Yes I take my hat off to Jason Carl for Storytelling both LA by Night and Seattle by Night.

I think this is his natural storyteller style, this is better for me since LABN is more performance than gameplay

@@watersports1381 I like the performance style personally.. I can't wait to see how NYBN plays out.

@@brad7718 Quite late to the party. How did you like NYBN? Cuz it was quite different from LA too, with shorter arcs and more characters.

Their humor, banter and back and forth is just so pricelessly effortless.

I like to think of it this way: "One World of Darkness, but many ways to enjoy it!" :)

As much as I love WW, and many of my favorite gaming sessions have been in Vampire games, it isn't THAT hard to do it wrong. Mostly when people play it too serious, angsty, gothy, and/or pretentious. And the results are as awful as a milkshake for a neonate: they should be good, but taste of ashes.

I would say it is one of the *easier* games to do Wrong. The system itself very nearly encourages it, in some ways. What these shows prove, is that they can indeed be done very right.

there is no wrong roleplaying as long everybody has fun

But... That's how you get ants.

Somewhere in the ether, a mad prince is yelling to “fill him with gold!!”

I'm late to seeing these (thanks NY by NIght), but I love the throwaway quips Jason does here. They don't always get recognized by the folks at the table (inevitable) but he just lets them go as he half-smiles to himself and they become little moments for himself and the audience.

Yeah, it is. It is definitely funny to see Jason in these. He definitely is a lot less serious in this, but it still works.

I actually prefer this one

How is LA By Night? More serious and jason punishes his characters more? Then I will gibe that a try. I love to watch the PA P&P streams for fun but I miss the posibility of a character death or the unnerving feeling, if the players are in a tough situation.

@@sinclairo3349 LAbN is interesting, assuming that very slow pace won't turn you off, other than that it's serious and actors try to stay in character as much as possible, which is not bad but at times it makes the whole thing feel a little bit scripted ( I guess the slow pace just gives them more time to think ), it also means that in LA you won't get almost any ooc jokes or other interactions (again not a bad thing, just something you get used to)

@@sinclairo3349 I wouldn't say Jason punishes the characters more it's just that in LA by Night the characters are played by actors who are getting into roles and they take them as seriously as any actor would. LA By Night therefore feels like watching a stage drama. Seattle By Night is played by roleplayers not actors and so it feels more like a tabletop game session would go. The difference is that LA By Night is Vampire as how White Wolf imagines it and then Seattle is Vampire as it is in most groups.

The SOAK ROLLS, TOO. Our Ahroun in our last game was a MONSTER. I was a Theurge, but I had pretty darn good stam too and I was formidable at taking damage.

That's interesting, because I came away thinking that Jerry was the saving grace in this episode, and did his best to keep things rolling in what was essentially 2 hours of not much happening. Regardless, "I have a lot of questions, and I suspect that you don't have many answers, and the extent to which the gulf between them yawn, sir, troubles me" is one of the finest bits of improvised dialogue I've ever heard in a role-play.

@@TheLujami In all his stuff, I think think Jerry's 'writer' shines through. Not many ttrpg,ers speaking style are as verbose as his, and it is a great quality at the table

I'm hoping Werewolf gets a 5e treatment.

It is. And I'm cautiously optimistic.

Thank you for the kind comments! I am happy you enjoy this new story. :)

