Welcome, everyone. Introduce your characters, including their trope. Answer your trope-specific questions here and list one rumor you’ve heard about the town.
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Hi everyone, this is Maggie, your Funny Sidekick! Energetic and sunny, here to brighten everyone's day!
What do you do that always lightens your friends’ moods?
"Bear hugging them usually works as a quick fix; but the trick is to know their passions, and asking them questions about it! Susan likes to talk about movies, it's hard to get Neil to shut up about space, and they are always so happy speaking of what they love!"
When does being in the “sidekick” role frustrate you?
"Well, it's rare that I'm the one calling the shots, never the leader. Sometimes it feels like I'm just the last wheel. But I know that they like having me around, and without me they'd be lost."
List one rumor you've heard about the town.
"The school innkeeper in the Fifties had gone out of his mind in WWII, and he started living in the school shed. Then one day he didn't show up at work, the headmaster went to check on him and he found him hanged from the ceiling! Must have been spooky!"
Great! Also, everyone if you haven’t already, go ahead and list your description, motivation and fear in your profile!
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Everybody's heard about poor little Holly Elton. Her father died when she was 6 years old. a lot of people insist that she was a little funny, even before that, but everyone agrees she was pretty off afterwards. Doesn't talk much, always got her nose in a book, or a journal, or sketchbook. doesn't talk much, and what she does say... it isn't how kids are supposed to talk. She uses big words, talks like she's a character out of a book.
A lot of people had hoped that her mother remarrying, and getting a half sister (and a half-brother a year and change later) would help the girl, but she seemed to get quieter.
Why are you happier fending for yourself?
well, the kid in Kindergarten who barely spoke, and burst into tears most days wasn't exactly popular. it's a small town, she's had no real chance to meet new people. Most people still run with the same friends they've had since Preschool. And she dresses funny, wearing a lot of old dresses and clothes from the Salvation Army.
What part of the “cool” kids’ life do you wish
you had - just a little bit?
She'd like cool birthday presents. Her birthdays consist of a cake her mom makes, and a few presents, maybe a book or some new coloured pencils, but mostly clothes, or a new winter jacket... necessities masquerading as gifts.
Fear
Water.... she doesn't know why, but any water where she can't see the bottom freaks her out.
Backpack
Journal... drawing implements+sketchbook, novel...
Fascinating! How did her father die?
He disappeared, is presumed dead
Niiiiiice. I can work with that.
I am Fatau Seck, born in New York, raised in Senegal. My figures of inspiration are Marie Curie, Mamie Clark, and Morticia Addams.
Why do you get satisfaction from being good at math?
The world is crooked. Math does not lie. There is a simplicity and an elegance to mathematics which speaks to me. I can trust the answers that I find there. Math is what will put men on the moon one day. It is the closest to magic this world has.
How does your social isolation manifest itself?
At home, I was a goth kid. This was good because it was something I chose, and there were a few other goth kids to speak to. Here, I am 'that black girl' or, if I am lucky 'that wordy black girl'. The goth kids here are not like those at home. They smoke and skip class, and I have better things to do. It does not help that I am a grade or two above other kids my age. It does not matter. I am only here to secure my education and the success of my family.
Fear
Heights - I have never been very good with ladders. A few feet off of the ground and everything starts to spin. Falling from a standing position generates enough force to cause a concussion.
Backpack
Backpack ()
Five library books (4 non-fiction, 1 fiction)
Casio FX-7000G Graphing calculator
Spiral-bound Graph paper
Pencils(Ticonderoga), sharpeners, erasers(bats)
Ruler, protractor, compass
Way too young to be here...
This is Steve Dimin, a bully. I've mostly finished the character (in the profile) but still have some more work to do.
Trope questions:
What motivates your bullying?
Steve is ashamed of being short, and won't let anyone get away with thinking that he is.
How do you feel when you hurt others?
"I don't hurt others! They hurt me." Steve is easily made to feel that he is being made fun of for his size or something else, and doesn't view himself as a bully.
Rumor: Three teachers were fired last year for failing to teach the material.
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Yes to the 80s, no to the oddball. It’s perfect!
Hi hi! I was waiting to choose an alias to see what other people went with for gender. I'll get my profile together tonight!
Here, I am 'that black girl' or, if I am lucky 'that wordy black girl'.
Here, I am 'that black girl' or, if I am lucky 'that wordy black girl'.
I did mention the whole "barley speaks" thing, right. Also, I thought the Loner Weirdo didn't get friends.
Well, sometimes the outcasts can band together a bit.
And sometimes there'll be a perky, chubby girl who'll be prodding them to play. That'll be me.
On relationships, Maggie will likely think that Holly could be a lot of fun if she opened up a bit, admire Fatou for her skill but possibly consider her a bit arrogant, and quite dislike Steve (bullies make others miserable, she wants to make them happy).
