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Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

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Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby Lostinwords on Wed Sep 04, 2013 1:02 pm

To begin with I can't remember ever finishing a roleplay. I mean being part of one from conception and participating all the way through to the end. It has been my experience, or bad luck even, joining roleplays that never get finish. It seems to me that the roleplays I've joined -or started even- never last long enough, someone always drops or they never get past their first post. Eventually the project gets abandon. Why is this such a big issue for me?

I've wonder if the problem is me? Do I even know how to roleplay? Is my writing so terrible that it doesn't inspire others to write? I can't believe its all me. I've tried joining all levels of roleplay, from the casual 2-3 sentence to advance 5-6 paragraphs. So, it can't be all me. I understand RL comes first, I understand there will be obstacles, but when will I find (be part) of that one RP to completion. The point is I'm craving, no, scratch that, I'm dying to be part of a persistent roleplay that I can say, even if to my self, I was part of this RP to the very end.

Have you been part of an RP from start to finish or are they a myth to you as well? Share your experiences and tell me what made these RP successful or not, and maybe I can still have hope that one day I too will find an RP I can finish.

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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby cucumbersome on Wed Sep 04, 2013 3:17 pm

Role plays that finish have an end that is already well defined at the beginning and that doesn’t take a lot of time to reach. People are more likely to stick with it instead of doing something else they need to do when they can estimate for how much longer they will be playing.

Many RPs don’t have an end, or perhaps one only the GM has ideas about. If you want your RP to finish, you need to tell your players where you intend to go with it. On the other hand, it’s fine to have an RP that could in principle continue forever, but then it’s not reasonable to complain it doesn’t finish :) .

Another issue is that the more people participate in an RP, the more likely it is to fail. More players means a bigger probability that someone will be dragged away by real life while their character is needed somewhere, which leads to a lot of waiting and frustration, which in turn leads to players losing interest, which causes the RP to spiral to death. I’d say that with two GMs and two or three normal players, there is a decent chance of success.

One thing you can do to improve your chances of finishing is to have a rule that when a player is absent while needed for too long, their character will be adopted by you and then removed from the RP as soon as possible. In my currently semi-active RP there is no such rule, but there was a location that characters could go to and be out of the way for a while (or permanently). I moved abandoned characters there and also moved characters there by request when someone had to be away. It was actually quite funny to make characters go play minigolf. I write in past tense because that location isn’t reachable anymore. The RP is going very slow now but all remaining players love it too much to abandon it, I guess a similar parking location is not needed now and not really possible anyway.

But yeah, most RPs fail. Some for stupid reasons like a lot of people joining the interest check thread and then (almost) none of them joining the RP itself. Don’t take it personally.
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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby PaperCoversRockB*tch on Sun Sep 08, 2013 1:08 am

Its funny that you bring this up because I have a roleplay that I have created on 8 sites to date, including this one. Out of those 8, 3 have failed with one of those failures coming from when I tried it on this website. It really is true when I tell you that so many factors go into creating a successful roleplay that playing one til completion is difficult. The main problem is often people not agreeing with the direction of the roleplay. The other major problem is what I like to call "Character High". Character High is caused when you get people attached to a particular roleplay who enjoy making a character far more than actually playing as said character.

But, yeah, it is possible. Out of 10 roleplays, 9 will likely fail. All you can really do is hope for the best and enjoy what you get out of each roleplay your involved in.

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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby Colonel_Masters on Sun Sep 08, 2013 2:25 am

Yea, In my case I have been noticing that I tend to enjoy creating characters more than using them and that I tend to disagree with how many roleplay's are functioning. I keep these problems to myself or when I express them I try to make it clear that I mean no assumption of authority because an argument over these matters is a sure way to kill a roleplay anyway.

I think in my case the problem is that I am growing out of roleplaying as a writer, this problem has actually been caused out of a sense of disillusionment with roleplaying after seeing so many of them fail before they even begin. The most depressing thing is noting what roleplay's will die off before they actually do.

Once I began to notice that I was able to understand what would kill and what had killed roleplay's I decided I would observe the reasons so I may create a roleplay which hopefully would be at least immune to the problems which I have observed (although, I think that is also nearly impossible, and besides I do not have the time nor or the confidence to try it yet)

For ease of reading I will make a list of problems I have observed:

1) Scale

The first problem I have noticed with some roleplay's is their scale of setting ("Universe")
Some roleplay's oversize themselves before the number of players is known. For example a roleplay might have an entire solar system as its setting when there are actually only enough players for a single planet, a roleplay could have three villages however even maintaining one would demand much more players then what the roleplay will have.

