Pirate Prince
This is (mostly) serious advice, but as with any of my other posts, take it with a grain of salt. I have no information on fleeting, because I’ve never fleeted, but I do cover the topics of dueling and warposting.
1. Don’t bother.
Despite what people say, it is possible to avoid combat here on Chaos. People write non-fighters all the time, there’s nothing wrong with it. Sure, it does place limits on what you can do, but if you aren’t interested in writing combat, don’t feel pressured to. There are other things to do here besides beating people up.
2. Do your research.
If you want to be able to write combat, especially dueling, with any level of accuracy or coherency, you’re probably going to have to do some research. YouTube is great for looking up tutorials, and you can also find manuals teaching terminology and technique. Hell, you could even sign up for a martial arts class.
On the other hand, if you have a hard time focusing on technical stuff, are not particularly “fightminded”, or simply don’t have the time to dedicate hours of research to a hobby like Chaos, I will say this: Melee combat tends to require more technical knowledge to write well than ranged combat, which usually just boils down to taking aim and pulling the trigger. But this is Star Wars, a setting which features lightsabers, so it’s a given that people want melee. And it is possible to write melee without things getting overly complicated or incomprehensible. It’s just that ranged combat is overall easier to write.
3. Avoid technical language.
Terms like parry, feint, block, lunge, etc are generally pretty well-known to people who aren’t swordfighting enthusiasts, but anything more technical than that should be avoided. Your writing partner shouldn’t have to look up the terms you’re using in your posts just to know what’s happening.
Star Wars makes this even more complicated, because lightsaber combat is derivative of both Western and Eastern swordfighting techniques. That means you get people using terms that aren’t even part of the same language. I didn’t know what the hell a kata was until someone used it in a thread I was in as an analogy to explain the lightsaber forms.
Dueling may feel like it needs to be more technical, because so much importance is placed on exact moves. But don’t fall for that trap. You can be broad about your character’s movements, you don’t have to go into excruciating detail, you can just say they struck rapidly, or carefully, or that their blows were powerful but slow, etc.
4. Please be clear.
Have you ever read a post that was so convoluted, you weren’t sure what exactly it was describing? Yeah, that’s not good. Always try to be clear and concise in your writing. Clarity is more important than flowery descriptions, complex metaphors, or crazy symbolism. If you are nothing else as a writer, you had better at least be clear.
This is especially important in warposting, where you are controlling multiple forces and things can quickly get confusing. If you're responding to multiple people, divide your post up into sections and tag their name at the top of the section pertaining to them.
Simplicity is easier to understand than complexity, so don’t do any elaborate attacks (at least, not all in a single post). You shouldn’t be stringing a bunch of chain attacks all in one post without giving your opponent a chance to react anyway. Don’t do silly, impractical video game shit. I know it’s tempting to veer into superhero territory (especially if you’re writing a Force User), but there should be an internal logic to your fight. Don’t break the rules of the setting.
5. Use the environment to your advantage.
The most obvious way of using the environment would be to take cover behind something while you’re being shot at. But go above and beyond that. This is why describing your setting is important, because then you can have your character interact with their environment in interesting ways. Hiding up in the rafters and dropping down on an opponent; shooting something that’s hanging above them so it falls on your opponent, or blasting the floor to cause them to fall. That kind of thing.
6. Do not powergame.
“Powergaming” is defined as “a style of interacting with games or game-like systems, particularly video games, boardgames, and role-playing games, with the aim of maximizing progress towards a specific goal. Other players may consider this disruptive when done to the exclusion of all other considerations, such as storytelling, atmosphere and camaraderie. When focusing on the letter of the rules over the spirit of the rules, it is often seen as unsporting, un-fun, or unsociable.”
That’s just an elaborate way of saying that a powergamer is someone who is overly concerned with winning (or sometimes just wants their character to look cooler than everybody else) and doesn’t care if they ruin other people’s experience. On Chaos, it isn’t about who is the strongest or fastest or whatever. What matters is that everyone enjoys themselves, not whose character emerges victorious or who is the biggest badass.
In fact, your character will be seen as more badass if they are able to do a lot with very little. Remember that, especially if you’re writing an NFU. It’s not about what you’ve got, it’s about what you do with it.
It’s against the rules to call hits—but this doesn’t mean you should make your character invulnerable. Play fair, take a few hits, don’t let your character walk away unscathed. Because what’s the point of having a fight if you’re just going to end up unchanged by the end of it? No battle should end with a return to the status quo for either side.
Treat all combat scenarios as a gentleman’s agreement. Be honorable and level-headed. Don’t try to use combat for OOC purposes, to take revenge or ruin someone’s fun. If your opponent breaks the rules, go to staff for help rather than breaking the rules yourself.
7. The only person who cares about your sub stats is you.
I have seen people include a massive “loadout” in their posts, listing every piece of equipment their character is carrying. While I admire your dedication, the fact of the matter is I am not going to read every single sub you link to. I am going to hit you, and you are going to decide whether your gear holds up.
I understand wanting to keep your inventory straight while writing combat, but otherwise a lengthy list of links is just a pain in the ass to set up. Spend more time writing, less time listing.
8. Let all your battles have a purpose.
A good fight is also a story which is being told through combat. Your characters should be fighting each other for a reason. It doesn’t have to be a grand reason—they could just be fighting over who gets to use the bathroom first. That actually sounds like a really fun thread idea…
Anyway, there’s more talking during combat than you think. Or at least, when it comes to writing, just reading about two people fighting can get pretty boring. Dialogue can be used to spice things up and heighten the tension, although you should probably use it sparingly. If you find yourself more interested in the conversation than the fight itself, it’s probably time to put your weapons away and just have a debate instead. Wouldn’t that be an interesting thing to do in the middle of a battlefield?...
