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the_eggwhiteSo...
You don't know Unknown Armies, or don't know how you'd get involved, or tie yourself into the game.
(warning, long rambling post ahead!)
Here's what I'm planning to do:
1) Talk to each and every player about their characters.
Each and every character has an obsession in the game, as well as a set of passions. I'll make damned sure I know these, as these are the ways you can be drawn into the game. Expect them to be played upon. Expect for me to find ways to use your character's obsession to pull you in. Expect for me to engineer situations where your character would be enraged, where they would be scared or where they would feel noble urges, all as defined by your passions.
These Obsessions and Passions are more important than any character background. Background is who you were, where you've been and what you've done. Obsessions and passions are who you are, where you are and what you're doing RIGHT NOW.
That said, I'll also be talking to folks about something called "trigger events". These are the moments that led to your characters becoming aware of magic, and getting involved with it in some way - and they'll often tie very strongly to your obsession, frequently as the cause of it. These will be determined through discussion, but as starting points I have two general types: "Saw something strange" and "Somebody I know/am aware of vanished". These are both start points, and are flexible, but they're in place for a reason...
[EDIT: If you have an idea for a trigger event that doesn't tie in to these, but can still tie your character to one of the groups below, worry not. Just talk to me.]
2) Provide two main character groups.
Characters need a reason to get together. Without such a reason, there's no actual game. In Unknown Armies there are very few reasons for a large group of mystically aware people to get togther and a very large number of reasons not to. So I'm creating two groups for people to hang characters from, and everyone must tie themselves to at least one of these groups. Here's how I'm working this:
Every character has four "association points" to allocate to groups. There are two "public" groups, and several other ones. Each character must have at least two points in one of the public groups, but their other two points can go wherever you like. You don't get to know what the other groups are. Any points you don't spend on public groups go into other groups however I see fit. If you have a particular group from the UA setting you'd like to tie into, talk to me and I'll see what I can do! TNI operative? Member of the Sect of the Naked Goddess? These kinds of things can be arranged.
What association point allocations mean:
0 - You have no association with this group.
1 - You have an indirect association with this group. You know (or knew) somebody who was in it, and probably know a little bit about it.
2 - You are a member of this group, and meet with other members quite often. You know a fair bit about the group and it's members.
3 - You are a core or founder member of this group. You know all there is to know about this group.
The main character groups will form the starting basis of the game. Each group will meet up somewhere and will have things to talk about. Everyone will start in the public group that they have the highest association to, although I fully expect some people to move between groups from time to time.
The public groups are not completely defined yet, and the amount of information you get depends on how many points you put in, but as a guide:
The Witnesses - these guys are an informal group who have all come together because of having seen things that can't be talked about - either because nobody believes you, or because you're scared of what will happen if you do. Along the way, the members of this group have learned a bit about magic and the occult underground as a result of their investigations into the things they have witnessed. Essentially, this group is a support group who also investigate what their members have seen.
Those Left Behind - these guys are a slightly more organised group who have all come together either because people significant to them have vanished in unusual or mysterious circumstances, because they became aware of somebody mysterious who cannot be found, or because they are supporting those who have lost people in such circumstances. Along the way, they've learned a bit about the occult underground and magic, as these seem to be common elements in several disappearances. Essentially, this group started as a pressure group trying to force further investigation into disappearances, but due to pressure have found that the attention this brings is undesireable, and so investigate for themselves, hoping to one day announce their completed findings and exert pressure accordingly.
3) Help you get involved
My intention with the game is to make it as immersive as possible, and this means that I want everyone to get involved. If you're new to UA (or LARP in general), don't worry. I'll help get you involved. This may be by giving you access to information that nobody else has, so they have to involved. Maybe I'll help you by giving you a strong link with a character played by an experienced player so they can lead you in a little. Or maybe I'll start you off with something that you absolutely need to talk to somebody about, so you can throw yourself in at the deep end.
