If you were to go online and read stories about roleplaying games you will find a lot of RPG Horror stories, these vary from games that fell apart, Games Masters that weren’t, and Players that no one in their right mind would want to talk to, let alone play with.
Roleplaying is a big, if still a bit fringe and geeky hobby, there are a lot of Players out there, and while no two are exactly the same, there are trends and types that you can observe in the wild.
Referees and Yarn-Tellers may not get to choose who their players are, and T13 is a complex game to try and explain quickly. It can behave like a simulation, if that’s what you want, but favours a more Narrative style of play than some games. There’s no limits on the Genres or Tone that a game of T13 might take, some games may be Nihilistic Cosmic Horror, others are Grim-Dark fantasies, and still others are comedic steam-punk extravaganzas. And there’s nothing to stop you from blending, mashing and layering different Tones and Genres together.
This means it has the potential to attract a lot of different Players from various backgrounds and throw them all into a Plot together. T13 is also one of the few roleplaying games that encourages not only intra-party Conflicts, but even internal conflicts in one Character (and that’s without getting into having Alternates played by different Players in a single Character, or the other shenanigans that are possible and even encouraged in the system). In short, there’s a lot going on, which can make it tricky for Referees to know what should happen next sometimes, and can make it hard for Players to agree on a style of play that suits the current game. The following tips can help.
Types of Players
There are lots of different player types, and it can help to identify what sort of players you have, as it will help you to have fun with these people. Of course, most real people will display aspects of two, or even three, Player Types, rather than just one.
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Ambitious | The Ambitious Player wants to rule the world, or at least a significant portion of it. They will engage with Plots mostly as a way to make Gains and increase their Character’s power, until they can begin to influence the Plots, by perhaps deciding to attack the Lord of the Land or King. Ambitious Players can be a problem for some Yarn-Tellers, unless you accept that they will want to take on your political leaders, and upset your status-quo. |
| Antagonist | The Antagonist Player always seems to believe the same thing, first that only their fun is important, secondly that the goal of the game is to “beat” the Referee or Yarn-Teller. Antagonist Players will often be disruptive to the game in general, as they refuse to understand why anyone else should get to have fun. Antagonists can appear similar to many of the other types of player, but often closest to Cheaters, in that they just don’t really understand the game. |
| Character-Actor | The Character-Actor Player only cares about their character, they may give a hoot about the Plot, but only because it affects their character and they see some interesting possibilities to the story-line. Character-Actor Players have a lot of similarities to the Drama Llamas, but they are less dramatic and more just players in love with their own character. Character-Actors can be a lot of fun, but Yarn-Tellers and Referees need to be careful of disrupting the Character-Actor’s character, as they can react very poorly. |
| Cheater | Cheaters are just no fun to play with. They will fudge dice rolls, calling out Scores that are just far too high, or low, to be reasonable. Card Play will reduce their chances to cheat, but not by much, Referees should keep an eye on their Ordeal Pools and how often they “forget” their Ordeal Pool Limit. Cheaters cheat because they want to feel powerful, sit them next to the Klutz and they should be fine. Never seat them near a Noob unless you want two Cheats at the table and then to pit them against each other. Cheaters don’t understand fair play and usually believe everyone is like them. Cheaters can be easily confused with the Antagonist as there is often a misunderstanding of what the game is, or a failure to understand that their actions at the table effect the fun of the other players. |
| Chronicler | The Chronicler Player is usually noted by the copious notes that they take on the game. Chroniclers like good, engaging stories, full of twisting Plots and complex Characters and settings. Chroniclers can appear disengaged from time to time, or may appear like a Thinker, but usually you don’t have to worry about them, as long as the Plot is keeping them writing, they are actually having fun. You can spot a Chronicler by their ability to quote entire sections of previous games, and recap details that Yarn-Tellers might have forgotten. |
| Collector | The Collector player is always looking for something. Often they favour collecting magical items and spells, that they think may help them in the future, or simply for completenesses sake. Collectors can be entertained by providing plenty of fun Descendants for them to collect, and especially choices between Descendants that they might want. |
| Comedian | The Comedian Player is just there to have fun, sometimes at the expense of the other Players enjoyment. They commonly make out-of-character jokes, and have been known to ignore the entire point of a Plot because they are working on a one-liner. Comedians can be great to play with, making for a fun table experience, but the Yarn-teller will have to work harder to keep everyone else engaged in the plot. Ideally, the Comedian should be playing a comic-relief character to minimise any disruption they may cause. |
| Curious | Curious Players explore and ask questions. They can be rather like a Simulationist in that regard. However, they will focus on any apparent mysteries they find, rather than realism. |