Some roleplays compensate for this problem upon beginning by reducing the size and scale of the roleplay (to a planet instead of a solar system, to a single village instead of a number of them) however; many do not compensate and instead set themselves on the path of destruction by creating too much space.

For example in the case of a solar system players have the choice of which planet they want to be. If you have only a few players dispersing them in such a manner is a sure way of preventing them from interacting.

To conclude scale, a Roleplay should not be ambitious. A roleplay should start from small and increase its scale only if it has a justification to do so. The scale of the roleplay can be easily increased; to shrink the scale ss ether complicated or impossible.

2) Focus

Focus is essentially a continuation of scale. Even a scaled down roleplay might die, even when every possible precaution has been taken. The problem is that a deadly threat such as lack of focus tends to be ignored.

I understand many GM's want their players to have creative freedom and therefor dub their roleplay's "Sand Box" and that setting a focus of plot in a roleplay is very difficult. This is not a case against sandbox, sand box has its benefits and problems just as plot roleplay's have theirs.

The problem is when characters begin to disperse into small activity bubbles, meaning a roleplay of eight players might split up into smaller groups of 2-3 characters. This alone is not deadly enough to kill a roleplay but it can potentially do so. In a bubble of three If one player disappears and another has RL problems an interaction bubble can die off since the remaining player has nothing to do and would rightly lose interest.'

This is where scale comes in; if the roleplay is based on a large setting then players will venture into different locations making a reorganization of remaining players difficult.

Therefor it is important to have a focus for the roleplay; a single location and a single "problem" to overcome, a "main quest", a "Story line". It does not have to be a pre-determined story which the players must follow; all that is vital is that the players share the same conditions.

If somebody wants a set story, he or she might as well write a story, possibly with other people.

(A roleplay can be a SF based in the Galaxy; Star Trek for example had the Enterprise venture across the galaxy. The point is that in Star Trek the enterprise was the focus of the roleplay no matter what the story involved. The same should apply to a roleplay; it should be a small part of a larger story)

Some might be familiar with Nebula's Dawn, a roleplay which managed to be complete before encountering problems in the second chapter which at least for the time being render it as good as dead.
The difference between the first chapter and the second chapter was that the first was focused on a single ship called the Salient.

Even if players disappeared the roleplay could be continued because players could literally simply move to a different room should the other become inactive. In addition there was one governing storyline which all the players shared, one "problem to overcome". There where sub plots but these did not overrule the main plot of the roleplay.

In the second chapter however the ship docks in a space station in a solar system and players disperse between different locations. The immediate problem was that the main story was overruled by the side stories.

players no longer shared the same conditions and there was no longer any focus for the roleplay. From then on it was just a matter of time before players disappeared and the roleplay shut down because of the resulting lack of activity.

To conclude focus, a roleplay should know what it wants to do. Players should have a focus both of location and of story. Sand Box is ok but even Sandbox without focusing itself will die off, a plot driven roleplay can also work however arguments and misunderstandings might tear it apart.
3) Organization

First, large roleplays of many players and smaller ones both have benefits and risks. A large one is likely to have players depart it however potentially with many players the loss of even half of the players could be compensated for. In a small roleplay every player who vanishes is a far greater blow to that roleplay.
After seeing so many open roleplay's die off I have begun shifting my roleplaying to organized group roleplay's and 1x1s. Unfortunately both are not working out as they should however they can revive themselves whenever they wish to unlike larger roleplay's which would find this more complicated.

I think the best form of group roleplaying is for a group of experienced roleplayers on site whom know each other from previous roleplays to gather together and create a closed roleplay for themselves. In this way communication between players becomes easier and potentially even if inactive for a while the roleplay can revive itself at any time.

1x1s are the best surviving roleplay's in this regard because even if the players are busy they can get back into them whenever they might wish to. Of course a smaller size of players carries the risk of these players disappearing and never appearing again however I think this is not as likely in a group of players whom have been on site for a while.

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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby Lostinwords on Fri Sep 13, 2013 12:43 pm

Many of the difficulties and obstacles you all point out I've come across at one point or other, and to my surprise these issues are constant.

I tend to stay away from the 1x1 because these usually involve romance. Not only that but 1x1 is often private and via private messages or emails and I don't like that. I think the point of roleplaying on a forum is to participate with others in a public setting to allow others to read and see how well you write and roleplay. I'm not saying 1x1 is bad, but that I prefer not to do 1x1.

