[You Brought This On Yourself] Pivots

[JasonWalters]

A big part of the slasher film/morality rpg I'm working on involves Narrative Control. A PC can attempt to seize control of the storytelling process for himself at certain specific times during the game. These times are known as "plot pivots," or simply Pivots. A Pivot occurs when the progress of the narrative reaches an important turning point. Think of them as the exact spot in a novel when a chapter ends and a new one begins, or the split second in a movie when the action transitions from one scene to another. These seem to me to be an appropriate time for the narrative to switch voices.

So far I've only been able to think of three Pivots:  when the Frame (a specific location in space or time) changes, when any character is killed, or when important information about a slasher's background has been revealed. Can you think of any more Pivots? I'm at a bit of a loss.

Jason Walters 

[TwoCrows]

Jason,

Sorry, but I have to say it, otherwise it'll be a phat white elephant dividing my attention until I get it out. A guy named Jason is writing a Slasher game! Okay, I'm done.

So, is your game actually a Slasher game, do Players get to play characters like Jason Vorhees, Michael Myers, Dr. Decker/Zipperface, or maybe even Freddy Krueger? Riddle me this, and I can offer at least my take on Slasher film Plot Pivots.

Regards, Brad

[JasonWalters]

Brad-

In a word, yes! Playing a Jason Vorhees or Micheal Myers type character (I call them Maniacs) is a big part of the fun of the game. You can also play a Teenager, which is my blanket term for "victim." Of course, the last Teenager standing becomes a Final Girl, at which point the entire game shifts dramatically in her favor.

Jason 

[TwoCrows]

In a word, yes! Playing a Jason Vorhees or Micheal Myers type character (I call them Maniacs) is a big part of the fun of the game. You can also play a Teenager, which is my blanket term for "victim." Of course, the last Teenager standing becomes a Final Girl, at which point the entire game shifts dramatically in her favor.

Jason,

Ah, now my bell's been rung. Maniac's what did it.

You're the dude that posted about the Face List, something that intrigued me the moment I read it. I was immediately reminded of Dr. Decker/Zipperface (Nightbreed), and how that the mask is where his Maniac, to use your term, resided...and drove him to kill. Michael Myers', Leatherface's, and Jason's masks just didn't have the same zing for me. Yeah, they're cool like dat, but they're part of an overall persona, not a persona unto themselves.

Clive Barker's treatment of Zipperface never sees the light of day in the movie, so if you haven't read it already, I highly recommend his book Cabal. I think it might provide some inspirational fertilizer to the Face List feature of your game. Essentially, it could allow a Player to play The Face/Mask, opening up some really interesting Plot Pivots. If nothing else it's a great read, true Barker at it's best.

Depending upon the mortality rate of Players in your game I'm not so sure I'd want to play a Teenager potentially headed for the bodycount, unless the potentials to become a really cool Final Girl, maybe say like a Sidney Prescot, are present. The other immediate alternative that appeals to me as a potential Player is if I'm allowed to roll up a handful of Teenagers at the beginning of the game session. On the downside I see this hampering PC development, but honestly...just how much character development does anyone want in a true to the genre Slasher Flick anyway?

I guess what I'm cautioning against here are the pitfalls of killing off sympathetic viewpoint characters too soon without someone, or something to carry the audience through to the other side. Think Aliens 3 vs. A Boy and His Dog, and you've got exactly what I'm trying to illustrate. For the Player, as you already well know, super fatal games end up being not a lot of fun for those in the bodycount...they're the ones yelling from the background about where the Cheetos are, while everyone else is trying to play. Not fun for anybody.

Plot Pivots

Well, mentioning Sidney Prescot we see that her Plot Pivots are what make all the sequels possible. In the end she defeats all the Maniacs, but in the process it's never evident that she will. For all we know, Craven will be craven, and kill her off just because we the audience might expect her to make it a little too much.

I'm not sure just how much Narrative control you're game will turn over at a Plot Pivot, but as a potential Player I'm not all that excited about the prospect of narrating my Teenager running for five minutes only to crash face first into the Maniac, the car not starting, you get the picture.

