Yet another question I need answered to the benefit of all!

How do you feel about stats?

How have you used stats in your own forums? How have you seen others use them?

What do you look for in a stat forum?

Should stats dictate if a member wins a battle or not? In other words, should a new member be just as strong as an elder?


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In my opinion, I think stats are great as long as they're simple enough and applied on forums with the correct setting.

Also, I believe that stats should dictate if a member wins a battle. Why? It gives members goals. It rewards older members. And, most importantly (in my eyes, at least), eliminates half of godmodding.


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Let this awesome conversation topic begin!

--> How do I feel about Stats? They bring the dull and 'presented' fashion of MMO's into stat form. Basically an MMO using Role Playing, allowing for a fun addictive experience while being more limitless than MMO's like WoW.

-->How have I used them? I've heavily intergrated them into my own Forums, making them the primary goal of the Player. Basically with a nice balance between freelance RPing and Stats. How have I seen others use them? Hmm..many ways, most notably bringing basic stats from a regular game but applying new twists to it.

-->What do I look for in a Stat Forum? One that USES THEM CORRECTLY. Stats that in the end effect nothing with battles or anythign they are meant for is using them incorrectly. I look for forums that have a unique simple Stat interface OR a correctly done complex stat interface. Maybe Point Battle Systems too..those are always nice.

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Should Stats dictate if someone wins in battle? Yes, why wouldn't they? If stats don't dictate that then either your stats dont' deal with damage

I ran a site that had stats basically to weed out Mary Sues. And that was kind of all the stats were used for unless some disputes came up and people needed to decided if someone made a fair move or not.

Frankly, I'm not a huge fan of statistics, especially number-based ones. I dislike having a battle determined for me because of stats; it sucks the fun right out of it. I like the freedom that comes with writing a roleplay because if I wanted stats, I'd go take up DnD with my sibling and sibling-in-law.

However, that's not to say that there aren't other people who disagree with me, mind you. You're probably not going to find too many stat-lover on RPG-D, though.

Well, yes. There are some places that take all the fun out of it. Like ones that dictate if a move is going to miss or not. That is just ridiculous.

There doesn't seem to be too many any where. xP

That's because they're all playing tabletop. :p

I have to admit, I'm not a fan. I'm a tabletop roleplayer firstly and okay, for that, stat me up! Toss me the plastic polyhedrons and let's get rolling.

For online stuff, I don't see the point. For me, it's just about the writing. If your players are sensible, if they get into a fight with each other, then they can work out who's going to win.

I think they can be useful in the right hands. I wouldn't want to play a game that was based entirely on it, though.

First time I ever put my two cents in.

During my introduction thread a few months back, I have mentioned I was looking for inspiration to restart my board. My board was a stats board. I debated long and hard whether to implement stats or make it pure RP. There are both pros and cons in both stats and pure RP fighting.

If there's a board that uses stats, that's a signal that there will be much combat involved.

Social RPs are mainly pure RP. If I'm in the mood to join a social RP, I'd go with pure RP.

If I'm in the mood for a combat RP, I'm fine with either stats or no stats. It all depends on the combat.

If combat is realistic, I would go with no stats. Realistic combat revolves around common sense. I myself have a very extensive martial arts background. It's given me a very realistic grasp of combat. Applying that into RP made me a formidable fighter.

If combat goes beyond the threshold of realistic physics, I would probably go with stats. This is mainly a safety measure. I like to think of stats as guidelines of what players can and cannot do in combat at the moment. Perhaps it could motivate people to get "stronger."

Most RPs I have seen use stats only in combat.

The pros of not using stats in combat:

It sets the clear line between a good RPer and a bad RPer.

Keeps bad RPers from hiding behind stats. Nothing can protect them.

It motivates players to work on their writing and RPing skills. In short, it encourages players to learn more.

My business partner gave me a copy of book that he is reediting before reselling. One thing he said that knowledge does not equal power. But, he added that application of knowledge equals power. Your RP ability is good as how much you know and how well you can apply it. Even though I trained in multiple styles, I still keep on learning.

In a nutshell, it encourages players to keep on refining their RPing styles. That way, you become better.

It makes players earn their wins.

As Grayscale asks if a new member should be as strong as a senior member, there could be a member that has been on for at least 2 years and still RP like a complete n00b. Unfortunately, I had the displeasure of meeting one such player on this one board. And he ended up joining my board.

It does help maintain quality of RPing and writing in posts. Overall, it encourages one to constantly improve.

The cons of not using stats in RP:

It's easily exploitable and not in a good way.

N00bs (not newbs) will godmod and possibly get away with it. But that can be solved if staff members are knowledgeable in combat.

If most of the members including staff have no idea on the aspect of combat, expect a storm of OOC drama.

Unless both players agree to a draw, one has to win and one has to lose. While determination could make for a good fight, expect a lot of stubbornness and arguing on both of their parts. Unless there's a staff member who knows about combat, it's going to be a migraine for the entire staff.

RP combat, let alone combat is very complex. If the board's player base does not know lick about combat, expect a lot of serious trouble. And there are players that will exploit that for their own self-gain.

If combat does go beyond realistic physics, you're going to have to pretty much restrict and regulate what players can and cannot do. It sucks the fun out of things. But it is necessary in case you get a few n00bs that join. It's kind of like two players fighting it out and they can generate flames in their hands. The n00b will forsake RPing quality just to be a "bad@$$" that wields a larger flame than everybody else.

If you're inexperienced in combat, you can get PWNED by someone else who is. IRL, I have trained in traditional, military, and mixed martial arts. The guy I studied under used to be in the UFC. He's also a judge for Pride FC. It was through him I gained a realistic grasp of combat. It was through UFC that the mysticism and allure of styles like Karate, Tae Kwon Do, Nin-Jitsu, etc, was shattered. If I have a character that uses an MMA style and my opponent uses something like Tae Kwon Do, the rest is history.