4) Seed the game with some briefed characters
I'd call these guys NPCs (or GMCs, to use proper UA terminology), but they won't be. I'll give them some extra directions at the start, and some bonusses to help them on their way, but they'll essentially still be players. After I've given them their extras and made them aware of their relevant plot information, I relinquish all control. They're free agents.
How does this help you get involved? They may know things about your character that others don't know... Perhaps even that you don't know. They may be working at cross purposes to you and your groups, or they might actually be your boss. It's even possible that they could be a Godwalker (the highest level avatar of an archetype) or an agent of the House of Renunciation (pretty damned weird - embodiments of change or opposition, essentially). Then again, they could just be a nutter who thinks he's a duke (a significant figure in occult circles) but is really just a nobody with no more power than your average dormouse.
Who plays a briefed character will be determined by the GMs. Basically, if we have an idea for something that fits in with your character idea, we may approach you with it and offer you such a role. You then don't get to tell people about it. Nobody should know that the character you're playing has been tweaked except you and the GMs.
You don't know Unknown Armies, or don't know how you'd get involved, or tie yourself into the game.
(warning, long rambling post ahead!)
Here's what I'm planning to do:
1) Talk to each and every player about their characters.
Each and every character has an obsession in the game, as well as a set of passions. I'll make damned sure I know these, as these are the ways you can be drawn into the game. Expect them to be played upon. Expect for me to find ways to use your character's obsession to pull you in. Expect for me to engineer situations where your character would be enraged, where they would be scared or where they would feel noble urges, all as defined by your passions.
These Obsessions and Passions are more important than any character background. Background is who you were, where you've been and what you've done. Obsessions and passions are who you are, where you are and what you're doing RIGHT NOW.
That said, I'll also be talking to folks about something called "trigger events". These are the moments that led to your characters becoming aware of magic, and getting involved with it in some way - and they'll often tie very strongly to your obsession, frequently as the cause of it. These will be determined through discussion, but as starting points I have two general types: "Saw something strange" and "Somebody I know/am aware of vanished". These are both start points, and are flexible, but they're in place for a reason...
[EDIT: If you have an idea for a trigger event that doesn't tie in to these, but can still tie your character to one of the groups below, worry not. Just talk to me.]
2) Provide two main character groups.
Characters need a reason to get together. Without such a reason, there's no actual game. In Unknown Armies there are very few reasons for a large group of mystically aware people to get togther and a very large number of reasons not to. So I'm creating two groups for people to hang characters from, and everyone must tie themselves to at least one of these groups. Here's how I'm working this:
Every character has four "association points" to allocate to groups. There are two "public" groups, and several other ones. Each character must have at least two points in one of the public groups, but their other two points can go wherever you like. You don't get to know what the other groups are. Any points you don't spend on public groups go into other groups however I see fit. If you have a particular group from the UA setting you'd like to tie into, talk to me and I'll see what I can do! TNI operative? Member of the Sect of the Naked Goddess? These kinds of things can be arranged.
What association point allocations mean:
0 - You have no association with this group.
1 - You have an indirect association with this group. You know (or knew) somebody who was in it, and probably know a little bit about it.
2 - You are a member of this group, and meet with other members quite often. You know a fair bit about the group and it's members.
3 - You are a core or founder member of this group. You know all there is to know about this group.
The main character groups will form the starting basis of the game. Each group will meet up somewhere and will have things to talk about. Everyone will start in the public group that they have the highest association to, although I fully expect some people to move between groups from time to time.
The public groups are not completely defined yet, and the amount of information you get depends on how many points you put in, but as a guide:
The Witnesses - these guys are an informal group who have all come together because of having seen things that can't be talked about - either because nobody believes you, or because you're scared of what will happen if you do. Along the way, the members of this group have learned a bit about magic and the occult underground as a result of their investigations into the things they have witnessed. Essentially, this group is a support group who also investigate what their members have seen.
Those Left Behind - these guys are a slightly more organised group who have all come together either because people significant to them have vanished in unusual or mysterious circumstances, because they became aware of somebody mysterious who cannot be found, or because they are supporting those who have lost people in such circumstances. Along the way, they've learned a bit about the occult underground and magic, as these seem to be common elements in several disappearances. Essentially, this group started as a pressure group trying to force further investigation into disappearances, but due to pressure have found that the attention this brings is undesireable, and so investigate for themselves, hoping to one day announce their completed findings and exert pressure accordingly.
