Hope everyone is doing well?
I must confess, the tension in this scene is incredible. :)
Better than any werewolf movie I've ever seen! (Although, to be fair, I don't watch that many horror movies)
;P
I'm just wondering if/when the game will ever resume a normal pace (i.e., on average at least one post from everyone every day or two)? I understand of course that real life takes precedence over the game. But if this pace persists much longer, I think Keildrithe will go his own way once the encounter is done.
And please note, I'm not pointing fingers at anyone, or trying to lay blame... posting has been slow all around, and I'm sure for very valid reasons.
But I must confess that my enjoyment has been waning of late... even though this remains my favourite PbP and I do feel attached to the other players/characters and the storyline. :-(
But like Rags said, I hope everyone's okay (I know I came close to slipping into depression over the last few months as a result of being overworked).
I hope this post doesn't come across as selfish or insensitive???
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No problem Twiceborn, I can understand. I think different people are having different issues that are slowing down their own posting (myself included), and those just keep intersecting in ways that slow down the whole game. I'm not sure what to do about it.
For me, I know that I need to be in quite a good place mentally, emotionally and stress-wise to do 'GM posts'. Posting as a player is different (for me), it normally doesn't require as much thought or attention to detail and is stress relief. GM Posts are different.
On Friday I found out that a pregnant friend had given birth, but the baby girl had a rare defect and would not live. On Sunday night she passed away. So I've not been in a great place mentally, and have been focusing on spending time with my family while I've been at home - just haven't had the mental energy to deal with a 'GM Post' until now.
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So there’s probably not a great deal that people can do about their posting schedules, but one thing that would really help me is, when we’ve got an encounter that I’ve drawn and posted a map for, if people could be a little bit more definite about their actions and positions. I generally try to post updates of where everyone is and what they are doing. Everyone knows how far they can move in a round, how many actions they have, and generally what they can accomplish in an action, so it would definitely help my workload as the GM if people are able to post exactly what they plan to do and where they will end up in one round. I’m fine if people want to pre-empt the next round with ‘if the situation is X I’ll then do Y’.
No worries, Moth, and I totally understand about the head space thing and the extra load that you carry as the DM. I'm really sorry to hear about your friend, that's really rough. I had a feeling that I'd be "putting my foot in it" when I made that last post.
With respect to map locations, will definitely keep that in mind going forward.
And lest I seem ungrateful about all the great work you've done as a GM, Mothman... I'd like to point out to everyone that we're less than a week away from celebrating this PbP's 5th anniversary -- pretty awesome! I don't imagine a lot of PbP games last quite that long, and a big part of its success has been due to Moth's awesome storytelling and staging!
Thanks to all of you for having made this such an amazing journey, and especially to Moth for having carried most of the load!
Also... Moth, if you need a break from DMing and would rather play for a while, maybe we could take a break? I could offer to run a game of my own for a little while , if everyone's into that?
Keep in mind, I've never DMed a PbP.
Just thought I'd offer... even though I can see this backfiring on me, as my work commitments often get heavy, and my dad's health is declining pretty quickly... he seems to think--and predicted this a while back--that he wouldn't make it through 2012.
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Thanks Twiceborn, I was just thinking the other day that we must be coming up to five years. Thankyou to all of you as well, both the original players and the later comers, you’ve all made a great contribution to the game and I’m glad you’ve decided to stick with it so far.
I actually don't think I've carried most of the load, it has defiantely been a group effort.
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I think the problem is the varying nature of people’s absences from the game. You (Twiceborn) Ragadolf and Brashen are all very good at letting everyone know in advance when you will not be available; as far as I can tell, these times tend to mainly be holidays, trips or foreseeable (and measurable) busy periods at work.
My busy periods tend to spring on me a bit more suddenly, usually to do with suddenly being dumped with extra work, or having the kids or wife fall sick or something like that. Generally they don’t have a definite end period. I can probably be a bit more proactive with saying ‘I’m busy right now, I’ll post when I can’, but its often hard for me to give advance notice. Also given that I generally don’t post on weekends (rarely have done since the start of the game), being unexpectedly busy and being unable to post for 2 or 3 days can add up to five days without posting if it happens to coincide with either side of a weekend. Not sure what I can do about it except to try to let you know when I’m in the middle of such a period.
I think Ash is in a very similar position to me, except that due to changes with his work from when he started the game he just generally has a lot less time to post than he did. ADMAE also seems to be generally a lot less able to post due to changes in his real life.
