Werewolf: The Forsaken - Blank It

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Chapter IV: Storytelling and Antagonists
had planned and allow you to build a more
interesting plot off the back of it. One very good
reason for refusing an Offer is that the player
making it is very obviously taking advantage of
this flexibility to stack things in his favor. The
idea of an Offer is to add color and variety to
the setting, and to give the players a stake in
developing their own territory, not to act as a
deus ex machina where the players randomly
drop in setting elements to aid themselves. It
takes a little while to get a feel for which Offers
you should accept and which you should refuse,
so it’s better to err on the side of caution if
you’re new to Storytelling.
Storytelling is at its most enjoyable when it’s a collaborative
process. Both you and the players are telling
the story, but only they are playing their characters
constantly as well. Listen carefully to what your players
suggest as they discuss what’s going on. It’s possible that
they’ll come up with a far better explanation of what’s
going on than you did. If that’s the case, jettison your
original thoughts and work with the new plot elements
that the players have inadvertently added to the mix.
They need never know that you’ve done it. The result
is a player who thinks she’s been clever enough to work
out your plot, and a group that has a new respect for your
plot-writing skills. Don’t rely on this method, though. If
the players feel that they can always guess which way the
plot’s going, they’re going to lose interest in the chronicle
pretty quickly.
Flexibility is your watchword at all times. If you can
think on your feet, come up with new ideas on the fly and
adapt what you’ve got to changing circumstances, you’ll
make a fine Storyteller. It sounds intimidating at first, but
remember that this is a Storytelling game. The idea is for
everyone to have fun, including yourself. You can take the
pressure off when you need it in some pretty simple ways,
the foremost of which is by taking time out.
TAKING TIME OUT
One really crucial thing to remember is that, if you
need a break, take it. Storytelling games are meant to
be fun. A stressed-out, uncertain Storyteller can rob the
game of enjoyment for both herself and the other players.
Don’t be afraid to ask your players for a 10-minute hiatus
to figure out the details of a particular location, character
or twist in the plot. Get the players to grab some drinks,
order in a pizza or just play some computer games for as
long as you need to get everything in order. Then start the
session once you’re confidently on top of everything.
The Storyteller who can run five- or six-hour games
without breaks, time out and general banter doesn’t exist.
Sometimes it’s better to draw a clear line between the
banter time and the game time by calling a full time-out.
It’s somewhere between an ad break in a TV show, giving
you the chance to fetch a coffee and go to the toilet, and
a time-out in a sports game, giving the referee time to
sort everything out so that the game flows smoothly when
it resumes. You never know, your players might enjoy it
too. Staying in character can be quite draining at times,
especially if the story has become extremely intense. If
your players are starting to break character frequently and
swapping out-of-character banter, it’s probably time to give
everyone a quick break.
Don’t be afraid to put the game on hiatus for a few
weeks, either. If you need a break from running the chronicle,
take it. It’s far better to give your players a few weeks
off and come back refreshed, than it is to bleed fun out of
the game by running sessions where you’re not enthused
or prepared. They’ll thank you for it in the end.
TAKING NOTES
We’ve already established that there’s no need to
detail every single element of the setting in advance and
that the environment is likely to develop through the
course of the game. Many players have a very sharp eye
and a good memory for continuity. If you establish the
length of time it takes to get from the pack’s meeting
shack deep in the woods to the local lake as three hours,
but then you say a few sessions later that it’s half a day’s
walk away, they’re going to pick up on the discrepancy.
If they point it out or worry about it, your suspension of
disbelief is gone and the mood of the session lost.
This is one Storytelling trap that’s easily avoided by doing
two things: taking notes then writing them up afterward.
Taking copious notes during a session is a vital skill for a
Storyteller. It’s inevitable that whatever you forget to note
down is exactly what the players will remember and call you
on in a future session. You need to make notes of new characters,
or new details about old ones, new locations, changes
to locations or anything that has a permanent effect on the
game environment and which could possibly recur in a future
game session. You can either use the traditional methods of
noting the information or use a computer. Many Storytellers
use file cards, hardbound notebooks or loose-leaf files to keep
information about their games. An individual page or card
is used for all the information about a particular character,
organization or location, and is updated from the Storyteller’s
notes between sessions. A laptop or PDA can be used in a
similar manner, but some people find them less convenient to
use during a game session.
In particular, it’s worth making notes of any new details
of the pack’s territory. You’ll want to add those details
to the overall map of the area later on, but it’s probably
too time-consuming to do so during a session. If you have
access to a computer, map-making software is invaluable.
There’s software available on most platforms specifically
designed for roleplaying games that can make your life
considerably easier. Otherwise, good old graph paper
works fine, giving you ready-made grid lines for whatever
scale of map you choose to make.