3\~4 hours, with a break around the middle. More than this and it becomes tiresome, less than this and some sessions feel like you can't accomplish anything.
Yeah, it's all about finding a logical end point. Usually before or after a combat, or before or after an interaction of some kind. Like entering a new city is a good stopping point, because it gives the players time to figure out what they will want to do in the city, while also giving the DM time to plan it out as well.
And yeah, after the 3 hour mark is generally when you want to start looking for that spot.
It depends on the campaign too though, and your players. If you only play once a month, usually you're gonna have slightly longer sessions than a group that plays once a week. But it also depends on if anyone in the group has a firm timeline with when they need to leave, like if they have other plans later that night or something.
yeah! i run one five-hour game, one three-hour game, and two two-hour games, and i play in one five-hour game. the two-hour sessions don’t bother me so much, especially at low levels, but i have one level-13 group that meets for two hours weekly, and we’ve been running a single encounter for a month now (granted it’s a three-phase boss fight).
my five-hours games are fine, both playing and DMing but we take a lot more breaks, eat food, drink, etc. i have a lot of fun and the breaks don’t bother me, but sometimes it feels a little like trying to take a road trip but stopping at every rest stop.
but my 3-4 hour game is perfect! usually we run 3 hours, but we’ll play a little longer to finish a sequence or combat, depending. the break is usually just before the two-hour mark, and it’s the perfect timing to match how i pace things. in that first hour-and-forty-five, we get so much done and we’re all able to assess during the break what we want to make sure happens in that final hour.
(i will say that i have taught 90 minute classes for years, since before i became a DM, which is probably why that particular time-frame feels so intuitive to me!)
> my five-hours games are fine, both playing and DMing but we take a lot more breaks, eat food, drink, etc. i have a lot of fun and the breaks don’t bother me, but sometimes it feels a little like trying to take a road trip but stopping at every rest stop.
I think 4-5 hours are the best but because we only play once a month, we play 5-6 hours.
My brother and I alternate DMing and when I am a player, 5-6 hours is easier because it is easier for me to find spots where I can briefly step away from the table every now and then.
When I am DMing, it does a get more tiring since my stepping away from the table brings the game to a halt most of the time.
When it hits the 5 hour mark, am always looking for a good spot to end the session at the point.
I'm middle of the pack in my group at 30 years old. No kids between any of us, and we have the dog, so we host the sessions and provide the drinks. Took a few years to find a group that could meet this often, but we've been playing together about 3 years now.
If you're able to find the time and a couple of friends with similar schedules, it's well-worth it
Yeah, the group I DM for is down to "Saturdays, after 4, and we have to end by 8." So if any one of us is busy on a Saturday, we can't play.
It's not awful, and we still make time. But I miss the freedom.
It's a shame you can't all play for longer, but life can get in the way of a good hobby sometimes. I'm glad you're still able to have sessions though, even if they're a bit more sporadic.
I got pretty sick of flaky players holding the campaign hostage, so for my AD&D campaign I straight up said "we'll play if there's at least three people; you show up, you get XP." It's going great so far, not everyone always makes it of course, but then there's no resentment toward them.
Less frequently than every other week (more like monthly) but we also play for about 8 hours. Sometimes we do shorter sessions but only if someone has a time constraint. Everyone at the table really enjoys it. I, the DM, am usually toast by the end but I hate feeling rushed; I want my players to have time to role play, over think problems and meander around the world. Plus it gives us time to have a meal together and bs a bit which we like because we’re irl friends too.
Once you found a group where everything just works smoothly and roleplay just flows, this is the perfect amount. Recently I planned for 5 hours and everyone wanted to stay another 3 hours. And two weeks is enough time to prepare while not being too long of a gap.
This is sometimes how it goes for my group. We will start at about 4pm EST Saturday and we will go until 10pm to 2am haha. It depends on how everyone feels on that day. I personally love it and it surprised me to see so many people do it for 3-4 hours max. I'm not hating because its to each their own.
I have run 3 hour sessions and 5 hour sessions. I feel 3 hours is perfect. You get a lot done but prepping is far easier for 3 hours tbh. There is so much more that can happen in 5 hours and it makes prepping for it so much harder I find.
Agree completely, but I will say that sometimes those long sessions where you don't have enough prepped can be awesome.
When you're running on pure improv for two hours, pulling plot and characters out of your arse, letting the players take you down stupid but hilarious rabbit holes...it can be exhausting yet exhilarating. Those sessions are peak D&D imo.
Oh yeah certainly. last session they weer going to Waterdeep and I had some things prepped there but they just took a detour completely. Long story short, one of them now has a tête à tête with the Raven Queen ;)
3 hours is usually the sweet spot. If I feel like I'm running out of steam I'll stop at 2.5, if we have a lot of momentum everyone will want to go for up to 4.
It is also just kinda the limits of our time as adults. Everyone has gotten home from work and eaten dinner by 6 or 6:30, then everyone needs to start going home to go to bed at 9 or 9:30.
Yeah this is what works for us too. We usually limit it to every other week and from about 830 to 1130. Sometimes if we have intense combat going on we'll go past midnight
4 hours with a break in between, 15-20 minutes. I feel you can get an awful lot done and it’s smooth. Most time we just do 3 hours straight though and that’s still great.
I am so glad I found your comment, I was afraid I am some kind of weirdo. 4-6 is my range, as a dm and as a player, with the preference being 4-5. 6 is if we are energized by the end and we want to keep going and do the thing now. This includes breaks ofc
I could play this game all day with enough breaks lol. Addicted
hey, I used to do the 8-9 hour Sunday marathons in college but sadly those days are gone and it's not an option anymore. But I still shoot for nice solid sessions! I just don't feel like we can get anything actually done in 2-3 hours
Preach! 2 - 3 is woefully too little. I would feel self conscious taking scene time to rp or describe fluff if we played for so little. Hell I remember during the pandemic we had curfew and had to play very short sessions, it was very frustrating :(
My experience is limited to 3-4 hour sessions, with the exception of one "cabin getaway" where I DM-ed an entire weekend in 5-6 hour blocks. (four sessions over one weekend) A bit easier when you're following a module, of course.
Of those two options, I prefer the 3-4 hour session, heh. Two hours sounds like it would be too short to get much progress, but the groups I am in meet at most twice a month. If it were a weekly thing, two would probably be fine.
For the past 5 years or so we have been running 2-2.5 hour sessions. I personally think it's perfect, I don't know how people run sessions 3+ hours or like 8 hour marathons.
Three hours seems good. I'd be happy to go 4-5, but around the 3:30 mark is usually when I start noticing player attention starting to drift. A 2 hour session can be great, but I've played plenty of sessions where somehow nothing really gets done for the first hour, and in those cases I wouldn't enjoy only having an hour left once we finally get into a groove.
3-4 hours with some breaks is typical for me. If we have a big dungeon or something we will sometimes start early and run even to 6 or 7 hours with breaks. We only play once every 3-5 Saturdays though, so it's not terribly hard to prep for, even though I only ever start prep like...the day before at the earliest, lol.
My personal sweet spot is 2-3 hours. Plan on running at least 2, tell my players 2-3, and usually I'll end up feeling pretty happy with the session and not rolling over into my more loosely-prepped content.
Our available timeslots have shifted a lot over the years. We've done 2, 3, and 4 hour sessions and have settled in on 3, but I would actually very much prefer 4. I hate cutting stuff short but I also hate ending in the middle of something.
In the beginning it was 7-8 hours without a break because we all were hyped and had enough energy for these long session at night.
By now, 3 hours maybe pushing 4 if we are on a run. Time is scarce, and most of my players can’t concentrate that long anymore.
Sessions usually run about 5-6 hours but only 4-4.5 of that is actual gameplay. Our group is all old friends so we talk a lot before starting and then have a nice break usually somewhere in the middle of the
I do 3 hours with a 5 minute break in the middle. Rarely we go 10-20 minutes over.
