[Crash_00]

So, I'm looking to start running missions at a local gaming shop, and I've run into two extremely simple questions that i cannot for the life of me find an answer to.

How many players do you need for a missions game?
How many players can play in a single missions game?

For some reason I'm wanting to think it was 3-8 players, but I cannot figure out why I have that stuck in my head.

[Critias]

I know the default is generally around 6 players, with the practical number topping out around 7 or (maybe) 8.  4 might be a little low for a few adventures (and could require a little tweaking by the GM), but 5-6 is just about right for the most part.

[Teutonic Overlord]

In order to build up interest at a local game store, I've sometimes ran Missions with just two players.  It was often enough to draw attention from other customers so that over time I could get 5-8.

For me the keys are:

1)  Get the core group (even if it is just two) that enjoy the game and will tell others about it.

2)  Don't give up if you don't draw enough interest at first...in such a public setting you will get people passing by who ask questions and might join...then or later.

3)  If you only have a few players, adjust the Mission on the fly to make it fun.

4)  If you already have a bunch of people intersted then limit yourself to what you feel comfortable with and still ensure that all the players have fun.

5)  For me, 6-8 works best.

These are just my opinions and what works for me.  There are many of us who will have great ideas to share with you.

[DireRadiant]

I like a minimum of 3 players. That way while I as GM am dealing with one player OOC or IC, the other two players can entertain each other, OOC or IC.

[wylie]

I have ran just 2 players
and as many as 10
it depends on what you feel comfortable with. and what the players fell comfortable with.

more players means less time to devote to each player, even if you split them into groups
less players gives everyone more facetime, and can bring some players out of their shells

[Crash_00]

Thanks everyone for the thoughts. For some reason I thought that Missions had a hard and fast Minimum and Maximum rule, but I guess that was just a flashback from my RPGA days. I've got a dedicated two players that I know will always show up, so I think I'm going to run for a range of 2-6. Personally, I find over six players to be miserable, especially when in a smallish game room for four hours minimum.

I'm starting with Season Two, and what I've read of it so far doesn't seem to be overpowering at all, so I'm thinking that the two players I have (who have made some very widespread but capable characters) should be fine even if I don't manage to attract any of the local  D20 wildlife.

[Bull]

Generally speaking at Cons, we have a minimum and maximum, but we break those all the time.

Missions is designed usually with 6 players in mind.  However, since you never know what you're gonna get at a table ("Momma always told me Shadowrun Missions Teams are like a box of chock-o-lates!"), GMs are encouraged to adjust things on the fly to suit the team anyway.

At COns we've run with as few as 3 players, and as many as 10.  Though this year we put in a "Soft" cap of 7 players, and a "Hard" cap of 8 (only if the GM wanted to run for that many, and only if all the pre-regged players agreed to that many). 

Fewer tahn 3 does tend to be a little problematic, but is still doable with the right players.  My original shadorun group where I played Bull the Ork Decker was primarily a two man team (with misc rotating players over the years), but our GM knew that and could plan for that.  WHen there's fewer than 3 at cons, we tend to try and fold them into another game that still has room.

Bull

[Crash_00]

Thanks Bull. At a con I could probably handle a full table of 7-10, but I'm having to teach the system to everyone here and I think 6 is going be about my limit without me going insane.

I know two is usually problematic (especially in a living campaign) but the two main players i have knew that and designed their characters for it, so I'm hoping it works out.

[Bull]

As long as the players know it and design their characters to be complimentary, it works out...  Get a Mage-Face, and a Sammy-Hacker, and you're in decent shape. 

(My original campaign that I mentioned above was Bull the Ork Decker and Johnny 99 the Coyote Shaman.  Johnny was almost all spellcasting, I was the worst decker in the world, and had no combat abilities.  We had zero social ability.  We pretty much lucked our way through our first few jobs, and spent a lot of time and karma and money to get to the point where we were competent enough on our own

And for a group of complete newbies?  Yeah, 5-6 should be your limit.  Makes life a lot easier.  4 is probably ideal, and with the right mix can handle most Missions, but 6 is probably the magic number over all.

[Crash_00]

Well just finished my first event. I had two players that I thought would show up and ended up with four and two or three more for next week so things are looking good.

[StarManta]

Thanks Bull. At a con I could probably handle a full table of 7-10, but I'm having to teach the system to everyone here and I think 6 is going be about my limit without me going insane.

Although I'm not running Missions (yet), one of the games I'm running has 9 players, 7 of which never played Shadowrun before this campaign (and a couple of which have never played any RPGs at all!). It's good practice