PBP needs an NPP (explained)

gargoyleking · Mar 18, 2020

It has helped a bit in Fitz's games to have some of the players take an NPC over to decrease the workload a bit on Fitz himself.

FitzTheRuke · Mar 18, 2020

Taking over an absent player's character is actually something a little different than what I'm talking about.

I mean, sure, the NPP could do that, but for a slightly different purpose. They've got a job to do (more like co-DMing) so they'd only play a character to push a round (or more) forward, or to find a way to get rid of the character (once it's determined that the player is unlikely to return). Sure, it's possible that this could take awhile, but the goal would be different than taking over a character. That could still be done by a player who's waiting to join the game.

The concept is closer to the co-DM, but I find that kind of full-partnership to be rare - the games are often one person's vision, and this doesn't change that. (At least, not much).

jmucchiello · Mar 18, 2020

I've been thinking about doing a game where PCs are barons in a dukedom on the border. Each barony would have a castle with staff and the idea of running all that staff would be overwhelming for a single DM. The idea would be that the other PCs would have Semi-PCs in the other barons' castles that they ran.

The original idea for this was for a superhero game with a spiderman level of down time. The other PCs would play the families/friends/etc of the each other's PCs. So the PC is spiderguy and the other PCs would be mary jane, aunt may, etc.

Still not sure how well it would work when they would have to run real plot twists through the GM.

Too much trouble to coordinate these games, I think. So they remain, just ideas.

FitzTheRuke · Mar 18, 2020

I'd be interesting in playing the NPP in a game like that. The players could just play their PCs, I'd play a whole series of NPCs. Sounds fun. Of course, I'd need a bit of a load-off my own games first. Maybe when (if?) one of my games wrap. I'm determined to drive them to the end, but it takes time.

Neurotic · Mar 18, 2020

I started one similarly involved. It was very RP heavy and all PCs were part of an extended family (or soon to be family). Unfortunately, the DM disappeared for some reason.

MetaVoid · Mar 18, 2020

Hello. I am willing. I was fairly inactive for several months now, but with this new virus everything in tourism is slowing down. I expect to be fully active again.