Shall we do the round of questions once we are all ready? Also, only one each or may we answer one question for each of the other PCs?
Small detail, I wrote Maggie as being the daughter of the local general store owners, and she'll have a large amount of sweets around.
Also, isn't Oregon West Coast?
It is, but we're not obligated to set things in the Pac Northwest if we don't want to.
I like your impulse for defining relationships! Keep up that energy. Figure out reasons to be together instead of excuses to be apart.
That will be especially useful for teaming up three tween girls and a diminutive bully.
Yeah... I was always bad at geography (also, I thought it was Colorado.... in my defense, they both have weed, and that's all I know about either)
I Think the library buddies thing is a good idea... Holly isn't nuts about her home, and is convinced the feeling is mutual.
not sure about Steve, or Maggie. gonna have to find a reason she chooses to interact with them.
Library buddies as in they are silently aware of eachother, and have a relationship writ in book titles.
Maggie Taylor once saw Fatou digging up animal bones in her back yard.
Steve: Fatou is 4' 9" and a sophomore.
Yeah, it was Colorado, I mixed up my references. Sorry.
Fatou is 4' 9" and a sophomore.
Wait a minute, she skipped 4 f~@*ing grades?
shit man, Fatou is intense
Also, Holly loathes Non-fiction (If I wanted reality I would put the book down and go back to the boring world.)
My math might be off. Ah, forgot middle school. I need to re-figure out ages...
13. She should be 13 and... 5'2"
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Ah, forgot middle school.
I think all of us have done that... thank f&~*ing god.
Yes. Innocent children to raging hormone monsters with nothing in between.
It is, but we're not obligated to set things in the Pac Northwest if we don't want to.
I like your impulse for defining relationships! Keep up that energy. Figure out reasons to be together instead of excuses to be apart.
That will be especially useful for teaming up three tween girls and a diminutive bully.
It's easy to think of a reason for a negative relationship with just about everyone, but that wouldn't explain why he would be going to a carnival in their company. Maybe Maggie, for example, knows that Steve is upset and wants to make him feel better. Holly and Fatou seem to be more "nerdy" so I'm less sure about them. And I haven't seen Blake yet.
You could also collaborate with someone and be someone’s brother/cousin/best friend since preschool
I added the gameplay thread for dotting purposes.
As soon as our Scout is done, we can get started on our relationship questions.
In the meantime, think about your setting boundaries:
What you want to see
What you want glossed over
What you want to avoid
Feel free to post any of these publicly or private message them to me. I want to make this a fun, safe game for everyone.
Personally, I have a strong aversion to torture and want to avoid it completely.
I've got my profile together!
I'll think about the boundaries but I'm certainly in agreement with skipping torture.
Awesome!
Blake: Postive or negative for Maggie, then roll 1d20
Maggie: positive or negative for Steve then roll 1d20
Steve: positive or negative for Fatou then roll 1d20
Fatou: positive or negative for Holly then roll 1d20
Holly: Positive or negative for Blake then roll 1d20
Yeah, i don't think this will come up (I know most of you from previous games) but you only need to fail to specify this one once. lets just not have sexual assault... especially given our protagonists age.
Again, I don't think this will come up, just making it clear.
EDIT: (missed Meech's thing)
positive
Fully agree, Holly. I think sexual assault (or at least prior references to it) can be common in adult horror about children, but I'm more than content to completely leave it out, even implied/suggested/flashback.
Holly, what plan do you and Blake have that you’re most excited about?
Yeah, kids and realism... staying away from that stuff.
Holly Positive:
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Hi Blake, nice to find someone else who's energetic and outdoorsy!
As for boundaries, I'm pretty much ok with anything; for what I'd like to see, I prefer mystery/suspence over plain horror (Hitchcock over Carpenter, so to say).
Let's go with positive for my relationship with Blake:
What do you admire about the character - but would never tell them?
"Steve is just self-reliant, you know? He rarely asks for help if he's in trouble, instead he stands his ground, by himself if needed. I know I couldn't do it. It's stupid, but also somewhat brave."
I guess perhaps Maggie knew him Steve since they were little, and she doesn't like to see him be angry.
I think mine is...
What do you and this character have a mutual, weird love for?
It's probably a book we've both read or are reading... possibly an author. Fatou does read one fiction book each week. I had it in my head that Fatou was reading The Princess Bride, but I'd like to talk about it. Something with a lot of weird references to pull from.
For things I'd like to see, I'd like mystery and intrigue with anything supernatural happening off-screen for awhile. Room for skepticism, and time spent unraveling a mystery. Very Stranger Things.
So, here's one for everyone:
Kids in the 80's were not the most racially sensitive bunch. Fatou seems to be one of a very few POC in town. The realistic thing would for more than a few racial slurs, especially from the bullies, but that's not necessarily the comfortable thing. Do we want to hand-wave slurs and interact with the idea of racial identity in a small town without including hate speech? Just assume that it probably happens but it never happens "on camera"
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That's a-okay with me. Seems like how it was handled with Lucas in the source material.