While I’ll try to do my part to keep people informed and move things along, I almost think we need to accept that people’s schedules are such that the game is going to move at a slower pace. If that doesn’t work for people, I can accept and understand if people don’t want to continue, but as one of the sometimes offenders I think it would be hypocritical of me to ask people to ‘shape up or ship out’ in terms of post rate.
I think there is room to tighten things up in combat. We talked a long time ago (like, years ago) about having the GM roll initiatives for everyone, but never really implemented it; I can do that if people want. We could also be a bit more ruthless about implementing a posting limit (24 hours, 48 hours or whatever) for actions in combat rounds ... I’m a little reluctant to be too hard on this though, as it might mean some people with difficult schedules almost never get to post in combat (I had a conversation with Ash recently, he mentioned to me that its not that he’s busy all the time, but the times he is able to post often seem to coincide with times when it’s not his turn, or things have slowed for some other reason).
Another option is to basically ignore initiative order; everyone post as they are able for the round regardless of order, with lots of qualifying if/then statements, and I sort it out with a summarising post at the end of the round (to a certain degree we already do this, although I tend to like to have the bad guys act at their proper point in the round so that people can react accordingly).
I would suggest that maybe the players need to be a bit more proactive in acting on behalf of absent players during combat situations, particularly if we do know in advance that someone is going to be away, or we decide to more strongly enforce a posting time limit.
Any other ideas? Are people seeing strategies in other games that keep things moving along at a clipping pace (particularly in combat, which is I think where we are most likely to slow down)?
Well,...
First, a big +1 for the gratitude for the great game! Moth et al! I appreciate you allowing me to join, and i have definitely enjoyed the ride!
Being one of the worst offenders for slow posting (although I do try to warn in advance) I certainly have nothing to say about others! :)
Even when I'm 'slow/busy' I USUALLY get the chance to check in and keep up. Even if it is late at night. What I run into problems with is my natural overabundance of verbiage, (I talk to much. ALso in RL) :P
So I don't always have time to POST, even when I am keeping up.
Personally, (especially when busy) I can simply try to keep my natural desire to over-describe my actions down in the middle of a battle.
Having seen some of your other suggestions work in other PbP's we are in, (Aubrey's comes to mind) :) I think we could implement them pretty safely. I don't think anyone in this group would mind if we took a turn for them in combat just to keep things rolling. (I usually don't mind. In fact others seem to roll dice better for me than I do myself!) ;P
I'm happy to try any and all of the ideas you've presented.
Personal thought- I agree with what Twice and Moth said above, Playing these games is mostly a form of pleasure and stress release for me. But sometimes (Not often, but,...) I just get overwhelmed with work, RL, whatever, and I just don't even want to sit in front of the PC. At all. At those times writing a post is no fun. And if it;s not fun,... you get the point.
Fortunately, I do not feel that way often. But I hate to slow things down when it hits.
Sorry so long winded. (It's late, I'm tired, and I warned you all I talk to much!) :P
SHort version- I like this game. A lot. anything I can do to help (GM & Players alike) stay on for ANOTHER 5 years I'm happy to try! This is a good group. Good personalities (players & PC's) good role-playing, good action, good story,... Who wouldn't to go another 5 years of this?!? :)
I really enjoy your long-winded, descriptive posts, Rags. As a matter of fact, I often wish I had the same level of imagination! You really bring Nicolai to life!
As for speeding things up. I'm fine with all the suggestions you proposed, Moth. What if we experimented with a 48-hour (or 72-hour?) rule for general posts, and maybe a 24-hour rule for initiative? Maybe try that out for a month or so, and see how it does? I agree that the limit shouldn't be too tight, otherwise some players may find others always chiming in on their behalf, which would quickly result in resentment and loss of interest... and of course, different time zones complicate things.
Again, I'd like to apologize to any/all if my original post on this subject came across as insensitive, abrasive, etc. It's the Canadian thing to do... ;-)
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No worries Twiceborn.
Alright; let’s try that (24 hour limit) from call for initiative through to combat. If we are waiting on someone for more than 24 hours, the next person available should post / make decisions / make dice rolls on their behalf.
48 hours if we are waiting on input outside of an initiative / combat situation.
At least from my point of view, these time limits might stretch out over weekends.
Just a heads up, my father died last Saturday. Feel free to post for me where ever I hold the game up.
I am in a place called Tamworth in Staffordshire by the way French Wolf.
I'm sorry to hear the sad news, ADMAE. Best wishes to you and yours.
My condolences as well ADMAE. Prayers to you and your family.
Moth? I did have one idea that might help combat.
