@kumakun For me, I didn't mind how they were handled so much as how easy they were to set up. For some reason or another, half the time I can't get spawns in Potato to work right, so I just don't use them anymore. Instead, I rely heavily on coloring things that I need to see and I keep the list of channels I'm on down.
I'd love what Atlantis has though, if it was just on Windows ... eyes @Sparks longingly
I know this is unrelated to the question you asked, but can I ask how sold you are on including werewolf?
When you run down your ideas for the game, you seem to have a lot for vampire and just throw in ww. I know it's a sphere that people like, but this might be a case where the game benefits from narrowing its focus.
@coin Had a birthday last week. Fortunately, it didn't push me into a new category like it will on most polls. #officiallyold
@scorn said in Reno is closing! ....Or is it?:
One of the issues we ran into with Reno was that our generous XP policy led to a heavy population of 'dinosaurs.' We're going to be toning that back, at Portland. Things will be more challenging. People won't be able to sneeze in the general direction of a Rank 5 ephemeral and wipe it out of existence. Risk will return as a prominent factor, and along with it, we hope, more of the 'darkness' that's supposed to be a core theme of the World of Darkness.
This makes me generally excited. The theme in recent years has been to throw XP at players, specifically through the tier system, but I don't see those games having a ton of success getting people out there and interacting.
(Can you put a cap on alts, too?)
On a smaller, sphere-specific scale, an issue we've long noticed across many games is the disjointed nature of the Mortal/+ sphere. Generally, it winds up being comprised of scattered 'lone wolf' types, who don't really fit in anywhere and usually wind up feeling pretty left out of the game overall, unless they manage to tie themselves somehow to someone(s) with a supernatural template. We're changing that at Portland. Plans are still in early stages, but we hope to create an active and cohesive sphere for these folks, complete with backstory of their own and two distinct factions they can get involved with.
I'll take some mortal factions, yes please.
@magee101 I don't play Arx either, for much the same reason. It's just Too Much and I, being the lazy RPer that I am, don't want to spend half my RP time reading journals and running random code, but neither do I want to spend half my RP time randomly paging people hoping to get a pick up for RP on a sandbox game.
Here's the problem with saying that TT mechanics are sufficient for a MU:
In a tabletop game, you have 1 ST for every 5 or so players, and that ST both provides the story and gives players a reason to interact. You do not have that on a MU. IMO, long lasting, successful games look at:
1 - Why and how players will interact and
2 - In the absence of STs, where does the story come from
You do not need to go full MUD. You do not need to code a bunch of Stuff. But you do need to provide some sort of bridge that allows the existing rules and environment to transfer into a MU environment.
@magee101 said in NOLA 2: Back in the Vieux:
@lisse24 The difference between a game like Arx which is a custom game, and a WoD game is that WoD is a tabletop rpg system. The "tools" for creating fun in the game as designed by the game is found in ghe rulebooks and only requires a go-ahead by staff that whatever id thematic and in keeping with the ideals of the game. Games like Arx are not using a tabletop system and thus create tools because otherwise they would have none
That is kinda what I'm saying. WoD mu's need more than what is in the book, because the books were written for tabletop games and, now, stay with me ...A MU is not a tabletop game.
@mietze - what @Ganymede said.
On the personal side of things, I nearly failed 1st grade mainly because I have little tolerance for busy work (a trait I keep to this day). They tested my IQ and I did well.
On the professional side of things, there's a lot going on in Education right now. A lot of it is good research that is being twisted as it makes its way down to the classroom level. Even teachers who are aware of how things are being twisted, can only do so much since they're at the pressure of the administration and such. All this to say, this is a momentary blip and things will go back to how they used to be, but probably not for another 5-10 years or so.
Totally agree with @mietze here about needing to manage conflict.
At the very least, a minimal form of Arx's conflict system should be used. Namely, setting a date on which jobs dealing with such-and-such a conflict will be handled and only allowing people one action each cycle.
@rdc said in Requiem 2e Bloodlines:
@ganymede You may have felt that way, but I was running multiple plots a week and constantly had posts up saying: "Hey, I will run stuff for you, hit me up".
I do envision NOLA very DIY though. We specifically set it up so that there is no difference between a staff-run plot and a player-run plot, hoping to give players agency to interact with and even define the world. Nothing was off-limits to players, and that was called out (and still is for NOLA 2) in the PrP policy.
The first vampire who says "I'm the Prince" is the Prince. If they suck, it's the job of the players to remove them (unless they go OOC idle). Relationships between spheres are up to the spheres. I know the story behind why the Triumvirate went mad and killed most everyone and devoured one another, and if anyone's interested in investigating that it'll be a plot; if not, it won't be.
I posted this in the other thread, but to repeat here:
This is fine and all, but I predict it will fail unless you have a specific system set up on the wiki and in active use on the game for managing shifting power dynamics and/or conflict
You want this because:
a) It cuts down on arguments, which there will be.
b) It signals to the players that this is the story. This is what they're supposed to be doing.
On a personal note, I kinda love managed conflict as a way to drive story. I'm not big fan of huge plot +events, and much prefer smaller, personal stories. But focusing on smaller, personal stories doesn't absolve staff of ST duties, it just changes how the staff approaches their STing.
@ganymede said in NOLA 2: Back in the Vieux:
@sunnyj said in NOLA 2: Back in the Vieux:
Players should be expected to craft MOST of their fun on these games, sans-staff.
I concur with you, but, as Auspice points out, this does not seem to match the expectations of a lot of players. I would opine that the Number One reason why games idle into shutdown is because a lot of players are incapable of crafting their own fun without staff.