I think I covered about the level of racism I'm prepared to address on screen. I think we're all properly aware that it exists and is bad, so visiting it too deeply would just be in poor taste.
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I think that Steve would probably have a negative relationship with Fatou, given his intellectual interests and foreignness. I can see him calling her "Fatto," but on the subject of boundaries, I think I should ask how comfortable that name is (and how comfortable people are with being bullied in general).
"What insanity has this character shown warning signs of?"
Mathitis. She reads math books in her free time. Something isn't right with her.
I think you’ll have a hard time playing bully if we’re not ok with bullying. As long as he makes a Steve from Stranger Things-esque redemption.
I think you’ll have a hard time playing bully if we’re not ok with bullying. As long as he makes a Steve from Stranger Things-esque redemption.
also, with bullying, we won't hit my limit first, I don't think.
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I'll go Positive for mine with Maggie - as she said, we both can be energetic and outdoorsy.
My first instinct is "Pip", both for the Pippi Longstocking reference with how Maggie wears her hair, and for the early 19th century British slang of it meaning someone was "One of a kind" / stands out. Blake would likely have adopted it for the first reason when they were a bit younger. What do you think, Maggie?
--
Also re: racism, I'm in agreement that it isn't worth visiting. It's something that's still prevalent enough today that it doesn't feel like it would be interesting or at all "fun" to explore. That goes for a lot of sexuality-based insults as well. Calling someone "fag" was not uncommon then but it's also not something we really need to do. Even if no one takes genuine offense with these things, I don't think it adds anything to the game.
But yeah feel free to bully me about how my Dad left and how I'm poor and (probably) dirty.
I think you’ll have a hard time playing bully if we’re not ok with bullying. As long as he makes a Steve from Stranger Things-esque redemption.
I actually never saw the show. The choice of the name "Steve" was coincidental, but they do seem to have a similar role, from what I read on Wikipedia (this character probably more petty).
The show is quite good. I fully endorse it.
I think that Steve would probably have a negative relationship with Fatou, given his intellectual interests and foreignness. I can see him calling her "Fatto," but on the subject of boundaries, I think I should ask how comfortable that name is (and how comfortable people are with being bullied in general).
1d20
"What insanity has this character shown warning signs of?"
Mathitis. She reads math books in her free time. Something isn't right with her.
I was thinking if she and Maggie run much together they'd be Fatty One and Fatty Two. It also sounds like Fat Toe.
"I read a fascinating article in AMS about the cryptography of..."
Just waiting on Holly's answer to "Holly, what plan do you and Blake have that you’re most excited about?" and we're ready to roll!
Hey, Blake, what do you think You and Holly would be doing together?
she'd be thrilled for anything that gets her away from her family.
Well, okay, here's my thinking:
he'd be into outdoor stuff, but it's friggin November, outdoors is Chilly AF.
we're both kids from poor families with no dads, but that isn't something plans come from usually
so, what are the artsy/bookish and outdoorsy middle schoolers planning together...
My first instinct is "Pip", both for the Pippi Longstocking reference with how Maggie wears her hair, and for the early 19th century British slang of it meaning someone was "One of a kind" / stands out. Blake would likely have adopted it for the first reason when they were a bit younger. What do you think, Maggie?
Love it! Pippi was a staple in my childhood reads!
Fatou also enjoyed Matilda, Shel Silverstein, Discworld, Ring world, 1984, Animal Farm, The War of the Worlds, Ender's Game, Blade Runner, Time Machine... The Princess Bride is really out of character for her, actually...
Oh, Hey, Did Blake ask Holly to the Fall Formal?
Harvest Dance?
Hey, Blake, what do you think You and Holly would be doing together?
she'd be thrilled for anything that gets her away from her family.
Well, okay, here's my thinking:
he'd be into outdoor stuff, but it's friggin November, outdoors is Chilly AF.
we're both kids from poor families with no dads, but that isn't something plans come from usually
so, what are the artsy/bookish and outdoorsy middle schoolers planning together...
Oh, Hey, Did Blake ask Holly to the Fall Formal?
I originally had written (somewhere) that Blake and his dad had built a treehouse together, because I think for a story like this we want some kind of "safe haven" and it's pretty thematically appropriate.
Part of me is wondering now if instead, perhaps we found an abandoned house? Blake's kind of mad at his father for leaving so even if there is a treehouse, I don't think he'd be keen to use it a whole lot. What I'm imagining is more like, a secret place that feels safe. Since Holly is artsy, maybe she's doing some graffiti stuff? I don't know, I'm just kinda spitballing, whacha think?
Also I do dig the idea of Blake having asked her to the dance.