Musician Archive
Thread: Entertainment while Buffing, a rare commodity.
Page 1 of 1
Springbok
Tue Sep 14, 2004 2:47 pm
#1
Every night for the past week I have walked into cnet cantina, playedthrough a quickness buff, and made from 80k-300k in tips. There are buffbots in the cantina but I seem to win out on a nightly basis.
Here is what I do and hope it helps some live entertainer buffer's =). (Granted Buffbots could adopt some of the methods, but you just can't beat entertainment.
1. Setup
a) Find a corner in the cantina, preferably in plain sight to would-be buffers.
b) Plop down a nalargon. These attract people. They do not have to look for a master musician tag, and they stand out more than anything else, except for...read on.
c) Under you, and hidden by the nalargon, get out a droid, effects or playback, and group them. Make the name obvious that they are a part of your show. Example: My droids are named 'Pyro' for effects, and 'Bass' for playback.
2. Macro's
a) For the macro to buff, I suggest Fragpuppie'sQuickBuff(tm).
2. Basically flourish 5 times within 5-8 seconds for a less than 4 minute buff.
b) /shout. Make this a macro if you wish, but for the love of God please do not make it recursive. Do it every now and then. I basically think: Ok someone just landed and read that shout, given lag, it will take them 4-5 minutes to get here, anticipating they are talkign to people on the way, stopping by bank, maybe getting a doctor buff if no line, etc. Give an extra minute or two lol...then shout out again.
c) /group macro. I do have a macro which i hit every time someone joins group to tell them how much, mine is "/g no charge, tips accepted, yes nothing is acceptable, no I won't hold a grudge if you don't, and wookiee's are free...as always" (I'll go more into charging later) I also make a macro with same message but as "/reply..." for when a person sends tell asking how much.
d) Pyro's. I have made a macro for the pyrotechnics we can do, though I do not often use it. Only when in a good conversation I will feel will be ongoing with group and spatial area.
3. Time's
a) I am a master dancer in addition to music, but I do not often go into dancing buffs, usually only for guildmates and for recurring customers as a "bonus", not in addition to charge. I will find another live master dancer and make an agreement I will refer to customer's I am buffing to him/her after music buff is done, and him/she their customer's to me. This increases your reputation, spreads out the love to live entertainers, and can make and enjoyable area of the cantina of true entertainment.
b) I use FragpuppiesQuickBuff. But I give 4-5 minute buffs even though they may take 3:10. This is for the entertainment value. In the heat of enjoying the area I have often forgot the time and the customer does as well, for everyone is having a good time. I do keep time's however I have never once received a time question or demand from a customer, despite never telling a person to /stoplisten before 4 minutes is up.
4. Music / Instrument Choices
a) Playback Droid. I have an R3 adv. droid with 6 playback modules. Songs set for me include sw1, sw2, sw3, ceremonial, ballad, and virtuoso. Yours can very to your favorites of course, mind you the customer's collective favorites are more important. All the songs are bandfill chorus tunes. Need bass =)
b) I usually have ballad going, its the easiest on the ol' ears after 3 hours of buffing folks, the customer's like its relaxing melodies, compare to the sw1 noise of ent grind groups they just got BF healed at. Or sw1 (with mando) always brings love form my patrons.
c) But always when not in the middle of a buff I ask my customer(s) if they have a preference for song / instruments
d) I traditionally use my mandoviol. With Ballad if I have the time inbetween buffs I may go to my chidinkalu horn.
e) Note: You have your nalargon out already 
While this is always an option to use (while using /invite technique) in groups, I use it more for attention grabbing, and hiding the bulky R3 droid.
