Rules of Roleplaying: Some Basics
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What is role-playing and how is it done? The entire purpose of role-playing in Midnight Blood is to write an infinite interactive story by collaborating with other players. It is not a game that has a finish, with one character becoming the winner. There is no Holy Grail quest, nor some great mystery to solve, nor one uber-antagonist to take down. There is no end, as MB is an ongoing novel continually being created. A storyteller (or ST) sets the stage and choreographs the story, while your character is an actor having its part to play. It is very similar to a collaborative novel, with each person adding to the book. To do this, you must take on the personae of a character you create and write his reactions, including actions, thoughts, and speech to the situations the STs and other characters have created. In essence, a character is an imaginary friend that you bring to life and develop. Like theatre, there is a stage with a backdrop of scenery and history that has been already created by both STs and players. The character you will make will join this production. Writing Style Midnight Blood is done in a play-by-post style. We prefer third person, past tense, with no code-wording. We encourage using paragraphs - a post written without them is very hard to read. A very firm grasp of English grammar and spelling is a necessity for a player’s character to be accepted. Accents for characters should be used sparingly -they’re difficult for people to read if not written extremely well. This is a creative writing game. You must write as if you are writing your part in a book. Please, do not resume everything that happened in the last 10 posts. This is very long to slog through and unnecessary. Have your character react to what he needs to and move on, adding to the story. What is the Midnight Blood board about? The Midnight Blood board is an RPG blended with everyday life. It is a writing game, in a combination of plot, combat, threat, mystery -and the daily activities of werewolves, vampires, kin, mortals, et al. (Except Mages. We do *not* accept Mages, nor do we play them.) Different players do see the boards in different ways, needing different things from it and we realize that. We try to accomplish what each player wants, giving those that appreciate the ‘game’ aspect some of that and those who appreciate the ‘writing’ aspect some of that. We must all respect that we are different types of people. While some people are easily and happily able to write pages on the wonders of Bic lighters or Post-it Notes, some don’t want to nor see the point. While some enjoy sifting through clues like FBI agents on a security crawl, some don’t want to nor see the point. None of us can ask that anyone conform to what they believe to be the ‘correct’ way of ‘playing’. There is no right or wrong, there is just personal preference. We need to respect each other’s strengths and weaknesses, not bitch about them, and try to blend all of our talents and abilities. Plot and Direction There is no specific, lined course of plot from A to Z and the storyline zigzags accordingly. STs use player material to create scenes and events along the way. We get ideas from things that are going on, what characters do, think or say and build them into material or use them as fodder for a scene. We could always work out everything from the start like a textbook game, and try to box players with different personalities into that course, but that definitely wouldn’t work. Spontaneity is good and fun. Posting Frequency We expect a certain level of posting frequency, and daily is optimal. If a player cannot post daily, please advise an ST to make arrangements. We expect players to respond to tags before starting new threads, and if they have no tags or anywhere to post, feel free to begin new threads or write indulgence. While we have no set rules on order of posting, it is polite to let everyone concerned have a turn. Player one posts, player two posts, player three posts, player one posts, etc. in a round-robin style, especially in scenes where there are more than two characters. No player should ever push another to tag. We all have days where we do less, or more, or none at all, and being given a ‘friendly reminder’ is not always welcome, nor is being criticized for responding to one tag before another. Players and STs write where they want to, and where they should, and there is no order in how those events occur (though STs should lean towards ‘should’ rather than ‘want’). Everyone wants to be first on the list of priorities but that can’t always happen. Since Midnight Blood has players from all over the world, this means you should take time zones into consideration when waiting for a post from another player. It may be Saturday evening where you are but could be Sunday morning somewhere else at the same moment. Also, be aware that some people have limited time or internet access and cannot post 12 times a day. If a player is not planning to post for a temporary period of time, please advise us on the Notification of Absences thread. We do tend to worry when people disappear suddenly, and everyone tends to look for each other. Character Types Characters that are not well developed, are quietly unsociable, or are not actively posted are easily forgettable. Yes, the STs have a responsibility to encourage development and interaction, however players should not expect this sort of ST maintenance for characters they only take out of the woodwork from time to time. If you don’t want to play them, don’t create them. If you want to play them, then do something about it. On the other hand, having character that is quiet, unsociable or aggressive is fine, if that’s what you want. Keep in mind these sorts of characters are difficult to play, are hard to maintain and have interaction obstacles from the get-go. Characters that are mute, blind, under-aged, anti-social, odd, etc are to be avoided unless you have the experience to pull it off. Character personality needs balance and STs cannot be faulted for low interaction with these sorts of characters. Fluffy-bunny princess, pity-me drama queens and wallflowers won’t be accepted. Period. A Refresher:
