Posted by Kim on March 3, 2013, 10:43am
Click here to read part 1 in this seriesLast time, we focused on creating a living, breathing setting for players in your group to interact with, and how to keep that setting true to itself and the flavor you want from it but also fresh and ever-changing.
This week, we forge ahead in our chat summary and look at the nitty-gritty of running a group: Creating and enforcing rules, finding and training a team to help you keep everything running smoothly, and finding the balance that will help you avoid burnout.
Let's do it!
Rules a RP group can't live without
Any group needs a set of expectations. We have the generic social construct expectations like play nice or loose your toys etc. Then with games we need IC expectations as well. Some games are supposed to be teamwork focused, others are more cutthroat political power focused etc. These expectations need to be clear to everyone from the start.Nero
Every RP group in the world is going to have its own set of rules to encourage its own unique mix of people and interactions. That said, there are some rules that have saved the bacon of more group admins than you can shake a stick at. When composing your initial ruleset, strong consider including rules like the following:
- "Respect your fellow players, and the authority of the admin team."
You may want to detail what respect looks like in your particular community, and how it differs between IC and OOC interactions. - Set expectations for how often you expect people to post when they are involved in a RP.
All it takes is a single person to stop posting to put an entire plot on hold, and not long for momentum to be lost and the entire plot to vanish, perhaps taking all involved players with it. There should be clear guidelines for how players should inform the group of an emergency hiatus, and how long a silence it will take before a GM removes the character from the plot so the rest of the group can continue playing. - "Stay on topic" or "Stay IC in IC areas."
A forum can get very cluttered and hard to follow when people are chatting in areas that people are trying to play, or randomly changing the topic on others. Because new threads are free, it's only polite that players make their own if they want to talk about something unrelated to the original poster's intended purpose. - Any requirements you may have for the ages of your players, such as 18+.
- You may want to remind your players that the Terms of Service of the site on which you are hosting your RP still remain in effect (such as if you are hosting the RP on the RP repository)
- Tell your players how strictly you will expect them to stick to your group's IC setting.
- A catch-all, for situations that you can't predict ahead of time. This might be something along the lines of "Use common sense," or "play nice, and behave with maturity."
Sometimes, players will do things to "toe the line", being unpleasant without blatantly breaking rules. This can create a very difficult situation for you. Admins often don't want to talk action against people that are being annoying for fear of being, or seeming, biased. But if repeated unpleasant-but-not-rule-breaking behavior starts to have a toxic effect on the wider community, you'll need the teeth to do something about it. Butt-covering rules like the ones above can be a life saver -- and a group saver.
The group I'm in now has a "don't be stupid" rule. It allows us to cover ridiculous behaviour that isn't technically against the rules. Remember you CAN leave yourself some leeway, not everything has to be set in stone. The don't be stupid rule is applied to behaviour that, while technically not against the rules, is harmful to the group. We don't tolerate excuses like well technically it's not against the rules, and we only tolerate the I didn't know it was a problem excuse once, maybe twice. We leave it deliberately open to interpretation, because we want our players to think about what they're doing and how it affects other people. We want socially responsible players.Ben
You may want to add rules over time, as your community develops. It might also be a good idea to ask your community of players what rules they would like to see put in place - if you can get your rules to come out of their mouths, you will find it much easier to enforce them later, and they may think of problems to cover that you hadn't considered.
You don't want to be so lenient that other people (e.g. bullies) are holding the power and running the show in your community. You also don't want to be so upright that it turns your members off and has them running away out of fear and disappointment. Be firm but fair and make the lines clear so people don't cross them without knowing. You want your rules to cover the stuff that's truly important and be reasonable stuff your group can agree with. In fact, you want your members to make your rules so they've invested in them.StarArmy
You will also want to include some kind of method for people to ask questions about the rules on the same page as your rules, whether it be a link to a forum topic where they can post questions, an email address to write to, or a person to contact.
The general rule of thumb is, if you want a rule, write it down. You cannot rely on "unspoken rules" to keep a large group of people on the same page. Even if you think people already know them, writing them down indicates that you value them, and are willing to enforce the need for such things as basic courtesy.
Finally, once you have written your rules down, you have to make sure that your players knows them and understand them. People get very excited to jump straight into a RP, and often skip past the rules.
