PbP DM Question

[ahayford]

Hey guys,

I've been DMing a pbp game for a few months now and have really been enjoying it. However, I have come across a sticking point in the mechanics of running these games that I have yet to solve. Sometimes I'll get players that aren't responding because they don't necessarily want to do anything additional or another player more or less covered what they wanted to do, but I'll be waiting to advance the scene to try and allow everyone to have the option of doing something. Frequently I end up waiting extra days that I really didn't need to. I don't want to have to clutter up the thread with (I do nothing) posts. Adding comments to the DM post that they are ready to advance might be a good solution if it weren't for the fact they were tied into the XP system. Any thoughts?



Does anyone have a good solution for this

 

[Kalontas]

Quite a quick reply - just have them do some "idle gesture"? Like, correcting the sword or something - so they essentially do nothing, give you a sign there's nothing left for them to do, but still post something.

Still, it's a problem inherent to PbP.

 

[Voadam]

Don't wait. Keep things moving. If it is combat you have them do a basic attack with nothing fancy or hold their action in the fog of war. If it is roleplay stuff keep it going with those who are participating.

Multiday lags are worse in a pbp than one PC missing an extended late opportunity to jump in to potentially contribute equally to what others have posted on time. Most people don't want to hold up the game for others.

 

[IronWolf]

Don't wait. Keep things moving. If it is combat you have them do a basic attack with nothing fancy or hold their action in the fog of war. If it is roleplay stuff keep it going with those who are participating.

This. Keep things moving it. It is imperative in a PbP to keep things moving and to keep people engaged with the game. If a person hasn't posted in 24 to 48 hours it is often safe to assume they have no action or are away and for the greater good of the game, you need to keep it moving.

I mention some of this in a series of blog posts I made providing PbP advice to GMs (with a final player installment as well). You might find it helpful:

Play-by-Post Advice | The Iron Tavern

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Once you train everyone to say something when they've got nothing substantive to add, things tend to keep going from there on out.

 

[S'mon]

Don't wait. Keep things moving. If it is combat you have them do a basic attack with nothing fancy or hold their action in the fog of war. If it is roleplay stuff keep it going with those who are participating.

Multiday lags are worse in a pbp than one PC missing an extended late opportunity to jump in to potentially contribute equally to what others have posted on time. Most people don't want to hold up the game for others.

Yep - and yep to Ironwolf. You need to be posting All the Damn Time.
Unless it's really a life or death matter, never wait more than 24 hours, or whatever your set 'turnaround' time is - 1 day in the week, then skip weekends, for instance.

BTW, I find PBPs work best if you decide "I will GM for this long" then stick to it. If you try to run a game indefinitely it will always tail off and die. This is a problem running a published adventure, eg I tried running "Forest of Doom" here on ENW, I ran for the planned time but we were only halfway through the forest; I tried to keep going after that but Real Life got in the way & it quickly tailed off - just as I had known would happen when I first scheduled the game.

So, IME the best approach is to aim to run for say 2 months, and run it like a punchy TV episode or short movie, with lots happening and a satisfying resolution. After that, stop - when the players are still crying for more. Take a break, recharge, and if you want to run another session/book/movie/chapter/whatever after a few months, that's great.