Interact With Other Characters We encourage your character to strike up interaction with other characters. There are always opportunities to join in conversations or scenes already begun and other players will appreciate the richness and depth interaction provides. When interacting, keep in mind that speech and thoughts are highly important. A character that does nothing but walk around or smile or sit and listen is very boring indeed and will soon find himself abandoned and alone. Thoughts provide the reasoning behind your character’s speech and actions, providing insight and giving them material to respond to. You will receive the same from other players as what you put into your posts. Remember that you cannot control how other characters react to yours. It would be foolish to have expectations in this regard. Write your character’s actions, feelings, thoughts and speech but allow other players the right to do the same for their own. Be aware that other characters’ reactions are not always what you might expect or have wanted, and learn to deal with it and roll with the punches. We encourage players to initiate situations and scenes. Although the STs and Administration carry a larger weight of responsibility for scene set-up, initiating interaction and moving time forward, it is important to realize that this can become wearing if players don't share in some of the load. Feel free to start your own threads and situations, using the history and scenes that are already present. If you are observant and active, the opportunity for interaction increases for both your character and the story. Give other characters something to work with, taking action and using speech. Seek things out and talk to others. It helps to move things forward and spark interest. There is no set path to follow and players should feel able to expand their horizons. This has always been encouraged and yes, the unexpected action is welcomed -and we feed off it. We’ll push your character’s limits, and we expect you, as the player, to push our limits back. Be forewarned that the results of unexpected actions are not always what the player nor character foresees and if your personality is such that you find it difficult to meet with resistance, conflict or dead ends, then the unexpected action is not for you. Not everything will succeed, not every situation will be pleasant. In Character Etiquette Midnight Blood is an imaginary world, but there is high realism involved. Characters have to eat, sleep and wash like anyone else. They can get sick, break bones, etc. Imaginary doesn’t mean fairy tale. There is a limit to routine things. This is not real life and repetitive actions are boring, especially mundane things. Try to avoid them, as playing out certain things can get time consuming and is not always necessary. You can assume boring things like buying a loaf of bread or taking a bath get done without getting posted, unless you want to write a particularly funny or interesting incident surrounding such an event. All character actions have consequences, and therefore players should expect them. If you make the choice to write something, you should be ready to live with the fallout that may or may not happen. Don't Assume The Success Of Actions Since you will be role-playing with different people and their characters, you cannot assume their actions. Everyone’s character reacts to situations and to each other depending on their personality and experiences. For example, your character can call another to come and speak in private, but you cannot assume said character will come. The character being called upon might choose to walk away. ‘Moving’ another player’s character is highly frowned upon and shows bad role-playing manners. Ask the player first. On rare occasions, such as combat scenes, an ST can control the result of your character’s actions. In such a controlled-scene environment, the ST sets the scene, your characters react and the ST determines the success of your character’s actions. In downtime forums, the scenes are loosely controlled and such intervention is usually not necessary. The Rudeness of Power-Play No one wants to play with someone who is best at everything. All characters have their weaknesses and faults, just like we do in real life. We frown upon characters that appear invincible and all-powerful -it’s illogical, self-centered and bad manners. Character Death Most players don't want their characters to die. However, it can happen, based on situations both in-game and out-of-game. Regardless, it will never be done lightly. If your character has been abandoned by you for a considerable time, an ST will write the character out of the story. If your character takes a deliberate risk that is considered a very stupid thing to do, there will certainly be consequences. A character