Tips on being good mod?

[kyndy101]

Hello everyone! I have recently gained an interest in modding a game- I have all the requirements fulfilled methinks and everything.
My one dilemma is what if I'm a bad mod? I don't want to ruin a game for the players cause I'm inexperienced. I want to know some tips and advice for being a mod, please!



Thanks,
Kyndy

[MarioManiac4]

Hahaha I'm in the same boat!
I guess it can't hurt to give it a try, but if you're really worried ask an experienced mod to help moderate!

[Ether]

Are you worried about setup creation or actually running it?

[Aeronaut]

Best thing to do is look at other mods that are considered pretty good and do what they do. Examples: Marquis, Goodmorning, Equinox are all great examples.

[kyndy101]

Are you worried about setup creation or actually running it?

Both

[borkjerfkin]

the number one rule is:

Be attentive.

VC often, prod often, hound the replacement queue for replacements.
Don't delay in transitioning the thread from day to night and back again. People care far, far more about a timely flip than they do about the flavor you write that, realistically, maybe 50% of the players will read. If you're lucky.
Double check your work! Action resolution is often error prone! Some errors can potentially compromise slots/the game if you're not careful.
If you do make a mistake, own up to it and correct it.
Get your setups reviewed -- other people can and will catch what you might miss.

You consistently do all this stuff above and you'll be in the top quartile of mods on the site.

Honorable mention rules:

Be fair

Handle all issues as objectively as you can. You are there to make sure the game runs smoothly, not to influence who wins it.
Don't change anything about the setup you've agreed to running in the spirit of making things more interesting.
Don't be afraid to go to the listmods for help if you have a serious issue. That's partially what they're there for.
Don't punish people too harshly for honest mistakes without repeat offense. Even when slots are compromised, if an action is obviously unintentional, there is a pretty big difference between a necessary modkill for game integrity and a punitive modkill with an autoloss condition that might add insult to injury. Obviously this needs temperance so that you don't get taken advantage of. Use your best judgment.

Be clear

Organize your opening posts / VCs in a way that emphasizes conciseness over pretty much anything else.
Communicate public information in a way that will ensure it gets seen and is interpreted correctly.

[pirate mollie]

read your game.

there is nothing more frustrating as a player than a mod who doesn't really give a shit and is just going through the motions

[kyndy101]

Thanks Bork and Pirate Mollie!

[Vi]

Comprehensive Modding Guide for 2010

I'd add "triple-check everything you do that isn't a benign vote count" as well, because there's nothing like screwing up your own setup because you're in a rush.

[Ether]

VC often, prod often, hound the replacement queue for replacements.

For replacements, the replacement thread is a good fallback to have. In a pinch, though, you might want to get even more aggressive than that. It helps to have friends you can hit up, or extra places to look, like SiteChat. (But you probably shouldn't just PM random people out of the blue.)

If you're feeling perfectionist, aim for one votecount per page, as close to the top of the page as possible. You don't have to, but that's how to look classy and inspire drinking games.

---

I don't want to write a full essay about balancing normal games right now, but here's a good place to start:

• -Think of 3-4 town roles you'd want to play, throw them in. The NRG will twist this into something vaguely balanced. (This is where "not wanting to write an essay" comes in, sorry. There's a lot of nuance here.)
  -Don't get tacky. Have enough vanilla townies that the game doesn't boil down to outguessing the mod.
  -As a corollary: it's usually best to assume that no power roles will get lynched, even though that's not necessarily true.
  -Setups tend to be more scumsided than most people--mods, players, reviewers--think. Towns are really stupid, don't be afraid to throw them a bone.
  -You might want to announce the faction numbers (usually 3:10) during signups. You don't have to, but it'll become obvious anyway, and some people have preferences.
  -Neapolitans are really cool!

Some of this goes out the window for complicated themes, of course.

[Untrod Tripod]

always have your next replacement lined up. you'll have way more luck poking people you've played games with before than asking the replacement queue.

figure out ALL of your role interactions before the game starts.

