Original Submissions of type 'Documentation'
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Roleplaying a Nomad by Cutthroat
Added on Jun 19, 2011Tips on roleplaying a character with the 'nomad' subguild, and being from a virtual tribe.
Roleplaying a Nomad
These are some handy suggestions for people who wish to play a character with a nomadic background. There is never one right way to roleplay something, but these are my observations, after watching players who I thought did it well.
This is done in a similar style to the subguild guides on the main site, and hopefully there will be others. The three original ones are:
http://www.armageddon.org/rp/subguilds/hunter.html
http://www.armageddon.org/rp/subguilds/linguist.html
http://www.armageddon.org/rp/subguilds/physician.html
Enjoy.
What is a nomad?
Nomads, usually originating in the tablelands around Luir's Outpost, speak their own native tongue, Bendune, and are adept at shrewd bartering in the desert markets. If you are playing a character with a nomadic background, you must pick this subclass.
We see a few main points from this description of your average nomad. We see:
- their usual origin (around Luir's)
- they speak bendune
- they have some skill with trading
Other than the origin of the nomad, that's not much. Luckily, this allows us to get quite creative when we design a nomad for play.
Designing a nomad concept
All of the coded tribes have their own unique traits. Take a look at any tribe documentation available on the site and you will see traditions, a general like/dislike for certain things, superstitions, tribal tattoos, and many other things. To list some publicly available examples, the Jul Tavan documents dictate an intolerance for magickers, while Benjari documentation describes the importance of keeping a dagger handy.
As a subguild_nomad, you will likely be playing a representative of a virtual tribe. Designing virtual tribe documentation for your own character is a good way to define where your character is coming from, and where characters related to you might be, if only for yourself or for a biography entry. Here are some aspects you can try to include into your "virtual tribe documentation":
Basics
What is the name of your tribe?
What is the race of your tribe?
Where is camp? Does it move around, and if so, where?
How large is the tribe?
How old is the tribe?
What are the tribe's main sources of income?
Physical appearances
Hair/eye/skin colors
Is there a usual set of colors for your tribe?
Do certain colors imply unseen characteristics (cowardice, leadership, etc.)?
Body features
Shapes of ears, noses, lips, etc.
Tattoos
Scarification
Height/weight
Weapons, Armor, and Clothing
Weapons - Are certain types used? Certain weapon styles?
Armor - What materials are used in your tribe's armor, how is it worn, and who wears it?
Clothing - What materials are used in your tribe's clothing, how is it worn, and who wears it?
Jewelry - Do tribe members wear certain types of jewelry, or of certain materials? How about piercings? Do they differ amongst various members of the tribe?
Trading - Would your tribe trade these weapons/armor/clothing/jewelry away, or is it for the tribe only? Are certain items reserved for the tribe and not others?
Traditions
Organization - How does the tribe break down with regards to responsibilities?
Age - when is a member of the tribe an adult, and what do they do to get to that status, if anything?
Gatherings - are there gatherings in the tribe that happen on a regular basis? Why?
Families - If there was only one family in the tribe, everyone would be inbred. How many families are there, how are they distinct?
Elders - How are elders viewed and what are their responsibilities? How are they chosen?
Mating - Are there permanent mated relationships? Is there an elaborate process through which mating 'rights' are secured?
Spirituality - Does your tribe worship anything? Do they have an enduring set of myths or gods? Do they believe in spirits?
Burials - How does your tribe handle the last rites of its dead and how are the bodies disposed of?
Philosophy
Object related - do certain objects, or certain types of objects, hold any importance?
Magickers - Is magick tolerated? Which elements, if so? How about sorcery?
Water - Water is extremely important in Zalanthas, and especially to tribes. What does your tribe do specially with it?
Spice - Is spice good or bad? Which types are preferred?
Views of Outsiders
City-slickers - How does the tribe view city folk?
Sand talkers - How does the tribe view other tribes?
Sayings - Are there special words or phrases to describe things?
Half-elves - If your tribe is human or elven, what does it think of half-elves in the tribe?
Punishment - How would your tribal culture handle punishment for misdeeds?
Xenophobia - How open is your tribe's camp? Would they allow outsiders to enter for trade or cut them down on the spot?
Example of a defined tribe
The Araseik-Betvan (don't use this name; it is a horrible portmanteau) are a tribe of humans hailing from the center of the salt flats.
Most A-Bs are rugged looking, with dark hair, eyes, and skin. Their lifestyle lends a powerful frame to most Betvans and physically handicapped Betvans are often used as bait for hunting. Those born with lighter features are often considered softer and thus less able to deal with life on the flats, and while they are held to the same standards as everyone else, they will often receive less help.
A-B hunters hunt the salt worms and scrabs they come across, using the hides and shells they get for armor, while using the salt worm teeth to create sharp weapons for hunting. They wear necklaces made out of salt worm teeth, and string one salt worm tooth onto the necklace every time they age. A-B gatherers gather salt from the ground, and bring it to Allanak to trade it to House Jal for water, which the gatherers bring back to the tribe. Gatherers are marked with a tattoo of a lump of purple salt on the back of their primary hand, and often wear light sandcloth gear to aid in their work. At the beginning of every year, the hunters gather together for the Great Mekillot Hunt. A tribe member uses something made of mekillot hide or bone often earns that right by leading hunts.
A-B tribals are split into two main families - the Araseik family and the Betvan. There are other smaller families which support one family or the other. Most hunters come from the Araseik and their supporters while the gatherers come from the Betvan and their supporters. Each family has a matriarch and a patriarch, and the biggest family's elders reside over the entirety of the tribe. A-B always carry a piece of glittering salt with them, as an identifier for other tribes in the area. Water is rationed by the Betvan fairly to each tribe member, and sharing of water isn't allowed. Spice is allowed for hunters, but not for gatherers - while the spices help hunters, the gatherers might take it into Allanak accidentally while bringing their salt in to trade for water.
A-B maintains a professional trade relationship with Allanak, but to mingle with Allanakis or other city people in any other way (friendly, sexual) is unthinkable. The result of the union between an A-B and a city person is always killed at birth. New blood is always needed for the tribe however, and A-B are often encouraged to seek out the members of nearby tribes for mating purposes. Magickers are partially tolerated - Vivaduans and Drovians bring much needed relief to the gatherers, and their existence in the tribe is allowed. Other elements are not tolerated, and members found to be learning sorcery are always killed.
Bendune and tribal speech
The helpfile on bendune has this to say about the nomadic tongue:
"The language of the nomadic tribes of the Known World is called Bendune. It bears some resemblance to the elven speech, and even more to the language known as Cavilish. The real history of linguistic development is most likely that the tribal tongues became united at Gol Krathu, several Ages before the arrival of the Dragon, into a more primitive form of Bendune. It was not until many years later that the elven and Cavilish tongues were certain to have existed.
