Wayfinder, PaizoCon Founder
|
I, for one, have been curious, and mildly interested in this PbP section you folks have going on over here.
Problem is, you either know what it is, how to do, what joining a game entails, etc....or you have no idea. I happen to be one of those in the latter. Oh, I get it, that you are essentially running an adventure, campaign, module, by posting back and forth. But, I have no idea how much time/effort that requires. Simply, how does it work???
I've been extremely interested in joining one of the Planescape PbP that I've seen get started...but I shy away because I don't know what I'd be getting myself into!
So, I'd like to ask one of you PbP veterans to write up a FAQ or Player's Guide to Play-by-Posting, for all us newbies that have no idea what it is y'all are doing in here!
And once that is written up, how about we post it as a sticky in this sub-board, so those who want to ask these basic questions have to look no further than the top of the list?
Good idea? Bad idea? Go away n00b?
Playing in a PbP really isn't that difficult and you get the hang of it fairly quickly. I learned by making a character, finding a game (and running my own too), and just jumping in.
Specifically, what are your frequently asked questions?
How much time it takes depends on the detail of your posts, what kind of character you're playing, and how long-winded your posting style is. Still, if you're only in one or two games it doesn't take too long every day, and it alos depends on the pace of the games. Some games move fast enough that you have to check them several times a day, while others update once every day or so.
A FAQ is a good idea.
The first and most important thing for you to do is to live bookmark the gamer connection threads and keep checking every day.
The game I just started filled in a matter of hours.
These guys were just looking for players: here.
Just jump right in, the DM and players will teach you anything you need to know.
There is a little talk about pbps in general here.
There are a ton of running pbps here at Paizo, and you shouldn't have to wait long to get into one. Once you do, if you like it, I suggest getting involved in a few of them, because they go slow, and if you are going to post for one, you can probably post for 4 or 5.
You can DM? You can run one.
|
I wish I had the time to write one up but I am playing in 4 PBP games and running another one on top of my alternating weekly games, Blood Bowl league and the 2 kids!
Here is a quick couple tips....
*If you want in on a game keep an eye on the Gamer Connection area for a game starting....They tend to fill up quick.
*Usually the DMs around here require 1 post a day minimum with some leniancy on weekends and if life gets hectic.
*There is usually a discussion thread for Out Of Character posting and such and a Game thread for the actual game posts.
Now, if you are interested I would say to find a good game in progress like Aubrey's Rise of the Runelords thread or Dark Sun: Fine Art of Reciprocity thread, and giving the first several pages a read over. All the PCs stats are usually housed in their profile, so you can check them out also.
I got started in a small arena fight that was happening on the boards and once I got over that initial nervousness I started playing in a game. I have kept adding a couple over time to fill out my pallet and because good games with good DMs were starting and I didn't want to pass them up.
Try it, you'll like it. There tends to be more Roleplay than around the table just by the nature of the way PBP seems to work and that's a Good Thing.
Hope this helps some.
|
Timitius, I agree that a FAQ might be a good idea. However, a lot of things are handled quite differently by different DMs and groups, so a simple FAQ might not cover everything very well.
To add my two cents to the excellent responses that have already been posted here:
Joining a game: generally when a new game is starting up, the DM will post an invitation, along with some general campaign and character creation info in the Gamer Connection section (usually – sometimes in the Play by Post Discussion section).
As has been said, games tend to fill up fast, but people might ask if they can be added to an “alternates” list, as there are often dropouts early in a game.
Some people seeking to join a pbp game might post in the Gamer Connection thread too – this is occasionally successful.
Sometimes posting in the discussion thread of a game and asking if you can join or add your name to a reserves list also works.
How does it work: Similarly to a face to face game – but in written form; the DM presents (writes up) a situation and the players post their responses. Non-combat situations tend to be pretty free-form, with people posting in no particular order, when they can. Combats may or may not be free-form depending on how the DM wants to run it – typically they are turn based just as combat in a face-to-face game.
Game play takes place in the Game thread (in the Play by Post section of the boards). “Table talk”, out of character discussion, character creation discussion etc usually takes place in an associated discussion thread (in the Play by Post Discussion section).
I’ll echo the sentiment that checking out an existing game (and perhaps the associated discussion thread) is a good way to get your head around how it works. I’d agree that Aubrey’s Rise of the Runelords might be a good one to check out.
Time/effort: The pace that the game runs at will depend on how often people are able to post. Different games vary as to the expectations of frequency of posting. As a player, checking the game and posting if appropriate once a day or once every two days might be reasonable. If most people are able to post several times a day this can make for a faster (and often better) game.
It might take between 5 to twenty minutes to catch up on the game and formulate a post.
|
I don't see why we couldn't put one together piecemeal as we have time. At some point when it looks decent enough we can compile it all into one post and get it stickied.
Where do I find a game?
-Watch the Gamer Connection thread. They tend to fill up fast.
How do I make a character?
-Character gen method will depend on the dm of course. Point buy is pretty common in pbp, but some people roll using automated dice rollers like Invisible Castle.
Where does my character sheet go?
-Click on 'my account'
-Under 'message board aliases' click 'create new message board alias'
-This alias should have the name of your character. Pick an image to match, and put your character sheet in the profile.
How do you handle maps for combat?
Depends on the DM, but most commonly:
-Freeform description
-A map described in coordinates by the dm and mapped individually by players.
-Image maps can be posted on a third party website (photobucket, flickr, etc) and linked to in your game. Make sure you use one that doesn't require login to see the images (like myspace).
Not a question, but a matter of etiquette
Always let people know if you won't be available for posting. Otherwise people will just think you are losing interest or the game may come to a halt while others wait for your character to pick a lock, cast a spell or whatever.
How do I handle separating in character and out of character talk?
-The "Play-by-Post" thread for a game is the storyline
-OOC talk that is relevant to the action at hand is typically included in the same post with your IC action, but below it. Usually this is marked in light blue with the ooc bbcode by typing {ooc}before the things you want to set aside, and {/ooc} afterwards where you will replace { with [. This includes dice rolls, spells cast, moves on a combat map, clarifying intention etc.
-General table chat or unrelated comments are normally reserved for the "Play-by-Post Discussion" thread.
That all sounds damn fine. Here's another:
What is Invisible Castle?
Invisible Castle is an automated online dice roller. Many games use it to both show and prove dice results. It's found HERE