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Old 09-06-2002, 09:52 AM   #239
Thenamir
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Join Date: May 2001
Location: Battling evil bureaucrats at Zeta Aquilae
Posts: 985
Thenamir has reached the Cracks of Doom and destroyed the Ring!Thenamir has reached the Cracks of Doom and destroyed the Ring!Thenamir has reached the Cracks of Doom and destroyed the Ring!Thenamir has reached the Cracks of Doom and destroyed the Ring!Thenamir has reached the Cracks of Doom and destroyed the Ring!Thenamir has reached the Cracks of Doom and destroyed the Ring!Thenamir has reached the Cracks of Doom and destroyed the Ring!Thenamir has reached the Cracks of Doom and destroyed the Ring!Thenamir has reached the Cracks of Doom and destroyed the Ring!Thenamir has reached the Cracks of Doom and destroyed the Ring!Thenamir has reached the Cracks of Doom and destroyed the Ring!
Sting

I hesitate to speak for others, but the "intrusion" of people into RPGs without permission or direction is one of the reasons that Barrow Wight and the other Forum Moderators are coming up with a set of guidelines for starting and running an RPG on these forums(fora?), to keep things from getting away from the intentions of the ones who start the ideas.

In my personal and humble opinion, I think the Rohan RPG has some of the highest quality fiction writing anywhere on the Downs (though I would think no less of anyone who might disagree). And it is so mainly because we have a good moderator (Gilthalion) who keeps us on-track within the bounds of an overview storyline. The mod is free to edit (or to delete entirely) any post he sees fit to keep that storyline intact, and communicates freely with the players so that no one's toes get stepped on.

I'd like to think that the Rohan RPG (and the Eriador RPG before it) can be taken as a model framework for better RPGs that make more interesting reading to an outsider. That does not mean that there aren't better ways of running an RPG here, and if so, please feel free to reply and point one out to me. I have so far avoided the Freestyle Room, not so much because I feel the writing or direction is poor, but because my time is so limited -- it is almost too much for me to post to Rohan regularly. So if you feel that there is a particular RPG in the Freestyle area that is of special merit, let me know about it.

I don't think you can just say on the whim of a moment, as is so often said in the Downs Chat Room, "Hey, anyone want to RP?" and expect it to be an instant masterpiece. Conceiving and running an RPG is work, sometimes a LOT of work. The ones who so cavalierly want to get a group together and just "wing it" don't seem ready or willing to put in that level of effort to make it a *good* RPG, one with purpose, direction, and clarity.

Anyway, I'll get off the old soapbox now. Flamers, fire at will.

Thenamir of Rohan,
who holds Gilthalion in the highest respect.

[ September 06, 2002: Message edited by: Thenamir ]
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