| Disengaged | The Disengaged player is usually spotted by the fact that during the game they are distracted, or ignore the other players entirely. They may be on social media, or playing another game, this is not the same as momentary disengagement, where a Player’s Character is away and so they may do something else for a bit, until the Referee or Yarn-Teller gets back to them. These Players seem to be uninterested in what is happening, and often are only present because they are accompanying someone else to the group. Yarn-Tellers can try and engage a disengaged Player, but this can create a Ref Hog situation instead. Rather the other Players should be encouraged to engage the Player, especially a Socialiser or Comedian, as they will largely entertain themselves until you get around to what they are up to again. |
| Drama Llama | These Players are some of the most in-depth Role-players. They want situations and Narratives that offer them a chance to act out a wide variety of emotions, but especially seem to love angst-ridden teenage protagonists. If the Narratives and Plots don’t give them opportunities for drama, you can count on them to create their own, which can be quite disruptive to a Dungeon / Hex crawl or similar game. |
| Edge-lord | Edge-lords (and the much rarer Edge-Lady) are players who can dominate and ruin games. They want “edgy” or “cool” content, by which they mean content with shock-value. If Plots and situations do not grant the Edge-Lord their shocks, rather like the Drama Llama Player, they will create that shock themselves, and you may experience Edge-Lord players who declare they will rape or kill other Characters for no reason. Edge-lords can sometimes be controlled, often by simply making them responsible for the consequences of their own actions. Crime committing Edge-lords should find themselves wanted by the law, etc. Edge-lords are generally toxic, do not play well with other types, and should be avoided if possible. |
| Engineer | Engineer Players like to tinker with the system, usually creating Descendants for themselves or other Player Characters to use. Occasionally, they will try and sell their inventions for profit, for the Yarn-Teller this can be a good Plot, or be unbalancing to the status-quo, depending on the game setting and what the Engineer created. Engineer Players are best engaged by the Plot giving them things to build, and problems to solve, just be careful, as you may have to ban something they have made, perhaps like how the gun was known of, but banned, in medieval Japan. |
| Explorer | The Explorer Player always wants to go and see. They are similar to the curious player, but are not bothered by Mysteries as such, they just want to see what’s over that hill. Yarn-Tellers should prepare plenty of Locations for the Explorer to explore. They favour Dungeon and Hex crawl geo-plot style games. |
| Immersive | The Immersive Player is looking to completely immerse themselves in their character and the World. Sometimes Plot and game mechanics can annoy the immersive player as they drag them out of their immersion. A good Referee should allow the immersive players their immersion, but not at the expense of others fun, if everyone is immersive and they are all working well together then let it stand. Immersive Yarn-Tellers can get carried away and may need to be reined in by other players and the Referee occasionally. |
| Klutz | Klutz Players are exactly that, they live in a world of haunted dice that never roll higher than half, and often roll minimum, if they draw cards they draw low. T13 is generally balanced to let them do something, but really unlucky Klutzes can ruin a game with their bad rolls and terrible luck. Yarn-Tellers should be wary of the Klutz, they don’t mean to but they can always mess anything up, and will usually at the worst possible time. |
| Munchkin | The Munchkin Player can appear like an Ambitious type, the Antagonist, the Murder-hobo, or the Edge-lord, but they are not the same. Munchkins will attempt to power-game, creating Characters with huge, but unlikely to be triggered Hitches, and favour powerful Annexes with vague names. They see situations as competitive, even when they are not, and may even talk about beating the Yarn-Teller or Referee, by ignoring as much of the Plot as possible. Some Munchkins can try and exert their play style on other Players, and this can quickly become toxic. Munchkins will often bend and break rules if the Referee is not watching them carefully. |
| Murder-hobo | The Murder-hobo Player cares little about the Plot, Conflict or World. They just like killing things. They can be a very disruptive player type, especially to complex narratives, but are easily pleased by simple dungeon crawls and the like. |
| Noob | The Noob Player doesn’t know much about how this all works, they may need extra Referee or Yarn-Teller time, or need help with aspects of the system or role-playing in general. Noobs often need reminding of rules, procedures and what is expected of them. Some Players never leave Noob status and always need reminding what they have to roll, or when to Draw or Play cards, which can be quite frustrating for others. Try to be patient, they don’t do it on purpose, and will eventually learn, if encouraged to. |
| Old School | Old School Players cut their teeth on the boxes and books of games like Tunnels and Trolls, fighting fantasy books, and that game that came in a Basic Blue (or was it Red?) Coloured Box. They come from a simpler time, when the skills of the Player were more important than the skills of the Character, and beating the Scenario often left a trail of PC corpses through each level. These are Players that will strategize with the Strategist, explore with the Explorer and think with the Thinker. They want new challenges constantly, but not so new that it doesn’t fit what they think of as role-playing. They will accept a Total Party Kill much more easily than they will a PC becoming the Yarn-Teller for a while. Kept happy, they are amongst the best, but be wary of going against the gods of the Old School… |