Overall, lack of knowledge of combat is one half of the con of fighting without stats.

The second half is lack of knowledge about anatomy, physiology, and biology. There's going to be drama due to a lack of such knowledge. For example, a hard strike to the forehead should severely disorient your opponent. This has been proven to be factual. Also, it is quite easy to break your opponent's arm or leg in a fight. I've tapped out in sparring matches so many times to come to that realization. But, there will be cases that either your opponent and/or staff may not know this. You can be accused of godding. Or your opponent can weasel his/her way through and god you and you could lose the argument with staff. I remember in one fight, my character put another player's character in a Triangle Choke. For about 5-7 posts, I had him in that choke. Yet, it took that many posts before his character tapped out. He character should have blacked out after 2-3 posts. It's not pleasant being on the receiving end of a Triangle Choke. If the thread went on for at least 1-2 more posts, his character should have died of suffocation.

There's also no real way of knowing who is more durable, faster, stronger, more agile, and so forth. Normally, the shorter people tend to be faster, provided they don't have bulk muscle. In short, there's no real way of judging. That would be a major migraine for staff. But, I myself have sparred with much bigger opponents who are pretty fast.

There will also be players that suffer from IDTHS (I Don't Take Hits Syndrome).

It makes players rely more on common sense.

The pros of using stats in RP:

It keeps the n00bs at bay.

It recognizes seniority. But, that's only good if the senior members do not act as n00bs. This really isn't a pro if you have longtime members that still act like complete n00bs.

In a sense, stats does entice players to "beef" up their characters.

Stats are a guideline of what you can do at the moment and cannot do yet. However, this is a con as long as there are no set definitions. But, a combat system needs to accompany a stat system. Staff has to teach players how to utilize the combat system. Of course there will be players that complain about it being complicated, but RP combat is an emulation of combat. Combat is not for the faint of heart. Combat itself is very complex.

It gives a clear definition on who has more endurance, more strength, more speed, and so forth. Again, it is effective provided that there's a combat system to go along with it.

With stats, you have a fighting chance no matter what fighting style you choose. If you pick Tae Kwon Do and have the right amount of strength and speed, you can beat your opponent. Even if s/he has actual combat experience and knows how to apply it.

In a fantasy setting, it makes your players work hard to be powerful. If a player wants to be able to wield a big flame in his/her hands, then s/he is going to have to earn it.

It makes fights easier to judge.

Keep in mind, a good combat system does not get created overnight. It takes a lot of time and patience to come up with a viable system to compliment stats. You have to cover every nook and cranny of combat.

As long as there's a viable combat system, stats can entice players to get creative. Depending on the board, stats tend to be used as dramatic effects in combat.

It cures IDTHS.

It curbs down on godding in fights.

You can pull off a number of fancy moves and have them actually succeed.

The cons of stats fighting:

Bad RPers will constantly hide behind stats.

If you decide to use items, they have to be regulated. Bad RPers will constantly depend on items. They will item-whore their way through things.

As December explains, stats do take the fun right out of things. But that can be solved with a viable combat system. Again, it's not something that can be magically pulled out of a hat.

Still, if staff members have a lack of combat knowledge, fighting with stats will go south.

If there are no clear definitions on stats, players will go ballistic. I don't mean that in a good way. On this one board, there was a player who had 45 DEX. That is considered to be pretty fast. But the question is how fast? Staff never gave definitions on stats. This player was moving at speeds of 85 MPH.

If not properly done, items will break boards. The same board had this one quest where "God Items" were given out. This was months before I had joined the board. Apparently, there were stat multiplying items. There were these boots that halves your speed but doubles your kicking strength. There was a ring that halved your speed but tripled your strength. It was incredibly insane. That pretty much sucks the fun out of things.

Then, you have players with high stats that can decide to be jerks and start attacking the weaker players. They might start hunting down the new players. That's not good for activity.

In addition, it could force players to focus on fighting more and less than RPing.

On a second addition, once you get those high stats, what do you do next? You pretty much wasted a lot of time just fighting. On the board, you get one point for each fight you get into whether you win or lose. Eventually, people are going to get bored fighting you. You could possibly end up begging people to fight you.

Without a clear concept and explanation on the use of stats, people will focus more on fighting and getting those points and less on storytelling.

Anyway, I apologize for this long winded explanation. But, I felt I had to be thorough as possible.

Also as Krimm says, nothing wrong with stats as long as they are used correctly.

In my opinion, if you're doing a social RP, no stats. Because the focus is socializing and not fighting.

If combat plays an important part, that's up for you do decide. If it's realistic combat, do away with stats. If it's combat that goes beyond reality, stats wouldn't hurt.

And it was greatly appreciated.

Thanks. ^_^

Couldn't believe it took me over an hour to type up that post.

In my forum i say yes, in other forums it is depending on what stat they have and sometimes what type of forum.

I dont think a new membershould be able to beat an elder member unless that elder member was not active until the new members character was approved

I believe that if you have a stat based RPG, it shouldn't be when you have to use your posts to calculate how much exp you get, than you must put that to different thing ways of fighting or techniques. Than you have to buy things with that exp that fit within the different ways.

I prefer a stat system that put in the fairness of people's posting. The stats are something like knowledge, willpower, strength, and you have a limited amount of points you can distribute from, you have to have at least one point per, and you can't get a ten out of ten on one stat. A person with a higher point count can defeat and/or over come someone with a lower point count. That is to make sure that people will always win and be unfair, and would lose once in a while.