To help improve our community of PbPers out there, I thought I'd start up a series of 'snack-sized' tips and tricks for making the most out of your PbP games.
First one is based on Painlord's principle of "Always Be Pushing" (keeping things moving) and it is a little something that I call The Leave Off. This is an out of character comment that you put at the end of your post, summarizing what you want to do next. It really helps the GM and other players out, and is more in line with what you might say at a tabletop game when the GM calls for your "next move".
Sometimes, your in character post gives your GM and other players no real indication of what you would like to do next, or even what you would be prepared to do. It can slow things down when they have to wait for you to post again after the GM requests the next action - and it gives players little opportunity to follow where you're going.
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Eg.
"Ha!" cries Brandywine, "You elves sure have a way of sticking your ears into everyone else's business. Well, if you want to get yerself killed, then go ahead."
Brandywine crosses his arms over his chest and glowers at Hollister the Elf.
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An okay post, but does Brandywine wish to continue or just stand there staring?
Adding this clarifies matters and allows players (and the GM) to move along.
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Brandywine will follow, at a distance, if Hollister (or anyone else) decides we should go into the trap-filled maze. If we want to stay in town, my vote is for the Inn.
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Depending upon Hollister's next post (and the posts of others), the GM can now determine if the group is happy to go into the maze or the inn without any further input from Brandywine.
You can also use the leave off for other things: a good GM can use them to make the next decision point clear to players, and you could even use it for things like distinguishing between an antagonistic in-character post, and your feelings on the matter as a player (helping put the other players more at ease, like Deussu did with his abrasive character Targath here).
More good examples of the leave off in action:
In this post, Pooka lets the GM know that he is happy to move on - provided there is nothing further to do - despite his companion receiving a beating. His in character post responds to the previous post, but they are trying to preserve their cover so 'saying' what he's doing isn't quite appropriate. Great time for a leave off.
GM Leave Off: Here, the GM needed a big 'reveal' post, but uses the leave off to make it clear what specific action is required of the players. It allows everyone to enjoy the read, and then move on in a coordinated fashion.
Important note: I touched on this before a little, but I want to be explicit: The preference is for you to make your in-character post clear on what your PC does next (maybe with an in-character Leave Off) but if for RP reasons it isn't, that's the time for an 'ooc' Leave Off. Even if your in-character post is explicit, an 'ooc' Leave Off can still be a good idea if your post was a long one (it helps the GM a lot when s/he goes back up for a second read to figure out the party's overall direction).
So, next time it's unclear what you want to do next - consider putting in an 'ooc' leave off to help your fellow PbPers along.
I recently ran a PbP game that I set up specifically for players who had never played PbP before (right here, if you're interested]). The aim was to introduce new players to PbP in a gentle fashion and give those who had never played a chance to get at least one scenario up on their 'PbP resume'. I was blown away with the quality of posts after only a little bit of coaching (and linking to the awesome guides out there). So much so that we started a second table! Man it's good to have such great new players joining the community.
So, there were teething issues of course, and most of it to do with things that experienced PbPers don't think twice about. Most of it is pretty much just "set up" stuff. The existing guides do a great job of making better PbPers, but I'd like to write one that helps you to become a PbPer full stop (specifically on Paizo.com).
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PbP For Newbies
As a new player, you will make mistakes. The trick is to ask your GM (and experienced fellow players) for advice and feedback. More often than not, they'll be happy tell you what they expect and provide you with loads of advice on how to improve. Take this feedback with good grace and you'll be 'up to scratch' in no time. These tips help you out with the things that are even more basic stuff than that: how to view your games, your tagline explained and other real basics that I had to take my newbies through when I ran the aforementioned game.
1. The Golden Rule: You are aiming to have fun:
This might look silly, but some people who roleplay seem to forget this. PbP players are no exception. I mention this every chance I get. If you're not having fun, why are you doing it? It is important as a player starting out to get recruited (this is hard in and of itself) but you still want to play a game in which you can have fun.
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2. Start small:
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. Creating your alias:
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. Dotting in:
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. Your campaign list:
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. Rolling dice:
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. Preview is your friend:
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. title:
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Thanks for reading!
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Character Ideas
Character Idea, Draaken:
Draaken Moonblood is a tribesman from the Land of the Linnorm Kings. He wanders Golarion in search for meaning.
The Moonbloods are longstanding members of the Rednar Tribe, who roam the Land of the Linnorm Kings. Their name, “Moonblood”, comes from a common family trait that gives them reflective skin. Oddly, this is actually due not to any celestial origin (as their name would suggest) but from their earthen heritage: the Moonbloods are Oreads.
Even for the nomadic Ulfen tribe they are a part of, the male Moonbloods are afflicted by a particularly powerful wanderlust. They part ways with their tribe and travel the world, exploring and experiencing new things. Eventually, they return and marry a tribeswoman, never to leave their native lands again.
Draaken Moonblood is no exception. He left the Rednars and the Land of the Linnorm Kings with one question weighing upon his soul. This question must be answered: what else is there?
