Plot creation process

Overview

This page is designed to help the writers - and everyone involved with creating and running plot at Empire understand what the process is and how it works.

Producing plot for a large game is a difficult process. With thirty writers and 2000 participants, we need to have a single process for organizing costume, NPCs, props, ribbons for items, debriefs for NPCs. Ultimately the process is designed to help writers; otherwise when you come to run your plot requiring 40 NPCs to dress in Brass Coast costume for a quest - you will discover that all the NPCs are out, all the Brass Coast costume is out and all the quest slots are filled.

Ethos

The writer is central to the ethos for the writing and running plot at events. The plot support team are here to help, but the default assumption is that the writer will carry out all the steps needed to write and run their plot. As a writer, the responsibility for ensuring that your plot has been approved and timetabled and the right costume, props, and ribbons are ready lies with you. We don't necessarily expect one person to do all these things, we are here to help and we encourage writers to work together in teams - but the responsibility to ensure that it is done lies with the writer.

We've chosen this approach for several reasons. This approach will allow us to scale what we do to run more plot by adding more writers to our team over time. However it should also ensure that the key decisions taken about a plot, timing, budget, briefing, etc - are made by the writer who created it rather than by someone else. And finally it should mean that the writer is able to drive the plot process to ensure that their plot gets approved and run at events.

Teams

We encourage all Empire plot writers to get a team together if they can. There are many advantages to writing plot as part of a team - you have like-minded friends that you can discuss the plot with as you create it. If you can't make an event, or you're busy at an event when a question about your plot comes in, then a fellow team member can cover for you.

More importantly, running plot at an Empire event requires a wide range of skills. We don't assume that a single writer has all those skills, but if you have a team of people then they can cover the skills needed between them. Actually writing plot is just one part of what is needed to get your plot to run. The best teams will include people who are good with costume, props, briefing and debriefing, time-tabling and logistics, even if some of those people don't actually write the plot your team runs.

Wherever we talk about a plot writer on this page, we're also referring to their team if they are part of one.

Plot Support

The plot support team is a central team whose core job is to help the writers run the plot they have created. There are several steps involved in producing plot at an event and we realize that some writers or teams will not feel enthusiastic or capable of doing them all.

You can't divulge the responsibility for a plot - it's still down to the writer to ensure that their plot runs, but you can get help with any stage of the process. The plot support team includes people who are experienced with costume and props and can help advise you how to source the things you need for your plot. They are familiar with our IT systems and can help you get the ribbons and items your plot needs as well as brief and debrief your plot. Some members of the team may be able to brief a plot for you - or just help you find NPCs to play the roles.

Whatever you need to do to get your plot to run, then the plot support team are here to help.

Ten Steps

We've divided the plot creation process into ten steps and laid them out in a rough sequential order for ease of reading. All writers need to follow the process, but individual writers can work through the steps in the order that suits them best. Some writers like to buy a beautiful prop and create a plot around that; some writers will want to get the basics of their plot approved before spending time putting it on the wiki.

Stage 1 - Write Some Plot

Any member of crew who wants to get involved in writing plot for Empire events is welcome to do so. Experience can help, but it is far from essential and a good knowledge of the setting is likely to be just as useful as a decade of experience writing plot for other games. What is essential is to make sure that you read the plot style guide first. We hope that you will also find the plot tools invaluable for giving you ideas and showing you elements of the setting you can use to turn those ideas into plots.

The best members of the plot support team to talk to about your plot are Andy Rafferty and Matt Pennington. Both have lots of experience creating plot for large events and Andy is the ultimate authority for questions about the Empire setting.

Stage 2 - Put it on the Wiki

We have a single central platform for plot - the plot wiki. Before you can attempt to run your plot at an event, you must have documented the plot on its own page on the plot wiki. You can't get final approval for any plot until this is done.

Most members of the plot support team will be able to help you use the plot wiki. If you are having a specific problem then Aquarion (Nicholas Avenell) is the best person to talk to.

NPC Stats

You need to include stats for any NPCs or monsters that are needed for your plot. You can specify the individual skills an NPC has or just give a general description (e.g. 8 pt magician) to indicate the rough things you want. It is very rare in Empire for a plot to need an NPC to be particularly powerful but if it is essential then you must itemize their individual skills.

If you need stats for a monster for a quest or battle, then the best thing to do is to choose a standard creature from the bestiary on the plot wiki. If there is nothing on the wiki that suits your purpose then you can create a new creature, but if you do this then we will need to check it for consistency with the setting and to ensure the creature's stats are play balanced.

Ribbons, Rituals and Items

If your plot requires any game items, like magical items, potions, herbs, mana crystals, coins, resources or bourse resources, then you need to specify these on the page for your plot on the wiki. A sensible amount of resources to include for a small plot is equivalent to the amount of resources a player would get after one downtime; 10 ingots, 7 mana crytals, 14 herbs or 9 crowns. A bigger plot might include twice as many resources or substitute some resources for potions and magical items.