The Theatrical Fifth Wall© is the barrier I see as most important to the Plot Pivot concept. Crossing the Fourth Wall is putting the Audience into the Play, heh, or vice versa. Crossing the Fifth Wall is putting the Audience into either the Playwright, or Director's seat, something entirely different.

Now, unless we allow rewrites of scenes like the demise of Leatherface, or the victory of Sidney, crossing the 5th Wall is a problem. I'd have to know more about the mortality rate potentials in your game to say anything than I have already.

Regards, Brad

[Brimshack]

I'm not sure your definition is consistent.

You start with a Turning Poiunt, but then you explain this in terms of scene or chapter breaks, and then your 3 instances focus again on turning points. But a Chapter break normally occurs when a theme has played out, at least in the short run whereas a release of new information could as easily occur in the middle of a crucial scene that still needs to play out. I guess my point is that a turning point can as easily occur in the peak of a narrative you DON'T want to break (especially if we are talking new information) as in the space between chapters or scenes. So, befrore looking for more breaks, I can't help wondering if the core concept needs clarification.

...but then again, I'm wrong a lot.

[JasonWalters]

Gentlemen, thank you for your enthusiastic response! I will answer your questions as best I can -- though I am (naturally) still in the process of writing the game, and thus haven't tied together every loose end in a completely satisfying manner yet.

Brad, I'm a big fan of the novelette Cabal as well as the movie Nightbreed! In fact, I actually live at (no joke – check my email) Midian Ranch, Nevada. In any case, playing a homicidal Maniac is one of the fun things you will be able to do with this game.

>Depending upon the mortality rate of Players in your game I'm not so sure I'd want to >play a Teenager potentially headed for the bodycount, unless the potentials to become a >really cool Final Girl, maybe say like a Sidney Prescot, are present. The other
>immediate alternative that appeals to me as a potential Player is if I'm allowed to roll up >a handful of Teenagers at the beginning of the game session.

There are several ways this game can be played. One way is to have a single player control either all of the Maniacs or all of the Teenagers, turning him or her into a kind of semi-GM and putting all of the other PCs on one side. Another way is for each Maniac to have a player, but for the Teenager players to have multiple characters. The Teenager characters are pretty disposable (they have six characteristics, while the Maniacs have ten), but they do have the ability to work together to defeat the Maniacs, who lack the psychological tools for cooperation.

Once the characters have been created (and creating them should be half the fun), play in YBTOY will be extremely fast paced. I mean, below con game fast! Think demo table fast paced. A game should last 20 minutes to one hour depending on how familiar the players are with the game's rules.   

>On the downside I see this hampering PC development, but honestly...just how much >character development does anyone want in a true to the genre Slasher Flick anyway?

None. There isn't any character development in YBTOY (though there definitely is character devolution). All of the fun comes from brutally simulating a Slasher film. There are, however, eight Perspectives that the players must use to inform their narration. Each Perspective addresses a different way of looking at the underlying moral subtext of the Slasher Film (Family Values vs. Valued Family, Individual vs. Collective, Nature vs. Civilization, and so forth). Which is why YBTOY is the RPG of Slasher Film Morality.         

>For the Player, as you already well know, super fatal games end up being not a lot of >fun for those in the bodycount...they're the ones yelling from the background about >where the Cheetos are, while everyone else is trying to play. Not fun for anybody.

Agreed, which is why I am going to tray to make game play incredibly fast. For fans of Slasher Films even watching should be fun, however, as the way I am designing the rules will (hopefully) make it run along familiar bloody rails.  Maybe I should think of something for the "dead" players to do after their characters are gone. Hummmm.....

>I'm not sure just how much Narrative control you're game will turn over at a Plot Pivot, >but as a potential Player I'm not all that excited about the prospect of narrating my >Teenager running for five minutes only to crash face first into the Maniac, the car not >starting, you get the picture.

The person with Narrative Control can describe the environment and what the NPCs (known as Locals) do, but cannot control other PCs actions. So, she doesn't HAVE to run away (though I would). I'll have to see how it all shakes out in playtesting.

