03 - Roleplay Basics

Table of Contents:

• 3.1 Gameplay Structure
• 3.2 Terminology
• 3.3 Writing Styles
• 3.4 Knowledge & Information
• 3.5 Playing a Character

3.1 Gameplay Structure

USS Galileo is an online collaboratively-written Star Trek role-playing community. The heart and soul of the game are our players who craft scenes and stories then write with each other to bring their characters and these adventures to life. Our gameplay occurs on our website which uses a special software program called Nova. Not to be confused with the Nova-class starship, Nova is a customized role-playing CMS (content management system) which integrates a private message system, word processor, wiki, news blog and character sheets all into one package. Players log in to the website to communicate with each other, write their stories and update their characters. The Nova software program is also connected to traditional email -- each player must register with an email account because Nova sends email notifications of new private messages, news updates and writing updates.

Our game also utilizes two alternate forms of communication as a contingency should a web server problem occur and we are unable to access our website. The first platform is a private Groups.io email mailing list which we use to help administer the game and discuss important out-of-character topics affecting all players. The second method of communication is our Discord server which is primarily used for real-time chat and more casual game discussion. Players are not required to have a Discord account or participate in its use, but they are required to have a working email address and receive notifications from both the website and the mailing list.

PLAYER ROLES

All of Galileo's participants are grouped into the following three categories: game masters, department heads, and players.

Game masters are the game's administrators. They are responsible for both the in-character and out-of-character management of the game and work with each other and the other players to ensure the smooth operation of news dissemination, story generation and implementation, and gameplay. Game masters are veteran players who have been writing on Galileo for many years. They possess intimate knowledge of the game's rules, the different players and characters, and storylines. They are also hobby veterans who have participated in our form of written roleplay for decades. The day-to-day duties of a game master include website content creation and administration, player and character management, story and plot management, dispute mediation, new player orientation, and all of the other duties expected of a traditional player.

Department heads are writers who play a character with a senior in-character position within the game. Examples include the Chief of Security, Operations Manager, Chief Science Officer, or Chief Engineer. Department head players are responsible for standard role-playing duties just as any other player yet are tasked with additional out-of-character responsibility. This responsibility includes the overseeing and management of the other players writing characters in their department to ensure new writing opportunities and smooth gameplay. Department heads consult with the game masters and the players within their department, and act as 'middle management'. These players are often veteran Galileo players but not always. Any new player is eligible to request a department head role provided a position is available and they are up to the challenge.

Players, or standard players, are those writers who are neither a game master nor a department head. They are not responsible for extra out-of-character management duties and their primary focus is to simply write their characters, participate in storylines and engage with the rest of the community.

GAME GOVERNMENT

USS Galileo's player hierarchy resembles that of a constitutional monarchy. There is one head game master who oversees all aspects of game management. The game master is assisted by several assistant game masters who perform many of the same duties and operations as the game master. The assistant game masters do not have authority to override the game master, but their counsel is always invaluable. Department heads assist both the game master and assistant game masters with any necessary items and also lend their counsel and relay any issues or suggestions any of their respective players might have. Standard players discuss any requests or suggestions with their department head who will then move them up the chain if necessary.

In practice, all feedback is taken into account by all parties and no situation has ever arisen where the game master unilaterally disregards the requests of the community at large. The game master would not have a functioning game without the players, and the players would not have a game to play on without the game master. Mutual respect and acceptance of differing opinions exists between all parties at all times within our community.

PERSONAL LOGS, SCENES, EPISODES AND SEASONS

Gameplay within Galileo is structured into a four-tier ladder. The most basic form of role-play content within the game is the personal log. A personal log is most often a traditional first-person narrative of recent events a character has experienced and is usually written in the form of a character making an audio recording to the ship's computer. Personal logs are usually written alone by the author and do not include other characters or players. However, personal logs can sometimes be used for a 'backpost'. A backpost is a story or scene which takes place before the current in-game timeline (episode) and is most often referred to as a 'flashback' scene written in 3rd-person prose. All Galileo players are required to write and publish one personal log per month for any of their characters.

Whereas personal logs are usually individual writing creations from a player, scenes compose the majority of our gameplay. A scene is a sequence of dialogue, thoughts, actions and narrations which take place within a larger frame of writing (a subdivision of an episode). Most scenes within Galileo are substantially longer in length and more robust than a personal log, and include multiple players and their characters. Scenes are written in a back-and-forth manner where each writer sequentially adds content to the previous writers' contributions while role-playing their character(s). The majority of writing entries found on our website are scenes, which are also colloquially called 'posts'.