When you go to all of the effort to make the maps like for this fight, maybe you can put the link to them on your 'DM Moth' profile? That way we can save time & find the last map post without having to go back through the thread, or you having to re-post it again like you just did. (Which I appreciate, thank you!) :)
Just making sure, we ARE on the next round yes? Just waiting for our actions?
I really enjoy your long-winded, descriptive posts, Rags. As a matter of fact, I often wish I had the same level of imagination! You really bring Nicolai to life!
Thank you TB. I appreciate that. I confess that when I write now, it is mainly to make me happy. (Which makes it easy to write for a semi-egotistical PC like Nicholai). If others enjoy it too, Bonus! :)
I enjoy all of the in-depth characterizations that everyone in this group puts into their posts. It's the little things that make it stand out so much more than my long-winded posts I think. Things like Kaj's hatred of his backpack, Keildrithe's emotional memories dredged up every time he uses his bardic abilities, etc.
Thanks again for letting me play! :)
Just a heads up, folks. My dad is expected to pass away within the next month--maybe even sooner--so please bear with me me if I fail to post in a regular manner. Feel free to NPC Keildrithe as required. The irony of the request/situation is not lost on me.
We've got you covered TB.
My prayers are with you and your family. I've been there. God bless.
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Hey guys,
Apologies for my unexpected absence over the past few days. For those who haven’t heard, I abruptly lost my job earlier in the week. Times are going to be tough for a bit – my wife has just started working for three days a week after coming off 18 months maternity leave, so we fortunately have some income, but we pretty much burnt through our savings over the past 18 months so … hopefully I will find something soon. My industry is starting to be pretty badly affected by the financial uncertainty in Europe and elsewhere, but I’m sure something will come up. Circumstances may keep me away from Paizo more than normal though – not sure yet. Apologies in advance for any upcoming delays or slow downs. Please act for my character where required, or forgive slow GM updates as the case may be.
Anyway, this post is not meant to air my misery or garner sympathy, it is to express wonderment and heartfelt thanks to this fantastic community. Some far too generous person or persons who chose to stay anonymous have sent me a likewise far too generous gift certificate to help me keep up my AP subscription during this time. I can’t know for certain, but I suspect the person (or persons) is either a FAWTLy and / or in one of my pbp games. If you were behind this, thankyou so much, it is truly fantastic of you.
Cheers,
Luke
Take the time you need. I find that Job hunting takes more work than any of the actual jobs I've had! :)
Out of curiosity, what IS your industry anyway?
(You've probably mentioned it before, but I don't recall.)
Good luck Luke. :)
I'm really sorry to hear about your job loss, Moth. I can't imagine the stress that must be putting your family through.
Best of luck, and yeah, take the time you need. I think many of us will remember the spring of 2012 as a less than pleasant period, whether due to the economy and/or family crises. :-(
My dad's at home for the time being, but he's looking into hospices. I've been wanting to take compassionate care leave, but I'm stuck with a growing mountain of work that I can't delegate, and which can be put off. So I'm feeling pretty bitter about the way work continues to dominate my life when I have more urgent priorities.
And my girlfriend's getting an MRI as I write this. There are anomalies/hard lumps in her pancreas... we're hoping it isn't the "big C."
So yeah, I've got more than my share of stress and worries these days, both at home and at work.
Same here TB. Best wishes for good news! <crosses fingers. And toes.>
Good night all. In case I miss you this (busy) weekend, have a good weekend!
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Take care Mothman and you Twiceborn. It all sounds awful.
Mothman, as one of those Europeans I apologise for our recession (again officially as of two days ago) there is alot of positive spinning going on in Britain but it isn't working at the moment.
Can I ask what is a FAWTL? I've seen it around but never known what it was. Always assumed it was like a werecabbage.
Twiceborn - one bitter sweet thing my best man told me last year was how close he got to his father in the last few months. I knew them well but I doubt I will truly understand how what you are going through must hurt. Hang in there TB, hang in there.
Regards
Andy
Thanks for the kind words, everyone.
At least I can take consolation in the fact that we've had time to prepare for his passing, and I've had the time to tell/give him everything I wanted to. And after years of cancer treatment, he's ready to go, and I don't begrudge him that. I firmly believe that quality of life is more important than quantity, and neither I (nor he) believe in prolonging life at all cost.
It's more the pressures of work while I'm dealing with these personal matters that are pissing me off.
It's more the pressures of work while I'm dealing with these personal matters that are pissing me off.
Now THAT, I understand! :)
All I can say is hang in there.
I am heartened by your last post. I know it doesn't seem to make it easier, But after burying three grandparents and one parent, I can vouch that positive thinking helps you get through it. That, and your family. :)
Again, prayers for you and yours.
