Weird Roleplay Ideas You're Afraid To Pitch?

[Shorticus]

@ClocktowerEchos I'm officially full on RPs, just FYI. But I love discussing ideas.

[The book of bad juju]

One idea i've been awfully afraid to pitch revolves around this picture and the idea of Big-game hunters stalking the antarctic tundra with muskets and rifles and hilariously racist black slavefolk acting as the Woosters to the player's Jeeves, but people would hear about the setting and just assume the game was Steampunk where it's more about cosmic horror.

[Ace of Hearts]

hilariously racist black slavefolk acting as the Woosters to the player's Jeeves,

@The book of bad juju

No

[MrSmileySmile]

I mostly post in a different forum, mostly, but I'm trying to figure out a good system to do a little RP set about an X-Com 2 campaign.

The part I'm having trouble with is figuring out how to handle the battles and decisions about how to spend different resources.

Right now I'm favoring an idea where everyone makes a few characters and gives them rather rudimentary backstories. It's fitting to the setting and makes it easier to deal with character death IMO. The nature of the game means a lot of characters would die, so I think it would be interesting to see players RPing their surviving characters dealing with being involved in a long war that takes the lives of many of their friends.

So everyone makes a few characters. Someone, possibly me, puts together a squad of 4-6 characters and then I play through the mission and make a post out of the mission results. Basically turning every mission into a post. Perhaps rotating the battle write ups between any posters who'd like to participate, in which case I would send them a summary of what happened. Who missed a lot of shots, who made really clutch shots, who died, who was wounded, who panicked, etc...and they could then create that mission post.

Resource expenditures is really what I think would be problematic. Money spent today can't be spent tomorrow, so I'd just have to hope that everyone was considerate of one another, although being too frugal could cause problems too...

I don't know. I think if it worked out properly it could be pretty cool, but I'm rather stuck with it. There's also the issue of people being willing to participate in an RP where any of their characters can die at any time and it wouldn't necessarily be anyone's fault. I think that's a huge part of the atmosphere but...

Also, BadJuJu, I really like your idea and I can see where you're coming from in regard to the stereotypes. H.P. Lovecraft was pretty bad that way, but even knowing that it was a different time reading those parts of his stories is pretty cringe inducing. I think you'd be better off either leaving those characters out or turning them into something different.

Perhaps instead of being little more than comic relief they're more involved in the expedition. Something more akin to sherpas than what you described. They know the area, they know the dangers, they'll help you out for a price but if you're simply to stupid to leave they just might leave you to your fate.

[ArenaSnow]

Now the idea's grown and will probably happen in some form; but it's gotten weirder and two main thing stop me.

1. A similar roleplay concept has popped out that i will now be personally obligated to separate my experience from.
2. The weird side is that I want to use video games to represent in-character action, either Mechwarrior 4, MechCommander Gold or Mechwarrior Online. Each one has nasty drawbacks - the first two need a couple downloads (though they aren't too long), including Gameranger *scrunches nose*ads*unscrunches* and an ISO file that needs to be put on a CD to function. Either download I think is going to kill any chance my idea has of going beyond some supremely lucky 1x1 Rp catch, though I wouldn't mind if that was the case. They also probably would turn off people who value fancy graphic candy in games. The third game mentioned can only work with players that have the game since it's a long ass download and to do anything shorter than 24 roleplayers privately, at least two involved people need to have bought premium time. Probably not an option beyond 1x1 with, again, a lucky catch.

Above not including time, technical and even Ping issues.

So I don't really see the video game route happening outside a lucky 1x1 ^.^ and I have a feeling the moment it's pitched it's going to fall awkwardly, and my attempt at doing something different will result in failing the first roleplay around here I start 100% independently.

I could go with making my own system for action interactions, but... wouldn't be the same as if all the above was somehow made to work. If it did I think there would be a truly fun roleplay to come out of it, but I'm not sure it'll see life beyond desperate hoping in an 1x1 thread I may or may not ever finish. :/

[Jig]

Bear with me:

Every player plays as another player playing a character the player they're playing as created. If enough of the community worked out which player was pretending to be which player, they'd be eliminated entirely, and whoever was playing as them (playing a character) would immediately skip to whoever their 'character' was playing. Obviously, this would all have to be filtered through proxy accounts (ideally, other members of the site).

