Open Letter to the Troupe

Charlotte,

The biggest stumbling block I have is your insistence on seeing any change brought onto your characters from another player as 'douchieness', and your inability to accept any other motivation that could cause such an action. There are plenty of great places to enjoy that sort of storytelling, but a game like Wyld Prophets, where multiple narratives come together to to form a sort of collaborative super-story, is not one of them. You want editorial control over your characters. I can respect that. However, you cannot expect your editorial control to extend beyond your part of your narrative. The rules exist to determine what happens when these narrative lines come into conflict, and the players agree to abide by those rules.

Everything else you've said here feels like preemptive vengeance, promised for anyone who might go against your wishes in this, and your attempts to justify (to yourself and to us) these promises as righteous.

Morality is a red herring. It is a question of collaboration. Come to game to play, to tell story, with us....

Charlotte,

I think that whatever world or genre you are playing in, taking things personally that happen to your character is never a good line. I will admit that I have gotten frustrated or angry about things that have happened with my characters and can understand that portion. But they are characters in a story that no matter how entrenched you get in the character they should not be you. You are your own person. If I were to have a problem with you I would talk to you about it. In character, any problems that I have with your character, I bring them to you in the form that my character would take. No matter that IC outcome, I would not be affronting you. To play in any world or genre, there is going to be characters who do not align with what your character wants, strives for, or even wants to understand. It happens with every character. Sven has had many different reactions to what he is and does and I never take them personally because in the end, he is a sheet with a concept. To roleplay is to bring the character to life, but it is only with in those boundaries of game/roleplay. I feel that if you are unhappy with the story your character is getting then you should perhaps shelve the character, transfer to another chronicle where you think your story/interactions will be more fruitful or just retire the character. Understand please that I am not saying this with the intent of being mean, I just after reading what you have written and the responses from other people now see that you are making it clear that no matter what kind of character or genre you play in, you will not truly accept that some characters and/or players are not going to want what you want storywise. You may not agree with what I am saying and I would respect that, but this is how I feel after all this and I hope that I have conveyed my opinion clear enough to be understood.

OK, this actually good! Let me explain.

1. If I conflated Soren with Paul, I wouldn't talk to him at all. Snarl, maybe, talk, no. Like I said, I like Dave from CiD, but I would not rest till I offed Trey MacArthur. This would have nothing to do with Dave, but it would have everything to do with Trey. I DO make that difference. I still can't imagine it going well. And after reading Mark's thing, I need to be clear, I will take affront to the PC, not the player. I think it was disgusting how players would roll characters based on the player's past behavior. That's beyond the pale. But enmity with an evil PC I consider very, very appropriate.

2. Is going after PCs that try to kill my PCs Vengeful, cruel, and hurtful? Perhaps, perhaps not. See....morality without consequence is not morality. It's ninniness. And I am no ninny. There must be real and significant consequences for moral breeches. It's not that I have a moral objection to someone playing a douchebag, my issue, and it has come up in other troupes, is that if your PC acts like a douche, don't complain when he suffers the full weight of my wrath for it. I had no problem with the player of the elf that shot at my half-orc, when he shot at her. What I did have a problem with is him being a little bitch about it when she popped out her crossbow and almost killed him for it.

3. Motivations ARE complex, and there's many many inherently logical and thoroughly consistent IC reasons for one being a douchebag. It doesn't make the behavior any less douchey. Morality is complex, it is not however ambiguous. In the end, right is right and wrong is wrong, and the guilty will suffer for their sins.

4. It terrifies you guys that I might turn into the Karma Fairy. That's a real good thing! I don't want to play the Karma Fairy. There are things I would rather do. So I'm telling you how to make sure I never, ever, ever turn into the Karma Fairy. All I'm asking is that you don't roll my character. Drag'em to the Mound, leave em bleeding, take their fetishes, take their rank, just don't kill them. I'm not asking for a lot, and I will never abuse it.

