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((Ah wrote this essay for class...Comp. I...>.> Now, there's a Narrative one...this's gonna be fun!))
Roll 4d10 for resistance, seven, five, ten, and two. Two successes out of the four, your Willpower rating of six allows you to continue to stand against the elder's Dominate power. This is one possible scenario that chance and luck can command, one chance that potentially forces you under the power of another. I have been role playing for many years, storytelling for around eight. Role playing, or RP, has become one of the biggest hobbies that I have, and contrary to popular belief, it is a good past time that everyone has, at some point, had the pleasure of partaking in.
Role play began even before you knew what it was. Picture a couple of small children playing with dolls or action figures, perhaps costumed in plastic armor, dress-up gowns or their underwear with a towel tied around their neck. You cannot possibly envision the scene without those children acting the parts that they seem to have taken up, either through the dolls or their own bodies. When we were children, our limits were the extent of our imagination. We were Superman, He-man or She-ra, the Lone Ranger, or a Ninja Turtle. This is the first of the tools we use in role play, the first tool that you'll need as well as the most fundamental. Without it, you simply cannot immerse yourself into these worlds, the characters. Imagination is the key.
With this in mind, everyone has role played in their lifetime. The differences between then and now are simply age and rules. After all, who wants to play a game of make believe when everyone wants to play an omnipotent god as adults, I have found, are wont to do. The rules limit us from being things that, if you think about it, would get quite boring after a while. If you can do everything, what is there to work toward? What are your ambitions? So, we have rules to start us off as people who need to learn, need to grow and gain experience, just as we do in the real world. Age, I have never found to be a limitation, except when people believe that role playing is something for "children". This way of seeing it though, doesn't allow you to see the potential richness of the experience. As they say, don't knock it before you've tried it. Yes, we played make believe when we were little, but this isn't your average make believe.
It generally helps to get books for the system that you plan on playing, though there are people who simply still make believe. The ones that still do it without the rules do not let the desire to be overly powerful at times allow them to hinder the quality of their game. You can get the books you will need from just about any book store, hobby shop, or even online. They usually are found in their own section. They will run you an average of twenty to thirty dollars per book, and while this might seem like a lot for a hobby, it really isn't if you look compare the prices of some others, the books are hardbound and high quality. In them you will find the rules set out, how to create characters, settings, and so on.
While it is a good idea to follow the directions it gives you to make a character, another one would be to locate a group of people who already role play. Role play groups can usually be found through local comic book stores or hobby shops via postings on cork boards or even online as many groups now have yahoo groups (sites online that people join to exchange information), webpages, or some other virtual domain for information. Role play itself can be found online in chat rooms as well, so instead of a pencil, paper, and dice, you would only need a document program to type your character sheet onto, typing your actions rather than talking them. Some of them are sites such as Role play Universe (www.roleplayuniverse.com), Webmaze (www.webmaze.com), and AlterRealm (www.alterrealm.com), any of which can provide you with a role play environment. You simply have to register, filling out the information they ask you to provide, then sign in, click the link that is called the "whochat" or that says "Users Online" with the mouse, and look for the area labeled "Vampire". That name is misleading, as vampires are not the only thing that people role play as in the rooms. In Role play Universe, it is called "Dark World by Night", which is more appropriate.
There are downsides to role playing online, though. One of them would be some of the people you will come into contact with. They're not necessarily 'bad' per say but they do tend to be elitists, and if you come in with a plain name that has no picture, color or other additions and alterations that are added with HTML (a computer language that you use to create webpages through different codes, including those to add pictures, color, or size to things you type), you will be seen as a newbie or n00b. Being a "newbie" (a new, inexperienced person) is not really a bad thing. On the sites there are members of the staff and "regulars" (common role players who do it a lot) who are all more than willing to assist in getting you started in role playing online. I am a regular, if I am present and have time I am always willing to help. One of the not-so-nice tricks some people in these chat rooms pull is telling you to press alt+F4, which is the command to close the window you're in. Then there are the elitists who ignore you. However, if you can survive past the snobs and continue to visit and learn either through asking for help or observation, you could very well find your niche in role play online.