is never permitted to kill another player’s character. Ever. Ever, Ever. Rarely, you and a moderator may agree that death is the best thing for your character. We do discourage suicide and prefer you have your character work through a situation. This helps to make for richer characters. Deliberately killing off your own character to make a new one is very bad role-playing and you might not receive approval for a new character, even if you and the STs have agreed death is the best choice. Never assume. This is the golden rule of role-playing, and life in general. A player must be prepared to ask, ask, ask, especially when the actions or reactions of other characters are concerned. Use every venue available to you as a player -there is email, instant message, private mail (PM -found on the Midnight Blood site)… you can have your character ask the questions in posts and other characters will post the answers. There are plenty of options. A player can always post something, regardless of whether they’re still waiting on some information. A good writer can work around anything -there’s always something to react to, something to use. When the answers to questions arrive, work them into the posts at that point, if they’re still pertinent. Posts that contain thoughts only are encouraged as well -they let other players know what’s going on in a character’s mind and they help add depth and emotion to character’s personalities. New Characters and Introductions New characters will not be started in a one-on-one scene. This is extremely time consuming on the part of the ST. While it made for a nice touch in the past, we can no longer afford that luxury. General Scenes ST characters or NPCs are usually involved in the topic, though we allow players to direct scenes the way they’d prefer, rather than always end up deferring to the ‘bigger’ character. STs keep the scene moving, have an eye on it, interject posts when we see players stuck or needing intervention, but only if the players are making the effort to keep the scene going. Keeping the scene going will be both the players’ and the STs responsibility. This involves a large amount of work and time. We would appreciate that players not rely on STs to set up scenes all the time and take initiative to start threads of their own, be they to accomplish small, daily-life tasks or larger ones. In general, we like to have everyone shine, changing focus and cycling between characters. Main topic threads are usually always started by the ST, though if something is taking too long (within reason), feel free to open a topic. If you are unsure, ask. Titling Topics Titles of new topics should show some imagination, and give players an idea of what the topic might be about, or at least something catchy that if needed, players can remember quickly to refer back to. If possible, adding a quick notation of the in-game day or date is helpful (for example 'Speaking to the Dead - Wed Morn, May 18') Having Things To Do For Characters We cannot have continual conflict, attacks, combat, etc. This is strenuous on both players and STs -we all need a break at times. If there are specific things you’d like to see your character do or accomplish, or have ideas for small sub-plots, events or situations, please forward us these ideas at any time, and we will attempt to work them into the storyline. There are plenty of opportunities in the setting that we find players don’t take advantage of -think what one would do in one’s real-life daily affairs and bring that to the boards. Goof off, get serious, get a job, fight, make friends, anything goes. We will give your characters things to do but please be proactive and think up some things on your own as well. We need to see initiative. Group Scenes When group scenes are opened in the main Midnight Blood forum, we expect every player to participate and every character should be visible in these group scenes. They are an excellent way to have characters interact, receive information, ask in-character questions or give in-character comments. Being told that a player does not ‘do’ group scenes or finds it confusing is not acceptable. If it’s confusing, let us know what you find the most difficult and we’ll try to find a solution. Posting in group scenes is somewhat slower to accommodate all players and time zones, and STs use a round-robin style, waiting until everyone has posted before posting a second round. If players want to be involved in certain scenes or events, feel free to have your character join the thread, or let us know if the scene is an upcoming one. Tags and Tag-Backs Character posts that seek no one may, but should not expect, to receive tags (posted character responses) from players or STs. Keep in mind the volume of tags other players or STs have to produce daily and who you tend to tag on a general basis. If six players tag the same person in a day, that makes six posts the player must produce. If players tag the same person with all their characters at the same time, the number increases. If the tagged player responds, and everyone replies...Well, a single person can easily end up having to write over 30 posts in a single day. Tags are fantastic, but everyone should take these numbers into consideration from time to time and try to tag different players. Also, quality is much better than quantity -everyone should enjoy posting, not be overwhelmed by it. Try to interact with characters that are already on the boards. Use NPCs sparingly. When one character would like to talk to another, and both players are immediately contactable by PM or IM, the procedure should be to ask ‘So-and-so would like to call So-and-so, does he answer?’ or ‘So-and-so is looking for So-and-so, where does he find him?’ From thereon, the thread is set up by one player or the other and tagged or chatted out. Otherwise, player A should assume they hit voicemail and post accordingly or set up the scene having their character looking for another but not finding them. Player B should respond by either returning the call or having their character be found. A note -returning a call is nice, but not obligatory. Equal Opportunity Programs -’Smaller’ versus ‘Bigger’ All players have a responsibility to maintain a healthy posting frequency to keep the balance. Bigger posters should be considerate and patient, smaller posters should try to work a little more at upping the frequency of their tags. STs try not to give smaller posters ‘bit’ parts and will gladly encourage their participation in larger, more important events -everyone deserves to shine equally, however we will never restrict players or characters who actively pursue goals and we will never clip wings. Cliques, Favorites, Preferences and Balance Cliques happen and are difficult to avoid. Too much can be a bad thing, so players should attempt to ensure interaction with everyone, regardless of preference, on a fairly general basis. Pairing off and bonds are encouraged. It is normal to do so both virtually and in real life. No one on these boards will ever be told they cannot have relationships of any kind or maintain those bonds (be they as a couple, friends, mentoring, etc). Everyone has to form relationships, be they good ones or bad. Find ways to do so. No character will ever refuse a ride to town, a hike in the woods, a ‘whatcha doing there?’ Instant bonds that carry over for long periods of time aren’t realistic. Characters should be feeling each other out and doing things together to get to know each other better. Preference to whom we post against regularly develops quickly based on the quality of the material returned to us. A player who creates a thought-rich, verbal post and receives a small, bland post that has little material to work with in return quickly discourages continued interaction. You get back what you put in. We don’t expect any player here to plunge themselves into great efforts to write long, complex posts but if you’re going to tag someone, make it worth their while. Rewards Rewards can be, but are not limited to, gifts, skills, merits, special abilities or talents, material objects, sentimental items, and special permissions or invitations and are awarded on base of merit and effort. We'd appreciate a 'wish list' for each character, and will do our best to have characters achieve the goals desired. We reserve the right to give rewards we feel best apply. (For example, giving Blending to a character who has been practicing Martial Arts is silly.) A good way to go about earning rewards is to have your character actively experiment with different ideas or work on obtaining items. No player will ever be stopped from exploring, experimenting or trying new things and all players should do something to develop their characters, be that in scenes or in solo downtime posts. If players do the legwork, the spirits will listen. However, if a character never uses his/her rewards, there isn't much purpose in receiving more -it just becomes collecting. No one will lose what they have, but they certainly won’t receive others. Characters don’t innately know how to use a new gift or ability properly in a difficult situation if they've never practiced them. Rewards are never given arbitrarily, regardless of whether some seem to be easy to achieve. We cannot, in all fairness, reward characters who are silent, take no action or don’t experiment. Some effort has to be seen somewhere and we expect players to be proactive and have some initiative. Character Sheets To maintain balance in the game, Administration requires an up-to-date character sheet for each character. It is the only way to see what characters as gifts, skills, attributes or merits and what needs to be developed or awarded. We will update these sheets when there are changes, however we ask that players do the same. Number of Characters If you have been playing in Midnight Blood for a minimum of three months and your performance and posting regularity has been satisfactory, you can request permission to have a second character. However, please keep in mind that role-playing requires time, and it has been our experience that many players have difficulty keeping up as they expand the number of characters they must write. It is better to have one good character than two bad ones. All new characters submitted must be Human. We will not accept experienced characters. Player Manuals Each player should have the WoD Manuel for their faction, be that were or vampire -and each player should have read them. If you cannot obtain the manual, please contact the administration and we will make arrangements. IC is not OOC, OOC is not IC Always keep your character’s personality and your own separate. While you may have certain thoughts or opinions about other players, never vent them through in-character actions. Also, never assume that in-character actions mean another player doesn’t like you. Don’t confuse IC and OOC -the two are not the same. Even if you do have a problem with someone OOC, don’t take it out on their character. If you have an IC issue with another player that you cannot