The Official OTC TBRPG Planning and Organization Topic

[Zulu Yankee Kilo Echo]

Next thing you know, people are bringing in Transformers and LEGO Knights Kingdom II, and I'm travelling around space with at least five different doctors and the casts of Red Dwarf and Monty Python and the Holy Grail, plus some characters from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and maybe a few others I'm forgetting.

...Am I the only one that finds this at least a little bit awesome?

 

In all seriousness, I believe a system could be created. Maybe the RPG is set mainly in one time, and forays into other times would be limited (i.e. they can only last a certain number of posts or something). Perhaps some event has drawn our Doctor(s?) to one specific time and place, and this event is so large that he/they has/have to draw from resources in other time periods. Just a suggestion.

[Atton Rand]

Well, as I've mentioned before, that sort of idea is partially used in Multiversal Collision, though there hasn't been much activity going on there in the past few days.

[Sisen]

You could possibly take what they used in in "The Girl in the Fireplace" with Madame de Pompadour. There could be some incident or issue where Time Windows have been opened throughout history etc. I have no clue, just throwing out ideas.

 

Once I start posting in Multiverse hopefully I can help pickup the pace. I just need to go start posting...

[Atton Rand]

You could possibly take what they used in in "The Girl in the Fireplace" with Madame de Pompadour. There could be some incident or issue where Time Windows have been opened throughout history etc. I have no clue, just throwing out ideas.

 

It's an interesting thought. I'm not quite sure if such a thing would work in Doctor Who but something along those lines could be interesting in a different context. In fact come to think of it that sounds a little like the premise of Time Bandits (a comedy by Terry Gilliam of Monty Python fame about a kid who goes on an adventure with a group of dwarfs who travel through "Time Holes" in search of treasure from various time periods).

 

Once I start posting in Multiverse hopefully I can help pickup the pace. I just need to go start posting...

 

That'll be good to get that back on its feet. I'd make a post myself but I know double-posting is against the rules.

Edited August 4, 2013 by Atton Rand

[Xomeron]

Frankly, if an RPG with time travel as an actual thing that you can do came along, I would consider it my duty to test the time travel regulatory system to its absolute limits.

And this is why I would never want to design an RPG with time travel. Because every time a nice thing exists, people like you want to break it to see what happens.

[HeavyMetalSunshineSister]

Well, more accurately, I want to break it so I know where to reinforce it if I have to use it myself.

[25K Now!]

Yeah, and ruin it for whoever runs the hypothetical time travel Rpg.

[HeavyMetalSunshineSister]

If they didn't plan for the issues to begin with, it's not doing them a kindness to pretend the issues aren't there.

[Krayzikk]

If they didn't plan for the issues to begin with, it's not doing them a kindness to pretend the issues aren't there.

 

Weeeeeeeeelll, one could argue that intentionally poking at the issues isn't nice either.

[HeavyMetalSunshineSister]

I would argue that it benefits time travel RPGs as a whole. Makes things a bit painful for one GM, yes, but future efforts will not have those specific issues.

 

It's the same thing that happened to RPGs like Starscape, except it was less of a systematic poking effort and more of a bunch of crazy people trampling the issues.

[Let's Henshin!]

Just saying, if I see Time Travel, I will go all Steins;Gate on it.

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

You know, what it all comes down to is this - if the only reason you're playing an RPG is to screw with the GM, no matter how good your intentions for doing so, you fall under a number of terms that I am not allowed to repeat under this word filter.

 

There are too many issues available in an RPG where time travel becomes a "thing" for them to ever properly be solved. The only thing bigger than a regular plot hole is one that tears into the space-time continuum. So claiming you're doing it because you can patch issues in RPGs that follow that one... no.

 

If you're playing an RPG with the intent of damaging it, than you're too immature to be playing on a forum mostly used by teens through young adults, and should go back to kicking down other peoples sand castles in the kindergarten sand pit. Obviously, that should go without saying, and I understand most people here are just joking around. Still, somebody reading might actually take the concept seriously.

 

The only exception to the above is a railroaded RPG. If you're being railroaded, look for every opprotunity to get off.

 

Now, obviously, what is always the most important are the characters and story. If some strange loophole or exploit will provide advancements in terms of actual character development (not just a power upgrade) move for it. Talking to the GM might be your best option for that, though.

