Logs

How do I submit logs? Are there any limits to how many I may submit?
A PC may submit and gain XP for a maximum of two logs of either type (roleplay or PRP) per calendar week (from Sunday when noms are run to the following Sunday when noms are run). They must be submitted in the format required for each type, as specified. This means he can get XP from two logs, total, which may be any combination of RP and PRP logs. The following rules apply to all log submissions:

1. You MUST follow the format specified for each type of log, and may only send in logs that fit that type.

2.Logs will be turned around as quickly as we can. All logs will be credited as submitted on the day received, not the day processed, for the purpose of log limitations per week. You will receive either the XP from your log, or an email about said log's rejection, when it is handled. Please do not page the DM Staff asking if a log has been done.

3.If a log is rejected, it means you have not followed the rules for that log. Please review those rules and resubmit in the proper format, if the log was rejected for format reasons. If it was rejected for content reasons, do not resubmit it.

How will XP for logs be calculated?
Experience from PRP and roleplaying logs will be as follows:

Please note that these figures refer only to a log that is not rejected. Rejected logs receive no XP.

A PRP DM may choose to run a plot-driven PRP and still gain a fair amount of XP for the players involved. This chart does skew the numbers in favor of plot-driven PRPs, yes -- those PRPs are less likely to have treasure to compensate players, so as a result they have been given more XP.

A PRP DM who participates in his own plot gets a slightly higher award, depending on the plot quality.

The logs which gain the maximum are the rare exceptions, and the logs which gain only the minimum barely met the requirements. Most will fall into the 'average' category, which describes good competent RP. Note that the awards are given by individual player -- better RP by one player may net him a larger percentage of what would have been his normal share of the DMG award.

What happens if a player leaves a plot in mid-stream? What about when a staffer running the plot is MIA?
If a player leaves an offgrid Staff DM or PM plot in mid-stream without notifying the DM/PM running it, you give up any claim to XP or treasure for that plot. This does not mean that people who have one night of bad connections, or a RL emergency, get penalized. It means if you leave without notice or permission and go back to the grid, you forfeit any benefit of the plot, and your involvement is retconned.

If a staffer for any reason is repeatedly late, or does not show up, or is uncommunicative with regard to the continuance of a plot, or acts in a manner inappropriate within our policy for behavior, please contact the Head DM and Assistant Head DM in @mail. We will release people from plots if they choose under these circumstances, with no penalty to the PC.

What types of plots can I play in on Winter's Edge?
Winter's Edge provides Staff DM-run plots for players, as any MUSH should. However, we on the staff have also seen that players enjoy running their own stories and plots, and the sort of one-on-one attention that's common in a tabletop game is not always feasible on a MUSH. Thus, we allow players to run their own plots, and reward them for doing so. We're looking at something much more than the common 'slay the monster, grab the gold' plots that proliferate in many other places. We have three basic types of plots, as follows:

1.Player-run plots: Any player with an approved PC can run a PRP. The XP and treasure for these plots will be determined by the reviewer. This is not meant to allow for numerous short monster-bashing scenes to grant quick power-ups. That is not the purpose of a plot, and if the trend shows abuse of this policy, the XP for these plots will be lowered.

2.Plotmaster plots: Plotmasters are DMs whose plots are consistently challenging, engaging and within theme. We will choose them on merit alone. A Plotmaster is a quasi-staffer hired from the MUSH's playerbase.

PM plots are allowed to affect theme more closely. They can use restricted monsters. They are allowed to have more leeway in requesting specific items, and work more independently than a normal player-DM. They will be allowed to run week-long expeditions, request bounty payments for PCs who take on an assignment, and the like. Plotmasters will work closely with DM Staff in making and running their plots.

3.Staff plots. The plots run by DM staff will generally be longer-term, theme-affecting, and of a wider scope than PRPs. DM plots can be political plots, plots that show changes in theme, wide-stretching plots that involve a large number of players.

What is a Plotmaster? How is a PM different from a Staff DM?
Plotmasters are a new invention here at Winter's Edge. These are people who run plots for the playerbase, with more freedom than a standard PRP, but with more responsibility as well. Plotmasters are chosen from among the players who have shown they are willing and able to provide solid and reliable RP for others.

