3. How to deal with plot stuff when IRL won't let you.

How to deal with plot stuff when IRL won't let you.


  • There's been many a time (especially Sundays) where I had characters deeply involved in plots, but because of real life circumstances one is not able to attend them, how is this dealt with?

    I mean ICly, should a character who is involved and something happens negatively due to a lack of their presence be reprimanded due to being a victim of circumstance?

    Its kind of frustrating at times… I've missed so much because I've been able tn not attend Sundays, and ICly it comes off almost as if my character IC doesn't give a damn since its really difficult thinking up of excuses to deal with the situation.

    Any insight from anyone?


  • Rary seems to be delaying a plot for weeks on end now. I feel a bit bad, but the alternative is worse! I suppose it is what it is.


  • It's exactly as Lager said. Your PC won't be rewarded without being there, and her actions will most likely have very little impact if any in the actual resolution of the conflict/event, but it's a way for your character to save her reputation and allows your RP to keep coherent, because as said, your Defender wouldn't just give priority to laundry in her off-duty day over protecting Peltarch from an ogre siege.


  • @6a0e1bf628=Kayleb:

    Ugh .. that's never worked for me. I've tried to be "scouting out" things off screen or involved in some other way to stay involved in plots but It never seemed to gain traction. And I've had to do it a lot playing in this timezone. I guess I was just talking to the wrong people?

    Please keep in mind that this isn't a method for 'staying involved in plots'. If you want to be involved in a plot you probably need to do so in-game, unless there are specific things that the DM is cool with having you do off screen like research, etc. That's not what's under discussion here.

    This is about saving face ICly when you OOCly just can't make it because of real life, when it's something that your character absolutely would not run out on. In these cases, the DM will generally be more than happy to provide the player with something their character was doing elsewhere in relation to the plot… not something glamorous or involving, usually, but a reason that would keep people from ICly going, "Where the hells is Dwin, he said we'd have his axe when we went to fight the Death-Wight of Stoker Bridge!"


  • Keep in mind when I say "Anna had X to do" I'm not saying that the players should accept that Anna had laundry day on the same day as Peltarch is attacked. "Anna was busy at the command post" or "protecting civilians" or "rear guard". There are easily a billion IC excuses for a PC not being on their direct screen. I think for continuity's sake sometimes 'X reason' is better left unsaid and simply assumed. However I think it is a great idea to try to do something outside of the scenes. Maybe post something in the forums that you're digging around, or 'scouting'. If the DM doesn't respond so be it, you didn't find anything. Now the PCs are all on the same page however when asked "Where was Anna/Marty/Steve/Joe Schmoe?".

  • Legion

    Ugh .. that's never worked for me. I've tried to be "scouting out" things off screen or involved in some other way to stay involved in plots but It never seemed to gain traction. And I've had to do it a lot playing in this timezone. I guess I was just talking to the wrong people?

    Pretty sure Voight is right though. People know that we can only make momentary appearances in game. If someone makes an IC issue about you not being around for OOC reasons then they're being a chump.


  • What I've done when in that situation as a player in the past, is proactively seek the DM in charge of the event/plot to work with them a way for my character to be involved without being directly there.

    For example, my Defender PC would never in her life have "something more important to do" while the city is being assaulted, not even be "off duty", as she'd make herself readily available no matter if she's on duty or not whenever something serious happened.

    So I asked the DM in charge if she could be part of some other parale battle/task/event that happens "offscreen", either fighting off a different unit of foes, securing supplies, or maintaining peace and order in whichever other way she could make a favourable impact in the global resolution of the conflict.

    I've never received a negative answer from a DM when asked about this, and at times DMs have even allowed me to make a RP write-up that described how things looked from my character's point of view in those "offscreen" events (most DMs will require to approve such write-up before it is posted, naturally). That way, even if you'll likely receive no reward from the event itself, your character will keep coherent with her concept and ideals without having to make up lame excuses for something that your character wouldn't do just because you, the player behind the screen, can't physically be there for the event itself.


  • Personally I don't think real-life obligations should ever affect your character in a negative way. I think most people here are mature enough to take OOC considerations into account. "Oh, Anna couldn't be there, she had X important thing to do". It doesn't really matter what X is.

    My two cents anyway!