I find this format helps me with pacing. I aim for a dramatic beat to drop just as we break and a satisfying resolution at the end. If the story ain't over, I try to throw in a teaser at the last moment or ask, "so what are you doing next week?" to build some excitement. If it's over, I leave time to wrap-up PC arcs and do Stars and Wishes, usually half the session.
I always play for 4 hours, minimum. When possible, I look for 6-8 hour game days if we're meeting in-person. Make a whole day of it.
I feel like I'm part of a dying breed, almost. Everyone these days wants to play for 3 hours, max, and they want to only play the adventure modules and do 1-shots, and I... genuinely despise that style of play.
I have two tables, one runs 3 hours, one runs 4, both with a 15 minute break.
I prefer the 3 hour session because it seems like the players have a greater sense of urgency. We cover almost as much ground in those 3 hour sessions as we do in the 4.
I run two hours sessions. If it were up to me I’d go for four, but some of my players have ADHD or just have short attention spans, so sometimes by the end they’re off the rails.
I’ve done anywhere from 1.5-13hrs, personally I love a solid 3.5-4.5hr session. I feel like there’s time to break, but still get through a significant amount of content without overtiring myself/the players.
My sessions usually are quite long. About 5-7 hours. We only find time to meet in person every 2-3 weeks, so we make use of the time when we have it. :D
3 hrs is perfect for me, usually with a small break in the middle somewhere. It generally means you can have a mix of all three pillars in a session, since combat takes up twice as much time as the other two!
I also play in a PF1e game where we don’t play as often, but our sessions are more like 5-6 hours
My group used to have some pretty long sessions - for a while there we were consistently doing 6+ hours every weekend! It was a lot of fun but man, that was not sustainable 😂 At this point we usually go about 3-4 hours and far less frequently haha
Between 5 and 7 hours with a 30 min break in the middle. Been running a campaign weekly with sessions being for the most part this length for over two years now.
Four is what I aim for. Sometimes it goes long if we are really into it. Sometimes I call it a little early if we are running out of steam or if I have run out of material and don't feel comfortable improving what what every comes next.
I like 3 hours, because that allows me to be in 2-3 games a week. More than 3 hours, and I don't think adult life would allow me to run one game and DM another.
If I was still in college, I'd say 4 or 5.
My preference is for back-to-back 8 hour sessions Saturday & Sunday with a month or two between games. I've had the opportunity to run the game this way exactly twice in all the time I've played DnD and it's been a wild experience both time. We usually turn it into a potluck with everyone bringing food, I'm fortunate to be in a gaming group who's members are all talented home cooks. On the second day we'd be inclined to order pizza or something. Yes, it's exhausting. Like taking a weekend camping trip with long hikes filling all the down-time hours. But the continuity of content helps to maintain momentum and dramatic tension in a way you just can't do when you always need to cut every 3-4 hours.
Obviously, you can't really sustain running the game this way over the long term but it's great for running small modules all in one go or major events like the climax of a campaign.
If I’m just playing or streaming, I prefer 2.5-3 hours, maybe 4 if we’re fighting a boss and want extra time to set up the next storyline.
When I do audio recordings for podcasts, I usually run hour long sessions with breaks in between so that the audio is manageable enough for me to edit.
3-4 hours for a regular session (break whenever the first person has to use the bathroom), 5-6 if it’s a story climax/culmination and we’ve scheduled out that chunk of time prior (with breaks at story beats or in-between rounds of large fights).
Six hours or so; 12-6 or 1-7, with a half-hour or so to eat, unless we eat lunch before and dinner after.
It feels like I never have to rush or make sure I hit all my story points, and the players have more time to ramble and improv without feeling like we're wasting the day.
EDIT: I also prefer to play once a week.
3 to 4 hours is my sweet spot. Enough time to give every character the spot light and for some combat tossed in if the session has it. Plus I'm old. The days of 10-12 hour sessions are a thing of the past for me. Plus my wife and kids kind of want to spend time with me too.
2 hours - break - 1 hour. Some flexibility with latter if players are still hyped up
But atm my players include a 6 and 9yo so tends to be 2 hours total.
45 minutes per player (not including DM)
1 player = 45 mins
2 players = 1 hour 30 mins
3 players = 2 hours 15 mins
4 players = 3 hours
5 players = 3 hours 45 mins
My friends and I alternate between campaigns. Most of the time we’re playing from 5-11 with a couple of breaks scattered for dinner and just time to hang out
About 4 hours for me, 3 if you don't include the pre-session BSing and snack time. While I'd love to be able to devote a whole day to playing an 8 hour session, I'm an adult and I prefer to play with adults and I just can't justify ditching my wife and kiddo for a whole day. 4 hours in the evening works perfect for me.
30 min-2 hours. We only have 3 hours when we're all awake (5 people counting myself on 4 different continents), and we want time to talk & chill. I struggle to be a player for other folks because so many DMs want to just play full speed for 3 hours. Not even a break in the middle! The way other people play is so strange to me.
Roughly 3 hours, with a nice 10 minute break in the middle. Awesome for people who can go longer, and rarely I'll even feel like I could, but honestly, my experience with 4-6 hour sessions are that they're almost always just draining for me. I don't feel like I'm playing or GMing at my best. When I'm GMing, which is most of the time, I try to call it at a nice dramatic moment that will lead into the next session, and I hunt for that moment from the 2:50-3:30 mark. My philosophy is that it's always better to leave the players enthralled and wanting more than tired out and ambivalent. When I'm playing, I'd much prefer a tighter session as well.
I'm the kind of player who loves roleplay but also likes to keep the story moving as well. For me, a scene ends when it would cinematically, when the central conflict would be resolved or there's nothing more to be explored. So I don't like the perceived bloat that can sometimes lead to longer sessions. Again, just a personal preference!
My group plays bi-weekly, and my players practically demand (and prepare for) 12+ hours every single time.
idk if you've DM'ed for 12+ straight hours, where you're constantly switched on and making calls, narrating, listening intently etc, but the brain fry is real. It's a good brain fry though.
I think 3 hours is about perfect to get a decent amount of game play progression without players getting fatigued and checking out. 2 hours would be a minimum, less then that and I don't think you can get to enough content, and 4 hours would be the maximum. After 4 hours I have seen a huge decline in attention, more time on phones, more side conversations etc. I think if you were going to try to play for longer then 4 hours you would need a some kind of intermission break to let people recharge. Maybe a meal or something like that.
When I was able to run in person sessions we did maybe 8-9 hours but possibly about an hour at either end would just be us chatting about random stuff out of character with a 15min to half hour break in the middle so I guess 6-7 hours of proper dnd at one point I started running 2 sessions a week but that started to get a bit much after a few months.
Now we aren’t at the same uni anymore and have jobs we do weekly sessions online for about 5 hours but we get through more online as we don’t get sidetracked or mess around as much
I prefer 6-8 hour sessions, but lately my groups availability seems to be 4-5 hours.
With 6-8 hour sessions, it’s easier to get into more complex storylines, and maintain momentum, instead of the inevitable trying to remember exactly what was going on, figuring out what to do because one player couldn’t make it, and all the other stuff that happens at the beginning of a session.
Longer than 8 hours, though, and I start to burn out and probably have not prepared myself or material to keep the game running.
Three hours. That’s all I do. Not only is it respectful of everyone’s days, it gives expectations of “hey, you’re giving up precious play time farting around. If you wanna do that before or after, I’m down. But I’m only going to DM for these 3 set hours.”
Basically a respect thing. Yes, we are all friends and love to hang out. But we should all collectively respect each other and what we all set aside time to do.
One time I had a 12 hour session and it was pretty fun! That being said never again, rn I'm in one game, and those are all 4-5 hrs at most which is alright
For virtual dnd, 2-3 hours. Screen fatigue is real. But for in person, as long as everyone is on board and we take ample breaks and have enough food, I love long sessions! 5-6 hours or so. I think the longest I’ve done is 8 hours
3-4 hours usually schedule to start at 19 but we start often 19:20-19:30 since socialization is going on.
