Advice/Help Bad with names + plot incorporation?

[SodaToast]

Though I love world building, I'm terrible at coming up with names for my ideas.

I'm currently working on a detailed project about conflict between robots and humans and I need a name fit for the robot police force that enforce the laws within the city (similar to the police of our own).

They will be physically enhanced compared to the average human and will take orders directly from higher ups, who also happen to be robots.

In addition, the robots have all the authority within the city and enjoy all the luxuries. Though the police force isn't particularly harsh, they are merciless when it comes to treating those who have slipped up.



Secondly, and I believe I've already asked this before but didn't receive a clear and concise answer (which, there simply might not be one), how should the GM incorporate a plot into the RP without...well, railroading/making decisions for the other characters?

Would the GM's own character be used to influence the decisions within the RP to match the planned plot or would they simply make "NPC or Non-Character posts" in which they are simply describing the situation for the other players in a narrator-esque fashion.


If you are confused about my question(s), I'll be happy to clarify below.

Thanks.

 

[adrian_]

For the police i recommend the CDaLED the Civil Defense and Law Enforcement Division.

Also, having a narrator is a great way of pushing the characters towards the plot, without making them feel claustrophobic, i recommend adding side missions to give them a feel of freedom. Make them feel like they're making a difference, push them to do hearts and minds type stuff.

 

[adrian_]

A good derogatory name for the CDaLED would be the CD's, as in, hinting at them being useless.

 

[SodaToast]

For the police i recommend the CDaLED the Civil Defense and Law Enforcement Division.

Also, having a narrator is a great way of pushing the characters towards the plot, without making them feel claustrophobic, i recommend adding side missions to give them a feel of freedom.

I like the acronym, but I'll probably shorten it to LED. Credit will be given if that becomes the official name.

So, it wouldn't be "awkward" if, inbetween my own IC posts, I just added in a couple narrator posts to push people in the right direction while at the same time not being too forceful?

And yeah, I considered side missions and there will definitely be some planned. I just want to be careful that they're not too extensive and pull players away from the main plot (though that rarely ever happens anyways).

A good derogatory name for the CDaLED would be the CD's, as in, hinting at them being useless.

Well, they aren't necessarily "useless," just extremely biased and unforgiving when it comes to dealing with the human population. But yes, that would be a good term that humans may refer to them as.

Thanks! c:

EDIT: Just thought of another derogatory term for the robot cops: LEDheads.

I find it catchy, lmao.

 

[adrian_]

So, it wouldn't be "awkward" if, inbetween my own IC posts, I just added in a couple narrator posts to push people in the right direction while at the same time not being too forceful?

Definitely not, ive been in multiple roleplays with narrators and (in my case) made me feel like i was advancing the plot, but, don't say "Hey guys, you should go to the park because theres lots of suspicious LED activity.", say, make some bbcode (Phone friendly) that says something along the lines of, "Breaking News! LED activity seen at Walworth's park, thought to be rebel hideout! I'm Dianna Screener at Freedom News.". But i don't know, it's your choice.

 

[SodaToast]

Definitely not, ive been in multiple roleplays with narrators and (in my case) made me feel like i was advancing the plot, but, don't say "Hey guys, you should go to the park because theres lots of suspicious LED activity.", say, make some bbcode (Phone friendly) that says something along the lines of, "Breaking News! LED activity seen at Walworth's park, thought to be rebel hideout! I'm Dianna Screener at Freedom News.". But i don't know, it's your choice.

Fit it in so it doesn't deter from the flow of the RP but influencing enough for the players. Fair enough.

 

[adrian_]

Fit it in so it doesn't deter from the flow of the RP but influencing enough for the players. Fair enough.

Good luck with the RP.

 

[adrian_]

EDIT: Just thought of another derogatory term for the robot cops: LEDheads.

I love it.

 

[rae2nerdy]

The best way I've seen GM's keep a roleplayer on task is to simply set up mini missions throughout the roleplay. You can do this by breaking up whatever your over-arching plot is into smaller sub-sections.

For instance for years I did a gifted school roleplay where students competed in team-building class missions throughout the year to train for a tournament style graduation exam at the end of each year.

So prior to the roleplay even opening I came up with a team building class mission for every subject available at that school, two graduation style exam scenarios, and a small selection of "holiday breaks" which would just be fun things the characters could do that didn't effect the over-all plot.

And ( this is very important ) I informed all the players who signed up that I had done this. I told them they were welcome to submit their own class missions if they wanted and I would review them for future installment as long as they fit the roleplay. I also listened to see if they might want to add in more "holiday breaks" or what I called "shenanigans" which were just the fun side-plots or tangents that would help keep things fresh.

Now each class mission, holiday break, or shenanigan had a specific time limit. Usually I gave players about 2 weeks to post for whatever activity was going down in the IC ( you can edit time limits as you see the relative activity of your players )

At the end of the two weeks the activity would be over and I would move us on to the next one.

This was usually accompanied by at least two posts in the OOC warning players a change was coming and in the IC thread I would simply post an updated Setting Post.


