Looking for ways to slow down plots.

[-no longer matters-]

Hello all,

 

Lately I've been noticing people want to speed through plots, not give them time to organically grow and come together. Which makes me sad, because there's times where it would be neat, to RP out the nuances of getting research together, getting items needed, setting up a plan of action, combing over tomes etc. 

 

It feels most people in my experience, want to present their problem, and look for a quick fix, rather than taking the time to let the fix come together. It makes me sad because some of these stories have so much potential. 

 

Does anyone have any organic ways to slow down plots with others? Outside of breaking character to go "Hey we should slow down." I've not had much success with getting people to organically slow down. I've tried presenting more research is needed, suppressants for magical problems to tide them over while we try to do more etc. But it seems other than breaking character not many people get that hint.

 

So have any of you found had this happen, and have you had any luck extending a plot completely IC without having to break character and explaining why you should slow down?

[Val]

Unfortunately, people will do how they want and, if they know the inevitable conclusion/what's going on, will often times find "exactly what's needed" and so-on to move the plot to the next step. This doesn't necessarily mean anything bad for the players; they're just doing what feels right. Some of course also feel that the plot is ready to move on or whatever, and outside of saying "Hey I'd really like to RP this out," they won't really understand.

 

I don't think there's anything wrong with taking that approach. Communication is required to make any plot work, and I often ask my partner if she'd like to RP something out or handwave it and say that it happened. Sometimes we're in the mood to RP out a mundane conversation that brings unexpected results, and others we're just ready for the plot to move forward. As I said, I don't really see anything wrong with that particular route.

 

However, if you just want to try being more organic about it and it's a plot you yourself are running, I'd suggest only presenting as much evidence as is needed to move the plot along. Breadcrumbs, if you will. This will dynamically shift the group from finding (or OOC knowing) the whole truth and keep them looking for other pieces of the puzzle. If it's not a plot you're running, unfortunately there isn't much that can be done aside from still trying t present breadcrumbs and moving on.

 

I'm sure others may have more ideas/ways to subvert people suddenly moving to the end of the plot, but aside from one you're running, sadly I feel that it's in the hands of the person running it. And again, don't be afraid to communicate. It's one of the major keys of good plot development and roleplay. Even if you feel you're breaking character, it's arguably one of the necessities to getting your thoughts and ideas across.

 

Hope this helps, and good luck!

[Magellan]

Yes this happens a lot. Not just in plots, but in areas like IC romance (people meet, get married 2 weeks later) injury both physical and mental (the magic power of healers to remove any and all injury, and people who have seen enough shit in one day to forever scar even the most hardened soldier are suddenly fine and happy the next day)

 

Pacing and plot consistency seem to be two really hard areas of writing and rp to pull off plausibly. Even I get caught up in pushing something forward faster than I intended, and I'm one of the slowest paced rpers I know x3

 

I don't know if there's a solution other than finding like minded individuals. I think a lot of people are caught up in mainstream television mindset, where the plot of the week is tidily wrapped up by episodes end, and each little episode does not necessarily have to be tied to in what went on before, or what will happen ahead.

 

With that said, I love slow evolving plots and character ineteractions, so please feel free to contact me in game: Sayuri Kanno or Alexa Rose. We can see if our characters have any reason to meet and take things slow together

[-no longer matters-]

Yeah, I do agree communication is important, I just feel bad breaking character to try to slow things down, but it has been the only effective manner when It's not my plot.  Though maybe leaving a trail of breadcrumbs and giving less straight forward answers will help when people come to me, to slow it down. I'll give that a try.

 

Still wanting to hear other people's experiences if they've had success (or not) in this.

[Unnamed Mercenary]

Pacing is always gonna be kinda an issue. It's not really feasible to get a bunch of people, especially at random, to advance at a pre-set pace without some sort of OOC coordination. Which, if these are random people you're picking up off the street, becomes exponentially more difficult.

 

You may need to start DMing a little bit. Maybe you have a set amount of goals for a scene and if/when players get that far, the RP is considered "over"/"end-game" until more information is released. Or perhaps you'll need to employ some NPCs who can help limit the amount of things done. When in the moment, people like to get things done as fast as possible, which means that yes, sometimes a lot of hard work or a lot of potential development is pushed aside for the quick fix.

 

I've seen people do "episodic" RP events/plots. Perhaps that would help with your pacing?

[Branson Thorne]

How pacing/timing is worked in an RP setting has always confused me. Time paces so quickly then enjoying an RP at the Quicksand and you and mother steps outside and it's technically 3pm Eorzea time. So do you RP it still being nighttime? Or is it now 3pm and you spent the whole night/day at a bar?

