One week I got sick and didn’t post. Then there was a celebration and I didn’t post. Next I had an entertaining bus ride followed by drama at my work, and I didn’t post. So as a form of apology/an extended excuse I present to you the story of how I got stuck in a Spokane Starbucks. Schadenfreude, enjoy it.
If you ask me what my favorite fantasy series is, I probably won’t have to hesitate too long before churning out a list of 5, debating with myself as to the respective merits and flaws of each series, and ultimately saying ‘if I have to pick…no, I can’t’.
But if you ask me what my favorite sci-fi series is, especially if you ask for an epic series, there won’t be much doubt. Sure, I might hem and haw over I, Robot, and whether it qualifies as a series, and I might linger briefly on the formative nature of the Foundation series, but while I’ll stop here or there on the way, I know exactly where I will end up: Deathstalker by Simon R. Green.
Take one of my favorite writers and give him license to contribute to the phenomenally successful Honor Harrington series, and what do you get? You get Eric Flint working with David Weber on the short-stories-turned-novels, Crown of Slaves and Torch of Freedom.
Do you like space opera? How about great characters engaged in spy games and intrigue? Or maybe true badasses going up against incredible odds? All of them? Good. I’ve got some books to recommend to you.
Ultimately, campaigns, much like movies, are about your protagonists. Much as Henry said in his previous article on Screen Time, “by running a game you are agreeing to give the PCs the stage”. Of course, by ‘the stage’, he meant something akin to ‘camera time’. But not only should the camera follow them (mostly), but they should also be the movers and shakers of the universe. Of course, there are some exceptions: villains will often be stronger than PCs, especially in games with elements of horror. And there may be campaigns in which the PCs have limited agency (or are a part of events bigger than themselves). But in those cases, they should still, ultimately, be the agents of the events they ARE privy to.
When you’re playing an RPG, which characters get screen time? Where should the focus be? How can a storyteller make sure that they’re not giving their players short shrift? Finding a good balance and learning how to give your players’ characters the focus that they deserve is an art, one that requires awareness of where your attention is at any given moment.
It may seem strange to hit this topic now; I haven’t even defined what I think a game is! For now, I’m going to put that question off, but say that there are three types of games:
I thought I’d give a quick update; our weekend adventure proved to be more excitement than we could handle!
I ended up succumbing to the heat with a fever and earning a wounded knee, while Jason lies stranded in Spokane, Washington. We will return to regular posting shortly.
For those of you out there already aware of Monaco and its rave reviews, this will be very familiar. If you haven’t yet read those reviews, they’re right. At least, the ones that refer to Monaco as delightful and occasionally vindictive are. It’s a wonderful heist game that — as you keep taking — just keeps on giving. I haven’t yet finished the game, and I anticipate many more hours with it.
The Mongoliad, Book One, is the first in a series of books written by a collection of authors (Bear, Bear, Brassey, deBirmingham, Moo, Stephenson, Teppo). It is an alternate history starting in 1241 AD with brief moments of the fantastical / spiritual. They make no jokes about the devastation wrought by the Mongols, and paint a convincing portrait of medieval Europe (everything is dirty and most people are poor). It’s a quality story, with the promise of more good tales to come.
Hello readers!
This post is under my name, but really, it comes from all of us here at Fistful of Wits! How can I say that? Because Henry and Jason are in town! We’re here to help some old college friends celebrate the completion of their theses and their imminent graduation, but while we’re here, it’s time for a little bit of collaboration! So here’s a sneak preview of what you can expect to see next week!
Next week, we’re going to be focusing a lot on the idea of games as cinematography, through discussions of narrative tools such as ‘cameras’, ‘focus’, schticks, and more. I also hope to put out my first short story! There also might be a first recorded RPG going up; if not, maybe just snippets of one. And finally, select clips from our first few planning sessions (over Skype)!
But expect next week to be spotty as we recover from our revelry.