The longest roleplay I participated in lasted for over 3 months, with a minimum post of every other day, was a post-apocalyptic setting where the main plot was surviving the undead. It was a fandom of the "Walking Dead" series. I think the reason why it was successful is because of the very point Colonel Masters discusses under Focus. Everyone shared the same goal, the setting was universal, and the group was smart enough to discuss plot ideas.

The roleplay died when one of our leading protagonist left without warning - their absent ruined the plot because his character was key to the plot. His absent caused a domino effect and others left too. The GM tried to take over the abandon characters but it proved too difficult. The only solution was to change the plot completely, and doing so kill the story the rest of us where working so hard to write, which in the end killed the roleplay.

Finding a group of dedicated roleplayers is difficult. Even now when I read the interest check or the player's wanted adds I'm overly cautious. I don't want to work on creating a new character and getting excited and then be let down when the roleplay doesn't take off or flops. I can start my own but I don't want to GM, I don't want the responsibility, but most of all I don't want to do the work to introduce a new RP, accept players and then watch it die for one reason or other.

I think I'm greatly discouraged at this point.

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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby cucumbersome on Fri Sep 13, 2013 1:15 pm

If a role play doesn’t finish with a proper plot end like a book might have, how long does it have to last to be considered successful?

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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby Nightblazer on Fri Sep 13, 2013 2:00 pm

I'd consider the RP successful if you did something great, like, I dunno, slaying the evil dragon of evilness? Basically it sort of relies on your achievements in the RP.

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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby Lostinwords on Fri Sep 13, 2013 2:25 pm

I concur with Nightblazer. But for once I would like to be part of a roleplay from start to finish.

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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby Colonel_Masters on Fri Sep 13, 2013 4:11 pm

I personally do not like the Zombie Apocalypse setting at all, however; I congratulate Lostinwords on participating in such a successful roleplay because only from a great deal of dedication from all the players involved can a roleplay last so long.

It is true that 1x1 are usually about romantically involved characters or other manners of close friendship. However, this does not have to be the case. All that is required are two Roleplayers whom share similar interests making a decision to combine their efforts together. I agree that 1x1 roleplaying is actually more like collaborative story writing then roleplaying however I think that I personally might prefer such an arrangement once I actually manage it.

Alternatively a group of three to four could balance both problems however, as I have experienced, all it takes is for one to be missing and the Roleplay may very well be derailed. A 1x1 while even more vulnerable to this problem actually stands a better chance of recovering since all that is required is for the two players to agree on continuation. On a small group roleplay once activity has decreased other players might meander to other roleplay's and effectively abandoned the roleplay.

I think an AFK roleplay will always have better chances then an OK roleplay. It also seems to me that unless a great deal of planning is made along with an organizational structure that even a large roleplay is destined to die down into a small group roleplay. The roleplay ether dies while making this transition, adapts itself or reboots itself.

I have been in reboots and I can honestly say that I have never seen one work. Indeed, it seems to be that it is not only the roleplay which is rebooted but also the same mistakes. Nothing seems to have been learned in a reboot roleplay therefor causing me to be very suspicious of them unless I am able to determine that changes have been made.

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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby TCoS on Wed Dec 11, 2013 3:39 am

It's rare, but I've seen it.
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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby NurseUrsus on Sun Jan 05, 2014 5:25 pm

I've yet to be part of a completed RP...but I think, if I ever am, it will be an RP worth investing my time and creativity in...truly.
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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby sweetlullabyxo on Sat Feb 08, 2014 7:22 pm

I've never participated in an RP that ever reached an "end". It was always more so that the writers would lose interest in their characters or, I've participated in RP's where writers started to get to know each other outside of the RP world and romance/drama would occur so the RP's would fail.

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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby Blackbird26 on Sun Feb 09, 2014 12:09 pm

I've GMed two RPs on this site that have been concluded and am currently GMing one that has been ongoing for two years, hopefully to be finished by the end of 2014, but who knows because life sometimes get in the way of our writing.

My first roleplay almost failed, and it only saw a conclusion because my co-GM and I were determined to see it through, it ended as a 1x1 basically between me and him, but it generated two sequels, one that reached a conclusion with a good number of players and the one we're currently running that is moving on with the two of us and another person. It's be ongoing for a loong, LONG, time now, because everyone's suffered setbacks these past couple of years and we've had months of inactivity, but we're still going.

The RPs I was in as a player were failures mostly due to players dropping out, and two of them because the GM himself lost interest and left us hanging. So I honestly think that to make a roleplay work you need GMs dedicated enough to keep writing through the setbacks, learn to live with some plot inconsistencies left by disappearing players and just move on. Because if the GM wants to close the RP, as a player there's really nothing you can do about it; and that sucks. One of the RPs I played was closed by the GM because of players leaving, however... There was still a viable group of players left and it could have been saved. The GM was unwilling to adapt the story to a smaller group of players so he ended the RP. He later restarted the RP, two times, but he never found a group quite like that first group, and again people left and the RP failed.