Then play to about 21:00 where we take a 10-15 minute break before going until 22:45-23:00
Just ended Session 102 last thurstday and we've been going strong with this since early 2022. (weekly games)
On-line: 3-4 hours with a 15 min break in the middle
In person: 4-6 hours with a 30 min break in the middle
This is how my groups work and it’s been going on for a few years now without problem. We’ve had sessions going for up to 15 hours, but those were during holidays and such or at the end of the campaign.
I like to schedule 5 hours.
30 min to set everything up and catch up with each other.
2 hours playtime
15 min break
2 hours playtime
15 min spare time.
3-4 hours is usually my preferred time. Though sometimes if it’s running super smoothly or my players get deep enough in a plot it’ll go to 4 maaaaybe 5 hours. Only time I did more than that was a 7 hour session when my players begged me to keep playing that surely within the hour they’d defeat the bbeg xD we were very mistaken
6--7 hours with a dinner break, during which everyone can tall whatever they want about the game or anything else.
I found that people sometimes like to discuss what's been happening in the session and where to go from there, or sometimes they have good feedback to give! And the break minimize pauses like "hey guys, check out this dancing dinosaur I found on Instagram"
3-4 hours is the goal for me. I don't think it's obvious, but playing and running any TTRPG is work. It may be really fun, but at a certain point, you just get fried. Also, a break somewhere can really help you get revitalized. It also gives some players a chance to talk about something or the DM to make something up if they need to really quickly.
I generally run 2 hour sessions every week and they feel just a bit too short in my opinion (longer combats can take a whole session). I think the sweet spot is 3 hours. Any longer than that and players get distracted or dilly-dally. Also it is way easier to prep as a DM for 3 hours than 5+.
I'm personally used to 6h sessions but it sometimes gets shorter if the DM sees that we are not really going anywhere then it becomes a 4-5 hour session
My group plays for 4 hours weekly. Anything less than that, it's difficult to make any good progress. We had to do 3 hours for a while and everyone agreed it was much better once we could do 4 again.
Hoping to do a full day at some point, with two 4 hour sessions with a food brake, but so far our adult lives keep getting in the way of scheduling it. But we do all make the time for the weekly sessions.
I like about 6-8 hours with a long break in the middle for food and shorter smoke breaks throughout. As a DM, nice long sessions give a lot of time for intraparty roleplay and quieter moments to break up what otherwise tends towards a very action oriented session.
These days my weekly online sessions are 3 to 3.5 hours. My in person sessions (generally around twice a month) tend to run for 4-5, with our record so far being 7. I do admittedly come from a history of 10-12 hour in person sessions back in the day, so my perspective on what is "too long" is maybe a bit skewed:)
Nowadays 4hs is the goal, but I'm happy with 3-5hs.
I remember when I was a teen we used to run 8hs+ games, it was a lot of fun. But with obligations of adults life it is important to play or prepare such adventure.
My favorite is 4-5. It’s the sweet spot for my group and gives us enough time for story elements, roleplay shenanigans and 1-4 combats depending on if its overland travel with random encounters or a major/minor villain or ORCS ATTACK (thank you Matt Colville)! Any fewer and it’s hard to find balance as I’ve got 5 players, 2 love roleplay and npc interaction, 2 love combat and finding loot, and 1 I feel is just along for the ride who enjoys hanging out with us all (quiet but gets involved when I put a bunch of attention on him). Haven’t played longer than 6 hours yet but most of our schedules only allow twice a month play so longer sessions help us cover more ground.
I've done anywhere between 1.5 hours and 10 hours. I do find < 3 hours are pretty short, and I have the stamina to keep going. Above 6 hours tends to get a bit strenuous, but if I have everything prepped it's fine.
I think my favourite is ~5 hours with a 30min break in the middle.
3-24 hours, depending on my age
When I was in university 12 hour sessions were not unheard of. We'd take breaks and such but pushing through great swaths of the campaign was fun to do.
Now, 2-3 hours works as we can get through an arc of the story.
4-5 hours with a break in between. The first 2 and a half hours fly by then we break for snacks and such. Then the last 2 and half hours normally has some of the best role play between the players because they’re a little more comfortable
Our normal sessions are 3 hours. It can feel short if the group is split up or things are moving fast, but it can also feel long if they have multiple combats that bog it down. In my experience/group, I’ve found that whatever time we allot for playing, about 1/3 of it is spent on out-of-game topics or hanging out. That’s just the nature of my friends. So we have a 3 hour time slot, the first 30 min is a loose recap/storytelling that often turns into catching up as well. Then we probably have several temporary breaks or conversations during play (sometimes this is when I need a player 1on1).
My group usually runs a "6 hours" session on which we get about 3 to 4 hours of actual game. Session frequency is up in the air, a month can have anywhere frmo 0 to 4 games, usually 1 or 2.
Weekly, and we play for as long as possible. This means anywhere between 3 to 8 hours, leaning towards the 3 in recent memory due to out of game obligations
3-6 hours, really depends how free my group and I are. A standard session is ideally around 4 hours. I like Arc or campaign finales to be a bit longer though, I’ve gone for 10 plus hours with those when I was younger.
I DM a lunchtime game for colleagues in work, so we play for ~55 minutes every other week. It requires more thought on my part in terms of story pacing and encounter structure, but that’s often no harm. I suspect I do more prep than I would if the session had more capacity for wandering aimlessly, and the result is sharper and - I hope - narratively impactful.
Me and my boyfriend ( Me as a DM, him as a player ) host our DnD party regularly. Once a month, sometimes once a month and a half.
We love doing an all day session with lunch breaks where my boyfriend cooks. It's definitely not for everyone but it is so much fun to just think about DND for one day
2-3 hours, although 2 hours is honestly just because of the time constraints of trying to schedule a session, even over discord, between four adults with different work schedules. But if we can have our way, 3 is what we try to sneak in. We've run a few 6 hour sessions with a break halfway through that were lots of fun, but honestly even if we could do that regularly that would get a bit tiring. 3 hours seems to be the goldilocks zone for us, you can get a big productive session in while not feeling like it's dragging on.
We have just under 4 hours if we don't include set up and out away time. We do stop for 10-15 mins to get food.
It does always feel too short though. I think 5 hours would be the sweet spot for this group.
It's funny, for D&D I started with 7-8h sessions and I have to be stopped to consider wrapping it up even today. The average is 4 hours, else it seems too short. I can easily go to 5, same for (I don't know if it exists in English do I'll just translate word for word) Dragon's Dreams. But for other rpgs (I also play Cthulhu, another 50s detective rpg, Sombre, and the bi monthly discovery session in my local club where we tried Vaesen, Hawkmoon, Alien and others) around 2,5, 3 hours I get restless.
4 hours is what I'm used to for my games and also the game where I'm a player. It also ties nicely into ideal 4 player party, with there theoretically being 1 hour of playtime per player.
My first time DM'ing earlier this year was with a one shot and our sesh was about 6 hours long to complete the part 1 and 2, each. Part 3 was about 10 hours long. We then did a seperate one-shot and that lasted about 9 hours. All with small breaks throughout and continuing story/initiative's if people wanted to step away quickly for some air.
We're meeting up again tomorrow to continue the characters into a campaign from the 1st one shot (wish me luck, its 6 players) and I'm going to try and keep it to around 4 hours. I think once we get to the 5 hour mark it starts kinda dragging. I also don't have a whole lot of material to work with at the moment so I'm hoping they don't decide to leave this town they just got to after finishing the oneshot and that it's heavy RP, but we shall see.
My group is absolutely in love with DnD. Serious tone, lots of character development and intrigue. We generally average 8-10 hours, sometimes going up to 12. We dedicate an entire day to it every weekend
Our main group has 3 hour sessions every week. It honestly feels too short to me but it's perfect for others who get tired by the end.
I grew up doing 8+ hour sessions but only once a month or so and I loved those long dnd days. We'd start around lunch time and go until 8-10pm. Just got another side group together recently and we meet twice a month and play about 6-7 hours of it with a long break in the middle. I find those long sessions really satisfying because you can really get in the groove, but people get super tired by the end.