The car not starting is a nice bit, though! I may use that!

>I'd have to know more about the mortality rate potentials in your game to say anything >than I have already.

The mortality rate will be extremely high. Everything is slanted toward the Maniacs. No more than one or two in six Teenagers should survive the game. However, the final survivor(s) becomes a Final Girl, and the entire balance of the game then shifts in her direction.

All that should be left at the end of a game of YBTOY is a bleeding, traumatized teenage girl in a torn cheerleading outfit kneeling in the woods, a bloody axe clutched in one hand and a broken William Shatner mask in the other. If I can bring you this experience, I will absolutely know that I have brought something beautiful into this world.

>You start with a Turning Point, but then you explain this in terms of scene or chapter >breaks, and then your 3 instances focus again on turning points. But a Chapter break >normally occurs when a theme has played out, at least in the short run whereas a release >of new information could as easily occur in the middle of a crucial scene that still needs >to play out. I guess my point is that a turning point can as easily occur in the peak of a >narrative you DON'T want to break (especially if we are talking new information) as in >the space between chapters or scenes. So, before looking for more breaks, I can't help >wondering if the core concept needs clarification. 

An extremely valid point, Brimshack, but I want to see if my Pivot idea works organically during playtesting before I retool it. Maybe it won't work, but I would like to see if it does before I rethink the basic idea. 

[TwoCrows]

Jason,

Okay, this is all BSing (Brainstorming & the other), but I have a few ideas. Take what you like, leave the rest by the wayside.

Genre Range – The initial setting/ruleset is hardcore Slasher to a tee, nothing added. Additional supplements bring in a range of subgenres/related genres to include Maniac types like Dr. Hannibal "the Cannibal" Lector & Dexter (mundane psycho-drama), to Freddy Krueger & The Tall Man (Phantasm – Cult Horror). A Zombie Supplement would be right on target in my least humble opinion!

Game Session – A single game session is a self-contained Flick, essentially the length of either a Slasher movie (1-2hrs), or television episode (1hr). No "to be continued laters" are allowed. Full resolution, and closure for each story must take place in a single game.

(I used to do my Star Trek RPG campaigns this way, purposefully writing each "adventure" as a single episode, just like the shows. The only thing I did differently than I'm suggesting for the Slasher Flick Game Session is that in my TOS & STNG games I occasionally did a "season finale" to be continued episode/game making every effort to leave it a cliffhanger.)

Finish Line – Maybe one could actually use a kitchen timer for this game, and set it to something like 95 minutes (the runtime of Friday the 13th). Anyone left living at the end is then eligible for play in a Sequel; otherwise they're fodder for the bodycount, or non-recurring extras.

Saved Pivots – A Maniac, or Teenager can save earned Pivots, and use them in the Closure or Final Scene, maybe even into the credits.* A slain Maniac could then perhaps have a chance to kill the Final Girl just before the credits roll, and she might be able to drop one last cap in his arse when he tries.

*"Narrate" the Credits rolling by packing up your dice, and starting the post game chatter. When everyone is sure that it's really over nod to the Maniac, and let him narrate his last saved Pivot.

Character Development – Only Maniacs, and Final Girls/Guys receive any sort of character development, or experience progression. Essentially they learn new things, gain new powers etc. only by making it into a Sequel, ie. surviving a Flick, or in the case of Maniacs either surviving/winning the game (killing the last Teenager ala Jason dragging Alice out of the canoe), or the classic Maniac return from death. Another option is similar in that Alice is later revived in the hospital, and told that she was rescued from the water. She becomes the Final Girl, snatched from the jaws of death by the cop through some unseen providence...a Saved "Pivot Point" spent by her Player perhaps?

Wicked Transformations – Final Girls/Guys can become Maniacs in later episodes. Supporting characters can turn out to be working with the Maniac rather than helping Teenagers get away from him.

