OOC - Just stuff that works

Where do I start. Well first I will let you know that I am over 50 years old and have been doing roll playing games from the young age of 9. My first Game was D&D and then well about 20 other systems. I started on line in the 80’s with bulletin boards and messing sites. I have run a Star trek site for over three years before I got injured in the military and had to drop from the gaming world for about a year and half. With my job in the military I had to keep a low profile on the internet, so I did not run stuff for a while. I have run groups as low as 3 and as high as 40 at one time. So, I have been though the gambit of troubles and problems. I have assistance in planning military missions and operations for thousands of troops. Enough about me, what people are saying here is true and good advice. What I would say is use guide lines don’t set everything in stone.

I will use posting for an example. In your description in your game you should put your posting rate you expect from the players. You should be one or two times a week as well. I will use one week that is average. Now you should have everyone post in that week Saturday-Sunday you hope or 5 days from there last post now people can post more but 5 days is what is required (per character). If they don’t post in five days and another week goes by but they post no big deal life has a way of throwing stuff at you. Three weeks go buy and still no response then I e-mail them asking what’s up are you ok. if still no responds after a week I write their character out and put them in the back ground of the story line ( I ) run them as a NPC. After a month I write them out of the story line and put them in limbo. I do not delete them yet. After six months or a year of no contact and trying to email them one time a moth for six months I delete them. This system has work for me for over 20 years. So, if you had a game that was going grate and it just stopped fine out why clean it up ask your players the five W’s, Who, what, Where, When, why. If you can answer this question you should have your answer and jump start your game. If your game stalls for more than a month then you have to sometimes restart. Not from the beginning but back up a bit do a new post put the information need out there and get things going. I see games out there in the site for over 3 years and have not been post on in two years delete the game, Clean up the site. As for GM or Moderators clean up your games. If you had someone not post in six months or a year make them an NPC or delete them and inactive members as well.

Information, when writing up your game site and what you are running give good information and references. A good example I am going to make a game of Star Trek. I gave the type of star ship, time period, maybe galaxy sector, and factions involved, information on the Captain (me) and a reference this game is based on Star Trek Wrath of Khan the movie. You can use books, movies and TV shows but give something out there so people can reference the information to understand what you would like in or type of game running. Use the five W’s, Who, What, Where, When, Why. If you can answer the five questions in a paragraph each I will grantee you will have all the information you need for your game. If you think you need more well do Five W’s buy Five W’s for each paragraph so the Five W’s. Do this in your description and summery. That sound like a lot of work it is. It takes work to run a game.

I write out a time line or flow chart that I use as a guide for the game. I start with the start of the game where I would like to see it in one month, six months one year. This gives you a loose gal for your game. I mean loose. Player always have a habit of throwing a wrench in to your plans. I write the villains and their henchman in detail so when stuff happens it seems real to the game. I can send it to other GM or Moderators if I need to have someone help run the game. If you puree set some of the stuff you use it in the game the players start to see a pattern and try to counter the Villain. That’s what makes the story real. It is slow going at first, but it will grow and be fun for you and the players. In the game I ran for three years it took the crew a year to get there first guy and all I did is have a Klingon bird of pay cloaking device I did not use the same escape plan for that Captain every time they encountered him.

Next part Chain of Command. I don’t know how ells to put it. GM or Moderators you should have 2 to 3 people that you trust with you I did my Star Trek Game continued for a year after I left but people graduated college and other issues and (decided as a group to stop) some players started another game and went another direction. Why did it last, I had others that could take over and support the story line that I or we had going. We don’t know what will happen to us tomorrow shit happens and there is no other way to put it. I learned that in the Military. My group knew I was in the Military and I could be called off somewhere in an instant. So, I had others to help me. All GM or Moderators should have someone able to help and help guide the game. It is nice to have someone to talk to for the story line and help bounce ideas. Look at the world and storms you could be in one of the storms power could be out for a month (I hope this never happens to you.) you are out but if you have someone there to help well they could keep the story line going until you get back on your feet. You do not have to do this GM or Moderators alone and should not. Enough of that rant, GET HELP!

Next ASK QUESTONS, ask questions of your players every two months (Gide line) I ask the players what they think what works what dose not. This can be good information to judge your players moods towards the game and one another. Remember you’re the boss but they are the consumer they are not happy your story dies. Be patient with them in my circumstance I have military injures TBI, PTSD and others what go’s in my head does not always come out right. So, what I write sometimes looks funny. I tell my GM or Moderators that problem, so they know and have some grace with my writing. English is their second language and it is not perfect. Just check and see what’s going on.

Next point writing level, we are all not at the same level. If you wish to criticize you had better be able to help. That person to find the information to help them or help them yourself (just don’t point to the problem be the solution.) I did not always write the way I do (not so good) but someone took some time to help me along the way. I can grantee you did not start at the top you learned somehow, and it takes time. Just remember were you started.

Last, we are here to have fun and to do something we like to do. So have fun make it fun and let’s help one another and work as a team.

Thank you for your Time

Red_sword7