missing people

All gaming groups go through this. Players are going to have to miss a session here or there, it is inevitable. No one wants to pause the game, yet it is unfair to the one who couldn’t make game night if it continues. So, what do we do?

One way I have handled this was to write that character “out” of the campaign for a night, giving the others basically a one-shot scenario for the session. This works great if you can pull off actually completing a one-shot in one night (which I often cannot do). It can also be a moment that you can work with the missing player as to why their character was not there, giving you a chance to add something special or a new hook into the campaign.

The other way I like to handle this is to just pull everyone away from the campaign and do something different. Try a new system, try out new monsters or homebrew rules for the current system, or do something completely off the wall. This keeps the missing player from missing anything in the campaign, and gives others a break.

Trying something new, or different, also gives an opportunity for one of the other players to take the GM seat. Often players want to learn how to run a game, or have an idea they’d like to try. This can give you, the regular GM, a break as well. Encourage other players to run a game. It is a perfect time to let them try it out without the long term commitment.
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No matter what, you will want to keep the missing player involved in some manner if you want to continue the campaign. If you choose to do something completely different, or just take the night off, this can make them feel important and needed to continue the campaign. No matter how you handle players missing a game night, do not make them feel like they are being ostracized.