I've had to change tacks with this new "group" - hey, two's a "gang," isn't it?
The first time we played, the sheer possibilities overwhelmed them; when left to their own devices, they had no clue as to where to go, what to do, what was expected of them, etc. While more experienced players would instantly head for the tavern, market, or the ruins on the outside of town, my players just looked at me blankly...
In Mixed Company
D&D is one of those games best left unplayed in "mixed company." Now, there are Gamers and there are people who play roleplaying games, and we've run them down before; what I mean here is that D&D is not one of those games people unfamiliar with roleplaying, roleplaying games, and the associated concepts, "take-to" well without significant preparation.
You literally have to pull certain people aside and tell them, "Look, these people don't really think they're a band of rugged adventurers repelling swarms of orcs attacking a Dwarfen Stronghold, but... they're prolly gonna kinda seem that way at first." You know? There's very little more distracting than trying to roleplay - or just roll dice - when someone like that is in the room.
First of all, it makes you feel self-conscious and that is probably the greatest bane to enjoying roleplaying and RPGs, in general. When someone who doesn't "get" gaming is staring at you with a curled lip, it makes it damned hard to pretend you're Lord Aldaron Fletcher, Noble Warrior and Heir-Apparent to the Throne of Fletcher's Hold. We experienced gamers become more reserved in our speech and movements; we drop accents and tone-down our general exuberance for gaming. Newbies shut the fuck up - fast.
In fact, many people who might otherwise enjoy tabletop gaming give-up, should a non-gamer friend or peer do that sneering thing at too early an introductory game. I have personally known a handful of people who I still believe would enjoy gaming, but for an early game which was attended by a non-gamer who either expressed disdain for the hobby, related it to "Nerdism," or chided/cajoled the newbie's roleplaying efforts. Unless and until someone becomes comfortable roleplaying - "acting-out" their character - it can be the "deal-breaker" that prevents them from joining the fun!
Roleplayer
I'm a Roleplayer - with a capital R. Some people enjoy rolling dice, canoodling with friends, challenging their math skills, or gaming the system. I enjoy getting to that point where I can completely forget about everything in my life and be consumed with everything in the character's. I can literally suspend my disbelief to the point that I can almost smell the clean air, taste the heather, and see the plains rolling out before me... unless there is some impedance(s) - such as a non-gamer with That Face.
I keep extensive records, albeit haphazardly, and generally know everything about my character one would know of one's self and one's own life. So I forgot to record the fact that I placed the gem in my backpack before my horse sailed off without me - I stay in-character so often that you have no reason to question anything else I did. Meaning to say that, unless the DM is an asshole (and/or a Gamer), the little slip-ups are more than covered by the extent to which I roleplay - if I say the gem was in my backpack, it was, and you'll know it because I am the type who would honestly admit it if it weren't. After all, as a player, I see the possibility for adventure if the gem had been lost, so I'm "game," either way.
Some people do not like Roleplayers, and I not only get that, I appreciate it. If I'm in a game in which most of the players would rather go with another style, I politely adapt my playing to fit the group's. I'll still do the character's accent when he's called upon to talk, I just won't say as much. And that goes right down the line: if I'm gaming with a bunch of "roll-players" - that is, guys more interested in wargaming than roleplaying - I won't bother trying to spark-up an animated conversation with the post guard; I'll adopt a "when in Rome" tack and kill him outright, without provocation or reason.
Okay, so I'm poking fun, but the point remains: as a player, I adapt my style to the group's. Sometimes, I find my Roleplaying style infectious - particularly in a group which has grown stale or is simply new to me - so it all works-out over the course of my interest in the hobby. Because that's exactly what it's all about: enjoying yourself, enjoying gaming, enjoying RPG.
A Strange Interlude
This all was longer than anticipated (at least in this small window), so I'll actually get to the "Preparation" and "New Approach" - you know, the stuff in the title, as in what this post was supposed to be about - in a second post.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
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