A collection of scenes, once completed to tell a larger story, composes an episode. An episode is also known as a 'mission' and is comparable to the works of any televised episode of a visual series. Episodes on Galileo usually contain anywhere between 200 and 800 scenes and present a completed story containing both major and minor plots, subplots, and character development. The time to complete an episode depends on many variables including the number of players participating, the writing pace, complexity of the episode's plot, and the availability of the game's writers. Some episodes have been completed within four months while others have taken over a year to write.

A group of five to six episodes constitutes a season. Sometimes seasons retain a common theme or story element across the episodes contained within, but Galileo strives to write 'episodic' content as traditionally displayed in the alpha canon series. This means episodes might be related to each other in a brief manner yet each episode tells its own isolated story and the reader is not required to understand the happenings within a previous episode to appreciate the current episode's content. Seasons generally take several years to complete.

A, B, C PLOTS AND SUBPLOTS

Each episode on Galileo is composed of an A plot, a B plot, sometimes C plot, and subplots. Though similar in their construction, each type of plot possesses several important differences.

The A plot is the central focus of each episode and directly relates to the primary concept and themes of our role-play game. It contains the most story 'beats' and involves the most scenes and screen time. It is the main focus of our writing and showcases our protagonists as they attempt to achieve their goals. The A plot is created by the game master and sometimes with the consultation of the assistant game masters. For an episode to be considered successfully completed, the A plot must play out in its entirety through our writing.

The B plot is an equally-important yet less prominent story within the episode. B plots usually involve more elements of character development than the A plot and contain fewer scenes. They are often referred to as the 'secondary story' within the larger context of the A plot, but are usually interconnected with the A plot. The B plot compliments the A plot and does not supplement it. That is to say, that writing the B plot is equally as important to completing the episode as writing the A plot. The B plot is usually created by the game master with assistant game master consultation.

C plots are minor plot beats which often present as recurring themes within the episode. They can be comedic or annoying or severe in nature. Screen time for C plots is minimal compared to the A and B plots yet the C plot can add much-needed context to the episode. Prior examples of completed C plots on Galileo include a growing tribble infestation aboard the starship and recurring shipboard computer errors while investigating phenomena.

Subplots, unlike A, B or C plots, are non-episode-essential player-requested plots. They are usually exclusively character-oriented and often involve a player's character(s) pursuing a personal goal unrelated to either the A, B or C plot. Subplots are opportunities for any player to explore their character within the confines of the episode's writing environment as long as the subplot does not conflict with the other existing primary plots. Any player may request a subplot at any time. The game masters will then work with the player to accommodate the request and integrate the subplot into the episode's greater story narrative.

To request a subplot, please contact the game masters with the following information:

• Players: (list all players involved in the subplot)
• Characters: (list all characters involved in the subplot)
• Post Count: (how many posts (JPs) will the subplot include?)
• IC Timeline: (MD xxx through MD xxx)
• Plot Synopsis: (summarize your subplot in one paragraph)

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3.2 Terminology

Hobbyists within the collaborative-written role-play field utilize unique terminology and abbreviations to reference common actions, concepts and descriptions. Below is a list of common terms you will notice when viewing or participating aboard our game:

• AGM - An acronym for assistant game master.
• DH - An acronym for department head.
• DM - An acronym for a Discord direct message.
• ELOA - An acronym for extended leave of absence.
• Gal - The official abbreviation for USS Galileo. Usually preceded by 'the'. (ex. I'm a player on the Gal.)
• GM - An acronym for game master.
• IC - An acronym for in-character, referring to a role-play-character-specific state of mind.
• LOA - An acronym for leave of absence.
• MD - An acronym for mission day.
• OFF - Also written as [OFF] with brackets. The standard method of closing an in-character work of writing. (see Posting Format)
• ON - Also written as [ON] with brackets. The standard method of opening an in-character work of writing. (see Posting Format)
• OOC - An acronym for out-of-character, referring to a player's real-life (not character) state of mind.
• NPC - An acronym for an unclaimed non-player character. Not to be confused with PNPC, a protected non-player (secondary) character.
• PC - An acronym for player character. Also known as a player's primary character.
• PL - An acronym for personal log.
• PM - An acronym for a Nova website private message.
• PNPC - An acronym for a protected non-player character. Commonly referred to as a player's 'secondary' character.
• Post - A completed and published work of writing containing one or more authors.
• Proof - A prompt to proofread a work of writing prior to publishing.
• Sign - A prompt to insert character signatures into the end of a completed work of writing. (see Posting Format)
• Tag - A single written contribution from a writer to a larger scene or joint post.

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3.3 Writing Styles

USS Galileo conducts its gameplay by writing stories using one of three primary narration styles. These styles are commonly referred to as 'points of view' and include first-person point of view, second-person point of view, and three separate third-person points of view. A point of view refers to the manner in which a writer tells their character's story, specifically who is telling the story and the narrator's relationship to the characters and events.