While this is always an option to use (while using /invite technique) in groups, I use it more for attention grabbing, and hiding the bulky R3 droid.5. Effects
a) My effect droid, also an R3 adv. droid with all 6 effects and the common 10 spots, is mostly set for foam. Foam is an oldie but goldie if you will, is common, but an eye grabber since so conflicting to the drab colors of cantinas. The other special effects should not be so constant, or else it can 1) lag; and 2) decrease the speculation factor.
b) The 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th, 8th, 9th spots I'll use foam. On the 4th spot I'll use Avian; 7th I'll use Dancing Jawa's; 10th I'll use Electric Fog. Sometimes I'll use Confetti or (can't remember other), but I just like those main 4 mainly.
6. Charging
a) Upto you mainly.
b) For competing against buffbots you should inspire customers to see you though. Buffbots require credits, but patrons can get away for free if an AFK'er. So charging is moot in my book. More importantly you can provide entertainment over buffbots, making the must wait 3-10 minutes time period enjoyable, rather than necessary and a means to an end.
c) Like I said above, I do not charge at all. Plus I provide incentives, such as advertising Wookiee's are free always. (Ironically Wookiee's are my by far, best tippers, and although that is not why I say that in advertising, to get money, it still occurs.) If someone is plainly rebel, I often tell them the buff is free of charge. They still tip mind you, but I would happily buff them again the next day if they did not.
d) I tend to receive 5-10k every person. But I never have set up a charge. Here is my thinking, which I have posted before, and it is a very good analogy and very applicable.
In a restaurant, for a 15 party table, the restaurant (or waiter(ess)) often puts an 18% surcharge on the check for a tip to be ensured. The party pays the check almost always (tip included, no extra). In my experiance when I waited tables, the times I did not put the 18% on the check, I normally received upwards of 30-50% tip of the total. Way more money. While not always true every time, after 5 eight+ person tables I had made more in tips than another waitress using the 18% surcharge method.
If I charged 10k every buff, I would recieve 10k almost always. I don't charge, and most of my buffs seem to be always 15K plus. Those who do not tip, almost always come back, and eventually tip a collective whole to all the times they have come, making the 50k-100k tip not rare.
7. Logging On
a) Not a must, but it has really helped me to play SWG, or play my entertainer, at the same times everyday. I looked at the buffbot user's explanations of the why they go see a buffbot...."Because when I play I know that buffbotter is there, no hassles, and I get what I want with no fuss and in prompt fashion". Now apply this ideology to yourself...I am on and in the Coronet Cantina everyday from 9pm-11pm or 12am EST everyday. So my regulars who play then, and more and more everyday they see me again and again, can apply the same ideology to ME, not just the buffbot, and I provide them the rare commodity of Entertainment. =)
When I buff people, its not me setting out to buff specifically. But buffing is a part of my entertainment package I provide to the patrons of a cantina that come to get healed. If I randomly invite a person listening to me to heal BF and wounds, and they accept i say "While you heal up you minus well get a buff, on the house, in the meantime." So when they do come back to specifically get a buff, I am on their list of who to look for, and they know the 5 minutes spent won't be a necessity, but a time to enjoy themselves and kick back. A sign that you are indeed an entertainer is when you eventually get more than one tell or email saying "You know, I meant to go outside to have a smoke during that buff, but dammit!. I forgot to...thanks again for the buff, was fun=)".
NewJedi
Tue Sep 14, 2004 7:47 pm
#2
Good suggestions. But why do you hide your R3 droid? I like to show him off. 
lobber
Wed Sep 15, 2004 3:00 am
#3
I'm a bit confused. You have an effect droid and a music droid out at the same time? I thought we could only get out 1 droid at a time, at least thats all I am able to have out at once. It's even more annoying that I have to go outside to call them out when I want to swap. Due to this I have an R3 with 3 music and 3 effect modules. Could you clarify this? Am I missing the obvious?
Cheers
Springbok
Wed Sep 15, 2004 1:08 pm
#4
Either or for droids you use. Comes down to preference. An r3 with 3 effects and 3 playbacks is a good idea in its own right. Can they do both things at same time then?
