Shop Talk
Have you ever wanted to run your own forum game? Did you try but it failed? Are you simply curious about the types of games or common slang used? Well you'll get your answers here. Simply put this thread is for Game Masters (GM)s to answer these questions. There are many games I have played, ran myself, and even more I've helped create. Am I the best, no, but for most GMs starting out is trial by fire. You jump in with an idea, hope you get something together that's cohesive and then... it fails. Almost every time, yet this shouldn't dishearten you. After all should one learn from their mistakes, and be willing to risk making a few, they'll become a powerful GM.
I invite other GMs, co-GMs, veteran players, and even moderators to join in and answer questions as well. The point of this thread is to unite the community, and also alleviate misconceptions on games and what goes into them. Even if you don't have questions related to creating your own game, but how certain types of games work or any other forum game theory/practice/mechanic you will be answered in the best of my ability.
Regular GM Responders:
iisbroke:
Noco19:
Baboushreturns:
Tirstanxh:
Dadarian:
Blackbishop:
alexander23:
Gorganslayer:
FAQ: [this will fill up over time as people ask them]
Q1: What is this about?
A1: It is about answering common questions new GMs face, primarily. Other topics can be discussed of course.
Q2: What other topics?
A2: Things related to mechanics of certain games. After all not all games are the same, for instance Werewolf games are very different to a WiR style games.
Q3: Is there an irc?
A3: No that defeats the purpose of everyone seeing the question and its answer.
Q4: How should I behave on here?
A4: Same way you should behave anywhere else on this forum, so follow the rules of conduct.
Q5: What if people get into a heated argument in thread?
A5: I will ask them to take their argument into a private conversation between themselves. If they refuse I will simply go to the moderators to make them stop.
Q6: How often will you answer questions?
A6: I will check this thread everyday at least once. I'll notify in post if there are days I won't be able to respond.
Q7: Why did you make this thread?
A7: People have asked me to help make games or give them tips plenty of times before. This is simply easier than repeating the answers frequently.
Q8: What is the most important bit for new GMs? What piece of the process do you find the most important? by Rovsea
A8: Personally I focus on mechanics first and there are reasons for that. Chiefly they are the core aspect of your game. When making a game you need to think about what about it would be fun to play, and how do the mechanics emphasize this. Mechanics are important to a game because they are the substance. I'm one of those people that for anything I'm utilizing the item needs to work first, then I'll worry about aesthetics later. So, I apply this ideology to my games. The game has to be functional before I add gimmicks and cool names to it. Those mechanics also need to be easy for not just the player to process (because their at least only processing their stats and how the rules affect them), as a GM you need to process how the all the rules and stats affect everyone. If one doesn't consider this they'll hit burn out and end the game (more on that at some other point). unabridge answer by iisbroke.
Q9: What do you guys do to keep yourself from abandoning a game? I often have an AAR or Forum game idea floating in the back of my mind, but the second I start to actually research or create work, I lose interest. by Dr. Livingstone
A9: The best advice I can give to that is to figure out why that idea would be something fun (not interesting). For instance if your favorite thing to play is Ireland in CKII just make an AAR on that because you know you like it, and thus not drop it. Unabridged answer by iisbroke
Q10: How do you gain enough credibility for your game to be taken seriously and for people to join? by Luftwafer
A10: To summarize for credibility you would need to already somewhat know your demographic by having played games with them for a little bit. Set up an interest check to make sure you know what they want from the game and how many want to play it. You'll need to be a good GM which takes practice, but will help your games' credibility as it will be tied to your own. Finally if the game fails ask players what they liked and disliked. When landfallen 1 failed or people quit I asked their opinions, and my next game was more successful Unabridged answer by iisbroke
Q11: How important are maps to RP games that have a military focus? by LatinKaiser
A11:I'd say essential. You want players to be able to envision their surroundings in order to better write their ICs, and depending on the mechanics, going without a map would likely be akin to players being blind. However, depending on the game, it might work. Referencing my first Star Reach game, there was no map, but it worked because the game was linear and the theaters of battle were typically in small areas or dogfights. So I guess it really depends on the game. by Blackbishop
Q12: So what tools do you use with forum games , I know some people use dice but how do the rolls dictate a success or failure ? What dice do you use and what other tools are useful ? by Captain Ozwen
A12: I use google sheets to organize stats, and an online D&D dice rolling application. Otherwise my trusty notepad for jotting down ideas and planning. (Also a calculator can help) The thing is the number of tools you need varies from game to game and depending on its categories. by gorganslayer
A1: It is about answering common questions new GMs face, primarily. Other topics can be discussed of course.
Q2: What other topics?
A2: Things related to mechanics of certain games. After all not all games are the same, for instance Werewolf games are very different to a WiR style games.
Q3: Is there an irc?
A3: No that defeats the purpose of everyone seeing the question and its answer.
Q4: How should I behave on here?
