Learning about rpg'ing, Tribe-style

I'm waiting on a season-change in KTDA. A couple things have to happen yet, and they're goin' kinda slow. I guess that's making me brood.

Tonight I'm thinking about all of our players. We have quite a few these days, and that's so cool. I'm thinking about the differences among them--writing styles, the way they see their characters, likes & dislikes, that kinda thing.

I'm thinking of "Danni" and "Salene."

A lot of players remind me of Sal. Salene seemed to be mostly a background kinda girl. A brick. You knew who she was & you could always count on her to stay true to form. She went along. She got along with people. Whatever situation she found herself in, Salene tried to do what she thought she was supposed to. She was a reactionary. Need a few examples? No worries.

Salene & Trudy. Trudy had a baby; Sal became chief baby sitter. It was a good role for her. She knew what to do & how to do it. Salene & the Chosen. She joined up and actually wound up believing in the myth of Zoot. Whatever they told her to do, she did. It was the same in her relationship with Ryan. Amazing that she was the only one among the girls to find a boyfriend who was more interested in being her friend than sleeping with her, huh? But that was our Salene. She didn't change an awful lot from beginning to end. Dependable, predictable, solid.

"Danni" was something different. We didn't know her long. Then again, sometimes you had to wonder if we really knew her at all. (That whole "daughter of the guy who invented the Virus" stuff totally caught me off guard!) The only thing predictable about Danni was her zeal. She drove the action rather than waiting for it to drive her. Danni's "bill of rights." The Mallrats' trading market with money they created. The way she took forever to bend a knee to the Guardian. Then again...did she? We didn't know her long but she was a whirlwind who pulled a lot of people (like Bray & Lex) along in her wake.

It's an interesting parallel.

Our Salene-like players are solid. They can play a scene with the best of us. They get every emotion & detail out of it until you can see that scene playing out vividly in your mind.

Our Danni-like players are the ones that pull us through the story. They find new tales to tell, new directions to take us, and new ideas for us to flesh out & bring to life.

You just gotta play to your strengths. Always.

-Chyna

Photo source: copyright Cloud-9 "The Tribe"