 

That being said...

 

Exploitation, loopholes, and so forth is not the biggest problem plaguing a time travel RPG. The biggest problem is that an RPG with that much expanse of time requires a much larger player base than one with only one time frame, and that kind of player base is virtually nonexistent in the present time.

 

-Toa Levacius Zehvor

[Alex Humva]

As a GM I've found that players taking a sludgehammer to the problems my games have actually is a fairly effective method. Lets me punch someone and fix the problem at the same time.

[Havelock Vetinari]

Quite. I find Ymper to be insightful and highly useful in the creative process.

Edited August 5, 2013 by Basilisk

[HeavyMetalSunshineSister]

Sledgehammer, Doc. Sledgehammer.

 

But yeah, any issues I can think of before the RPG goes in for approval (provided, of course, that I have even the barest level of interest in it), I'll go ahead and point out. Any I find after I've started playing will also be pointed out, or at least tested to see whether they're bugs or features.

[Canis Lycaon]

Uh, I wasn't sure where to put this but why did The Anomaly get closed?

[Havelock Vetinari]

Because almost no one showed up and we were fairly sure no one ever would.

[Alex Humva]

I talked with most of the people involved and there simply was no interest. Talked to most of the people who said they were interested before hand and they said they didn't have the time/had no interest anymore.

 

I think there's a bit of a superhero fatigue going on and I simply did not do a good enough job of separating Anomaly from the rest of the herd. I thought I did and I guess I didn't. I may of jumped the gun a bit but I just didn't see the interest about and I really should of made sure I had a solid player base before hand via the Planning topic.

 

Of course then I announced over Skype to the RTS-RPG community an hour later that I'd be going back into the business and I have, what, eight, nine people who already want to get in despite knowing almost zilch about it? Guess I know what I'm good for nowadays.

[Havelock Vetinari]

Back to work RTS slave.

 

*Cracks whip*

[HeavyMetalSunshineSister]

I rather suspect that my method of 'approving' profiles had something to do with the turnout for Anomaly.

[Samus Aran-Bounty Hunter]

Hey all,

Just throwing up an idea that's been floating around my head for a while now. Would anyone be at all interested in a Super Smash Brothers RPG? Perhaps, even, with the possibility of using canon characters?

Currently, I'm leaning more towards a more laid-back style of RPG, just because it seems we're in lack of those 'round the forum. While it's possible to go more gritty, I'd prefer if it becomes more of a light-hearted, beat'em up than laugh together sorta deal.

Questions, Comments, Criticism? Flesh it out more? Let it rot?

Zakaro

[sonyaxe]

I like it, Zakoro. I think it would be awesome to beat up Snake as Pikachu.Ps the Bakugan RPG needs players!

[Atton Rand]

Ps the Bakugan RPG needs players!

 

To be fair so does Multiversal Collision. Right now it's just me and one other person. There were some people who posted profiles a while back but never actually started (I don't know what happened to Ymper and his idea involving Nyarlathotep's travelling circus, for instance).

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

To be fair so does Multiversal Collision. Right now it's just me and one other person. There were some people who posted profiles a while back but never actually started (I don't know what happened to Ymper and his idea involving Nyarlathotep's travelling circus, for instance).

 

Sorry about my lack of posts, I just keep getting distracted, and honestly I kind of wrote myself into a dead end by going single-man. I'm used to bouncing posts off of other people, and I'm kind of writing a solo adventure right now which is... less than exciting, to tell the truth. :|

 

 

Just throwing up an idea that's been floating around my head for a while now. Would anyone be at all interested in a Super Smash Brothers RPG? Perhaps, even, with the possibility of using canon characters?

Currently, I'm leaning more towards a more laid-back style of RPG, just because it seems we're in lack of those 'round the forum. While it's possible to go more gritty, I'd prefer if it becomes more of a light-hearted, beat'em up than laugh together sorta deal.

 

I think the reason we have the grittiness comes from the common culture of today. That's how we get a Superman movie that ends with a guy getting his head snapped. That spreads to the forums as well because everyone here is growing up in that

 

My problem with the proposition is that - and mind you, I don't have much experience with the series or Nintendo in general - that it doesn't exactly sound like it's going to be that story intensive. Just fighting for the sake of fighting, which would definitely expose the darker tendencies of forum members. To pick on Basilisk as my example, I can already imagine the argument playing out. "My character is a logical realist and wants to win, so I'm going to have him use a full electrical strike to kill the other guy instead of a few bolts to wear him down and stun him because it's more efficient." He's not the only one, either, just the most recent case I can remember (I've been the person who just has to win).

