Other To-be GM (Hopefully), please help!

[Eshspoyeofdoom]

Ok so... Hey guys!

I really, really want to host an RP! (Yay!) But, unfortunately, I've got a few problems in my way...

1) I'm completely out of ideas, which is strange to say the least. So if you've got a few, please recommend me something!

2) Despite roleplaying for a while now, I've never actually been a GM! So for all you veteran GMs there, do you have any tips or things I should look out for when hosting an RP?

 

[Bone2pick]

1) I'm completely out of ideas, which is strange to say the least. So if you've got a few, please recommend me something!

That is strange. Do you really not have a few roleplay ideas you've been dreaming to cook up or are you just afraid that the ones you have aren't good enough?

 

[Eshspoyeofdoom]

That is strange. Do you really not have a few roleplay ideas you've been dreaming to cook up or are you just afraid that the ones you have aren't good enough?

I've got a few floating around but I just seem unable to develop them into whole plots. I was just thinking that a few suggestions might be able to inspire and help me more.

 

[Bone2pick]

What kind of stories do you like to read/write? What kind of setting & genre are you imagining? Are you aiming for a group or 1 x 1 RP?

 

[Eshspoyeofdoom]

What kind of stories do you like to read/write? What kind of setting & genre are you imagining? Are you aiming for a group or 1 x 1 RP?

I like to stick to Modern/Realistic, maybe a few decades back or a few years in the future. Genre? Gritty. Dark. Not entirely keen on Fandoms, War or Zombies. Something familiar but new. I'm thinking about a detective/murder-mystery but I'm not great at making up twists or complicated plots (although I wish I did). Because I'm kinda new to this thing, I want to keep groups small...no more than say 5 or 6 but not exactly 1 x 1.

 

[Bone2pick]

Play to your strengths. Keep it simple. Forget making something "new" and focus on putting out something you're proud of. Start brainstorming a war, zombie, or mystery RP (or a combination of them) and take notes on elements you're excited to include. It's up to you to get the ball rolling. Don't get stuck coming out of the gate.

Later, once you have an RP blueprint, you can seek out forum help to smooth out any rough spots.

 

[W. Sharp]

I've hosted a few RPs before, and one of the most frustrating things that I experienced during my time being the GM is having to give someone the boot– since I tend to be a really kind and caring person. So here is my guide on...

How to Give Someone The Boot.
​

During your time hosting the chat, there is huge chance that you will run into a bad roleplayer. A person that just has a very overpowered character, a false-pacifist, a character that is loved by every existing thing in the universe and is a sweet little cinnamon roll that is able to grind every other roleplayer's character into dust, one that could fix every problem instantly and stop any drama that would help plot progression because they're so sensitive and want everyone to be happy. Or atleast one of those things. There are many ways you could go about this, either rudely, calmly. My best tip is to keep stuff classy. Just keep calm, start giving warnings to the roleplayer, even advice. But if they either start getting irked or ignore the advice you're giving, it's time to send them back to boot camp. You should start by explaining why you want to kick them out, using logic and actual things that they've done/said. There is no need to be furious, just try to stay very calm, because you don't want to look look like the asshole. You could say the same thing that you would say in a rude manner, in a short and simpler way that would resolve things better.

Example of a Rude Explanation:

"GOD F*CKING DAMMIT WHY DO YOU KEEP RUINING EVERYTHING IN THIS DAMN RP, YOU'RE SUCH AN OVERPOWERED D*CKHEAD AND YOU SHOULD KILL YOURSELF."

Example of a Classy Explanation:

"Listen, buddy. You've been doing some pretty shady stuff over the past few days, and ruining the fun for everyone in the roleplay. I simply do not want to bother with putting up with your character anymore, you are no longer part of the RP."

The cursing and yelling makes you sound a lot more hostile, which is not what you want when arguing with someone.

Note: another thing that I would recommend is setting up a team of people you trust to help you with keeping the RP safe and fun for everyone.

