Best posts made by Auspice

@Coin said in RL Anger:

I'll take whatever.

I'm easy.

@Aria said in Carnival Row:

No one is ever going to be real-life racist against me for being in some weird apocalyptic satyr fairy cult

@Admiral said in Things We Should Have Learned Sooner:

They played a a bar in Houston and I was like ten feet from the stage at most. Small place, totally packed. The entire audience was explosive.

Best concert I've ever been to. I am spoiled now.

...so we're gonna hit up Sabaton sometime yeh?

How do you handle them?
How do you tell the difference?

I know, from what I've seen on the board, that they can be a big deal on Arx (for example). I'm already seeing them happen on SGM (the players know some of them since they know Stargate and they're having fun playing to their PC ignorance, but they don't know some others since they relate to game plot).

As an ST/plot staff, how far do you let it go?

I have no idea if and when a player is aware their player has it wrong and they're rolling with it (I for example sometimes consciously let my PC be wrong because ‘Well Jane wouldn't know this because it's not in her field of study’) or if they actually missed it. I know some people are totally fine with being wrong and I know others get ruffled feathers to later find out and will jab a finger at their sheet going ‘I have Intellect 5!’ (no matter their Notice is only a 2….).

So many things can factor into this as well.

Maybe they missed it because they followed a different path.
Maybe they followed the red herring.
Maybe they forgot about the huge plot hook you handed them last week and it was vital this week.
Maybe they misread what they were given in the scene.

At what point do you step in OOC and go hey, so, you're actually incorrect on your read of this… Or DO you step in? Do you let the fallout be IC?

I understand there may be different approaches to this and I'd love to hear them.

Personally, I love seeing how people open door number one, see their prize, then rush to door number two, see the trap, and report back to everyone that they need to go to door number two because it’s clearly the correct route. (assuming 'omg this is too obvious and blatant and we must be involved in a smoke and mirrors situation and and and and')

On SGM, the team once spent an entire scene investigating a well. A WELL. It became their version of the gazebo.

I find that shit fucking hilarious.

But is there a point you need to take them aside and go: hey, you’re chasing waterfalls here. When is that point? How do you know what player will appreciate the warning (to hold them back from going on a path that isn’t going to provide a tangible reward) and what player won’t appreciate it (they don’t mind potential failure; some people enjoy the character growth it entails)?

Now, as an ST, I will always insert something to guide people back on the path eventually (well, potentially guide: I won’t put things on rails, I’ll just add a new branch that COULD lead them back on the right path). I also have sometimes had these situations spark ideas in me that I like better than my original plan so I’ll follow the ‘wrong’ assumptions instead of my original plan.

@Tinuviel said in Things We Should Have Learned Sooner:

@Auspice Unless i am your instructor. Then you better bloody well suck up.

You have an SO for that.

I am, obviously, super-biased, but I feel like we've hit sort of a sweet spot on SGM.

Both @Paradox and I review every app. It adds a bit more of a workload, but one thing it means is accountability. And this is something I'd like to see on other games. One issue I've had in the past on games is I (or a friend) will hit a wall of dealing with that Staffer who is just draconian in their standards. Everything has to be absolutely perfect. 'You can't have this stat at this level: your BG doesn't explain in intricate detail how they have Empathy 3...' - 'But I wrote 2 paragraphs about...' - 'It's not enough.' Whereas your buddy got through with max stats in all kinds of obscure stuff and a one-paragraph BG of fluff under another staffer who pretty much hand-waved.

Paradox and I reviewing every app not only holds us accountable, but it means when we run scenes and develop plot, we can keep certain PCs in mind ('Hey, I see So&So signed up for your scene next week: try to include a hook for their Physics BG skill.'). Now, of course THAT part is easier since we're a small game, but it's part of our vision.

I also hate long backgrounds. I hate writing them and I hate reviewing them. So I really, really fucking love @Paradox 's BG method. He came up with it. He gets all the credit for it. We don't MIND if people write longer BGs, but we ask for 3 Questions to be answered in a BG:

1. What does your character love?
2. What does your character hate?
3. Why did your character join the Stargate program?

That's it. If people answer those 3, that's all they need. They can write more, but they don't have to. A game that can encapsulate a 'concept' (I've seen WoD games use the 'concept' idea for example) like that make me happy. Give me a few questions to answer to sort of summarize my character. Let me provide a few bullet points.

Don't make me give you some long-form background where I detail out every single skill, merit, power, etc. at length to 'justify' it for the love of god. I think so long as a sheet 'makes sense' for the concept it should be good enough (aka: a 20-year-old bakery employee with PhD-level skills in theoretical physics and multiple world-renowned martial arts disciplines probably doesn't make sense straight out of CG :P).

Aaaand... a super generous friend has put in the last of what I need for things (truck + rent).

Anything else will go towards deposits on utilities, initial goods for the apartment (like the uh, dishes and silverware I don't own XD), etc. Link again for those who don't have: https://www.gofundme.com/uzzqh-moving-to-austin

I also have a wishlist for things on Amazon: http://a.co/2TPrzYm
(Currently it ships to where I am now. Once move date is nearer, I'll update. I don't want things going there now.)

@Arkandel said in PC vs Player Assumptions:

@Auspice said in PC vs Player Assumptions:

How do you know if a character's read on a plot/scene is the character getting it wrong or the player getting it wrong?

And do you correct them or not? (Because some people get very upset at being wrong and some don't.)

There is no succinct way that fits-all-sizes.

Players with PCs who are smarter, more social, craftier or generally apt in an area they themselves are not are always going to have issues which can range from minor incidents that might be missed to drama that explodes all over MSB.

