[quote=SyrianHamster]
Ouch, you cut me deep bro. Truth be told, I couldn't play several nations all at once. Even though they only make basic moves, and I've stream lined the combat system, you'd be surprised how long it takes to sort it all out. I'm not some kid who has the evenings to blow away, I'm a full grown adult with a fiancée, a job and a flat to manage - though I somehow have more time than anyone else I've ever met on this guild. Still, I can't sit here six hours a night, every night, dictating the moves of 20 major powers. 

Secondly, if the world was made up what I've termed 'Major NPCs', the players would find it much more difficult to get a foothold anywhere.

I tried to shrug it off by mentioning the millions dying, and the Kingdoms felled in the cataclysms caused by the establishment of the portals, it was lazy of me and I apologize, but role-playing all those nations was just not possible. I was hoping at this RP's conception that people would like to play as the human Kingdoms, and would represent the last standing nations of Europe post-World Collide, but people wanted to make their own races from Gorika and so I catered the RP to match the trend. This allowed me to reduce workload and bring the RP together much sooner than if I left the human slots open.[/quote]

I myself work full time - often more than that - and for most of the year will be balancing college work, if part time. And between that and general work I find time to administrate at least one major RP and may be conspiring in the creation or keeping two others alive. So if maintenance is the simple base concern - as I seem to be getting - then my advise: simply don't.

I can get it if you're trying to keep the story going by operating everything not taken since otherwise it'd risk everyone getting disinterested in their own private world in their own far-off corner. But if you'r having so much trouble yourself calculating the mathematics behind each move and the rolls without a computer program already then you're best off surrendering NPCs to the mercy of the players and you, as the GM, picking up the more plot-important faction: these mythical invader beings.

Actions between NPC and player will be for sure highly arbitrary and if not watched over well enough may end up with people making honestly bullshit moves to appear in the upper hand. Most of the time I don't often have time to read the 5k+ long posts I get in my own RP. So I'll trust the "moderation" to the people at large. But the group in that has been with me and with each other for long we all know each other's mannuerisms and we can all trust each other to not be a splendid fun-breaker.

I've personally found the tedious task of keeping track of stats, numbers, and rolls a bit much in NRP at least. I could argue it's flavorless at best, but clearly time isn't a luxury and may actually be more harm than good. At least releasing control of NPCs would simplify moment-to-moment operations and keep the RP from playing out like an even more long-winded game of Total War or Civilization.

[quote]Kudos though for your historical knowledge. If the guild was a pack of crazed historians then no doubt I'd be chased out of here in a heartbeat.

EDIT: Also, sourcing a medieval map that I could easily colourise from the time period this RP is set was impossible - unless you've found something? 
[/quote]

It comes with the territory in the friends I keep.

But on the map note:

[img]https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/Europe_in_the_13th_century.gif[/img]

If you had caught me in perhaps better times I'd have Photoshop to at least make up a quick thirty-minute tracing job. More if I decided to go so far as to put in the Major kingdoms or duchies part of the larger kingdoms/empires in Europe. But I don't got those resources given the computer it was on decided to die.