While most contemporary desert tribes are composed of refugees from the city-states or of elven nomads, the Allundean and Sirihish languages are far more common in the wilderness than they once were. On the fringes of the Known World, however, most still speak Bendune, particularly the Tan Muark, who claim it their own invention."
Keeping this in mind, we can derive a few interesting facts about how bendune might be used among virtual tribes, such as your own if you create a subguild_nomad character. If your tribe is further away from the cities, heavy use of bendune (and an unpracticed sirihish) are more likely, while if your tribe is closer, your sirihish would be better. Also keep in mind how your tribe would use sirihish or bendune. If sirihish was mainly being used as a trade language, to speak with city-folk about your tribe's goods and pricing, it is probably not likely that you will be able to understand complex poetry being recited in sirihish. Figure out what makes sense for your character and run with it.
In the real world, speaking a broken language is not equivalent to leaving off syllables of words. Oftentimes when broken language is spoken in real life there are a few key ways that it is broken:
- Verb confusion. In English we say "let's have a party" if we want to have a party. However, some foreign speakers understand the verb "to have" solely as possessing something, so "having" a party in that regard doesn't make much sense. Instead they might say "do a party" or "make a party", which isn't entirely correct in English and its complexity. Feel free to confuse verbs like have/make or other similar verbs in-game.
- Looking for the right word. Even native speakers of a language will pause to think of a proper word to describe something complex. This difficulty is compounded on foreign speakers with a smaller vocabulary of the language. Pause to think of a word that's complex to your PC... maybe the native sirihish speaker you're talking to will think of it for you.
- Unique nouns. Maybe your tribe calls goudra "brown-furs". Maybe your tribe does this and knows what city people call them, or maybe it doesn't... either way, it can provide another challenge in the language barrier that should be there.Roleplaying a Nomad
Theseare some handy suggestions for people who wish to play a character with
a nomadic background. There is never one right way to roleplay
something, but these are my observations, after watching players who I
thought did it well.
This is done in a similar style to...
Continue Reading...Commonly Known Clan Equipment by Armageddon Collaborative Commu
Added on Jul 12, 2010A list of the most common pieces of equipment that are worn by the members of various well-known clans around Zalanthas.
This is a reference guide to the most common uniforms and rings associated with various clans and ranks within the clans of Armageddon, brought to you by the various players of the game and the community around the General Discussion Board. This guide is kept intentionally vague; while your characters will be able to discern the most basic information from a clan member's attire, IC interaction to figure out the true relevance of that person's position in the clan and the world is encouraged. It will hopefully be helpful to new players and players returning from hiatus.
Most people in the Known world would know about...
a black leather and steel-grey sandcloth greatcloak - House Salarr
a bone ring with an eclipse signet - House Kurac family member.
a gemstone-embroidered sandcloth djellabah - House Kadius.
a hooded brown military aba - T'zai Byn.
a hooded, coal-black sandcloth dustcloak - Kurac.
a hooded, dun-colored dustcloak - Kurac.
a jet-inlaid marble signet ring - Salarr family member.
a lapis lazuli signet ring with an evening stone - Kadius family member.
a long, crested ebon silk dustcloak - Salarr.
a long, crested grey silk dustcloak - Salarr.
an oiled, decorated leather aba - Kadius.
an orange cloth epaulette - Salarr.
a pair of blue and purple armbands - Kadius.
a pair of one-striped studded sleeves - A T'zai Byn Trooper.
a pair of two-striped studded sleeves - A T'zai Byn Sergeant.
If you're from Allanak, you would know about...
an amethyst and jade silver signet ring - House Fale nobility.
a black leather patch with a jade cross - Arm of the Dragon
a grey, wyvern-adorned hooded aba - Borsail Wyvern.
a hooded, black and azure aba - House Oash.
a hooded black militia dustcloak - standard militia uniform (Arm of the Dragon).
a hooded, crimson linen aba - House Borsail.
various scorpion-emblazoned cloaks - House Tor.
a slender crimson and silver ring - House Borsail nobility.
a silver ring set with an azure stone - House Oash nobility.
a silver signet ring - House Tor nobility.
If you're from Tuluk, you would know about...
a hooded, blaze-sigiled black greatcloak - House Tenneshi .
a hooded, kenku-embroidered greatcloak - House Winrothol .
a hooded, kenku-stitched jade cloak - House Winrothol.
a hooded, mace-stitched grey linen cloak - House Lyksae.
a hooded, red and brown greatcloak - House Dasari.
a long, hooded red and white tabard - standard Legionnaire uniform (Utep Sun Clan, aka The Legions).
a ruby and moonstone inlaid, silver signet ring - House Lyksae nobility.
a silver-and-gold, scale-sigiled signet ring - House Kassigarh nobility.
a silver and sapphire signet ring - House Uaptal nobility.
a silver, blossom-sigiled signet ring - House Dasari nobility.
a silver, kenku-carved signet ring - House Winrothol nobility.
a silver ring emblazoned with a gold sun - House Tenneshi nobility.
a silver signet ring - House Negean nobility.This is a reference guide to the most common uniforms and rings associated with various clans and ranks within the clans of Armageddon, brought to you by the various players of the game and the community around the General Discussion Board. This guide is kept intentionally vague; while your...
Continue Reading...Creating and Playing a Complex Character by Zoltan
Added on Feb 14, 2010Some tips and tricks to creating a character with some extra "meat" to their personalities, and how to play them to their fullest.
Creating and Playing a Complex Character, or “Zoltan’s Guide to Drama King/Queen Supremacy”
What’s the point?
I’m going to go ahead and assume that anyone that reads this and is interested in input on this subject actually wants to make a complex character and enjoys that kind of play. I won’t go into why I find these characters desirable to be around and to play, who they could be fun for, or how they affect the game world. I’m just going to lay out some tips I’ve found and continue to find helpful in playing a multifaceted character.
Disclaimer: Everything in this article is purely my opinion, based solely on my own experiences.
Chargen
The Dramatic Approach
First off, what kind of story do you want to tell with your character? In Armageddon, chargen is about the only thing you have total creative control over. This includes their background, descriptions, and guild/subguild; but it can include so much more. Manners of speech, pre-formed opinions, desires, fetishes and fears are a part of any person, and so too can bring a lot of life to a character. I know some players like to let these things develop over time, and that’s actually a very good way to go about it. However, I’m writing this article to address making a complex character straight out the gate; “veteran” characters are always going to grow and change in natural ways.
So, again, what is the story you want to tell? For me, this is the single most important thing. If I have an OOC story-telling purpose to my character, everything else falls into place. I like to incorporate the literary features of theme and mood.
For illustrative purposes, I’m going to refer to the character that I first really fleshed out this approach with. He was stored some months ago, but I went through this process of writing him in March ’08, if I remember correctly. In the interest of not compromising current IC information, I’m going to limit my references to him to only his background (virtual events) and the techniques I used to try to bring him to life in an interesting way, straight from chargen.
