FourtyTwo Member
STATUS: 10+ years of an RP idea, finally finished, on 10.10.2025. Goodnight Raven Squad, you were the best, wildest, most silly near future SOF RP that lived on the guild, and you got a worthy send off :) 9 mos ago
- Last Seen: 5 hrs ago
- Old Guild Username: kingkonrad
- Joined: 12 yrs ago
- Posts: 2476 (0.54 / day)
- VMs: 3
-
Username history
- FourtyTwo 5 yrs ago
- ██████████ 12 yrs ago
-
Latest 10 profile visitors:
-
Most recent →
cosmiccowgirl,
esqueleto,
xVampire3go,
SonnetNSunbeam,
RisingRobin,
Gunther,
Antlers,
PrinceAlexus,
Hibachi90,
Half Pint
Status
Recent Statuses
9 mos ago
Current
10+ years of an RP idea, finally finished, on 10.10.2025. Goodnight Raven Squad, you were the best, wildest, most silly near future SOF RP that lived on the guild, and you got a worthy send off :)
9
likes
Bio
I've RP'd for the best part of over 15 years now here on the Guild, and particularly like military settings, both contemporary, past and near future. I have even dabbled in a little more experimental RPs, as well as created a plethora of 1x1s over my time in the guild. I like creating RPs with a distinct flavour- and often shift between narrative-led RPs to semi-randomised plots. I've been more a GM lately than a player, and don't really lean into fandom- instead, exploring my own universes lifting themes from other source material.
My main interests are military-themed, near-future RPs, with a focus on technology. But I'm beginning to push what that RP idea looks like- taking inspiration from lots of media and focussing on the fun, indulgent side of RP, whilst also exploring the lows and emotional side.
roleplayerguild.com/topics/190121-rav…
Raven Squad is a project over seven years in the making, and focusses on a class-based, eccentric yet half-grounded near future special forces team that acts as a response team where you can't send any special forces team in. It's incredibly dumb, incredibly loose, and yet, has delivered some of my favourite plot points in RPG. A brainless action flick a la John Wick and Kingsman meets a complex thriller with a fun left turn in it, Raven has been the culmination of over a decade of loving special forces RPG, gaming influences and other silliness in a package that has provided players with something quite different to a normal military themed RPG. While at an end, this is an RP that is a signature- it's silly as hell, takes itself barely seriously, and is what peak fun military RPG to me should be.
roleplayerguild.com/topics/192916-del…
Delta Hyper is a love letter to Wipeout, F1's Drive to Survive (Netflix) and contemporary Formula One, with influences from solarpunk, cyberpunk, transhumanism and other posthumanist concepts. An RP that follows pilots in their ups and downs, it's a story that hasn't got me playing an actual character, but framing the camera at each pilot (played by others), and presenting it as if it were a documentary. Lifting elements from TTRPG, this is a Racing RPG like no other and no parallel exists- using dice rolls and randomisation, with a stats-driven system to generate race results, rather than actually RPing the races, players experience the fast-paced, dynamic world of anti-gravity racing. This means that come Qualifying and Race, the results are genuinely a surprise to everyone- and based on decisions made through dilemmas and decisions made between races. Friendships, rivalry, the glamour and even a little political undertone play out in 2094, in a colourful, utopian future that focuses on the fight to take first place.
roleplayerguild.com/topics/196931-tac…
Then there's Tactical Breach Wizards: Fireteam Hex. First use of any set IP as a formal setting, this is an RP that offers a darker mirror to Raven Squad, focussing on the other side of the equation- unlikely heroes in an uncomfortable position. I don't normally do fantasy, but the world, the lore, the feeling of the characters and the ability to write a comedy just was too difficult to pass up. An RP that focuses on a group running away from a variety of threats as wanted mercenary wizards in the middle of a post-revolution, Eastern-Europe adjacent 1990s to present Polavia.
roleplayerguild.com/topics/197399-dis…
Lastly, Dispatch: Heroes of Claremont. This is another IP-adjacent world, albeit drawing on a different setting and a new cast of superheroes. As my "first" proper superhero RP, this combines workplace comedy, a Storyteller-lite system and a fun, diverse, and large cast together in a dynamic, diverse setting.