FIRST-PERSON POINT OF VIEW

When a player uses first-person point of view writing, they are exclusively telling the story through the character's own personal 'eyes'. This style is rapidly identified by the use of the pronouns "I" (for one character) or "we" (for multiple characters). The narrator becomes the character in the story and the reader is offered unique perspectives into the character's thoughts, feelings and actions. Popular literary works employing this narrative style include The Handmaid's Tale, The Great Gatsby, The Catcher in the Rye, Jane Eyre, and To Kill a Mockingbird. First-person point of view is most commonly utilized on Galileo to tell personal logs, but is not used in any other form of gameplay.

SECOND-PERSON POINT OF VIEW

This narrative technique is the least-used and least-popular among the different points of view. Second-person narration uses the pronoun "you" and tells the story through the eyes of the reader (you!). The narration directly describes what you might be thinking or doing along with your feelings and motivations. It is often used in tabletop role-play games by the DM or GM to prompt another player to engage with the story (ex. "You discover an ancient goblet on the table and you suspect it contains a magical spell but are uncertain."). While this writing is often immersive to the reader and turns the reader into the central character, it is not used within Galileo's roleplay.

THIRD-PERSON OMNISCIENT POINT OF VIEW

In all third-person writing styles, the narrator exists separately from the story's events and characters. The author relays the character's actions, speech and thoughts to the reader by using third-person pronouns ("he", "she", "they"). This form of writing is commonly known as 'novel style' because it is utilized in the overwhelming majority of popular written novels. Using the third-person omniscient technique results in an all-knowing narrator who possesses and conveys knowledge of every character's motivations, thoughts and feelings from a detached point of view. This style works well on Galileo for scenes exclusively written by only one player containing one or more of their own characters. However, it should never be used when writing with multiple players and characters not under the player's control. This is because a player cannot truly know the motivations and internal workings of another player's character.

THIRD-PERSON LIMITED POINT OF VIEW

The third-person limited technique is similar to third-person omniscient with the important difference being the narrator's knowledge of different characters. In this style of writing, the player only possesses knowledge of their own character(s) and that knowledge is limited to what their character(s) have been able to learn of the game world. They may have gained thoughts, feelings and insight into other characters, but they remain uncertain about the exact nature and 'psyche' of others. The reader views the story almost exclusively through the character's perspective. This is the primary narrative point of view used by all Galileo players and should be considered the default writing style.

THIRD-PERSON OBJECTIVE POINT OF VIEW

This writing style takes the third-person limited perspective and removes all narrative knowledge from the author. That is to say, the player writes from a traditional third-person point of view using third-person pronouns, but does not possess any knowledge of any character's internal thoughts and motivations. Using third-person objective removes character perspectives, opinions and commentary, and results in a matter-of-fact tone. It is most commonly used by news publications and in news-reporting scenarios. This style is extremely effective on Galileo when utilized to recap prior events or write narration to set up a scene, but should be used sparingly before shifting back to the default third-person limited style.

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3.4 Knowledge and Information

Good role-players continually balance the knowledge and information they possess about the game world with the knowledge and information their characters possess. Great role-players understand the underlying concepts of knowledge and information. This is a critical component of role-play: what the player knows is never the same as what their characters know. How the game is structured and knowing its state of play is essential to being a successful player on Galileo.

PERFECT AND IMPERFECT INFORMATION

Perfect information refers to the knowledge of the complete state of play to all players at all times. These types of games produce logical challenges where players absorb the information then use it to decide the next best course of action. An example of a famous game with perfect information is chess. At all times during the game, both players have full awareness of the board and positions of every piece. The players use this knowledge to strategize their next move without worrying about any unknown elements.

Imperfect information refers to game knowledge where the players are only given a portion of the information they need to make the best decision. Instead of producing logical challenges, the challenges within an imperfect-information game require inference, aka the ability to make educated guesses regarding any missing information. The card game Poker is a classic example of a game with imperfect information where players do not know the hands of every other player yet use the limited information they have to make their best play. In many strategy video games, fog of war is used to impart imperfect information and deny the player full knowledge of the map.

Both types of game information have their strengths and weaknesses. However, games with imperfect information are more popular. Imperfect information challenges and forces players to interact with the game world and adds elements of mystery and intrigue into the game. If every game or literary work contained perfect information, there would be no mystery, spy or detective stories. Unexpected plot twists would not exist. Imperfect information appeals to our curiosity and human nature.