Maniacs – In addition to the Jason/Michael Myers types, and perhaps the Freddy/Tall Man types consider other sorts of Maniacs such as, but not limited to Incorporeal Forces of Fate/Evil ala the Final Destination franchise, possessed machinery, houses, etc. ghostly apparitions ala The Ring, or even demons like Azazel ala the movie Fallen. Or my all time favorite wacky Maniac...little voodoo dolls that can only be killed by throwing them in the oven!

Maniac Support – Include Maniac supporting characters like Inbred Hillbilly Cannibal Family Members, The Dead Mother locked away in the upstairs bedroom, or the Sick Doctor who is helping the Maniac for his own twisted research project.

Teenager Expansion – Expand the range of playable PCs to include such characters as the Limping Psychologist (survived the Maniacs attack while trying to "cure" him), the Town Sheriff, the FBI Detective, the Stranded Truck Driver, the Alcoholic Gas Station Owner, or the window peeking Nosey Next Door Neighbor.

Narrative Control at Pivots – Perhaps the conflict in the game is funneled into a metagame 4th Wall thang that actually allows more control than you're presently thinking. Example – My Teenager (the Stoned Bimbo) smacks the Maniac (Bucket Head) with a shovel, and hits him hard enough to earn a Pivot. As Player of the Stoned Bimbo I declare that I killed the Maniac. When the Maniac Player regains control he declares that no he wasn't killed, but the Bimbo had to check him out...ala the Slasher classic Maniac only playing dead/eyes opening in frame after the Teenager bends over to check if he's really dead.

Character Type Ratios – Depending upon the scenario (Flick) the Character Type Ratios differ.

1) Slasher Flick– In this sort of scenario (Flick) its one Maniac Against the Town. The Players choose who can play the Maniac by Fortune. All the rest of the Players play Teenagers, or Teenager Expansion characters. The same Finish Line timer applies, and anyone left alive is eligible for entry into a Sequel.

2) Zombie Flick – In the Zombie scenario (Flick) there are a few Teenagers, and everyone else plays hordes of Zombies. When a Zombie is killed, his Player just picks up another one, and when a Teenager is killed she becomes a Zombie within a given amount of time. Use of Fortune to determine Teenagers applies.

3) Horror Survival Flick – In this scenario there is only one Teenager, and all the rest of the Players are Maniacs, Maniac Support, or perhaps a small number of Teenager Expansion characters ala Silent Hill. The same Finish Line timer applies, and anyone left alive is eligible for entry into a Sequel. Use of Fortune to determine the single Teenager character applies.

Where's the Cheetos?! – Dispense with this obnoxiously bored Player by having a booklet of PreGen Teenagers. When Teenagers enter the bodycount, the Player just picks up another one, and the narration brings it into play. Example – Bob's Teenager (the Haughty Cheerleader) is killed. As her corpse lies in the ditch bleeding another Teenager (the Horny Jock) gets a flat, and has to pull over to fix it. When he closes the trunk after fixing his flat...THERE'S the Maniac standing out of view! WHACK! The Horny Jock buys it, but a Hitch Hiking Teenager is dropped off at the lonely diner just up the road.

If you don't mind, I'd like a crack at playtesting this. I think my group would love it!

Regards, Brad

[JasonWalters]

Wow - I want to play in your game! Mine suddenly seems rather stodgy! Seriously, though, some of these suggestions I have thought of, many I hadn't (but will now gleefully steal, if that's ok), and some I am going to turn over and over in my tiny mind for a few days. The idea of earned Pivot points is particularly interesting.

Thank you again!

Jason 

[TwoCrows]

Wow - I want to play in your game! Mine suddenly seems rather stodgy! Seriously, though, some of these suggestions I have thought of, many I hadn't (but will now gleefully steal, if that's ok), and some I am going to turn over and over in my tiny mind for a few days. The idea of earned Pivot points is particularly interesting.

Thank you again!

Jason

Jason,

Thanx for the compliment; I do try to make my games fit the genre.

Steal away...steal away into the night. That's why I put them here, use what you like.

You're very welcome, and thank you for letting me have the experience of interacting with one Jason of Midian in the process of putting together a Slasher Flick Game, and honestly what I think should be in the running for a best new game award when it hits the shelves!

Regards, Brad