I'm pretty flexible and try and get back to people on ideas and responses, but sometimes, I may become very busy and it will take some time till I am un-busy. I aim to clear posts within a week!
My main interests are military-themed, near-future RPs, with a focus on technology. But I'm beginning to push what that RP idea looks like- taking inspiration from lots of media and focussing on the fun, indulgent side of RP, whilst also exploring the lows and emotional side.
roleplayerguild.com/topics/190121-rav…
Raven Squad is a project over seven years in the making, and focusses on a class-based, eccentric yet half-grounded near future special forces team that acts as a response team where you can't send any special forces team in. It's incredibly dumb, incredibly loose, and yet, has delivered some of my favourite plot points in RPG. A brainless action flick a la John Wick and Kingsman meets a complex thriller with a fun left turn in it, Raven has been the culmination of over a decade of loving special forces RPG, gaming influences and other silliness in a package that has provided players with something quite different to a normal military themed RPG. While at an end, this is an RP that is a signature- it's silly as hell, takes itself barely seriously, and is what peak fun military RPG to me should be.
roleplayerguild.com/topics/192916-del…
Delta Hyper is a love letter to Wipeout, F1's Drive to Survive (Netflix) and contemporary Formula One, with influences from solarpunk, cyberpunk, transhumanism and other posthumanist concepts. An RP that follows pilots in their ups and downs, it's a story that hasn't got me playing an actual character, but framing the camera at each pilot (played by others), and presenting it as if it were a documentary. Lifting elements from TTRPG, this is a Racing RPG like no other and no parallel exists- using dice rolls and randomisation, with a stats-driven system to generate race results, rather than actually RPing the races, players experience the fast-paced, dynamic world of anti-gravity racing. This means that come Qualifying and Race, the results are genuinely a surprise to everyone- and based on decisions made through dilemmas and decisions made between races. Friendships, rivalry, the glamour and even a little political undertone play out in 2094, in a colourful, utopian future that focuses on the fight to take first place.
roleplayerguild.com/topics/196931-tac…
Then there's Tactical Breach Wizards: Fireteam Hex. First use of any set IP as a formal setting, this is an RP that offers a darker mirror to Raven Squad, focussing on the other side of the equation- unlikely heroes in an uncomfortable position. I don't normally do fantasy, but the world, the lore, the feeling of the characters and the ability to write a comedy just was too difficult to pass up. An RP that focuses on a group running away from a variety of threats as wanted mercenary wizards in the middle of a post-revolution, Eastern-Europe adjacent 1990s to present Polavia.
roleplayerguild.com/topics/197399-dis…
Lastly, Dispatch: Heroes of Claremont. This is another IP-adjacent world, albeit drawing on a different setting and a new cast of superheroes. As my "first" proper superhero RP, this combines workplace comedy, a Storyteller-lite system and a fun, diverse, and large cast together in a dynamic, diverse setting.
I'm pretty flexible and try and get back to people on ideas and responses, but sometimes, I may become very busy and it will take some time till I am un-busy. I aim to clear posts within a week!
Most Recent Posts
Should also mention this- that JTAC role is a 2IC (2nd in Command) as well, and has to be American, due to the majority of CAS on hand being US Marine-based. It's stuff like AH-1 SuperCobras, Harriers and other various tools of the trade, that will become specified when eneded.
That's a Joint Terminal Attack Controller, or a Forward Air Observer- or at least a unit that's formed from them I see. Lots of lingo for one role- the TACP is a whole fireteam, I just want an individual. They call the CAS and fire support in general- so they'd work out well if you liked that role.
Or, in short, a Holographic Sight with a magnifying device behind it.
I provided pictures in the hider, as a kinda illumination of what they vaguely look like.
Also ,fair enough- any particular role get you?
I provided pictures in the hider, as a kinda illumination of what they vaguely look like.
