Post by Morreion on Jun 8, 2012 14:36:04 GMT -5
Storyboard: Type events (Massively)
4 different archetypal events are discussed- parties, guild meetings, assaults and the classic non-event event:
The hang-out
The core: On some level, it's probably a bit artificial to include a simple hangout on a list of events, because this sort of event is the anti-event. There's nothing happening, no goals, no storytelling direction, nothing but a bunch of people sitting around and roleplaying together. On the other hand, this is probably the most common sort of roleplaying event -- a party with less structure, if you want to get right down to it. It's the sort of event you wind up with when your goals are mostly "everyone gets together to roleplay."
Strengths: The free-form nature of a gathering like this means it's the easiest to work with as an ad hoc arrangement. Usually there's some unifying idea, like everyone meeting in a tavern -- but there's not a strong goal, so players can simply drop in or out and enjoy the environment. It's also the sort of thing that can flow fairly easily, with players coming in, leaving, and moving on without any disruption to the overall environment.
Weaknesses: You have absolutely no goals at work with this event. There's nothing keeping anyone in place or engaged except the strength of the roleplaying, and if that starts to fade so does player interest. You are really relying on a bunch of players providing an interesting starting point for the participants... otherwise the whole thing falls apart.
Hang-outs often seem in danger of sputtering out without some strong RP characters. These can be great fun, or painful to the point of fleeing. Rift tavern RP comes to mind!
4 different archetypal events are discussed- parties, guild meetings, assaults and the classic non-event event:
The hang-out
The core: On some level, it's probably a bit artificial to include a simple hangout on a list of events, because this sort of event is the anti-event. There's nothing happening, no goals, no storytelling direction, nothing but a bunch of people sitting around and roleplaying together. On the other hand, this is probably the most common sort of roleplaying event -- a party with less structure, if you want to get right down to it. It's the sort of event you wind up with when your goals are mostly "everyone gets together to roleplay."
Strengths: The free-form nature of a gathering like this means it's the easiest to work with as an ad hoc arrangement. Usually there's some unifying idea, like everyone meeting in a tavern -- but there's not a strong goal, so players can simply drop in or out and enjoy the environment. It's also the sort of thing that can flow fairly easily, with players coming in, leaving, and moving on without any disruption to the overall environment.
Weaknesses: You have absolutely no goals at work with this event. There's nothing keeping anyone in place or engaged except the strength of the roleplaying, and if that starts to fade so does player interest. You are really relying on a bunch of players providing an interesting starting point for the participants... otherwise the whole thing falls apart.
Hang-outs often seem in danger of sputtering out without some strong RP characters. These can be great fun, or painful to the point of fleeing. Rift tavern RP comes to mind!