A PM plot is not subject to the limitations on monsters. These plots may affect theme more readily, with staff input and approval. Plotmasters design their own encounters on longer-term plots, assign bounties, and roll up their own treasure as appropriate to EL that may include minor magic items. All of their plots will be reviewed by a DM Staffer for appropriateness and adherence to policy before being run.

A Plotmaster is a quasi-staff position. Though there are no minimum hours required, a Plotmaster is expected to run at least two plots per month to maintain that status. A PM slot may also lead to a DM Staff position in the longer term, depending on openings on the staff, need, and interest.

Plotmaster plots must be open to more than just their personal party of friends. At least half of a PM's plots must be open to the playerbase at large in order to maintain this status. If this requirement is not met, the PM position will be lost, and may only be regained by the discretion of Head Staff.

Can players run plots?
The ability to run PRPs (Player-run plots) is provided in order to allow players to build plots around character hooks and personal goals that a larger DM Staff plot might not allow, realistically. Yes, DMs will still use your background for hooks, but these plots allow for the sort of character development RP that is largely personal.

Please note the words 'character development' in the above paragraph. PRPs are not designed as the one-stop-shopping 'kill thing, grab stuff' scenarios that are often seen in other places. There should be actual story and motivation behind a PRP. The staff may reject plots that don't provide realistic and logical story in addition to the hacking, slashing, and looting.

A PRP must:

1.Provide an adequate story for the characters involved. This does not mean you can't get to Kill Things. It means we want to see a story around it.

2.Be created to provide an adequate and reasonable challenge for the PCs involved. This means that we want to see fair encounters, and accurate plotting of the challenges faced.

3. Be submitted for approval prior to being run.

4.We also strongly suggest that people open their PRPs to players they haven't met yet, or at least try and work new people in. This is not an absolute requirement, as sometimes the story requires certain characters, but part of the reason to allow PRPs is to give players a chance of widening their circles of contacts. After all, you're a lot more likely to trust Bob Ranger if Bob ran into your group once when you were helping to do some heroic (or dastardly) deed and proved to be helpful in some way.

How do I apply to run a PRP?
To submit a PRP for approval, +request =

Please DO NOT use slashes (/) in your app, as they muck up the code. In the text of the submission all of the following must be present:

Plot title: Name of plot.

APL and # of Players: Average party level - Number of players. If you don't know, give a rough approximation.

DM: Your name.

Type: (See Type post for more details)

Flavor and elements: (See Flavor/Elements posts)

Death_OK?: Yes or no

Summary: A brief summary of the events in the plot. Include a short verbal description of all encounters. This should be no more than a sentence for each encounter. In plots where conventional encounters are not part of the story, instead summarize the events to happen.

Encounters: list each encounter separately, as follows.

1.EL of encounter - monster or challenge type (individual EL of each)

2. EL of encounter - monster or challenge type (individual EL) - second monster or challenge type (individual EL)

Notes: This is where you add any additional notes or comments about the plot.

If you intend to post a PRP to bb7 openly for players to join, here's an idea of how we'd like the posts to look:

Homeward Bound!

Players wanted: 3 players between 7 - 9th level.

Time/date: 9/26/03, 8 PM EST

Type: Personal

Flavor and elements: Drama (Moral/ethical challenge, Romantic, Religious issues)

Death_OK?: Yes

A young cleric of Tuli travels with her companions to the temple in her hometown. She lost her lover a year ago, and he is now a ghost, haunting her steps and trying to win her back. She travels to try and seek a spell to regain his life, but knows that he has done evil deeds since his death.