Also ,fair enough- any particular role get you?
Pretty much- that's fine. I mean, it's hard to go for either that, or the scout- the guy going out to find out about the brave new world. Because that sounds a little bit too rounded, whereas a scout would perhaps be more confident in a crazy environment, an explorer of sorts.
This sounds interesting- I really like the idea, and while you've got the engineer taken, I'd happily take the astronaut- the career sort of explorer, though that does overlap with Scout. Probably have a bulkier, yet more exploratory suit- suitable for the EVAs and harshest of climes, also packing a significantly better rebreather system and life support to kinda give it an edge in the farthest reaches. Though I don't know- what would you really like of that sort of character?
Exactly that. I will sort you out my friend. Glad to hear some popularity- and as always, I am craving for a Co-GM. If anyone wants, let me know- since I would like the idea of someone that can help me out in running this RP. I don't mind if people don't get equipment that well, so long as you vaguely know the difference between an M4 and a M240. And you know, while I won't be anal about tactics and maneuvers, what I will say is never, ever go full retard, or Rambo.
James's C8 for example, is a bit different- but it's strange in Canada, how optics work. You can privately buy your own collminators or optics- they provide the C79, as a standard with every rifle, but some soldiers want something more up-front, over flip-up iron sights or the BUIS mounted atop the C79. So hence, the reason that James has gone for the EOTech 552 and a 3XMAG is so that it's a little more dependable in CQC, rather than a fully-fledged rifle- much of which other teams would have. It's an afterthought, and remember- it's out of his own wallet, so I wouldn't expect too many to follow suit in that direction, if you get what I mean (on the Canadian side). I want to stick to that list of weapons, though I know the US Marines have plenty more rifles, such as the M40A5 for Marksmen (which I will stress, is not a sniper, but a designated man in the team to extend their reach), and the recent addition of a "Pointman" role warrants 870 Tactical shotguns in addition to regular rifles in both forces.
James's C8 for example, is a bit different- but it's strange in Canada, how optics work. You can privately buy your own collminators or optics- they provide the C79, as a standard with every rifle, but some soldiers want something more up-front, over flip-up iron sights or the BUIS mounted atop the C79. So hence, the reason that James has gone for the EOTech 552 and a 3XMAG is so that it's a little more dependable in CQC, rather than a fully-fledged rifle- much of which other teams would have. It's an afterthought, and remember- it's out of his own wallet, so I wouldn't expect too many to follow suit in that direction, if you get what I mean (on the Canadian side). I want to stick to that list of weapons, though I know the US Marines have plenty more rifles, such as the M40A5 for Marksmen (which I will stress, is not a sniper, but a designated man in the team to extend their reach), and the recent addition of a "Pointman" role warrants 870 Tactical shotguns in addition to regular rifles in both forces.
Oh yeah, of course. That will be included. There are Americans and Canucks in the same base, for crying out loud. There's Banter aplenty. Any particular role you want out of interest?
Nice, good to see you both- should be good to get the momentum on this going.
Complimentary Bump.
Complimentary Bump.
I've been munching popcorn over this. Cheers for the thoughts- I am taking a lot on board, but I want to add to this.
Military RPs can't all be too serious/realistic. and while you'd say a full on military RP is all about strategy and realism, that's one corner. What I'm saying is, the niche that was military RPs that I ran, and many others, was completely unlike that full-on realism scenarios. I expect people to walk in with a fairly good knowledge, not be encyclopedia. It's fucking sad, when I see people who are willing, but a little confused at times, get yelled and shouted at. Sure, there are idiots. But there are noobs, people you can educate, and the thing is, I have developed well-written narratives, inside the anarchy. Lima stands as a testament to that- and while it's shaky now, it has run well for a couple of years, being an RP that is authentic and at least original, yet takes some ideas and puts it into an original concept with some action (and seriously, the dull bits of the RP were not popular, no matter what you say I know these RPers well enough to know they're saying that with authority. Believe me, I've tried contemporary, all out military RPs with full realism engaged (engagements at a range of 200m-400m rather than 50-200). People were unwilling to create units, I worked myself for nothing, and suddenly, realized it wasn't worthwhile. I enjoy action, I don't like Rambo. I like it when a tight-knit team go into urban combat, and take on the OpFor, in a head on engagement. Their stories, as individuals, is kept down- the fighting takes precedence, it's the task at hand that they're ordered into. I don't like sitting and slouching around, and when I say this, I mean in a format that doesn't build any tension- but rather, just really leaves things blank. I let people be creative, and RP along- but people don't usually take the response, as an earlier comment earlier said, soldiers moan about doing fuck all, and RPing fuck all is precisely what my life is like- and I speak for many of us if I say that it isn't what I want my RP to be a mainstay of (so hence, you can't achieve full realism, you can get partly there in tactics and other factors that I've got a fairly confident understanding of). Yet it comes to one fatal flaw, that I've realized.