You and I? We don't count because our RP is on fire. Like, I can't remember any time I've ever RPed with you that didn't end up in our PCs madly dancing with one another in a vicious circle of hatred and sexual tension.
Can I just say, I don't think it needs to be active staff running plots, but rather there needs to be mechanisms and systems in place that help players make their own fun. I'm thinking specifically of various systems implemented on Arx and on RfK that allow for conflict, building, and creativity by the way of the players. Players needing a hand up isn't a bad thing. It's a normal thing and it's to be expected.
My worry with this game, with the upcoming Miami game, and honestly, with any big multisphere WoD game is that the makers think the draw is "big" and "multisphere" and they don't think about how or why players will interact. As a result, you end up having players sit in their little private rooms until someone in their clique is around and up for RP ... which is exactly where I'm at with my char over on San Fran.
To sum: I don't think players need to be spoonfed by staff, but I do think players need tools and nudges to encourage interaction and allows for making their own fun.
When you're dealing with a fairly tricky situation OOCly and ICly and one of your MU-friends ( @fortydeuce ) totally steps up to the plate and helps you navigate through it.
Really, all the praise to @fortydeuce. I was about ready to toss up my hands and stomp off into the night this afternoon before she took charge.
Just had another thought on something that really improves poses: Slowing Down.
Now, this isn't the case for everyone. Some people already take ten minutes to compose a pose, but if you're one of those people who whips back a pose in less than a minute, it's probably not quality.
I'm not saying to start taking ten or fifteen minutes, but rather, just take a breath, think about what you're writing, and then before you hit enter, take a moment to reread it, clean it up if it needs it, or add another detail or two. Just spending an extra minute or so thinking over what you're doing really helps you be more interesting and put the breaks on your most common issues.
Just the other night, I was in a scene and had many, many poses with 3 or more ellipses that I gladly would have sent out had I not paused to read what I'd written first.
@stabby said in Miami, Blood in the Water:
@ganymede said in Miami, Blood in the Water:
Fate's Harvest, generally, is one of the best-coded places I've ever been at
Even just the +ref stuff that's set up is amaaaaazing. I don't have to flip through books to find rolls? Yes please! Embrace my laziness!
It's also great for those of us that don't have all the changeling books. Without it, if confronted with a power in a scene, I'd be scrambling to google search for a pdf or compendium, or stuck just having to trust that the power was being used correctly.
@wildbaboons said in Miami, Blood in the Water:
@coin said in Miami, Blood in the Water:
I'll be surprised if the game doesn't plummet precipitously after this.
Eh.. I'll be surprised if it does.
Most MUers either a) haven't heard of MSB b) don't follow MSB c) won't care anyways
There's also a lack of currently open places to go (although several in the works)
First, I wanna say that we could have better tools to signal that we want to RP and what we might be open too, which is why it's sometimes hard to pick up a scene.
@juke said in How to start?:
Vaguely saying in a lounge, and sometimes even saying on faction channels,
Player is trying to decide if they want to RP tonight!
or,
Player feels like RP!
I do this when I don't have the mental energy to drive a scene myself, but I mightmaybecouldbe open to the right proposal from someone who is a regular RP partner. I know the vagueness won't be jumped on by many, but friends might page 'hey, so-and-so and I are down at blah-hangout.' So that's what I use it for.
When I'm up to RP with anyone and everyone and really wanna RP, but I'm not particular about what, I'll hop IC and put out a shout on a channel that I'm in such and such a place for people who wanna join.
If I'm open to RP, but won't really be put off if no one joins me (like if I'm already in a scene elsewhere), I'll just hop IC to signal that I'm around and available, but not point out on a channel that I'm IC.
If I really wanna RP with so-and-so about such-and-such a thing, I will page them and let them know and then watch-stalk them and try not to be that annoying person who pages every time they log on, while still reminding them that I'm waiting for a scene.
There should be better ways to do all these things
I'm going to add to this:
Read. Read good literature from a variety of sources and authors. Read good logs. Let how someone who knows the craft well, seep into you. @Coin brought up Hemingway and his style does work well in a MU setting. The more you read, the more good writing will seep in and you will get better.
Additionally, when you're enjoying a scene, pay attention to how your partner is posing and try to learn from the experience.
@Auspice From what I've read, ANA can go back and forth like that in a normal auto-immune situation. I gather these things are hard to pin down, and my symptoms are still very mild. I mean, I have joint pain, but it's in no way debilitating or diminishing to my quality of life.
@wildbaboons said in Health and Wealth and GrownUp Stuff:
@lisse24 If you haven't seen a Lyme literate doctor yet I'd suggest at least getting a consultation https://www.ilads.org/ has a provider search
I'm not ruling out Lyme, but I really feel a lot of affinity when I read symptoms associated with inflammatory arthritides (like RA), so I want to run that path down first.
I recently got tested for a whole bunch of auto-immune disorders and I got the blood work back this morning.
I have a history of showing physical symptoms of a disease while blood work comes out normal and, frustratingly, this panel seemed to continue in that vein. My ANA, rheumatoid factor, and other inflammatory markers all seemed to be in the normal range. The only deviation from normal was the small presence of SSA antibodies.
It's not much, but at least it was enough to get me referred to a rheumatologist.
Love this! All parts of this! I always get dismayed when someone sends a text that I'm not quite in the mind space to deal with right then, being able to save for later is great!
Plus the idea of a really want RP tag is similarly awesome!