Created 93 days ago
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Fetch
Greetings,
I'm Fetch an avid fan of gaming living and working in New Hampshire while I take classes in Creative writing at a local college.
I've been gaming for 17 years and have played a little of everything (both off and online) from D&D and Everquest to the World of Darkness and Eve Online. My favorite game right now is White Wolf's Changeling: The Lost and its one of the few games I have every book for. I look forward to writing for you all and I hope to hear your comments on my work so that I can continue to grow, and improve. Both as a gamer and a writer.
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LARPing
Tips
World of Darkness
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World of Darkness Blog
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Tips For Creating Immersion in Larps
Part Three: Storytelling
Make Stories Personal
This goes back to the classic bit of storytelling advice which is “involve the players whenever possible” Working in character's and their backgrounds into your plot can help make the world to seem more real to the players as well as help give them a reason for their characters to get into the plots you having planned out for the. If possible try to get their backgrounds as early as you can, that way you have more time to work them into your plot.
Know the Rules
Nothing will choke up a game faster than having to stop and look up a rule. You shouldn't be expected to have every rule memorized but a good overall familiarity is important. This goes double for house rules. You should know any house rules you have written forwards and backwards, and make sure any changes to the rules are placed online where players are given or handed out/ displayed at the game.
That being said I am personally of the mindset that story should always be more important than rules and they you as a storyteller should never be afraid to make a ruling that is contrary to the rules if it benefits the story and makes a scene more enjoyable for all those in it. Please note this isn't the same as 'fudging' it so that a player avoids a particularly nasty outcome, actions should have consequences. Just make sure that every scene is enjoyable even if it bends (or breaks) the rules.
Alternative Storytelling techniques
I'm a big fan of “thinking outside the box” (one of my professors likes to say “why were you in the box to begin with?”) I am always on the lookout to create interesting and inventive approaches to storytelling that goes beyond mere narration. Don't feel bound by the usual techniques, mix it up!
Example: Use of Video
This one game I ran (a one-shot cthulhu game) involved players coming together to hear the reading of the will. Instead, however, they watched a video will of the deceased talking to the characters (they were pregen characters, so they were even referenced by name) This was followed up by characters looking into the deceased death and discovering a trail of video blogs that told the story of what happened and why the character met a grisly end.
The players seemed to really enjoy it and it was a lot of fun to produce, more importantly it helped get the character to stay in character. Every time they watched a new video it was a subtle reminded that they were still in my world.
Don't be a Spectator
Its difficult I know to not watch the story unfold as players interact with each other or with other npcs, but If you're not needed for a particular scene take a step back and try not to participate. Unless the players need your storytelling skills let them talk among themselves. Having their storyteller just hovering around reminds them that they are in a game. So unless you need to know the outcome of what ever they are doing ASAP just stay back and either watch from a distance or go look for someone else that may need your help.
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