over from one event to the next. A campaign map will tack teams territories, or a destruction table will monitor the buildings destroyed, ships crippled, Officers killed etc.
It makes it easier for people to jump in and out, miss a couple of sessions and they can still participate, as the games are team focused, not individual, you are fighting for the Traitors or the Loyalists, or sometimes even a third party.

Some games allowed players to create Campaign Characters who evolved, but that isnt vital, it is the STORY that is created and evolves as the events are played, so that at the end of it there is start, middle and finish. Sometimes the games become one sided part way through, in which case I adapt the story and shift the emphasis. The Loyalists know they have lost, but now lets see if they can evacuate enough troops, or sabotage vital facilities on the way out etc.

The players become engaged in the story, they may form grudged against other armies and actually do things which might cause them to lose the game they are playing but satisfies an in game grudge or an overarching objective.

The Narrative aspect then lead onto a lot of other things which I have developed for our player base; the Dog Tag system, Campaign Patches, Campaign Decals, AUS30K.com tracking site. All of these things helped immerse the players more and more into the story, people would 'reward' their units who performed well over a number of events with a Campaign ribbon or shield to show that they partook in the battle and got commendation. Favored characters might die and then be entombed into a Dreadnought along with his honours, forming a history and a 'special character' rather then just another dreadnought. Players would take time to ask questions about each others armies histories and be interested in their actions.


While the first three points I found effective for 'recruiting' the last point was the primary reason, I believe, is why we retained the vast bulk of our player base with the drop of 8th.

 

If people have any questions about the above, need help or resources I am more than happy to lend a hand as much and as quickly as I can (I am the father of a one year old and so time is often fleeting so please be patient). I have run a dozen or more large scale multi phase events, assisted in establishing and growing groups in other areas and, hopefully, run enjoyable events for people.

These things may not work for you, but they might for some.
 

[TheAlephNull]

Thank you for this post. It gives me some helpful things to think over as I decide my future with 30K. My local group was already thin before 8th edition dropped and now, I have not seen a game of 30K played since. 

[M@verik115]

Why dont you try the community 8th edition HH compilation? 

[TheAlephNull]

Why dont you try the community 8th edition HH compilation? 

I would like to, but unless official, most my opponents and game stores I play in are very negative towards this.