A4: Same way you should behave anywhere else on this forum, so follow the rules of conduct.
Q5: What if people get into a heated argument in thread?
A5: I will ask them to take their argument into a private conversation between themselves. If they refuse I will simply go to the moderators to make them stop.
Q6: How often will you answer questions?
A6: I will check this thread everyday at least once. I'll notify in post if there are days I won't be able to respond.
Q7: Why did you make this thread?
A7: People have asked me to help make games or give them tips plenty of times before. This is simply easier than repeating the answers frequently.
Q8: What is the most important bit for new GMs? What piece of the process do you find the most important? by Rovsea
A8: Personally I focus on mechanics first and there are reasons for that. Chiefly they are the core aspect of your game. When making a game you need to think about what about it would be fun to play, and how do the mechanics emphasize this. Mechanics are important to a game because they are the substance. I'm one of those people that for anything I'm utilizing the item needs to work first, then I'll worry about aesthetics later. So, I apply this ideology to my games. The game has to be functional before I add gimmicks and cool names to it. Those mechanics also need to be easy for not just the player to process (because their at least only processing their stats and how the rules affect them), as a GM you need to process how the all the rules and stats affect everyone. If one doesn't consider this they'll hit burn out and end the game (more on that at some other point). unabridge answer by iisbroke.
Q9: What do you guys do to keep yourself from abandoning a game? I often have an AAR or Forum game idea floating in the back of my mind, but the second I start to actually research or create work, I lose interest. by Dr. Livingstone
A9: The best advice I can give to that is to figure out why that idea would be something fun (not interesting). For instance if your favorite thing to play is Ireland in CKII just make an AAR on that because you know you like it, and thus not drop it. Unabridged answer by iisbroke
Q10: How do you gain enough credibility for your game to be taken seriously and for people to join? by Luftwafer
A10: To summarize for credibility you would need to already somewhat know your demographic by having played games with them for a little bit. Set up an interest check to make sure you know what they want from the game and how many want to play it. You'll need to be a good GM which takes practice, but will help your games' credibility as it will be tied to your own. Finally if the game fails ask players what they liked and disliked. When landfallen 1 failed or people quit I asked their opinions, and my next game was more successful Unabridged answer by iisbroke
Q11: How important are maps to RP games that have a military focus? by LatinKaiser
A11:I'd say essential. You want players to be able to envision their surroundings in order to better write their ICs, and depending on the mechanics, going without a map would likely be akin to players being blind. However, depending on the game, it might work. Referencing my first Star Reach game, there was no map, but it worked because the game was linear and the theaters of battle were typically in small areas or dogfights. So I guess it really depends on the game. by Blackbishop
Q12: So what tools do you use with forum games , I know some people use dice but how do the rolls dictate a success or failure ? What dice do you use and what other tools are useful ? by Captain Ozwen
A12: I use google sheets to organize stats, and an online D&D dice rolling application. Otherwise my trusty notepad for jotting down ideas and planning. (Also a calculator can help) The thing is the number of tools you need varies from game to game and depending on its categories. by gorganslayer
Q13: What would work better, a game that provides only a setting and minimal events and lets players handle challenges however they want, or a highly scripted game with events with limited choices? by JermanTK
A13: Depends on the type of game. Looking at a nation game, the former. However, I personally have had experience with narrative-given games, and it's somewhat of a balancing act. One thing I took away from my first Star Wars RP was that I didn't allow enough freedom, while my second one gave too much freedom, or at least, too broad a play area to effectively manage. by Noco19 other answers by isibroke
A13: Depends on the type of game. Looking at a nation game, the former. However, I personally have had experience with narrative-given games, and it's somewhat of a balancing act. One thing I took away from my first Star Wars RP was that I didn't allow enough freedom, while my second one gave too much freedom, or at least, too broad a play area to effectively manage. by Noco19 other answers by isibroke
1)Complexity vs. Depth: This was a simple discussion to see people's opinions and view on what works best for a game. We had several good responses to it as well. Gorganslyer (1) (2) gave a great response, as did Falc, and Tristanxh gave several responses to iisbroke's two cents.
2)What game styles do you like? This was started to see people mention what game type they like, how they classify the myriad of OT Forum Games we have, and why they like certain ones over others.
3)Dr. Livingstone started this discussion on "What type of forum game do you find easiest to manage? Do you prefer IC orders or PM orders? If you could go back to your first game and do something differently, what would you do?". It got quick responses from GMs and they all stated their opinions which were varied along with what they viewed as the pros and cons of both.
4)Plank of Wood started this topic "What makes you, the player, want to join a game you're unfamiliar with? " In it we got plenty of responses from GMs and players discussing what draws them to games.
5)What is your favorite game so far. This discussion was a casual question with a fair amount of responses. It showed that many people had more than one game and liked them for varying reasons which shows the variety of games on the forum and people's tastes.
6)Δ of randomness discussed the types of roll systems people prefer. (still ongoing)
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