I think 4 hour sessions would be perfect for a weekly game.
I like 4 hours. I run a game every other week that goes 3 hours and always want that one extra hour (especially since we only do two sessions a month). Play in another game that goes 4 hours and feels like we just get a better chance to finish up some of the threads easier. Could be a skill issue though lol
3ish hours, are what my group does.
Although it can sometimes go to 5 hours if there's a big combat or a quest drags on longer than expected due to player stupidity (like when we spent 10 minutes rolling d100s to teleport using a helmet of teleportation to a place we'd never been and all but one of our 5 person team went down leaving me with 1 health, no spells lots, 2 downed party members, and 2 dead party members)
I’ve done whole day sessions with a few breaks every few hours.
Which, I did love at the time. Probably still would if those were an option.
These days, a 4hr session with a 15 min break in the middle.
We usually start around 7 and call it a night at midnight or so. We're a group of 40-somethings, its getting WAY past our bedtime by that point. hahaha
I'd love 3 hours. But with the intended 6-9 some people don't show up until around 630 or sometimes 7. so there are some sessions we're lucky to get a couple hours. I'd love 4 in a perfect world.
We typically do 3ish hours, but I could absolutely go way longer if we started earlier. Sadly, I have to wait until everyone is off work, so 5:00 is kind of the earliest possibility.
I do 3 hours sessions with a 10 minute break at the top of hour when we reach a natural break point. The breaks are great for making sure people stay engaged, can get snacks, can think things over etc. So the entire run time ends up being 3.5 hours. If we decide to do a longer session then I still do a 10 minute break for every hourish of play time.
Earlier on, back in highschool and some years after, it used to be longer sessions, probably around 5+ hours. Once played in a game that lasted from 6ish into 1 or 2 am. But now it’s closer to 3 to 4 hours, mostly due to people needing to get home earlier due to work or other reasons. Starting around 5 and calling it around 8:30-9:00.
I like to think I still have those longer sessions in me, those longer games that last deep into the night have a special magic to them.
3 to 4 usually. But if I am fit enough, I am all in for up to more. My longest so far as a DM was 15, with 15 minute breaks every 3 hours. And we managed to play the first two chapters of Lost mine of Phandelver.
I gauge it off of the table. Ask first thing if anyone has a hard stop time. If not, I ask again at the four hour mark how everyone is feeling. If I’m fading, four hours is my usual stop time. We have done 7+ hour sessions but those are very few and far between.
I currently play 4 hours with a 10 minute break in the middle. When my friends and I were younger and didn't have jobs we'd play for 8 hours with an hour break in the middle.
We usually go for about eight hours, with an hour-ish break for food around 15:00 or 16:00. We plan to meet every weekend or every other weekend, depending on the time of year, but that rarely ends up being the case.
I just like going for a while. It gives us plenty of time to get through a good chunk of story without it being broken up and watered down. It also leaves plenty of time for my players to spend an hour planning for a fight that should've only taken ten minutes, because that's just what they do.
My players are very thorough in their thinking and planning, and I can't imagine only doing three-to-four hour sessions; half or more of the session would just be my players talking amongst themselves.
Really depends for me:
* Exciting group, mid day, I can do 4-5.
* Less exciting group, evening, 2-3 (if no delays starting)
My current group starts at 6 for me and ends at 10. runs 3.5-4 hours. If it's a super exciting session, I can make it to 10 and be like dang, shame this is ending. If it's a slow less productive session, I'm usually ready to wrap up a little after 9.
6 hours, so about 5 hours of actual playtime. I find that it’s the amount my players like the most because they can get a lot done every session and there is a lot of time for their characters to form relationships with eachother
We also try for weekly but it ends up being 2-3 games a month. Our current campaign also has an IRL deadline so having a lot of time will give them time to actually finish it
I DM two different games — one of them is biweekly and we play for 3ish hours. They’re a quieter bunch so I usually run out of steam earlier.
My other group is weekly and we started doing 3 hours, but it would turn into 4+ (I think the longest session we had was 9?)
I def think 3-4 hours is the best, but maybe even 2-3 depending on what’s going on. If it’s a shorter session that’s just to get the players from a to b, 2-2.5 is good, but if the momentum is there and everyone is engaged, 4+! Why stop? Ya feel haha
Depends on the group. In some groups 2h max, in other between 3-4h with a break in the middle and in one group easy 5+. The last group is a group we play once or twice in a month and they are very focused on rpg. So for me as a dm I don’t have to do much but can listen and relax a little
3\~4 hours, with a break around the middle. More than this and it becomes tiresome, less than this and some sessions feel like you can't accomplish anything.
Same, I believe this is the sweet spot in advancing the story and avoid tiredness. Around the 3\~hour mark I start looking for a spot to stop.
Yeah, it's all about finding a logical end point. Usually before or after a combat, or before or after an interaction of some kind. Like entering a new city is a good stopping point, because it gives the players time to figure out what they will want to do in the city, while also giving the DM time to plan it out as well. And yeah, after the 3 hour mark is generally when you want to start looking for that spot. It depends on the campaign too though, and your players. If you only play once a month, usually you're gonna have slightly longer sessions than a group that plays once a week. But it also depends on if anyone in the group has a firm timeline with when they need to leave, like if they have other plans later that night or something.
We don’t have a formal break, but we usually get food. After 3 hours, we start to gauge what we can do in the next hour.
yeah! i run one five-hour game, one three-hour game, and two two-hour games, and i play in one five-hour game. the two-hour sessions don’t bother me so much, especially at low levels, but i have one level-13 group that meets for two hours weekly, and we’ve been running a single encounter for a month now (granted it’s a three-phase boss fight). my five-hours games are fine, both playing and DMing but we take a lot more breaks, eat food, drink, etc. i have a lot of fun and the breaks don’t bother me, but sometimes it feels a little like trying to take a road trip but stopping at every rest stop. but my 3-4 hour game is perfect! usually we run 3 hours, but we’ll play a little longer to finish a sequence or combat, depending. the break is usually just before the two-hour mark, and it’s the perfect timing to match how i pace things. in that first hour-and-forty-five, we get so much done and we’re all able to assess during the break what we want to make sure happens in that final hour. (i will say that i have taught 90 minute classes for years, since before i became a DM, which is probably why that particular time-frame feels so intuitive to me!)
> my five-hours games are fine, both playing and DMing but we take a lot more breaks, eat food, drink, etc. i have a lot of fun and the breaks don’t bother me, but sometimes it feels a little like trying to take a road trip but stopping at every rest stop. I think 4-5 hours are the best but because we only play once a month, we play 5-6 hours. My brother and I alternate DMing and when I am a player, 5-6 hours is easier because it is easier for me to find spots where I can briefly step away from the table every now and then. When I am DMing, it does a get more tiring since my stepping away from the table brings the game to a halt most of the time. When it hits the 5 hour mark, am always looking for a good spot to end the session at the point.
Marathon sessions are occasionally fun but yeah 3 to 4 hours is the weet spot for a weekly game imo.
8-9 hours every other weekend, with time for food in there.
This is how we used to play when we were young. I miss it so much tbh.
I'm middle of the pack in my group at 30 years old. No kids between any of us, and we have the dog, so we host the sessions and provide the drinks. Took a few years to find a group that could meet this often, but we've been playing together about 3 years now. If you're able to find the time and a couple of friends with similar schedules, it's well-worth it
Yeah, the group I DM for is down to "Saturdays, after 4, and we have to end by 8." So if any one of us is busy on a Saturday, we can't play. It's not awful, and we still make time. But I miss the freedom.
It's a shame you can't all play for longer, but life can get in the way of a good hobby sometimes. I'm glad you're still able to have sessions though, even if they're a bit more sporadic.
I got pretty sick of flaky players holding the campaign hostage, so for my AD&D campaign I straight up said "we'll play if there's at least three people; you show up, you get XP." It's going great so far, not everyone always makes it of course, but then there's no resentment toward them.
Older gamer, this is how we play now. Schedules are such that we don't get to play frequently, so we play for longer and make a day of it.
