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Old 02-17-2012, 01:10 AM   #9
Orion
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Re: The Key Element - RPI MUD's

Newworlds that's an excellent rule. I completely agree.

SnowTroll you posted:

"I won't hide that this particular topic is of great interest to me, and probably to a lot of RP mud players. How do you get a player to "start a plot" whatever that may mean, when the things a player can do without staff involvement, under a mud's code, are limited? I'm picturing some guy at town square forming an "adventuring party" and going into the forest area to kill goblins, trying to turn normal mob bashing into an "event," which got boring before I even finished typing the last clause, but you sound like you mean something more substantial than this.
What's the extra umph you're giving players that existing RP muds haven't done yet?"

Here are a few things that I thing would help.

1. giving characters tangible objects that can be obtained, made, traded or stolen, most of which they would be able to make or find themselves via crafting or gathering skills. Desiring the possession of certain objects is often the sole motivation for a plot.
2. giving characters appropriate roleplay settings, and not just inn's. Places, private places, where different groups can meet and discuss their mutual goals.
3. allowing characters to sit in government on the game, to affect change by allowing them to achieve a position of power or influence. I would even be open to them overthrowing a government entirely, as long as there was an appropriate reason behind them wanting to take such action, and there was significant plotting RP leading up to such an 'event.'
4. working with new characters on their background story, and linking it up with existing characters if they were willing, to have some past conflict between them to roleplay off from the very start, or even just so that they can be associated with some kind of group to begin with and don't just flounder.
5. having there be more of an emphasis on tactics, rather than brute strength or speed, and only allowing player-killing when it is really neccesary (barring situations in which a person is just stupid without it being a player error.) I don't think it's helpful to a plot for character A to just kill character B. Instead they could capture character B's girlfriend and hold her hostage. I've created a move where if you're restraining a character and holding a knife you can kill them instantly (cutting their throat), so character A would have to accede to character B's wishes in such a situation if he wanted his girlfriend to live. Fun stuff like that.
6. I think just basically never letting the game reach a completely stable state. There should always be some form conflict going on, even if it's as mild as discussing how to best distrubute the village's supplies during winter. Shortages could make people cranky. So something that always keeps the players off balance.
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