You know that moment during session one where the GM asks the players to introduce themselves? How can I make that cool and fitting for BitD? What questions should I have the PCs thinking about before they even speak directly to the Camera?
I just want to avoid the, “I’m a dude and a Leech and my special ability is being creepy”
Ideas?
That’s what Background and contacts are for.
Ask questions you’re interested in. “How did you all meet?” “Why aren’t you in the military anymore?” “Why is Mercy your rival?”
But remember that the players mightbnot have detailed answers to those questions yet. Blades character creation is very quick. There are just a few prompts, and if you’ve got a detailed backstory that ties those prompts together, that’s great, but it’s just as valid to play off the prompts alone and give them detail through play.
What I love about blade is that “that’s dark secret and we will play to find out” is a valid answer to some of the questions, like “Why is your face covered with scars?” or “Why are the Spirit Wardens your enemies?”. As a player you may only know that you want to play in that direction but you don’t need a cool answer yet. Especially if one of your fellow PCs starts to add something to that story, too. So, as Thomas Berton said: The player may not have an answer to all of the questions but that is not a bad thing.
Start in a prison and ask them what they’re all in for?
Man, that’s a really good idea, James Etheridge
I recommend, in most RPGs but Blades especially, not detailing much character bakground. It’s potentially wasted energy (you may not use it) or you’re beholden to a fiction that may not work in the future.
You could try to start things in media res with the crew already on a job. Quickly establish the bare bones (type of score, detail) then ask each player what their character is doing. In my head it looks a lot like the opening bank robbery in The Dark Knight (minus the crew shooting each other). Gives each player a chance to show off what’s cool about their character.
Stefan Struck I like that response!
Last time I started a new campaign; after the ordinary descriptions and short introductions, I asked my players to tell us one thing about their character, the other characters didn’t know. Worked well.
For the Pathfinder game, I started the game like this: “You are in line for your turn under the guillotine. What did you do?”
Jordan Kolbeck Collective storytelling is so much better as from one person alone… if you have the players who are willing to go with it. Maybe tell the players up front that this is ok and you want that from them. Have fun! 🙂
In the gangs one-shot structure, one step is to have the players describe to each other how the character WANTS to be seen by peers. This little step introduces an unreliable narrator, so the player can toy with the distance a bit; by showing how the character wants to be seen, that can reveal both strengths and insecurities, and it’s brief. (That’s an advantage for me, as my style is to want to get the characters stuck in as quickly as is reasonable.)
Spotlight preludes. Let other players play NPCs in each other’s scenes. Everyone loves to portray how they joined the crew, and can establish pre existing relationships in relative narrative safety. In other PBTA-ish games, I’ve sometimes devoted an hour or more to a single player’s prelude with others filling in the supporting cast. Yes, I’m one of those awful fascist GMs that “run” a game and impose creative structure. I’ve had few complaints. 😉
Best method I think I saw in a Blades in the Dark podcast: The scene is set up by the character hose scene it is, but the approach is controlled by the recruiter. Roleplaying ensues.
So much better than “You have joined a cult…why?”
I went with the ‘uncertain narrator’ for the character introductions. I asked, “What do they want to be seen as?” Then in session 2, I asked the same question – to see if it had changed.