The Roleplay Workshop
December '05
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Happy Holidays! Winter Holiday Sessions Check the Holiday ‘live update’ enrollment! A
Special Note to Kids in Steve’s
Groups: Call (510) 654-3582 or email becky@roleplay-workshop.com to reserve your Winter Break space today! Reviving an Old Tradition Upcoming Potluck
dates are: Dr Comics closes
at 6:30 pm on our Potluck evenings, be sure to arrive before then! Steve Kani A Window Into the World of a Game Master For me, preparation is key. Part of every day of my life is spent thinking about where I want my story to go and what I want to show the players - even how I want things to end. We at the Roleplay Workshop have the additional responsibility of making sure we provide the kids opportunities to face moral quandaries and make difficult decisions. I have to take copious notes on what is happening during an adventure. I take these notes home and contemplate new twists for the story. By necessity, I have become a pack rat of ideas. Everything I see, hear and read could potentially be used in some way in my games. I am always on the lookout for interesting story ideas and hooks. Running the actual game presents it’s own set of challenges. It requires more than good preparation to be a good game master. I have to describe things and situations in vibrant detail. The players must feel like they are right there seeing, feeling and hearing what their characters are seeing, feeling and hearing. I have to take on the roles of characters they meet in the game and act and speak like those characters. For me, the measure of a good game master is how well they immerse the players in their story. It is not unlike getting caught up in a good book or movie. But that is really only half the story. The game master acts as a guide, referee and moderator. He or she describes places and events, people the characters meet and provides a framework of a story. The players (as their characters) then decide for themselves what to do and how to respond to various situations. It is this shared experience of storytelling between the game master and the players that makes roleplaying gaming so unique. Steve Mondays Tuesdays Becky Thomas We did get in one good solid day of adventure however: Our party is prepared to head south after Totuk’s missing parents. Clues have suggested that her parent’s left with two business men for a sanctuary south of Wayside. Heading south, our adventurers were alert for dangers from the wilderness... but not watching for people following them (remember the mysterious Baluud/Wa’la man?). They stopped at several farms to see if anyone remembered seeing a wagon and five people heading south. Unfortunately, as there were many groups of people heading south during the worst of the storms, no one was able to specifically identify Totuk’s family and the businessmen. After traveling for a full day, nearly 30 miles, they are nearing the end of the road. None of the farmsteads recall the Aburai’s. However, the winery where the party has stopped for the night say that there is an abandoned ‘estate’ at then end of the road. It has been abandoned for over 100 years. Perhaps that is the ‘safe’ place the businessmen took the Aburais..... Steve
Kani
One of the characters decided to buy a map. The map showed various landmarks including inns and taverns. The players devised a simple plan: They would go to some of the inns on the map and ask around if anyone had seen the individuals they were looking for. This eventually brought them to the Dandelion Hill Inn. There they discovered that four of the mysterious visitors were staying there: a Baluud, a Wa’la, and two Sakeets. They took the opportunity to investigate the rooms and gather some information. The innkeeper rushed off all of a sudden. Thinking that he was going to warn the four people, they moved to stop him. One of the Plajets used a red rod that, with an invisible force, grabbed a hot dog cart and emptied it on the innkeeper. She then subdued him with a large spoon. It turns out that he needed to get home to his pregnant wife. Embarrassed, they tried to figure out their next move. At that moment, Os’Plajet called them and told them to go to the temple. They hurried over and found themselves face to face with some strangers that had been working for the marked Plajet Guards. Information was exchanged and the strangers left. The adventurers were left to ponder their situation. Wednesdays Becky Thomas The adventurers were lowered down using the cargo cranes. While the ship was the the missing ARA ship they were looking for, they decided to investigate the wreckage and look for survivors. They found a very excited dog on the beach. When they investigated the ship wreck, they discovered that most of the passengers were dead before the ship crashed. Further investigation revealed that some people had escaped the ship and set up a camp down the beach from the wreck. However, the camp was in tatters and the bodies of the survivors had been mostly consumed by wild pigs. All that was left was the dog. They recovered the ship’s log books. One treasure hungry party member will have nightmares for the rest of his life after he spent nearly an hour on the wreckage, rooting around in the water and the decaying bodies looking for items of value.... So, with their rescued dog (with more names than a cat has lives, courtesy of our Marked Feeshans), the party re-boarded the dirigible and headed onward to the next island. The competition to take care of the rescued dog has gotten very fierce. But the party members are discovering that it might not be all that good, as the first person to spend the night with the dog was exhausted in the morning. Nothing more than canine exuberance, they’re sure. But on the second night, two of the party members have woken to some strange thumping sounds! What could be happening? Thursdays Becky Thomas The party then spoke with the surviving arena fighters. Their stories and reactions to the their imprisonment were diverse and confusing. Some pieces matched, however. One or more of the people involved may be Marked (or ex-Marked) Sakeet. All of the warriors reported strange visits, which they thought were merely hallucinations, by a small Baluudian girl who visited their cells and asked for their help, to which they comforted her, and then woke in the morning convinced it was just a dream. The owners of the arena were a Sakeet man, Pham Ta, and a ‘Mr. M’. Mr. M. has a child - a girl. The party then investigated the warehouse of the Baluud man who bought the safe. The company’s name is: Madry Imports, and the warehouse is currently being used to house refugees from Tabur. Could this be the same Baluud as ‘Mr. M.’? Their next step: question the ARA staff member in charge of the warehouse to find the owner. What will happen next? Friday Becky Thomas Finally, the party got themselves and their gear organized and set off for the farmland. With two large wagons and tons of gear, they were not traveling very fast. All was going well, until the most alert members of the party noticed a rumbling coming from the savannah and saw a hugh cloud of dust on the horizon. Fearing the worst, the party prepared themselves. What wicked thing comes this way? Steve Kani