Finding a good group, or at least a partner, that you can rely on to stick around to the end is a tricky thing, but it can be done.
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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby BSX on Thu Feb 13, 2014 1:25 am

I've been apart of 3 finished RPs (1 Silent Hill RP, 2 Bleach RPs) on here. It was agreed that we would do the story in sections and have our characters reach certain goals within that section. We had a posting order and gave each other 2 days to get the reply up, if someone could it make it they were skipped over and jumped back into things on their next turn. Also the fact that the players were interested in the series that the RPs were based off of, I've been apart of 3 RPs that despite them not being finished we gave ourselves mini goals to complete to help cut down on the RP being a task (we had no definite end for any of the RPs).

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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby SlightlyIrregular on Thu Feb 13, 2014 5:44 am

I don't think so. I've finished part one of an RP here before (though part two and retries died). It's just a case of finding a good set of RPers, keeping the interest and praying that real life doesn't get in the way - as well as a bit of luck, possibly.I've also been a part of a finished RP on one other site, and another that also finished. And I can say that I'm apart of another that's being going on for two years this year. Only the one that was a group one, was the first one that I mentioned, the part one. The others were one on ones.

Saying that, I know people that have finished a few RP's too. I think the problem these days are that more fail then finish because of a mixture of real life and the story. I find that these days stories are predictable, sometimes boring, and not original. I find it a lot harder to find an RP that I am all like YES I HAVE TO JOIN THIS. And I also find that people's patience wear thin. I get with a group RP you don't want to wait forever for one person to post, but I've noticed some people aren't willing to wait a couple of days.

And lastly, real life is the reason most of my RP's have failed. Everyone has lives outside the site that they have to put first and there isn't anything we can do about it unfortunately :( Tis a shame.

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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby aficklemuse on Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:27 pm

the closest i've ever come is being a part of a roleplay for nearly a full year through it's various hiatus and restarts. i wouldn't say that particular roleplay finished (last i heard it was on like it's fourth thread and has spanned four years within the roleplay itself and is still going on).

i think some roleplays can have story arcs which can (hopefully) be completed but i've never been in one long enough to see it happen personally.

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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby Caged Bird on Sat Mar 29, 2014 2:46 pm

A lot of people join roleplay for the sole reason of wish fullfillment, not to better there writing or challenge their creativity. I think that plays a big role in people's inability to stick with a roleplay long term. They want to play a certain part, act out a scenario and then once satisfied, they feel no obligation to continue the story because, after all, the got what they came for.

Another issue is lack of communication. Many people have amazing ideas for a story or at the very least a strong foundation upon which to build one. The problem occurs when you get past the introduction phase and no one else is really aware of where there characters should fit into this plot. If you actively involve all other players in your plans, and help them factor where their character could fit, or what type of characters would help drive the plot forward, then they can help ensure the longevity of your roleplay. One of my favorite things about reading are the little hints of foreshadowing sprinkled through the book then BAM! It comes full circle at the end in a significant way. This is impossible, or at least nearly so, to incorporate into roleplay if you do not include the other players in the planning stage or even worse....

...Not planning ahead of time. This one kills off almost every roleplay. If you have no end game in sight, you will never find the conclusion. Your characters will be haplessly wandering about with no aim because they have no idea what their goal is. Character X runs into character Y at a bar and tension sparks is not climactic. I am currently running a roleplay right now where my friend and I have not only plotted out the entire ending to the story but have roughly mapped out its sequel. The planning stage was one of the most enjoyable parts. Now, obviously to avoid God modding, you tell people what your desired goal is and let the other players figure out how their characters can get there without your micromanaging or controlling if they agree that the end game is in line with their interests as well. Everyone's personal story is unique to them but we are all united in the arc.

Another Rp killer is, unfortunately, refusal to play a minor role or character unoriginality. Many people want the story to revolve around their character and if it doesn't, the 'lead' role already having been claimed, they throw in a tragic backstory and thrust their character out there with no actual understanding of wherethat character belongs the world it was just placed in. The character will fit into like one of five archtypes, none of which does anything for the story. You can't build a plot around 16 rebel teenage girls wthat because of some trauma as children, are unable to be brainwashed by the overlord leader....unless they form a badass team of revolutionary war women who crush the patriarchy. 0.0 lol But even still, someone has to be the overlord and someone has to play the faction, and really 16 fairly identical characters who would all react the same, nobly I'm sure, gets a little tried after a while....I'm going on a tangentand getting off track, I apologise but it makes a legitimate point.

