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Chapter 8: Storytelling
Chapter 8: Storytelling
You hear the faint clack of something hard hitting the concrete behind
you. The sound is rhythmical, as if something is following you, its claws scrap-
ing with every step. You turn, but see nothing. Only the empty street, your
own shadow cast by the light of the full moon. You suddenly feel hot breath
on your neck, sending a shiver down your spine.
What do you do?
What Is Storytelling?
Storytelling is a type of roleplaying game, a game of make-believe in
I fear sleep, never knowing which each participant pretends to be somebody else, or pretends that he’s
I fear sleep, never knowing
where it may lead, really something he’s not, such as an astronaut or spy. The most familiar form
where it may lead,
A mineshaft of vague of roleplaying is the sort of freeform acting we did as children when we played
A mineshaft of vague
horror with no end to it. Cops and Robbers or Cowboys and Indians. From these humble roots was
horror with no end to it.
born the roleplaying-game hobby.
Every window I see Modern roleplaying games grew out of wargames and boardgames when
Every window I see opens
opens on the infinite, players wondered what it would be like to play a single individual rather than
on the infinite,
And my mind, still haunted a whole army. That was in the late ‘60s and early ’70s. Then, the most suc-
And my mind, still
by this vertigo, cessful roleplaying games were based on fantasy and science-fiction themes.
haunted by this vertigo,
Probes and probes at the Roleplaying games evolved as more and more people entered the hobby.
Probes and probes at the
unanswering void. Today’s games are more sophisticated than Cops and Robbers, but are based
unanswering void.
on the same principles of make-believe. There are various rules to prevent
— Baudelaire, “The Abyss” arguments and to better define your pretend character, and everyone strives
— Baudelaire, “The Abyss”
for a sort of immersive, imaginative experience that’s more detailed and be-
lievable than anything we played as kids.
And that brings us to Storytelling. Many roleplaying games are more
concerned with rules and statistics than the drama created within the game.
Some people call those roll-playing games, since they’re more focused on dice
rolling than role-playing. Storytelling certainly provides for a simple and con-
sistent set of rules, but it seeks more than just dice rolls and character sheets.
Storytelling is about drama, the wonder of a make-believe tale told by the
players. Good Storytelling is always surprising, taking unexpected twists and
turns, and players often find their characters speaking and acting in ways that
are strange and novel, taking on a life of their own.
Unlike child’s play or corporate roleplaying, Storytelling can strive to be
an art form. This might sound pretentious, but anybody who’s played
roleplaying games long enough has experienced more than one epiphany, a
moment when the game seems to become a living entity, a Muse dictating
strange and wonderful things to the players. These moments are worth striv-
ing for.
Throughout this chapter are tips and hints that will hopefully lead to
these epiphanies. But it’s not a recipe that, if followed exactly, will always
produce the same result. It takes active work on everyone’s part, and a desire
to achieve more than the mundane.
Just don’t get lost in the Ivory Tower. Don’t deride those who see gaming
as a fun hobby (which it is), or those whose roleplaying stories don’t aim
higher. Instead, encourage and persuade players to stretch their boundaries.
Storytelling is about achieving something great through an interactive tale,
but not at the expense of fun.
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Chapter 8- STORYTELLING