A lot of my GMing is based on control. I don't act as a reactive GM, as a GM who sets out a world and then a few rules, then lets it run. A military RP needs constant co-ordination, and for the GM, it is stressful. You have to juggle a plot, equipment, and all sorts, and it's shitty really. I do it because i love it though, and it's why I ask for more to get involved, at any level they like. to do these types of RP. You can't be reactive as it means people hijack the plot- and a plot is central to a military RP because...well, without structure, things don't make sense (ie. a Private walks out onto patrol autonomously rather than the whole squad going, a decision usually made by the CO, and usually the GM (who in turn has to usually, but not always take this role as it prevents serious God-Modding abuse). It's why it's hard perhaps- and again, Brovo, a point you've made.
For the sake of the narrative, specific battles are usually easier to do, rather than a multitude of them, I should mention. It becomes incoherent if you try to have the more constant structure that exists in the timeframe of conflict- and tends to be easier on everyone, believe me. Not just the GM, because he can worry about one scenario to the next rather than a continuous structure that can become bogged down, but RPers, so that they can at least make sense of the parts, bit by bit. In regards to realism, before anybody asks- I do understand the spectrum, of angling, CQC tactics, one bullet's potential in penetration and wounding, as well as other factors. There are real factors that stay in any Mil RP that I have, though in terms of movement and distance to target, for creative purposes of hemming in the fight better, this works out nicer (could rant on this topic).
Tanks don't do Asymmetrical Warfare. Look at Afghanistan. Good reason why tanks don't roll the "plains" of the Hindu Kush these days. That was Desert Storm, and Iraq. Nowadays, warfare is different. IEDs, guerrilla warfare, and the fact that we're not able to counteract this effectively (they just roll back into towns we leave to the ANA) means that war is no longer simply send a tank, sent a B2 Spirit to level the shit out of an area. It doesn't take a military genius to figure it out that shit doesn't work in a place like that, and it's not a universal formula- again, maybe sometimes it works, other times, Afghanistan and Vietnam in particular, it does not. Insurgents work differently, and this is in itself, what makes unpredictability and sometimes the sheer throwing of a spanner into the works of a certain scenario, makes for some brilliant RPing where characters are forced to respond in a way that perhaps can't really be seen with many RPs of type. Maybe in other scenarios, but the Infantry do what tanks, helicopters, artillery, jets and IFVs can't. They clear buildings, block by block, house by house. Otherwise, the other half of Iraq we didn't bomb would be leveled- and supports aren't always there. They still form a bread and butter- and while unprotected compared to other assets, they can go places that we still haven't gotten any of the listed supports to go into yet, for good reasons.
