OOC Karma Awards Options

[fistandantilus4....]

OK so I'm about to run a game, but I'm getting a little tired, so I mention that I would like a soda or soemthing, but really don't want to go get one. My handy-dandy wife pops up and says she'll go get me one for karma. Now me really wanting a monster, I tell her I'll give her 5 karma. Yeah, we do bribes in our games. Anyway, she tries to negotiate for 10! naturally, I say fuck it, I'll go, 'cause 10 karma for a drink, way too much, clearly. I stick to 5. She coutners with 7. I say six tops, but she stands firm. Soo..... naturally, we bust out characters and roll opposing negotiation.

End result, I'm getting a monster for 7 karma.

Wanted to share that.

I was also curious if anyone else has little karmic episodes or out of game karma awards. I've had a standing rule that if you buy food for the group, you get karma = $ you spent.

[wind_in_the_ston...]

Wow, karma must be cheap in your games. Seven is a high award for a whole mission, and that was just for a drink? Dollars for karma would drop to nickels in our group, since we'd have (some) people fighting for the chance to drop thirty bucks on food. All I gotta do is buy dinner, and I can initiate twice?

[Medicineman]

Seven is a high award for a whole mission, and that was just for a drink?
not anymore
According to 4A Karmatables
7-10 for a Run is Standard with 12 being a very dangerous Run !
but I agree 7 Karma ist too much for a Drink
1 Karma (being at the right time & the right spot) would be Ok.
I'll be getting 2-3 Karma extra for one of my Chars next Time Doc Byte is my GM, because I gave him a Ticket for the RPC in Cologne(big Convention in Germany) for 1/2 Price

Hough!
Medicineman

[crizh]

I agree 7 karma was too much.

Imagine how much more than a drink you could have gotten for 7 karma when negotiating with your wife of all people!?....

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/grinbig.gif)

[Delta]

I don't do it, and never would as a GM. I don't know, it just wouldn't feel right.

[Lansdren]

The most OOC Karma I have seen awarded is the odd point for a particually good pun or play on words outside of the RP if its got us all in stitches but thats it 7Karma for a drink seems abit relaxed to me but as ever if your having fun then who cares what we think

[Aerospider]

Wow, karma must be cheap in your games. Seven is a high award for a whole mission, and that was just for a drink? Dollars for karma would drop to nickels in our group, since we'd have (some) people fighting for the chance to drop thirty bucks on food. All I gotta do is buy dinner, and I can initiate twice?

Surely karma-for-nickels would mean 20x as much karma as karma-for-dollars...?

[Fuchs]

We don't use karma (or BP) in our group, so that does not come up at all.

[Brazilian_Shinob...]

Well, one of the players in our group was awarded 10 karma for skiping a date with a girl (who was totally into sex on the first date) to play with us. I suggested he should gain karma for the "bros over whos" thing.

[mielikki]

Wow, as the wife of our group's GM, I think I will have to make some suggestions! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

So far, I have been getting 1 point of karma every other month - and that is for keeping the campaign log, weekly updating of our game website, and baking cookies for every game session. And I thought I was actually lucky to get anything at all! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[RedFish]

I'd say OOC karma rewards for anything that doesn't benefit the group as a whole, and that everyone can't agree on, sets a very bad precedent. Then again - whatever works for your group, no?

Wow, as the wife of our group's GM, I think I will have to make some suggestions! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

So far, I have been getting 1 point of karma every other month - and that is for keeping the campaign log, weekly updating of our game website, and baking cookies for every game session. And I thought I was actually lucky to get anything at all! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Not only does this deserve karma, it deserves a small statue erected in your honour (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[Karoline]

It's like a pay-to-play game in your own den (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

7 karma for a drink? Wow, if it was me... well, honestly I would have gone and gotten the drink, would have taken less time and effort than negotiating the karma price and actually breaking out characters and rolling dice, but if for some reason I was feeling too lazy to go get my own drink, it would be something more like 'if someone wants to grab me a drink, there might be an extra point of karma in it for you when karma awards are given out.'

And if I was leaning between giving someone X and X+1 karma, then the soda would likely tip me to X+1. Guess it is different from group to group.

