Traveller's Cafe 3: Brainstorming, discussion, tea, advice

[Rupudska]

What year would be best to set a Vietnam RP with American forces in the thick of it? I was thinking 1968, 1969, or 1970.

Hold that thought if you may, I want to talk with you about something regarding this topic...

TGs exist for a reason.

[Luminesa]

What year would be best to set a Vietnam RP with American forces in the thick of it? I was thinking 1968, 1969, or 1970.

1969 would be interesting because you could correlate it with the Vietnam protests that were happening at home at the time. Berkeley, Woodstock, etc.

[Pax Nerdvana]

What year would be best to set a Vietnam RP with American forces in the thick of it? I was thinking 1968, 1969, or 1970.

1969 would be interesting because you could correlate it with the Vietnam protests that were happening at home at the time. Berkeley, Woodstock, etc.

Yeah. 1968/1969 is probably your best bet.

[Harbertia]

What year would be best to set a Vietnam RP with American forces in the thick of it? I was thinking 1968, 1969, or 1970.

Brusia makes a good point for 1968 though Luminesa makes a good point for 1969. If you want a long campaign I propose 1968. If you want a little of every aspect of the war 69. If you want a short campaign 1970- an example being a plot like saving Private Ryan.

[Rupudska]

1968 it is.

[Harbertia]

1968 it is.

Excellent

[Swith Witherward]

HELP ME, yep!

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Please provide as much detail as possible.
What do you need help with: Panelists for an "Overview of P2TM and its culture" Q&A Discord panel. Saturday, 9-11Pm EST.

With the NS World Fair set to start soon, I'm looking for panelists. I have plenty of peeps from my own social circles. I'd like to find people that are not - currently nor in the past - part of PL or Madhouse, so I'm reaching out to RPers outside my own groups or cliques.

Want in? TG me.

[The Assorted Saharan Outposts]

HELP ME, yep!

---

Please provide as much detail as possible.
What do you need help with: Panelists for an "Overview of P2TM and its culture" Q&A Discord panel. Saturday, 9-11Pm EST.

With the NS World Fair set to start soon, I'm looking for panelists. I have plenty of peeps from my own social circles. I'd like to find people that are not - currently nor in the past - part of PL or Madhouse, so I'm reaching out to RPers outside my own groups or cliques.

Want in? TG me.

....I have no idea what this would entail.
Either way, guys, I was thinking about making a roleplay regarding zombies. I'd really enjoy some help. I kinda want to start a basic premise, however. Shoot out ideas and see what gets shot back.

My first idea was that a small town would be made into sort of a fortress after a zombie outbreak, either on a national scale or just in a confined area. The characters would be survivors that had either lived their already or somehow got in, either by invitation or otherwise. This would probably involve dealing with zombie apocalypse life, dealing with bandits, getting supplies, etcetera.
The other one would be that you're soldiers in the middle of a war, maybe one of the World Wars, and suddenly zombies appear. Kinda like what Call of Duty does? Except...more realistic. The end goal...well, I wouldn't be entirely sure about that. It's either simply getting out of there or finding the source of the zombies and destroying that. Maybe a mad scientist got involved, for some good ol' cliches.
The other one, building off the soldier ones, is that you're a task force that was sent into an infested area and tasked with getting rid of a the zombies, and possibly it wouldn't all work out very well. Maybe there's some complications, or otherwise. I dunno. Just tell me what you think. These are general ideas at the moment.

[G-Tech Corporation]

HELP ME, yep!

---

Please provide as much detail as possible.
What do you need help with: Panelists for an "Overview of P2TM and its culture" Q&A Discord panel. Saturday, 9-11Pm EST.

With the NS World Fair set to start soon, I'm looking for panelists. I have plenty of peeps from my own social circles. I'd like to find people that are not - currently nor in the past - part of PL or Madhouse, so I'm reaching out to RPers outside my own groups or cliques.

Want in? TG me.

....I have no idea what this would entail.
Either way, guys, I was thinking about making a roleplay regarding zombies. I'd really enjoy some help. I kinda want to start a basic premise, however. Shoot out ideas and see what gets shot back.