Theme:
In relation to Arm PCs, this is the “point” of the character. It can be anything at all: an ultimate goal, an internal struggle, a conflict with the setting due to the nature of the character, a RL concept you want to explore through RP; anything. This could very well change as your character lives, or as you change IRL. It’s not something to be set in stone forever, but it’s a very useful guideline of sorts to get your character on track and to flesh them out.
In my case with that character I mentioned, I was trying out my karma options for the first time and wanted to roll up a wind mage. Seeing as that would be my very first magicker, I wanted to kick it off with a deeper-than-my-average-PC character. My very first task was to find that theme to him, the whole point, the part that would make it more interesting to me than just exploring the magick code. As I was pretty much completely ignorant of magickal stuff, I stayed extremely vague. I went with the idea of Undoing Ruin because that happened to be the name of the metal album I was listening to when my last character died.
So, what did I have from there? Well, I had almost all of the basics down: race, guild, etc. and my theme left a lot of room for interpretation. All I was sure on is that 1) this guy had a bad life, or some trauma, or is broken inside and 2) the character will have a desire to make things better. He was already taking on more form than many of my other characters, and this was just in my head getting ready to write the application. As I began writing him up, I began to add texture – a mood I wanted to convey to myself and others as I played him.
Mood:
This is kind of the “feel” you are going for in your play. Now, Armageddon as a whole is a beautiful game and has a variety of moods in itself: in the room descs and NPCs and the societal constructs. What makes all of these things good is their attention to atmosphere and immersion. Each and every PC can make an impact on the mood similarly in how they are played. Being conscious of mood on an OOC level can make your character complex and engaging on a deeper level than just their IG demeanor and actions.
So what do I mean, exactly? With my Whiran, I decided I wanted to try something else I had never done and make a middle-aged character. With that settled, and with my theme of undoing ruin in mind, I resolved that not only would he be an older, beaten-down man, but that my emotes, says, thinks, feels and descs would all subtly (and in some cases later on, not so subtly) convey that feeling of weariness, regret and uncertainty.
His mdesc came together very quickly after that. His skin was weathered and made rugged from exposure to the elements. He had scars and was missing some fingers. He was tall, but he had begun to take on a slight hunch under the weight of his years and experiences. He may have been quite handsome once, but the events of his life and his way of coping with it had chiseled away at his features; his slate-grey eyes had become cold, and they had that Clint Eastwood squint to them. And in what is probably my greatest indulgence in subjective desc writing, I capped it off with “his thin lips do not look accustomed to smiling.”
I notice this kind of thing all the time IG and I only point it out in this article to call attention to the fact that those words you write for your mdesc and sdesc are likely going to be the very first thing another player experiences in your character. It’s a good opportunity to set the tone for IC interactions. Clearly, this is not the end all be all of complex interaction, but it’s something I definitely keep mindful of in adding shades of meaning to PCs.
Anyway, having my theme and mood established more or less enabled me to make the final addition to my app: the background.
Background/Virtual IC History:
This is a part I thoroughly enjoy, though it can take a lot of creative investment. I know that many players aren’t fond of the idea of putting all kinds of work into a character just to know that they can be killed in a few hours’ playtime. While I wouldn’t say that a super-detailed background is absolutely vital for a complex character, it certainly doesn’t hurt. If you know where your character’s been, it’s easier to send them where they’re going. And I find that for myself, I just can’t play convincingly and engagingly if I don’t have direction. And again, for me, I need this direction right out of the gate. Nothing is as guaranteed to do this as an interesting background. It doesn’t mean you have to go over the top, though. Let me bring up that Whiran of mine again.
I knew he was older, and according to my theme, he had a rough life. So, just by filling out some vital details, I had myself the beginnings of a decent story on my hands. How come he was a mage and had never used his powers/got gemmed by the time he was thirty-eight? Well, he found out when he was fifteen and endeavored to suppress it all of his life. How did he do that? He had near-fanatical denial and the aid of drugs such as spice and alcohol. Oh, he must have had some favorites? Yes, some varieties worked better for him: I laid them out. How did he survive? Hmmm, well, he was a grebber, and he was raised as a hunter by his mother, who he loved dearly, in the ‘Nakki
Boom, that took me all of ten minutes or so to figure out and suddenly my character was ready to go. Granted, at that point I had had some knowledge and experience with the game world, so the details were considerably easier than when making my first PC. The point is, I knew what had brought him to that point in his life where I’d start playing, and I knew the very first thing I would try to do and why I would do it: that Whiran found his way of life untenable, so he caved in, decided to face himself, and went to ‘Nak in search of a gem. And there I was, playing, and because of my clarity in theme, mood and virtual history, I felt pretty much no transition at all from my previous character to playing him. Everything happened very fast and very fluidly after that and because I found my character to be fun to play and intriguing to develop, I think others had a good time as well. What could have been a very boring, grindy foray into mage-playing turned into what I feel is still my best character.
But now on to the considerably trickier part: actually trying to play a complex, engaging character.
Role-play
Consistency, Balance and Vulnerability
So you get in game, and then it’s time to play out and project that story you thought up. There is no “right” way to RP besides what is laid out specifically in the rules of the game. However, there are some techniques I’ve picked up and which I see others use that greatly aid in portraying a character and can seriously enhance your fun and that of others. When playing, I try to keep my character’s attributes in mind at all times, as well as the fact that not only is my character interacting with other characters, but that I am trying to tell an engaging story to other players through that interaction.
Character Attributes:
This is absolutely essential. What I mean by a character attribute is a thing that makes your PC what they are. Attitude, bearing, sense of humor, sexuality, virtual history, thought patterns; the whole shebang. These are the things you have to keep consistent with to make a character approachable from many angles by many players. Everyone will have their own level of detail on those things; the key is adherence to those details you put in. This is who your character is, and though your PC by no means needs to be an open book for anyone to read, they should be pretty much figured out in your mind to facilitate a seamless portrayal of them.
For example, the biggest character attribute for me to hit on and flesh out the soonest is my character’s speech patterns and voice. In my case, everything follows from that. With my Whiran, I knew that he was this old hunter type, so in my head he spoke with a gravelly, Old West drawl. I figured out in short order exactly how I would convey it through text, I latched onto his favorite curse words and sayings, and just how he would articulate certain concepts and subjects. I decided early on that he would be a man of few words to the “normals” and most everyone else (partially from an OOC desire to keep my magick out of others’ mundane fun). However, I knew that if he was ever actively engaged by someone or made some friends, he would be a real rambler. So, right there in just how he talked I had a framework with which to interact with other players through.
A lot can be written on character features and quirks, those gems for other players to dig up in your character. However, that could be a whole article in itself. Instead, I’ll go on to techniques useful for playing an engaging character.
Depth:
When I say “depth” in relation to a character, I don’t necessarily mean profound philosophies of theirs or shocking revelations. My concept of character depth is the idea that other players should have to dig a little bit into your character to start seeing them for what they are. This is desirable for two reasons: 1) people enjoy figuring stuff out and learning tidbits and secrets, no matter how small and 2) it adds realism to your character. The easiest way I have to think about this is how people in real life have their public, professional faces and then they are different with their friends and loved ones.