Wish fulfillment, lack of communication, not mappig out the plot from beginning to end, no minor roles,or lack of creativity will all leave what should have been a wonderful roleplay stone cold dead in the water, people jumping ship like it's the titanic. But with a little tact and a checklist, youcan have a sucessful roleplay if you find other people dedicated to its success as much as you are.

My rolepay should be wrapping up here soon and when I complete it, we will open up it's sequel. I could not be more pleased even if there aren't many of us on there, about five or six players with at least two characters a piece. X3
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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby LawOfTheLand on Sat Mar 29, 2014 4:25 pm

Lostinwords wrote:Many of the difficulties and obstacles you all point out I've come across at one point or other, and to my surprise these issues are constant.

I tend to stay away from the 1x1 because these usually involve romance. Not only that but 1x1 is often private and via private messages or emails and I don't like that. I think the point of roleplaying on a forum is to participate with others in a public setting to allow others to read and see how well you write and roleplay. I'm not saying 1x1 is bad, but that I prefer not to do 1x1.

The longest roleplay I participated in lasted for over 3 months, with a minimum post of every other day, was a post-apocalyptic setting where the main plot was surviving the undead. It was a fandom of the "Walking Dead" series. I think the reason why it was successful is because of the very point Colonel Masters discusses under Focus. Everyone shared the same goal, the setting was universal, and the group was smart enough to discuss plot ideas.

The roleplay died when one of our leading protagonist left without warning - their absent ruined the plot because his character was key to the plot. His absent caused a domino effect and others left too. The GM tried to take over the abandon characters but it proved too difficult. The only solution was to change the plot completely, and doing so kill the story the rest of us where working so hard to write, which in the end killed the roleplay.

Finding a group of dedicated roleplayers is difficult. Even now when I read the interest check or the player's wanted adds I'm overly cautious. I don't want to work on creating a new character and getting excited and then be let down when the roleplay doesn't take off or flops. I can start my own but I don't want to GM, I don't want the responsibility, but most of all I don't want to do the work to introduce a new RP, accept players and then watch it die for one reason or other.

I think I'm greatly discouraged at this point.


Often, yes. Always, hardly. I was in a 1x1 that took place over the forums that involved a master training a new apprentice.
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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby Citadel on Mon Mar 31, 2014 10:59 am

The longest roleplay I was in lasted about 7 months, but that's because we managed to finish it. It was really interesting because everything just seemed to come together. The GM came up with a great idea and found five others who were dedicated enough to it to stick around to see where it led. I have been involved in numerous rp's, but can probably count the ones I have finished on just one hand.

An rp I was involved with before trying this website lasted only a month but we completed it. I was the GM and the whole roleplay was supposed to take place in one night (RP time), with everyone knowing the end. It was pretty cool because for the "weaker" roleplayers involved with it, it allowed them to post toward a goal, and causing them to post more often rather than abandon it.
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Re: Finishing an RP; is it a myth?

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby AugustArria on Tue Apr 01, 2014 1:27 pm

I've finished 3 RPs since I've started roleplaying (which was almost... four years ago now?). One of them only took a couple of weeks, as it naturally wrapped up quickly and served as a prologue to a much larger, more ambitious RP, which was also finished in a couple of months. Surprisingly, neither RP went swimmingly, and both had more than their fair share of nasty OOC disputes at one point or another, including several walk-outs. However, I think it was just the collective passion and dedication of the players involved that allowed us to push through to the finish. We just all cared enough to keep it going to a suitable end, and that was it.

That's all it takes to finish a roleplay, is the right group of people, who care enough to find ways to keep it going. My third RP that I finished was one I GMed myself, and is one of my greater achievements as a RPer, I think. Not for anything resembling perfection, of course not, I had a couple people drop out on me at various stages, but enough people stuck around that I was able to mold the plot to their needs, and we pushed to a very defined conclusion, and a wrap on the story.

I'm closing in on finishing my first RP on this site, an extremely long affair set in Skyrim. Lost over half the cast within the first page of it, but the remaining four of us have stuck together, and turned it into something truly unlike anything I've written before, and we're well on our way to finishing it.

Determination and effort from a couple dedicated writers, that's all it takes.
The Canticle of Fate: Silver Lion Stanza
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"Though I am flesh, Your Light is ever present,
And those I have called, they remember,
And they shall endure."

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AugustArria
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