RPGaDay 2023 #10-13

And on we go, into the middle of the month.

#10 Favourite tie-in fiction

I don’t read tie-in fiction, so I don’t have a favourite.

I also don’t read other types of tie-in fiction. I’ve read a little Star Wars fiction, and a little ALIEN fiction, but I usually find them unsatisfying.

#11 The weirdest game you've played

I’m not sure how to answer this. I’m not sure what a “weird” game is – RPGs are all pretty weird. Especially when trying to explain them to my father-in-law…

So how do you play them?

Er, you sit around and talk. Each player has a character and another player plays the rest of the world and sets interesting situations for them.

And what do the different dice mean?

Er, it depends on the game. They’re used to make decisions or decide how much damage something does in an attack.

Is there a board?

Er, sometimes. I don’t usually have a board, but others use a map with miniatures.

And do you dress up?

You can, but I don’t. Dressing up is more common in <takes a deep breath> larping.

What’s larping?

It’s like tabletop roleplaying, but standing up. And in the woods, or a castle.

This sounds most peculiar…

And so on..

#12 Old game you still play

For me, an old game is one I was playing last century – so something like Traveller, Call of Cthulhu or Vampire: the Masquerade. I don’t currently play any of those, and even if I did, I’d use their latest ruleset.

As for boardgames, I still play Cosmic Encounter when I can (which isn’t often enough, as discussed in question 6). But again, with a modern edition.

#13 Most memorable character demise

A couple of years ago, I ran Destroyer of Worlds for ALIEN, and although I am not fond of combat in RPGs, it did create our most memorable scenes. In an assault on an insurgent compound, Captain Silva froze (panic!) while trying to make her rappelling roll—and moments later, the dropship was hit by two RPGs. The NPC android Chaplain was hit (he was piloting), and the dropship went into a spin, crashing and killing Silva (skull crushed) and disabling Chaplain (severe chassis breach--legs torn off). All in a matter of moments.

As far as a freeform goes, my most memorable character death was in Tutankhamun: Evil Under the Egyptian Sun where I played movie star (and serial murderer) Rudolph Valentino. At the end of the game, my past caught up with me and I was dragged away for execution. When it came time to be executed, I tried to escape and was shot in the back like the villain I was.