My first idea was that a small town would be made into sort of a fortress after a zombie outbreak, either on a national scale or just in a confined area. The characters would be survivors that had either lived their already or somehow got in, either by invitation or otherwise. This would probably involve dealing with zombie apocalypse life, dealing with bandits, getting supplies, etcetera.
The other one would be that you're soldiers in the middle of a war, maybe one of the World Wars, and suddenly zombies appear. Kinda like what Call of Duty does? Except...more realistic. The end goal...well, I wouldn't be entirely sure about that. It's either simply getting out of there or finding the source of the zombies and destroying that. Maybe a mad scientist got involved, for some good ol' cliches.
The other one, building off the soldier ones, is that you're a task force that was sent into an infested area and tasked with getting rid of a the zombies, and possibly it wouldn't all work out very well. Maybe there's some complications, or otherwise. I dunno. Just tell me what you think. These are general ideas at the moment.

Hm. I've seen the first done before, and I think the main danger to avoid is getting too sandboxy. People without direction find it hard to find motivation to post, so just going with a slice-of-life style RP set in the apocalypse can be hard for folks to deal with.

[Harbertia]

In regards to Sentient Nature- I can't hold this debate in direction inside any longer.

Option 1 - Humans never existed in the setting.

2 -Humans are around but they're of a caveman dull witted sort of monster to the Animals. Just brutes- Animals in this world. They are the beasts feared by many.

3 - The RP is Post Apocalyptic and Humanity is hidden with occasional expeditions to the surface to collect samples. The Animals call them 'One Eyes' because of their hazmat style suits and that no animal has seen them outside such suits. Animals picked up a bit of culture from the ruins of the world that was.

4 - Humans are around and interact with the Animals much like people in fairy tales where animals can talk. Their civilizations rival the Animal civilizations and Humans are to Animals seen as fated to rule them all. Humans are greatly feared as 'the masters'.

[Harbertia]

Anyone doing a superhuman/hero RP? (aside from myself) As the setting I'm hosting in isn't- ripe for 'getting right into it'- as in the setting I'm in is on Generation One of supers; I desire a setting that's had longer exposure to supers and is open to them.

[The Assorted Saharan Outposts]

Anyone doing a superhuman/hero RP? (aside from myself) As the setting I'm hosting in isn't- ripe for 'getting right into it'- as in the setting I'm in is on Generation One of supers; I desire a setting that's had longer exposure to supers and is open to them.

Um...what exactly do you mean by that?

[Harbertia]

Anyone doing a superhuman/hero RP? (aside from myself) As the setting I'm hosting in isn't- ripe for 'getting right into it'- as in the setting I'm in is on Generation One of supers; I desire a setting that's had longer exposure to supers and is open to them.

Um...what exactly do you mean by that?

The RP I'm hosting has the characters as the first people with super powers they obtained by unknown means around a single township about a month prior to the IC.

I'd like to join a Superhuman or Superhero (preferably the latter) RP in a world where super powered people have been around for more then a month; a setting where costume wearing, powered, heroics are accepted due to the time they have been present in the setting.

[The Assorted Saharan Outposts]

Um...what exactly do you mean by that?

The RP I'm hosting has the characters as the first people with super powers they obtained by unknown means around a single township about a month prior to the IC.

I'd like to join a Superhuman or Superhero (preferably the latter) RP in a world where super powered people have been around for more then a month; a setting where costume wearing, powered, heroics are accepted due to the time they have been present in the setting.

I'm...not sure if that's a thing that's actually going on currently. I think they're all just starting out superhero things. Seems like someone would have to make that.

[Shadowwell]

The RP I'm hosting has the characters as the first people with super powers they obtained by unknown means around a single township about a month prior to the IC.

I'd like to join a Superhuman or Superhero (preferably the latter) RP in a world where super powered people have been around for more then a month; a setting where costume wearing, powered, heroics are accepted due to the time they have been present in the setting.

I'm...not sure if that's a thing that's actually going on currently. I think they're all just starting out superhero things. Seems like someone would have to make that.

I have tons of superhero rp ideas with deep roots, but unfortunately i do not have time to make them currently.

If someone is interesed in the ideas, take a look at the dispatch in my sig and get back to me.

[Harbertia]

I'm...not sure if that's a thing that's actually going on currently. I think they're all just starting out superhero things. Seems like someone would have to make that.

