I'm with @Misadventure to approach a theme breaking player OOC first, and apply consequences, be they OOC or IC, afterwards. I like to think the faux pas is unintentional unless proven otherwise.

The hobby is not always kind to new players unaware of the finer ins and outs. WoD shows rough disdain for someone a bit muddy on the rules, and it can't hurt for helpful admin to pull aside Merry and let her know changelings tend to be sterile. Harry needs to know throwing fireballs in the street at the meter maid is not kosher for the local Consilium and yeah, we need a paradox roll for that.

If a game is sandbox, how much theme enforcement is really needed?

Non-sandbox games need enforcement at different levels. Staff who don't approve every silly concept under the sun are the first gatekeepers. Have no fear to say 'You can't be a Japanese swordsman in our 16th century lords and ladies game, even if historically plausible.' Theme matters for a reason. Characters made to fit it suffer when unthematic concepts and RP become the rule of the day.

I can't tell you the number of times I've seen someone throw a fit because the Masquerade / rule of shade / lex magica got enforced. As long as it's clear we all play by a given set of rules and assumptions, hold those ICly accountable. All those IC power positions like sheriff are there to help enforce. NPCs in power positions are ways to keep theme intact. Or use RL laws and common sense consequences for shooting up Main Street.

It's an old one, but "Being Human," the BBC version, has been compelling. You'll see a popular dwarf from Lord of the Rings and a number of other relatively well known faces in it.

The Paper Magician series is a short, fast read with a good payoff. The magic system through manufactured materials is a neat deviation.

The relentless pressure to meet a certain physical metric, and all the challenges to stay there. I don't have two hours a day to be at the gym. I prioritize enjoying cooking over eating four leaves of lettuce for lunch. But apparently that leaves room for endless judgment at this time of year. Ugh.

Today Shavalyoth announced that RfK will be closing. It remains open for soft RP and any staff side activities will cease. Code is going down to the hunt, roll, and bare bones systems.

It's a sad day but the game goes out at its height rather than losing what made it so unique.

Much of that comes down to Shavalyoth herself. The grand vision she has, and her storytelling skills, pale next to her personal interest in all members of the game.

It's been a wild ride.

Today I love my vanilla chamoro tea. The weather may be crap, but this tea is magic.

On an Android client, Mukluk is the way to go. Combine with a swiping keyboard, like Swiftkey or Swype, you might manage to survive. A bluetooth keyboard is essential.

SImpleMU* is my preference for the insertion of spaces and carriage returns, cycling through poses, and inline spellchecking. It's abandonware and does not support 256+ colours, which also proves to be a drawback.

Potato gets close to this but it doesn't spellcheck while I'm typing.

I did not want to say goodbye to Ziggy Stardust. Shit.

Alternative Victorian London is the way to go. Layout the basic historical elements in the setting and don't require everyone to have read Bram Stoker or reviewed their favourite steampunk or Gothic novel.

I'd really limit down your available spheres. Multi-sphere games have the place, sure, but there is a beauty to having a focus on one over the other. You could probably manage 'episodic' appearances of supernaturals beyond the norm, like Slasher or Inferno-inspired options. Have pregenerated characters or concepts to fill these out for a short run? Possibly have a focus like Eldritch's slots? On such a game, the 'out of the ordinary' sort of things being in a smaller number, and limited term, is fairly attractive.

Are you keeping this 2E alone or not? I'd second the notion don't have splats that aren't converted.

If you're worried about grid-size, then have a reason where only a core part of London is accessible and the outlying areas aren't. So you're focusing on the City or Cheapside, but not all the rest.

Alternatives:

• Glasgow (super smoky and critical to the Empire at the time without all the fuss; also lots of industry going on there, major transportation links);
• Liverpool, Birmingham or Manchester (lots and lots of industry, too; grim-dark and smoky feel);
• Amsterdam or one of the continental cities.

I'd play this.