And ditto for all going through financial crises.
To all, sorry for my own slow posting. Turns out my supposedly 'slow week/end' was anything but. ;P
Omygosh! I just read up on spider swarms, and Distracted, (Which gives the nauseated condition) Kaj is a genius! If he maintains the swarm, (and the wolf fails it's saves, not as likely, but possible) it is entirely possible he could reduce the wolf to a quivering pile of str-less fur with a tummy ache! :)
It would seem that swarms are SO much more powerful in PF than they were previously! (This is both good, and bad) ;P
Omygosh! I just read up on spider swarms, and Distracted, (Which gives the nauseated condition) Kaj is a genius! If he maintains the swarm, (and the wolf fails it's saves, not as likely, but possible) it is entirely possible he could reduce the wolf to a quivering pile of str-less fur with a tummy ache! :)
It would seem that swarms are SO much more powerful in PF than they were previously! (This is both good, and bad) ;P
Swarms are beyond awesome, Bats also have blindsight so you can use them to detect invisible opponents. One of my currently over used spells.
ADMAE, congrats on the new job -- I hope it's brought you at least some relief... Though you're evidently as busy as ever. Best wishes! And good luck with baby number two! I hope all goes well for you and your wife.
Woots to ADMAE- again!
Just remember, busy is good! (It prevents the stress from stacking up and freaking you out!) :)
2nd gratz! Happy new baby day! (soon!)
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Hey all, many apologies for my unexpected absence. This whole job hunting thing is tedious and depressing, and I’ve found myself getting easily distracted from it. At the beginning of last week I decided to buckle down, promised myself that I would not log on to Paizo until I had sent out some letters, made some job applications and finished up my portfolio … well, what I had estimated I would get done in about two days stretched out to more than a week.
Anyway, I’m back now and will try to catch up soon. Apologies for any inconvenience.
My own sincere apologies for sudden absence.
Work, + RL, then I swear I blinked and most of a week had gone by!
I don't even know where it went, (besides work) I swear. Sorry.
Don't worry about it, Moth. I was unemployed a few years ago, and can appreciate how depressing, tedious and time-consuming job hunting can be. I haven't exactly been in the best frame of mind lately, either.
So take whatever time you need...
Wishing all who need it best of luck.
Heh, Thanks TB! Well-phrased.
SOmetimes I just get so tired/cranky, I forget to at least try to look on the bright side!
I second the wish! Good luck to all who need it, (It sounds like we all deserve it!) :)
Hope to everyone on the other side of our respective troubles, none the worse for wear! :D
See you when your ready Moth! And Good luck!
Moth, feel free to send me a message via Facebook if/when you are ready to resume (no rush... I can only imagine the stress you must be feeling right now).
I will be away until Sunday without access to phones/e-mail -- just need some time to myself in the wilderness.
Will send everyone good thoughts from the shores of Lake Minnewanka...
Hey Laithe, I certainly understand the consideration of RL time (at least recently!) on your PbP time, But I hope you get a chance to stay! :)
Recently ALL of my games have slowed down tremendously. It seems to be that time of year.
Ah I'm rambling. (And I'm at work, I should be working!) ;P
Short version, I hope you get to stay. Or at least return when/if time allows! You are one of the founding PC's, and I truly enjoyed watching your and Keildrithe's character developments and interactions when I was catching up to join.
I'm Just wishing Moth and all good luck, and hoping all turns out well, Soon, for everyone!
Ash/Laithe, I'm with Ragadolf. I don't necessarily think you're personally holding things up -- it seems most of us have hit real rough patches of indeterminate duration IRL.
Hope you'll decide to stick around!
I am here and checking in when the job/baby/toddler/wife/European championships allow.
Hey all!
Just checking into see how everyone is doing?
Hope things are looking up for you Moth!
To quote the Governator, "Ah'll be back!"
:)
Checking in, again! ;)
How is the job hunting going Moth?
On our end, the wife (a teacher but currently looking for ANYthing) after almost three straight months of looking/posting/mailing/applying, etc, has a job interview.
Yes, 3 months to get one interview.
We're SO praying and crossing our fingers! ;)
Best wishes to all! Hope to see you all again (in game) soon!
:D
Hi everyone,
Sorry for the long silence. I was away without internet access from August 6-20, and must confess that I hadn't checked in much before then on the assumption that I would get a Facebook message from Mothman if the game resumed.
Rags, did your wife get her job?
Moth, ADMAE, Ash, how are things?
I hope that all is well. I'm not likely to check in often -- if the game resumes, send me a message through Facebook (Xavier Cattarinich).
Cheers,
-- X