9. Okay good, okay fine.
That’s all I’ve got for now. Give peace a chance, I guess.
1. Don’t bother.
Despite what people say, it is possible to avoid combat here on Chaos. People write non-fighters all the time, there’s nothing wrong with it. Sure, it does place limits on what you can do, but if you aren’t interested in writing combat, don’t feel pressured to. There are other things to do here besides beating people up.
2. Do your research.
If you want to be able to write combat, especially dueling, with any level of accuracy or coherency, you’re probably going to have to do some research. YouTube is great for looking up tutorials, and you can also find manuals teaching terminology and technique. Hell, you could even sign up for a martial arts class.
On the other hand, if you have a hard time focusing on technical stuff, are not particularly “fightminded”, or simply don’t have the time to dedicate hours of research to a hobby like Chaos, I will say this: Melee combat tends to require more technical knowledge to write well than ranged combat, which usually just boils down to taking aim and pulling the trigger. But this is Star Wars, a setting which features lightsabers, so it’s a given that people want melee. And it is possible to write melee without things getting overly complicated or incomprehensible. It’s just that ranged combat is overall easier to write.
3. Avoid technical language.
Terms like parry, feint, block, lunge, etc are generally pretty well-known to people who aren’t swordfighting enthusiasts, but anything more technical than that should be avoided. Your writing partner shouldn’t have to look up the terms you’re using in your posts just to know what’s happening.
Star Wars makes this even more complicated, because lightsaber combat is derivative of both Western and Eastern swordfighting techniques. That means you get people using terms that aren’t even part of the same language. I didn’t know what the hell a kata was until someone used it in a thread I was in as an analogy to explain the lightsaber forms.
Dueling may feel like it needs to be more technical, because so much importance is placed on exact moves. But don’t fall for that trap. You can be broad about your character’s movements, you don’t have to go into excruciating detail, you can just say they struck rapidly, or carefully, or that their blows were powerful but slow, etc.
4. Please be clear.
Have you ever read a post that was so convoluted, you weren’t sure what exactly it was describing? Yeah, that’s not good. Always try to be clear and concise in your writing. Clarity is more important than flowery descriptions, complex metaphors, or crazy symbolism. If you are nothing else as a writer, you had better at least be clear.
This is especially important in warposting, where you are controlling multiple forces and things can quickly get confusing. If you're responding to multiple people, divide your post up into sections and tag their name at the top of the section pertaining to them.
Simplicity is easier to understand than complexity, so don’t do any elaborate attacks (at least, not all in a single post). You shouldn’t be stringing a bunch of chain attacks all in one post without giving your opponent a chance to react anyway. Don’t do silly, impractical video game shit. I know it’s tempting to veer into superhero territory (especially if you’re writing a Force User), but there should be an internal logic to your fight. Don’t break the rules of the setting.
5. Use the environment to your advantage.
The most obvious way of using the environment would be to take cover behind something while you’re being shot at. But go above and beyond that. This is why describing your setting is important, because then you can have your character interact with their environment in interesting ways. Hiding up in the rafters and dropping down on an opponent; shooting something that’s hanging above them so it falls on your opponent, or blasting the floor to cause them to fall. That kind of thing.
6. Do not powergame.
“Powergaming” is defined as “a style of interacting with games or game-like systems, particularly video games, boardgames, and role-playing games, with the aim of maximizing progress towards a specific goal. Other players may consider this disruptive when done to the exclusion of all other considerations, such as storytelling, atmosphere and camaraderie. When focusing on the letter of the rules over the spirit of the rules, it is often seen as unsporting, un-fun, or unsociable.”
That’s just an elaborate way of saying that a powergamer is someone who is overly concerned with winning (or sometimes just wants their character to look cooler than everybody else) and doesn’t care if they ruin other people’s experience. On Chaos, it isn’t about who is the strongest or fastest or whatever. What matters is that everyone enjoys themselves, not whose character emerges victorious or who is the biggest badass.
In fact, your character will be seen as more badass if they are able to do a lot with very little. Remember that, especially if you’re writing an NFU. It’s not about what you’ve got, it’s about what you do with it.
It’s against the rules to call hits—but this doesn’t mean you should make your character invulnerable. Play fair, take a few hits, don’t let your character walk away unscathed. Because what’s the point of having a fight if you’re just going to end up unchanged by the end of it? No battle should end with a return to the status quo for either side.
Treat all combat scenarios as a gentleman’s agreement. Be honorable and level-headed. Don’t try to use combat for OOC purposes, to take revenge or ruin someone’s fun. If your opponent breaks the rules, go to staff for help rather than breaking the rules yourself.
7. The only person who cares about your sub stats is you.
I have seen people include a massive “loadout” in their posts, listing every piece of equipment their character is carrying. While I admire your dedication, the fact of the matter is I am not going to read every single sub you link to. I am going to hit you, and you are going to decide whether your gear holds up.
I understand wanting to keep your inventory straight while writing combat, but otherwise a lengthy list of links is just a pain in the ass to set up. Spend more time writing, less time listing.
8. Let all your battles have a purpose.
A good fight is also a story which is being told through combat. Your characters should be fighting each other for a reason. It doesn’t have to be a grand reason—they could just be fighting over who gets to use the bathroom first. That actually sounds like a really fun thread idea…
Anyway, there’s more talking during combat than you think. Or at least, when it comes to writing, just reading about two people fighting can get pretty boring. Dialogue can be used to spice things up and heighten the tension, although you should probably use it sparingly. If you find yourself more interested in the conversation than the fight itself, it’s probably time to put your weapons away and just have a debate instead. Wouldn’t that be an interesting thing to do in the middle of a battlefield?...
9. Okay good, okay fine.
That’s all I’ve got for now. Give peace a chance, I guess.
