whats wrong with alfa?

[oldgrayrogue]

Thanks cloud I love you too.

[Xanthea]

Starting a massive region changing plotline without being sure if you can commit the time to being able to finish it in a timely fashion (or at least having an exit strategy to cut the plot short if needed) is a pretty bad idea.

Sure DMing isn't a job and people can have other more important things to do with their time. But if that's the case, then don't try one at all, it's not fair on the players.

[danielmn]

This is why they shouldn't give out participation trophies....

[Mick]

This is why they shouldn't give out participation trophies....

Well said.

[Mirabai]

STILL having this discussion? lol

[Swift]

Sure DMing isn't a job and people can have other more important things to do with their time. But if that's the case, then don't try one at all, it's not fair on the players.

Or players could feel a touch less entitled?

Or stop complaining that nothing ever seems to change, regardless of what PCs do on a server?

You cannot fault DMs for trying to run something on a larger scale, so that each session for players feels like a small step in a long journey. Its what alot of players want and complain doesn't happen often enough. If the stance is "If you can't commit, don't even bother" then you will never see another large scale plot ever again, simply because nobody can guarantee their availability many months into the future.

Real Life happens. Sorry that it sometimes fucks with your fantasy leisure game. Drilling your DM who gets sucked into Real Life in the middle of a campaign is a pretty good way to ensure they never come back on the DM side of things.

[t-ice]

Travel accross servers is one of the coolest things about ALFA. I would say 1 alt is enough as it gives you an outlet to be creative and explore another concept, but also gives you freedom to travel with both PCs if you want to.

Well, there is more potential problems (perceived or real, and even perceived become real when people become suspicious) in having one PC with "home" at server A, another at B, and then both of these PCs visiting C in turns.
I would rather equate having an alt on a server to DMing there: The alt must stay on its home server, and the main cannot travel to a server where there is an alt (or where the player DMs).

We got the names of the places, some npcs and deities that match the forgotten realms settings, but besides names and places, at least in my personal view - the feeling of the realms rarely come into play in other aspects.

YES. However, this is also a tall order. Especially since it easily just reads as demanding more from our DMs: "learn you FR lore and use it, or else I'm bored at your bland plottage!". So this ball needs to first go the players: If your PC isn't built to be a specific thing in the FR, how easy do you think it's for DMs to make it so? And then, if I read the lore and build a FR specific PC, what do I get out of it? Well, I will be excluded from a lot of gaming by planting my foot down in what is IC to my PC and what is no. So yeah, I will rather make a generic, bland PC that can travel and join whatever, where-ever, than a specific FR concept that might see game in his home turf once a month.

From the DM side, I might suggest we approach this from two angles:
1) Each DM can think who among those available is the most FR-setting-specific to the task at hand, and strive to work via that PC and some local faction, putting that PC to lead. And come up with stuff that that PC would lead. By putting leadership on players who get FR best, we propagate the feel of the FR, since PCs most interact with other PCs.
2) The lack of "FR specificity and plot" in our servers is also institutionalized. We have "servers", not "settings", and the person in charge, the HDM, has a ton of technical responsibilities. The feel of the server has and will come to reflect that: it's a mechanical, sterile place ruled by the cogs and bolts of DnD rules. Servers need "story and setting heads", people who chair the DM team and mold a story out of the server that excites people. Mechanics is a good servant, but a bad master. And when RL happens, or people otherwise want to step down, these "story admin" need at least some sense of continuity like our HDMs and Admin posts have. But do we have the manpower?

[CloudDancing]

Thanks cloud I love you too.

Hey, please don't take it personally it was not just one DM that did this. I've lost four campaigns due to MIA dms so far. We nearly lost a fifth one but he gathered up a time and finished it up in true style.

I understand people have real lives and things happen. But one of the great things about campaign dming is that you set a time and a date EVEN if it is every two week or three weeks and you keep that appointment.

I don't blame other people for not entertaining me enough. I just like to plan ahead and I am pretty anal about keeping my appointments to "meet" people.

Whatever happens things must change or grow or just sit still and wait for things to change for the better. But like I said before when I ran for office of the PA, you have to design the game around the players needs and wants or in the end you won't have any players.

[t-ice]

I just like to plan ahead and I am pretty anal about keeping my appointments to "meet" people.

This. Some people see us as "just playing a game", and others see it as "meeting people (even friends)". And both have a piece of truth to it. When the people are behind the veil of the great internets, it's easy to forget that when you back down from a an appointment cause "just don't have the time and energy to play a game right now", you're in effect giving the finger to real people that depended on you, and planned their lives to meet up with you and have fun together with a joint hobby. If this was, say, football practice and your team ended up short because you can't make it, you'd at least talk to the other people and tell them as soon as possible that you can't make it. Hobby teams don't work based purely on "yeah, I'll be there if I feel like it, let's see".

[Heero]

This is why they shouldn't give out participation trophies....

Truer words...

