[OOC] Communications

Attention!
As a follow-up to my previous mention of codes, I've made two new polls: (1) Coding Revision and (2) Active Plots thread

Do me a favor and read up on what I mean and cast your vote! You could help sculpt some of the future additions to Beta Protocol.

@LokiofSP Randomfella NecroKnight ChazGhost The Regal Rper Retro-Grey One Mean Ghost sitanomoto D3lmoniko AshleyTheNarwhal Life. ShadowBroker Sopranos @The Great Catsby ThatGuyWithSouvlaki

You continue to impress with the sheer drove and attention you dole out, Sir Les Paul so props. Apologies for my absence. Pneumonia followed by my house's foundation being lifted followed by a broken pipe and flooding making me homeless for a few months has wrecked any schedule I had for fun. Sorry to the Bludhaven gang but I really don't have bandwidth to run anything for now. Hope your peeps have found other homes at least.

Epiphany said:

You continue to impress with the sheer drove and attention you dole out, Sir Les Paul so props. Apologies for my absence. Pneumonia followed by my house's foundation being lifted followed by a broken pipe and flooding making me homeless for a few months has wrecked any schedule I had for fun. Sorry to the Bludhaven gang but I really don't have bandwidth to run anything for now. Hope your peeps have found other homes at least.

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I don't know if you've seen the recent editions, but the RP is being redirected. Instead of using the repeatedly failed multi-city system (which likely only failed due to a hasty implementation process), I'm working on a more centralized, developed plotline with the Titans Initiative before branching out. Bludhaven has effectively been shut down a while in preparing for the shift.

Attention!
Re-introducing the Beta Protocol Discord by popular demand!

Here's the link: https://discord.gg/uybsujb (set to never expire)

Attention
Alright! Introducing you all to a surprise. Mostly those involved in the Titans Initiative, but still interesting for everyone. I'm going to be implementing a point system based on activity and performance. I'll be calling it the Hero Points System. How does it work? Well, in a few ways. I'm already going to be looking at things like posting, consistency, weekly bonuses for teamwork or everyone in a group completing a cycle, helping out fellow players, 'streaks' for continuous activity, and so on.

What can you earn? Well, a chance to develop your character, perhaps in their abilities or training. Maybe even a scene we script out and play. A new item, maybe a 'bent' rule--there are a ton of ways I can reward players and I intend to.

I actually have ALL of this finished and set aside, but I don't want to just throw something up and say "them's the rules"--I want to know what you guys want, too. What would you guys look forward to as a reward? What would you guys save up 250 Hero points for instead of just buying a 50 pointer? Give me a list. PM me! Discuss it. This isn't just rewards, either. What would you like to be rewarded for? What do you think would encourage you guys?

Here's a peak at the rough outline I have now: https://www.rpnation.com/threads/hero-points.349047/

Those cards take a bit more coding than I care to admit. Excuse the color palette, too; it is the rough draft of that. Spacing and borders were my priority.

This is part of the future of Beta Protocol and the Titans Initiative. Surprise, surprise.

@LokiofSP Randomfella NecroKnight ChazGhost The Regal Rper Retro-Grey One Mean Ghost sitanomoto D3lmoniko AshleyTheNarwhal Life. ShadowBroker Sopranos @The Great Catsby ThatGuyWithSouvlaki The Comet

If you're looking for reward ideas...

1. You've got training covered. New power? New facet of an existing power?
2. Spend hero points to 'purchase' the use of a backstory character in an existing scene or storyline? To ensure the player character automatically has an emotional connection to what's going on and/or a way of uniquely contributing to conversations with the NPC in terms of their role in the plot.
3. New item's not a bad idea but you might come up with a few sample items that could be purchased, as a way of giving people an idea of what they can shoot for and about how expensive it'll be.
4. For a top end purchase, let them buy a sidekick? Get their very own Robin?

By and large, the best purchase any player can make with hero points is something that gets them time and attention. So unique scripted scenes, training montages, side quests, even a debriefing from a boss are all good ways to go.

Speaking just for myself, unlocking Scyleia's Amazon abilities would obviously be desirable for her. Having a chance to connect with her family would be worth spending points on for me with/without Amazon half/quarter blood intrigue to deal with. What's most motivating to me as a player is the chance to dig into plot so whether it's something you give or something I can pay for, I'm game either way.

Epiphany said:

You've got training covered. New power? New facet of an existing power?

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This is actually the only example I used as a card. I called it "Ability Advancement" and rest assured, it would do precisely what you are describing.

Epiphany said:

Spend hero points to 'purchase' the use of a backstory character in an existing scene or storyline? To ensure the player character automatically has an emotional connection to what's going on and/or a way of uniquely contributing to conversations with the NPC in terms of their role in the plot.

