Why so few Play by Post Players?

[Xfactor101]

With a little help

I would be greatly interested into a game. If you would be willing to help with the character's
numbers, as I do not have the books anymore, I could provide you with an outline of the type of character or characters for your preview.

I too have a work schedule that makes it hard sometimes to get online to respond every day, however, we shall see what can be done.

Thank you and any of the outlined game scenarios that I read would be alright with me.

Smugglers and bounty hunters, a group I haven't tried in years.

Keith

 

[Terquem]

A rambling opinion

I think for a PbP Traveller game to work, the referee and players need to be sure that there are specific goals established and work toward those goals. It has been my experience that many PbP players (on other forums) simply do not want to be put into a position where they have to make decisions about what their characters do. They are happy to create characters, and demonstrate how their creations work in encounters, but put them in a “Tee” intersection with blood splatters on the right, and a dangerous looking cloud of gas on the left and the game will stall.

You also need to be clear about when “clues” are revealed. Many players I dealt with (again on another forum) would cry in anguish when I did not place signs on the walls of spaceships or dungeons that read “go this way to reach the next encounter” or even worse, would roll a die and post this, possibly my least favorite game phrase ever

“I rolled higher than the rules say is required for this check, now tell me everything I need to know to defeat the monster.”

And another common experience I have had is that it is usually difficult to get the players to talk to each other, as players or as characters. I think there is a tendency for some players to expect a PbP game to somehow work like a computer simulation, and forget that it is actually just a modified table experience. You should be ready to talk, out of character, at any time when something in the game doesn’t, at first, make sense – ask each other questions, get involved in the story AND the game.

If, again just my opinion, the referee and players take the time, before the game begins, to establish what the expectations are going to be for the game – “I will describe what your characters first see, hear, smell, taste, and touch, it will then be up to you, the players to engage me in a dialog to discover more than what was initially reviled” is my go to PbP introduction, when I am about to start running a game - then the chances of success are pretty good the game will last.

Rarely does that happen.

 

[JimMarn]

I think for a PbP Traveller game to work, the referee and players need to be sure that there are specific goals established and work toward those goals. It has been my experience that many PbP players (on other forums) simply do not want to be put into a position where they have to make decisions about what their characters do. They are happy to create characters, and demonstrate how their creations work in encounters, but put them in a “Tee” intersection with blood splatters on the right, and a dangerous looking cloud of gas on the left and the game will stall.

You also need to be clear about when “clues” are revealed. Many players I dealt with (again on another forum) would cry in anguish when I did not place signs on the walls of spaceships or dungeons that read “go this way to reach the next encounter” or even worse, would roll a die and post this, possibly my least favorite game phrase ever

“I rolled higher than the rules say is required for this check, now tell me everything I need to know to defeat the monster.”

And another common experience I have had is that it is usually difficult to get the players to talk to each other, as players or as characters. I think there is a tendency for some players to expect a PbP game to somehow work like a computer simulation, and forget that it is actually just a modified table experience. You should be ready to talk, out of character, at any time when something in the game doesn’t, at first, make sense – ask each other questions, get involved in the story AND the game.

If, again just my opinion, the referee and players take the time, before the game begins, to establish what the expectations are going to be for the game – “I will describe what your characters first see, hear, smell, taste, and touch, it will then be up to you, the players to engage me in a dialog to discover more than what was initially reviled” is my go to PbP introduction, when I am about to start running a game - then the chances of success are pretty good the game will last.

Rarely does that happen.

While I have encountered such players, I tell them I don't referee that way. And my other players may laugh and point.

I to describe hat the characters see, hear, etc. Its up to the players to decide what to do.

 

[Kilgs]

All right, I've been out of PbP for too long. Time to saddle back up! I posted a couple ideas to see if anyone is interested.

http://www.travellerrpg.com/CotI/Discuss/showthread.php?t=39396

 

[Xfactor101]

Please continue !!

I would be interested in such a game. Is there a specific place to do the character generation ?? I do not have the books and your changes sound fascinating.

Keith

 

[Ex_Pendable]

I would be interested in such a game. Is there a specific place to do the character generation ?? I do not have the books and your changes sound fascinating.

Keith

There are character generators out there, just know your rule set. Or you can order books/cd roms/pdfs from the Traveller Store and never have to worry about a site going down.

 

[aramis]

There are character generators out there, just know your rule set. Or you can order books/cd roms/pdfs from the Traveller Store and never have to worry about a site going down.

There's one hosted on the site...

http://travellerrpg.com/tools/MTCG.html

( http://travellerrpg.com/tools/ is the folder for several web-tools. I've NOT prettied it up. If someone wants to add a new webtool, that's where it will go.)