What does the 'flavor' part of the PRP app mean?
One of the new additions to the PRP app is the Flavor category. This helps us define the feel of the plot you wish to run. You can discuss these ideas with DM staff to help you refine the plots a bit more closely. There must always be a main flavor type on a PRP app; the additional pieces there to give players a sense of how you run a plot. The types, and definitions, are listed below:


 * Adventure: Think 'Indiana Jones.' The action keeps rolling, there are elements of risk and drama and comedy, but the primary focus is on the goal. Adventure plots are very much 'eyes on the prize' plots, with a determined goal set in place from the beginning.
 * Drama: These are plots with serious stories, and serious consequences. Often dark and gritty, or rolling and adventurous, the focus of these plots is on the seriousness of the crisis and the situations the characters are in; in short, the struggle to overcome adversity takes precedence over the form the struggle takes. The films 'Glory', and 'Malcolm X' (which both had the added virtues of being true stories) are both examples of this kind of struggle.
 * Comedy: Some plots are meant to be primarily funny or amusing, or offer some comic relief to the bloody swordplay of a more conventional plot. Read the 'Castle Greyhawk' module, if you can. Parts of 'The Princess Bride' qualify as comic, though the overall plot is Adventure. If your plot is intended to be funny, first and foremost, it's Comedy.
 * Horror: These plots focus on the aspect of fear. Terror is a visceral thing, and these plots are meant to scare you. The antagonists should be menacing, fearsome, and the PCs must escape/defeat through their wits.
 * Mystery: The focus in a Mystery is 'whodunnit?', or its variants that ask how and why. In a Mystery plot, you are presented with a situation with a known outcome (the daughter of a merchant was kidnapped, the farmers in a nearby settlement were attacked), and you need to find out who, why, and how.

Additional elements: These pieces are here to give players an idea of -how- you run the above, or some additional data on what the plot entails. These are simple phrases to further shape the plot. You may choose as many of these as you feel are appropriate.


 * Gritty: Realism is very much a part of your plots, and players should prepared to deal with things like bad weather, loss of sleep, and short rations. Violence is often explicit.
 * Pulp/4-Color: Details are dramatic and writ large; cinematic situations and solutions figure heavily into the plot.
 * Moral/Ethical Challenge: Hard choices and moral quandaries are strongly integrated into this plot's story.
 * Romantic: There is the possibility of romance or love as an element of this plot, or some aspect of an existing romance.
 * Puzzles: Traps, tricks, and problems to solve are a large part of this plot.
 * Violence: See Gritty. Excessive violence, torture, and the like figure into these plots.
 * Adult Issues (please refer to policy on sex): There are sexual themes or elements in this plot.
 * Religious Issues: This plot involves significant use of deific or divine elements.
 * Mystical Issues: The story involves a great deal of arcane knowledge or discovery.

Enough with all this - what about the phat lewt?
There is a custom table the DM Staff uses for rolling up PRP treasure. It includes the possibility of magical items of low power, and offers an extended list of possible mundane treasure of appropriate values.

Treasure is rolled by the Staff DM who reviews the plot. Plots submitted with treasure rolled will be rejected. If you wish to have a mundane or alchemical item within the parameters of the normal treasure for a plot of this type and level, you may request it, but the request may be denied. Plots centering on the recovery of a magical item of some sort should really be run by a Plotmaster or Staff DM, depending. PRPs are not designed to grant Huge Gobs of Phat Lewt.

If you wish to run a plot where the PCs are paid by an NPC to undertake a task, the amount offered will be measured up against 1) what they've been asked to do and 2) the average party level and appropriate treasure for same. You won't get a plot approved for 2nd level characters who are offered 1000 platinum each to carry a package from one end of town to the other. If you're not sure what an appropriate amount is, feel free to request that the Staff DM who reviews your plot assign an appropriate amount.

How do I submit a PRP log once the plot is done?
Winter's Edge accepts logs from approved player-run plots for experience awards. All PRP logs must follow these guidelines. If they do not, they will be rejected.

1.They MUST be sent to wintersedgelogs@gmail.com as plain text messages. No attachments, no links to web pages, and no HTML messages will be accepted.

2.PRP logs must be for approved PRPs. They must be sent within 3 weeks of running the plot. If a player consistently sends logs late for PRPs, his DMing privileges may be removed. It is not fair to force the other players to wait weeks for the fruits of their labor.

3.All PRP logs MUST have a paragraph at the beginning explaining what the plot is and what happened within the plot. If it is a multiple-part plot, it should be noted. If approved monsters were killed or defeated in the course of the plot, this must also be noted.