 

I believe all that confusion would interfere with pacing as well. Gather research for instance, should take days, weeks or even months. But do 5 rl days go past and then you're good to go? 5 rl days are not much, but considering that's been like 2 months ingame, then what?

 

Another example is you walk to Ul'dah from Gridania. It takes you say 10 minutes. But shouldn't that of been closer to at least a few days?

 

So in my opinion, pacing is always going to be screwed.

[Unnamed Mercenary]

Disregard in-game time of day unless it's required for your RP.

 

The time of day is simply a mechanic for certain monster spawns, FATEs and fishing.

 

When you need to advice IC time for a plot, that needs to be coordinated OOC. Maybe it's handled though a forum post in Town Center. Or maybe all the people involved agree that they just spent the last X number of days working on something. If it requires a gap of time that would signify a large break, giving it some IRL time might be good. If people stay hyped up for something constantly and you're progresisng days/weeks/months-equivalent in game over the course of say, a few hours one night, you'll likely have a LOT of pacing issues. (Or people will come to expect that type of pacing)

[Nebbs]

In my view RP is the moments between plot and should be milked for all they have. In fact such RP often shapes what comes next. So..

 

Dont have a linier plot

Don't have start middle end

Don't have simple resolutions

 

Do let players explore many avenues and go along with that ride

Let their actions have consequence

Let outcomes be imperfect and spawn more threads of plot

Let the world also atack them and undermine them

 

Basicly gm the world sertting and let the game commence.

[allgivenover]

I've had a variation of this problem where if the first thing a character tries doesn't pan out the RPer seems to lose interest.

[-no longer matters-]

I've had a variation of this problem where if the first thing a character tries doesn't pan out the RPer seems to lose interest.

Yeah this is a common issue I've had as well.

[Caspar]

I've had a variation of this problem where if the first thing a character tries doesn't pan out the RPer seems to lose interest.

Mine was getting together a lot of interested folks. Then not only did the expac nuke us after the first event, but then a lot scattered to different FC and out of FFXIV.

[S'imba]

Pacing issues for me come from all sorts of issues. Sometimes people just decide that the story is interfering with what they want to do so they'll try to force a resolution so they can do their own thing. I've seen a few instances where someone outside the rp but still in the rp group forces their way in and magically comes up with everything needed to solve everything. 

 

Then there are those who want to be the star of the rp and will do everything they can to be the first to get things fixed. 

 

On a DM side of a plot it seems there are those that see where they want their character to be and just want to get there. Which is unfortunate because if a character gets where they are going the moment someone wants something for them they get burned out and stop playing the character, even if its a solid interesting character. 

 

All these things require a different approach but really ooc communication is one of the best things you can do. Being able to know a character's skill before hand will help gauge what challenges to put in place tailored for the character's skill level. Even better if you can get them to tell you a character's weaknesses you can place challenges that will test those and end up a win win for both parties since it gives a chance for character development.

[Martiallais]

Going to second (third?) the more DM controlled aspects as well as 'sessions' with 'cut offs'. Typically when I'm running a story arc/story line that involves others I approach it much like running a tabletop game session.

 

I'll come up with 1-2-3 things as potential bits that characters can find out. There's multiple ways to do this and always ALWAYS count on the fact that players/player characters will come up with a way to get to/around something that you didn't count on. That's why having a broad/flexible outline works IMO anyway. Sprinkle hooks that may or may not guide people where you want them to go, things for them to investigate/collaborate on between the actual 'sessions' that progress the story. And don't be afraid to throw setbacks at them. It's kind of a 'soft' control approach rather than railroading, which no one really enjoys and it does partly depend on how well you roll with 'off the cuff' things that spring up.

[Teadrinker]

I've had a variation of this problem where if the first thing a character tries doesn't pan out the RPer seems to lose interest.

 

Creative chops get busted a little bit in RP.

 

I think part of being a good RPer is, honestly, knowing when to set back and hold your hand and have your character do nothing. Yeah, it can suck and get frustrating and if you notice you're the one doing that 90% of the time then you might want to bring it up but it's definitely a good skill to have.

 

Giving up like how you describe is very... it feels very

 

"Oh, well screw you I'm gonna take my ball and go home."

 

to me.

[Coatleque]

Pacing must be set by whoever is leading the event, is what it comes down to. The two latest IC threads I've been in (Outside of Passion, Language of Loyalty) are taken from in-game RP that has been happening over the past 4+ months now. Some of the planning for that was done near the beginning of this year. All of us involved went into it knowing ahead of time that this will be a very slow, drawn-out story.