[Xanthea]

You cannot fault DMs for trying to run something on a larger scale, so that each session for players feels like a small step in a long journey. Its what alot of players want and complain doesn't happen often enough. If the stance is "If you can't commit, don't even bother" then you will never see another large scale plot ever again, simply because nobody can guarantee their availability many months into the future.

Nope. There are plenty of options. Before starting you can find other DMs willing and able to wrap your plot up for you if real life intervenes. You can construct your plots in such a way that you can cut them short if needed, not very fun, but preferable to leaving everyone in limbo forever.

Real Life happens. Sorry that it sometimes fucks with your fantasy leisure game.

People on the internet are still Real People.

Nobody is forced to commit to anything, but if you do then you are *gasp* making an actual commitment.

[oldgrayrogue]

You cannot fault DMs for trying to run something on a larger scale, so that each session for players feels like a small step in a long journey. Its what alot of players want and complain doesn't happen often enough. If the stance is "If you can't commit, don't even bother" then you will never see another large scale plot ever again, simply because nobody can guarantee their availability many months into the future.

Nope. There are plenty of options. Before starting you can find other DMs willing and able to wrap your plot up for you if real life intervenes. You can construct your plots in such a way that you can cut them short if needed, not very fun, but preferable to leaving everyone in limbo forever.

Real Life happens. Sorry that it sometimes fucks with your fantasy leisure game.

People on the internet are still Real People.

Nobody is forced to commit to anything, but if you do then you are *gasp* making an actual commitment.

I love how people who had nothing to do with a campaign or a plot or how sessions were organized, scheduled, cancelled, etc like to chime in with their two cents like they know what they are talking about. The monday morning QBing in ALFA is out of control. Lets see you get in the trenches and see how your game turns out.

The degree to which players in ALFA can be blatantly ungrateful, and downright mean, to people who do their best to volunteer their time to help others have fun astounds me. The OP wants to know what is wrong with ALFA, check the last post.

The cry often goes out that we need more DMs. What happens when members step up to DM? They get burnt out for trying to do too much, too often. If they don't do that, and try to maintain some balance between RL and gaming -- specifically to avoid becoming burnt out -- players complain that things are not progressing quickly enough for them. When I get DMd, either in ALFA or any other server, my response is to say thank you. The reason? I know how much time and effort goes into it and the sacrifice the DM makes to try to make my gaming more fun and alive. When RL intrudes and the DM can't follow through as much as I would like I understand and don't hold it against them. I thank them for making the effort. People have real lives, jobs, spouses, kids, illness. People say its no different from commiting to a sports team etc? Yes it is -- I have coached kids sports teams for 15 years and my players and parents understand when coach has to miss a practice or a game because of work. They appreciate the sacrifice I make from my busy schedule for them. They know I would be there if I could, and understand when I can't. It amazes me how some people simply cannot see beyond themselves, and worse cannot see how demoralizing their comments can be to those who truly try their best to contribute constructively, or worse those who might be thinking of volunteering.



The last time I volunteered to DM in ALFA I got burnt out from trying to do to much and deal with a very busy RL at the same time. This time around I promised myself I wouldn't do that, that RL would take precedence and I would avoid burn out. I must admit, the burn out was preferable to the shots and ingratidude.

[Xanthea]

I love how people who had nothing to do with a campaign or a plot or how sessions were organized, scheduled, cancelled, etc like to chime in with their two cents like they know what they are talking about. The monday morning QBing in ALFA is out of control.

I'm pretty sure I didn't mention you once. If you want to read into some subtext that isn't there then that really isn't my problem.

Edit - but as long as you're going to post

The degree to which players in ALFA can be blatantly ungrateful, and downright mean, to people who do their best to volunteer their time to help others have fun astounds me. The OP wants to know what is wrong with ALFA, check the last post.

Portraying DMing as this great sacrifice of your own enjoyment to provide it for others is either dishonest or missing the point entirely. This is a game. The DM should be doing it because they find it fun. If you don't enjoy DMing then you probably shouldn't DM.

[Castano]

No OGR is right. We often do stuff not when we feel like like it, but when it must be done. When someone stays up to 3AM fixing a server so it can be ready for someone else's game the next day that they are not DMing, or not playing in, well it would be nice if they did not wake up bleary eyed to a pile of posts about what's wrong with ALFA. We spent the summer making vast improvements to ALFA and now wake up to this crap.

I'm 50% ready to check out of here for good. IMO what's wrong with ALFA is the membership's sense of entitlement.

[I-KP]

Some people should think themselves lucky that there is still an ALFA to bitch about.

If there is a problem I'd say it's one of density, i.e., ALFA has too much real estate and not enough people to occupy it. As much as it pains me to admit (which I expect is part of the issue: not wanting to face up to it) ALFA should be condensing content and not spreading out what life there is left over even more real estate. Our active player base is not going to grow :. it would make greater strategic sense to improve and consolidate what we have rather than keep repeating the mantra of 'build it and they will come' because at this stage in NWN2's (and ALFA's) life span that just aint gonna happen. Every PW game I've played has at some point been forced to face up to facts and trim back on real estate in order to keep an increasingly less active player base together and interacting. I see no evidence that ALFA is any different in this regard.