So when I joined Roleplayerguild, one of - if not the first roleplay(s) I Gmed was called When Royalty Collides. (WRC for short.) At this time I was fourteen. I had little to no internet access due to very controlling parents. With not enough time to GM the RP, it quickly failed. I was approached by Ayzrules (whom I call Az.) She wanted to borrow my idea and see what she could do with it. I, being young, thought that this was absolutely flattering. So I obliged.

I expected one try from her. Maybe two. Now almost five years later we've had eight or nine renditions between the two of us. I decided to try my hand at it again a few months ago. I was familiar with the concept, needed to get back into GM-ing and people were interested. I thought 'why not?'

Due to being super busy with my new job, I felt that it was best to close it again this time. I didn’t have enough time to give to the RP. I posted an announcement in the discord, received a few short parting messages from members. Standard RP shut down shit.

Well, I got a message from Az asking if she could continue to GM the RP because she had time. That message surprised me because she hadn’t been posting until the very last second for her characters, and had even dropped one during the course of the RP. She also didn’t help out with any of the Co-GM responsibilities that much. I also got an invite to a server, and another reassuring me that she could continue the current IC. I let the messages sit there for a few days, until I had time to hold a conversation. Work had kicked my ass that week. I sent her this message in response:

I'd love to be in the server, but most likely not. I'm already in enough servers that I'm not that active in :joy:

As for a continuation.... I think it's best if we just let it go. Not just this thread, but sort of all of them. If there were to be a new one, that would be the eight or ninth try, and to my knowledge none of them have made it past the Welcome Ball. When we do get a chance to post a time skip, most people are already done with the RP. I honestly think it would just be best to drop it completely for the time being. Maybe in the distant future we could work something out.

She then continued to state that she wanted and was going to run a continuation of the current IC.

I told her that I wanted the whole concept dropped as a whole, as well as any continuations or new renditions. She stated that it was a different concept because she didn’t require betrothals, as I did. I continued to state that I didn’t want the concept used anymore, at all. The following messages were sent.

HaleyTheRandom: I don't want the concept used anymore. At all.
If you want to keep editing the dolls, the aesthetics, and the tumblr boards that is fine. But the WRC concept is done. It's dead. It's not about how much or how little I want to be involved. This has been my creation from the get go and I really, honestly, think it's best if we stop writing for it for the time being.

Ayzrules:
i mean okay, it was originally your thing so i'll respect your wishes, but i'm still going to keep everything i've written

also, without required betrothals (which is how i run it) it's essentially just modern royalty au (and it won't be set in aciras, but rather lynston, a city of my own making)

i also don't think it's fair to tell people just...not to write? I mean fuck, i have a whole 58k word nano novel revolving around my characters. like yeah i get that it's your concept and i'll stop using the wrc name if it makes you uncomfortable but i've spent however many years thinking up and developing characters and timelines that go far beyond whatever was originally in the rp, and i don't think it's fair to tell people who've done that for their own chars that it's just not allowed?

HaleyTheRandom:
If you change the name, the city, and a few of the most basic things that I originally had, it is still WRC. It's not just the idea, but the whole concept. The modern royalty AU and everything. That's what WRC originally was, is, and always will be. I understand that people are going to be upset, and if they want to come to me and talk about it, that's cool. You can even tell them my DM's are open. I have also spent ages writing different things about and for this RP. I'm not saying that you can't keep anything WRC related. If you want to RP something like this, Instead of using whole nations, you could use global conglomerate companies, or generally just families with a buttload of money that they're practically royalty rich. They don't necessarily need to be actual royalty to live like royalty. Especially without the betrothals.

As you can see, I gave her different options. Sure. When you look at it after she changes some of the smallest details (no betrothals, changing the main princess and kingdom name) it’s essentially a `royals doing stuff, making drama` RP. Could I keep her from doing that? No. I guess not.

I can’t tell people to stop using the tumblr blogs, pinterest boards, characters, or anything else of the like. Those are theres, and I respect that.

What I do not respect is someone telling me that they respect my wishes and will stop running a continuation of my RP and then popping up a week or two later with a continuation of the current IC.

I’ll be honest. I went to the mods. I was angry. It was like a slap in the face. She had taken the carnival idea from myself. I know it’s hard to prove that it was solely my idea, but I messaged asking her what our next IC event should be; Rather we should crash a masquerade ball, or do the carnival/amusement park event. We agreed to let the people vote, and ended up doing the later. Also, in the IC post that I had done for my character, I stated that it had been a week since the Welcome Ball festivities - just like these posts are now stating. There’s also never been a carnival like event in any of the iterations of the RP.