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This is an interesting dynamic on two parts. First, I normally highly encourage players to integrate themselves in the RP as deeply as they can. What this would do is set the precedent for potential retroactive continuity... and that is interesting. I may make a Retcon card just for this. I think the best use would be to have one of these on standby as the game progresses and make it a high-point card so that one has to distinctively want it to earn it. Specifically, you can 'combo' cards together which I'll talk about later and a card like this would probably be most effective amplifying another.

Still, I encourage players to try and deeply root themselves in the plot/setting if possible. I know at times, that won't be possible, so this is a good idea as a follow-up.

Epiphany said:

New item's not a bad idea but you might come up with a few sample items that could be purchased, as a way of giving people an idea of what they can shoot for and about how expensive it'll be.

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The way I have it set out, there will be different "tiers" of weapons/equipment and I'll give examples. I think the highest tier will be absolutely stupid things, like the Commander's time-tech. I don't want to explain the scaling, but it would take a lot of time and investment to get it--and because of that, the card will involve a plotline too. It's good you brought this up because others can kind'a see what I have in mind and make commentary.

Epiphany said:

For a top end purchase, let them buy a sidekick? Get their very own Robin?

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This is one of the tough ones, and for two reasons. Hero Points will be exclusive to the Titans a while. Titans are Junior Agents. It doesn't quite fit the theme to have a sidekick. Notably, however, I am considering a card delegated to establishing more permanent team dynamics, somewhat like the Bat Family. I'm thinking of it like an MMORPG where you can have multiple players 'pay in' to register a Guild, just applied to the RP. Notably, I'm considering actually only allowing secondary Titans by purchase of a high-end card, but at the same time, I'm feeling that may be counter-intuitive. We'll see.

Epiphany said:

By and large, the best purchase any player can make with hero points is something that gets them time and attention. So unique scripted scenes, training montages, side quests, even a debriefing from a boss are all good ways to go.

Click to expand...

I wholeheartedly agree and intend on somehow doing this. Actually, I'm considering making this something to where you can combo several cards together to get a larger impact. Let's say you could purchase up to 5 of a certain slot and that would determine the impact of a scene. Thus, the longer you save up, the more you get.

And, don't forget return investments. Buy more scenes, you get more chances to earn more points. So, smart investors might end up getting a good loot in the long run.

As for the rest of what you were describing, all of that should have some potential to happen.

Another thing I'm considering is the 'investment' aspect of this system. Let's say you want a high-point card. By putting it in the 'investment slot' on a template I'll create, you can invest up to a set amount of Hero Points and I'll match them--however, once you invest them, you cannot take them out.

Other things I might create purchases for short-term 'stim packs', like a multiplier for a week you know you will be posting heavily. Obviously, I'll have to balance it out so that you can potentially get a lot out of it, but not so that it's a weekly abused purchase. Others might be permanent bonuses to the 'investment slot', like a higher match rate, the ability to put in more points per week, etc. I'm actually going to create a Hero Card limit and limits on certain hero cards, but then have cards to up those very limits.

I play a lot of card games, so I have plenty of ways to do this. If someone likes to micromanage or min-max games, they're gonna have quite a bit of fun.

Hmm... I like the idea of a points system, just because it makes it almost like a game within a game. My only concern is the possibility of people altering character responses just to gain points, rather than to stick to their personality. My personal opinion is that points should be awarded based off things like post consistency, plot relevance, moving the scene along, etc. Basically stuff that's on us as writers, not so much on how our characters behave(or don't...).

An option I'd like is 'Random Drop' or 'Clue' cards. Depending on the situation, you can either find a location dependent item that your character can then use, or you can unlock a clue to the current mission. Something that gives your character more insight to the situation than they'd normally have. Say, for instance, they stumble on a shipping manifest on a recon mission on accident that lets them know that the cargo is highly explosive.

I like the idea of turning the point system shop to items, new abilities and powers. I just wish Drake could use it...

Anyways maybe points award for entertainment of the post and how enjoyable/exciting it is to read.

ChazGhost said:

I just wish Drake could use it...

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Well, Drake is a Gotham-based anti-hero, so he's a double-whammy against the system. lol But I think the biggest thing is that, uh, he's got one of the most powerful abilities on a character thus far, including the Titans which have a higher power standard.

One Mean Ghost said:

My only concern is the possibility of people altering character responses just to gain points, rather than to stick to their personality.

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This is gonna be where execution on my part will matter most. What I look for in trends here will basically dictate if this becomes a problem.

