The Way it Used to Be - Before Computer RPGs

[White Warlock]

Before computers, playing in RPGs was a social event, where people got together, pulled out the dice, paper, pencils, miniatures and ice cream, and made a day, or an entire night, of full-on entertainment.

Back then, roleplaying was only one part of an RPG. Numbers crunching was something we did between games, for no other reason than to have the DM find something even more challenging for us to deal with. Back then, the game wasn't in the roleplay or the character stats. Back then, the game was in the people involved, the scheming, the planning, the antics, and the laughter. It was in outsmarting each other, and outsmarting the DM, or at least trying to. If we could surprise and entertain the DM, we would be rewarded. If we couldn't, we would be pulling our character's teeth off the bar room floor.

DMing was different too. Back then, DMing was almost entirely about imagination and the art of fudging. It was about not telling the players what they needed to roll in order to hit, or how many more ogres you were going to subject them to if they killed these too easily. Everyone DMed differently, but the best relied on the players to provide the impetus for great stories. Oh, and characters getting rich or poor was a facet of the game, not a controlled aspect of game balance. As in real life, wealth was not standardized, and so some characters struggled to buy arrows, while others were regularly paying off their army.

Back then, the D&D books were guidelines, not rulebooks, and everything written in them was used as a means to ensure we had fun. Arguments were resolved by the DM rolling a die, or hogging all the ice cream, and inviting our girlfriends was just another way to undermine the game, but inviting sisters added a lot to your luck rolls.

What ended those days wasn't computers. It was growing up. Some of us entered college, others joined the military, and others simply up and died. Hooking up again simply wasn't possible, and then Everquest came along.

When Everquest first came along, i thought it would be the way for all of us to meet again and play together, but that game turned out to end up being a multiplayer version of computer RPGs, aka: avatar games.

So, then came NWN, and now i really thought i would be able to hook up with my old friends and relatives for a long distance roleplay session. But, then i found some of them didn't want to, others didn't have the hardware, and even others still couldn't find the time.

So, then came ALFA, and i thought, "hey, i'll just have fun with other like-minded RPGers in a virtual world." Unfortunately, we only had a few months of Live before ALFA's Quake sent shockwaves through the community, literally splitting it in two.

It's been 5 years since ALFA Quake, and everything has changed. Roleplay has been overemphasized, as has standards. The ideals presented by the founders of ALFA, to recreate Faerun in the hopes of providing a place where old roleplayers could get together and new roleplayers could learn how to play alongside the old, was put aside in favor of creating a government to manage the project.

So, here we are... the governance of ALFA being more important than the gaming of ALFA. An odd and disturbing scene for us old-timers. Not old as in ALFA old, but old as in D&D old, although both do apply to me.

I suppose it matters what you really want. Is it a gaming platform, or a governing platform? A place to play in an MMORPG, or a place to play politics? And while most of us know there's a lot to a project, including scripting, toolsetting, and managing membership, just what has been added here in ALFA? What really doesn't need to be part of ALFA?

What don't we need in order to build and to have fun? Instead of trying to figure out what went wrong, how about if we try and figure out what was unnecessarily added. Determine if it's the people, the positions, the politics, the pomposity, or a little bit of each. Start from scratch and review everything that has been added to ALFA. From there, you could figure out what worked, and what didn't. From there, you can rebuild it, because trying to paint over a rusty ship doesn't change the fact it's a rusty ship.

[Teric neDhalir]

Dear God, not again. Stop. Cease. Desist. PLEEEEASE!

[ThinkTank]

[Misty]

What don't we need in order to build and to have fun?

forum expositions.

Go play, man. Please!

[White Warlock]

Three disrespectful responses. Very nice.

[mr duncan]

Three disrespectful responses. Very nice.

Appropriate responses, all of them, for one long complaint.






J

[Nalo Jade]

I agree with WW.

100%

The negative responses were not warranted. But its not a big deal, it just shows you very clearly who agrees and who thinks differently.

I agree, which means you are likely in for a bunch more "negative" responses.

WW- Wanna help me build a server to realize that dream? There are others like us that have vested hope in ALFA being able to sustain that vision.

I could use the help. PM sent.

[Zelknolf]

Your description represents between 1/4 and 1/3 of the gaming population, so says the literary theory/ludology studies focusing on table top games.

Do research before generalizing, kthx.

[Mulu]

From there, you can rebuild it, because trying to paint over a rusty ship doesn't change the fact it's a rusty ship.

I thought Rusty stepped down?

[Teric neDhalir]

I thought Rusty stepped down?

Game, set and match to Mulu. Nice one.

