Pitching A Prp

This document is intended to cover the basic guidelines and concrete rules regarding how to pitch and run a player-run-plot.

Rules

1. Players who are set as GM are not to have their characters participate in any active way during the PRP.
a. They are not to participate in combat
b. There is a preference not to include them in damsel form
i. Ex: Victims of kidnapping, etc
c. They can act as quest givers, but cannot join the group on the quest so to speak.
2. PRPs must stay within the scope of the plot that was pitched and approved by staff.
a. When in doubt, contact staff to discuss where the plot has gone and get feedback from them.
b. While staff will attempt to allow any reasonable outcomes and attempt to roll with the results of a PRP storyline as best we can, greatly exceeding the scope may result in story modifications or retcons. This is not something we do lightly, in fact we try to avoid it at all costs, as we do not want to invalidate player experiences. It is not an attempt to limit the impact of PRPs but rather to ensure that staff is kept aware of what is happening on grid and allowing the GM to have the confidence that they are operating within theme and scope of what is currently possible for players.
c. Any outcomes upon the world that are noticeable by players not involved in the PRP must be able to be researched beyond the PRP, with information provided to staff, and consequences of the PRP will rarely be handwaved. The underlying reason is that we do not want PRPs to be thought of as sandboxes -- we want GMs to be able to create lore and run stories that impact the greater world, on a large or small scale and that requires consistency.
3. Supernatural elements must be cleared by staff. This includes:
a. Bosses (giants, magical creatures, magic wielding cultists, etc.)
b. Items or relics that players get possession of or chances to use.
c. Player abilities, like Beseeching, calling spirits, direct magical ability
4. Massive scale battles must be approved by staff to again keep staff informed of the shifting landscape and ensure that it fits within theme and proper consequences can be determined on a large scale.
5. Any PVP situation requires staff oversight.

Guidelines

When pitching a prp, it is vital that you give staff all of the pertinent information that is necessary for approval. This includes:

1. Scope - What is the upper limit of what you think this plot will entail? Take it one step further to give yourself some wiggle room.
Examples:
a. You want to run a battle against some Abandoned. How many people are in the tribe? 300? 1000? Do they have any allies that might be pulled into the fight on their side? How many total enemies will your heroes be facing. Once you settle on a number, do not exceed that. That is your limit. If the story seems to dictate a change because the players did something you did not expect? Talk to staff. They can either help get your plot back on track to staying within the stated scope, or are then updated on the changing landscape.
b. You want to run an encounter with a supernatural element. A nest of talking snakes, or a ghost that needs their help to be put to rest. Detail to staff what sort of things this creature/s might be able to do, detail what you think the players will be able to do to stop them/aid them. Confirm the limits of what players can handle. And again, if that changes, keep staff aware. You can request a staffer be present if there is going to be supernatural stuff happening and you want to make sure things are kosher.
2. Impact - It is important for prp runners to think about the potential impact this plot will have, not only for those who are participating actively, but ancillary participants as well. E.g. Is this going to take place in someone else’s territory? Is it going to have any lasting impact on their lands, or people? Staff needs to be aware of this as well as the Head of House for whatever territory this is going to be happening in. Are there any orgs that are going to be affected by this, or who might want to investigate?
3. Rewards - Do you want to reward your players with something tangible? A really neat trinket, or a puzzle box or a sword? These are all doable, and in many cases, staff can provide either materials or fully crafted items to be given to the players. We need to know what is being made as a reward. Certain types of PRPs can even be awarded small amounts of land increases or even small population bumps if appropriate, though these must be cleared by staff first.
4. Risk - This is something that should be considered and included in the pitch. How risky is this PRP? Do players run the risk of character death? Character maiming? This is important to consider and should be included.

Example Pitch

plots/pitch <name>/<summary>/<desc>/<GM Notes>

plots/pitch On the Stygian Sea/This plot is intended for 4-6 players, focusing on investigating a mysterious ship adrift off the coast of Maelstrom./A mysterious ship has been spotted off the coast of Maelstrom. Rumors say that despite seeing no one aboard, the ship changes locations, though no one says for sure they have seen it move. Most think it is an elaborate prank, but no one has volunteered to sail out and investigate it either./For this plot, I am thinking of a ghost crew that all died due to a betrayal committed by the former captain. The ship is haunted! As such it can occasionally move on its own and the players will experience ghosts making spooky noises, throwing items of various ability to harm, and might even be threatened with drowning. It is going to be a medium risk story, no one will die, but there will be some trauma around water. If possible, I might like permission to have a water-dwelling creature step in if they aren’t able to deal with the ghosts. This creatuer will require them to owe him a favor (not a high-level creature, no risk of massive diplomatic crisis) which will have potential RP hooks later. The ghosts will send the group off to find the former captain who is now a pirate admiral at the head of 3 ships worth of abandoned. It will likely result in a high-seas battle, but should not result in any damage to Maelstrom. The plot should not require any ongoing investigations, as the mystery of the ship of ghosts will be solved by confronting the former captain. If there is someone who can communicate with the dead involved in the prp, I would let them communicate with the ghosts, on a successful roll of mana + empathy at diff 45. If there are none, then I will have an NPC step up to interpret. As for rewards, I can see them gaining a few random luxury items from the pirate’s holds, and if they manage not to utterly destroy them, up to 3 galleys to split among them. Thanks!