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Creating An Online Game: Part Three- Your Web Page

© Laurel Stuart

You've established where you are going to run your online WoD game, chosen a specific paradigm, created a setting and a plot that can be both contained and sustained. The next step is designing your game's web page and house rules. A good web page is an important ingredient in a successful online game. It will be the resource that players can turn to when they have questions and serve as an important advertising tool to attract newcomers to your game.

There are a number of good books and online resources for designing a nice looking, easy-to-use web page. In the case of a WoD chronicle web page, the format doesn't need to be too sophisticated. Avoid flash and fancy whizbangs unless you're an excellent and discerning web designer. Stick with basic html and the discrete use of graphic images and color choices to create the right ambiance for your game. A web page for an online Changeling game should evoke a very mood than a similar web page for an Aberrant game.

White Wolf publishes their Fair Use policies in regards to fan sites at http://www.white-wolf.com/fan sites. Read through them before you design your web page and be sure to follow them. Don't blithely steal artwork from other web sites- whether its a professional or personal site doesn't matter. Regardless of how "cool-looking" a certain image is; if you didn't make it yourself or get explicit permission to use it on your game's web page, don't use it. Many talented web artists are more than happy to let you use their work, provided they receive credit and a link to their own web pages. If you plan to make a really elaborate web page, you might consider a temporary membership to a site like ArtToday.com http://www.arttoday.com/ where you can download an unlimited amount of fonts, graphics, and photos. I use ArtToday extensively, and find it to be well worth the money. The quantity and quality of its image libraries are enormous. Best of all, I can use any artwork I find there in both my commercial and personal projects with a clean conscience.

For a WW online RPG web page, I recommend pages or sections devoted to the following topics:

1.Setting: Let your players know right off the bat where and in what time period the game is going to be set.

2.Social Contract: Establish right away how you expect all the players to conduct themselves both IC and OOC. Make it clear what the rules are regarding profanity, adult/sexual roleplay aka "cyber-sex', hacking/cracking, power-gaming, cheating, etc.,.

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