Storyteller and Player Basics by: Trunks With the imminent release of Vampire: The Masquerade - Redemption and the beta test that's been going on for the last few weeks, I thought it would be a good idea to list some hints and suggestions for all you aspiring Storytellers and players out there so you'll be ready come release time. Because of the NDA I can't get into specifics yet, but there are some basic things on etiquette and such that I can cover. First I'll cover some ST specific things. 1) GAME TITLES To make things easier for both players looking for a game and yourself, put a game title that informs others of the kind of game you are running. So if I was running a Dark Ages game for Neonate characters with lots of role-playing, "Trunks' Game (DA/Neo/RP)" might be something appropriate I would use as a game title. The fact that Neonates are required for the game should imply that no ghouls or humans should be in the game as Player Characters. 2) PASSWORDS AND LOCKING Password locking rooms and games is an easy way to prevent others from jumping into one of your games after it's started. You may be resuming a previous game, or scheduled a game in advance with your friends, or just don't want people jumping into a game that's reached the middle of your storyline. You don't always have to use passwords though, as the ST can lock a game once it has started, preventing other people from joining the game. This is particularly useful if you've started a non-password protected game with people in the chat room but don't want others to accidently join your game while it's in mid-story. Just remember to unlock the game if anyone drops out so they can come back. 3) KICK KICK KICK KICK! As ST, whatever game you start is your own. So you have the right to kick anyone out of your games that you want to. You don't even need a reason, it's your game do as you wish. Though this applies to all games, it really should apply to private games only...if you intend on STing open games to the public, you really SHOULD have a reason to kick before doing so. Otherwise, you may end up having no one joining your games if word spreads that you like kicking people in the middle of games for absolutely no reason. But if you're handling a game with lots of role-playing, yet there's some guy who keeps acting like Robo-Cop and shooting everything possible while screaming "Your move, creep!" constantly despite your warnings, by all means kick kick kick! Other reasons to kick might include refusing to use a certain character type, flooding the chat window with nonsense, and constantly feeding from other party members for no reason. 4) USE A SPECIFIC METHOD FOR OUT OF CHARACTER CHAT For those of you running games with role-playing in it, you'll want to distinguish out-of-character chat from in-character chat. Personally, I prefer using parenthesis to denote OOC. (Just like this.) Others might prefer ((double parenthesis)) or [brackets], just be consistent throughout your game and make sure your players are aware what you use for OOC. 5) BE PREPARED FOR UNEXPECTED ACTIONS Your games should be flexible enough to handle any decisions or actions the party makes. If they decide on a course of action that's totally unexpected that you're not prepared for, try your best to improv your story accordingly. If it's something absoultely not possible, try to make a believeable excuse why. But try to avoid railroading your party into taking a certain action just because they chose to do something you weren't expecting. This is one of the main things that makes role-playing so great: creativity. If someone comes up with an innovative decision to something, reward them, don't punish them. Of course, if the party just wants to leave town "because they want to burn down Chicago for the hell of it," you have every right to try and get them back on track. And now for things that apply to the players. 1) WHEN JOINING A GAME ASK THE STORYTELLER SOME THINGS When joining a game, first ask the Storyteller if you can play. You might have stumbled into a private game by accident, or the ST might have decided to play with only a certain amount of people and your joining would go over that limit. Once you're certain you can play, verify what time period the game is, what character would be appropriate for the game, and what type of game it is (role-playing, combat only, deathmatch) if it isn't clear in the game title. 2) DON'T DO ANYTHING UNTIL THE STORYTELLER TELLS YOU Sometimes a ST may need a few moments to prepare a few things or fiddle around at the start of a game. Once he gives the word that he's ready to start, proceed. Don't go running around killing townspeople in the meantime because "you're bored." 3) DON'T BUG THE STORYTELLER FOR INAPPROPRIATE ITEMS OR WEAPONS If your character isn't properly equipped for the game you're in, ask the ST nicely what he can do to remedy your situation. If the ST will provide equipment as part of his storyline, he should mention it to you. But do not constantly ask the ST if you can get rocket launchers or flamethrowers in a Dark Ages game. That's all for now...because of the NDA, it won't be until the game has been released that a more in-depth guide on how to effectively use the game's tools for both Storytellers and game players can be posted. So the next article I'll put up will have tips for STs on how to effectively setup a storyline, and get your story across to your players and immerse them in whatever atmosphere you have setup. After that, I'll have an article with some tips on how to create a chronicle that's flexible enough to accommodate several types of role-playing yet still have a good, immersive storyline. Special thanks to fellow beta testers Weremuppet and Mr. Clark for some of the ideas posted above. Articles Index