Don’t just lay out everything about your character at the drop of a hat. Make other players dig, even just a little. It will make your character feel real. You just have to roll with the fact that not everyone will have the opportunity or desire to do so. You can rest assured that those that do start digging are likely going to enjoy it.
This idea can further be split up into two categories: character-revealed attributes and player-revealed attributes. Those attributes revealed by your character are those that they flat out tell other PCs about, or are otherwise fully conscious of revealing. Player revealed attributes are those character quirks and features that you at the keyboard subtly reveal by the way the character is played. I’ll try to show you what I mean with examples from my Whiran.
Character-revealed attributes: My character would often tell his story (both virtual histories and events played out IG) to those he started getting close to. It was likely clear to them that he had had some serious drug and family issues. His changing views on magick, from distrust and fear at the beginning to total acceptance at the end, were also pretty obvious to most he talked to.
Player-revealed attributes: When I played that guy, there were of course many underlying things in his psyche that he was unable or unwilling to be candid about, but which I as a player tried to subtly reveal through his actions. I had no way of knowing, for example, if others picked up that his harsh spice addiction shifted to magick addiction in the middle of his career, or that he was pretty negligent of his children (leading to one of their deaths), or that there was a definite sexual undercurrent in his relationship to his element. Those were some of the juicy details that kept me extremely entertained, but were only evident to other players if they carefully observed and got to know my character.
Revelation:
All of this character depth is useless to everyone besides yourself and staff if you don’t demonstrate at least a little of it. And really, I believe that’s the point of playing for many of us: interacting with and engaging other players with your character. Sometimes you have to be vulnerable to allow some of your character’s secrets to not be so secret. I’m not suggesting that emotional tell-alls are the solution for all, not even most. What I’m saying is that even your most uptight, stoic character is going to reveal something at some point. The think, feel and hemote commands are very useful for this. However, sometimes you just have to put them out there and have them blurt out what they’re thinking, or something along those lines. The point is, yes, you can play the ultimate locked-down steel vault of a character, but you may have trouble engaging other characters. Sometimes you have to give up a little to get anywhere and to entice other players to dig deeper.
Final Thoughts
Always stay true to your character. They will grow and change and your OOC goals will too, but if play consistently and portray your character honestly, you can’t go wrong.
People aren’t always going to “get it” or click into your character. Just roll with it. Those times when your character and others’ get into it deep are well worth the wait.
Have fun. Fun is contagious. The goal isn’t to play some super deep, awesome character – it’s to have fun because you are playing that character, or playing with others. If it it’s not fun, don’t do it!
When in doubt, play dangerous, awkward or intense situations to the hilt, every time. You’ll always get a story, or make/break IG relationships. That’s what Armageddon is all about.
Creating and Playing a Complex Character, or
“Zoltan’s Guide to Drama King/Queen Supremacy”
What’s the point?
I’m going to go ahead and assume that anyone that reads this
and is interested in input on this subject actually wants to make a complex
character and enjoys...
Continue Reading...How to Get Involved in Plots by Taven
Added on Oct 24, 2009Time and time again questions that have plagued players have been "How do I get involved in plots?" or "How do I make this role more excited and prevent boredom?" and they've had a whole host of answers. Answers that often get repeated or overlooked because of the sheer amount of other threads and posts on the GDB, making answers almost impossible to find. This article is meant to be a resource for players, where the answers can be easily and quickly found. It uses suggestions from many players in a large range of posts from the GDB, sometimes keeping the original language. Please note that this is player advice and ideas; it's not hard fact supported by staff.
How to get Involved in Plots
- How to get sucked into Plots
- Make your Own RPT
- Involving Yourself in Your Clan
- Don't Forget the vNPCs
Time and time again questions that have plagued players have been "How do I get involved in plots?" or "How do I make this role more excited and prevent boredom?" and they've had a whole host of answers. Answers that often get repeated or overlooked because of the sheer amount of other threads and posts on the GDB, making answers almost impossible to find. This article is meant to be a resource for players, where the answers can be easily and quickly found. It uses suggestions from many players in a large range of posts from the GDB, sometimes keeping the original language. Credit is given under the heading of each section, in italics. Please note that this is player advice and ideas; it's not hard fact supported by staff.How to get sucked into Plots
Most of this comes from the work of Gimfailsette, with some contribution from FiveDisgruntledMonkeysWit.
It's really not HARD to get involved, provided you're not in some incredibly isolated role. Joining a clan can be helpful, but some people join clans and still don't get involved; why is that?
The sekret key to getting sucked into plots: RELATIONSHIPS
If you do not have enough involvement with other PCs, you will not get brought into plots, it's just that simple. It's not that the AREA is boring...it's that you're boring, because you're not connected! So, here's how to get involved with other PCs:
1. Join an active clan as an employee or partisan.
Joining a clan puts you in a position to be noticed by the clan leaders, it gives you an immediate connection to the other employees in the clan, and it gives you potential connections to customers/users of the clan's goods or services. Clans give relationships of all kinds a kick-start.
2. Play in a consistent time frame for a consistent quantity of hours.
If you only have two hours per day to play, fine. But don't then play sometimes in the morning, sometimes in the afternoon, sometimes late at night. Playing those two hours per day at or near peak time, consistently, will assure that you are seeing the same characters on a regular basis and will allow you to develop relationships with them.
3. Play a marginally interesting character.
If you are Redshirt Guard #15 (or Mage #87) who is constantly stoic and doesn't laugh and appears to have nothing to talk about, you will be easily overlooked. Don't be that person. It's not hard to be just a bit more interesting by emoting some, having some quirks, and having some opinions about things. PCs like to hang out with other PCs who are interesting, and it's the people you hang out with who will get you into plots.
Here are a few helpful ideas along those lines:- Don't be just a merchant. Be a merchant/performance artist!
- Don't just be a soldier. Be a soldier/fortune teller!
- Don't just be an aide. Be an aide/crafter/physician/linguist/assassin/you get the point, this is a ridiculously versatile role.
- If your character is only good at one thing then do it for two different people, and be a spy!
4. Cozy up to the clan leaders.
Imm-generated plots are disseminated through clan leaders, who then involve their minions in the plots. If you're not in a clan, or you're not close to the clan leader, you will not be able to take advantage of this connection for getting involved. Making nice with the clan leader is not difficult; it doesn't require ass-kissing or bribery. Mostly what it takes is #2, #3, and #6 on this list; do those things and you will be Right-Hand Minion in very little time.
5. Don't make your character be all about sparring or hunting.
If you log in to spar in the Zalanthan morning hours, but then log out in the afternoon/night because there's "nothing to do," you will miss out. Ditto with hunting. You MUST get your character involved with other characters in order to get included in the fun stuff. Develop rivalries or friendships, find enemies or love interests, sell or buy things from PCs, however you can get involved in relationships with other PCs, DO IT.