 

[Proper Brit]

Here's something I used to do. Normally, I would try and create an NPC ally for my friends that would go along with them. This character would typically be a comedic release. The reason I did this is because of my generally quite serious homebrews. They would eventually become boring, so I added something like a dwarf with a silly accent. It would keep players entertained, which is the whole game's purpose, right? Hope it helped.

 

[Eshspoyeofdoom]

Play to your strengths. Keep it simple. Forget making something "new" and focus on putting out something you're proud of. Start brainstorming a war, zombie, or mystery RP (or a combination of them) and take notes on elements you're excited to include. It's up to you to get the ball rolling. Don't get stuck coming out of the gate.

Later, once you have an RP blueprint, you can seek out forum help to smooth out any rough spots.

I've hosted a few RPs before, and one of the most frustrating things that I experienced during my time being the GM is having to give someone the boot– since I tend to be a really kind and caring person. So here is my guide on...

How to Give Someone The Boot.
​

During your time hosting the chat, there is huge chance that you will run into a bad roleplayer. A person that just has a very overpowered character, a false-pacifist, a character that is loved by every existing thing in the universe and is a sweet little cinnamon roll that is able to grind every other roleplayer's character into dust, one that could fix every problem instantly and stop any drama that would help plot progression because they're so sensitive and want everyone to be happy. Or atleast one of those things. There are many ways you could go about this, either rudely, calmly. My best tip is to keep stuff classy. Just keep calm, start giving warnings to the roleplayer, even advice. But if they either start getting irked or ignore the advice you're giving, it's time to send them back to boot camp. You should start by explaining why you want to kick them out, using logic and actual things that they've done/said. There is no need to be furious, just try to stay very calm, because you don't want to look look like the asshole. You could say the same thing that you would say in a rude manner, in a short and simpler way that would resolve things better.

Example of a Rude Explanation:

"GOD F*CKING DAMMIT WHY DO YOU KEEP RUINING EVERYTHING IN THIS DAMN RP, YOU'RE SUCH AN OVERPOWERED D*CKHEAD AND YOU SHOULD KILL YOURSELF."

Example of a Classy Explanation:

"Listen, buddy. You've been doing some pretty shady stuff over the past few days, and ruining the fun for everyone in the roleplay. I simply do not want to bother with putting up with your character anymore, you are no longer part of the RP."

The cursing and yelling makes you sound a lot more hostile, which is not what you want when arguing with someone.

Note: another thing that I would recommend is setting up a team of people you trust to help you with keeping the RP safe and fun for everyone.

Here's something I used to do. Normally, I would try and create an NPC ally for my friends that would go along with them. This character would typically be a comedic release. The reason I did this is because of my generally quite serious homebrews. They would eventually become boring, so I added something like a dwarf with a silly accent. It would keep players entertained, which is the whole game's purpose, right? Hope it helped.

Thanks guys! This is great advice. I'll be sure to use them!

 

[iFreedawg]

This is gonna sound a little vague, and that's because it is. But try to think of a setting as a set of circumstances that generate aspirations and conflict.
And I try to think of plot as the insertion of tools and traps that can solve or worsen the conflicts.
So, for instance, a good questions to ask yourself when creating a setting would be - how can I make sure that even these toilet paper rolls generate conflict?
Or, how can the weather be a tool to solve or worsen the situation for our characters?

It's a pretty decent angle.

 

[Idea]

1) I'm completely out of ideas, which is strange to say the least. So if you've got a few, please recommend me something!

While I certainly have a bunch of ideas, I don't think this is something you should be asking of other people, for the simple reason that you shouldn't try to force it. GMing is hard work, and it can be a lot of pressure too. You can't deal with those things unless you are passionate about what you are trying to do. So I suggest you wait until you have an idea you really want but can't find it anywhere else. Then, you should try making your roleplay. But until then, it's probably best if you hold your horses a little.

2) Despite roleplaying for a while now, I've never actually been a GM! So for all you veteran GMs there, do you have any tips or things I should look out for when hosting an RP?

