Ok, so you're a budding and hopeful new e-fed owner. You are setting up your boards for the first time and recall other feds, including the ones you used to hang in, had "out of character" Boards. Are you doing the right thing here for your roster members? What do you include in this forums area? Who is around to help you? Well, lucky for you, help is a SCREW away.

Out of character Boards… the place where E-fed players go, to be themselves and to interact with the rest of the fed. OOC boards allow your e-players a reason to come to the website/forums between RP postings or reading. And as an owner, having your roster stop by at every opportunity is something you definitely want. But in my e-fed travels I have found OOC boards have great impacts both good and bad on the health of an E-Fed. Below are some of the typical topic areas OOC boards open up and the results each have…

GAMES… A good idea that may include word games, movie trivia, finish the story or other such postings. This sort of interaction allows people with an idea to post it, and see if anyone wants to play along. A good way to open up and introduce yourself to everyone, especially if you are new. It can also gauge who overreacts or takes things too personal since a lot of times since a lot of times people do not understand the game and end up posting wrong responses. Yet, I have found a lot of times this area loses steam after a month or so after a dozen games have been introduced, tried and then exhausted.

FLAMING… Some Feds actually have an area just for people who want to argue, accuse, goad or make fun of others. Racist and sexual remarks abound in this area and almost nothing is off limits. Owners defend this practise as “free speech” and rarely, if ever, hold anyone accountable for anything said in this area. Personally, I don’t see the logic of inviting your roster to act in immature, argumentative and basically asshole-like ways. If you saw someone posting racial slurs, or verbally attacking someone on another site, would you actually think “Hey, I wish this guy/gal would join my E-Fed.” Really, now! Roster members that use these boards also tend to take this perceived freedom to all areas of the site’s forums, again citing “free speech”, arguing and attacking other players over just about everything, setting the tone for the entire OOC board.

REAL WRESTLING… A place to discuss the WWE, ROH, TNA, JAPAN or any other Indy fed out there. However, the fans of each brand tend to be very loyal to their particular tastes and arguments over which is the superior product tend to light up very often, almost in every thread. Typically, discussions almost always break down into “Cena-sucks” or “TNA is crap” sort of things. A good way for roster members to express their opinions indeed, and one I would recommend, but it still has the potential to be another argument-starting area.

SPORTS… Usually not a very active topic. People tend to follow sports only if they have some sort of connection with it, usually from playing it as a kid, or by still doing it now. For some reason, computer-based gamers rarely tear themselves away from their computers long enough to get attached to a sport, preferring the confines of a cool basement and a six-pack of bean & cheese barritos … go figure!

GRAPHICS HELP… Usually an area where some roster or staff member will volunteer to make signatures or banners for anyone in the Fed. Most Feds needs this sort of work done and most players need a new banner when entering a fed since their last one was E-Fed specific. A very worthwhile area to have.

ROLEPLAY FEEDBACK… I’ve never seen the value of this type of Forums area. This is where a player posts a roleplay and asks everyone what they think of it. Usually only two types of people post here, those who only want you to praise them and stroke their over-sized ego, and if you are actually critical of their work they’ll blast your opinion into the dust… or those that’ll post because they really are unsure of their RP and want some input. Now the first type should not be posting in the first place. Since they obviously can’t take the possibility that not every person on the planet loves their work. However, the second person also should not be posting either, since they are basically asking..”Hey, how can I write a RP that will gain me some wins around here?” I think if someone is guenuinely interested in bettering themselves as a RP writer they should do the work themselves; read the RP’s of people in your Fed that are winning and figure it out for yourself. Some people have worked hard to develop certain RP practices and have done so by trial and error, and having some newbie stop by and ask for all the quick answers so they can hop right into a winning streak seems sort of impatient because they do not want to develop “good” RP skills but rather “winning” RP tricks instead.

REAL LIFE…A real soap opera sort of area. No one really needs to know your dog died or that your mother was taken to the hospital. Such information should be passed between E-Fed friends through PM’s or IM’s and not plastered around for all to read.

ENTERTAINMENT… A place where movies, video games, TV or music are discussed. I have found this area of particular value to a Fed. Why? Because gamers tend to also be involoved in these activities as well. Sharing fave links to free downloads, game cheats or hard-to-find pictures is always a welcome thing. I have found that an active area like this does more to bind an E-Fed on friendly terms more than any other area. Definitely more than hearing about someone’s dead dog.

So, in conclusion, a healthy Fed is one where players stop by more than just for role-playing purposes, hence the reason for an active OUT OF CHARACTER board. You now have a good idea of the level of activity and sort of reaction each section should bring… all you have to do now, is decide whether or not to have them or not.

Toodles…