Ravenloft: Prisoners of the Mist

Within the swirling Mist (IC) => Whispers in the Shadows => Topic started by: Heretic on September 24, 2006, 07:33:46 PM

Title: OOC reminder: Guidelines and tips for persistency
Post by: Heretic on September 24, 2006, 07:33:46 PM
I've had a discussion about this with a few people- and it seems there has been a late resurgence of people using the RP threads- all good mind you...however- there seems to be cases where key NPC's are slaughtered with no DM's on and stuff like that which is hard to ''maintain'' consistency from.

So how can we use the RP threads and keep them credible; as they are a great tool if used well.

Here are a few guidelines:

1 ) Don't use an RP thread to promote Self-Grata RP.

2 ) Don't use them if it is to post how you killed 4 guards or the entire garrison, specially if not having the backing of a DM.

3 ) Don't use them to mention how you killed a Key NPC on the module - Key NPC's need to be respected if we want to maintain a certain level of realism to persistent RP - Unless you've got DM backing.

4 ) If you post about a gossip, its just that a gossip and should be considered as such, try to post gossips from an objective point of view, not your character's, try to give a feel and see things from another perspective - try the Natives for example or different views - not always the favoring me, myself and I view.

5 ) Be mindful of events to post about that occur in the city or a facility inside the city. Posting about how you slaughtered everyone inside the Blue Water inn, for example could have serious repercussions on the world - Nobles wouldn't attend it, guards would be on the lookout etc, try to post about those things if a DM has watched you and if the RP behind it has something more than because I can  to it.

6 ) Try to keep away from the over-the-top: posting about how your character slaughtered 343409 Calibans in the sewers and stuff like that.

7 ) Main action of the RP should happen in game not the forums, initiate the RP in game, give it a twist on the forums, not the other way around.

8 ) Avoid post such as: [Armand thinks to himself] ''OOooooh Ahhhh! This is certainly a good thing for my plans of world dominance''. [Cackles as he watches the sign] -  in short, if you don't emote thoughts, avoid: [Thinks to himself  or Passes by and spots the sign - walks away and chuckles!] - its completely irrelevant and contributes in nothing to the persistent world - aside upping your post count, appears as if you are ridiculing someone OOC which most likely will reflect poorly on your person.


Title: Re: RP forums - guidelines and tips for persistancy
Post by: EO on September 24, 2006, 07:41:00 PM
I agree with the points raised. Without such guidelines, those forums lose any of their worth and consistency as anyone can post anything. Here is an example:

"The Count wakes up at dusk to find that the population of Vallaki has been all but slaughtered. Curious peasants in Barovia gossip about the events and how a single hardened warrior slaughtered every single peasant and guard in the city. No one knows who the mysterious warrior is, but all are mourning the loss of the 1500 citizens killed."

See...that's a bold example, but reflects some of the posts here.
Title: Re: RP forums - guidelines and tips for persistancy
Post by: Iconoclast on July 22, 2007, 12:13:05 PM
Basically, using npcs in your rumors, especially if the rumor seems self-serving to your character, can be problematic.  It becomes especially problematic if you portray a native's perspective towards another person's character in a self-serving manner. 

For starters, the npc perspective in your rumor may not be all that accurate.  For example, everyone knows Gundarakites and Barovians are xenophobic, and we can also picture how they'd react to most outlanders.  But what if you had an elven priest.  What if that Elven priest is in contact with the Gundarakites, who are flocking to the cult of the Morninglord.  The iconic image of the Morninglord is that of a male elven featured man.  That might mean that those Gundarakites, despite xenophibica and a general mistrust of elves, might possibly recieve this elven priest in a better light.  They might not either, but that should really be up to the dm staff and be determined via actual role play. 

Now any character has the ic power to attempt to spread rumors.  That is not the issue.  For example, the Gundarakite rebels are entrenched in the local setting.  They, and their families who actually live in Vallaki in some cases, do represent a native npc perspective often.  Native Barovians, many of whom are in the miltia, also have players who can represent a Barovian perspective.




Title: Re: RP forums - guidelines and tips for persistancy
Post by: Ric on October 04, 2007, 02:26:10 PM
I'd like to add an important one for the "Gossip" posts:

I'd like to suggest that any 'message' posts between 1 to 1 be kept to PMs, please.  It's pointless to make a private letter post on the forums, as it opens for a lot of potential meta-gaming / false accusation claims, since no one else can find out ICly, unless your character is actually walking around going "Look, I wrote a letter!  Everyone in this district, read it!"

To strengthen my point:  If you're going to plot against a person/group, keep your information off the public boards and within your private party.
Title: Re: RP forums - guidelines and tips for persistancy
Post by: EO on October 04, 2007, 02:30:43 PM
Yes, if a letter is posted in the Gossips forum, it should be considered gossip and free to be used by everyone  IC. If you don't want your letter to be gossip material, then send a private message to the DM/Player.