[Phineus]

Before computers, playing in RPGs was a social event, where people got together, pulled out the dice, paper, pencils, miniatures and ice cream, and made a day, or an entire night, of full-on entertainment.

Back then, roleplaying was only one part of an RPG. Numbers crunching was something we did between games, for no other reason than to have the DM find something even more challenging for us to deal with. Back then, the game wasn't in the roleplay or the character stats. Back then, the game was in the people involved, the scheming, the planning, the antics, and the laughter. It was in outsmarting each other, and outsmarting the DM, or at least trying to. If we could surprise and entertain the DM, we would be rewarded. If we couldn't, we would be pulling our character's teeth off the bar room floor.

DMing was different too. Back then, DMing was almost entirely about imagination and the art of fudging. It was about not telling the players what they needed to roll in order to hit, or how many more ogres you were going to subject them to if they killed these too easily. Everyone DMed differently, but the best relied on the players to provide the impetus for great stories. Oh, and characters getting rich or poor was a facet of the game, not a controlled aspect of game balance. As in real life, wealth was not standardized, and so some characters struggled to buy arrows, while others were regularly paying off their army.

Back then, the D&D books were guidelines, not rulebooks, and everything written in them was used as a means to ensure we had fun. Arguments were resolved by the DM rolling a die, or hogging all the ice cream, and inviting our girlfriends was just another way to undermine the game, but inviting sisters added a lot to your luck rolls.

What ended those days wasn't computers. It was growing up. Some of us entered college, others joined the military, and others simply up and died. Hooking up again simply wasn't possible, and then Everquest came along.

When Everquest first came along, i thought it would be the way for all of us to meet again and play together, but that game turned out to end up being a multiplayer version of computer RPGs, aka: avatar games.

So, then came NWN, and now i really thought i would be able to hook up with my old friends and relatives for a long distance roleplay session. But, then i found some of them didn't want to, others didn't have the hardware, and even others still couldn't find the time.

So, then came ALFA, and i thought, "hey, i'll just have fun with other like-minded RPGers in a virtual world." Unfortunately, we only had a few months of Live before ALFA's Quake sent shockwaves through the community, literally splitting it in two.

It's been 5 years since ALFA Quake, and everything has changed. Roleplay has been overemphasized, as has standards. The ideals presented by the founders of ALFA, to recreate Faerun in the hopes of providing a place where old roleplayers could get together and new roleplayers could learn how to play alongside the old, was put aside in favor of creating a government to manage the project.

So, here we are... the governance of ALFA being more important than the gaming of ALFA. An odd and disturbing scene for us old-timers. Not old as in ALFA old, but old as in D&D old, although both do apply to me.

I suppose it matters what you really want. Is it a gaming platform, or a governing platform? A place to play in an MMORPG, or a place to play politics? And while most of us know there's a lot to a project, including scripting, toolsetting, and managing membership, just what has been added here in ALFA? What really doesn't need to be part of ALFA?

What don't we need in order to build and to have fun? Instead of trying to figure out what went wrong, how about if we try and figure out what was unnecessarily added. Determine if it's the people, the positions, the politics, the pomposity, or a little bit of each. Start from scratch and review everything that has been added to ALFA. From there, you could figure out what worked, and what didn't. From there, you can rebuild it, because trying to paint over a rusty ship doesn't change the fact it's a rusty ship.

Agree with every word.

[Mayhem]

Start from scratch and review everything that has been added to ALFA. From there, you could figure out what worked, and what didn't.

The interesting thing about this desire is that there is absolutely NOTHING stopping you from doing this.

If you have a desire to build an NWN community based on your own ideas of what D&D is about, have at it. Nobody will try to stop you.

[paazin]

WW, it's a nice recreation to theorize what how systems can be scrapped and begun from anew, keeping in mind key principles. I see how it can be tempting with ALFA, as it's more convoluted and complicated than anyone can imagine for a game - thing is, there were reasons for all those rules, regulations, procedures coming into place.

I'd argue that ALFA isn't so much a 'deformed abomination' so much as really 'battle-hardened' - there were an amazing amount of challenges in the past five years, and ALFA evolved each time to meet those needs.

Scrapping the system in its entirety is a grave mistake, as it can be difficult to tell what is vital until you actually come across a problem

[NickD]

NWN2 was our opportunity to learn from past mistakes and start again from anew, streamlining and optimising everything. I think we went some way towards this, but not anywhere near far enough.

However, it's pointless now to pop in 2 years after the process should have started and start telling everyone what needs to be done when it's pretty much too late already.

[White Warlock]

However, it's pointless now to pop in 2 years after the process should have started and start telling everyone what needs to be done when it's pretty much too late already.

Funny, 2 years ago i was told the exact same thing.