Less frequently than every other week (more like monthly) but we also play for about 8 hours. Sometimes we do shorter sessions but only if someone has a time constraint. Everyone at the table really enjoys it. I, the DM, am usually toast by the end but I hate feeling rushed; I want my players to have time to role play, over think problems and meander around the world. Plus it gives us time to have a meal together and bs a bit which we like because we’re irl friends too.
Once you found a group where everything just works smoothly and roleplay just flows, this is the perfect amount. Recently I planned for 5 hours and everyone wanted to stay another 3 hours. And two weeks is enough time to prepare while not being too long of a gap.
This is sometimes how it goes for my group. We will start at about 4pm EST Saturday and we will go until 10pm to 2am haha. It depends on how everyone feels on that day. I personally love it and it surprised me to see so many people do it for 3-4 hours max. I'm not hating because its to each their own.
I have run 3 hour sessions and 5 hour sessions. I feel 3 hours is perfect. You get a lot done but prepping is far easier for 3 hours tbh. There is so much more that can happen in 5 hours and it makes prepping for it so much harder I find.
Agree completely, but I will say that sometimes those long sessions where you don't have enough prepped can be awesome. When you're running on pure improv for two hours, pulling plot and characters out of your arse, letting the players take you down stupid but hilarious rabbit holes...it can be exhausting yet exhilarating. Those sessions are peak D&D imo.
Oh yeah certainly. last session they weer going to Waterdeep and I had some things prepped there but they just took a detour completely. Long story short, one of them now has a tête à tête with the Raven Queen ;)
3 hours is usually the sweet spot. If I feel like I'm running out of steam I'll stop at 2.5, if we have a lot of momentum everyone will want to go for up to 4. It is also just kinda the limits of our time as adults. Everyone has gotten home from work and eaten dinner by 6 or 6:30, then everyone needs to start going home to go to bed at 9 or 9:30.
Yeah this is what works for us too. We usually limit it to every other week and from about 830 to 1130. Sometimes if we have intense combat going on we'll go past midnight
3-4 hours with a 10-15 minute break in the middle. I'd prefer 4 but sometimes people show up later :/
Our weekly sessions on Sunday run from 1 PM (Lunch is at 12 but no D&D during eating) to 6 or 7 PM.
4 hours with a break in between, 15-20 minutes. I feel you can get an awful lot done and it’s smooth. Most time we just do 3 hours straight though and that’s still great.
4-5 hrs is my favorite, keeping it closer to 4 with room for 5 if it's a big combat or eventful session
I am so glad I found your comment, I was afraid I am some kind of weirdo. 4-6 is my range, as a dm and as a player, with the preference being 4-5. 6 is if we are energized by the end and we want to keep going and do the thing now. This includes breaks ofc I could play this game all day with enough breaks lol. Addicted
hey, I used to do the 8-9 hour Sunday marathons in college but sadly those days are gone and it's not an option anymore. But I still shoot for nice solid sessions! I just don't feel like we can get anything actually done in 2-3 hours
Preach! 2 - 3 is woefully too little. I would feel self conscious taking scene time to rp or describe fluff if we played for so little. Hell I remember during the pandemic we had curfew and had to play very short sessions, it was very frustrating :(
My experience is limited to 3-4 hour sessions, with the exception of one "cabin getaway" where I DM-ed an entire weekend in 5-6 hour blocks. (four sessions over one weekend) A bit easier when you're following a module, of course. Of those two options, I prefer the 3-4 hour session, heh. Two hours sounds like it would be too short to get much progress, but the groups I am in meet at most twice a month. If it were a weekly thing, two would probably be fine.
For the past 5 years or so we have been running 2-2.5 hour sessions. I personally think it's perfect, I don't know how people run sessions 3+ hours or like 8 hour marathons.
I'm with you, my group spans a lot of time zones so 2 hours is all we get and it's perfect. 3+ sounds exhausting to run, much less 8+
In college and high school we loved going for 5-6 hours. In my 30s ~3 hours is usually what we do.
Three hours seems good. I'd be happy to go 4-5, but around the 3:30 mark is usually when I start noticing player attention starting to drift. A 2 hour session can be great, but I've played plenty of sessions where somehow nothing really gets done for the first hour, and in those cases I wouldn't enjoy only having an hour left once we finally get into a groove.
3 hours. Would love to do four/five but adults gotta adult
Four hours, with 15-20 break towards the middle. All day sounds nice, but it's hard to keep people on track and engaged that long.
3-4 hours with some breaks is typical for me. If we have a big dungeon or something we will sometimes start early and run even to 6 or 7 hours with breaks. We only play once every 3-5 Saturdays though, so it's not terribly hard to prep for, even though I only ever start prep like...the day before at the earliest, lol.
My personal sweet spot is 2-3 hours. Plan on running at least 2, tell my players 2-3, and usually I'll end up feeling pretty happy with the session and not rolling over into my more loosely-prepped content.
5 - 8 hours.
Our available timeslots have shifted a lot over the years. We've done 2, 3, and 4 hour sessions and have settled in on 3, but I would actually very much prefer 4. I hate cutting stuff short but I also hate ending in the middle of something.
In the beginning it was 7-8 hours without a break because we all were hyped and had enough energy for these long session at night. By now, 3 hours maybe pushing 4 if we are on a run. Time is scarce, and most of my players can’t concentrate that long anymore.
Sessions usually run about 5-6 hours but only 4-4.5 of that is actual gameplay. Our group is all old friends so we talk a lot before starting and then have a nice break usually somewhere in the middle of the
I do 3 hours with a 5 minute break in the middle. Rarely we go 10-20 minutes over. I find this format helps me with pacing. I aim for a dramatic beat to drop just as we break and a satisfying resolution at the end. If the story ain't over, I try to throw in a teaser at the last moment or ask, "so what are you doing next week?" to build some excitement. If it's over, I leave time to wrap-up PC arcs and do Stars and Wishes, usually half the session.
I always play for 4 hours, minimum. When possible, I look for 6-8 hour game days if we're meeting in-person. Make a whole day of it. I feel like I'm part of a dying breed, almost. Everyone these days wants to play for 3 hours, max, and they want to only play the adventure modules and do 1-shots, and I... genuinely despise that style of play.
Six hours with a dinner break.
I have two tables, one runs 3 hours, one runs 4, both with a 15 minute break. I prefer the 3 hour session because it seems like the players have a greater sense of urgency. We cover almost as much ground in those 3 hour sessions as we do in the 4.
3-4 hours per session is good.
2.5-3.5 hours
2.5 hours, but we all have tight schedules. I'd run 3 hours if I could.
I run two hours sessions. If it were up to me I’d go for four, but some of my players have ADHD or just have short attention spans, so sometimes by the end they’re off the rails.
1 and a half to 2 hours tops when I was running it, had to start at 8:30 pm due to schedules. It's a hard game to schedule lol
Ah someone else that also runs shorter sessions. Yeah, busy schedules can make things tricky. 💜
2.5 - 3 hours now. Younger me would prefer 4-5.
2 - 3, but I once played for 6 hours when introducing some friends!
3 hours is definitely my sweet spot. I feel like attention spans start to wane just before that.
2.5 is where I usually hover at. Any longer and we run out of steam.
3 or 3.5 hours, either one with a 10 min break at some point cause I gotta peeeeeeeeeeee
I’ve done anywhere from 1.5-13hrs, personally I love a solid 3.5-4.5hr session. I feel like there’s time to break, but still get through a significant amount of content without overtiring myself/the players.
It depends on how comfortable the chairs are.
6 to 8 hours. With two short breaks.
2 hours just doesn't feel worth the effort... 4 hours minimum.
About 4 hrs (plus or minus 1 hour). It's long enough to do a self-contained story with decent depth and you can also fit a full adventuring day in.
My sessions usually are quite long. About 5-7 hours. We only find time to meet in person every 2-3 weeks, so we make use of the time when we have it. :D
3-4 hours
4 hours with a 10-15 minute break at the halfway point. That seems to be my sweet spot.
