RP Made Simple

By The Fire: Story Nights

Section: Enhancing RP | No Comments »

What’s a “Story Night” anyway?

Think of a gathering of folks relaxing by the fire, telling stories. It’s that simple! You may have done this in everyday life yourself at summer camp, camping trips or just hanging out with friends on a weekend afternoon or at a Mickey D’s on a weeknight. The same basic idea applies.

In this case, we are talking about a gathering of fellow roleplayers around a virtual campfire in their mmorpg of choice. Folks acting in character, swapping stories or just listening.

Never been to one? Here’s a idea of what it is like!

Over on World of Warcraft’s Earthen Ring (US) realm, there’s a weekly event we have Hordeside currently. Recently we had a series for the Hallow’s End (Halloween, Warcraft Style) events in Raven Hill, Duskwood – one of the spookiest zones lore-wise and by design.

It’s a no pressure, come and role-play type of thing. We normally meet at a different spot each week and tell stories, items of interest – even songs sometimes. Some nights have a theme, others is a mix of whatever folks bring to share.

Here’s what normally happens…

When I host a normally give folks time to chat and settle in, just like one would in everyday life. This gets folks in the mood to RP and some role-play time before starting. After Introductions and welcoming folks – it’s story time. This is all done IC throughout the evening.

This can be almost anything that fits the lore and genre for the game. Revamped fables, songs, short tales and even original stories by folks that show up. I never know what folks will bring – but that’s part of the fun. Some folks bring some great stuff to the floor and it’s wonderful to see what happens next.

As you can tell, there’s really no “scripted” RP here, it’s pretty much organic. As the host, I pace things out, field questions and such OOCly via whispers and using the RP OOC channel we have Hordeside to help with just this sort of thing.

At the end of the evening, if no one has anything, I normally close the evening, mention any announcements and allow folks to again mingle and RP. It can be alot to juggle, but the results are worth it if folks (including me) have a fun evening – which happens alot.

Reasons for a Story Night

• Show off your mad story skills. If writing is your thing, share it with folks in game.

• It’s fun! Listen, contribute or just hang out ICly. It’s a different way to enjoy the game, even for non-rpers.
  

• It’s a chance to RP! Some folks may not get a chance to just chill and be IC. New roleplayers get their first “peek” at roleplaying through these events.

• Character development. Develop your character before or after the evening or through IC stories.

• Networking. Meet new folks and possible role-players to RP with later. It’s a good way of networking with fellow rpers. Find out about guilds and folks.

• It promotes Role-playing. Events help others explore and develop roleplay and promotes the roleplaying on the server and helps the RP community grow.

Essential Parts of a Story Night

• The Host/Hostess. He/she is the person “running” the event. They act as the IC host, guiding the flow of the evening and coordinating behind the scenes as needed. They also schedule and let folks know when/where the event is.

• The Attendees. No event is possible without folks actually showing up. These folks are your audience, your storytellers and your listeners.

• Location. The place (or places) you select help the mood and create a good atmosphere.

• Planning. A key element is planning an event. Getting word out and keeping what you can consistent.

Tips and Ideas for Hosts/Attendees

• Expect so-so nights. It’ll happen – but give folks (and the host) a chance. Every night can’t be stellar, so roll with the punches and make the best of the evening. I have yet to know how an evening will go. *grin*

• Be In Character. Do you best and act IC during the event. RP as your character would if they were attending or hosting.

• Find a good location. Consider what player traffic,  scripted NPCs/events that may be near to where you are. It’s always irritating having a NPC guard walk through your group every five minutes. Also, be aware of transport to and from the event. Have Warlocks for hard to get at places.

• Use the media. Advertise on your realm’s forums. Perhaps make an announcement on the General channel or if there is a RP Private Channel. Remember to not SPAM.

• Word of mouth. Get IC and promote the evening in character! Why not? Get guildies or other folks talking.

• Calendars Rock! If your game supports a in-game calendar/reminder system for inviting folks (like in World of Warcraft) – use it. It helps keep folks in the know and gives you a rough idea who is attending. This is a GREAT tool for Hosting an event.

• Planning is Key. Plan ahead for new events. Two to three weeks out can help alot. Once you get established, make sure folks have a regular time/place for your event. The more consistent, the more that will schedule to come and visit again.

• Be a good Host/Hostess. Be fair and be helpful. Be early as possible for the event and helps new folks if you can. It all makes a difference! if you can’t make it, find a backup or give folks ample time to reschedule. But try to avoid missing an event if at all possible. Be a good example to folks!

• Be a good listener. Show courtesy and respect for speakers and to the host. keep emotes and chatter to a minimum during the story. If you start talking in a conversation, move it out of earshot of the crowd so to not disrupt things. Treat others as you would like to be treated if you were giving the story.

• Contribute! Try your hand at a story. Not a writer? The internet is your friend. Adapt a tall tale ot story to “fit” the genre you are in. Flavor it with lore and change things around to suit the crowd.

• Need help organizing? Alt-tab to a text program (Wordpad/Notepad) or use a in-game addon like NotesUNeed or TinyPad (if in WoW) to organize, edit and help present your story. It’s a great tool to have!

• Avoid walls of text! Make your story “digestible” and easy for folks to read. Use punctuation.

• Watch the genre and type of stories you tell. Warcraft, for instance carries a T for Teen ESRB rating, so keep it within boundries and good taste to match the game’s rating.

• Don’t crash the event with a dramatic scene. Have respect for the folks there and the host and don’t disrupt things.

• Don’t be a jerk. Nuff said *grin*

• Don’t take over the event. The Host/Hostess is the one running the event, not you.

• Bring filler stories if you Host or help out. You never know if you need to buy people time to finish any last minute stories. It also helps if you have a huge gap in willing storytellers that evening. Sometimes a discussion topic can also help and get folks interested and a chance to roleplay.

• Frequency and delegation. The perfect idea would be to have a weekly and weekend version to get as many people coming. You schedule may only allow one gathering you can host. Perhaps another can help by hosting, or creating another different type of event. This all depends on your rp community, of course.

• Story Night options can be done! Here are some ideas: Philosophy discussions, Class-based gatherings (Druid Enclaves, Warlock “Seminars”, Hunter Training, etc..) Lore Nights with Q&A, Tours, a Generic Discussion Night – alot of variants are possible.

• Starting a Story Night? Make sure no one is doing the same that will conflict. Perhaps doing an alternate version or variant may work better. (See the last two tips above.)

• Griefers – You’re going to get them sometime. Most times, just pay them no mind and they eventually get bored. If they are really disrupting, report them. Anytime you can diffuse it is best. Handle it with class and style and be the better person if you can. Regardless, don’t let them win by ruining the evening.

• Thank folks! Hosts – thank your gathering. Listeners – thank your storytellers and host. That easy. Do it ICly or via a OOC whisper, depending on your character personality. All volunteer time and effort to come and be a part of this, so a little thanks goes a long way!

Whether you host, storytell or just listen – it’s a good chance to kick back, rp and most importantly – have fun. You never know how it’ll turn out, that makes it interesting in itself. Expect the unexpected and just do your best as a host.

I hope this gives you some ideas, either in starting one of your own or helping the one that you are going to. Have fun and make the most of your RP!

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Resources
http://rpmadesimple.org/five-cool-rp-ideas-gatherings/
http://rpmadesimple.org/now-thats-a-fire/
http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/basics/calendar.xml