4. All PRP logs MUST contain a list of players involved. Adding their levels is welcome, but not required.

5.All extraneous items such as +scan, pages, room descriptions, character descriptions, and the like MUST be removed. If you send us a log with these things still included, the log will be rejected. Rolls, on the other hand, MUST be kept in the log unless otherwise indicated by the DM handling the log.

Format for a mail message with a PRP log should look like this:

Message subject: PRP LOG: Title

In the body of the email:

Plot title: Title here.

Summary: This plot takes place a day's ride outside Vintermor, where a trader caravan was ambushed by a goblin raid. This plot concentrates on the humanitarian efforts to rescue the survivors before the weather, exposure, and injuries kill them.

Encounters: EL1 - 6 goblins (EL 1/6 each)

Players: John Jones (Fighter 2), Mary Smith (Wizard 1/Cleric 1), Bob White (Rogue 2).

(Paste log text here.)

What sort of opponents can I use in a PRP?
Our list of restricted monsters is fairly short. Keep in mind the climate, however - we won't see certain types of monster in the frozen tundra, so plots centering around those monsters had better have a damned good story explaining how your party got somewhere else. Note that in a non-death-consent plot, the staff reserves the right to remove any challenge above the party level, as a lack of consent implies a lesser challenge.

Forbidden Monsters:


 * Dragons (forbidden as combatants)
 * Mind Flayers
 * Aboleths
 * Beholders

You will notice that the upper CR cap has been removed, and many other monster types have been opened up for use in plots. This does not give free rein to use anything at all; every plot should make sense and have opponents who fit the plot and the setting. PRP provides an addition to the overall story of the game, and as such, any plot with insufficient story around why X monster type is where it is, doing what it's doing, will be rejected.

What can we do in a PRP?
This post is in place to address the idea of what a PRP is about. All of us have roleplayed to one extent or another over time. We won't insult your intelligence by explaining what a good plot is versus what a bad plot is. The general policy for RP here at Winter's Edge is to trust people to be mature until the point when an individual proves he cannot be trusted to hold to that guideline, and we don't believe in punishing the playerbase as a whole for the actions of a few.

A player-run plot can be about any darned thing you want, provided it does not violate theme, the base rules of the game system, or policy. If you want to run a short, fun plot about having to gather ten dozen bunnies for an eccentric farmer, well, go for it. Plots about the simplest things can still be interesting, and so long as the plots entertain people, and follow the rules, DM Staff will have no issue with them.

When you get into the non-monster plots, however, the metrics of measuring challenge and success get fuzzier. As a general rule, if the plot involves perseverance against great odds and challenges to the PCs involved, it will be considered a good plot and gain rewards closer to those on the high end of our scale.

When you look at the XP awards, you'll note that plot-driven PRPs gain higher rewards. This is deliberate. Some people enjoy slaying monsters and nothing else, but the point of a player run plot is to provide roleplay. This does not mean there will be no PRPs centered around combat, simply that when you come right down to it, this isn't EverQuest, and there aren't infinite monsters popping into spawn-points outside of town 24/7.

Keep this important note in mind: PRPs do not exist in a vacuum. Consequences for actions taken in PRPs are not forgotten, whether for good or ill. That's why DM Staff has to approve them. The events of all PRPs - even non-PLP basic plots - will be noted and over time may affect other things. Killed off three different orc tribes in the local area? Odds are, no PRPs involving orcs will get approved for a good long time. The things you do will have consequences, and DMs can use events in any PRP or PLP as a plot element in their plots. If you act in ways that are contradictory to alignment, faith, or character background, expect consequences.

What does the 'type' part of the PRP app mean?
The Type category helps us define the structure of the plot you wish to run. Please note that most players should stick to the first two varieties until they have the experience as DMs to handle the more in-depth pieces. You can discuss these ideas with DM staff. The types, and definitions, are listed below:
 * One-shot: A single-session plot, with no other plot leads from it. These are the most likely plots to be approved.
 * Personal: A plot tailored to a character or characters' personal development, histories, etc., rather than a generic adventure. Note that personal plots will be closely scrutinized for the tangible benefits they grant the PCs.
 * Episodic: A plot run in pieces, like a TV series. Each piece of the plot is self-contained, but future plots in the larger story will build on prior plots. These are sometimes difficult for inexperienced DMs to craft.
 * Short Adventure: A series of encounters linked by a story that may last more than one session, and may leave plot leads for future use in PRPs.
 * Long Adventure: A lengthy series of encounters that equate in duration to a published module. Long adventured must be linked by a story, and would likely last several sessions. They may leave plot leads for future use in PRPs. These are the least likely plots to be approved.

