Tips For New Play-By-Post (PbP) Players

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Alethan
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Tips For New Play-By-Post (PbP) Players

#1 Post by Alethan »

1. How often should I post on the game?
When you sign up for a PbP game, there is generally a guideline for the number of posts the GM expects in a week. While posting more often is generally acceptable (as long as you don't push the rest of the group too fast), you should always aim to post at least the minimum number of times in a week. The number of posts expected by a GM is usually 3/week (M/W/F), with weekends being off. If you do not intend to do anything differently than what your character is already doing, or if you are fine with the Party Caller's stated actions, you should at least make a post indicating this.

2. What if I want to post more often?
The problem with posting too often is that you might push the pace of the game faster than all of the other players can keep up with. This may cause some of them to feel left behind and generate some animosity. Remember, it is their game, too, so the party needs to work together to come up with a pace that is acceptable to everyone. But that isn't to say you can't still post more often. There are ways of making posts in-game that can satisfy your need to remain "active" in it more than three times in a week. You can take on one of the "accounting" roles of the group (mapping, updating party treasure, updating party kills/combat scenarios) and update that information on off-days. You can discuss tactics in the Strategy Thread. You can talk out of character in the OOC Thread. You can even make roll-playing posts in the main thread that do not advance the story, when appropriate (such as sitting around the camp fire, telling stories that flesh out your character's background; obviously, this wouldn't work in the middle of an encounter with a bugbear).

3. What if I want to post less often?
If you can't or won't post as frequently as the GM requires, then you should probably consider finding a different game that requires less frequent posts. It isn't really fair to the other players if the action is constantly held up by one player who doesn't post his/her actions as often as they should. If you are still really interested in playing that particular game, however, you should see if something can be worked out with the GM where you establish a few default actions your character will do in lieu of your posting. But please keep in mind, just like any Face-to-Face (FtF) game, how much entertainment you get from the game is directly relational to how much energy and effort you put into it. The more interaction a game has from all of its players, the more fun the game can be.

4. How do we roll dice?
Other forum guidelines will vary, but on Unseen Servant, we generally use the Unseen Servant Dice Roller (http://www.unseenservant.com/Default.asp?do=home). Once you have an account set up, you can create a character, use the forum to roll stats for that character, add the character to the campaign so your rolls are visible to the GM and all of the other players, and create macros to make your dice rolling easier. Information on setting up the US Dice Roller macros can be found here: viewtopic.php?f=33&t=473#p7818.

5. When do we roll dice?
That depends on the GM. Some GMs will do every dice roll themselves, from character starting stats to attack and damage rolls. Other GMs are more hands-off, trusting players to be honest with their rolls (or requiring all rolls be done under a character that is tied to the campaign so the GM can monitor them). Even then, there are some rolls most GMs will not allow the player to make, such as some of the thief skill checks (this is often the case in FtF game, as well). When you make a dice roll for a PbP game, the standard procedure it to link to that roll in the post.

6. Is there anything else I should know?
Yep. But I'm having writer's block right now and can't come up with anything else. I'll update this thread as more questions come up that require answers.
Last edited by Alethan on Thu Mar 01, 2012 6:08 am, edited 4 times in total.
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Re: Tips For New Play-By-Post (PbP) Players

#2 Post by corum »

I second that. Great advice Alethan!

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Re: Tips For New Play-By-Post (PbP) Players

#3 Post by Argennian »

+1 Top Drawer post there, Professor Alethan!! 8-)
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Re: Tips For New Play-By-Post (PbP) Players

#4 Post by dmw71 »

Argennian wrote:+1 Top Drawer post there, Professor Alethan!! 8-)
I couldn't agree more. This post should be required reading for all new play-by-post players. :!:
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Re: Tips For New Play-By-Post (PbP) Players

#5 Post by corum »

*snip*
Last edited by corum on Tue Mar 13, 2012 8:56 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Tips For New Play-By-Post (PbP) Players

#6 Post by dmw71 »

corum wrote:6. Never be afraid to ask the DM/GM questions. Most DMs are friendly types and enjoy discussing rules etc, especially with players new to the game. Check with the DM how they want questions asked. Some will make a separate thread for rules stuff. Some prefer a Private message (PM).
This is a good suggestion as well. Hopefully the rules and expectations are spelled out by the DM in advance, but a player should not be hesitant to approach their DM with any question(s) they may have.
7. Teamwork is essential. Remember that you are playing with others. In PbP games, its very easy to have your character interact with the NPC's and the DM and forget that other characters are even there.
Agreed. I can especially see this happening when your characters is a member of a larger party; each character run by players of varying activity levels.
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