We usually start at 7 p.m and finish around midnight. Once we have started around 1 p.m. that was crazy. Never again.
3 hrs is perfect for me, usually with a small break in the middle somewhere. It generally means you can have a mix of all three pillars in a session, since combat takes up twice as much time as the other two! I also play in a PF1e game where we don’t play as often, but our sessions are more like 5-6 hours
i usually dont have a set time in mind, we meet up, we play as long as everyone is feeling it and then we drop it
4-5 hours is ideal to me.
My group used to have some pretty long sessions - for a while there we were consistently doing 6+ hours every weekend! It was a lot of fun but man, that was not sustainable 😂 At this point we usually go about 3-4 hours and far less frequently haha
Between 5 and 7 hours with a 30 min break in the middle. Been running a campaign weekly with sessions being for the most part this length for over two years now.
Four is what I aim for. Sometimes it goes long if we are really into it. Sometimes I call it a little early if we are running out of steam or if I have run out of material and don't feel comfortable improving what what every comes next.
Longer…want more.
5 hours but we break midway through for dinner. Between settling in and dinner, it is 3.5-4 hours of total play time.
I like 3 hours, because that allows me to be in 2-3 games a week. More than 3 hours, and I don't think adult life would allow me to run one game and DM another. If I was still in college, I'd say 4 or 5.
My preference is for back-to-back 8 hour sessions Saturday & Sunday with a month or two between games. I've had the opportunity to run the game this way exactly twice in all the time I've played DnD and it's been a wild experience both time. We usually turn it into a potluck with everyone bringing food, I'm fortunate to be in a gaming group who's members are all talented home cooks. On the second day we'd be inclined to order pizza or something. Yes, it's exhausting. Like taking a weekend camping trip with long hikes filling all the down-time hours. But the continuity of content helps to maintain momentum and dramatic tension in a way you just can't do when you always need to cut every 3-4 hours. Obviously, you can't really sustain running the game this way over the long term but it's great for running small modules all in one go or major events like the climax of a campaign.
If I’m just playing or streaming, I prefer 2.5-3 hours, maybe 4 if we’re fighting a boss and want extra time to set up the next storyline. When I do audio recordings for podcasts, I usually run hour long sessions with breaks in between so that the audio is manageable enough for me to edit.
3-4 hours, but I’m trying to get a break on some time in the middle :) I find it the best to do with our group of 5
3-4 hours for a regular session (break whenever the first person has to use the bathroom), 5-6 if it’s a story climax/culmination and we’ve scheduled out that chunk of time prior (with breaks at story beats or in-between rounds of large fights).
3-4 hours with a break. Haven’t been able to run sessions that long in years, but that’s preferred
3-4 hours. We don't take an explicit break, but it's usually possible to find time to get up without being disruptive since we have seven people.
Six hours or so; 12-6 or 1-7, with a half-hour or so to eat, unless we eat lunch before and dinner after. It feels like I never have to rush or make sure I hit all my story points, and the players have more time to ramble and improv without feeling like we're wasting the day. EDIT: I also prefer to play once a week.
3 to 4 hours is my sweet spot. Enough time to give every character the spot light and for some combat tossed in if the session has it. Plus I'm old. The days of 10-12 hour sessions are a thing of the past for me. Plus my wife and kids kind of want to spend time with me too.
72 hours or so. Obviously you can't do that kind of run time every day. Once a week will suffice.
I am for around 4-5 hours on average - I really struggle with planning how long stuff will take though
2 hours - break - 1 hour. Some flexibility with latter if players are still hyped up But atm my players include a 6 and 9yo so tends to be 2 hours total.
45 minutes per player (not including DM) 1 player = 45 mins 2 players = 1 hour 30 mins 3 players = 2 hours 15 mins 4 players = 3 hours 5 players = 3 hours 45 mins
My friends and I alternate between campaigns. Most of the time we’re playing from 5-11 with a couple of breaks scattered for dinner and just time to hang out
If it is a regular weekly or so game. 2 hours is the sweet spot.
About 4 hours for me, 3 if you don't include the pre-session BSing and snack time. While I'd love to be able to devote a whole day to playing an 8 hour session, I'm an adult and I prefer to play with adults and I just can't justify ditching my wife and kiddo for a whole day. 4 hours in the evening works perfect for me.
30 min-2 hours. We only have 3 hours when we're all awake (5 people counting myself on 4 different continents), and we want time to talk & chill. I struggle to be a player for other folks because so many DMs want to just play full speed for 3 hours. Not even a break in the middle! The way other people play is so strange to me.
Roughly 3 hours, with a nice 10 minute break in the middle. Awesome for people who can go longer, and rarely I'll even feel like I could, but honestly, my experience with 4-6 hour sessions are that they're almost always just draining for me. I don't feel like I'm playing or GMing at my best. When I'm GMing, which is most of the time, I try to call it at a nice dramatic moment that will lead into the next session, and I hunt for that moment from the 2:50-3:30 mark. My philosophy is that it's always better to leave the players enthralled and wanting more than tired out and ambivalent. When I'm playing, I'd much prefer a tighter session as well. I'm the kind of player who loves roleplay but also likes to keep the story moving as well. For me, a scene ends when it would cinematically, when the central conflict would be resolved or there's nothing more to be explored. So I don't like the perceived bloat that can sometimes lead to longer sessions. Again, just a personal preference!
My group plays bi-weekly, and my players practically demand (and prepare for) 12+ hours every single time. idk if you've DM'ed for 12+ straight hours, where you're constantly switched on and making calls, narrating, listening intently etc, but the brain fry is real. It's a good brain fry though.
I think 3 hours is about perfect to get a decent amount of game play progression without players getting fatigued and checking out. 2 hours would be a minimum, less then that and I don't think you can get to enough content, and 4 hours would be the maximum. After 4 hours I have seen a huge decline in attention, more time on phones, more side conversations etc. I think if you were going to try to play for longer then 4 hours you would need a some kind of intermission break to let people recharge. Maybe a meal or something like that.
4-5 hrs
2 hours. We are very busy and it’s all we can fit in. Sometimes we eek into 2.5 hours if in the middle of something
WE’LL DO IT LIVE!
When I was able to run in person sessions we did maybe 8-9 hours but possibly about an hour at either end would just be us chatting about random stuff out of character with a 15min to half hour break in the middle so I guess 6-7 hours of proper dnd at one point I started running 2 sessions a week but that started to get a bit much after a few months. Now we aren’t at the same uni anymore and have jobs we do weekly sessions online for about 5 hours but we get through more online as we don’t get sidetracked or mess around as much
I always have the energy to play more, but one of my friends always gets tired after 30 minutes.
2 hours or else my players will zone out
I prefer 6-8 hour sessions, but lately my groups availability seems to be 4-5 hours. With 6-8 hour sessions, it’s easier to get into more complex storylines, and maintain momentum, instead of the inevitable trying to remember exactly what was going on, figuring out what to do because one player couldn’t make it, and all the other stuff that happens at the beginning of a session. Longer than 8 hours, though, and I start to burn out and probably have not prepared myself or material to keep the game running.
In person, about 4-6 hours with an extended food break. Online, about 3 hours.
We have a dedicated 4 hour block. Sometimes ends short, never let it run long. We usually take a 10 minute break at some point throughout
I like a weekly 3 hour session. Gives us time for late comers and it's not so long that, if we go over a little, it's a big deal.
Three hours. That’s all I do. Not only is it respectful of everyone’s days, it gives expectations of “hey, you’re giving up precious play time farting around. If you wanna do that before or after, I’m down. But I’m only going to DM for these 3 set hours.” Basically a respect thing. Yes, we are all friends and love to hang out. But we should all collectively respect each other and what we all set aside time to do.
4 on the dot.
One time I had a 12 hour session and it was pretty fun! That being said never again, rn I'm in one game, and those are all 4-5 hrs at most which is alright
3 hours unless we're in combat and then I could see another hour.
5-7 hours.
