1: BEGINNING
My first game as a player, I played an elf. I had a bow. But not a name.
My first game as a GM, I had one player. There was a haunted castle. We didn't get very far.
Jonathan: In the grand tradition of Greyhawk's Melf!
2: CHANGE
I remember what a change Vampire: The Masquerade was compared to games I knew before it, the focus on character motivation and drama, much more what I wanted from RPGs.
There are lots of character drama RPGs out there now, some which focus on it far more, which has been very cool to see.
3: THREAD
Plot threads can be tricky to keep track of. They get some space in the notebook, and some bullet points.
I sometimes bring in red herrings... but if the players focus on it, I usually make it an actually relevant subplot instead.
4: VISION
I like to have a visual reference for my characters, PC and NPC. This can lead to too much time searching for one.
J: I feel like my current meatspace group doesn't appreciate the pictures as much as I do.
Me: Yeah, my use of visuals is often most helpful for me.
J: Right? I write an entire story based on a picture of who that person is.
5: TRIBUTE
If y'all gonna swipe from a thing you love, swipe proudly. (Though check it's cool with everyone at the table.)
6: FOREST
Dark places full of monsters? Beautiful places full of adorable animals? Setting the tone will affect reactions.
7: COUPLE
I'm likely to be more interested in a game with emotional connections than without, depending on the players of course.
My most recent Vampire: The Requiem game was for two , as a vampire and a mortal, called "You're The Only Thing Worth Dying For"...
8: SHADE
I've never played a ghost for an extended period. I once played Wraith: The Oblivion for a few weeks when it came out, and I have an idea for a ghost in a Buffy RPG that I never got to use. Interacting with the living world, walking through walls and trying to be seen, feels more uniquely ghostly than adventures in the world of the dead where everybody's a ghost as well.
9: LIGHT
The game may be dark, but the table should still be a fun place. I don't want to be depressing OOC.
10: WANT
I have a loooooong list of RPGs I want to play, or run. Slightly longer with the ones I want to play, as I can run some of them at least.
(Something I loved about New Bremen was getting to play various things: It's still my only Demon: The Fallen game.)
11: STACK
The Stack I Want to play:
VtM 5, VtR 2, DtD, CofD mortals, VAV, Buffy, non-FFG Star Wars, supers, Trinity, Aeon, TCFBTG!, Delta Green, something 1920s that isn't CoC, Kids On Bikes...
12: MESSAGE
I sometimes have a point or theme or motif in mind for a game or session. It depends on the players going for it. More likely with smaller, familiar groups.
13: REST
One thing I miss from gaming online is the half-hour on the bus into town which makes such good prep time.
14: BANNER
I've never had a character heroically save or capture a flag. Now I kind of want to.
15: FRAME
Evil mirrors!
16: DRAMATIC
I came into RPGs for the drama, and it's what keeps me around even though many games don't have much of it at all.
17: COMFORT
I really have to be comfortable with everybody at the table to play well. In a large player base game like a LARP or chat, I need a group.
18: MEET
I didn't meet other vampire PCs in New Bremen for a couple weeks before getting directions to Elysium (the main gathering point) OOC. Sometimes you just have to use the metagame a little. See above for being with friends in a big game.
(Once there I quickly made a friend by checking the various characters' bios and being the first player to react in-character to the Goth singer Toreador's Fame 4. And I wasn't alone, as the room had "ELYSIUM" in the description.)
(Once there I quickly made a friend by checking the various characters' bios and being the first player to react in-character to the Goth singer Toreador's Fame 4. And I wasn't alone, as the room had "ELYSIUM" in the description.)
J: some other vamp and I had some manner of verbal altercation and you moved to physically Intervene, and then it became a giant f'ng snowball
Me: Setting the bar early.
19: TOWER
Storming the tower is mostly a fantasy thing, but we have skyscrapers and the like.
J: plus the Ivory one.
20: INVESTIGATE
I like to delve deep into settings. I also like to change things to keep them fresh. Players who read the setting material to know everything freak out about this. Good.
21: PUSH
I tend not to push the players through a scene if they're in no hurry, unless it's a one-shot generally. I like characters hanging out.
22: RARE
Getting to play World Of Darkness or Chronicles Of Darkness instead of ST them is a rare thing for me.
I did spur one of my V5 players to ST the next year, though I didn't get to play. So that's a kind of progress...
23: EDGE
If dice fall off the table, reroll them. If you can ever find them again, obviously.
24: HUMOUR
Humour depends on the game, and the group, and it can kill a serious mood. I tend to keep the humour in Vampire out of character, or chilly. I was the comic relief in a recent Mage game, though...
25: LEVER
I like games where the players have a few resources beside what their characters can do directly, as simple as Willpower for rerolls or Advantage to get two shots at something they don't want to mess up, up to narrative flashbacks in some.
26: STRANGE
RPGs lean on fantasy and the like because it's easy to improvise, and for setting creators to make things up and put in books. You can do a straight detective show, but it doesn't need sourcebooks.
27: FAVOUR
The favour-trading of Prestation is hard to keep track of in large group games like LARPs and chats. LARPs often have someone keeping accounts for it. I've seen talk of using physical markers as well, like the favour coins from John Wick.
28: CLOSE
Do you prefer games with open or closed secrets between players? For me, it depends on the game, and the players. I've known some who just can't filter out OOC information.
Bat: Same for me. Some of the people I play with vary their answer depending on genre. Over the years I've met people that will only play in games that match their preference.
Bryon: I'm in a game where my character has secrets. It's been fun watching the other character react as things slip out a little at a time.
29: RIDE
The Combat Wheelchair is very cool, both as an idea and as an encouragement to think about disability representation.
30: PORTAL
Dropping into a fantasy realm or the like can be a fun sometimes thing, if it doesn't break the tone of the game. I've done it with mortal monster hunters, not with vampires.
31: EXPERIENCE
I've had a lot of fun with RPGs, made many of my best friends, and learned as well.