6. Ask your clan leaders for things to do.
At first, they will give you completely unimportant but necessary tasks, like buying or selling something at a shop for them. Later, they will give you tasks that necessitate you getting in contact with other PCs, which then gives you a potential opportunity to develop relationships with those PCs. And still later, when you've become trusted, they will give you neat stuff to do like carry sekret messages or spy on someone. EXTRA BONUS to doing tasks for clan leaders: The smart, competent clan leaders will usually give you a nice tip of coinage for your work!
7. When given a task, complete it correctly within the allotted time frame, then immediately report back.
If you're given tasks and you don't complete them, you will never gain the necessary trust with your leaders to be given more important tasks. If you don't report back on your work, you miss out on the opportunity to build trust and also to potentially get 'sids coming your way for a job well done. Plots require lots of things to be done in game, so if you're there to help with the tasks, you'll get involved in the plot.
8. Attend RPTs.
If your clan is having an RPT, then the likelihood is that your presence would be really helpful to the clan leader. (It's hard to accomplish RPT goals when clan members don't attend.) RPTs are often where interesting plot-related information is passed, or seriously freakin' cool stuff happens. So don't miss them.
9. Live a while.
If your character dies immediately, you won't get involved in plots. If your character lives for an RL month or more, then you start to have a much better chance of getting involved in interesting stuff. Other characters are not interested in your character until they've seen them around at least three times in, say, an RL week, because there are just SO many insta-dying characters around, and it's a waste of time and energy to invest in totally new characters...usually. So prove you can live, and relationships and plots will follow.Make your Own RPT
Written completely by Taven.
RPTs, HRPTs, I think what this is all about is having fun in a way that involves other players or clans with some steady, dependable fun events taking place and happening. I agree 100% that it is NOT solely the leader's job to do this. You can think of your own fun and crazy ideas to try and go for. If you don't succeed, then you can say you tried. Here's a few ideas that can lighten up any scene.
Game Night
Having a clan game day/night every few weeks is awesome, too. Kruth, Tek's Tower, whatever. Just go to your nearest tavern, hijack a table, and show all those other sorry little idlers how awesome your clan is. Furthermore, there are things and ideas to do WITHIN that that can be a game night, or any time.
Impromptu Song Contest
Tulukis, find a location for some public singing or dancing. NPCs do it all the time, don't you go telling me it isn't subtle enough. Also, singing and dancing is not just for Tuluki. Making up silly songs on the spot in the group and forcing each other to sing them publicly could be TONS of fun. Dance with someone at the Gaj. Aspire to find a Nakki bard to come and teach you songs, or some tribal to teach you exotic dances. Let other people know of your plans, set up a time.
Impersonation of other city contest/activity
We do silly things like this making fun of the various cities respectively all the time. Starting this up at a dull day in the Gaj (or Sanctuary? Tooth?) would provide a break from the long boring periods. It's also easy to combine with any of the above ides.
Have clan gossip sessions
You think I'm kidding. I'm not. Players often loose interest in clans because they don't SEE anything going on. Tell them just about what they missed, make them want to play more! Make it so Amos down the bar wants a piece of the action, too. Alternately, have just-clan meetings. Talk about policies, about information you know that they should too. Talk about weather or not that new Salarri IS actually crazy, or if so-and-so has a crush on that half-elf.
Tell stories of ages long gone
That's right. You, crazy Fale, you know we commoners can't read. Impress us with your tales from ages past of great Fale parties. Tor, tell your Silvers some war tales so it will trickle down back to the common folk. You, there, old grizzled Bynner! Tell us of days gone by when you had to walk up hill both ways in a sandstorm and fight off defilers. Tuluki, same goes for you. Remember when those 'Nakki invaded? We may be at peace now, but back in my day...
Play "bother the elf" (Or Foreigner, as the case maybe)
Seriously, people. These are ELVES. They aren't PEOPLE. They aren't HUMAN. You Tuluki made subtle snide remarks. 'Nakkis, start a fight! Throw some insults. And beer mugs. Be more creative then the bar-fight echoes. Also, power in numbers. Have a large support group to back you up. Elves seem, to me, to mostly get ignored. Breeds, too. SNEER MORE, PEOPLE. Interact. See just how far you can insult that breed before they loose it and tackle you.
Learning and Teaching
I'm not kidding. Getting taught things is great. Set a clan day (approve it with your leaders, or on the fly) to teach about whatever you can do. Geography, what ARE those cures for anyways, tricks elves might do, wrestling... Don't make it all about the CODE make it about interaction. I have had stellar times where the routine "training" was broken up by some absolutely incredible lessons on these things. I've given some lessons myself.
Alternately, start a teaching group for your spare time. Maybe you always wanted to learn about Geography, and have traveled in your time. Make a group, trade stories and tales. Healer? It's not all about TABLETS. Rumors of cures, charms, and special "remedies" that may or may not have coded value are perfectly good. In the movie Gladiator, they use maggots to eat away the diseased flesh. How come I've never heard even a whisper of someone using that technique ICly? Also, slapping a bandage on something isn't always good. Tell gruesome stories about infection, and talk about how to clean a wound or set a break properly.
Learn about some foreign culture. Ask that Tuluki about why they have those tattoos... Then mock them for it. Is it true that Gith can actually TALK? Go ask that tribal over there. Learn a language. Insult people in that language while claiming it's praise (use with caution, and beware negative side effects). Learn tribal slang or phrases.
Worship your City's King
Yes, that's right. Remember dear old Tektolnes who decides if you LIVE OR DIE? Those people in front of the Dragon aren't kneeling there because it makes them feel good. What about the Sun King? What have you done to show appreciation for HIS Glorious Light, lately? Make a cult. Inspire worship. Make up your own odd rules and beliefs that you spread to others. Do your odd ideas publicly.
It doesn't have to be traditional worship. Dance to the Highlord, or kill a halfling for the Sun King. Be creative. Look at RL and how many religious variants there are. Not in a big city? What do you worship? What's a new way you can worship this?
Host An Event
Yes, even you, Commoner Amos, can Host an Event. Don't have enough food and wine for everybody? Make it a potluck. Don't have the money for l33t prizes? Talk to your local GMH member and discuss making a raffle for an item. How many Maliks would toss fifty 'sid into the pot for a chance at that awesome sword? Or that insanely cool outfit? If they don't go for it, collect the pot first and then get the item.
Organize Co-Clan Games/activities
Ever get to be in a spot where whatever clan you're in seems devoid of all people, but the other similar clan is hopping? Coordinate with your leader and theirs, set up some friendly cross-clan games. Archery contest? Well, our Malik is better then your lame-ass Amos! You could even ask a Templar about setting up some friendly non-bloody Arena games. Everybody who enters will probably have fee to get in, and if the Templar was motivated, they could charge the viewers to watch, too. However, that does open up the opportunity for ‘Sid prizes, ranging from fifty ‘sid to even a large, depending on the event. It's a fun thing for multiple clans, and it gets a Templar 'sid. Who doesn't like that?