I just posted this in another thread with pretty much the same question, so here:

Before I say anything else, we need to get a hard truth out of the way. Even if you execute perfectly, that's still only 30% of what's neededed, in other words, not enough. A king can't rule without subjects and a roleplay can't live without players. What you can help your odds, but ultimately , your success or failure will be mostly luck if the draw. You need the right melting pot of players to form an active, lively and functional community around your roleplay, and to get them sufficiently close and cooperative to enjoy the particular style you chose for your roleplay. So 99/100 times, roleplays are just gonna die. It's a fact that one needs to accept before they start GMing, or there will many more hardships they will experience. Even getting a roleplay off the ground at all isn't easy at all.

That said, what experience I have I would like to try and share. Do of course take everything I say here with a grain of salt, but I hope it can be useful for you.

One thing I will always advise is planning. The more you can get solid and ready beforehand the more smoothly and intelligently you can introduce it to people, and the faster you can get things ready. While garnering interested, attempt to lay out a plan for every section your RP will need, and what will be in it. If possible, start writing those sections as soon as you get any interest. While this may seem like a potential waste of time, it can also potentially save you from having lost the players from the sheer wait. I also advise having a ready plot in mind, with openings, but already having some things set at least. Namely, in your interest checks you're gonna want to communicate what kind of characters the players will be playing (take a medieval war, the players ought to know if they're gonna be playing the ground troops, the generals, a special unit or whatever else), what the goal of the roleplay is (as in what the characters are ultimately supposed to be heading towards or trying to achieve), the general tone (more cheerful and slice of life-ey, more comedic, dark and gritty, that kind of thing) and of course, the technical details (post requirements, rules and barriers for entry like writing samples or limited number of players)



So by my recent experience, making a good roleplay first and foremost starts with asking yourself "what RP do I want to make?". I don't mean just the plot and setting, albeit those are important parts of the RP as well, but also the things of ultimate importance to the RP. Is there a message to communicate? Do you simply want to explore the concept of a particular world or form of magic? That kind of thing.
While many would answer they want an RP that lasts and everyone can have fun in, having that as your goal means you are ultimately willing to sacrifice every other aspect of the roleplay for that to happen. But anything needed for that goal, you won't budge on.

Having a goal will let you have a sense of direction for your own decisions as a GM, as not having one will make you inconsistent. Both ends of that particular spectrum, the tyrant GM and the GM that just goes along with everything, tend to be horrible experiences for players.


The second thing to note is there is a distinction between you as a GM and you as a player. Don't make your characters the center of the plot, don't be the exception to your own rules. Both of these can be infuriating and confusing, not to mention practically asking to become too self-centered to properly care for your player's needs. In short, while as a player you want to enjoy yourself, as a GM your goal should be the good of the RP you set out to make. You don't have the responsibilities of GMing as a player, so you shouldn't enjoy the power of a GM either. Keeping that in mind will help you balance out what needs to be done better, and get closer to the point of view your players experience with the limitations you set.



Now going more into the meat of your questions, what you want to keep a roleplay interesting boils down to three factors: competitive advantage, pacing and diversity. You want to give your players what they came for fresh and fast.
Competitive advantage is the answer to the question of why the players chose your roleplay among the hundreds available. What makes it interesting to begin with, what's your hook? Figuring hat out isn't easy but if the players aren't given a frequent supply of it, they will simply start abandoning the roleplay. While extremely important though, this factor can be replaced sometimes, but again, luck of the draw there.
You also want to pace the roleplay right, and by that, I mean plot and posts need to at one advance fast enough that people aren't eternally kept waiting for every little avance , but also not so fast that the players are overwhelmed as soon as they join. Be sure to advance the plot in steady intervals and keep in mind players will usually have very busy lives.
Lastly there is diversity. Even if you have the perfect activity that is exactly what our players wanted, you're gonna be running on fumes very quickly if you are unable to evolve and bring change. If your RP only has one side to it, then you're going to be very boring very quickly.