Tragicomedy of the Commons: Keeping UA Competent, While Not

So I've been meaning to write this for a while, was trying to make sure I took the time to consider every side of it and really focus down on the core issues so this didn't become a 3 million word essay on the state of RPing in general. But I think it's time I really sat down and gave it a go, so here we go.

The core issue is, as Minty referenced to in her recent post, that people need to be more considerate with their plotting and ideas. Fundamentally, this statement by itself means nothing and does nothing to help; the people on this site are by and large good, nice people, of course they would be kind to one another. I'm by no means arguing against people's attitudes or morals here.

By and large, we all play nice together, we all have fun and any arguments or disagreements are often either resolved quickly or mediated by staff. As far as I'm aware no one is intentionally gimping anyone else's plots or trying to sabotage anyone else. I feel like I need to make this very clear up front so that my words do not get misinterpreted.

There is a very clear shift in narrative focus between a singular story and a roleplaying group. In My Hero Academia, everything can revolve around Deku because the writer is in charge of every character themselves and can decide the placement of events that cause whatever future events to fall into step. There is, for the most part, nothing unexpected or untoward that can occur without the writers consent. A protagonist can exist because the writer has all of the pieces of the puzzle at their disposal at all times. The narrative focus of the story is squarely upon that character, with only minor detours to other characters to give context.

Compare this to a DnD group. The DM/GM is in ultimate control of the narrative but they do not control what the characters do or don't do; only what they should or should not do. Most decisions in the heat of the moment are reflexive and reactionary, building a narrative through random elements or taking the actions of characters and building towards an end goal. So long as those players are not directly or indirectly hostile to the DM/GM; this system also works. The perspectives of all characters are explored but they are all still on that one story railroad, with their freedom granted by the DM/GM within the bounds of the adventure.

Now compare it to something like LARPing. The 'party' is much bigger; even reaching the hundreds on very big LARPing sessions, split into different factions or groups all forging ahead with their own narratives, with rules and dice rolls in place to simulate the reactionary roles of the second system and a DM/GM (or even a team of same) keeping everyone on the same page. LARPing is chaotic, messy and often results in players who are not in that core narrative group feeling left out of the main story because the DM/GM and their team had no plans for them. And yet people still take part because they find the idea of playing characters in a wider environment fun and rewarding.

RPing is socially-distanced LARPing.

Notice how the final two systems have nothing to account for a protagonist role and are often even harmed by such a role coming into existence. People want to be main character of their own stories, that's only natural. Everyone see's the world through their own eyes and not those of another. However, the system we're currently working in does not support anyone being the 'main character' of the story as a whole.

For the most part, every character on this site is a side character. And that is FINE. It's great, in fact, because people often forget that the characters they remember the most from shows are usually the quirky memorable side characters that they enjoyed the idea of but never got to see more of. RPing is your opportunity to see more of those side character's stories, to explore their personality and see the overall story of the site from their perspective.

By their very nature, these characters feed off of the world around them to exist. They need the other people around them so that they can feel a part of the world and feel immersed in the setting. Therefore, performing plots that are too narratively focused on one group for extended periods of time OR are detrimental to other groups to exist in a very con-constructive way are disruptive to the site as a whole.

This is what I mean by being more considerate of other people when designing your plots.

Think about the wider implications of what you're doing and consider if it is a good way to go. If you feel like an action would be detrimental but wish to do so anyway, TALK TO PEOPLE. The Staff, the Storytellers, the characters who would be affected. You can build such beautiful webs of stories by just sitting down and talking the plot through with them and finding good, unique ways of going about it. Communication is SO important because you depend on every other character on the site to survive.

I have seen so many people, on this site and so, so many others, pursue plots that are so fundamentally focused on their own character to the detriment of anyone else that it creates these solid pockets of insular narratives that are so densely packed with history and inter-personal drama that it may create some good stories but it also isolates people from ever interacting with those characters. And when one of them unfortunately has to leave, it's like pulling the load-bearing stone from a bridge, it collapses.

I'm sorry for the long-windedness but I felt like I needed to explain that in detail so that I could go into the more specific issue that is U.A., the List and the Third Year problem.