I can't agree, I mean, it's a narrow view to take. I can't say that it is selling out to appeal to a broader audience- one that perhaps can become more involved and learn, rather than just act as complete tards- and this you don't even have to do much of, simply just cutting the unneeded fat that really burdens it back. There are noobs, but not morons, and those latter you can filter out anyway. Sure, maybe there are less that know about military matters, but with research, or even just a quick session of Google, a half-acceptable CS can be made quite quick. Take a look at what I do for yourself (Scimitar, is by no means you regular military RP, that is perhaps very much in a different style that I would call unique to itself)- Lima might not always be the most stringent and realism-adhering RP in the world. Reality? I don't care, because I know that it's creatively, what works. It isn't clunky, it isn't a gun-wank for gunwankers. It's a Special Forces RP that mixes realism with some creative licence (though even this is debatable), and I'll stand by it, because it's outlasted so many flashes in the pan that this genre has. Only reason it's lost pace recently is due to the members of the RP being busy, but apart from that, it's gone good guns. I've seen RPs way, way shittier than it, appeal to some who want to get involved with military RPs. Either desperation or just mere curiosity to become involved creatively brings that about- and I have many a time wanted to try it on for size, though I enjoy sticking to what I stringently do. And I don't sacrifice quality in these RPs either. I'd sadly agree, that less and less people care or meet any basic requirements. But it can't be this dead, surely. It's the creators that have vanished, and there's a market for the RP, in one form or another. In a very realistic tone or a more reclined one. It isn't bitching about characters and settings, or what works or what doesn't. I don't give a fuck really, it's what people want to make of it from their perspective on conflict, and that they'll make- and this worked for ages, till the last few months, where I look at the Guild and find there isn't even a single military RP in a vein of a certain kind (and I genuinely mean, vaguely similar- find a contemporary military RP that isn't based around larger unit structures now), it isn't doable.
I somehow agree. You can't state that RPers require a knowledge of Sun Tzu, and significant portions of military tactics. You need a frame of mind, but not that far. And it can be taught, quickly. A word in the OOC, just specifying how things work, bam. And that nets you one player that before you didn't have. Being picky in RPs about people isn't an option- you take what you get, and if you start telling people they're assholes, I know what I'd do.
The problem is, political sensitivity. Call the same with Afghanistan, or Iraq (I stray from the latter for good reason). Then there's politics itself, the stuff in the News and everyday we hear from Parliaments and Senates. You can't go there with it, unless you do it in such a way that is broadly appealing and is satisfying, rather than a crunching shitfest that just makes the RP more complicated than it needs be. Imagine a RP set in Palestine, in the events of earlier this year. I RP for escapism, I stay semi-detached to current affairs when it comes to RP because fuck me, I don't want to hear it any more than I already do (though this said, I'll make exceptions, and it has to work in my opinion in order to make it viable, so long as it doesn't incite a massive political clusterfuck). Anyway, if I wanted to do something set with Civilians in conflict, I couldn't do modern- it doesn't suit I feel, not like say, a group of Marines on the ground would. This would have to be WW1, WW2, or something along those lines. Hence why my reaccurance to the Warsaw Uprising. I'm more and more surprised it hasn't been done yet, now I see what people want from an RP. That meets every single one of your criteria- but for now, I do not feel ready to take on the mantle of an RP like that. It needs to be done industrially well.
There is some consensus, I will say. We all have a general view, and there is a lot of people. We all at least agree that it's somewhat existent, so I'll ask, what now of it. It's not a rallying call- this has been a debate after all, over what it means to make an RP of this type. And while perhaps flashes in the pan are what make the genre come back like desert flowers after rain, it's a way of at least getting what this field will need.