solve in a mature, neutral, diplomatic fashion, please contact an ST. While we do want Midnight Blood to be fun for everyone, we realize that sometimes players can disagree. Players that take IC issues OOC should keep in mind that it is better to work out IC issues in game. Characters are figments of our imagination and arguing over situations OOC usually doesn’t work in resolving conflict. Play it out. Players must remember that what characters think is NOT what players think. I cannot stress this enough - The thoughts, actions and discourse of characters are not the players. No conflict in game should be taken personally. If there is an in game fistfight or insult tossing match, this does not mean two real-life people hate each other. We have OOC threads for communication between players. It’s better to use them than to add an OOC comment to a character post. Profanity, flaming or shouting are not acceptable to be used OOC -it’s unnecessary and immature. Player knowledge is a big no-no. You as a player may know something by reading other character’s posts, but unless this information is apparent to your character, you cannot use it. Manners, Bad Behavior and Etiquette ‘Hidden’ or ‘subtle’ messages written into posts that are clearly the player’s thoughts and not the characters are frowned upon. Heavily. It’s unpleasant for both STs and players, creates hostility and defensiveness, makes things uncomfortable for everyone. We are all human, with real thoughts, feelings and emotions -virtuality and personality type is no excuse for bad behavior. Disagreements and arguments do happen and everyone is fairly tolerant of that, but there are levels of acceptance. Bullying, shouting, swearing, condescension and insults towards either players or STs is unacceptable. A first offense will result in an official warning, a second offense will result in a week’s suspension from the boards, a third offense will result in a two-week’s suspension and a suggestion to find another place to play. There will not be a fourth level of consequence -you will be removed as a player from the boards. Contacting STs and Resolving Issues Should you contact an ST regarding any issue, please communicate in a mature, polite and reasonable fashion. Players will always be heard and we will do our best to resolve situations in a manner that is acceptable to all. STs may not always respond immediately. We ask time to step back, discuss, think things over, gather facts, weed out emotion and personal opinion and take a decision in a professional manner. Badgering for a decision will get you nowhere. Also, resolutions may not always be the one players would like to see and sometimes we all have to compromise. No decision will be arbitrary but all will be final. Please avoid subtle signs, hints, moods, being neutral and stewing on annoyances. No one here is Madame Zaza with a crystal ball -if something is wrong, please, just say so. Don’t simmer. All ST decisions, rulings and judgements are final. Once something is done, it’s done. Deal, move on and get over it. STs and Administration There are oly two of us running this site should you neeed assistance: Head ST and Main Administration - Cass Downtime Downtime is, for the World of Darkness board, a general catch phrase for anything happening around or outside of an event in the main forum, any period of time before and/or after a main event. It is a ‘free period’ from school, if you would, time to have your characters do what they want, with whom they want. We usually tend to use them for one-on-one communication, but feel free to use them as you’d like. Threads can involve an ST, can involve only playing characters, or an individual character alone. STs can also have characters join downtime threads at any time. Downtime is both completely unrelated and intrinsically tied to the main events. Individual character downtime forums themselves can also be used for places where players can write, just for the pleasure of it. A few things to keep in mind regarding downtime:
Essentially, your characters cannot be in two places at once. They can, however, be in four places at different times. This is where the notion of ‘multi-level chess’ comes into play. There are a few tricks to accomplish this successfully:
None of this means that downtime threads need to be closed off during a main event, unless the time of them overlaps. At no point will an ST stop a thread in the downtime forums -they can continue as long as they want, both IG and IRL, as long as the virtual game clock-ticking is taken into consideration. Off-Camera Off-camera (OC) is when characters do something, hear something or go somewhere, but the actual playing out is not posted. It is used when players agree to not play out a scene and resolve the outcome by IM or PM, or when STs determine the playing out of a scene isn’t required and only make mention of the determined outcome. OC is used to correct time restraints on players or STs, to synch up time in general (yes, sometimes the clock has to be reset due to main event threads and downtime threads becoming too messy), or because the scenes are too small to play out. Please use OC very sparingly.
Note: All characters, plots, and art contained herein and on the Midnight Blood boards (with
the exception of all references to White Wolf, Inc.'s gaming system,
as stated above), is sole property of Midnight Blood and
not to be used in any way, shape or form without the expressed written
consent of the authors.
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