@lordbelh I'd be all over that.

@lordbelh I've got the grid for this, and a few points besides if anyone is serious about a Requiem for Rome game.

I'll desc because I enjoy suffering.

Rule zero of large scenes to me: determine what the purpose of the scene is, and keep everyone focused on that goal. Assertively if need be.

Social scenes frequently devolve into piles of meaningless desc frivolity, several ongoing conversation, and no sense of cohesion. This works great if you are doing a general mixer, even if it becomes a spam magnet. It fails terribly in a vampire court scene, the judgment of four nobles accused of treason, or any kind of plot scene. I tend to avoid large scenes like the plague because of poor scene and time management.

So, a successful social scene needs a few elements not already mentioned.

1. Hack out introductory fluff and arrivals. Start in the height of the action. We're here for a wedding? Pose the ritual and get it over with. An assassin is trying to kill Jedi Loonyarfsa? Get to it.

2. Someone's appointed to bring new arrivals up to speed. A general what's going on post helps. Reward this person with cookies and appreciation.

3. Parking lot via +request. Good ideas go to a job. Extraneous requests go to a job. Rolls for various things go to a job. Get that out of your screen to focus on later, without losing the thread of a character or player's good idea. I find this follow up is easier when I'm not distracted 72 ways.

4. Ban OOC commentary to a channel. Use OOC for clarifications, rules, notifications.

5. Pose limits. I watched someone swan
   into a 12 person scene and drop a 3 paragraph limelight theft pose. The character was not participating in the action particularly much. Have no fear about asking people to rein it in.

6. Ask if the large scene is wholly necessary. Ask if players really need to pose between main poses. Otherwise prepare the players who have to talk in advance, and keep them moving to respect everyone's time. @Mietze was something of a master for balancing these things in court scenes, from what I can tell.

If that scene isn't necessary, then farm it out through other media. Use other storytellers to spread out and coordinate what is going on.

I did not want to say goodbye to Ziggy Stardust. Shit.

The relentless pressure to meet a certain physical metric, and all the challenges to stay there. I don't have two hours a day to be at the gym. I prioritize enjoying cooking over eating four leaves of lettuce for lunch. But apparently that leaves room for endless judgment at this time of year. Ugh.

I'm with @Misadventure to approach a theme breaking player OOC first, and apply consequences, be they OOC or IC, afterwards. I like to think the faux pas is unintentional unless proven otherwise.

The hobby is not always kind to new players unaware of the finer ins and outs. WoD shows rough disdain for someone a bit muddy on the rules, and it can't hurt for helpful admin to pull aside Merry and let her know changelings tend to be sterile. Harry needs to know throwing fireballs in the street at the meter maid is not kosher for the local Consilium and yeah, we need a paradox roll for that.

If a game is sandbox, how much theme enforcement is really needed?

Non-sandbox games need enforcement at different levels. Staff who don't approve every silly concept under the sun are the first gatekeepers. Have no fear to say 'You can't be a Japanese swordsman in our 16th century lords and ladies game, even if historically plausible.' Theme matters for a reason. Characters made to fit it suffer when unthematic concepts and RP become the rule of the day.

I can't tell you the number of times I've seen someone throw a fit because the Masquerade / rule of shade / lex magica got enforced. As long as it's clear we all play by a given set of rules and assumptions, hold those ICly accountable. All those IC power positions like sheriff are there to help enforce. NPCs in power positions are ways to keep theme intact. Or use RL laws and common sense consequences for shooting up Main Street.

On an Android client, Mukluk is the way to go. Combine with a swiping keyboard, like Swiftkey or Swype, you might manage to survive. A bluetooth keyboard is essential.

SImpleMU* is my preference for the insertion of spaces and carriage returns, cycling through poses, and inline spellchecking. It's abandonware and does not support 256+ colours, which also proves to be a drawback.

Potato gets close to this but it doesn't spellcheck while I'm typing.