 

-Toa Levacius Zehvor

[JiMing]

Hey all,

Just throwing up an idea that's been floating around my head for a while now. Would anyone be at all interested in a Super Smash Brothers RPG? Perhaps, even, with the possibility of using canon characters?

Currently, I'm leaning more towards a more laid-back style of RPG, just because it seems we're in lack of those 'round the forum. While it's possible to go more gritty, I'd prefer if it becomes more of a light-hearted, beat'em up than laugh together sorta deal.

Questions, Comments, Criticism? Flesh it out more? Let it rot?

Zakaro

I like the idea, since I've been playing lots of Brawl lately. Will we claim official characters, take them from represented game series, or make our own?

 

Just saying, if it becomes anything like the late Bionifight, I will be signing up no question.

Edited August 12, 2013 by JiMing

[Atton Rand]

 

Hey all,

Just throwing up an idea that's been floating around my head for a while now. Would anyone be at all interested in a Super Smash Brothers RPG? Perhaps, even, with the possibility of using canon characters?

Currently, I'm leaning more towards a more laid-back style of RPG, just because it seems we're in lack of those 'round the forum. While it's possible to go more gritty, I'd prefer if it becomes more of a light-hearted, beat'em up than laugh together sorta deal.

Questions, Comments, Criticism? Flesh it out more? Let it rot?

Zakaro

I like the idea, since I've been playing lots of Brawl lately. Will we claim official characters, take them from represented game series, or make our own?

 

 

 

I don't know much about Brawl itself, but it could be an interesting twist to allow a greater array of video games to be represented. There was an RPG I was in once, Crossover Island Paradise, I believe, which ran on the idea that instead of making their own characters, players would take on people from a variety of books, tv shows, movies, and so forth (among other things I remember playing as Long John Silver, the Fourth Doctor and Romana, and Lara Croft). The concept was basically that all these characters somehow ended up trapped on a bizarre island with no clear way of escape. Sadly it never got very far (which was a shame, because I remember it being a lot of fun), and we had only really started to get a plot moving before it died (long story short: something to do with antimatter, as was discovered by both the Fourth and Tenth Doctors). It could be interesting if you could figure out a way to pull off something along those lines.

[Havelock Vetinari]

darker tendencies

 

 

Darker? Please.

 

War sucks. Alot. As does the combat that goes with it. I don't think portraying it as a fun romp is exactly responsible.

Edited August 12, 2013 by Basilisk

[sonyaxe]

Maybe it starts off as a tournament, like in the game, but then something happens and they have to go beat up bad guys in some way, shape or form.

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

 

darker tendencies

 

 

Darker? Please.

 

War sucks. Alot. As does the combat that goes with it. I don't think portraying it as a fun romp is exactly responsible.

 

People who are playing such games are expected to be responsible enough to differentiate real life from fiction. Any mature and sensible person who actually has the proper sense/parentage should be able to differentiate a fictional conflict from one in the real world; the writer is not responsible for that player's shortcomings. Saying they are is the same kind of logic people use with the "video games create violence" schtick. It's like comparing an actual fight to a simple wrestling match between friends; I find it hard to believe that anyone here hasn't been involved in one of those at least once. If not in High School years or afterwards, than at least some time during your childhood.

 

To address your problem simply - no, it's not irresponsible. If one's too daft to separate reality from fiction, that's not the story writer's fault.

 

I don't know much about Brawl itself, but it could be an interesting twist to allow a greater array of video games to be represented. There was an RPG I was in once, Crossover Island Paradise, I believe, which ran on the idea that instead of making their own characters, players would take on people from a variety of books, tv shows, movies, and so forth (among other things I remember playing as Long John Silver, the Fourth Doctor and Romana, and Lara Croft). The concept was basically that all these characters somehow ended up trapped on a bizarre island with no clear way of escape. Sadly it never got very far (which was a shame, because I remember it being a lot of fun), and we had only really started to get a plot moving before it died (long story short: something to do with antimatter, as was discovered by both the Fourth and Tenth Doctors). It could be interesting if you could figure out a way to pull off something along those lines.