Make sure the rules are easy to find, well formatted, concise, and easy to interpret.
You can increase the pressure to read the rules by adding rules questions to your application to join. Or, if applications are not required to join the group, you can form a committee of volunteer welcomers (or do the job yourself). Every new face in the group that you don't recognize can then be greeted with a private message welcoming them, offering to answer any questions they have, and linking them to the rules.
You may also consider creating rules/conduct tests that people who are seeking greater status, whether IC or OOC, be required to pass before they are even considered for those positions in your group. Preventing people who do not understand the rules, spirit and setting of your group from taking power can save you a great deal of trouble.
Enforcing the rules
Though there are dangers in being too strict and in being too lenient, it is far more common for group admins to err on the side of lenience as they learn the ropes.
... there's not a 'right' balance either - you just find the balance you're comfortable with, and that the players you have are comfortable with.SeraphicStar
As you play with your new group members, you are naturally going to form social bonds to many of them. It can be unpleasant to tell your friends that they are in the wrong, and sometimes, even harder to see it when your friends are in the wrong.
It's tempting to say, "This person hasn't explicitly broken any rules yet..." and yet they're still being a subtle jerk, etc. It's easy to say "well I have no proof, so I can't do anything." Because what CAN you say?Heimdall
If they do it enough, Heimdall, (because trust me, I get those ALL the time.) Still speak to them. If they've bent the rules, but not broken them, and are still doing something fishy? Say three times? Five? Speak to them. Explain to them why this behaviour is worrisome and how its getting very close to breaking a rule. Politely ask them to try and avoid it.Dylan
Once you have made a decision to enforce the consequences of rule breaking, be certain that you are confident enough in that ruling to stand behind it to its end. Nothing tells potential trouble makers that they can walk all over you more clearly than not enforcing your own rules.
The biggest mistake I've seen made on the side of leniance is going back on rulings. There was a group I admined that lifted several bans over its career and it was always disastrous. It was a problem that bans were lifted because the players were banned for good reasons, and they came back in and continued to be who they were - which was problematic. They hadn't learned. I often find if a player hasn't learned what you need from them the first or second time they break a rule, they won't. And inviting them back is asking for trouble.Ben
Although you may want to be nice to everyone, remember that sometimes, being "nice" to a rule breaker is being mean to everyone else. Your members are depending on you to protect them, and to be a fair and just ruler. If your laws have no meaning because you feel like a "jerk" when you say no, your kingdom will rapidly crumble around you. Be strong, be consistent, and remember that by punishing those who step out of line, you are protecting and encouraging those members who do follow the rules.
I think it's more of a matter that when you make rules you got to be willing to stand behind them and do it consistently or your administration becomes a joke. Never make a rule you won't enforce.StarArmy
Even the best players may occasionally need reminders. Be gentle and firm. If they are actually your friends - or if they actually value the community they've become a part of - they will understand, learn, and no one will be the worse for it.
If you're still nervous about having to blow the whistle on your friend, keep in mind these great tips:
Have the kind of friends who can understand when you have your admin hat on. Sometimes it even helps to preface a conversation with, "I have my admin hat on."Kaji
In my opinion, if someone is willing to destroy a friendship because they're not respecting your rules and you have to moderate them... They're not really your friend.Ben
It is worth it. If you don't enforce the rules on your friends like everyone else you're being biased, favouriting them, and being overall unfair to everyone else. IF you are uncomfortable enforcing the rules on a friend, ask a fellow moderator or adminto help enforce the rule.Dylan
I am /more/ strict with my closest friends than with others, and they know it. I usually hold them to a much higher standard, and they rarely disappoint.Nero
... most personal things should be kept out of the adminning 'job'. Being personal isn't professional, and if they are your friends they will understand.SeraphicStar
Recruiting help
As your group expands, you will find that it takes more than just you to care for it. You will need more eyes to watch for rule breaking, more hands to write plots, and more hearts to mentor your new players. Selecting the right people for the job is crucial, whether they are to be moderators, game masters, fellow admins, welcomers or something else.
Few things kill a RP group faster than the admin abandoning their post, and a tragic number of good admins have been sent running for the hills when they began to dread logging in each day to a new pile of problems, questions, complaints and other work. If you are starting to feel burnt out, and your group just isn't as fun as it used to be, you need to get yourself some help that you can trust as soon as possible. In a perfect world, you will find help long before you face this issue!