While some games provide all of their players with perfect information before writing their stories, USS Galileo utilizes imperfect information. At no point during our gameplay is the full state of play revealed. Players are presented with limited information from which they must make decisions for their characters and plan their next moves. We find this method to be much more engaging and it helps amplify our stories through true creative writing.

INTRINSIC AND EXTRINSIC KNOWLEDGE

Whereas the term 'information' previously referred to the game's state of play and players' understanding of it, 'knowledge' now refers to the understanding a player's character possesses of the game world.

Intrinsic knowledge is obtained from within the game world. This is knowledge a character gains through gameplay, such as learning a new language or discovering how to use a new piece of technology. First contact scenarios with new civilizations are a prime example of intrinsic knowledge because our characters learn about these new species and their culture and technology through our stories. Our characters did not possess this knowledge before the gameplay started yet gained it through in-character means.

Extrinsic knowledge is gained from outside the game world then applied to the game. Most commonly this presents as knowledge of the fandom, including our characters' ability to use various forms of Star Trek technology such as PADDs, phasers, consoles, and pilot shuttlecraft. We, as writers, possess the knowledge of how these things work then impart it onto our characters. Our characters understand the political landscape in the late 24th century because we, as players, have bestowed that to them.

Galileo uses a combination of intrinsic and extrinsic knowledge to write our stories. Our characters develop as we write them and learn new skills as we write our stories, thus obtaining more intrinsic knowledge. At the same time, they also possess the skills and knowledge to effectively operate Star Trek technology and understand the common expectations of what it means to be a Starfleet officer; knowledge that we, as fans of the franchise, have given them.

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3.5 PLAYING A CHARACTER

Successfully playing a character on Galileo is not easy. Balancing knowledge and information, choosing the appropriate writing style, learning the game world and the various ongoing plots, and understanding your role in the game alongside the other players takes several months to achieve. Even experienced players can (and have) struggled to find their writing 'voice'. Collaborative written role-play is not an easy hobby to break into and demands maturity, dedication and passion. It is also one of the most rewarding experiences available to any author. We have several tips to share with our new and prospective players to help ease their transition.

IN-CHARACTER AND OUT-OF-CHARACTER

Veteran and new players alike understand the concept behind in-character (IC) and out-of-character (OOC) dialogue and behavior. Your actions, speech and thoughts as a player/writer should be completely separated from those of your character(s). The knowledge and information we obtain as players and the relationships we make with other players are not the same as our characters'; your player conduct should not be the same as your characters'. All players must be able to separate IC from OOC at all times. To reiterate:

YOU ARE NOT YOUR CHARACTER

Your personal identity is not tied to your character -- they are separate entities. Your character may be an extension of you or have similar traits, but they are not the same. It is extremely important to create a mental division between the two and not perceive any in-character angst toward your character as a slight against you, the writer. For this reason, we recommend not creating a version of yourself-but-in-a-Starfleet-uniform. Sharing the same name, image or likeness with your character will subconsciously link you to that character in an unhealthy manner and make separating the two entities even more difficult.

CHARACTER ROLE

Our characters are important to us. We spend a great deal of time creating and crafting their likeness, then even more time writing their stories. It's inevitable that we eventually become attached to them. Because we care about our characters, we often want them to do well and succeed. We want to showcase their skills and adventures as much as possible. But within a collaboratively-written role-play environment, no single character takes priority over another. Our characters are not special nor are they exceptional; they are (hopefully) competent officers within a larger story and the joy of playing them comes from role-playing their specialties within a greater writing framework (the episode). Understanding your character's role within the story is paramount, as is understanding that your character is not the center of attention.

REALISM

What is realistic within the Star Trek universe and what is not? For this question, we refer to Gene Roddeberry's TOS Writer's/Director's Guide. There is nothing we can paraphrase from this great work which wasn't explained more succinctly by the fandom's original creator, so we will instead list the key points:

• Use accurate terminology
• Maintain scientific accuracy
• Characters must speak and behave believably
• Avoid illogical situations
• Create intellectual conflict, not physical or emotional conflict

EFFORT

We expect all players to put forth their best writing effort in every scene and personal log. Writing is a perishable skill yet an extremely valuable one. A person's ability to articulate their thoughts through writing can define their professional and hobby careers. Here on Galileo, we use this creative writing hobby to not only become better writers, but also become better people. The process of writing characters while coordinating with other writers develops valuable life skills directly translatable to the workplace and one's personal life. It teaches us to be more mature, kind, respectful, thoughtful, eloquent and verbose.

Make sure to avoid the complacency trap and always give 100-percent effort in each tag. Discover new synonyms and antonyms, research the topics your character is referencing, check your spelling, grammar and punctuation, and take pride in your writing. Put your best foot forward at all times to be the best writer you can be.