3) Help you get involved
My intention with the game is to make it as immersive as possible, and this means that I want everyone to get involved. If you're new to UA (or LARP in general), don't worry. I'll help get you involved. This may be by giving you access to information that nobody else has, so they have to involved. Maybe I'll help you by giving you a strong link with a character played by an experienced player so they can lead you in a little. Or maybe I'll start you off with something that you absolutely need to talk to somebody about, so you can throw yourself in at the deep end.
4) Seed the game with some briefed characters
I'd call these guys NPCs (or GMCs, to use proper UA terminology), but they won't be. I'll give them some extra directions at the start, and some bonusses to help them on their way, but they'll essentially still be players. After I've given them their extras and made them aware of their relevant plot information, I relinquish all control. They're free agents.
How does this help you get involved? They may know things about your character that others don't know... Perhaps even that you don't know. They may be working at cross purposes to you and your groups, or they might actually be your boss. It's even possible that they could be a Godwalker (the highest level avatar of an archetype) or an agent of the House of Renunciation (pretty damned weird - embodiments of change or opposition, essentially). Then again, they could just be a nutter who thinks he's a duke (a significant figure in occult circles) but is really just a nobody with no more power than your average dormouse.
Who plays a briefed character will be determined by the GMs. Basically, if we have an idea for something that fits in with your character idea, we may approach you with it and offer you such a role. You then don't get to tell people about it. Nobody should know that the character you're playing has been tweaked except you and the GMs.
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no subject
2005-08-16 11:42 (UTC)Wow...this is very freaky. I've just come up with a character concept. Second one this week. Clearly something is wrong :)
*emails![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
eggwhite with ideas*
no subject
2005-08-16 11:50 (UTC)no subject
2005-08-16 11:57 (UTC)Which email address do you want stuff sent to for the moment then? Before I start filling up a mailbox you never look at? :)
no subject
2005-08-16 12:07 (UTC)no subject
2005-08-16 14:53 (UTC)no subject
2005-08-16 14:01 (UTC)no subject
2005-08-16 15:04 (UTC)The themes also work around the idea of power and consequences. If you're playing a pre-boned character then it's likely that you got that way through your own actions, or because you were in the wrong place at the wrong time, and somebody, somewhere is still waiting for the other shoe to drop before they reap the consequences of what they've done to you. Which is kind of a ready made approach to passions and obsessions.
For reference, everyone has the following passions:
Rage Passion - This is the one thing that will make you so angry that acting on that anger becomes the easier course of action. You don't have to react with anger, but it might be unwise not to and you get bonusses if you do.
Fear Passion - This is the one thing that scares you to the core - so badly that acting on that fear may well become the easiest course of action. Of course, you may be so scared that you have a fight, flight or freeze reaction instead of being able to do anything useful. As above, you don't have to act on the fear (you can surpress it, but it might be unwise not to, and you get bonusses if you do.
Noble Passion - This is the one thing that will always drive you to do the right thing. As above, you don't have to act nobly, but it might be unwise not to, and you get bonusses if you do.
Then you get your Obsession - acting in accordance with your obsession is always easier, and resisting it is often going to cause you problems.
no subject
2005-08-16 15:02 (UTC)no subject
2005-08-16 15:09 (UTC)As for general flavour, there's a downloadable PDF of the first chunk of the UA rulebook which is very much worth a look.
no subject
2005-08-16 15:12 (UTC)Having said that, it's also unlike cthulhu in that it's not hideous ancient beings from beyond time and space that are to blame for everything. It's us. Anything, good or bad, comes back to us.
no subject
2005-08-16 15:49 (UTC)no subject
2005-08-16 15:51 (UTC)no subject
2005-08-16 15:55 (UTC)no subject
2005-08-16 17:26 (UTC)no subject
2005-08-17 10:10 (UTC)