I suggest that current letters posted as gossip or whispers or whatever be considered public knowledge.
Title: Re: RP forums - guidelines and tips for persistancy
Post by: Ric on February 03, 2008, 10:38:40 PM
*because I just can't seem to keep my opinions to myself*

I understand that clandestine communications through PMs is the consensus on PoTM and I'll definitely abide by it, but maybe there's a bit of cutting off your nose to spite your face at work. It's really interesting for me to read behind the scenes information. Though it rarely effects my own limited roleplay with a given character, it enriches the experience for me a lot. Scraps of diaries, inner crises, notes delivered by night - these offer much more telling looks at character motivation than we usually have the chance to see in-game. I'm not talking about quickie posts like "Re: Killing Fred. Let's get him tomorrow. --Mickey," but real stories that happen to contain secret information, or even better: secret information that alludes to an intriguing story.

I've been enjoying Sid Vaston's antihero quest a great deal, but it's dropping all sorts of information that I shouldn't know about his character and others. According to what I see in this thread, it should probably remain hidden because otherwise some screaming fool would exploit it. That would be a waste.

Personally I really don't care if someone reads a forum post I wrote and decides to misuse it. I would no sooner get angry about that than I would get angry if a ten-year-old tried to cheat me at cards. For my own part, nothing makes my character less likely to figure something out than by me already knowing it OOC'ly.

Shouldn't the first step be to create a community that is working together to create stories? It seems like this is a really costly compromise, and although I'm sure it was one hard-learned, I don't know that it was the right decision. And, uh, now that I've belched that out, I feel better, so go ahead and delete this post if it's deemed to be so much more argumentative clutter.

On a personal note, since I've done a lot of 'revealing' character bios in the past on my previous two major characters, I've never really been too bothered with the idea of "What if someone metagames me."  There are some that might try and exploit the information shared, but sadly, that's pretty much the risk anyone who wants to post about their character has to take.  There are certain factors I might not share openly with anyone (like specific player enemies or plots against certain people, etc.)  and any information I place is basically just general.

While it certainly might bother me a little that someone would immaturely try and find a meta-gaming excuse to gain the knowledge written in my bio posts, I pretty much shrug.  If you want to post information, I suggest you follow a guideline of revealing things you would actually like to share with the public as entertainment.
Title: Re: RP forums - guidelines and tips for persistancy
Post by: DM Macabre on June 17, 2009, 08:49:45 PM
Just some reminder on the posts here:

Please post just from the perspective of your character.

Don't post any reactions from the populace or NPCs of the world. In general don't post any reactions from creatures, that could be DM possessed. We DMs will post the reaction of the environment or populace etc.

Thanks for your help and understanding! :)
Title: OOC reminder: What your character can post / know etc.
Post by: DM Macabre on April 13, 2010, 05:56:43 AM
Just some reminder on the posts here:

Please post just from the perspective of your character.

Don't post any reactions from the populace or NPCs of the world. In general don't post any reactions from creatures, that could be DM possessed. We DMs will post the reaction of the environment or populace etc.

Thanks for your help and understanding! :)
Title: Re: OOC reminder: What your character can post / know etc.
Post by: Mephisto on December 13, 2010, 07:28:34 PM
Just a reminder, because i've seen it often lately, then when posting in the gossip threads please, please don't post reactions from NPC's and/or the world. That includes using NPCs to spread the rumour.
Post from your character's perspective only. When making a post consider 'Who would be telling this rumour?'. If it would be an NPC then it is not appropriate.

Of course, your own PCs can tell of any gossip they wish.
Thanks!
Title: Re: OOC reminder: What your character can post / know etc.
Post by: Iconoclast on February 06, 2013, 10:52:10 AM


This needs a bump.  First, I want to say that it's great to see the rumor threads used so well.  However, we're noticing that quite a few are making rumor posts outside of the guidelines.  Namely, do not post what the locals are gossiping about. 


With clever use of language though, you can still convey the essential knowledge of these rumors while staying within guidelines.  For example, the introductory phrase, "Some might speculate that....." or "Late last night, some may have heard what seemed like a......"


Thanks,
Icono
Title: Re: RP forums - guidelines and tips for persistancy
Post by: Iconoclast on August 21, 2013, 05:47:42 PM



Please avoid too much back and forth when it comes to things like bounty posters.  To a certain point, responding creatively to a bounty poster can contribute to the game, but there is a risk of becoming ridiculous if not done with some maturity.  :mrgreen:
Title: Re: RP forums - guidelines and tips for persistancy
Post by: swbf2lord on February 10, 2014, 04:27:17 PM
I've had a discussion about this with a few people- and it seems there has been a late resurgence of people using the RP threads- all good mind you...however- there seems to be cases where key NPC's are slaughtered with no DM's on and stuff like that which is hard to ''maintain'' consistency from.

So how can we use the RP threads and keep them credible; as they are a great tool if used well.

Here are a few guidelines:

1 ) Don't use an RP thread to promote Self-Grata RP.

2 ) Don't use them if it is to post how you killed 4 guards or the entire garrison, specially if not having the backing of a DM.

6 ) Try to keep away from the over-the-top: posting about how your character slaughtered 343409 Calibans in the sewers and stuff like that.

7 ) Main action of the RP should happen in game not the forums, initiate the RP in game, give it a twist on the forums, not the other way around.

If I may, I'd like to....

:bump:

Without targetting anyone specifically, but over the course of a few months, a lot of self-promoting via rumors.