Military RPs can't all be too serious/realistic. and while you'd say a full on military RP is all about strategy and realism, that's one corner. What I'm saying is, the niche that was military RPs that I ran, and many others, was completely unlike that full-on realism scenarios. I expect people to walk in with a fairly good knowledge, not be encyclopedia. It's fucking sad, when I see people who are willing, but a little confused at times, get yelled and shouted at. Sure, there are idiots. But there are noobs, people you can educate, and the thing is, I have developed well-written narratives, inside the anarchy. Lima stands as a testament to that- and while it's shaky now, it has run well for a couple of years, being an RP that is authentic and at least original, yet takes some ideas and puts it into an original concept with some action (and seriously, the dull bits of the RP were not popular, no matter what you say I know these RPers well enough to know they're saying that with authority. Believe me, I've tried contemporary, all out military RPs with full realism engaged (engagements at a range of 200m-400m rather than 50-200). People were unwilling to create units, I worked myself for nothing, and suddenly, realized it wasn't worthwhile. I enjoy action, I don't like Rambo. I like it when a tight-knit team go into urban combat, and take on the OpFor, in a head on engagement. Their stories, as individuals, is kept down- the fighting takes precedence, it's the task at hand that they're ordered into. I don't like sitting and slouching around, and when I say this, I mean in a format that doesn't build any tension- but rather, just really leaves things blank. I let people be creative, and RP along- but people don't usually take the response, as an earlier comment earlier said, soldiers moan about doing fuck all, and RPing fuck all is precisely what my life is like- and I speak for many of us if I say that it isn't what I want my RP to be a mainstay of (so hence, you can't achieve full realism, you can get partly there in tactics and other factors that I've got a fairly confident understanding of). Yet it comes to one fatal flaw, that I've realized.
A lot of my GMing is based on control. I don't act as a reactive GM, as a GM who sets out a world and then a few rules, then lets it run. A military RP needs constant co-ordination, and for the GM, it is stressful. You have to juggle a plot, equipment, and all sorts, and it's shitty really. I do it because i love it though, and it's why I ask for more to get involved, at any level they like. to do these types of RP. You can't be reactive as it means people hijack the plot- and a plot is central to a military RP because...well, without structure, things don't make sense (ie. a Private walks out onto patrol autonomously rather than the whole squad going, a decision usually made by the CO, and usually the GM (who in turn has to usually, but not always take this role as it prevents serious God-Modding abuse). It's why it's hard perhaps- and again, Brovo, a point you've made.
For the sake of the narrative, specific battles are usually easier to do, rather than a multitude of them, I should mention. It becomes incoherent if you try to have the more constant structure that exists in the timeframe of conflict- and tends to be easier on everyone, believe me. Not just the GM, because he can worry about one scenario to the next rather than a continuous structure that can become bogged down, but RPers, so that they can at least make sense of the parts, bit by bit. In regards to realism, before anybody asks- I do understand the spectrum, of angling, CQC tactics, one bullet's potential in penetration and wounding, as well as other factors. There are real factors that stay in any Mil RP that I have, though in terms of movement and distance to target, for creative purposes of hemming in the fight better, this works out nicer (could rant on this topic).
Brovo said
For example: Tanks are the front line, infantry play the support role, proper reconnaissance and air superiority wins nearly everything, and ninety percent of your time is spent being on edge of being shot at in civilian areas rather than shooting at actual targets as you pass through streets and alleys and stumble on jittery civilians as scared as you.
Tanks don't do Asymmetrical Warfare. Look at Afghanistan. Good reason why tanks don't roll the "plains" of the Hindu Kush these days. That was Desert Storm, and Iraq. Nowadays, warfare is different. IEDs, guerrilla warfare, and the fact that we're not able to counteract this effectively (they just roll back into towns we leave to the ANA) means that war is no longer simply send a tank, sent a B2 Spirit to level the shit out of an area. It doesn't take a military genius to figure it out that shit doesn't work in a place like that, and it's not a universal formula- again, maybe sometimes it works, other times, Afghanistan and Vietnam in particular, it does not. Insurgents work differently, and this is in itself, what makes unpredictability and sometimes the sheer throwing of a spanner into the works of a certain scenario, makes for some brilliant RPing where characters are forced to respond in a way that perhaps can't really be seen with many RPs of type. Maybe in other scenarios, but the Infantry do what tanks, helicopters, artillery, jets and IFVs can't. They clear buildings, block by block, house by house. Otherwise, the other half of Iraq we didn't bomb would be leveled- and supports aren't always there. They still form a bread and butter- and while unprotected compared to other assets, they can go places that we still haven't gotten any of the listed supports to go into yet, for good reasons.
Brovo said
Fact of the matter is?The vast majority of people on this site do not meet these qualifications. If I were to make a military RP, I would have to dumb it down so hard that the point of it would be lost. It would turn into generic action RP with military flavouring, and that's just selling out. It would satisfy nobody looking for a true military RP.
