rowyn: (huggy)
[personal profile] rowyn
Oh, this was a great day. I should start from the beginning.

I got my "wake-up call" at about 10AM, when [livejournal.com profile] barbx's author, Anthony, let us know he was starting over. Anthony is an old friend of mine from when we both lived in Ohio. He lives in Florida now, about an hour's drive from John's place, and this was the first time I'd seen him in around nine years. (!)

Of course, [livejournal.com profile] koogrr had already been awake for hours by the time he got the call, being an Orlando native who doesn't need sleep. But I was somewhat groggy that morning, since I'm not native to Orlando and do need sleep, and hadn't slept very well in an unfamiliar place (not to mention staying up rather late). Anthony got there around 11AM, and the three of us sat around talking. Anthony showed me his PDA and fold-out keyboard, with which I attempted the post last Saturday. I think I'd still rather have a laptop* with a good keyboard, as the PDA wasn't well suited to typing on my lap (as I usually do). We considered watching "The Cat Returns", which Anthony had brought on DVD, but we only had a couple of hours before the game, so we simply talked away the time instead. I got to see pictures of Anthony's wife and baby (so cute!)

John also showed us a litle of Grand Theft Auto, which I'd never seen before and was curious about. We also went to the store to pick up some staples for the house (like Diet Coke for me) and some munchies for the game.

At about one o'clock, I drove us over to [livejournal.com profile] jordangreywolf's house for the game.

The game was awesome. I can't remmeber the last time I had so much fun at a tabletop RPG. I played Jing Li, an anthropomorphic vixen going through an identity crisis. I'm not sure I got her personality across well, but everyone else seemed happy with my performance. One cool thing is that I've been following the adventures of the characters in this RPG by reading the summary posts in [livejournal.com profile] bitzbox. So I had no trouble remembering who the other characters were, and I knew what my character had been through previously. That made it much easier to follow the game and how our current actions correlated with prior events. John's character, Kathmandu, was stuck in his "little white cat" form for the entire adventure, which meant that he had a hard time doing anything in combat. (Although his character played a critical role in the final big combat of the day, which was way cool). But the neat part about this was that my charcater, Jing Li, had a close but difficult relationship with Kathmandu, because she often felt like she wasn't so much a person as a pet, or a tagalong. Having him in stuck in his weakest form made her feel a strong sympathy for him, and Jing Li spent most of the session trying to protect him and make sure he was okay. She also got some chances to help Rose -- another character she's had the same sense of being "taken care of" by, and feels ambivalent about -- when Rose was in trouble. So the whole session, I thought, made Jing Li feel much more competent and useful than she had in the past.

The other players present were also way cool. Anthony did a great job with the NPC he was given, Captain John Scion. Scion was a newcomer to the group, but Jordan gave him a quick summary of useful information, so the rest of us had a lot of reasons to talk to him in-character, which was neat. I didn't know the other two players in the group before Saturday, but both of them were good roleplayers with quirky and interesting characters. [livejournal.com profile] moonwolf's character was fun to watch, as it seemed like she had all the non-combat skills: she'd be gleefully hacking up and repairing equipment as we got to things that didn't work, or worked in ways we didn't want them to. ("Someone get this door open!") Rose opened one door by giving it a good swift quick: beware the kicks of little girls. ;) Ferrari, the last PC, also had some good if strange lines. (On finding a robotic targeting eye among some equipment: "I want it in my head!") As a whole, the group stuck together and worked together, which was especially nice for such a large group.

Anyway, I expect there'll be a session summary up in [livejournal.com profile] bitzbox at some point, so I won't do any more of the geeky recounting of favorite session bits. (Although recapping the last conversation with Rose/Scion/Jing Li is tempting).

Jordan had tons of food for the game, including a tasty fresh-cooked stir fry and rice. :9 I ate a lot of home-cooked food this trip, which thrilled me, because usually on trips I eat out too much and all the fatty foods make me sick.

I actually had a headache and was groggy through much of the game, a fact that has largely blurred out of my mind with memories of how much fun the roleplaying was. Anthony suggested I might be dehydrated, since he has a problem with not getting enough water when traveling. So I drank a lot more water and started to feel better within an hour or two. I must remember this in the future.

The game ran from 2PM until 11PM, when Anthony had to get going or he'd be too tired to drive. John and I hung around for a little while and Jordan showed me a small fraction of his collection of miniatures, many of which I'd heard about. Seeing them in person, where I could see all the details and look at them from different angles, was a lot of fun.

Around 11:30 or so, John and I went home, where we talked for a few hours because this is Orlando and why would anyone go to bed before 3AM?

* As it turns out, I still don't have a laptop. Not only did it never show up, but the guy I bought it from never emailed me back when I asked him what had happened. I called my credit card company today and disputed the charge for it. I've never done that before -- it was sooo easy! They credited my account back immediately. Unless the laptop actually shows up, that should be the end of it. I'll keep a close eye on my credit card for the next few weeks, just to make sure that the charge doesn't pop up again.

Date: 2005-04-25 09:07 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] koogrr.livejournal.com
Awww! You're holding a little white cat in that pic. (I think...)

Saturday was awesome! I really thought you did a good job as Jing Li, especially when you were pulling memories and commentary from the bitzbox entries. It was eerie, like she'd been there all along.