However, when you want to play in groups, you need the previously listed items, imagination and information (from the books), along with a few other things; Pencils and pens for one, nothing particularly special about those. You will also need sheets of paper with which to keep track of things that may occur in the role play, via notes. If you join a LARP (Live Action Role Play) group, you may also find that you would probably like to have an outfit that you believe your character would wear. When you LARP, you actually move around and portray your character through actions and so on, the system is slightly different from what is called 'Pen and Paper' role play. Pen and paper role play requires just that, along with sets of dice. If you play White Wolf games then you will need a set of dice with ten sides; if you play Dungeons and Dragons it would require dice with faces that range from four to one-hundred. Usually you get a small pouch of these from a hobby shop. Dice are also known as the "d" in the opening, "4d10" means four die ten or four ten-sided dice. Now you have your materials.
The actual play comes down to everything that has been covered. Applying what you have learned from the books, your imagination and the character sheet that you hopefully have created by now, you move on to insert that character into scenery and a plot provided by another person, the storyteller. To become a storyteller requires patience, good planning skills and an even better imagination. Most storytellers create plots that they want the characters to run through, mapping out the finest details. They must know all of the rules of the system along with their own rules should they choose to alter some of them. It requires patience simply because you are trying to control a group of people, some of which may disagree with rolls or rulings, not to mention the players might not even follow the plot you've set out for them. It can be a thankless job.
Some examples of games you could play are:
� Vampire: the Masquerade. You play a member of the undead, introduced to the real world. The world where werewolves, wraiths and all those bogeymen you were told tales of, exist a dark world filled with politics, intrigue and danger as you continue simply to survive night to night.
� Wraith: the Oblivion. Possessing unfinished business, be it a lost lover who is unhappy or seeing justice come to your killer, you are a member of the departed. You are afraid of the oblivion that comes with a final end, and longing to fulfill your passions.
� Changeling: the Dreaming. A light in the World of Darkness where romance and beauty are alive and precious. You can be a pure-blooded fae, from a noble knight Sidhe (pronounced 'shee') to a prank-playing Pooka. Living in the fantastic world of Arcadia where dreams and nightmares take the forms of unicorns and dragons, or the real world...where disbelief is not only painful but potentially deadly.
These are obviously not the only options, neither are the systems made by White Wolf, the creator of those I have listed. There are also Dungeons and Dragons, Call of Cthulu, In Nomine, and many others, where you can play anything from a regular, everyday human to things like trolls, demons and angels.
The bad points to this wonderful hobby though are not due to the hobby itself, but rather the fault of those who don't understand it. While yes, there will be people you might not get along with in the groups but that is nothing when compared to the reactions some people have when they find out you role play. Some opinions about role playing is that only devil worshippers do it, which isn't true, as there are many people I know who actually practice not only different branches of Christianity, but also Judaism and so on. Many believe that role playing is only for 'geeks' who have no lives and can't get a date. Again, this is untrue as there are people who have met and gotten married through role play groups, or online in the rooms that you can play in, some of the people are very attractive. It's just like any hobby really, you have a little bit from all walks of life if you really look into it, parents, teenagers, really anyone can do it.
The benefits however of role playing are real. If you are in a good group with a good storyteller, you will be forced to use your brain to get through some things. That will improve your problem-solving skills. Then there is the benefit of creativity, after all exercise your imagination enough and it will usually blossom. There have been studies that have shown a connection between creativity and intelligence. Those who are more creative are also more intelligent than average, and you can always improve your chances on things by practicing. Role playing is probably one of the best alternatives for those who aren't too great at sports but still wish to socialize with small groups of people.
You make friends, you exercise your mind in ways that you never would have dreamed, and you learn to never lose that child that is within the heart of every person. By opening the books, taking the time to learn, create and enjoy, you too can find your niche. A small, momentary escape from the real world as you depart this stressful, hectic life to a place where anything is truly possible and your only limitation is the extent of your imagination, the land of make believe.
Please read over n' critique on structure, grammar, n' stuff..^_^
The tone is supposed to be casual, persuasive, and informative.
 daChaosKitty · Tue Feb 21, 2006 @ 06:11pm · 0 Comments |
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