Let me go on record to say that the mod that I dealt with was amazing. They helped in every way that they could, and the thread was locked for a few hours - because as the mod stated, you were breaking the rules. But… you told them that you were changing things.

How are you changing things if you’re still using the same freaking event that we left off at IC wise? The same time frame?

Also, if it’s the same idea that you said you were using, it’s still way similar to WRC, but I can’t keep you from using it due to the fact that it’s not my idea.

CONGRATULATIONS! You're invited to the wedding of the Century, a landmark historic event that will turn the tides of international relations forever! Tzar Vladimir Romanova of Snowski and King Gregory Tasker of ValorHaven have formed a political union that will unite the two great kingdoms into a wonderous empire! Since we live in the wonderfully progressive year 2018, we are graced to be entertained with a wedding between the two families that will cement the alliance for the rest of history. The wedding will take place in the beautiful Snowskian colony of Amazonia (also referred to Mapuche if you're a local), in the splendours summer castle. I hope that you can make it, it's an event to DIE FOR.

-Tzar Vladimir Romanova's office of public relations

^ That is the idea that was sent to me via DM and was stated would be used instead.

Still royals. Still a huge wedding of the century event. Still having royals from all over come to the Kingdom for the celebration. Supposed to be a HUGE ordeal. Still the same freaking idea with a few tweaks.

I’m just here to tell my side of things and let everyone in this thread know that WRC is done. When I get time to collect my notes and reflect on a few things, maybe I will bring it back in a few years. But as for now it is done. As stated above, I can’t tell you to use your characters and shit. If you want to use them for what is being claimed as a new idea, then go ahead! I have no problem with that even though it’s hella similar and for some reason people can’t seem to wrap their heads around the idea that you don’t have to use the royal aspect of things to do an RP like this. I even gave suggestions of what you could do instead.

Call me crazy. Maybe it’s an overreaction. But this whole damn thread looks like a continuation of the current/last IC and the only reason that it is now being claimed to change is because certain people still want to have their fun.

Want to use the ‘new’ idea. Cool.

But it’s still not an original idea, sweets.

But you telling us that we couldn't write for characters some of us had for 5+ years was a slap in the face.

Literally never said that. I said don't write for the WRC universe. Never said not to use your characters.

I really do feel like what me and Aria and some of the others who were there have been doing from the beginning - expanding timelines, creating edits, writing side stories, the Pinterest/Tumblr, etc - is what kept this entire concept alive, and that it would have died three years ago, after your third iteration, if not for us.

You are not the reason WRC is still alive. I had plotted, created boards and everything else. I'm grateful for what everyone has done for WRC, but for there to be insinuation that y'all did more for the RP than I did is bullshit. The first three tries were when I had not net access. I was young and dumb, what can I say?

NGL, I was posting at the very last second because life was busy, which I'm sure you can understand.

And that's all you had to say - but you never did.

I took a more passive role with Co-GM things because you didn't seem like you wanted me interfering with anything. I was fine with it, because it seemed like what you thought best - and if you remember, I did bring up moving on earlier than you'd originally planned with you.

I do remember. I also remember that you only brought it up right towards the end of the event as well. I never acted like I didn't want you there. You blatantly acted out against my decisions as GM in the general discord chat without coming to me first. Constantly undermining my authority, constantly making things harder. You went against me so many times in the fucking server. In front of our players. How can you ever expect to run an RP like that? Furthermore, I never acted like I didn't want you there, even when things were made difficult. I came to you for decision making. I came to you for issues that we had with writers. So don't try and make it out like I forced you to be passive.

And, I will be 100% honest, but you didn't seem very happy that I was there all the time, especially with the bit about Beatrice's relations sheet. So I thought - not going to say anything, just let it go.

If I ever made you feel like that - you should have told me. We could have worked on it. I never meant for you to feel that way, and as a GM I would never make any of my players feel that way, no matter the history. Also, what happened with Bea's sheet was a mild understanding. You had copied and pasted Alejandro's, so all of the relations were the exact same until the very last characters. So yes. I assumed that the whole sheet was the same, and you still needed to edit. And if you remember correctly, you explained what was going on, I cleared her to post, and everything was fine.

It's not. Raven's not in this. Neither are any of the characters of the people who decided to completely drop, like Ara and Erik. I asked everyone else, and they said they would prefer to start at a point sometime after the welcome ball, so that's what I did.