This usually had

- Brief recap of activity that just took place and the relative score of the players involved. ( again my rp was built to be somewhat combative in nature so you do not have to actually include this if you don't think it's necessary )

- The Current Date and Time of the RP
- Location
- Set Up For the Current Activity

Spoiler: Example

Mission Recap
The Red Team won Capture The Flag through a underhanded alliance with Team Awesome, who were double crossed at the last minute and sent to the Principals office on accusations of cheating. Pacifisms Unite, proved that the power of friendship was no match for high powered explosives and are currently recovering in the hospital wing. Blue Team has vowed bloody vengance for their disasterous defeat and is eager to tackle their next task.

Time Stamp
November XX , 5:00am

Location
Girls Dorm B

Mission Assignment
Unknown operatives have broken into Girls Dorm B and made off with members of each team [ name of characters here ]. They are drugged and dragged off into an unknown location deep in the woods around the school. They are locked in a rickety cabin with limited food and no visible means of escape.

Their remaining team members are roused by faculty advisers and informed that they have until sun down to find and "rescue" their teammates or they will flunk out of the school year.

GMs Notes : This mission will have a two week post limit. Please get your replies in within that time. Any team that does not at least have one member post in this time limit will be disqualified from the school year and sent to "remedial classes"

Now your posts will obviously look different as your doing a different kind of roleplay but the idea is simply you essentially give your players small objectives that will cumulatively lead up to the greater plot.

 

[Nogoodname]

The best way I've seen GM's keep a roleplayer on task is to simply set up mini missions throughout the roleplay. You can do this by breaking up whatever your over-arching plot is into smaller sub-sections.

For instance for years I did a gifted school roleplay where students competed in team-building class missions throughout the year to train for a tournament style graduation exam at the end of each year.

So prior to the roleplay even opening I came up with a team building class mission for every subject available at that school, two graduation style exam scenarios, and a small selection of "holiday breaks" which would just be fun things the characters could do that didn't effect the over-all plot.

And ( this is very important ) I informed all the players who signed up that I had done this. I told them they were welcome to submit their own class missions if they wanted and I would review them for future installment as long as they fit the roleplay. I also listened to see if they might want to add in more "holiday breaks" or what I called "shenanigans" which were just the fun side-plots or tangents that would help keep things fresh.

Now each class mission, holiday break, or shenanigan had a specific time limit. Usually I gave players about 2 weeks to post for whatever activity was going down in the IC ( you can edit time limits as you see the relative activity of your players )

At the end of the two weeks the activity would be over and I would move us on to the next one.

This was usually accompanied by at least two posts in the OOC warning players a change was coming and in the IC thread I would simply post an updated Setting Post.


This usually had

- Brief recap of activity that just took place and the relative score of the players involved. ( again my rp was built to be somewhat combative in nature so you do not have to actually include this if you don't think it's necessary )

- The Current Date and Time of the RP
- Location
- Set Up For the Current Activity

Spoiler: Example

Mission Recap
The Red Team won Capture The Flag through a underhanded alliance with Team Awesome, who were double crossed at the last minute and sent to the Principals office on accusations of cheating. Pacifisms Unite, proved that the power of friendship was no match for high powered explosives and are currently recovering in the hospital wing. Blue Team has vowed bloody vengance for their disasterous defeat and is eager to tackle their next task.

Time Stamp
November XX , 5:00am

Location
Girls Dorm B

Mission Assignment
Unknown operatives have broken into Girls Dorm B and made off with members of each team [ name of characters here ]. They are drugged and dragged off into an unknown location deep in the woods around the school. They are locked in a rickety cabin with limited food and no visible means of escape.

Their remaining team members are roused by faculty advisers and informed that they have until sun down to find and "rescue" their teammates or they will flunk out of the school year.

GMs Notes : This mission will have a two week post limit. Please get your replies in within that time. Any team that does not at least have one member post in this time limit will be disqualified from the school year and sent to "remedial classes"

Now your posts will obviously look different as your doing a different kind of roleplay but the idea is simply you essentially give your players small objectives that will cumulatively lead up to the greater plot.

Question, during this RP did you ever have trouble with nobody completing their objective in the time limit? I'm running an RP in a format that sounds fairly close to yours and I'm scared of that happening.

 

[SodaToast]

The best way I've seen GM's keep a roleplayer on task is to simply set up mini missions throughout the roleplay. You can do this by breaking up whatever your over-arching plot is into smaller sub-sections.

For instance for years I did a gifted school roleplay where students competed in team-building class missions throughout the year to train for a tournament style graduation exam at the end of each year.

So prior to the roleplay even opening I came up with a team building class mission for every subject available at that school, two graduation style exam scenarios, and a small selection of "holiday breaks" which would just be fun things the characters could do that didn't effect the over-all plot.

And ( this is very important ) I informed all the players who signed up that I had done this. I told them they were welcome to submit their own class missions if they wanted and I would review them for future installment as long as they fit the roleplay. I also listened to see if they might want to add in more "holiday breaks" or what I called "shenanigans" which were just the fun side-plots or tangents that would help keep things fresh.