Even if it doesn't work, showing interest and ideas is a good start. Just remember, everyone likes money! If there’s other people participating then it makes sense for them to chip in for costs, too. Convince your leader that while you might not have any archery ranges, this clan might, and wouldn't it be good to practice? I'm sure there's non-combat oriented ways to do this too, but usually a clan has at least one combat aspect to it.
Explore
Oh, woe is YOU. You're stuck inside your city, how can "go exploring" POSSIBLY apply to you without getting your PC in trouble? Actually take a moment to look at your city-state with a fresh eye. Those room descriptions? Read them again, sometimes you'll be surprised. For example, just who ARE those templar statues of? What sorts of carvings are in the Gaj-- Are they lewd? If there aren't any lewd ones, why not? Shouldn't you make one? Alternately, exploring doesn't have to be physical. "Explore" your PC's past. What are their vNPC relatives up to? Is it something that can make for an interesting plot in PC-land?
Summing It All Up
I think more challenging then a leader not wanting to get all the work, or a minion struggling to create a RPT/event despite their lack of power is when you just don't HAVE minions/underlings, or a leader. There's a lot of things you COULD do, if there were more people around. I think that's one of the reasons that things never actually happen. Trying to plan more cross-clan events would help solve this, I think. The trouble with that, of course, is that with more people to get "okays" from, then longer everything takes. But it doesn't have to be a BIG thing, it can start small and go from there. It's so easy to get discouraged or bored, it's HARD to plan things and involve others. Keeping at it is an important thing to do. I'd also say that it's easier if you've been in your clan awhile, and have a feel for how things work. It's hard to make things new or exciting if you don't have a good grasp of what "normal" is.Involving Yourself in Your Clan
Work from Helix and Fathi's post.
Characters:
So, if this is a post about plots and clan involvement, then why is the first section about characters? One of the major barriers to having a good time with clans is that oftentimes characters aren't developed enough for them to operate independently of their clan. One of the most important part about playing in a clan is also knowing when not to be working on clan stuff, and that requires having a developed character.
Personality:
As a leader, it can be frustrating to have PCs under you with no ambition or life beyond their clan rank and station. People also seem to expect that they be given these nebulous 'things to do' - often a series of easily (or not so easily) accomplishable tasks that lead up to a bigger task that is an overall goal for the clan or some of the PCs involved in it. Many times what a PC needs to keep 'busy' is simply a more developed personality.
In this case, "personality" is more than just likes and dislikes. It means fleshing out the background - who did your character know, before they were a PC? Who were their friends, their family, where do they come from and what do they want? Goals. Goals, even lofty nearly impossible goals, do more for character development than anything else. This also helps you actually bond with other characters... if you think about how it works in real life - you have the deepest connections with people that you can talk to about a variety of subjects. In Arm - the key is coming up with believable experiences for your character to enable them to have the deep bonds that keep you from getting bored (as the people whom become your characters good friends will often draw you into plots).
The caveat with this is that if you join a clan where there's only two people and you have a strict schedule, you're going to have this problem unless you really, really enjoy solo RP.
Goals:
A range of goals for a character is best. Not just 'I want to become..." type goals, but also character development goals - where do you want your character to go? What do you want your character to accomplish? Allow your character to be shaped and evolve from the events that happen to him. Flesh the character out with thoughts and feels - deciding how they would react to something goes a long way in determining what they want to accomplish. If they 'like' something, they're much more likely to want to pursue something that brings them into contact with what they like. The opposite is true for disliking things.
There's also the concept of having "Things To Do." However - what's much more useful and appreciated is knowing what's going on. Say I'm a clan leader. I have goals X, Y, and Z that I need to accomplish in t amount of time. If you - my loyal and fearless clanmate - know that, then you find an opportunity to advance those goals - in a sense, you're getting "Things To Do" by acting on your own capability and innovation. Rather than sit and wait to be 'assigned' to work on something - figure out what your clan is currently engaged in and then its easy to figure out what you need to be working on - without having to wait for "Things to Do."
Independence:
Don't be afraid to be independent from the clan, either. If you're in a clan that has a tight training schedule but there isn't ever anyone around - address it either IC or OOC on your clan boards. Email your Imm.
Also - mentioning that Storytellers are busy and everything... if you email your imm and say, "Hey, can I do x?" and they don't respond then take what IC steps you need to make it happen, as long as its IC for you to do so. Even if its a 'bad thing', chances are the imm is going to enjoy roasting you alive. If they come back later and say you can't do that, or you shouldn't do that then take that as a lesson learned. But at least you're doing something, and really, if you send in an email about it, they probably aren't going to be (too) angry with you.
Leaders:
As a leader of a clan, here is some extra advice as to what helps with success.
- Have goals:
Have an idea of something that you want to get accomplished. This isn't as easy as it sounds... leaders have to have all the stuff above - they have to be normal characters AS WELL AS be capable of coming up with things for everyone to do. You should have both personal goals and clan goals.
- Be online:
You'd think this was a given. You'd be surprised how many people get intimidated by not really knowing what to do and just stop logging in. Leading characters in Arm is about creating and resolving conflict. You can't do either of those things unless you're online. That's not to say that you can't take time off, or you have to play every day. But you should at least be around fairly frequently. Also, make your leader PC accessible by the rest of the clan. Granted you don't have to be buddies with them, and of course a lot of clans have social structures that would prevent outright friendship or snuggles, but don't isolate yourself from your clannies' PLAYERS. Be around in places where they can find you if they need you or just want to interact some.
- Have a trusty sidekick:
Having a trusted lieutenant goes a LONG way, in my experience. Once you have this - you can direct 'overall' direction for your clan, and allow the lieutenant to be the one who really digs into the details and gets things done. In this way you can focus on higher-level tasks (handling the templars and other nobility) while your lieutenant deals with the scum of the universe (your employees). In this way, you're working as a team at all levels of Arm society. That's hugely important for getting things done, and getting them done fast.
- Be social:
Especially at first, when your character isn't involved in very much... be social. This will quickly embroil you in the political plots of the place that you choose to reside in. Don't be afraid to make blood enemies, and don't be afraid to make trusted friends. Both of those things will generate plots for your players - especially if they feel that their actions are influencing the clan's overall position. Everyone likes to feel important, and everyone likes to feel that their character is doing something large for the clan.
- Delegate:
Giving your underlings jobs and responsibilities not only gives them Things To Do, but it creates a sense of hierarchy and importance. Don't let any members of the team feel like they're stuck in a position where they would be prevented from stepping up and contributing more if they expressed desire to.
- Do things together:
As cheesy as it may sound, palling around with your clannies establishes a sense of unit identity and makes them more likely to stick in the clan long enough for things to develop. Also, I'd imagine any friendly neighborhood staffers would be more apt to play around with six PCs on a hunt in the same place than six PCs in pairs scattered all over.
