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Eyo friendos! I'm thinking of running a table top oWoD game for some buddies, a thing I have never done and barely participated in. Those of you who do or have done TT, what advice would you give a rookie ST? The game will be Werewolf because it is my favorite and I miss it.
Hey! My first thought is to have a vague idea of what you're doing and, most inportantly, how long you plan on running. Having an end time in mind keeps from having campaigns that go oooooon and oooooon forever and keep you from jumping the shark
I don't run too often irl or online, but I've seen a lot of TT games... The biggest challenge that I've seen is that people are used to playing games to "win" them. Even if they have other TT experience, they might come into it with that mindset, and it's a tough one to break. People who are determined to win games get frustrated when they can't make a broken character, or can't advance in power quickly, or the rules (and ST decisions) get in the way. The thing to emphasize is that the point of these games is to create a good story first and foremost. The rules are there to facilitate that, not necessarily to facilitate fair play. They need to be able to trust that your decisions are going to end up crafting a memorable and fun adventure, with the journey being far more important than the destination.

It's easier to emphasize story in text-based RP, because we're literally writing. It's a lot harder when you're surrounded by the trappings of a game (physical dice, a table, snacks, w/e).
Whoosh! Sorry for the mega delay, I just got all moved into a new place but have been having trouble getting internet set up, as well as dumb phone issues. These are good points that I'll keep in mind as I attempt to hobble together a campaign.

I think my first step after I see who I can wrangle is to throw down a oneshot so that we all get a little experience under our belts and figure out what we're doing, since I think all of us will be newbs to TT Werewolf. Then figure out a storyline after that. It'll be interesting if I need to shoot down people's ideas for dumb OP characters, but may be easier to curb by starting everyone off as starter-Cliaths (basically, by-the-book character creation).

And, well, online vs. TT game is naturally going to be way different. Online, to me, has been collective storytelling augmented with dice. TT has more emphasis on the fact that it IS a game, and the point is to win somehow, even if a lot of losing (and loss of characters) has to happen to get to the end, and the story happens along the way. I'll definitely be making heavy use of the golden rule of roleplaying, which is that the rules are guidelines but should be adjusted for the game and players involved.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to the challenge/change of pace! And getting to RP at all again. Smile
In table top you have way more leeway to be Big Damn Heroes, and don't be afraid to let them fail HORRIBLY. It is always a game, first and foremost, and be sure to give everyone the opportunity to feel cool. Youre good at that, so it should be fine
I hope everyone gets to feel cool at least once while I kill all of their hopes and dreams MUWAHAHAHAHAHA (and then let them come back for some kind of epic triumph *handwave*)