I have tons of superhero rp ideas with deep roots, but unfortunately i do not have time to make them currently.

If someone is interesed in the ideas, take a look at the dispatch in my sig and get back to me.

: D I did not realize that you still had that! I worked on that with you, yeah- Metro City!

[Shadowwell]

I have tons of superhero rp ideas with deep roots, but unfortunately i do not have time to make them currently.

If someone is interesed in the ideas, take a look at the dispatch in my sig and get back to me.

: D I did not realize that you still had that! I worked on that with you, yeah- Metro City!

Yeah, emergence of heroes, or perhaps just the similarly named Emergence, both set in universes where Superhumans have been around for a while, but actual heroes and villains have not.

[The Assorted Saharan Outposts]

I mean, I'd always be up for another superhero roleplay. That'd be cool.

[Harbertia]

I mean, I'd always be up for another superhero roleplay. That'd be cool.

As am I, though plot is always my failing. I'd either need to have people share the mantel of operator-ship or someone else OP for this.

I'd really like a focus on a family of supers, so character don't go all over the place and the whole RP collapse. It's probably the best way to keep such an RP together. character will interact more often, have a common dwelling, and be in close proximity to one another when away from home be it work, school, etc.

[The Assorted Saharan Outposts]

I mean, I'd always be up for another superhero roleplay. That'd be cool.

As am I, though plot is always my failing. I'd either need to have people share the mantel of operator-ship or someone else OP for this.

I'd really like a focus on a family of supers, so character don't go all over the place and the whole RP collapse. It's probably the best way to keep such an RP together. character will interact more often, have a common dwelling, and be in close proximity to one another when away from home be it work, school, etc.

...like, the Incredibles? I...don't really know how I'd feel about that? Kinda limits creativity...a lot. I can understand a simple team of superheroes, sorta like a justice League, but...eh.

[Forest State]

What I learned from running the Academy of Villains reboot and the short lived spinoff of that before they both ended:

1: To stay alive, appeal to both people who want open threads and people who want to stay together as a group. It really helps to have BOTH kinds of activity. In this RP, we had missions that related to the main plot, but they were fully optional. Sometimes the missions kept the RP alive, other times the activity back on the campus(which was an open setting) did. If you force people to stick together for a main plot, you increase the chances of the RP dying. Same thing with an open RP that has no central plot. Mixing the two has had the best results for me personally.

2: If you go the open route, don't leave things up to the players. Or people will get bored and leave. You have to have some kind of plot thing happening that people who aren't part of the 'main story' can access. Or something easy for people to stumble into if they miss their chance to do something with another player and now need something to do.

3: Try to lean on familiar locations that are described in the thread, such as a base, rather than letting everyone loose in a city. This makes it easier for players to have something to refer to when posting.

Point number one is the most important, IMO. I walked away from the superhero genre but if I ever come back, I'm focusing on that and staying away from a strictly group based thread or a strictly open world thread. Both of those have equal chances of dying early, I think. Note that all of this applies more to the superhero genre because that's one of the ones that has a reputation for large open world character RPs.

[Pax Nerdvana]

What I learned from running the Academy of Villains reboot and the short lived spinoff of that before they both ended:

1: To stay alive, appeal to both people who want open threads and people who want to stay together as a group. It really helps to have BOTH kinds of activity. In this RP, we had missions that related to the main plot, but they were fully optional. Sometimes the missions kept the RP alive, other times the activity back on the campus(which was an open setting) did. If you force people to stick together for a main plot, you increase the chances of the RP dying. Same thing with an open RP that has no central plot. Mixing the two has had the best results for me personally.

2: If you go the open route, don't leave things up to the players. Or people will get bored and leave. You have to have some kind of plot thing happening that people who aren't part of the 'main story' can access. Or something easy for people to stumble into if they miss their chance to do something with another player and now need something to do.

3: Try to lean on familiar locations that are described in the thread, such as a base, rather than letting everyone loose in a city. This makes it easier for players to have something to refer to when posting.

Point number one is the most important, IMO. I walked away from the superhero genre but if I ever come back, I'm focusing on that and staying away from a strictly group based thread or a strictly open world thread. Both of those have equal chances of dying early, I think. Note that all of this applies more to the superhero genre because that's one of the ones that has a reputation for large open world character RPs.

That seems sound.