 

This sounds pretty awesome, I have to admit. It's a shame how rapidly RPGs die out, though, that things just keel over so quickly after starting up...

 

-Toa Levacius Zehvor

[HeavyMetalSunshineSister]

Super Smash Bros. is hardly war. It's probably also not suited for an RPG, either, what with the lack of options for player-made characters, the complete absence of any coherent characterization outside of the source material it plucked characters from, and the fact that most of the game is utterly plotless, but it's certainly not even vaguely pretending to be about war. It's closer to a martial arts tournament in which some of the competitors are Pikachu and no one has a heart condition that might make high voltage shocks problematic, said condition generally being referred to in the literature as 'mortality.'

 

It's Highlander in which everyone has agreed not to cut heads off, and some of them are Pikachu.

[Alex Humva]

Me, I still want to go have a fun fantasy go-fight-a-wizard-and-save-the-princess romp myself, and while I know other people would like it, these sort of fun romps just never like to last.

 

Also, I believe Basilisk was less saying "People can't tell the difference!" and more saying "War sucks, portraying it otherwise is a mockery to war and those involved." I may not agree with the logic (at all in fact) but you did very much twist his words for your own little speech.

Edited August 12, 2013 by Darth Alex Humva

[JiMing]

I do not see Smash Bros. as war whatsoever. I don't care if Don Lafontaine says "Something's gone wrong in the happy-go-lucky world of Nintendo," I have seen Smash Bros. as a nonlethal tournament/competition of sorts. The closest the series ever came to true war was the Subspace Emissary in Brawl, but normally, the series is not war. If you don't believe me, watch the trailer for Smash Bros. 4, the Animal Crossing Villager got a letter inviting him to participate.By the way, in the Subspace Emissary, characters who were defeated turned into trophies, who could be reverted back to normal by touching their base. They come back perfectly fine too, and that's pretty much their equivalent of death.

Edited August 12, 2013 by JiMing

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

It's Highlander in which everyone has agreed not to cut heads off, and some of them are Pikachu.

 

I have no words.

 

I think that going with something closer to what Atton Rand suggested would a better idea - throw a bunch of characters together, add a plot for them to figure out what's going wrong, and let stuff happen. There have, however, been tournament RPGs before, and if you put things in the right format you could make one work. Wasn't one of the most successful RPGs on the Bionicle RPG forum Tournament of Shadows? Mind you, it was before my time, but the fact the name is still known should be telling.

 

Me, I still want to go have a fun fantasy go-fight-a-wizard-and-save-the-princess romp myself, and while I know other people would like it, these sort of fun romps just never like to last.

Also, I believe Basilisk was less saying "People can't tell the difference!" and more saying "War sucks, portraying it otherwise is a mockery to war and those involved." I may not agree with the logic (at all in fact) but you did very much twist his words for your own little speech.

 

I apologize if I misinterpreted it. But even if your interpretation is the correct one, my point remains the same. If people think the RPG is mocking something, it's their problem. Nothing is changed.

 

If someone was actually willing to write an RPG to go on a quest, slay the dragon, save the princess, and get back home and actually play the story straight I'd be more than willing to play it. It's rather sad when "avoiding the cliche" becomes the cliche...

 

-Toa Levacius Zehvor

[Alex Humva]

The problem with the fun fight a wizard save a princess fantasy romp is that it is not self sustaining. It's a contained story in which you progress from point a to b to c and then it ends. The concept of an RPG actually having a defined end nowadays is nigh-unheard of, though it use to be done back in the day occasionally. It's the sort of thing you'd call your friends over on the weekend for and have a good time at the coffee table with, but not something that translates well onto a text based format.

[Atton Rand]

The problem with the fun fight a wizard save a princess fantasy romp is that it is not self sustaining. It's a contained story in which you progress from point a to b to c and then it ends. The concept of an RPG actually having a defined end nowadays is nigh-unheard of, though it use to be done back in the day occasionally. It's the sort of thing you'd call your friends over on the weekend for and have a good time at the coffee table with, but not something that translates well onto a text based format.

 

Not to mention there'd probably be a great deal of dispute over who ultimately gets the girl in the end. I suppose if you wanted to add a bit more diversity you could have people competing to get to the princess and maybe have someone play as the dragon to make things a bit more challenging, but I don't think it would work on a board like this.

