Votes cast by players, organized by the largest wagon to the smallest wagon;
(I do not include players with zero votes);
Players not voting;
How many to eliminate;
What the day's deadline is;
A marker of L-2/L-1/Elimination when present;
Any relevant mod notes (replacements, prods).
However, in a
perfect
Any flavor for the votecount;
A link to the last (and eventually, to the next) votecount;
How close every player is to elimination (with appropriate coloring);
Multiple markers for L-3/L-2/L-1/Hammer;
A history of votes during the current day phase in chronological order listing every vote/unvote (also including formatting for the type of vote/unvote);
A section detailing changes from the previous votecount;
A section detailing each player's vote history for the current day;
A section detailing how many votes have been cast on each player for the current day;
A section listing how many posts each player has made;
A note as to where that votecount is current up to.
Unfortunately, while that's my ideal perfect world votecount, realistically speaking, even using a notepad to track it all, it takes too damn much time for me to format and edit it, so I'm usually forced to use the simpler version, which is the things I consider the minimum information to have present. (That being the aforementioned count of votes, deadline, and how many to eliminate, with any mod notes.)
For my OPs (example of it here), I include, in order:
The name of the game;
(Optional: Navigation if I have an extended OP detailing multiple pieces of the game);
Game moderation/design/review info (modded by, designed by, reviewed by, backup modded by);
Playerlist;
(Optional: Replacements I have in queue (if present))
In a spoiler, the number of living players;
In a spoiler, the number of dead players, with a link to the post where they died (no, I do not keep a separate folder for modkilled players as modkilled players are dead players);
(Optional: a status listing the current phase the game is in with the current deadline)
My modding rules;
A sample role PM.
While not in the OP itself, I make sure to, in my first post, also list:
Game mechanics.
I can also optionally include and/or make posts for:
Game events;
Flavor;
Numerous forms of votecount information. (This is something that I sadly don't have the time to keep current anymore especially as it requires the fairly complex use of a word document to keep current. See above for the difference between a perfect world ideal votecount compared to what in my pragmaticism I'm forced to use instead. Same deal here; anything extra, is extra, and not something I can keep on top of.)
As for deadlines, that is always game-specific.
Generically, my rules are 3-week deadlines, with extensions if necessary, as I come from an era where games didn't
have
deadlines unless the game stalled for too long and a moderator instituted one.For a Normal and/or Mini game, I typically use the "no majority = no elimination" rule for when deadline is reached.
However, for a Large Theme, I typically use plurality elimination, where you CAN no-lim, but only if no-lim reaches majority or, at deadline, has the most votes; by default, the player with the most votes is eliminated. (I find that large games being large, getting consensus can be nightmarish, especially given theme mechanics, so plurality is a great tool to keep the game sane/manageable/less hectic.)
But these rules are always subject to change depending on the mechanic of a game. (For instance, I'm 90% done with an Among Us: Modded Gameplay semi-open setup which would use almost blitz deadlines with plurality designed for either 15 or 21 players, which combines the Town of Us mod with the Other Roles mod with a little mafiascum spice to it. Obviously not going to do 3-week deadlines for a game that is designed to be memey/chaotic due to the sheer role madness and numerous 3ps present. It's designed to take a week or two, maybe three, start to finish to play, as to allow for multiple runs.)