The actual plot/setting/general content of the game was irrelevant, because I'm an idiot that doesn't think about anything.
Nowadays, I try to go for more normal murder mysteries, except no. They're all fucking carnage.

[Blue Demon]

I've actually pitched this one. But I feel like it deserves to be here.

Idea:
You get a large group of people in a horror setting. Their job is to survive as long as possible against the odds. But if they do die, they return as (spirits/zombies/what have you) and try to kill their friends. Basically the idea was to see if anyone survives the night. Because it would be a relatively short RP with time stamps and when "night" ended the RP would end.

[Shorticus]

Derp, deleted because @Mentions won't work with edits. Right?

[Shorticus]

@ArenaSnow
If you're still up for doing a Battletech RP when summer rolls around, I actually wouldn't mind trying to make something like that work. Mechwarrior Online... I... Gah. How much premium time would I need to buy each month to be one of the two guys paying the bills?

I friggin' love Battletech.

You get a large group of people in a horror setting. Their job is to survive as long as possible against the odds. But if they do die, they return as (spirits/zombies/what have you) and try to kill their friends. Basically the idea was to see if anyone survives the night. Because it would be a relatively short RP with time stamps and when "night" ended the RP would end.

...yeah, see, that sounds like an awesome forum RP version of Werewolf. Sounds awesome. I mean that.

This is why I'm glad I made this thread: there are some seriously good ideas floating around here. You might be surprised at the traction you could get with that.

[SleepingSilence]

To answer the title question, thanks to my friends I've made over the internet. Pretty much nothing has not been discussed...:/

[Ganryu]

I had one RP once, I would love to reproduce, but its so different from standard forum RPing, I don't think I'd be able to.

It started out on a different forum, in the games section. Someone had a game of 'x happens, what do you do, A, B, or C'? It turned out into a full RP, with a cast of characters, a fantasy setting, and pretty good plot. Here's the kicker, and where it got weird. We didn't control any characters, we took turns writing in the RP, and then left a list of options of what happens next, leaving it up to the next player to pick what happened, and to write out the scene.

Way simplified version
----------------------------
Player 1:

Fred is running for his life, being chased down by soldiers, his village being burned down.

A) Fred turns and tries fighting
B) Someone saves Fred
C) The soldiers catch Fred

Player 2:

B) Someone saves Fred

As Fred is running, he hears the clash of steel, and turns, to see a female with a sword drawn fending off the soldiers.

"What are you doing, keep going!"

A) Ask who she is
B) Keep running
C) Help

---------------

It was fun, and we had a full cast of characters, and it was really interesting.

[Frengo]

@Ganryu I like that idea, a lot. I might shamelessly "borrow" it the next time I create another great RP venture.

Seriously though, I bet that thing would sell like hot cakes at a fair. You should give it a go. Got a feeling that there's plenty of members here who would be down with it.

[Royzooka]

It is more naughty then weird.

I wanted to try a none sexual BDSM type RP as the world is like a BDSM themed world but without the sex element but still having the 18+ theme, so skin is exposed and the like. The characters within the RP other than the main character(s) are also very BDSM based. Something like the last boss from Brutal Legends though with more chains, kink, and dark themes, but the head (Picture Below) is about right as it is like a demonic gimp mask or something. Though I know it is not sexual well not really but would others or even the site sponsors know it is not supposed to be sex based. I am pretty sure the ads would get pulled just because of the very idea. The keywords I would use are sadism, masochism, kink, dark and demonic.

The story is about the grand chain (Which connects the three realms) which is funny because it is something that can be used in BDSM. The human world, the demonic world and the city of light realm so angels and the like. I got the idea from listening to Alien Vampires BDSM & Harsh Drugs and BDSM. I am not too sure what the plot fully involved now but I could always work on it and never use it.