[Doc Chaos]

Not only does this deserve karma, it deserves a small statue erected in your honour (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

I concur. Damn, I want cookies every gamesession (IMG:style_emoticons/default/frown.gif)

[Wailer]

Man, most of my players would risk serious bodily harm for 7 karma.

It's gamer-crack .. and you know what people do for crack. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smokin.gif)

As far as karma for OOC things? Best I've ever been able to cough up is that +1 bonus point - I agree with Delta AND the fact that mielikki deserves a statue.

[Delta]

I'd say OOC karma rewards for anything that doesn't benefit the group as a whole, and that everyone can't agree on, sets a very bad precedent.

My opinion as well, of course, YMMV.

I do give out the occasional bonus (as in single bonus point) for things like campaign logs, but that's about it. All in all, I don't even believe in giving out different karma awards at the end of the session, barring really extraordinary circumstances, everyone gets the same amount of karma.

[Doc Chaos]

I'd never give out Karma like that. Karma is a measurement of the advancements of a character in life because of the shit I put him thr... I mean, because of what he encounters and deals with in life. Its for what the character does. Not the player.

[nylanfs]

Here's a list of the things that my GM gives bonus Karma for

Bonus Karma

PCs will be awarded one bonus karma for each of the following from their players:

* Providing a character background (regardless of length, only available once).
* Providing a set of character goals (only available once).
* Providing a character portrait (only available once).
* Providing a contact’s background (once per contact).
* Providing a character image for the map software (only available once, may be portrait image).
* Completing the adventure log for a session (once per session, one player each session).
* Suggesting a run based on character’s background or goals (earned if run concept is used).

[Udoshi]

In my group, our GM occasionally gives out bonus karma for spotting/catching onto important plot elements, piecing clues together, spotting references. Keeping good notes, or bringing -neat things- to the table. Pretty much the same type of thing people above have pointed out.

Buuut he -also- charges us karma for doing odd, cool, over-the-top things that edge doesn't -quite- cover. So there's a give - and - a take.

[crizh]

Hmm, perhaps if you want to bribe players to do stuff you could hand out Edge refreshes. Gives them a nice bonus that doesn't have long term repercussions to character development.

[fistandantilus4....]

I do agree that 7 is a lot. The karma award for the run it's self was actually 5. I was feeling really lazy. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) And the drink was delicious.

I do like to give out OOC for things like group food though, as well as anything like character pics, extra detailed backgrounds, etc. A big part of that reasoning is because we frequently rotate GMs, which usually means rotating characters. This way it doesn't take forever for a character to advance as you roll through different PCs.

Mielikki - You're getting jipped. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Sorry.

I do like Crizh's idea of refreshing edge though.

[Draco18s]

Karma for buying the GM a drink? Fuck it, I'm ordering pizza. Come on 6th magic point, no whammy no whammy!

[Nal0n]

One time I had a GM give me no Karma for my first run 'cause I gave him a 74 page background story ... he said it was because it took him 3 hours to wade through my "wall of text" (IMG:style_emoticons/default/frown.gif)

[Karoline]

I haven't written a paper that long for college, and I'm about to graduate.

I wouldn't have docked points, but I would have asked for a 2 page summary to look over till I had a few spare hours to read that much.

[Nal0n]

I haven't written a paper that long for college, and I'm about to graduate.

Me neither, but SR is so much more interesting ... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

[Delta]

One time I had a GM give me no Karma for my first run 'cause I gave him a 74 page background story ... he said it was because it took him 3 hours to wade through my "wall of text" (IMG:style_emoticons/default/frown.gif)

And rightfully so.

If any player approached me with a monster like that, I'd kindly ask him to write me a background of 3-5 pages max, or I will refuse to read it. I'm sorry, but 74 pages isn't a background story, that's a novel. Which is fine for you to have, if you like that, and if your GM likes to read a lot, that's great, but if you can't fit everything the GM really needs to know about your character on 3-5 pages maximum, then there is something wrong. And not every GM has the time and motivation to read through a whole book trying to remember everything that might be important.