The party spent the rest of the afternoon and evening planning and equipping themselves. They even obtained a wagon that the Sakeet could pull. A few of the party members scouted out the warehouse. That evening they headed for the warehouse. They decided to go outside the city wall and sneak into the warehouse from the back. Along the way, they were accosted by street urchins. The party wandered around the slums outside the wall trying to lose the street urchins. Eventually, they decided to let the street urchins follow them. Finally, they reached the section of city wall near the warehouse. Will this go as planned? Rayna Levine & Sam
Power Saturday
(1st & 3rd) We have two groups and have space for up to 8 more students. Becky Thomas With their four heavy wagons full of gear, travel was slow but steady. When they arrived at the last Inn Town before the resort, they encountered an all too common problem in these post-Dark Ages times - a group of adventurers with a nearly unreasonable hatred of all things Amethyst. This included the party, as they are members of the ARA, and everyone knows that the ARA are ‘Amethyst hybrid loving monsters’. Words were exchanged, but the party managed to avoid a fight and prepared to leave in the morning. As they were leaving the Inn Town, it quickly became apparent that all had not been forgotten! The party came under a hail of crossbow fire! The four adventurers from last night were attacking the party! While some of the party members dove to safety, others charged their opponents... hopefully learning the folly of charging directly at someone shooting a crossbow, as they were shot and taken out of the fight. In quick succession, one, two and then four of them went down... what will the fate of the remaining three be? Tune in next month! Steve Kani
That evening, they headed out through the western gates and along the outside of the wall to the city. The warehouse was near the wall of the city so they thought it might be easier to sneak in from the back. As they traveled through the slums outside of Century Point, a street urchin began following them. They tried unsuccessfully to send her away, and before they knew it she was climbing over the wall with them. This was definitely not part of the plan. Tuli had a little trouble deactivating the alarm on the door and the guards inside were alerted to their presence. There was a mad scramble as everyone tried to get back over the wall. After things had calmed down a bit, a second daring attempt was made. The second attempt was successful. The party escaped out the back of the warehouse with the large heavy crate. They wrapped the crate in their dark cloaks and, with the Baluud sitting on top, carried it though the streets. Their story was that the Baluud was an honored guest visiting the Century Point. They managed to convince the warehouse guards of this and escaped, eventually delivering the crate and it’s contents to Tuli at the Black Arrow. Along the way, the Wa’la surreptitiously scanned the contents of the box with his multi-scanner. It read simply, “Proscribed items. Please bring to the nearest Mages Guild. ...they are a long way from the nearest Mages Guild... Saturday
(2nd & 4th) We currently have one group of students and one group of assistants we have space for up to 9 more students. Becky
Thomas Ashton
Saylor The mine was in Marked Wa'la territory, and when they crossed the border, they were watched by tall, silent figures, their Wa'la cloaks fluttering in the wind. When approached, the Wa'la vanished. Finally, they found the remains of the missing caravans- the wagons were tipped over and there were bodies everywhere. Not only were the gems missing, but one of the two Kusoni brothers managing the mine was dead among the wreckage. Furthermore, it appeared that arrows from the distinctive Marked Wa'la longbows remained in the bodies of the fallen caravan guards. The adventurers followed the tracks back to the mine, where they told the other Kusoni brother what had happened, and got a tour of the mines to look for clues. Finding nothing, they went back to the caravan site to bury the bodies, bringing with them a Wa'la translator. While cleaning up, the adventurers noticed two curious things: first, the wounds that killed the caravaneers all seemed to be made by bladed weapons, which the Marked Wa'la never use, second, the Marked Wa'la long-arrows seemed to not be buried as deeply in the fallen warriors as they should be- almost as if they were stuck there by hand after the battle! The adventurers gritted their teeth and set out into the desert with their Wa'la translator to find out the truth. A conference with the local village of Marked Wa'la confirmed their suspicions. One of the Marked Wa'la wilderness scouts had seen a group of Plajet bandits attack the caravan, and make off with the gems! The adventurers rushed back to Desolation to tell Madame Kusoni the results of their findings... Madame Kusoni was pleased with the progress the adventurers had made, but the job wasn't over yet. With a few questions to the Dockmaster, the adventurers discovered that a ship full of disreputable looking Plajets with a strange, secret cargo was about to set sail! They told Madame Kusoni, who called in a few favors and had the ship detained. An investigation quickly proved the allegations true, the Plajets had the Kusoni gems! The Plajets were routed by Madame Kusoni's followers (hardly more savory looking than the bandits) and the ship was taken into custody by the Guards guild. The adventurers were thanked for a job well done, and richly rewarded by the strong and beautiful Madame Kusoni.
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