Hide my droid because for outward appearance mainly. If you run into the cantina and see smoke and birds coming out of a nalargon in the corner while a huge black male wookiee is jamming on the mando...its certainly an eye grabber.
However I can see the wisdom in not hiding your droid. Gives additional appearance to teh eye that here is a buffer/entertainer that cares about his/her profession =).
PoetDancer
Wed Sep 15, 2004 2:38 pm
#5
Entertainment? If this post is about being entertaining, then why is it mostly devoted toward marketing, macroed routinization, and canned, macroed responses? Buffbots do those things too. Tell me something about your entertainment style apart from these things every buffbot knows and has put into practice.
Message Edited by PoetDancer on 09-15-2004 04:40 PM
LyteFoot
Thu Sep 16, 2004 6:57 am
#6
We entertain with music, so how many people are actually listening to the game sound and trying to compose a portfolio of interesting tunes? I've been at this just about 3 weeks and have 3 songs so far. I'm working on more and going to try incorporating multiple instruments. I know from listening toTammy's musicthat it is very possible to make unique tunes that are pleasant to listen to with all of the songs we have available. They are even different enough to keep you from getting bored with them.
To me that will make more difference than anything. Showing people that they can actually listen to a musician and enjoy what they hear. I've even played alone in my own group with my droid in the back of the Theed cantina and drawn a small crowd although 20 people are in the standard group. There are still people who actually appreciate listening to something other than the din of 10 people playing different random flourishes for SW1. Oh and the tips go up too when the people like what they hear and realize you are ATK.
Springbok
Fri Sep 17, 2004 4:47 pm
#7
PoetDancer wrote:
Entertainment? If this post is about being entertaining, then why is it mostly devoted toward marketing, macroed routinization, and canned, macroed responses? Buffbots do those things too. Tell me something about your entertainment style apart from these things every buffbot knows and has put into practice.
Message Edited by PoetDancer on 09-15-2004 04:40 PM
Every buffbot does not do this. However they all do spam canned macro's as you say a million times. I mostly touched on advertising to the extent of NOT spamming. Helps to read the posts....
Entertainment from the technical aspect, sorry for the lack of disctinction, i felt the post made that clear enough. I rarely see the buffbot with droids out, nice clothing, a nalargon out for attention, remembering to use the skills in our technical line of musician/dancing other than + mind enhancement.
My posts weren't targetted to come up with something every buffbot knows and puts into practice, or more so. But rather to the live entertainer who is new to the buffing arena of our class, be it musician or dancer, and again, from a technical point of view. And additionally (again I will repeat since you glazed over it all in a long post, from a technical point of view) how to catch the patron's attention for a buff rather than the robotic walk to the ever familiar buffbot.
Finally, tell you something about my entertainment style apart from the things every buffbot knows and puts into practice? ummmm I'm at the keyboard. My ability to remotely say hi in more than one way to more than one customer in 10 seconds, or having a conversation, god forbid.
The post was designed to grab a person seeking a buff's attention, OVER the buffbot who has inundated spatial with constant spamming. Sorry my post title was off. Seems to me thats all you really read though.
Clear yet?
LionessSWG
Fri Sep 17, 2004 7:36 pm
#8
I have to agree that Springbok is a great entertainer. I met the great wookiee inside the cantina and he entertained us, and waited while stragglers from our group showed up. Didn't get frustrated with the wait, and chatted the entire time. To be honest I never noticed any of the "marketing" ploys that Poetdancer was concerned about.
As a matter of fact he was so much fun to be around, her main joined us for a trip to the DWB. We had a great time there in the cantina and in the dungeon. Plus what was the most refreshing was having an at the keyboard Master musician/dancer not timing you and just having an all around good time.
As a matter of fact he was so much fun to be around, her main joined us for a trip to the DWB. We had a great time there in the cantina and in the dungeon. Plus what was the most refreshing was having an at the keyboard Master musician/dancer not timing you and just having an all around good time.
Page 1 of 1