I can't agree, I mean, it's a narrow view to take. I can't say that it is selling out to appeal to a broader audience- one that perhaps can become more involved and learn, rather than just act as complete tards- and this you don't even have to do much of, simply just cutting the unneeded fat that really burdens it back. There are noobs, but not morons, and those latter you can filter out anyway. Sure, maybe there are less that know about military matters, but with research, or even just a quick session of Google, a half-acceptable CS can be made quite quick. Take a look at what I do for yourself (Scimitar, is by no means you regular military RP, that is perhaps very much in a different style that I would call unique to itself)- Lima might not always be the most stringent and realism-adhering RP in the world. Reality? I don't care, because I know that it's creatively, what works. It isn't clunky, it isn't a gun-wank for gunwankers. It's a Special Forces RP that mixes realism with some creative licence (though even this is debatable), and I'll stand by it, because it's outlasted so many flashes in the pan that this genre has. Only reason it's lost pace recently is due to the members of the RP being busy, but apart from that, it's gone good guns. I've seen RPs way, way shittier than it, appeal to some who want to get involved with military RPs. Either desperation or just mere curiosity to become involved creatively brings that about- and I have many a time wanted to try it on for size, though I enjoy sticking to what I stringently do. And I don't sacrifice quality in these RPs either. I'd sadly agree, that less and less people care or meet any basic requirements. But it can't be this dead, surely. It's the creators that have vanished, and there's a market for the RP, in one form or another. In a very realistic tone or a more reclined one. It isn't bitching about characters and settings, or what works or what doesn't. I don't give a fuck really, it's what people want to make of it from their perspective on conflict, and that they'll make- and this worked for ages, till the last few months, where I look at the Guild and find there isn't even a single military RP in a vein of a certain kind (and I genuinely mean, vaguely similar- find a contemporary military RP that isn't based around larger unit structures now), it isn't doable.
Warrior in the Shadows said
You elitist bastard.
I somehow agree. You can't state that RPers require a knowledge of Sun Tzu, and significant portions of military tactics. You need a frame of mind, but not that far. And it can be taught, quickly. A word in the OOC, just specifying how things work, bam. And that nets you one player that before you didn't have. Being picky in RPs about people isn't an option- you take what you get, and if you start telling people they're assholes, I know what I'd do.
Jannah said
I personally always thought it would be interesting to do a RP centred around the Arab/Israeli conflict. I fear it would be too sensitive a subject for some people though. However, it would actually make pretty decent RP material though since it's filled with the daily struggles and drama of people trying to live in a warzone, the action sequences that come from the various battles, and most of all it's something that's happening now that many people may not give a second thought about due to the fact they live away from it.
The problem is, political sensitivity. Call the same with Afghanistan, or Iraq (I stray from the latter for good reason). Then there's politics itself, the stuff in the News and everyday we hear from Parliaments and Senates. You can't go there with it, unless you do it in such a way that is broadly appealing and is satisfying, rather than a crunching shitfest that just makes the RP more complicated than it needs be. Imagine a RP set in Palestine, in the events of earlier this year. I RP for escapism, I stay semi-detached to current affairs when it comes to RP because fuck me, I don't want to hear it any more than I already do (though this said, I'll make exceptions, and it has to work in my opinion in order to make it viable, so long as it doesn't incite a massive political clusterfuck). Anyway, if I wanted to do something set with Civilians in conflict, I couldn't do modern- it doesn't suit I feel, not like say, a group of Marines on the ground would. This would have to be WW1, WW2, or something along those lines. Hence why my reaccurance to the Warsaw Uprising. I'm more and more surprised it hasn't been done yet, now I see what people want from an RP. That meets every single one of your criteria- but for now, I do not feel ready to take on the mantle of an RP like that. It needs to be done industrially well.
There is some consensus, I will say. We all have a general view, and there is a lot of people. We all at least agree that it's somewhat existent, so I'll ask, what now of it. It's not a rallying call- this has been a debate after all, over what it means to make an RP of this type. And while perhaps flashes in the pan are what make the genre come back like desert flowers after rain, it's a way of at least getting what this field will need.