If your plot needs one or more magical items then the best thing to do is to pick suitable items from the standard list on the player wiki. If there is nothing on the wiki that suits your purpose then you can create a rare or unique item, but if you do this then you will have to specify clearly what you want the item to do. We cannot check, approve, and produce a magical item unless we know what you are proposing.

There is a similar process to go through if your plot involves one or more rituals. If the NPCs are performing a ritual, or have already done so, then the best thing to do is to pick suitable rituals from the standard list on the player wiki. If there is nothing suitable then you can create a new ritual, but as with magical items, you must specify clearly what the ritual will do.

Divination Responses

When your plot is in the field, it will be interrogated by the players. They will use the tools at their disposal, usually divination rituals, to find out more information about your plot. Players ritual are handled by the field refs - who will process it and then radio the plot support team for an answer.

If you are available (in the plot room or on a radio) - then the plot support team will pass the request to you. If you are not available then the team will create a response to the ritual using the details provided in your plot brief. The more detail here - the easier it will be for them to create the response you would want.

Common Rituals that the players will cast to find out more are:

Swim Leviathan's Depth - Allows them to ask Leviathan why something is happening.
Bright Lantern of Ophis - Allows them to analyze a magical effect.
The Eye of the High Places - Allows them to analyze magical effects in a large area.
Eyes of the Sun and Moon - Tells them about military forces in a territory.
Shadowed Glass of Sung and Clear Lens of the Eternal River - Analyze an area for clues. These rituals are most useful on a quest but might be used to explore any location or 'scene' where something has happened.
Skein of Years - Explores the past history of a ribboned item.

Stage 3 - Get it Approved

Your plot must be approved by the plot support team before it can run at an event. To approve a plot we need to check that it is consistent with the existing setting - the campaign and the rules, and that it follows the plot style guidelines. It is good practice to chat to the plot support team about any unusual elements, new parts of the setting, new rules, etc as soon as possible. The earlier that we can give you feedback on your plot, the easier it will be to make sure that it is approved without any problems.

Although you can get a green light from the plot support team to develop a plot we can't provide final approval until we all the details are fully documented on the wiki. To get your plot approved you must proactively approach the plot support team and ask them to approve your plot for you. You may need to speak to multiple depending on what elements you have included in your plot.

The Setting

The members of the team to talk to about the setting are Andy Raff and Matt Pennington. The best way to get Matt is to email him, the best way to get Andy is to PM him or post on the Empire plot Facebook group. If you have a skype account (or can make one) then you can grab both Matt and Andy on skype and discuss your plot with them. It is much quicker to get plot approved this way, as you can quickly explain your plot and talk through any difficult elements. It is also much easier to provide feedback this way.

The Rules

Graeme Jamieson and Nicholas Taylor are the best people to talk to about any part of your plot that involves unusual rules such as non-standard magical items, rituals or creatures that are not in the bestiary on the wiki. You can contact them both by email or by posting on the Empire plot facebook group.

Stage 4 - Costume and Props

Profound Decisions have a large wardrobe of basic costume, including weapons and armour. If your plot needs specific costume or props then you will need to source these. The best place to try and do this is on the Empire sewing circle Facebook group. This group contains capable volunteers who make costume for Profound Decisions as well as helping us source new items.

If we need to pay a professional to make an item then the starting point is to see if one of the existing professionals who work with Profound Decisions can do the job for you. Folks like Sean Maguire, Darren Stocker, Andy Rimmer, and Mandala all make weapons, Doug Strand makes leather goods and Rosemary Warner and Esther Reeves both make costume. If these people can't help then consider the traders who trade at our events, all of whom are likely to be helpful.

Each writer, or writing team, will be allocated their own budget by Matt Pennington. This budget is for the four Empire events for that year and it is up to you how you allocate it for the plots you are developing and running for that year. It will be allocated based on your track record of running plot at Empire - the more plot you run, the more budget you'll get. If you don't spend all your budget then you can carry it over to the next year.

The best people from plot support to talk to about our existing costume stores are Vicky (Victoria O'connell) or Leah Tardival. Both will also be able to give advice on what sort of costumes and props you might need, what they might need to look like and where to go to order them.

Stage 5 - Makeup and Prosthetics

Empire has a dedicated make-up team that is led by Mim (Miriam Nicholas). The team have an existing store of make-up and basic prosthetics and Mim has experience making and ordering new prosthetics. If your plot requires only standard make-up, for example orcs or characters with lineage then Mim's team will usually be able to handle this for you without much warning provided they are free. If your plot requires new prosthetics or a complex make-up job then it is essential that you talk to Mim early about your needs if you want her team to be able to help you at the event.

With multiple writers, the make-up team are always in demand, but they are especially busy preparing for the big battles on Saturday and Sunday morning. It is essential to avoid time-tabling a complex make-up effect for this time unless you have special dispensation directly from Mim to do so.

