Question regarding the RPG and posting!

Bryancd · February 07, 2007, 05:40:30 AM

I think we need a minimum of 24 hours to respond to each new scene the moderators set up and I think each character should only post once per round. It might be tough for some of us to get in and participate if the pace get's too torrid and on any given day someone may have a lot of time to really get into it, leaving others in the dust and not able to stay current. Has this issue been addressed?

MrOsterman · February 07, 2007, 06:11:38 AM

Here's some thoughts from what I've seen in other "Forum RPGs".

Longer posting: Each post takes up about a page to two pages of printed text, involves several key characters and is expected to forward the plot some amount. This was the format we used in a Harry Potter game I ran briefly with some friends over on LJ, and before by email. It works to a degree but people have to a) trust each other to use their characters in a post, b) warn people that they're posting so that you don't get conflicting posts being written at the same time.

For example it wasn't uncommon for a someone to write up how a few students were going to confront the Ravenclaw Prefect. Then someone emailed to say "I got an idea, I'm working on it" and then later that day the post would go up.

Another angle I've seen worked is the multiple thread concurrent posting. Basically there are 3-5 storylines going concurrently in different threads. Generally speaking you're only supposed to have your character in one thread at a time, but what it does is allow people who have the time to post more of a give and take back and forth quickly if they have the time. This also removes the need for someone to "use" someone else's character in a post.

Of course there are entire forums out there dedicated to RP where each subfolder on the forum was another "area", such as having a whole subforum called "10 Forward" and "Bridge" and "Holodeck 1" and then people can come and go as they wish. These work to a degree through a little bit of dillegence with where and when everyone is.

Now those are just the various RPG's I've been in, so to be honest I've no idea how the Powers That Be are planning this. However I would wait until we've had our mission briefing and we start to see how active this group is before we worry too much about protocols and such. Let's let the captain get us underway and see how this goes.

Mr. O

Rico · February 07, 2007, 07:08:24 AM

I'm sure both keozen and Kenny will watch this closely at the start especially. I like some of the suggestions above. The main thing is for it to be fun for folks to do and not a chore. This is all kind of new to me which is why I'm glad Kenny & Keo are taking the lead on this. I'm sure they are open to suggestions and ideas.

Geekyfanboy · February 07, 2007, 09:36:14 AM

Yes as Rico said the main thing is for everyone to have fun. I guess there are many ways to RPG. When I did it in the past it was email based and was written like a script, so everone could contribute to their characters situation. With a forum it's a bit different. I don't think we should put time table on when the story can move forward. We can't start a mission and then say you have 24 hours to add to it before we move on, not everyone would be able to contribute in time. And I don't think we should restrict people from posting as many times as they want as it pertains to the story.

Once the mission has started we will get a better understanding of how things will flow and we can adjust according. At this moment people are just coming aboard the ship and milling around until the briefing.

keozen · February 07, 2007, 12:47:17 PM

As you may have noticed I'm trying to keep Captain Bell's posts a good day apart at least, I want to give everyone a good chance to have fun.

Kenny & I are keeping an eye and if things get too hectic we'll take steps to calm things down.

For now we'll just see where the fun takes us.

ryanlb · February 07, 2007, 04:52:25 PM

May I suggest that everyone participating put their character's name/rank in their sig - it doesn't matter if it's something simple as did Elizur, or something such as what keozen did (and I copied) - and link it to their character profile (as I just did with the image in my sig)?
I find that I'm going back to the profiles every time someone posts, so I can refresh my memory. All the characters are great, and have interesting points about them, and I can't yet keep them all in my head.

Jen · February 07, 2007, 06:32:23 PM

Good point! I'm doing the same thing...going back to the profile page to catch up. I love the characters and don't want to confuse them. I think the suggestion of placing a link to the profile, in every post is a good one.

Elizur · February 07, 2007, 06:47:59 PM

I printed out Keozen's crew manifest. It's on one page, and has the character names with our (posters) names and their position.

I wrote a few notes about them on the sides as to how they may relate to my character.

Just now it worked pretty well for me.

Geekyfanboy · February 07, 2007, 07:16:29 PM

yes as I posted in another thread I did an excel spread sheet with the Forum name, position/department, Character's name and Race. Kind of like a quick reference for me. I'd be happy to email to anyone just PM your address.

Archangela · February 09, 2007, 08:12:58 PM

Hello, I don't know if this is resolved yet... but if I could offer to help everyone:

What if we had a couple of "real" days to post for every "day" of ship time. Doesn't matter as long as they are consistant. That away anyone who had time could post as many times as they want, but just have to keep it within a time frame. And those of us who cannot post a lot would be able to catch up and not be left behind in the mission.

Just an offer. Thank you. Angela