 

The section I've been writing this week involved a walk from Thanalan to Coerthas which took a RL week to finish. So I do not agree that in-game perceptions of distance can screw over pacing. It is entirely up to the people involved to know when and where to stop, or for the DM to call "SCENE" when it's time for a break.

[Valence]

Well, usually if you are the one writing the plot, or the GM, then you will of course have the liberty to set the pace however you want... If it's the plot of someone else... I think that the only thing you can really do is send OOC nice feedback and see where it goes...

 

I mean, when you GM something, or run a plot, it's not only for yourself, so usually a good GM will listen to the needs of his/her players, and hear feedback. If the people you play with don't want to hear them, then I guess you will eventually lose your fun, or people will start to leave it.

 

More generally, I think it is a natural tendency that plagues most people writing or creating stories: you usually want to get to the last chapter, or the culmination of the story because that's where it's the most awesome... That's a natural thing to do, especially when you don't have much experience. It's also why a lot of novices tend to go for 95% pure epic action and 5% laid back various stuff...

 

But the subtlety gets diluted in that over abundance, and that's where of course you have to slow down plots as you say. But I can understand what makes people often forget that. Character development, intrigue, is actually not fond only in those epic moments that are rather big shifts in a story, but more in the intermediary more laid back moments, the everyday, the cement that binds all those epic wtfbbq climaxes together.

 

Breadcrumbs is a good idea, but from experience it also tends to get lost in all the white noise. Sometimes you really have to get heavy handed to make sure people pick up clues, or else they just miss them and you can wait a century after, but it will not change a thing.

 

How pacing/timing is worked in an RP setting has always confused me. Time paces so quickly then enjoying an RP at the Quicksand and you and mother steps outside and it's technically 3pm Eorzea time. So do you RP it still being nighttime? Or is it now 3pm and you spent the whole night/day at a bar?

 

I believe all that confusion would interfere with pacing as well. Gather research for instance, should take days, weeks or even months. But do 5 rl days go past and then you're good to go? 5 rl days are not much, but considering that's been like 2 months ingame, then what?

 

Another example is you walk to Ul'dah from Gridania. It takes you say 10 minutes. But shouldn't that of been closer to at least a few days?

 

So in my opinion, pacing is always going to be screwed.

 

I am not sure it is a good analogy to make. In every story, you have time ellipsises for that. Imagine if you had never to cut any sequence like IRL, describing everything happening at every minute (going to the bathroom, eating, chilling for what would look like eons, etc)..

[Branson Thorne]

My point was more of, let says you and your friend are ingame and decide to RP walk from the 2 city-states. Mean while, Another of your friends is sitting at a tavern.

 

So you and your pal walk to Ul'dah, it took 10 minutes but RP wise it should be a few days. Meanwhile your buddy at the Tavern is visiting with a random. So what just took you 1 week just spanned into the time of your buddy emoting him pouring a drink.

 

So you head back to Ul'dah, it's now been 2 weeks. You walk in and find your buddy still sitting in the same spot.

 

"Buddy how ya been? Man its been 2 weeks since I last seen you!"

 

And he just looks at you in confusion because he's still working on the same drink as when you left lol.

 

In other words, pacing really only works out best through forum RP or something similar.

[Valence]

Ah yeah, of course...!

[Unnamed Mercenary]

My point was more of, let says you and your friend are ingame and decide to RP walk from the 2 city-states. Mean while, Another of your friends is sitting at a tavern.

 

So you and your pal walk to Ul'dah, it took 10 minutes but RP wise it should be a few days. Meanwhile your buddy at the Tavern is visiting with a random. So what just took you 1 week just spanned into the time of your buddy emoting him pouring a drink.

 

So you head back to Ul'dah, it's now been 2 weeks. You walk in and find your buddy still sitting in the same spot.

 

"Buddy how ya been? Man its been 2 weeks since I last seen you!"

 

And he just looks at you in confusion because he's still working on the same drink as when you left lol.

 

In other words, pacing really only works out best through forum RP or something similar.

 

The only thing I could say for that is don't exit a scene, have another one that greatly modifies your character's timeline, and then try to re-enter the first scene. You'd just be setting yourself up for inconsistencies.

 

If say, your character is at the pub, but suddenly realizes that they -must- go pick up their potion order from the Alchemists' Guild, that's one thing. Having a whole journey after a day at the pub means you've very clearly exited that scene. If you were to go to the same pub after, that would be pretty problematic.