Now each class mission, holiday break, or shenanigan had a specific time limit. Usually I gave players about 2 weeks to post for whatever activity was going down in the IC ( you can edit time limits as you see the relative activity of your players )

At the end of the two weeks the activity would be over and I would move us on to the next one.

This was usually accompanied by at least two posts in the OOC warning players a change was coming and in the IC thread I would simply post an updated Setting Post.


This usually had

- Brief recap of activity that just took place and the relative score of the players involved. ( again my rp was built to be somewhat combative in nature so you do not have to actually include this if you don't think it's necessary )

- The Current Date and Time of the RP
- Location
- Set Up For the Current Activity

Spoiler: Example

Mission Recap
The Red Team won Capture The Flag through a underhanded alliance with Team Awesome, who were double crossed at the last minute and sent to the Principals office on accusations of cheating. Pacifisms Unite, proved that the power of friendship was no match for high powered explosives and are currently recovering in the hospital wing. Blue Team has vowed bloody vengance for their disasterous defeat and is eager to tackle their next task.

Time Stamp
November XX , 5:00am

Location
Girls Dorm B

Mission Assignment
Unknown operatives have broken into Girls Dorm B and made off with members of each team [ name of characters here ]. They are drugged and dragged off into an unknown location deep in the woods around the school. They are locked in a rickety cabin with limited food and no visible means of escape.

Their remaining team members are roused by faculty advisers and informed that they have until sun down to find and "rescue" their teammates or they will flunk out of the school year.

GMs Notes : This mission will have a two week post limit. Please get your replies in within that time. Any team that does not at least have one member post in this time limit will be disqualified from the school year and sent to "remedial classes"

Now your posts will obviously look different as your doing a different kind of roleplay but the idea is simply you essentially give your players small objectives that will cumulatively lead up to the greater plot.

Very in-depth planning and it sounds like it was a fun experience! Hopefully, with enough planning, I can achieve something similar to that. Also, your notes and tips will be very helpful to me in the near future. Thanks!

Question, during this RP did you ever have trouble with nobody completing their objective in the time limit? I'm running an RP in a format that sounds fairly close to yours and I'm scared of that happening.

I'm curious about this, too. Also, nice username. Very relatable.

 

[rae2nerdy]

Question, during this RP did you ever have trouble with nobody completing their objective in the time limit? I'm running an RP in a format that sounds fairly close to yours and I'm scared of that happening.

Not really I mean I had people leave ( I had to re-start the plot a fair number of times which did high light a few of the flaws in my personal method of posting ) but none of the missions were ever entirely incomplete.

This is because I implemented two safe guards

STAND ALONE MISSIONS
Given that the roleplay was a school setting I was able to make all the class missions stand alone. Meaning that you did not have to pass or complete the mission in order to move onto the next one. As long as you participated ( more on that below ) you could continue taking part in missions all the way up to the end.

Now for missions that build on one another this is where activity checks come in handy.

ACTIVITY CHECKS : GROUP
Now when I say I put time limits at 2 weeks that was simply my starting time limit based on the general activity level of the people on my previous sites ( in general people posted every other day or at least three times a week ). If however you notice that your players are posting more rapidly you can shorten that OR if you notice they are consistently not able to complete their missions you can always lengthen it.

The thing to keep an eye on is the average post speed for the majority of your players. You will likely have one or two people who are outliers ( post faster or slower than others ) but there should be an average speed for most of your players and you'll want to build your time limits around that.

ACTIVITY CHECKS : INDIVIDUAL
Now as I said I would post in the OOC at least twice before moving on from the current activity. This way everyone was always aware when they needed to get a reply in. And I also made it clear that if you were going to be unable to make the window that you could contact me. And not only that but as long as you were not kicked out for ooc bad behavior ( being rude, controlling other people's characters, etc. ) that you were welcome to return after an absence and re-apply for the roleplay if you and your character were phased out due to inactivity.

TEAM PARTICIPATION
For my particular roleplay I broke up all the characters into teams ( usually four people in a team but sometimes I would increase the number if there were a lot of characters signed up ).

Now this proved useful or problematic depending on player participation but the general idea was to allow the story to move forward even if a few individual players happened to bow out ( I limited people to only a few characters so you wouldn't have one player taking up half the slots on multiple teams ).

The idea was that if I made IC participation contingent on teams that I would allow people to continue forward in the roleplay even if they couldn't necessarily make every individual time period for each class mission.

As all that was required for a team to progress was a single person to post. Now again the missions were also stand alone so if a Team did not participate they were not kicked out of the roleplay they were simply given a failing score for that one mission.

Now the problem that I ran into is I'm sure one you can see a mile away - what happens when one person is consistently asked to be the person to post for their team and the others kind of just slide along.

Well that's where individual activity checks came in. If a person was not able to post for four weeks ( two missions ) without prior warning their character was written out of the story.

And their teammates where either given an NPC to round out their numbers OR ( if multiple people in a team dropped out ) the remaining members were assimilated into other active teams.

Hopefully this helps feel free to ask if you have any further questions.