It's why generally speaking I advise against non-physical stats. You can't really really screw up playing someone who's 'strong' or 'fast' or 'a good archer'. You can fuck up playing a master detective who fails to pick up cues time after time even after the GM is hand-feeding them over.

In table-top games you can regulate this much easier - the GM and player are more familiar with each other, they can communicate more efficiently and they emphasis on the party is greater; in a MU* no such link exists, which leads to mishaps.

People really, really like to play smart characters though.

It's a hard balance to strike.

I try asking people what their goal is.

People tend to throw 'catch all' nets which is... difficult as an ST (so, pro-tip: please don't do this). What I mean by 'catch all' is jobs like:

'I want to find out everything on...'
'I want to get all I can about...'

These are frustrating as an ST. Because what I come up with might not be fun for you. It might not be what you wanted.

A much better job is:
'I'd like to eventually find a door to the Underworld. Can I do that?'
'I want to craft a tool that will let me hurt supernatural beings. Is that something I can do? What would my first steps be?'

Tell me your goal and I can help you get on the path. But casting out a wide, broad, vague net may seem like a good idea because it means 'ha ha I can't fail!' but it also means that I have no clue what your goal is so it's like ehhhhhhh.

Anyway, off-topic.
Back on topic:

So @bear_necessities feels that if someone is RPing about the wrong thing it might be best to correct them (I'd probably want to be corrected, personally).

But Gany's more in the camp of: it's on the player to ask for clarification.

It's a difficult thing!

I've had scenes where all the correct information is there, in the scene. And I know it's not a 'I failed at presenting it wrong' because other players got it right. It'll just be one or two who got it wrong. (if EVERYONE got it wrong, then I'd know: okay, I fucked up and was too vague.)

So while, yes, it might be interesting to see where it goes: maybe it'd be best to reach out and guide them back so they don't get lost in the weeds.

I'd fux with that.

And people wonder why people don't ST.

'If some people get it and others don't, it's because the ST is giving someone an unfair advantage.'

So now I'm sitting here going: shit, I don't do that. But now people might think I do. Awesome.

@WTFE said in RL things I love:

Sanity.

Oh yeah, I got rid of that a long time ago.

@Roz I've always been one of those people tbh. I unravel shit and pick up on clues really easily. I love puzzles. It also means I have to frequently try to check myself and shove my character off into a corner to try not to spotlight because I go 'ooh ooh I see the solution!' I'm not always successful because I get really excited about a story and lose myself in it (I hope the ST sees this as the flattery it's meant to be ;.; )

As an ST, instead of putting a lot of puzzles in, I instead put in Alertness rolls or rolls geared to peoples' skill sets (Bob, roll your Computers, Jane, roll your Lockpicking) and just hand out information because I know not everyone can pick up on things that easily (and as mentioned earlier in the thread: no one wants to spend hours beating at the wall trying to find the single obscure answer in the stack of 500 source books).

@Admiral

I hate the 'I'm praying for you' line. I'm sorry.

@mietze

Yeah, I never base someone on that first interaction. But I absolutely feel nerves going into that first interaction (not the scene itself: having to discuss something).

It definitely comes from a few interactions. How do they respond? How do they follow up?

After a handful of times, there's enough rapport that I know. I learn if they're someone I can page on the spot or if it's better to @mail (so they can chew it over and respond on their own time). If they're someone who feels more at-ease if I include emoticons or if they'd rather it just be blunt and straightforward. If I need to couch it in soothing verbiage (the 'hey this is nothing bad, we just need to talk about some plot stuff') or if I can just jump right in.

There are a lot of factors.

I consider this all part of ethical staffing.

@Faceless https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Av8ulv2iTx0

@Arkandel said in PC vs Player Assumptions:

I fondly remember @Coin's reaction when I misread his set at one point and thought combat was about to start, leading to me shifting out of the blue into full Garou murderform in the middle of the street at some random time while people were still just getting out of their cars and shit.

@BetterNow said in Good TV:

@Auspice A day where everything drives Schmidt absolutely nuts with his various quirks (like he tries to put on a fancy dinner party and everything blows up on him) and he has to be talked down by the only person who can do so...Martha Stewart.

...now I'm imagining that he doesn't even realize it's her at first. HMMM. I'm liking this.

@Alamias said in MU Things I Love:

@Auspice OMG, that is adorable...lol.

For another 'Auspice was young and naive once!' story:
My very first trip exploring out and about on Dragonsfire, I found an item! In a room! I picked it up.

Many many months later, I realized I still had it in my inventory. On Pubchan, I had an 'Oh no! I have <thing>! Who does it belong to?! I AM SO SORRY!'
(I think it was even named as 'suchandsuch gift' so it CLEARLY WAS IMPORTANT at least in my mind)
Someone chimed in, HIGHLY amused, that it had been written entirely as a prank gift and they had been wondering where it'd gone off to.

@Arkandel

What really sucks for me is I'm having trouble finding any free time right now. I'm hoping it's just the move and once I'm settled in the new place, I'll have free time again. I know being able to relax and recover (mentally, physically, etc.) is important. I'm not gaming, I'm not going out and socializing, I'm not reading... MU*ing was all I was doing because I could do it alongside the other stuff (like homework and packing). So it sort of worries me that I'm losing the one 'downtime and relax' activity I had.

@JinShei said in Derbyshire Estate:

@Tinuviel said in Derbyshire Estate:

@JinShei said in Derbyshire Estate: (@Grayson is about an hour north of me)

Isn't that about as far apart as one can live in the UK?