IC Punishments should not be seen as an OOC punishment. Doc has said previously that people rebelled or retconned situations where they got caught doing illegal or detrimental things. In this instance I will focus on U.A. characters because it seems to be the biggest problem area for this sort of behavior. If you play a troublemaker or a rebel or someone who is willing to do dangerous, illegal things, IC punishment should be an expectation. The entire point of such characters is that they don't care about the potential consequences, they have to do whatever they're doing for the good of the school or themselves or the people they love or just out of plain old greed.

These IC Punishments do not have to be on-screen. It might be quite difficult to enforce or encourage roleplay in detention when the entire point of detention is to be monotonous and boring. And yet, The Breakfast Club is a fantastic movie all about this exact situation. IC Punishments should be seen as an opportunity to meet new people you wouldn't have met before, to continue having your character be rebellious or goofy in ways that are endearing and fun or to have characters reflect on their actions or decide if what they did was worth what they're currently going through.

All of that can occur on camera or off, it doesn't matter. What matters is that everything that happens is like an improv comedy routine, work with the consequences of what you are given and build off of it in a way that is true to your character.

That being said, people should not be shamed for wanting their Deku vs. Stain moment of fighting a villain, or getting kidnapped or having that tense face-off against the big baddie. There is no shame in wanting that, those types of moments are what make solo narratives so compelling. However, once again we have to consider the implications of our plots. Is a plot that encourages students to be outright kidnapped en masse a good one for the overall health of the site?

I would argue no.

Is it good for individual stories? Absolutely. It gives more of those tense interactions and starts to make Third Years feel more important to the overall narrative. However, such a plot comes at a cost. What you give to the Third Years, saps from those below them. The consequence of having such a plot is that U.A. itself looks incompetent and foolish and has to clamp down much harder on rules to compensate. This is an IC Punishment to Third Years, but an OOC Punishment to First and Second Years. These students are being punished for the actions of those above them and, whether that's in character for the executives of the school or not, it's not fair and it's not fun.

Returning back to what I said about LARPing, when the DM/GM focuses too much on a specific group, those who are not in that group tend to feel like they're being pulled along by a tidal wave of narrative. Any attempt to step outside of that is slapped down or looked upon with disdain. It can make players feel isolated and frustrated and feel like they cannot conduct their own stories.

Now I realize this may sound like it directly contradicts my earlier point about improv comedy, so let me clarify: This format that we use cannot exist without cooperation fundamentally and foremost. Players should work with what they are given so long as what they are given is a fair and equal opportunity to shine. If two people in an improv group decided to drive the narrative themselves and gave everyone else very minimal chances to contribute, even if the show is ultimately great, they would feel like they are unable to add their own spin or twist.

I understand that villains can often feel left out in these cases, because it is hard for an out and out 'villain' to interact with others who don't have the red name because they have their own agendas. I feel like Sonya Chernova is a good example of how to get around this, as is Marceline Labelle. Yet such an approach does not work for all villains, such as Eduardo Sapo. I liken the villain world a lot to the World of Darkness series of stories and tabletop systems. They exist and interact with wider society but harbor terrible secrets. It is still possible for the physically deformed Nosferatu to have a story in that world, it is just a very very different type of story to someone like the crazy Malkavian or the suave Ventrue.

Oftentimes villains have an agenda they are trying to pursue, interactions with students in that way do not have to be necessarily hostile and yet can be just as tense. Consider the possibility that instead of getting kidnapped and brought to Sonya, a student is instead approached in their home, or on the street with a video call open? Or maybe left a mysterious note with instructions? Villains can be mis-understood and attempting to correct their wrongs, or disavow the negative stigma their appearance causes; a struggle some Students/Heroes/Vigilante's can relate to.

There are many ways for Students/Heroes/Vigilante's and Villains to interact that do not require such drastic action.

So let's say such a thing does occur; as it has in current canon. What should be done OOC? We're in this situation now, how do we fix it?