I'm going to try to be as inoffensive as possible when responding to this.

To begin with, I think you missed Paul's point. He was saying that larping is a collaborative exercise where all characters are antagonists and all players need to find a common middle ground to meet. You have a very firm hold on where you stand in terms of what you expect and while that's commendable, it is universally far from the middle ground.

Point missed or no, I feel that you used a lot of angry, threatening language in your previous statement. No matter what your reasons that kind of response to anyone trying to enter into a dialogue with you smacks of inappropriateness. You asked for a conversation, you asked for advice but I don't feel you were prepared to hear anything other than "I understand, I'll do things your way."

You are asking for your PC to be denied the consequences that every other PC in the game has to live with. Worse, I feel that you are holding up your anger as a valid reason for why your PC should avoid these consequences. In reading the things you have to say today, I have to agree with Susan. My best suggestion is to re-examine your decision to continue playing and to look instead for a table top game that can be more accommodating.

Hello!

I am going to ask a few questions. It might be simpleminded, but I want to make sure we are on the same page.

If, let us say, Alyosha were to kill Amanda (purely hypothetical, of course):
1) Would Charlotte be OK with Chris?
2) Would Charlotte be psychologically stable afterwards?
3) Would you be able to tell the difference between Chris' actions and the PC Alyosha's action?

I do not mean to be offensive or simplemided, I just want to make sure we are clear here?

- Chris

1. Yes, Charlotte would be OK with Chris

2. Charlotte would be upset, severely, but stable, yes.

3. Yes, yes I would. I do make that distinction, I want that to be exceedingly clear.

You cannot ask ooc for others to change a characters reaction to what your character does. If your character offends another character and there drive to treat it as a killable offense then you are meta gaming your survival by asking for that in my opinion. If there is a legitimate ooc concern about a player having issues with you then you can talk to the staff. As for your characters concern, there are IC paths to deal with it IC. If there is a continued possiblity of character death, then your character needs to deal with it in character. And again, not wanting to sound mean, but if you don't believe that you can handle those consequences I would suggest as mentioned another genre or game as these situations do occur and can end with the loss of a character. I believe you see the distinction, but your responses seem to indicate not really wanting to accept that distinction fully.

I don't think any amount of discussion will resolve whats happening in this thread. I know the ST's are reading and I leave it in their capable hands.

I'm outta here.... WHOOOSH!!~!

To Wit: Amanda Miller and any other character I bring to play is under my protection. If any PC that maims or kills my characters, whether they be PC or NPC, I will take this as a personal affront, and I will not be pleasant in dealing with the aftermath. Anything less that that is water under the bridge. I have responsibilities to my characters, and none of them are going to die for your jollies.

Please anticipate this getting tried at my next earliest convenience. I have no fear of being that guy.

Justin, I think we just found a purpose for the American Dream pack.

I'm of the opinion that this thread has gone on long enough. For those who sincerely kept it polite and constructive, my thanks to you.

For the rest? Let's do better next time. If there's a next time.

Well....I was gonna add something...but I think this has gone far enough too.

Adding something will not be necessary.

I am leaving the troupe. It is very important that I stress I do so without rancor. Some sour grapes, but that comes with any end.

Look, you guys have been a blast to play with, and I truly have had a lot of fun with you all, but in the end, you are not willing to respect my needs as a player, and conversely, I'm not willing to respect yours when it involves violating my boundaries.

Playing in One World By Night has been difficult even in the best of times, but it's also been a crucible of philosophic, aesthetic, and even religious growth. You guys helped me bring two great characters to life. I will treasure that. But I need to move on.

As of this moment, Amanda Miller is retired, went off in good standing to another Caern to find herself, and to live a little before going gung ho again into the maul of the Wyrm.

Thank you for everything,
Charlotte Wolery

Happy trails to you.

Thank you for sharing your story with us.

Bai Bai

Good luck!