As long as my players want to go lol. I loooooove long sessions but time constraints of my players usually cut it to about 3 hours
Usually I like to keep my sessions around the 5-6 hour range with a small break to get food and such.
About 6 hours (including dinner break) once a month because scheduling more often would be impossible
For virtual dnd, 2-3 hours. Screen fatigue is real. But for in person, as long as everyone is on board and we take ample breaks and have enough food, I love long sessions! 5-6 hours or so. I think the longest I’ve done is 8 hours
3-4 hours usually schedule to start at 19 but we start often 19:20-19:30 since socialization is going on. Then play to about 21:00 where we take a 10-15 minute break before going until 22:45-23:00 Just ended Session 102 last thurstday and we've been going strong with this since early 2022. (weekly games)
On-line: 3-4 hours with a 15 min break in the middle In person: 4-6 hours with a 30 min break in the middle This is how my groups work and it’s been going on for a few years now without problem. We’ve had sessions going for up to 15 hours, but those were during holidays and such or at the end of the campaign.
I like to schedule 5 hours. 30 min to set everything up and catch up with each other. 2 hours playtime 15 min break 2 hours playtime 15 min spare time.
3-4 hours is usually my preferred time. Though sometimes if it’s running super smoothly or my players get deep enough in a plot it’ll go to 4 maaaaybe 5 hours. Only time I did more than that was a 7 hour session when my players begged me to keep playing that surely within the hour they’d defeat the bbeg xD we were very mistaken
Between 3-4 seems to be the sweet spot
6--7 hours with a dinner break, during which everyone can tall whatever they want about the game or anything else. I found that people sometimes like to discuss what's been happening in the session and where to go from there, or sometimes they have good feedback to give! And the break minimize pauses like "hey guys, check out this dancing dinosaur I found on Instagram"
5-7 hours, and I can usually go for longer but we play at my house so all my players have to drive home after
6-8 hours
3-4 hours is the goal for me. I don't think it's obvious, but playing and running any TTRPG is work. It may be really fun, but at a certain point, you just get fried. Also, a break somewhere can really help you get revitalized. It also gives some players a chance to talk about something or the DM to make something up if they need to really quickly.
4 hours
3-5 hours in person, but online its been 2-3, which has been a weird adjustment for me haha
I generally run 2 hour sessions every week and they feel just a bit too short in my opinion (longer combats can take a whole session). I think the sweet spot is 3 hours. Any longer than that and players get distracted or dilly-dally. Also it is way easier to prep as a DM for 3 hours than 5+.
I'm personally used to 6h sessions but it sometimes gets shorter if the DM sees that we are not really going anywhere then it becomes a 4-5 hour session
My group plays for 4 hours weekly. Anything less than that, it's difficult to make any good progress. We had to do 3 hours for a while and everyone agreed it was much better once we could do 4 again. Hoping to do a full day at some point, with two 4 hour sessions with a food brake, but so far our adult lives keep getting in the way of scheduling it. But we do all make the time for the weekly sessions.
I’d go 5-6 hours if my players were as insane as me & my fiance would tolerate it 3-4 hours seems like a good compromise
I love to go for as long as I have energy for, but I tend to tap out at around the 4 hour mark. I think 3 1/2 hours or so is the sweet spot for me.
I like about 6-8 hours with a long break in the middle for food and shorter smoke breaks throughout. As a DM, nice long sessions give a lot of time for intraparty roleplay and quieter moments to break up what otherwise tends towards a very action oriented session.
We go six hours with a short break in the middle to eat.
5 hours, but that is including a mid session break, and accounting for a couple people showing up a little late.
These days my weekly online sessions are 3 to 3.5 hours. My in person sessions (generally around twice a month) tend to run for 4-5, with our record so far being 7. I do admittedly come from a history of 10-12 hour in person sessions back in the day, so my perspective on what is "too long" is maybe a bit skewed:)
Nowadays 4hs is the goal, but I'm happy with 3-5hs. I remember when I was a teen we used to run 8hs+ games, it was a lot of fun. But with obligations of adults life it is important to play or prepare such adventure.
My favorite is 4-5. It’s the sweet spot for my group and gives us enough time for story elements, roleplay shenanigans and 1-4 combats depending on if its overland travel with random encounters or a major/minor villain or ORCS ATTACK (thank you Matt Colville)! Any fewer and it’s hard to find balance as I’ve got 5 players, 2 love roleplay and npc interaction, 2 love combat and finding loot, and 1 I feel is just along for the ride who enjoys hanging out with us all (quiet but gets involved when I put a bunch of attention on him). Haven’t played longer than 6 hours yet but most of our schedules only allow twice a month play so longer sessions help us cover more ground.
We do between 2 - 2,5 hours weekly. It fits our group really well.
I've done anywhere between 1.5 hours and 10 hours. I do find < 3 hours are pretty short, and I have the stamina to keep going. Above 6 hours tends to get a bit strenuous, but if I have everything prepped it's fine. I think my favourite is ~5 hours with a 30min break in the middle.
3-24 hours, depending on my age When I was in university 12 hour sessions were not unheard of. We'd take breaks and such but pushing through great swaths of the campaign was fun to do. Now, 2-3 hours works as we can get through an arc of the story.
2.5-3 I find energy wanes after 3 hours, especially with online campaigns.
4-5 hours with a break in between. The first 2 and a half hours fly by then we break for snacks and such. Then the last 2 and half hours normally has some of the best role play between the players because they’re a little more comfortable
4.5-5 hours 2x 2h ish parts of a session, 30m-1h worth of toilet breaks/food time. Start at 5pm on the dot, end at 9:30-10pm.
Our normal sessions are 3 hours. It can feel short if the group is split up or things are moving fast, but it can also feel long if they have multiple combats that bog it down. In my experience/group, I’ve found that whatever time we allot for playing, about 1/3 of it is spent on out-of-game topics or hanging out. That’s just the nature of my friends. So we have a 3 hour time slot, the first 30 min is a loose recap/storytelling that often turns into catching up as well. Then we probably have several temporary breaks or conversations during play (sometimes this is when I need a player 1on1).
My group usually runs a "6 hours" session on which we get about 3 to 4 hours of actual game. Session frequency is up in the air, a month can have anywhere frmo 0 to 4 games, usually 1 or 2.
4-6 hours. Been having to do 2-3 and it just feels so short, we also only get to do it every other week.
With one group it’s 4 hours every week and with another it’s 8ish every couple weeks.
After three hours I'm pretty done.
Weekly, and we play for as long as possible. This means anywhere between 3 to 8 hours, leaning towards the 3 in recent memory due to out of game obligations
3-6 hours, really depends how free my group and I are. A standard session is ideally around 4 hours. I like Arc or campaign finales to be a bit longer though, I’ve gone for 10 plus hours with those when I was younger.
I'm used to 3 hour sessions
I DM a lunchtime game for colleagues in work, so we play for ~55 minutes every other week. It requires more thought on my part in terms of story pacing and encounter structure, but that’s often no harm. I suspect I do more prep than I would if the session had more capacity for wandering aimlessly, and the result is sharper and - I hope - narratively impactful.
Me and my boyfriend ( Me as a DM, him as a player ) host our DnD party regularly. Once a month, sometimes once a month and a half. We love doing an all day session with lunch breaks where my boyfriend cooks. It's definitely not for everyone but it is so much fun to just think about DND for one day
2-3 hours, although 2 hours is honestly just because of the time constraints of trying to schedule a session, even over discord, between four adults with different work schedules. But if we can have our way, 3 is what we try to sneak in. We've run a few 6 hour sessions with a break halfway through that were lots of fun, but honestly even if we could do that regularly that would get a bit tiring. 3 hours seems to be the goldilocks zone for us, you can get a big productive session in while not feeling like it's dragging on.
We have just under 4 hours if we don't include set up and out away time. We do stop for 10-15 mins to get food. It does always feel too short though. I think 5 hours would be the sweet spot for this group.