One Mean Ghost said:

My personal opinion is that points should be awarded based off things like post consistency, plot relevance, moving the scene along, etc. Basically stuff that's on us as writers, not so much on how our characters behave(or don't...)

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These are the exact things I'll be rewarding points for, I believe. I don't believe there is a lot of room for altering responses.

One Mean Ghost said:

An option I'd like is 'Random Drop' or 'Clue' cards.

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This is actually not something I had initially considered. I normally find things like this to be poor writing or too great of circumstance. In movies and whatnot, I'm able to point out when convenience is just too great or when the heroes happenstance is just too great. It normally irks me. But, making it into a card seems more justifiable and it could be something that ends up being a minor boon to everyone.

Alright, if everyone whom did reply or that is curious would please do me a favor and take a quick look at the Hero Points page:

https://www.rpnation.com/threads/hero-points.349047/#post-8102162

I have fleshed it out A LOT more, including some of the mechanics for the point economy, the card examples and of course how one will earn points.

Sir Les Paul said:

Alright, if everyone whom did reply or that is curious would please do me a favor and take a quick look at the Hero Points page:

https://www.rpnation.com/threads/hero-points.349047/#post-8102162

I have fleshed it out A LOT more, including some of the mechanics for the point economy, the card examples and of course how one will earn points.

Click to expand...

Looks awesome so far! Very in depth. I really can't wait to see what all the cards turn out to be! So far the entire concept is coming along nicely. The hype is real!

Sir Les Paul

Yo. I can't find that new posting code...where did you hide it?

It says left/right. Choose one by deleting the other, slash included. If you use the rich text editor, there's a small chance it might break--especially if you try to preview it before deleting the unwanted text.

Sir Les Paul said:

Code:

[side=left/right][b]Location:
Tags:[/b][/side]

It says left/right. Choose one by deleting the other, slash included. If you use the rich text editor, there's a small chance it might break--especially if you try to preview it before deleting the unwanted text.

Click to expand...

Thanks.

Attention!
Alright, ladies and gents, the Hero System is finished to the degree you can actually look at it and see all the ways to earn points and the cards. Oh, and I believe I made 42 total cards. The Hero Point System won't start until I make the next rounds for the Titans, but it'll be a good idea to take a look at it and see what's on the table. There's a lot. A whole lot...

Edit: I added an Active Plots portion to the first page of the Main OOC. It is at the bottom and it will be dated every time I update it.

@LokiofSP Randomfella NecroKnight ChazGhost The Regal Rper Retro-Grey One Mean Ghost sitanomoto D3lmoniko AshleyTheNarwhal Life. ShadowBroker Sopranos @The Great Catsby ThatGuyWithSouvlaki The Comet

Attention!
We are officially a Hosted Project Once more! Now that I have more control, I'm going to be toying around with coding and functionality... the big thing is that you all need to become MEMBERS! Yeah.

Oh, and now that I can, I'm giving The Titans Initiative its own sub-forum entirely.

@LokiofSP Randomfella NecroKnight ChazGhost The Regal Rper Retro-Grey One Mean Ghost sitanomoto D3lmoniko AshleyTheNarwhal Life. ShadowBroker Sopranos @The Great Catsby ThatGuyWithSouvlaki The Comet BainOfBridges Winter Saint The Succubi Queen

Announcement
In An Introduction to the League, I've updated the Character Creation entry to have a whole tab dedicated to the Titans.

Also, I won't be making an official update until I finish all the changes, then I'll do a comprehensive one.

Announcement
Ladies and gentlemen, this announcement is likely going to be one of the most important in a minute. My desired start date for the Titans Initiative IC is August 20th, 2017. This is a fair amount of time for everyone straggling along to make sheets, get posts in, so on and so forth. By then, I will start moving things to a more active phase regardless of what else is going on.


@LokiofSP Randomfella NecroKnight ChazGhost The Regal Rper Retro-Grey One Mean Ghost sitanomoto D3lmoniko AshleyTheNarwhal Life. ShadowBroker Sopranos @The Great Catsby ThatGuyWithSouvlaki BainOfBridges Winter Saint Drakonsheart The DoomyFish SavingStar

Randomfella NecroKnight Retro-Grey One Mean Ghost sitanomoto D3lmoniko AshleyTheNarwhal Life. ShadowBroker ThatGuyWithSouvlaki BainOfBridges Drakonsheart SavingStar Seraph Darkfire

All those potentially involved in the Titans, do remember: to use the Hero Points system, you need to PM me a copy of the template provided for me to post. That's how I'll be personally keeping track of your weekly point updates.

