First Playtest Session.

The first play test session of Relational Character Creation is complete. It went well. Some unexpected things came up, and some interesting new sample houses were generated. Most of them are ones that I would enjoy playing. Additionally I learned some things about what to do and what not to do while play testing.

Playtesting A Larp Fiasco

The next step to polishing Relational Character Design for Larp is some individual playtesting. This is somewhat analogous to paper prototyping for software game development. This system does not really need a wire frame, as there is no UI. The current rules set can simply be printed out on paper and then roll some dice. Here are some cleaned up versions of the prototypes in Google Docs format.

How to set up a larp fiasco.

Today we're going to get into the intent and the direction behind Relational Character Design. Then start laying out the 'rules' of how the concept works. At some point there needs to be some play testing, probably a dry run to find any obvious dilemmas. Then a run through with a group to see how it plays with other people and their notions of what a larp should be.

Categories and Elements For Relational Character Design

Fiasco is an amazing indie table top RPG by Bully Pulpit Games. If you haven't checked it out yet, I highly recommend doing so. Put it on the list of 'must plays' for your next Con. The game inspired me to use the same concept a character creation system that attempts to address some issues with larp. Relational Character Design for Larp discusses the general outline of the idea. Below the cut we have the Categories and Elements as they could be used for a larp.

Relational Character Design in Larp

Ever tried to sit down with a group of your fellow combat larpers and create a group with a cohesive story? Everyone has their own ideas, and they are often at odds. One player wants to be a pirate, one a Stark clone, and of course there is the steam punk. Somewhere along the line you pick up 'Dark Elf Loner' #362 How do you get everyone to agree on one theme which coherently tells a story? I've enforced it top down before, but that rubs some players the wrong way.