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Joining the Game as a New Player

Page history last edited by TC STs 9 months, 1 week ago

So you're interested in joining our group? That's great! We've had a lot of fun over the years, and we hope you can be a part of the fun to come. This page will guide you through topics of interest to a new player.

 


Before You Play

There are a few things you should look into prior to becoming a player of the game.

 

  • The Twin Cities Last Stand staff would encourage players wishing to play a "Race-Bending" of character concepts not similar to their own background that they do proper research of the culture you want to play.
  • The Twin Cities Last Stand game is an open and inclusive environment. Where the books were written for the setting back in the 80's and 90's some things the books says are not how OWBN portrays them nor is that something we as a staff would do.  (IE Transgender werewolves exist. Transwoman are are accepted by Pegasus according to OWBN.)

 

Rules on housing a character in our game if you can not play in person or you have a shelved character.

 

Rules of Conduct

The game maintains some basic rules of conduct by which all players are expected to abide. We have our rules for safety and interaction: Basic LARP conduct and our rules for respect and inclusion: Code of Conduct. We also want all players to feel safe and free from Sexual Harassment.

 

Get a Feel for the Game

If you still need a better sense of how the game works, you're welcome to simply hang back and observe for a while. Drop by our next scheduled game and introduce yourself as an interested observer. We'll give you a nametag that identifies you as such. You can hang out, watch, and ask questions.

 

Get to Know the World of Werewolf: the Apocalypse

The game is set in a dark mirror of our own modern world, one that includes werewolves fighting a secret war to save some part of the Earth from its destined destruction. You may find it helpful to learn a little bit about this setting before you actually begin play. Spend time with a current player and ask them questions. This is known as a "World of Darkness". This is a mature game that involves themes aimed at an adult audience.

 

But you don't have to learn the setting first, since it's so similar to our own -- until you turn into a werewolf, that is. You can learn on your feet once you create a character.

 

Design a Character

Here's where the fun really starts. Whenever you're ready, sit down with a friend or helpful stranger in the game and put together a new character. It begins with your imagination -- you need to come up with a concept.

 

Concept

Consider the type of character you want to play. If you're brand-new to role-playing, perhaps you're a person who has just learned they are a werewolf (a "cub"). If you're more familiar with Werewolf: the Apocalypse, maybe you've been a werewolf for a little while already (a "cliath").  What personality will you have? Where did you grow up? Do you have family? Do you attend school? Do you hold a job?

 

Keep in mind that as a werewolf, you've probably never had an entirely normal life, even before you discovered what you are. All your life, ordinary humans have unconsciously sensed the predator inside you, and treated you a bit differently. You've also been haunted all your life by the sense that there is more to the world somehow, something just beyond what you can see; or the sense that something is broken, it makes you angry, and it needs to be fixed.

 

The First Change

Most werewolves Change shortly after their bodies mature into adulthood -- meaning many werewolves are still teenagers. But more and more in these desperate days, werewolves are changing later in life, well into adulthood. In such cases, adult werewolves tend to have lead unexciting or sheltered lives before their Change, up until something extraordinary triggers the transformation.

 

A traumatic event catalyzes your Change -- something involving anger, violence, humiliation, or desperation. Shifting into a nine-foot tall killing machine, you lose control and lay waste to whomever is around you, friend and foe alike.

 

Your Character Sheet

You will record your new character by filling out a blank character sheet we provide you. Having trouble understanding the sheet? Check out this example.

 

Follow these instructions to build a new werewolf to play in our game.

 

Once you've prepared a sheet, take it to the Storytellers and explain your ideas to them. They may ask for clarification or suggest things you could change.

 

Once the Storytellers approve, you can bring your sheet into the game and begin playing. Remember to give us a copy of your character sheet -- either before you start play or at the end of your first game. We'll record it in our character database and print you a fresh copy every time you attend.

 

Entering the Game

There's no one way to begin playing. Ask a Storyteller for help introducing your character into the game. Perhaps you'll role-play through the immediate aftermath of your First Change. Maybe you'll arrive on the Sept with a diplomatic mission to fulfill. Maybe you've received a vision and you need the Sept's help to understand it.

 

In any case, work with the Storytellers and the other players, and they'll be glad to help insert you into the action.

 

Learn the Rules

Start by learning the basics -- Traits, Challenges, and Retests. That will tell you how to use most of what's written on your character sheet. Brush up on some examples of common challenges.

 

Then you can dive deeper. Look up what each of your Gifts does. Learn the sequence of steps for Combat. This website catalogs the full rules of the game, so keep coming back when you need to understand how things work.

 

A Caveat

The rules system is vast and complex. It was not centrally designed, but rather built up by cobbling together books published by different authors and design teams, and then our game patched up parts where it made sense to us. For this reason, even the Storytellers who run the game don't always remember the rules perfectly or interpret them identically. Be flexible with your understanding. If you have any problem with understanding the rules or you disagree with how a Storyteller says they work, be patient -- wait until a Storyteller has a free moment, then raise your questions or concerns with them.

 

Get Connected

Visit the game's Contact Information page to connect yourself to the people who make the game happen. Of particular importance is the tcgarou+subscribe@googlegroups.com. Subscribe to this list in order to receive news and updates about the game. You can also ask the other players questions over the list, and even engage in online role-playing.

 

We have a discord which is linked here.

 

Our game schedule page tells you when and where we meet each month.

 

Downtimes and Experience

Lastly, your character can accomplish things between gaming sessions by sending e-mails to the Storytellers a week before the game. This is called sending in Downtimes. Similarly, between games your character can grow and learn by spending experience in a separate e-mail.

 

 

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