Roleplaying
is a mindset, not a skillset. The only requirements of the player are to
respond to the events described by the Game Leader. The player should still be
creative and collaborate, but his level of required preparation is limited.
Ultimately it takes a devoted storyteller to run a dynamic session, but anyone
of any age, creed, or social background can roleplay if they are willing to
involve themselves. The game exists in the collective imaginations of everyone
involved and therefore cannot be a passive experience. Despite the Game
Leader’s role in the grander scheme of the story, ultimately the responsibility
falls on the shoulders of the players to engage themselves. The stories of
Golden Oceans are created by events of the Game Leader, but allow
you as the player to control your own character’s destiny. In the end, Golden
Oceans is a game, and just a game, so have fun!
The
Game Leader holds many responsibilities, but his primary role is as the
story-teller. Golden Oceans can be played as an improvisational game, however
your sessions will be most fluid if the Game Leader has some predetermined
ideas about the direction of his story, even without detailed plot points. The
key to success for an inexperienced Game Leader is organization, no individual
new to the conventions of roleplaying should attempt to make up an entire
storyline on the spot. Instead build an outline for your campaign in advance,
allowing yourself time to brainstorm new ideas before the first session begins.
Do not fall into the trap of consistently changing your idea, instead chose
your basic concept and build on the foundations of your outline by flushing out
your story with real world details.
Like
all writers, you will find yourself creatively blocked from time to time. In
these instances it is okay to borrow ideas from movies or novels in order to
fill in the gaps of your stories. After all, you are playing this game with
your friends, no one is going to accuse you of plagiarism or sue you for
copyright infringement; the idea is to have fun. The
Game Leader should promote conflict resolution through a variety of means in
order to make the game more interesting. You should not follow a script, but
rather set up a problem. If the players need a prod, feel free to slip them
interesting options for resolution to get them back in the right direction.
Conflict should not always be resolved with violence, but with the occasional
wit and dialogue, which is ultimately more realistic and entertaining.
In
one scenario, while searching for buried treasure, the party is beaten and
mugged by bandits in a strange, exotic land. They approach a bridge, but discover
that it is being guarded by a single young man. He demands an excessive toll
for anyone to cross his bridge, as it is the only crossing for miles and the
water is too treacherous to swim. Though out-numbered, the young man is armed. The
characters, who have no money to pay and no weapons to fight, must now find a
creative way to cross. They could try to team up against him, but there is no
guarantee that the whole party could make it away unscathed. They decide to converse
instead and after inquiring for a moment discover that his father died
building this bridge and now the young man must work as a toll warden in order
to support his siblings and widowed mother.
Does the party now use the
lad’s family against him or do they offer him a share in the buried treasure
they seek? Fighting would be the obvious solution in this scenario, but if the
party discovers a better way to cross the bridge, you should reward them.
Perhaps they invite the kid along and he becomes a valuable asset to them,
being an adept guide in this foreign terrain.