[Tazu The Fox]

Alright screw it, i'll go for it

Most of the ones i'm afriad to post (even if they're allowed in pm) are NSFW so i'll keep those to myself

but i'm also afraid to post anything involving just full on plain slice of life which is weird for me since I do ALOT of slice of life rp's

[ButtsnBalls]

Mafia/Werewolf.

Not so much afraid because the concept is taboo or anything, it is more the system's sustainability. Obviously, this is a party-game derived RP, done on dedicated forums with strict guidelines. Now, we all know the typical rate of player attrition. I mean, I don't really blame anyone for dropping out, since I myself have gone back on my pledges at times. People leaving RPs is a certainty, and most seasoned GMs design games knowing they'll have to deal with a diminishing player pool. However, Mafia requires tight participation from each participant, which means a free-form forum like our guild have a hard time finding the right guys. Think about it, how many games have seven or more players sticking it out from the beginning to the end? With Mafia, one person disappearing for a week is sufficient to disrupt the whole setup.

Of course, I am writing with the intention of attracting genuine interest in Mafia. My motivation is to build a game focused on balance, entertainment and lighthearted competition. RPs outside of the tabletop section focus on plots, while their tabletop counterparts put the emphasis on intricate number crunching. I think Mafia is mechanic sided, not so much mathematical mechanics but social and psychological. This is something we lack on the guild.

[Jig]

Mafia/Werewolf.

@gcold

I facking love Werewolf and have thought myself about trying a Werewolf game (in the past when I had time for this stuff), but I wasn't sure how it would actually translate to written fiction. I mean, the whole thing about Werewolf is the meta-level of "well yeah guys, she would say that", while meta-gaming is one of the cardinal sins of RPing. Did you have this figured out? Genuinely intrigued.

[ManiacMaestro]

Well, I have tried to pitch Rps in the past with a really weird setting. Basically, the internet as we know it is a separate plane of existence, and our world collides with it. I have not continued the idea, because I was afraid of a more negative reaction from whoever came across it. (Yes in retrospect that was kind of stupid.) That is why I would have Really long Hiatuses. That is all really have to say.

[Crimmy]

[12:24:27 AM] Crimmy: nytimes.com/2016/03/12/world/asia/chin..
[12:24:33 AM] Crimmy: what if i one day
[12:24:40 AM] Crimmy: made an rpg in which we played aging chinese folk
[12:24:45 AM] Crimmy: seeking to dance in the streets
[12:24:57 AM] Crimmy: while under attack by the youth who want us to shut up with the loudass disco partying
[12:25:00 AM] Plank Sinatra: could we actually call it
[12:25:04 AM] Crimmy: and the government who dislikes our disorder
[12:25:06 AM] Plank Sinatra: "Dancing in the Street!"
[12:25:13 AM] Crimmy: haha
[12:25:17 AM] Plank Sinatra: like the bowie/jagger song
[12:25:31 AM] Crimmy: shit man this sounds like a great rpg concept

This, essentially.

[TheEvanCat]

Army RP: The barracks. Absolutely nothing happens and you're bored and you end up wrestling with your roommate and being choked with a reflective safety belt into unconsciousness. Also you both are naked save for you wearing boxers and your roommate wearing tighty whities.

Not like this has happened in real life and is a personal experience or anything.

[Camerch]

@Jig@gcold

I recall there's a similar game called Avalon that had the psychological "who's the bad guy" vibe of Mafia.

The gist is you and your group are the King's counsel, but there are a traitors in the group who wish to sabotage the King.

Every turn a person gets to go on a mission and chooses a few others to accompany them. The counsel votes on whether they approve of the mission crew and if most people vote "Yes", then the mission is carried out. Otherwise, the next person chooses the mission crew instead.

Then during the mission, if one of the crew is a traitor, they can sabotage the mission, resulting in a defeat. However, a loyal servant to the king would never do such a thing and so a successful mission should contain only loyal servants*.

If enough missions end in defeat, then the traitors win. Otherwise, if enough missions end in success, the King's counsel wins.

Maybe something to consider?