Just because Raven isn't in this, along with a hand full of others, doesn't mean that it's not WRC. They are still the same characters, in the same setting, following the same course of events over the previous IC.

Telling me that we couldn't write for the concept or our characters anymore was like a slap in the face to everyone who'd stayed with the concept over the course of five years. Let me be blunt: you can't just tell people not to write for their own characters, or for the kingdoms that they created. No GM had any part in the character/kingdom creation process. No GM can claim any ownership over any of the characters or kingdoms.

I never said that you could not use the Kingdoms, or the characters. I said you couldn't use the WRC setting. There is a difference. I have never claimed any right to any characters but my own.

Shy and I decided to do a theme park - an idea that we tossed around during the last iteration I ran, which I found in an old google doc - and after conferring with Poo, it was moved to the day after a picnic brunch, three days after the welcome ball.

I call bullshit. Every post in this thread blatantly states a week after the welcome ball/festivities.

Furthermore, your original plot had all the characters getting married in a series of weddings set up by the Aciran royal family. I decided to do something different and just have Lea be extra and invite everyone to her own wedding, an idea which you took without saying a single word to me for your last iteration.

Actually no. The characters were linked by their betrothals set up by their own governments and they had yet to be married. I wasn't aware that Raven planning her sisters wedding and inviting people there was stealing you idea? Again - of you had a problem with that, you should have spoken up. Learn to use your words.

We don't have to use the royal aspect of things, but why should we be banned from using it when modern day royalty isn't a new idea? I don't care about anything in the future, but you literally can't just tell people not to write for their characters. We just want to explore things at our own pace without making too many adjustments. As you can see, I'm not posting an int check or anything for this. This is a closed, PRIVATE place to write for our OWN characters.

Oh my fucking god, how many times are you going to claim that I said that you couldn't write with your characters when I NEVER SAID THAT.

So what if it is?

Seriously?

The so what was that you said you would stop writing for WRC. The so what is that you lied and said that you respected my wishes and that you would stop, but clearly have not. That is the so what.

We do want to still have fun with these characters that we made ourselves. And I'm not going to lie, but you telling me that I can't write for characters I've developed over the course of five years was, as you said, a slap in the face. It felt like you were disregarding everything that I put into this along with you - the Pinterest, the Tumblr, the edits I've made for everyone (including your characters), the plot development and separate timelines and everything. A lot of us have put so much into the characters and plots we came up for them, and I don't think you have any right to dictate what we do with our characters.

The slap in the face was you lying - not anything to do with the characters. I never disregarded anything that anyone had done. Never said that you couldn't write for the characters. Never said that you couldn't continue with the pinterest, tumblr, etc. I even told you that you could continue them!!

HaleyTheRandom 01/18/2020
If you want to keep editing the dolls, the aesthetics, and the tumblr boards that is fine. But the WRC concept is done. It's dead. It's not about how much or how little I want to be involved. This has been my creation from the get go and I really, honestly, think it's best if we stop writing for it for the time being.

Furthermore, if you decide to run another iteration of WRC, please ask me before you copy paste anything that I wrote, including the description of the premise. And please ask me and credit me for incorporating the changes I made in premise - namely having it be a big party before a wedding, instead of having it be a big party before a series of weddings facilitated by the Aciran monarchy.

The Welcome Ball has always been the big party before the wedding. You obviously have your information wrong, because the Acirans never facilitated anything. The whole fucking idea was there to be a celebration of the Aciran wedding from the very beginning. The welcome ball and the invites to the party/ball were to celebrate the Aciran wedding and allow the royals to interact before they wed due to their own choice.

__________________________

Trust and believe, that I won't need to ask you for anything. I have plenty of ideas of my own that I can and will use, if I ever decide to bring my RP back.

I'm not trying to trademark modern royalty, but you are trying to claim my idea as your and run with it. You are still trying to play innocent and act like you have no idea what I'm talking about, just like you did in DM's. I never tried to trademark anything that wasn't mine. I asked you to stop using things that were mine.

You can incorporate these same characters, and these same plots in to just about any RP. You chose to keep doing this this way. And just because you removed betrothals, or used a different 'main' character, doesn't mean that it isn't WRC anymore. Just because you added and brunch, and claim to have moved the dates around, doesn't mean that it's still not a continuation of the current IC, which I asked to be stopped.

Again - just so we are clear - I never said stop using your characters. I said stop using When Royalty Collides.