[vonflare]

always have your next replacement lined up. you'll have way more luck poking people you've played games with before than asking the replacement queue.

figure out ALL of your role interactions before the game starts.

This so much.

Having someone already willing to replace is great, and you don't want the game to be comprised by weird role interactions.

[Untrod Tripod]

I recommend Cabd

because he's already reading your game anyway

[Espeonage]

Don't flake.

I hear actually reading the game is good, but I can never do it.

[mastin2]

read your game.
there is nothing more frustrating as a player than a mod who doesn't really give a shit and is just going through the motions

Adding to this: mafiascum moves fast with its games.

Insanely

fast.

If you're modding a game, it is pretty much your #1 priority. I'd say that modding is worth at least three simultaneous games' worth of effort, at absolute minimum. You're responsible for not missing anything, you're responsible for keeping up to date, and this is in an environment where you can potentially see 20 pages in a real life day. (Generally only in Larges, but it's possible in Minis and Opens, too.) So you need to make sure that you can handle it, or if you can't handle it alone, that you've at least got a co/backup-mod. (After all, you can't be on 24/7, so if players want a VC every page, it can help to have a co/backup mod able to plop one down for you.)

Comprehensive Modding Guide for 2010

Vi is also the author of a follow-through article to the above, called how to mod enjoyable games. Read it, too.

A tip of my own is for designing games: when looking at roles you are interested in using, do some MD research about them. You obviously can't start an MD thread about a role you want to use, but looking around, you can generally find mostly-up-to-date info on most of the roles commonly used and even info on lesser-used ones. As an example, browse the Open setup ideas and discussion thread to see how those setups work.

Also, I want to reemphasize this one:

Be clear

Organize your opening posts / VCs in a way that emphasizes conciseness over pretty much anything else. Communicate public information in a way that will ensure it gets seen and is interpreted correctly.

This is something which I cannot stress enough. Short, sweet, and simple. In all aspects of the game. VCs, roles, opening posts, everything. You'd be surprised how many mods have, for instance, a clunky ruleset which mentions things that are obsolete and/or already included in sitewide rules. (Yes, we have sitewide rules! People who include the stuff in the link are being redundant.)

Bit of shameless advertising, but this is the ruleset I use (modified as necessary), more or less--it's less than a screenwidth long, yet conveys every rule a player should need to know.

[Elbirn]

Rule #1. Never use godfathers

There is no rule 2.

[N]

always update the goddamn OP

[Nexus]

Don't out the alt of another player.

[Nexus]

Ask other people before making big decisions (mainly re: modkills).
Try to make your game unbreakable by flavour.
If you have certain rules, make sure you stick to them.
Don't modkill flaking slots.
Have a decent backup.
Ask for help if you need it.
Be polite to your players.
Have fun.
Utilise the wiki.
Expect the unexpected.

[vonflare]

Rule #1. Never use godfathers

There is no rule 2.

How about bulletproof investigation-immune goons?

[Oversoul]

Don't out the alt of another player.

Mmm, no. Alts are inherently unfair.

[vonflare]

Don't out the alt of another player.

Mmm, no. Alts are inherently unfair.

Outing secret alts is not cool though.

[quadz08]

There's a difference between "don't let alts in your game" and "don't out alts"

[Nexus]

Don't out the alt of another player.

Mmm, no. Alts are inherently unfair.

I disagree, but regardless, outting alts is bullshit.

[pirate mollie]

Don't out the alt of another player.

Mmm, no.

Alts are inherently unfair

.

^this

eta: nexus i agree, it is rude to out alts unless they have outed themselves or said in thread that they have been outed but I think they have an unfair advantage.
eta2: I just clicked on nexus's sig and laughed. its much more straight to the point then spending an hour writing blurbs down on a paper plate that included:
1. penis
2. don't read your credit card statements
3. its okay you still have another kidney
4. sorry we didn't tell you that you are a nigerian prince but its much better this way
5. drink water
6. take your vitamins
7. recharge your chi

and a bunch of other stuff. we were just trying to be helpful.