What Makes a Megagame? - Player Numbers

Don't worry, the title isn't a spoiler. I just wanted to make it clear that we're not discussing every essential element that goes into making a megagame. Rather, this post focusses on the extent to which player numbers are responsible for generating the experience, with side-references to associated roles and activities.
I should be editing Bellerophon's final instalment, or writing up my memories of Planet of the Damned (which was awesome), but my plate's a bit full this week and this post was easier to wrap my head around, so this is what you're getting! :-)

It all started when a member of the Megagame Makers facebook group posed the question

"What's the minimum amount of people you need for a Megagame?"

As I type this, the answers currently available on the thread are 7, 30 and 40. I found the question really intriguing and read all of the comments with interest. I know I've only been to two megagames, but pretty soon I had some observations that persuaded me to suggest an alternative answer. Before I do so,  let's have a look at my thought processes:

From the article Loners Who Can't Stop Joining Teams
All The Time by Ryan Plummer

You can't play a megagame by yourself, that much is clear, and it sometimes feels like "the more, the merrier". Nevertheless, there is an undeniable attraction to the answer "7". Three teams of two and a Control? Let the negotiations begin! To my mind, though, that game would lack a few dimensions that have made my megagame experiences uniquely enjoyable. So, I want to answer a slightly different question:
"What is the minimum number of people for a megagame experience that ticks all the boxes?"
Or "a megagame experience that doesn't feel like something is missing?"
Or something like that...

Here's my answer:

1. Each standard team needs a leader and two other people with potentially conflicting priorities. In this way, the team is always discussing/debating/arguing and the leader is always making difficult choices. If this isn't happening, I really don't think we're megagaming.

   

   Han Solo doing an impression of everyone in Turn 9.

2. Smooth play can be achieved when each team has a Table Control, or when the systems are simplistic enough that no Control is required. I think, once the systems become that thin, it can come down to whoever talks loudest which isn't necessarily the most satisfying for everyone (or so I'm told!), so let's add a Table Control for each team.
3. There should always be the possibility of allying with one table against another. This suggests a minimum of three tables, but then two teams can gang up on the third in a bit of an ugly and oppressive way, so I'm going to argue for four tables.
4. Then, you'll want the players that your team cannot comprehend or predict. This aspect could take the form of another type of team with different objectives, but that's likely to become player intensive. A similar effect can be generated by having Rogue Agents who move freely in the game-world with a separate ruleset. Ideally, I'd suggest there be slightly fewer of such players than there are tables. This gives greater importance to their movements.
5. The Rogue Agents will have a very different ruleset, unknown to the teams and probably somewhat opaque to the Table Controls. For this reason, they will also require a Control who fully understands their game and can facilitate it.
6. While we're on the subject of Controls, I'd like to throw in two more that I believe have significant impacts: The NPC Control who represents other factions, equivalent to the teams, and can weigh their responses to various stimuli. And the Game Control who takes responsibility for a wider narrative, introducing story elements throughout the day and resolving unexpected occurrences (such as God Duels).
7. Finally, megagames seem to thrive when there is a healthy flow of information and misinformation. There's a lot of work in producing briefings and you don't want this entire team chained to a desk at any point, which means it's rarely a solo endeavour. Whether you choose to call them "the media" or "the voices of the gods", I think at least two players should be starting fires all the livelong day. Let's call them Intelligence Operatives.

   

   Thanks to Tom Mouat for the use of this picture.

So, for those of you who lost count somewhere, that's

4 tables (each with a team of 3 and 1 Control)   = 16

3 Rogue Agents with a Control                          =   4

NPC Control and Game Control                         =   2

2 Intelligence Operatives                                   =   2

It is, of course, possible that my OCD has driven me to massage these figures into a classroom-sized group of people. However, I am hard pressed to see which elements here can be trimmed without a noticeable deficiency appearing in the experience. Thus, I'm going to wander back over to facebook now and post the answer "24". Feel free to add your two penn'orth in the comments below. :-)