| PVPer | The PVPer Player doesn’t believe in things like party cohesion, or morals. They will terminate another PC for the lint in their pocket on a good day. PVPers see the rest of the Players as potential trophies, unless they are currently useful to the Player (or less often the Character). Such Players live in a zero sum world where if someone else is doing well that must mean they are doing badly, and that situation will require rectifying. Yarn-Tellers can keep PVPers in line by providing diverse challenges that ideally make other Characters important to the PVPer’s survival and success. |
| Ref Hog | The Ref Hog Player is always trying to get the Referee or Yarn-Teller to engage solely with them. They can be recognised by the way they will interrupt other Players to ask the Referee or Yarn-Teller questions that only affect their Character, not the party as a whole. Sometimes Ref Hogs are actually asocial people, or are just really engaged with their own Character’s position and stake in the Plot and enthused about the game, and they may not realise what they are doing. The Yarn-Teller may need to implement a Spotlight, or talking stick system to stop the Ref Hog from frustrating the rest of the group. |
| Rules Lawyer | Rules Lawyers learn the system inside and out, and will always know where to find the rules they think will save them from whatever situation the Yarn-Teller has planned. Rules Lawyers can work in any game, especially if you convert them into Rules Barristers/Attorneys, where they can baby sit and teach the Noobs. |
| Simulationist | These Players like details, and realism in their Narratives and Settings. They expect a lot from their Yarn-Tellers, and will always ask questions about details the Yarn-Teller is unlikely to have considered. Yarn-Tellers have to remain consistent, and very well prepared (which inevitably means additional work on the Plots) if they wish to keep them engaged. Simulationist Yarn-Tellers will be generally detail orientated, but many may miss big-picture issues resulting from character actions. |
| Socialiser | The Socialiser Player plays just to socialise with the others at the table, they will engage in the Plots and so on if everyone else is engaged, but will require more face time with the Yarn-Teller and Referee as they engage in long conversations with every bartender and shopkeeper in the land. A good Yarn-Teller should bear in mind the Socialiser, and create a few talkative gossipy characters in every township and village, as well as some gossip for them to share. |
| Story-Teller | Story-Tellers are sort of the opposite of Old School Gamers. They don’t want complex, and deadly traps, or asymmetric random encounters, they want collaborative story-telling, where everyone builds on what has come before and no one is really going to win. They are the first to adapt to Yarn-Telling, but can feel hemmed in by the rules and other players from time to time. They rarely play well with Old School Players, unless there are clearly established ground rules between the two styles. |
| Strategist | These Players like complex combats, where they can use their knowledge of the system and warfare to some advantage. They tend to dominate combat, and may be difficult to provide suitable challenges for. Strategists can be amongst the first to make the move to Yarn-Telling, but they and the Referee should be aware their Strategies may make for a Total Party Kill if there are no other good strategists at the table. |
| Thinker | The Thinker Player is one of the hardest to run for. They typically can be like the Curious or Simulationist Player, but often they will silently listen to what is happening around the table, before they finally tell the Yarn-Teller what they are going to do. Thinkers have a habit of seeing through complex ruses and logic puzzles, although they may let others walk into danger before they reveal that they have seen it coming. The Thinker, unlike some other types, isn’t doing this maliciously, it is just that by staying quiet they know they will get more data. Thinkers are best engaged by random surprises, these will often get them to talk about how their expectations are being subverted. |
| Warrior | The Warrior Player can appear similar to the Strategist, PVPer, Edge-lord and Munchkin, but actually they just like any combat. The Warrior likes challenging combats and situations, they like to win, but want that win to be hard fought. They will occasionally abandon good strategy to make things harder for themselves, and so can be hard to keep alive. |
| Wizard | The Wizard Player just wants to be the best at what they do, which is usually throwing spells around, but could be hacking computers, or being a martial artist, etc. Wizards can be similar to the Old School and Thinker players, in that they like thinking outside the box, but unlike them, they will always try to bring everything back to their specialist skill, be it throwing a spell or hacking a computer. As long as a Wizard’s skills are useful to a Plot, they will be engaged, but the moment they feel useless, they can become incredibly disruptive. |
| Type | Description |
Knowing who your players are can let you understand the sorts of stories they will engage with most easily, and the sorts of situations and Conflicts that they want to explore through play. This knowledge is invaluable to planning your game out, so how can you find out what you players want to play when you maybe have never roleplayed with them before?