[Ayvalon]

RP INTEREST AND FEEDBACK REQUEST

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Please provide as much detail as possible.

RP's Overarching Concept: Humans take part in an intergalactic war showing our worth to the galaxy.

Genre/s: Sci-Fi/ Humanity F**k yea/Action/War

Character or Faction Based: Character

Detailed Description: Humans finally make contact 200+ years after modern day with alien species in a grueling war where against a theocratic state seeking to white-wash all cultures and races whom seek to "unify" everyone under a single state of mind. Said state lands within London UK seeking to add Humanity's "primitive" minds to the fold. The invasion fails catastrophically, revealing humanity's weapons and physique make us a step above the average warrior.

The HAC-H 1st (Huraikan Auxiliary Confederacy- Human 1st element) Stands to prove humanity's worth to the galaxy as an unrecognized volunteer fighting force seeking to do it's part to end the war and thereby prove it's worth to the galaxy.

Need Help With:
Weapons ideas, both for small arms and vehicles. Don't need exact parameters, simply something to give players a ground-work for writing.

Other races within the Haikur Confederacy. Any ideas are always welcome, the 3 present were simply the first ones I came up with.

Species we might encounter among the Unity, I was planning to wing this as I go, but if you have ideas, i'm all ears.

A link to the RP in question

Please leave this hashtag in place: #Mentorhelp

[The Wyoming Peoples Front]

Trying to set the stage for how bad it got.

The winter of 2005 was known as the Hungry season and those who remember it well, saw the worst.
This time is remembered best with the words of radio host "Buffalo Bill" Beneke which are I on a plaque at the entrance to the Pershing House at F.E.Warren.

"Some of us still remember and none of us should ever forget:

Reverend Lewis's end times band who commited the Dance of the Davidians Masacre enforcing their Sunday Laws with Probation Mobs and the Righteous Hand.

Faceless divorcees in horse hair wigs marching to their deaths in the snow, their husbands laying castrated at the foot of the Cross while zealots sang silent night.

We still don't tell our children about Santa.

General Trask's evacuation squads and the battle of Missile Train after the Patrolmen's death decree. How we all thought it was the end but the flash never came and the ball never dropped.

Death cults and end timers, who brought about the insanity of The Cody Degradation Syndicate after the Horde of the West moved in with their Nightmare Cults like Zombies inc. and The RenFair Druids.

When you couldn't eat the meat because you knew who had to die for it and then when you did because you didn't want to be next.
It was so cold and it seemed like spring would never come.

The Hamburger Kings with their army of therapist coyote men. Hell... On... Earth...

The thaw and standing in the mud watching the War Children and their thousand yard stare as they stood in Starvation Lines waiting for a chance to board Jeptha Wright's Orphan Train to Never Never Gulch.

That bastard Peter Pan and what he did to those kids...

The Cheyenne War Party and that bone chilling scream as Judge Bowe's Law Posse skinned the last of the Blood Drinkers in front of the old court house.

All of those black flies.

If you can see a fly and not shed a tear then you weren't there and I'm happy for you because I was and I remember it all and what we did to survive.
No man who lived did so better than the next"

Civilization in Wyoming had collapsed and every day people were suffering under the reign of a hundred tyrannies.

[Harbertia]

As am I, though plot is always my failing. I'd either need to have people share the mantel of operator-ship or someone else OP for this.

I'd really like a focus on a family of supers, so character don't go all over the place and the whole RP collapse. It's probably the best way to keep such an RP together. character will interact more often, have a common dwelling, and be in close proximity to one another when away from home be it work, school, etc.

...like, the Incredibles? I...don't really know how I'd feel about that? Kinda limits creativity...a lot. I can understand a simple team of superheroes, sorta like a justice League, but...eh.

More like Team Go from Kim Possible. I don't see how it 'limits creativity'; it focuses it. Like- I've tried teams of diversely background characters- news flash- doesn't work in an RP. Everyone wants to do their own thing; the only time it works is when their is a designated leader and TRUST me- players don't like that at ALLL. At least with a family structure it's agreeable to them. The only time I can see a team of heroes working is when those heroes have a history together (previous RPs with them together)- but if it's the first RP in a series- it'll crash if you just have these strangers together. With a set background for the team, you can by pass that situation.