Stage 6 - Timetabling your Plot

Once your plot has received final approval, then you need to add it to the plot timetable for an event. The timetable will be a google spreadsheet that all the writers and members of plot support have access to. The critical element when timetabling plot is to ensure that there are sufficient NPCs available.

NPCs on the timetable are allocated on a first come first served basis. It is best to get your plot written and approved early so that you can add it to the timetable. If your plot needs NPCs but the timetable is already full, then you will have to wait until the next event to run the plot. If the plot requires a quest slot then you will need to indicate this by writing the plot against one of the available quest slots on the spreadsheet.

Your plot may not require any NPCs from the pool in the plot room. For example, there are existing NPCs that you may be able to make use of in your plot, such as the bards, civil servants, egregores, and magistrates. If this is the case then you can run your plot at any time, but it must still be timetabled, so that we can see when the plot is running. Please add it to the appropriate column on the spreadsheet and leave the NPC requirement blank.

You will need to make your best estimate of how many hours your NPCs will be out for. If your estimate is too short it will cause problems for other writers, but too long will mean your NPCs have nothing to do once they return to the plot room. Chessy (Michelle Taylor) is the best person from plot support to talk if you need help timetabling your plot.

For more detailed instructions on filling in the plot timetable successfully, see Plot Timetable Instructions.

The timetable for E1-2015 is here.

Stage 7 - Assigning NPCs

You can leave assigning NPCs to your plot to the day of the event. If you have timetabled your plot correctly then the NPCs you need should be ready to play the role at the appropriate time in the plot room. You can take them to one side, get them briefed, and then send them out.

If you want specific individuals to play NPC roles for you in one of your plots, then you'll need to chat to them to arrange that. We have a large pool of volunteers who NPC full time at events who are organized into teams of approximately five. If you need a small group of NPCs then you can chat to the team leader. If you just need one or two people then it is best to speak to them direct. It is wise to check that any individual you speak to has not agreed to be in another plot that is running at the same time.

Assigning NPCs in advance can be very effective. It means you can pick people who are familiar with the role or at least that part of the setting. You can give them the brief before the event, making things much quicker on the day and you may well find your plot benefits from allowing them to have some input and development on the role.

Fluff (Ben Dixon) or Vicky (Victoria O'Connell) are the best people from the plot support team to provide help with assigning NPCs either in advance or on the day.

Stage 8 - Briefing NPCs

Your NPCs will need to be briefed before they can enact your plot. Written briefs are incredibly useful, as they provide invaluable documentation and help speed up briefing before the event and on the day. However you don't need to produce a full written brief if that is not your style, provided that your plot write up includes the essential details.

Fluff (Ben Dixon) or Vicky (Victoria O'Connell) are the best people from the plot support team to help with briefing NPCs on the day.

Stage 9 - Debriefing NPCs

When your NPCs return to the plot room they will be asked by the plot support team to put a debrief of their plot on to the plot wiki. The debriefs are added using the debrief button provided by the plot template which appears on your wiki page. If you need specific questions answered by the NPCs then you will need to ensure that you are there when the NPCs get back and debrief the plot.

For Quests the Skirmish Team will provide an overall Quest debrief in addition to any specific details provided by the NPCs

Debriefing is important because it allows us to track what plots ran and what the outcomes were. It is critically important for game consistency that we get good quality debriefs. Everyone involved in the plot process, writers, plot support, and NPCs should be aware of the importance of getting good debriefs.

Stage 10 - Player Follow-up

The Empire campaign specifically prohibits free text downtime - players are prohibited from trying to follow up a plot in downtime. It is worth bearing this in mind when writing a plot.

However there are things the players can do to chase a plot has left the field. The most common are:

Call Winged Messenger - Send a message to a named NPC.
Create a missive to an Eternal - Send a message to a named Eternal

These requests will come to a field ref - who will process the request and then refer it back to the plot support team.

The plot support team will attempt to identify the plot writer best suited to deal with any player follow-up. Missives sent to eternals and letters sent to NPCs by winged messenger will be put in the post-board in plot. There is a box for each plot team where they can collect their post from. Unidentified plot will be added to a single box marked "unknown".

If you find a piece of plot follow-up in your box that is nothing to do with any of your plots, then please move it to the "unknown" box. Plot support will empty this box after the event and try to chase it up with the whole plot team using the Facebook writers group.

Players may also commission a historical research request through the Imperial Senate. This results in a report collated by NPC civil servants who spend the period between events trawling archives and libraries all over the Empire. Some research requests will find no useful information, but you may be asked to write a research request result related to one of your plots, or to provide enough details that someone else can write one. A research request is a useful tool because it allows you to help players drive your plot forward, and can be used to reveal additional information about the background; point to a quest or unexpected avenue to pursue the quest; or even provide leads to an entirely new plot, depending on the nature of the research.