Session Zero
When you are setting up a game, it is often a good idea to know what style of play the Players like. Knowing what your players like is a good first step to building a fun narrative that they will all enjoy and engage in enthusiastically.
You can get at lot of this stuff sorted by hosting a Session Zero, which is where explain your ideas for the game, what sorts of Characters the Players are expected to play, what the genre (or genres) will be, any special rules or systems like special technologies, or magic that will be available, and all that good stuff.
Session Zero is a great time to make Characters, and you can start when the Characters were children (Children start out with a Scale that is negative – how negative depends upon the child) Play a scene or two from their lives as kids, introduce some early friends, allies and potential rivals, perhaps introduce an early Mentor. Feel free to skip time forwards, move some Facets up or down as appropriate to how and what the Character is doing, hand out appropriate Proficiencies. Let Skills, a Talent or two and occasionally a Power emerge during this play (the Proficiency Crisis will happen rarely, but can be forced with Wyrd Tarot cards).
Try skipping time forwards a few years, after each suggestion they make about the Character, and then try to show a Scene from that period of the Character’s life. For example, if has been suggested that Geena got given a robot on her 14th birthday, that kept breaking down, or overheating, and that encouraged her to learn Robotics, programming and AI Psychology. Then skip forwards to Geena in college where she develops a technique for running machine learning algorithms on machines with half the power of normal, effectively halving the cost, or doubling the upper limits if what the Robot can achieve.
In general, Session Zero should be run for all Characters simultaneously as they have known each other for a while. This should allow you to build a party of Characters, some of whom may have connections going back years, with a sense of shared history between them. It may lead them to share ambitions, even. Sometimes it can be better to have Session Zero ignore the Characters childhoods, instead focusing on how they met as group, be it at university, in boot camp, or that one day in the tavern, as necessary.
Of course, this is T13, not every character has a normal life, or upbringing, so you should roleplay through the first time each of the Characters met. Perhaps when most of the Characters were around 8, the Robot Character was constructed. It didn’t arrive until a few weeks later, when it was purchased by one of the Character’s parents. But it wasn’t until that fateful night, when those parents were killed by the Land Pirates, that its overtaxed and jury-rigged CPU was shocked into true sentience, and it protected the children and hid with them until the Land Pirates were long gone. Since then, it and the others, have had to keep the secrets of that night. Session Zero would include the birthday party where the kids knew each other, and was the first time they met the Robot, as well as a Scene from that “Fateful Night”. Earlier in the Session, the other kids may have had a few experiences that they shared that the Robot didn’t.
The goal of Session Zero is to set up the Story that you are planning to run. Session Zero might include Frame Revelations about the Cycle, or Epic, but is essentially a Prologue for each Character, and is not a real part of the Story (although it may be referenced later – especially when the Party encounters the Land Pirates again).
Session Zero is intended to give the Players an expectation about the game, it lets them know the world(s) and get a handle on their place in it. This can be extended into the first Story that you play, but usually during one of the early stories there will be some kind of inciting event that subverts that expectation slightly and shapes where the Characters will be going from then on. In our rough example, perhaps the Robot Uprising will begin, and our Robot chum, will have to decide whether they are loyal to their Human friends or their Robotic compatriots.