[JiMing]

Why can't we have people playing as princesses saving their own darn skin? I mean, come on, surely some princesses get sick of waiting for a knight in shining armor.Also, what's the current opinion of a Smash RPG? I personally would love one.

[Canis Lycaon]

Personally, I would like it if it were something like this:

 

Each player chooses one or more character from any realm of fiction/literature. It can be movies, whatever. Then, characters are slotted into teams (by the GM). Teams would fight each other in team based combat. The team thing could be replaced with just a plan old free for all, but this encourages interaction between matches in the members of the team.

 

Then, there is a plot of some sort, like, 'How did we all get here?' or 'Who is behind this?', which the characters try to figure out.

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

 

The problem with the fun fight a wizard save a princess fantasy romp is that it is not self sustaining. It's a contained story in which you progress from point a to b to c and then it ends. The concept of an RPG actually having a defined end nowadays is nigh-unheard of, though it use to be done back in the day occasionally. It's the sort of thing you'd call your friends over on the weekend for and have a good time at the coffee table with, but not something that translates well onto a text based format.

 

Not to mention there'd probably be a great deal of dispute over who ultimately gets the girl in the end. I suppose if you wanted to add a bit more diversity you could have people competing to get to the princess and maybe have someone play as the dragon to make things a bit more challenging, but I don't think it would work on a board like this.

 

 

The problem with the defined end is that it "ends" the RPG, but how long do RPGs last on BZP now anyways? A month? Two? Why do we care if it's self-sustaining when almost none of them that are actually work out. If we know these RPGs don't last long, why don't we actually just embrace that idea and have fun with it?

 

 

Perhaps to amend the situation with numbers, you could turn it from just one princess to a castle full of numerous lords and ladies (including a princess or two). Then the guys get the girls and the girls get the guys (and/or the guys get the guys and the girls get the girls; I don't judge).

 

I do agree that having someone play the dragon would be an interesting idea, since it actually means the ending can go more than one way.

 

-Toa Levacius Zehvor

Edited August 12, 2013 by Toa Levacius Zehvor

[Havelock Vetinari]

I apologize if I misinterpreted it. But even if your interpretation is the correct one, my point remains the same. If people think the RPG is mocking something, it's their problem. Nothing is changed.

If someone was actually willing to write an RPG to go on a quest, slay the dragon, save the princess, and get back home and actually play the story straight I'd be more than willing to play it. It's rather sad when "avoiding the cliche" becomes the cliche...

 

 

Humva is somewhat correct. Aside from that, I'll note there is a reason RPG's involving certain political movements and the wars they spawned are banned. Evidently, many people don't agree with you Lev. Just a note. A rather large and important one.

 

My problem is more in line with realism. I make sure to read actual accounts of war, tactics, and how the soldiers feel about it when I'm involved in such an RPG. Simply because I bother to do the research and put real, concrete effort into my tactics and play soldiers, as soldiers, doesn't mean I'm "dark". War isn't nice, war isn't fair. My approach to it in RPG's reflects this.

Edited August 12, 2013 by Basilisk

[JiMing]

 

I apologize if I misinterpreted it. But even if your interpretation is the correct one, my point remains the same. If people think the RPG is mocking something, it's their problem. Nothing is changed. If someone was actually willing to write an RPG to go on a quest, slay the dragon, save the princess, and get back home and actually play the story straight I'd be more than willing to play it. It's rather sad when "avoiding the cliche" becomes the cliche...

Humva is somewhat correct. Aside from that, I'll note there is a reason RPG's involving certain political movements and the wars they spawned are banned. Evidently, many people don't agree with you Lev. Just a note. A rather large and important one. My problem is more in line with realism. I make sure to read actual accounts of war, tactics, and how the soldiers feel about it when I'm involved in such an RPG. Simply because I bother to do the research and put real, concrete effort into my tactics and play soldiers, as soldiers, doesn't mean I'm "dark". War isn't nice, war isn't fair. My approach to it an RPG's reflects this.

While I agree that war is not something to take lightly, my opinion still stands that Smash Bros. is not war. Realism also does not have to be applied to Smash Bros., which I know is a big turn-off for a lot of RPers.