Having a faction come in and effectively declare martial law feels a step too far and again punishes the First and Second Years who have, for the most part, done nothing wrong. If anything the opposite could be argued; if the streets are so dangerous, what would happen is U.A. didn't exist? If there were no checks and balances? It could be used as a way for the PSC to secure more defense funding, more leniency in how it protects it's students and more functions on campus for keeping people there long term. It could result in more funding for the Hero System and therefore more Heroes; IC justification for the 'Sidekick' system.

Tyrannical anti-Quirker oversight is not the only option here and should not be seen as such.

OOC I believe the fault is by no means with the staff. They are playing a game of spinning plates trying to keep everyone happy all of the time and that just does not work. I think people need to just take a step back, look at their plots and characters and think about who around them in the current memberbase could help them achieve what they want to achieve in a way that doesn't hurt the plots of others. Communication. Is. Key.

We've already made steps towards this with the extended hand towards new characters; I appreciate that a lot, it's a good chance for new people to get a spotlight and hit the ground running.

However, I think the main culprit here is the Saga System.

It's beginning to show it's age and has been far too insular an idea for far too long. The most fun I've had on this site is when my Saga idea lines up with the ideas of other people on the site and we have this interconnected weave of plots that all play out one after another. To me, that's fun as hell, and within the Saga System it allows your character to have their own little moments by using what you have at your disposal at the time.

So how about we encourage a system where people get bonuses for linking their Saga's together? A villain attack on a shop is a heavily traumatic experience for someone, why not have that shop be the shop of a PC? Both plots have their stated end goals and both reach their conclusion as a result of each other.

Allow me to use an example (I apologize for tooting my own horn with this one). Kaisaki (my delivery girl) is eventually going to be contracted to work as a freelance delivery girl for ASTA Corp delivering what she believes to be magazine samples between buildings. In reality, she is transporting highly sensitive documents or equipment for the nefarious Ishtar and has no idea. Just when she's at the peak of her happiness, she gets chased by a mysterious villain who commands an army of small frogs! Oh no!

Eduardo Sapo wants that package. He knows it came from ASTA Corp and he believes it will be important in attempting to get leverage in the villain world. Kaisaki is forced to abandon the package in order to flee, resulting in Eduardo getting what he wants. He stashes the package somewhere safe that only he could find.

Meanwhile Otsuno Akuma, a new on the scene Hero, is looking to make a name for herself. She hears about a number of attacks all around the city, including a very scary chase across rooftops and alleys against a poor delivery girl. She sets a trap and captures Eduardo, sending him to prison. Justice!

Except, Eduardo still has that package as leverage and manages to use it to curry favour from the villain world and be freed from prison under mysterious circumstances, perhaps even gaining a few new allies in the process.

You see how interesting it can be to string several plots and stories together like that? It creates this sense of cohesion in the world where everything affects each other in a natural and organic way that doesn't feel forced. Every action has a consequence for the characters involved that doesn't necessarily ripple out into the wider world in any way that outright inhibits another person's ability to tell their story. It is contained within it's own narrative setting but may have subtle implications for other characters to build from and leaves all of the characters in different places then when they first started, so they can organically move in any direction the players wish.

More plots need to be interleaved like this and the only way to do so is by the medium of communication. Speaking to people, thinking about things in a wider context, being more open to changing your plots to incorporate others while still having your 'You can be a Hero too' moment.

This is the core issue, this is what I'm driving at. In essence, it's the entire morality message of My Hero Academia as a series. You cannot rely on one single person to save the world forever; not even yourself. May the old guard who stood alone on their watchtowers give way to the new generation, who wish to save the world together.

Are we together, True Path?

I think we are. Or at least we can be if we really try.

Everyone here has value; everyone here is a wonderful writer in their own unique ways and are all amazing people in their own rights. Suffice it to say, I think the problem of plot attitude is not any one person's fault, nor is it some culture that has been specifically bred on this site, it's an issue that has always and will always exist in roleplaying unless we all take steps to remedy it.

You are valued. I appreciate you and your characters. And I know there's over one hundred accounts online in the past 24 hours who all value you and your characters too. So let's work together, yeah?

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