- Create Atmopsphere:
Develop a clan atmosphere that encourages contributions from the lowliest underlings up to the top of the tower of power. Don't make your clan meetings into "the apped in leaders sit around while everyone else types 'guard man.'"
- Keep staff informed:
Let your clan staffers know what you're up to! If you plan on going out to investigate That Place In The Grasslands/Tablelands/Salt Flats with your hunters, instead of just going out one day, turn it into a mini-RPT. You'll get more people and you're far more likely to get staff attention when your imms know when and where you're gonna be somewhere.
- Stick it out:
There will be rough patches, there will be boring stretches, and there will be stress. But despite all this, there's a special kind of enjoyment that comes from building a group of players from the ground up, sticking together through thick and thin, and cultivating something interesting, multifaceted, and eventually badass.
And one thing, too, that both leaders and minions can keep in mind: clan staffers are here to help you, not screw you out of having fun. If you're bored and you're unable to stir up anything interesting with your PC boss, try emailing your imms and setting something up with an NPC to get some work on the side. Plot AGAINST your PC boss and your imms might just help you out if he's doing that horrible a job.
Don't be afraid to come to the staff with questions, concerns, and frustrations--just sitting around and letting it fester while you play less and less doesn't help anyone in the end, and chances are your admins will have at least -some- input on how to better the situation.Don't Forget the vNPCs
From a post of Tisiphone’s.
Develop your vNPC environment. There was one thread, by way of example, an encounter between one of his characters and that character's father. They didn't get along, and the character was in a foul mood for the rest of the week.
As far as getting into exciting things rather than personal quirks, make mistakes. Get totally sloshed because you're upset with your new life and puke on a noble's shoes. If you're a southerner in Tuluk, bow to a templar; nod to one if vice versa. Fall into a hole, get robbed, go mad (this must be done with utmost care as madness is difficult to fake and only compelling if done correctly), fuck a fruit for money, act bigoted towards elves/'rinthis/gemmers/southrons/northrons/dwarves/all of the above at the same time. Have an emotional breakdown.
Do all of those things at the same time.How to get Involved in Plots
- How to get sucked into Plots
- Make your Own RPT
- Involving Yourself in Your Clan
- Don't Forget the vNPCs
Time and time again questions that have plagued players have been "How do I get involved in plots?" or "How do I make this role more...
Continue Reading...The Challenges Leaders Face by Cutthroat
Added on Jun 29, 2009A handy guide for players of leaders and aspiring leaders. Read it if you've had problems with leadership.
Credits:
Special thanks goes to Taven for doing articles like this and for inspiring me to take a crack at it myself, and Helix and Fathi for contributing to that particular part which I am loosely basing this article on. Synthesis, Lizzie, and Reiloth made suggestions that helped me make this article.
The Challenges Leaders Face
A Handy Guide for Players of Leaders and Aspiring Leaders
Cutthroat, why are you writing this?
I didn't play as long as many people around here have, but I've been around long enough to see all kinds of leaders in game, the good and bad ones, and have experienced leading myself a few times. I'd like to think that I have seen what makes a leader good or bad in an OOC manner for a while now and have seen what leaders have to deal or struggle with.
There also isn't an article like this yet, and I think it's important to have something that consolidates all of the thoughts scattered over the GDB into one thread.
Lastly, I think the ideas of special articles are cool and beneficial because of the ideas they have and discussions they spark afterward.
Introduction
This article is based loosely off of Taven's article, "How to get Involved in Plots", particularly the "Invovling Yourself in Your Clan" part, and the "Leaders" section. However, this article will go more in-depth, exploring what playing a leader in ArmageddonMUD is like, not just when dealing with plots, but all the time in clans.
This article goes more into the challenges created by the OOC expectations of what playing a leader is about - that is, enhancing RP in your clan and area, running plots, etc. - not the IC expectations of a leader, which can be very different, and varies between each character. You can play a totally inept leader ICly, who makes mistakes and errors in judgment, as long as it brings something to the game. Bringing something to the game is that OOC expectation.
It is the best played leaders that everyone remembers, even if they were not perfect characters. I could be a nostalgic sap and begin listing folks, but you probably have a good idea of who YOUR favorite leaders are if you've been playing a few months and in different places. Just look around.
Now, for some problems the players of leaders face.
I have no idea what I'm doing here.
Sometimes leaders are thrown into the place they currently are. Maybe his Sergeant died on the last contract and he was the veteran Trooper who tried to save her life. The totally unexpected turn of events can put a character (and sometimes its player) in a bad spot.
Trying out leadership can be a good experience, if you're willing to make it so. Even if you have no idea what you're doing at first, it's easy to develop a love and a skill for leading. It certainly helps to lead in game if you've ever led something in life. Naturally, some people will be better leaders than others, or more willing to take charge than others.
You can have no idea what you're doing and just give up on trying, or you can do your best and see what comes of it. What do you think will be most fun for you? For others?
I don't have any (or enough) minions.
A difficult part of leadership is recruiting. However, it is also something of a snowball effect. Once you recruit a few cool people, others will want to join. Getting those first people can be tough. Most leaders will recruit ICly by posting on their city's board, then remain contactable. This requires some logging in and sometimes even tavern-sitting. For clans that don't recruit ICly (like tribes) bumping a post on the Player Announcements forum is a good way to go. Remember that OOC recruitment on the GDB for clans that do recruiting ICly is just a quick way to Moderation.
Underrecruiting is bad because, obviously, you won't get your team of minions. Also, the few minions you have will likely be bored a lot of the time. A medium-sized group of minions ensures that people will get to interact with each other in different ways.
Stop recruiting when you have a crack team of minions to do your bidding. Overrecruitment is as bad as underrecruitment, because if you overrecruit for your clan you will be strangling other clans to death. Another effect of overrecruiting is that they will all keep you busy unless you have an underling boss to take care of them. A good mix of clanned folks in an area is a lot better than one clan dominating that area (well, except for Luir's Outpost). Think about if you really need a person, or if they would be a waste of resources.
Encourage the minions you recruit to spend time in taverns together and take part in the recruitment process if they're competent enough. When an independent guy looking for employment sees 8 PCs at the Gaj, and 6 are from the T'zai Byn, while the other two are AoD, when there are 10 people in both clans, the T'zai Byn is going to look a lot more full and active than the AoD, especially if this distribution in the Gaj is consistent. Players of unemployed characters are generally attracted to active clans because it ensures a good place to play.
And make sure your recruiting makes sense! There are clans who accept any person with 300 coins, and there are the noble houses that are generally a lot more selective. Your character may have a specific philosophy on picking out some people. Generally, stick to what makes sense.
Lastly, hiring on independent mercenary-types is a good way to get loyal people to work for you as well as keep them free for others to use. Your minions don't necessarily have to be clanned. A good example of this is a Tuluki patronage, but hiring able people to complete tasks is possible anywhere and everywhere.
I have trouble finding things for my minions to do.
