On to greener pastures!

Heya there everyone!

I'm Seifi and I arrived here as a GM after more than 12 years on one of local Czech PbP sites and oh my - this site looks sick! The ammount of tools you guys have to craft the best experience possible is staggering and I can't wait to dive in!

That said, I do have a few questions and would appreciate if some of you would be willing to help me:

1) The formatting side of things (as described here ) does appear a little bit overwhelming if I want to use all the advanced features - such as building a custom character sheet for my players. Is there something like an "Ask for help" forum where I can consult stuff?

2) In terms of playstyles - there was an amazing subcommunity playing strategy games on the previous site, you can essentially think "Crusader Kings 3" as a PbP game, with systems differing between GMs. Is there such a community here? If not, what would be the best way of finding whether people are interested in this? A standard recruitment post?

3) Are there any "street smarts" on this site? For example "people gonna be less interested in your games if you don't have a profile picture" or "it is polite to write to GM before applying for his adventure"

Thank you all for answers and can't wait to play with you all! :)

Welcome seifi.

A profile pic is considered to be necessary by many to take you seriously, and yes GMs sometimes ignore people who click Apply To Join their game without a PM or discussion.

We have a Discord server for a lot of random and topical chat, you'll be invited shortly. There includes there a robust community and a GP Help channel for providing advice.

And advertisements for games can be done in the Games Tavern forum.

Hello and welcome!

Welcome to Gamers' Plane, and you've opened with some great questions.

1. Yes, there are a lot of features, but fortunately, you don't have to use them all. Post any questions in the Questions and Help forum and somebody is sure to help.

2. The Games Tavern is the best place to find like like-minded gamers.

3. Another good question, and one we don't often talk about. Here are some of my street smart tips.

a) Uploading an avatar shows you've put some effort into your profile. So yeah, doing that helps.
b) Gaming is social. Making an introduction post shows that you're a social person (well done there).
c) Similarly, getting to know people in the discord is a good way of making gaming friends.
d) Taking Bowlofspinach's tutorial is a good way of learning to navigate the site and looks good on your active games list.
e) It's usually best to play in a game before GMing one. It helps you learn how to use the site - but this isn't essential.
f) Leaving a game you're not enjoying is normal. There's no shame in it. Everyone will still be friends.
g) If you leave this site, say goodbye in your games and the absences thread.
h) The documentation and site functionality can be a little disorganised. Nobody minds if you ask questions.
i) If you have suggestions for changes to the site then leave them in the suggestion box.
j) The Join a Game page is not where you go to join a game. Go to the Games Tavern instead.

Not everyone will agree with my tips here. This is GP, we can't agree on how many beans make five.

Welcome to GP seifi!

In addition to the discord there's also a questions and help forum (HERE). The community is very friendly and helpful, so don't hesitate to ask. The advanced formatting can be a little intimidating, but once you get the hang of it, it's great!

Edit: oops, Adam beat me to it

welcome

Welcome Aboard!

Welcome!

+1 to everything everyone has said already. GP's strongest feature is its community, so dont hesitate to reach out!

You can also browse posts made in public games (public-facing games, still only certain people can post in them usually) on this page, might help give an idea how the site works and how it runs.

Another helpful tip! If you see some formatting you're not sure how to do, you can hit the "Quote" button and it'll copy all the content of the post (including the formatting tags [with some exceptions]) to the Quick Reply text area at the bottom.

With regard to the character sheet formatting. You don't have to use any of those (many of my sheets are pure text), but, if you want to --in addition to helpful people-- there are a lot of examples where people have made what they needed, take a look at Public Repository of Custom Games Sheets (check the dates, some of them are a bit old, and the site is gaining new features at a rapid pace:). Steal from those copiously, give back what you think others will find useful.

Welcome, seifi!

Adam and the others have already answered your questions well, I think, so I'll just drop off my usual list of helpful links, hoping that some of them will be useful to you.

If you want to see how GP functions, here are links to the New GP Member Guide, the forum rules, this video introduction made by user Qralloq and a little helpful formatting guide made by user Adam. You might also be interested in looking through some public games as well to get a feel for the site.
If you have any questions about how to use the site, you can put them into our Questions and Help subforum.

To join a game, keep your eyes on the Games Tavern, where GMs advertise their games and look for players.

You're also invited to join us on the Discord server for some friendly conversation, about the site, RPGs in general or anything else!

I also run a beginner's game as a quick introduction to GamersPlane and play-by-post, if you're interested.

If you have any concerns or questions, feel free to contact any of the following moderators:

bowlofspinach
CancerMan
Dramasailor
Len
Naatkinson
Qralloq
Keleth (site owner)

Happy gaming!

And I'll drop off my customary gif. Have fun and see you around.

Welcome!

Welcome to the community, seifi!

Welcome!

Welcome!

Hello! Welcome to greener pastures. I'd suggest that you simply describe the game(s) you want to play in the Games Tavern. I've found most people to be very open to giving different ideas a try.

Welcome to GP, seifi!

Thank you all for the warm welcome! This community is making a great first impression and I'm looking forward to playing with you guys!

Greetings!

Welcome to the community, @seifi!

I'm going to echo @vagueGM and say you don't have to use any of the nifty new features and formatting (as awesome as they are). As long as you game on the site and hopefully interact with the community (though the latter isn't required either) then you're good!