If I have an approved PRP waiting to be run, may I submit another PRP application?
Per a decision made by Headstaff, we will no longer be approving PRPs from players who have PRPs pending, except with direct permission from the Head DM. Once the pending PRP has been run and the log sent in, another may be submitted. (Note that you don't have to wait for a log to be processed.) In the case of small, episodic plots developing around isolated scenes that are submitted as being separated by long periods of non-plot-related IC RP on-grid, each episode will be considered a separate PRP for the purposes of this policy.

Anything else I should know about PRPs?
Some miscellaneous policy about PRPs:


 * DO NOT LOGOFF IN PRP ROOMS. When a PRP DM is done with the room, he must +cleanroom it. This means that he must get all the PCs to leave the PRP room.
 * We have rescinded the requirement that the DM of a PRP not be included in its players. However, we will hold these plots to a higher standard, now, and any plots which are there primarily to benefit the DM will be rejected. All plots will be scrutinized for story relevance as well as fitting the guidelines, and will be rejected if they do not fit.

What is a 'sidetrek' plot?
When a DM runs a plot that takes a group off-grid for a time, he may choose to 'farm out' side-trek adventures to the players to run. These PRPs are run separately from the normal PRP rules. In those cases, they are:

1. Supervised by the DM Staffer. 2. Calculated by the staff plot rules for XP and treasure. 3. Worth a DM XP award as normal.

The DM Staffer who supervises will have final arbitration over the awards given and treasure rolled. Players who wish to volunteer to run something should speak to the DM Staffer in charge of the off-grid plot. Remember that it is the staffer's option to allow these plots to be run if he chooses; he is not obligated to do so. This is designed to allow action to occur during the 'travel days' of a plot without taxing the DM staffer unduly.

What's the skinny on submitting roleplaying logs?
Winter's Edge accepts roleplay logs for experience awards. All logs must follow these guidelines. If they do not, they will be rejected.

1.They MUST be sent to wintersedgelogs@gmail.com as plain text messages. No attachments, no links to web pages, and no HTML messages will be accepted.

2.Roleplaying logs must contain some significant roleplaying in terms of character or plot development. Bar chatter will be tossed with extreme prejudice. We do not give XP for being clever over a tankard unless it somehow provides character growth. Be selective in what you send us. If you continually send us logs that are inappropriate, you may lose your log-submission privileges.

3.All logs MUST have a paragraph at the beginning explaining what the scene is and why it is significant to the character.

4.All logs MUST contain a list of players involved. Be realistic - if there are other players in the scene who do not contribute to the log's focus in any way, they will not get XP for it.

5.All extraneous items such as +scan, pages, room descriptions, character descriptions, and the like MUST be removed. If you send us a log with these things still included, the log will be rejected.

6. You may not submit logs of a staff-run scene.

7. If there were any rolls during the scene, then when submitting the logs please leave those in.

Format for the top part of a mail message with a roleplaying log should look like this:

(In the subject of the email:) RP LOG: PC name, Title

(In the body of the email:) Summary: This is a log of a scene between Jane Doe and Joe Smith, where Jane is seeking help in her fighting skills from Joe. Joe is recalcitrant, because he has qualms about Jane's ethics, due to her worship of a dark god.

Players: Jane Doe, Joe Smith.

(Paste log text here.)

How many staff plots can I participate in at once?
If your PC is in the midst of an active staff plot, you cannot join another without express permission of the Head DM or Assistant Head DM. This applies only to active plots -- some plots are meant to happen over longer periods, with occasional scenes, and those plots may be mixed with others.

Submitted Logs
Due to the number of logs that have been submitted we have moved the Log Repository Page to here