What Is West Marches?

West Marches is a sandbox style of TTRPG gaming (like D&D or Pathfinder), created by Ben Robbins and popularized by Matt Colville, designed to facilitate player agency and reduce ‘mindless plot following’ by putting a large group of players (10+) in charge of where they go, what they do, and when they play. Here's how it works.


 * There is no regular time: every session is scheduled by the players on the fly.

This is the primary selling point of West Marches. You, as the player, get to decide if, when, and for how long you play.


 * There is no regular party: each game has different players drawn from a pool of around 10-14 people.

In order to accommodate busy lives and busy schedules, you need a large pool of people to draw from every session. This is done in The Outskirts' Discord server, in the #lfg text channels. The side effect of this is that if you're out of town for two weeks, games don't stop for two weeks, others can continue playing because there's more than enough folks to continue. Additionally, if someone new wants to join, they don't have to be woven into the story, they simply arrive.


 * There is no regular plot: The players decide where to go and what to do. It is a sandbox game in the sense that’s now used to describe video games like Grand Theft Auto, minus the missions. There is no mysterious old man sending them on quests. No overarching plot, just an overarching environment.

The game focuses primarily on exploration, discovery, and treasure. Thus, the onus is on you, the player, to pursue the story you want to tell. I as the DM set out challenges, you follow them up as you see fit.


 * Every session is entirely self contained.

This is perhaps the biggest drawback to West Marches for some. I will be working my hardest to ensure that the campaign doesn't feel like a long string of one-shots, but in some ways, that is exactly what it is. This is primarily to aid the mission summaries (which is supposed to be the equivalent of rumors floating around town, as you're all in a very small town, together, at the same time) feeling realistic and to help new players come in easily without an awkward transitionary phase.