WW1 isn't a nice context. It's not what I call a military RP entirely, rather just an RP that is based around the great tragedies of a past generation. And most people I know wouldn't want to sign up for an RP like that. It sounds really shocking, and Rare, I do agree- it would be great, but for me, it would be a lot of micromanagement to do, and there is a lot of theatres, and factors that I couldn't be responsible for to implement to have the RP to a high standard.
Another fact is that to truly understand it's impacts is to be European (I assume you're British), or even live in Europe/Canada/Australia. Surprisingly, it doesn't sell well to Americans in relation to the concept- it is horrifying, not being a war really, but the pissing away of millions of lives for the needs of a few Imperial ambitions, from the Tommies to the German troops. What did we have at the end? Hitler, the crushing of the German Empire, the consolidation of an existing British Empire, and millions of soldiers in graves spanning from France to Belgium- not the defeat of some dictator or liberation of a country. I wouldn't consider it a military RP anymore- it's just a group of individuals trying to survive the trenches, and not get shot/gassed/bombed/sniped etc..In regards to the American comment- people can prove me wrong, and seriously, I'd be happy to hear it. But it's still surprising on the whole, the American knowledge of what happened BEFORE 1917, when the Americans entered the war. The Somme, Verdun and Marne are forgotten- they are events that in the context of history of the war, and without them, and the whole story of your soldier, you'd never make sense of it.
I could do a WW1 RP in the context of it being not a military RP, but again, the focus of a set group of individuals, perhaps not even on the same side, put into a situation beyond human comprehension, with conscription and the like. The war as merely a backdrop- it isn't a focus, it is a mere background noise that fuses the characters to one another, and it has arguably, quite a lot outside of it, perhaps families, friends, politics (though this is through News and not played characters). It'd need to be a very sensitive approach- and is why I stray from it, whilst modern/contemporary is a little easier to complete- though I'd still say you are right, a WW1 RP if done right can be done.
If anything, other periods of time I'd say are underdone, but need to be done are (dates are not specific):
Warsaw Uprising (1944)
Telemark Raid (1942)
Falklands War (1982)
Boer War (1902)
Another fact is that to truly understand it's impacts is to be European (I assume you're British), or even live in Europe/Canada/Australia. Surprisingly, it doesn't sell well to Americans in relation to the concept- it is horrifying, not being a war really, but the pissing away of millions of lives for the needs of a few Imperial ambitions, from the Tommies to the German troops. What did we have at the end? Hitler, the crushing of the German Empire, the consolidation of an existing British Empire, and millions of soldiers in graves spanning from France to Belgium- not the defeat of some dictator or liberation of a country. I wouldn't consider it a military RP anymore- it's just a group of individuals trying to survive the trenches, and not get shot/gassed/bombed/sniped etc..In regards to the American comment- people can prove me wrong, and seriously, I'd be happy to hear it. But it's still surprising on the whole, the American knowledge of what happened BEFORE 1917, when the Americans entered the war. The Somme, Verdun and Marne are forgotten- they are events that in the context of history of the war, and without them, and the whole story of your soldier, you'd never make sense of it.
I could do a WW1 RP in the context of it being not a military RP, but again, the focus of a set group of individuals, perhaps not even on the same side, put into a situation beyond human comprehension, with conscription and the like. The war as merely a backdrop- it isn't a focus, it is a mere background noise that fuses the characters to one another, and it has arguably, quite a lot outside of it, perhaps families, friends, politics (though this is through News and not played characters). It'd need to be a very sensitive approach- and is why I stray from it, whilst modern/contemporary is a little easier to complete- though I'd still say you are right, a WW1 RP if done right can be done.
If anything, other periods of time I'd say are underdone, but need to be done are (dates are not specific):
Warsaw Uprising (1944)
Telemark Raid (1942)
Falklands War (1982)
Boer War (1902)
© 2007-2026