I select my mods by watching how they interact with others. Also if it is a strict setting they need to know the setting forward and backLoki
Above all else, your deputies need to be people that you can trust. This is very different than someone you like. Many of your friends may be great fun, but think very carefully before asking them to assist. How do they handle criticism? Do they frequently burn out? Can they be friendly and helpful even in the face of adversity? Do they understand your vision for the group, and want to help grow it?
Don't pick friends because they are your friends. I say that because you may want to bring on people who are your friends, don't! Only bring them on if you know they are level headed and capable of being fair. Just bringing them on because they are your friends is a bad idea. I've had staff/moderators I may not get along with on a personal basis or I would ever be friends with. But they can do their job without any issues. Sometimes that happens and you need to accept it. Having friends as fellow mods and administrators can cause problems if you end up disagreeing on something.Dylan
You need people you trust, who are not prone to emotional outbursts. You should look for an even handed approach to conflict resolution, thick skin, and a love of your continuity.Ben
Deputies need to be on board with your plan, whatever that is. They need to be prepared to use the same strictness level you want, and they need to understand it. Having a variety of perspectives helps for complicated decision making, but they also need to understand they're helping you with your plan, not making their own.Nero
A range of skills in your deputies can also be helpful. If there is some part of adminning the group that you are not very good at, or strongly dislike, and you know someone who is excellent and enjoys doing that thing, that might make them a good candidate. Similarly, if you already have a team of deputies in place, is there some skill that would be a boon to everyone to add to the team? Perhaps there's a timezone that you need help covering, if your group is international?
I generally handpick them from people I can trust (or at least think I can trust). Though I do tend to give my playerbase input on the decision. ... the input is more to ask the playerbase wether or not they'd accept the mod and their authority instead of letting them pick mods. Having said that, if players propose a mod and that person qualifies, I wouldn't reject them without thought.Earendill
People who flaunt their power or rub it in people's face are not good candidates. Remember, being a group admin is a position of service, not just one of power. Your members depend on you. If you think the candidate wants the position just to say they have it, it's a good idea to move on.
Pick people who are already being helpful and empower them to do more by asking them if they want to be part of the staff team. Avoid the power-hungry.StarArmy
Supporting your helpers
Always remember that the people who join are doing you a massive favor. In all likelihood, they aren't being paid, they are simply giving of their time and of themselves out of love for the community that you have built. They need - and deserve - your support and encouragement.
There are several things you can do to keep your deputies energized, focused and happy.
Firstly, make certain that they understand what is expected of them. It is exhausting to have to do a job which you don't understand! Consider creating a handbook that makes their responsibilities crystal clear. Frequently encourage your deputies to run decisions and questions past you, especially when they are new to the team. This helps them learn how you want things done, and develops a sense of comradery. You and your deputies can even start to compile the questions and answers into addenda for the original helper handbook, so that they have resources to draw on when you aren't around, and you'll have to repeat yourself less as you have changeover in your team.
Make your expectations clear and give them things to work from when you're not around. Provide LOTS of information to help them with their decision making, and encourage them to run every problem past you. Even if they deal with it themselves, have them keep logs that you can refer to. That way, if there ever is a complaint, you can look through the logs and look at the evidence.Ben
Check in frequently and make sure that your team is evenly distributing the work load. If any one person is working much harder than the others, it might be time to try a different plan. What's the point of having a team if it doesn't function like one? As much as a team should keep an admin from burning out, they should also help one another from burning out.
If you've got a mod-team with you, and there's issues with a player or a broken rule, there needs to be some kind of comadreship going on so everyone's on the same page and no one's buckled down with a million problems that need addressing. When the latter happens, and the stress of damage-control and moderating suddenly builds up, it might drive you to do some really dumb stuff that can actually hurt the trust between yourself and the members. Burdening yourself or your deputies/mods with a heavy workload is unfair to the community's well-being and to yourselves. You need to let your modding-peeps know you've got their back when times get tough, and that they should have yours too--talk to them, see how they're doing, see if there's something you can do to help them with the work load.Copper_Dragon
And make sure that you support your team publicly. Unless the team member is blatantly, intolerably wrong, do not denounce them publicly. If you have given them the power to deal with issues in your absence, you must not undermine that power -- this is part of why properly training your team is so critical. If you do not appear to respect your team, then your playerbase won't either, and soon they will be completely unable to do their jobs.