Kathmandu in small cat form was interesting. I was glad of my extensive experience with characters that don't talk, mainly Yotee and watching Jordan's Rodian. Specifically, that playing a silent character doesn't mean I have to be silent. I can participate with verbal "goes here does X", and OOC banter provided I'm sufficiently IC. Had I been warned, I would have brought my cougar puppet or the white cat that lives on my stairs. Strange, that thought only just occurred. Well, next game maybe.

At any rate, Kathmandu can certainly understand the looks-like-a-pet-and-overlooked phenomenon better.

Plus, it was cool having Anthony by. As he'll tell you, even though we're close we don't see each other very often. Something I need to work on a bit more. Remember to dload the BarbX CD. I forgot to give you my copy, though I think I had it in the CD rotation at some point.

... and no, it wasn't the Freaking one.

Rose, Scion, Jing-Li Conversation

Date: 2005-04-25 09:29 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jordangreywolf.livejournal.com
Actually, if you could recap that sort of thing, it would be SO valuable to me. I still haven't found the "chip quips" sheet of "chippable" quotes - and even that doesn't cover conversations. Basically, it's fairly easy for me to remember things that "went through the GM", since I had a personal stake in them ... but sometimes I don't remember the back-and-forth of conversations between players ... or it's sometimes possible that I never heard them in the first place. (I.e., PCs are talking and so I skip out of the room to get some more water, or else I'm dealing with someone on the sideline while there's a conversation going on.)

Goodness, if I could get even half my players just to recount a few brief things along the lines of, "What were the most memorable parts of the game to you?" that would help me to make sure my summary actually mentioned some of those memorable bits. ;)

Re: Rose, Scion, Jing-Li Conversation

Date: 2005-04-26 01:17 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tuftears.livejournal.com
Heeheehee.

How did you do the tailswish in real-time RPing?

Re: Rose, Scion, Jing-Li Conversation

Date: 2005-04-26 01:51 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jordangreywolf.livejournal.com
Now that's the sort of detail I have to rely on the players to fill me in on. Hee!

Re: Rose, Scion, Jing-Li Conversation

Date: 2005-04-26 05:56 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tuftears.livejournal.com
I wonder if everyone else imagined it swishing too. };)

Re: Rose, Scion, Jing-Li Conversation

Date: 2005-04-26 01:48 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jordangreywolf.livejournal.com
Hee! Thanks for that much! I guess once I write up the summary, you can certainly let me know if you notice any glaring omissions. ;)

Date: 2005-04-26 03:41 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] hotspurre.livejournal.com
On an only vaguely related note, I'd like to add "The Cat Returns" is a movie worth watching. :) Its not the best film out there, and its a bit weak at points, but its a Studio Ghibli film. Miyazaki had no direct part in it, though. Looking forward to getting my hands on "Howl's Moving Castle," that was last year's... :)

Date: 2005-04-29 07:10 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] hotspurre.livejournal.com
Y'know, its funny, but I had a feeling you had read that book. I never have, I just know its many people's favorites.

Yes, as far as I know "Howl's Moving Castle" came out last year in Japan. Hmmm, I can look this up, actually.

According to the IMdb, it came out in November in Japan. It will have a limited release in the US this June, I guess we'll see if it gets a wider release. Crossing my fingers on that.

Anyway, Miyazaki Hayao is directing the film. This is the same guy who did "Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind," "Princess Mononoke," and "Spirited Away," among others. One of the best directors today, IMHO.

I don't know how close to the book it will be, IMdb says, in trivia, that its loosely based. We'll see, I imagine. I'd expect a good film, regardless. ;)

A Hero's Boots

Date: 2005-04-26 05:32 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] barbx.livejournal.com
***** INCOMING MESSAGE *****

It was a pleasure to see you again. I was wondering if you knew who I was beforehand. I suppose the baby pictures I posted gave it away.

It's a pity I couldn't spend more time with you, but the demands of real life and are severe. If I had thought about it, I would have at least tried to make you a copy of BarbX's CD, not that I likely would have succeeded. We should keep in touch more often. Telephone calls, perhaps. We'll see.

The game was a lot of fun. The energy and intensity of the players makes the difference in a game. (This way, everyone gets credit.) The food was excellent. Are you sure I can't come up every week? Free food is almost as powerful a force as free t-shirts.

John Scion was an easy character to get into. I've played a lot of First Person Shooter games, including Doom3. Combine that with the experience of being the player of the game and a corporate employee at work and you have the role I've trained a lifetime for. When do I get to option the movie rights?

Yes, Scion was spending a good amount of time with the ladies, but everyone in the party except for the cat was female! It's what you might call a "target rich environment." Once he found out he could step up behind another figure in combat and reach around them to shoot, there was no stopping him. What red-blooded action hero can resist holding women in his arms and shooting at the same time? At least he tried to spread it around; I don't think there was anyone he didn't do that to at least once.

I remember the only de-chippable event of the night, the one for which a chip was deducted instead of awarded. It went something like this:
As the group skulks down yet another randomly generated corridor, Scion remarks, "And here we have the most rare of all things in a science fiction setting, the restroom. Go now, so you don't accidentally do it during combat."

One of the visitors from another system asks, "What happens if you don't?"

To which, Scion gives the sagely advice, "You learn to appreciate that warm feeling. After a while, you even know when to take off your boots."
Until next time,
-- The Author

***** END MESSAGE *****

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