Every clan has a specific set of activities everyone can do. Sparring, hunting, guarding, patrolling, etc. Do them, and do them often. Keep everyone involved in work. Spam 'contact' on everyone you're clanned with and get them together so everyone can have fun. Set up schedules that will bring your minions to a certain place at a certain time and reveal themselves. Then plan out RPTs once in a while to do something really special. The idea is to keep everyone involved in some long-term, solid activities, so that there is something to fall back on when things aren't particularly interesting one day.
A very easy activity if your clan allows for it is a ride outside of the city or camp. It can be a patrol, a hunting party, or whatever else makes sense for your clan, and it's easy to organize on a whim.
Another interesting concept is doing a normal clan activity with a similar, allied clan. The leaders of two clans can work together, letting their minions train with each other and such. It works out for everyone, and helps build interesting relationships.
There are some things your leader will simply not touch, perhaps to protect their reputation, or because they cannot do it, or whatever. A "Quest" for the purpose of this article is some mission or request for your minion to do something. Most quests involve collecting something, and bringing it back, whether it is a flower or a head. However, it's a waste of time if that thing doesn't go to good use. That is why the quest should tie into a larger plot. The quest will be boring for the minion if it isn't challenging, or if it seems like a suicide mission. Therefore, it should be set to a difficulty level appropriate to the minion's level of skill.
An awesome example of a quest where I was the minion, from over a year ago:
Leader tells minion to go sneak around (the difficult part)...
...and pull a lock of hair from a couple of people (the collection)...
...so that the hair might be used to curse the people (the larger plot).
Here's why it was awesome: it was difficult because I had to prepare a lot for it - not just getting better at sneak and hide, but preparing a proper ninja outfit, a safehouse to store said ninja outfit, an exit strategy after I grabbed the goods, and a way to change out of my ninja outfit into my normal gear without anyone being the wiser. The larger plot around it made the minion feel useful and good.
Also, everything fell together. Without any of those parts, the rest of the quest would have been boring and/or meaningless. You can even withhold the information about the larger plot until the minion has completed the collection.
Allowing your upper-level minions to take part in leading the lower-level minions and doing some of your tasks means more ideas will be thrown around about what can be done, and it means you can do more important things.
Lastly, leaders and minions can find it very enjoyable to surpass or stay on top of other leaders, while protecting their minions from dangerous forces. Resolving a conflict comes in many forms: bribery, politicking, and sometimes, a murder (or a murderous rampage). Make enemies, and friends to assist in destroying or subjugating your enemies.
I have minions, but the players seem bored when I give their characters things to do.
First of all, are you sure they are bored? Randomly logging out often can be a sure sign of boredom, but sometimes there's just no time to play. Feel free to ask on the clan boards for their honest opinion on if players of minions are satisfied with what they get to do.
A forced approach to clan activity is not supposed to be applied 100% of the time. For maximum fun, give your minions some leeway to do things they like to do, or things that could be fun that is not along the grain of what the clan usually does for work.
You know how some familes get together on a Friday night to play Scrabble or something (at least on TV
)?
Replace families with clans. Friday with Detal. And Scrabble with Kruth.
Or anything, really. It just has to be fun (ideas: drinking, brawling, or just sitting around and chatting about something). And preferably, not anything having to do with what you normally do as a clan already (like sparring, patrolling, etc). This develops relationships between you and your minions, and between minions and other minions. It also helps minions to build a set of hobbies, so they are not just Soldier #6969 or Mercenary #420, but "the guy who won the last Kruth game", and "th' lass who ended up spendin' th' 'ole pot from tha' game on thongs".
Look at the games that Zalathans play that are listed on the main site, or make something up if you are feeling creative. Do competitions to see who is the best boxer/Kruth player/hunter and so on and so forth.
Also, you will be doing the players of your minions a big disservice and possibly bore them if you can never be found. While it certainly helps to have a lot of time to play, not everyone does. Playing regularly is far more important than playing often. Make sure you can be found at the days and times you post on a roll call thread in your clan forum. Even if you only play two hours a day, if you play during the same two hours each day, you're doing great.
Sometimes you can be online and uncontactable. Barrier is an obvious one. What I am really talking about is doing things that will make you extremely hard for your minions to find you, either accidentally or on purpose. That said, don't worry excessively about pleasing your clan. Obviously, every person needs their private time (for sleep, mudsex, drinking, mudsex, cuddling, mudsex, smoking, etc) but don't let your private time take up all your playing time. Spend some time in public or within sight or reach of your minions so you can do leadery things.
I have minions, but I'm bored when they are not logged in.
Be a character first. Then a (noble/sergeant/templar/agent/sorcerer-king) second.
"Well, duh," you say. "How does this help with my boredom?!"
If you are good at making personal goals for your character you are doing great. Now, as a leader, you have to make sure to not forget those while you are doing leadership things. It will help a lot in ensuring your role stays fresh even when ther are no minions logged in. Have something to focus on when things are slow in your clan. Some ideas:
A lover.
A(n) <item type> collection.
A hobby of some sort.
A focus.
A personal goal.
A secret desire (training to become the best warrior ever, eat babies, etc.)
Anything else a person would want!
It is these and your character traits that will keep your minions interested in you for more than your leadership, and it will (hopefully!) keep you interested as well when they are not around.
And not just the minions will be interested in your character, if you can provide a good standard of RP for everyone to follow. If you're that Allanaki templar striking fear into the hearts of your Highlord's people, or the Tuluki noble who is the patron of bards and hirer of assassins, or the Kuraci agent making sure the people of the Labyrinth get their spice fix... you're bound to draw players to you, which means fun opportunities to roleplay for yourself and for others.
Being a leader is hard work and/or stressful, or it's generally boring.
Ah, but it doesn't have to be.
It takes a special (crazy? maybe) person to 'like' to lead a group of people, each with their own problems and needs. On top of that, you have to report in to staff about what you intend to do on a regular basis. It's just like a career in life - you can do something you enjoy doing, or you can do something you hate, yet feel obligated to do.
"But which one do I choose?"
Keep in mind that this is a game. If you hate doing something, guess what - you don't have to do it! You take a short break to do something else and see if that helps, or you coordinate with your staff and other characters and store. But it is also a good idea to give leadership a fair shake if you think you don't like it, because you just may end up liking it after a while. All too often I see people who complain about leaders and leading something themselves, either on the GDB or just in life, and I chuckle a little inside because most of the time, you are not forced to lead at all, ever. It is, however, possible to become better at leading and make leadership more enjoyable, if you desire.
If it's because of IG things or other players, then you can work to correct that IG. If it's because of staff, then you should prboably cue them in to more things you are planning, so they can help you out.Credits:
Special thanks goes to Taven for doing articles likethis and for inspiring me to take a crack at it myself, and Helix and
Fathi for contributing to that particular part which I am loosely
basing this article on. Synthesis, Lizzie, and Reiloth made suggestions
that helped me make...
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