Neon Valkyrie Susanoo Drakonsheart Retro-Grey Sopranos fin animegirl20

You all still need to finish characters. The deadline I set in place weeks ago is the 20th. I can fudge it some by staggering out introductions, but I'm a timely person. I don't like to wait or make my players wait. Let's at least try some forward motion.

sitanomoto

I'd really like to finish up the Bludhaven scene so I can freely move on without convoluted timelines with Tim Drake.

ShadowBroker

Unfortunately, you and I are going to have to work on some type of retrospective flashblack for Huge as to joining the Titans. The Bludhaven posts have not quite gone as quickly (or succinctly) as desired.

Oswald_C_Cobblepot

You also have a character to finish. We're waiting on you in Gotham.

One Mean Ghost NecroKnight Randomfella

I'm not holding back the other Titans on your prolonged scene, so... that's a thing. I would have liked to sync everything up, but I planned in case it didn't. Still, the longer scenes like this go on, the longer it takes to push things along, and I'm dividing up plotlines so others aren't slowed to a halt.

D3lmoniko

Your post in LA, if you even pay attention.




That all said, it catches you all up with where you are/what you're doing. I had about three times as many potential people making characters, but some of them have been offline varying between three days and two weeks. So, I'm just dropping them due to inactivity. And, that's how it's going to begin to be. Unexplained or mis-communicated inactivity will result in a cut. I don't like things being held back and we're about to be in a modular setting where individual players and characters won't be held back. I get that we all have lives, but we all choose to be here and put forth the effort into character creation--so let's not waste it.

That said, most of you don't have Hero Point Profiles in yet. Quite frankly, I don't care. If they're not in when I start updating them, you just won't get points. *Shrugs*

As for the rest of you whom have created characters and maintained yourself in a timely fashion, I applaud you. I will be rewarding you with the first line of introductions into the RP via Tim Drake soon enough, and staggering them out so that hopefully we keep enough character independence that no one is held back.

It's the eighteenth. I'm going to begin initializing the Titans tomorrow with the official opening for the 20th. The RP will be closed and only those making characters now (or in the next 36 hours) will be on the tentative list. More importantly, it's sink or swim. I'm not afraid to let the stragglers be washed ashore. I have put massive efforts into this endeavor, a dozen or more players have put in just as much to make themselves part of this... if you can't find the commitment or passion to keep it going, then I won't supplement either for you.

I have faith that all of you are talented, creative writers capable of making this an amazing roleplay. The key to that is attitude. Even with some set backs and recent rulings made or this new sink or swim environment, a positive, forward attitude will make a massive difference in whether your natural skill and ambition help add to this story and develop your character.

Sir Les Paul I know, I am sorry... but work and some other errands have taken up my time; I haven't given up on this

Finished that up, Chief!

The first post of the Titans is officially up. I'm only cycling in the people that came with Tim and then three more for the first 'set', to keep posting fluid. I've already linked everyone.

Here's my gameplan. The first set of Titans are in the past, I suppose. They'll be the last ones Tim greets. If the scene presently isn't over by that time, I'm going to timeskip it. I hate to do that, but I'll need to break up those three to put in new groups and keep things going smooth. Besides, it was requested. I'd like you guys to get things done, but if you can't, I'll make this last compromise.

Gotham will go on as usual. Because it's in a whole different place.

Everyone still making characters has some 'breathing room' as I stagger out introductions.

As for what happened in Bludhaven, I didn't feel a need to RP out meeting up or making the flight. So, I timeskipped. The only person this is really somewhat pertinent to is ShadowBroker . As I offered, you and I can work on the scene that convinced Huge to become a Titan later as long as we know he's joined now. If this is a problem, PM me. If not, PM me anyway so we can hash out precisely how we want to go about his transition.

Everyone else, I do hope you enjoy reading these introductions. To those that will be in the second, third or potentially even fourth cycle, I want you to know that I firmly believe we'll actually get things done faster by doing it in small groups instead of all at once--waiting for 10 some odd responses to move on takes forever. Six is still somewhat big, but I needed to explain what happened with Alphus, Huge and Rebecca. What I want you to do is really try to enjoy reading what you will be seeing.

As for what happens after this introduction, Tim (and I) are going to create a survey. A list of items. In reality, you'll fill out a short survey in IC and a short one for me OOC. The function if this will be how Tim decides to group people up, kind'a like the Sorting Hat in Harry Potter. Also, I will have some OOC-related questions that will help me put you on good teams as well. That'll all be before Tim adjusts the training regiment Agent Love first created.

As for why I'm doing this all in OOC, I know a lot is going on and I want all of you to have the chance to stay informed on it until things have settled down.

So what is the time difference between our current activities and this scene in IC time?