Nothing takes away authority more than a mod decision being publically denounced by the adminEarendill
Finally, the team as a whole should stay in constant communication. Your team needs to not only be on the same page with you, they need to be on the same page with each other, for maximum effectiveness. This will make it easier for your team members to ask for backup from one another when they need it.
Tending the garden
From personal experience, a combination of leading by example and not being afraid to immediately address poor behavior and remove players who prove unable to stop being unpleasant leads to a really strong community. It's like tending and weeding a garden.Kim
You and your team are ultimately responsible for keeping your RP group active and healthy, in and out of character. This means that you are never "off duty," and none of you are ever above the rules just because you have more power than the average player. Everything that you do will send a signal to the rest of the group about what is and is not appropriate behavior. You will need to find a way to be fair and civil with all your members, even those that you aren't particularly fond of. You don't get to have "bad days". Have your tantrums in private, and then present your best self to your group.
You need to consider yourself an actual leader of an actual group, with people depending on your decisions and actions. Take the responsibility and then act on it.Earendill
Do your utmost best to help your players resolve their conflicts in a mature fashion, and mend what fences can be mended.
Encouraging people to deal with problems on their own is about creating a healthy community. People should know that they CAN come to you with problems, and when you deal with those problems encourage reconciliation before doling out punishments. If reconciliation proves impossible, removals may be needed. And, a constant thumb on the pulse of your community is key, that's why you need lots of mods.Ben
Knowing the boundaries, and believing that they will be enforced, can encourage a community to do a better job resolving their own conflicts. If they know that true rule breaking will always be dealt with by the admins, they may feel more obliged to talk things out before complaining, as most players will want to give others a chance to avoid a black mark on their record even if they don't always get along. On the flip side, troublemakers will make a greater effort to behave if they are aware that there will be real consequences to treating others poorly.
In any case where a few must lead the many, you have to have a larger presence by means other than numbers to get people to comply.Kaji
As much as it can be difficult to be "the bad guy", when you take decisive, clear action, just as your rules said you would, you are creating a safe space for all of your members to enjoy.
A timely response is the best response. As a leader you don't want to hang around being absent or indecisive when there's a conflict/drama boiling over.StarArmy
But of course, there can be no RP group without RP! Make sure you and your team are supplying your story universe with a steady stream of plot arcs and mini-quests, appropriate to your setting, so that your players stay engaged, interested, and feel as if their own character's stories are advancing. A happy RP group that has much to do IC develops stronger bonds OOC.
Finding balance
Hmm... I find it difficult to find a balance in that. You'll be spending most of your time working on the setting rather than playing in it. Such is the fate of the creator.Rynh
Let's not sugar coat it: Most admins never do find "the perfect balance" between playing in their setting, and keeping it running. This is why it is so critical that you find a way to love the work that you do for it. Although you might not be writing the story of a single character, you might be writing the story of an entire world -- and that's a very different, but still valid, type of RP.
You put in the work you need to for the setting and plots, based on the needs and expectations of the group, then with whatever you have left you play. Required adminning always comes first. The trick is to moderate the expectations of required adminning.Nero
Even though throughout this article there's been a constant emphasis on responsibility and never being off duty, to avoid burn out, you must occasionally find time for yourself. From time to time, do the things that you most love in your group. Ask for help and make the time.
I try to at the... best of my ability, I try to give responsibilities over to other staff members, but its hard especially when you have so many staff/mod that all specialize in different areas. There comes a point, as an admin, you need to step back and have some you time. And to trust your group won't break while you're god. And oh man it is SO SO HARD. I am about to take a break myself.. but how do I RP on the character that is also the admin and not do admin stuff? Or try not to get pulled into working when I shouldn't be or shouldn't have to?Dylan
In conclusion
There is far too much that goes into adminning a RP group to be included in a basic primer like this. But then, there is also a great deal that cannot be learned by reading a primer. The fact that you read these two long articles speaks volumes about your willingness to learn and put in the required work to start a successful RP group.
So jump in and learn from experience. You are in the unusual position of having a safety net; if you get stuck, you can ask a site full of RPers and group admins with vast amounts of experience for advice.
Good luck, and happy RPing!