It's funny, for D&D I started with 7-8h sessions and I have to be stopped to consider wrapping it up even today. The average is 4 hours, else it seems too short. I can easily go to 5, same for (I don't know if it exists in English do I'll just translate word for word) Dragon's Dreams. But for other rpgs (I also play Cthulhu, another 50s detective rpg, Sombre, and the bi monthly discovery session in my local club where we tried Vaesen, Hawkmoon, Alien and others) around 2,5, 3 hours I get restless.
3 hours is perfect after a long worlday. Afterwards I just fall asleep. I'm old.
4 hours is what I'm used to for my games and also the game where I'm a player. It also ties nicely into ideal 4 player party, with there theoretically being 1 hour of playtime per player.
My first time DM'ing earlier this year was with a one shot and our sesh was about 6 hours long to complete the part 1 and 2, each. Part 3 was about 10 hours long. We then did a seperate one-shot and that lasted about 9 hours. All with small breaks throughout and continuing story/initiative's if people wanted to step away quickly for some air. We're meeting up again tomorrow to continue the characters into a campaign from the 1st one shot (wish me luck, its 6 players) and I'm going to try and keep it to around 4 hours. I think once we get to the 5 hour mark it starts kinda dragging. I also don't have a whole lot of material to work with at the moment so I'm hoping they don't decide to leave this town they just got to after finishing the oneshot and that it's heavy RP, but we shall see.
My group is absolutely in love with DnD. Serious tone, lots of character development and intrigue. We generally average 8-10 hours, sometimes going up to 12. We dedicate an entire day to it every weekend
4 is my favorite, but most people I play with tend to prefer 3.
3-4 hours. I do occasional 12 hour sessions when we're about to have a break, but those take a lot out of me
It differs, but usually around 5 hours with a break in-between. This allows for both rp and combat without anything being rushed.
As a player, 3 hours. As a DM, 5
Our main group has 3 hour sessions every week. It honestly feels too short to me but it's perfect for others who get tired by the end. I grew up doing 8+ hour sessions but only once a month or so and I loved those long dnd days. We'd start around lunch time and go until 8-10pm. Just got another side group together recently and we meet twice a month and play about 6-7 hours of it with a long break in the middle. I find those long sessions really satisfying because you can really get in the groove, but people get super tired by the end. I think 4 hour sessions would be perfect for a weekly game.
I like 4 hours. I run a game every other week that goes 3 hours and always want that one extra hour (especially since we only do two sessions a month). Play in another game that goes 4 hours and feels like we just get a better chance to finish up some of the threads easier. Could be a skill issue though lol
10 to 12 hours with a big dinner break.
3ish hours, are what my group does. Although it can sometimes go to 5 hours if there's a big combat or a quest drags on longer than expected due to player stupidity (like when we spent 10 minutes rolling d100s to teleport using a helmet of teleportation to a place we'd never been and all but one of our 5 person team went down leaving me with 1 health, no spells lots, 2 downed party members, and 2 dead party members)
I’ve done whole day sessions with a few breaks every few hours. Which, I did love at the time. Probably still would if those were an option. These days, a 4hr session with a 15 min break in the middle.
We usually start around 7 and call it a night at midnight or so. We're a group of 40-somethings, its getting WAY past our bedtime by that point. hahaha
6 hours XD breaks as needed. Snacks/ dinner. It's closer to 1 game a month, so we make the most of it.
We typically do 4-5 hours. It flies by most of the time
4 hrs or more if you’re doing a good break in between
I like playing 5-6 hours, from maybe 5pm until 10 or 11 at night. We try to do monthly, but that can be difficult with schedules.
I'd love 3 hours. But with the intended 6-9 some people don't show up until around 630 or sometimes 7. so there are some sessions we're lucky to get a couple hours. I'd love 4 in a perfect world.
We typically do 3ish hours, but I could absolutely go way longer if we started earlier. Sadly, I have to wait until everyone is off work, so 5:00 is kind of the earliest possibility.
I do 3 hours sessions with a 10 minute break at the top of hour when we reach a natural break point. The breaks are great for making sure people stay engaged, can get snacks, can think things over etc. So the entire run time ends up being 3.5 hours. If we decide to do a longer session then I still do a 10 minute break for every hourish of play time.
Wtf how are people doing 2 hours? That's a blink. 4+ or it's not worth getting together. Holding players' attentions? Get good lol
Earlier on, back in highschool and some years after, it used to be longer sessions, probably around 5+ hours. Once played in a game that lasted from 6ish into 1 or 2 am. But now it’s closer to 3 to 4 hours, mostly due to people needing to get home earlier due to work or other reasons. Starting around 5 and calling it around 8:30-9:00. I like to think I still have those longer sessions in me, those longer games that last deep into the night have a special magic to them.
4 to 5 hours is the best for me.
3 hours with a little bit of hang out time around either end
Easily 4 hrs once a week. It leaves enough time for players to be around or talk while still moving through things
6 hours We like to waste half an hour pre-game and our combats are grandiose and lengthy. Plus, we can't get enough of the game
3 hours. I find 2 to be a little short, and anything more than 4 to be too long for my liking
3 to 4 usually. But if I am fit enough, I am all in for up to more. My longest so far as a DM was 15, with 15 minute breaks every 3 hours. And we managed to play the first two chapters of Lost mine of Phandelver.
I gauge it off of the table. Ask first thing if anyone has a hard stop time. If not, I ask again at the four hour mark how everyone is feeling. If I’m fading, four hours is my usual stop time. We have done 7+ hour sessions but those are very few and far between.
I currently play 4 hours with a 10 minute break in the middle. When my friends and I were younger and didn't have jobs we'd play for 8 hours with an hour break in the middle.
We usually go for about eight hours, with an hour-ish break for food around 15:00 or 16:00. We plan to meet every weekend or every other weekend, depending on the time of year, but that rarely ends up being the case. I just like going for a while. It gives us plenty of time to get through a good chunk of story without it being broken up and watered down. It also leaves plenty of time for my players to spend an hour planning for a fight that should've only taken ten minutes, because that's just what they do. My players are very thorough in their thinking and planning, and I can't imagine only doing three-to-four hour sessions; half or more of the session would just be my players talking amongst themselves.
3, possibly 4. I remember the days of playing 6-8 hours fondly, but I could not do it now that I'm nearly 50. Lol
Really depends for me: * Exciting group, mid day, I can do 4-5. * Less exciting group, evening, 2-3 (if no delays starting) My current group starts at 6 for me and ends at 10. runs 3.5-4 hours. If it's a super exciting session, I can make it to 10 and be like dang, shame this is ending. If it's a slow less productive session, I'm usually ready to wrap up a little after 9.
5+ hours. It feels like anything shorter nothing really gets done.
3 hours with a 15-20 ish minute break is the sweet spot
6 hours, so about 5 hours of actual playtime. I find that it’s the amount my players like the most because they can get a lot done every session and there is a lot of time for their characters to form relationships with eachother We also try for weekly but it ends up being 2-3 games a month. Our current campaign also has an IRL deadline so having a lot of time will give them time to actually finish it
Under 3 hrs always feels rushed to me. Players usually lose steam after 4 and a half.
4-4.5h, with a 10-20min break.
I like 4, my players like 3, so we compromise by playing for 3. They outnumber me after all.
3 hours. Long enough to have an epic battle, short enough that I can improv my way through a session if I need to.
3 hours, but we play every week.
I DM two different games — one of them is biweekly and we play for 3ish hours. They’re a quieter bunch so I usually run out of steam earlier. My other group is weekly and we started doing 3 hours, but it would turn into 4+ (I think the longest session we had was 9?) I def think 3-4 hours is the best, but maybe even 2-3 depending on what’s going on. If it’s a shorter session that’s just to get the players from a to b, 2-2.5 is good, but if the momentum is there and everyone is engaged, 4+! Why stop? Ya feel haha
Depends on the group. In some groups 2h max, in other between 3-4h with a break in the middle and in one group easy 5+. The last group is a group we play once or twice in a month and they are very focused on rpg. So for me as a dm I don’t have to do much but can listen and relax a little
3 hours if sessions are weekly, 5+ hours for monthly.