Have you never played White Wolf games? (Vampire or Werewolf are their big 2) I ran a Werewolf campaign from 2010 to 2014, set in New Orleans modern day. After that ended, we started Vampire and for the last 5 or 6-ish years we have plotted a path from the year 1898, with: (YOU CAN STOP READING HERE IF YOU WANT, THE REST JUST TALKS ABOUT MY STORY) TLDR: We've played in story from 1898 to 1964 so far. A native American war veteran, who retired after the Spanish American war. He was an alcoholic and spent the majority of his time drunk. He was hired 1) to save his own life, hopefully by giving him something to do outside drinking and 2) because a rash of missing persons had been reported within the very rich circles of high society that the police seemed to be dragging their feet on. A rich and hansome theater actor, who was trying to transition into a new form of theater but using "moving pictures ". And and antiques appraiser/ archeologist who was asked to determine the origin of a strange statue a wealthy investor had acquired in the repossession of an old warehouse he now owned. They all met at a party and followed the threads of their story paths. Each seeming more sinister as the actor began dating the investors daughter, who promised to introduce him to people in the film industry. The statue seemed very old and wrapped up in some blood cult. The soldier traced the disappearances to parties, all of which seemed to be hosted by the same investor. New Years eve of 1899-1900 all the characters were invited to a turn of the century party. The characters awoke, naked in an earth hole, piled with bodies and 2 burly men picking through belongings and burning the clothing. Learning over the course of that day that they were no longer human. They began 1900 as Vampires and we added 2 new players in the 1930's, 2 in the 1940's and another in the 1950's. We did lose 2 players also: 1 who moved in the 1930's (lost our archeologist) and 1 who stopped playing after his character died in the 50's. We are currently in 1964. In 1971 I plan on awakening a vampire I've been hinting at, who is connected to the strange statue. She is responsible for the Chicago fire of 1871 and has been asleep for 100 years. In 1980 werewolves will become more prominent and fight for territory with the Vampires. Not much planned for the 1990s 2000 Im gonna deal with terrorism and the Prince being killed off in the 2001 9/11 attacks. Im sure there will be a fight for the open chair. 2010 we will begin the new ideas in V5, with the government and catholic church hunting vampires. Haven't given much thought to 2020 yet but we still have decades to cover. Its a lot of fun. Mortals have lived and died. Still have a girl born in 1905 that was raised as a daughter by the soldier around. Her daughter and bloodline will become important later on. So much has happened we could write a book. (just like the book I just wrote in the comment section) :)

vtm's game mechanics are excellent for great story focused game

Check out LA by Night if you haven't already. It is very well done with great players. Plus, Jason Carl is the storyteller there as well.

getting upstaged by critical role

@@dougbecktroyd2692 disagree with that, with vtm anyways, you're right when d&d is concerned.

@@Zercias my joke stands

😂👌

Could have been worse

I live in a city that's filled with real witches and there's a couple vamps. There's lots of satanists. well considering we have a Church of Satan. I'm not kidding. This is all very true. Guess where I live. No it's not Hollywood. Lol I'm on the other coast.

clarissa35f I got the feeling he truly didn’t understand. I feel like he’s so much a rules follower that breaking the rule against killing another vampire would never occur to him. I get the feeling that if he had understood it to have been a hit order he’d have countered with it being against the rules. He would have made a show of how his boss would never break the rules cause they’re a good member of the Camarilla

Bathroom of montreal?

It's always a matter of perspective. But yes generally they are terrifying monstrosities with the ability to mold theirs and others flesh. They can be very dangerous in any form of confrontation but some can be dealt with peacable... Especially since the sabbat is "gone". They can make for interesting social encounters as well.

They can make fun villains. Some of them are very studious and they like to experiment with flesh warping and shaping some of the more powerful ones can even assume a shape that would appear to be the equivalent of a werebat. The older ones tend to be VERY traditional i recall in previous editions there was a clan flaw that could be taken that actually made it very difficult for them to enter dwellings uninvited and they would have to make a frenzy check to avoid flipping out on someone entering their dwelling uninvited. However they were sticklers for hospitality so as long as they have offered you hospitality and you dont break the rules you would be completely safe with them so for the 3 days it lasts. Also fun fact Vlad Tepish or Vlad the Impaler as he may be better known was a Tzimisce.

Yea lol. That being said old Vlad wasn't well like by most of the clan cause he drew a lot of attention... Plus he did a lot of the impaling still human essentially looking for kindred so he could drink there blood and gain there power... Until one of them meet with him and just turned him to get him to stop.

Me too! Vicissitude is Tom's only shot at truly continuing his art! Flesh-shape that dye permanent.

If i remember correctly (its been awhile) the affects of Vicissitude on a Nos only lasts till there next rest. (Again may be miss remembering) I do however also recall in I think the Tzimisce Clan book a claim that The First Tzimisce was called on to punish the First Nos for some crime against Caine. Supposedly before this point the Nos were exquisitely beautiful and the results of this punishment are obvious so much so that the claim also stated they would reverse it when the time was right and fealty to them was sworn.

They just did!

You know what they say... Clan is a spectrum.

Clearly a Vampire with a Nosferatu aesthetic living that Malkavian life.

Clan confusion is fun. My very first VtM PC back 1998ish was a Brujah that had gone nuts on the embrace and everybody thought was a Malkavian. Later I got to play a Malk that even the Tremere thought was a crazy tremere (long backstory to justify). The results are . . . novel.

1. if players don't step up and ask the right questions in a scene, it can be agony/irresistible for a regular 'face' to stay true to a non-face character 2. I think they worked it out early in ep 1. that Betty & Jamison would be the parents and do most of the talking until such a time that the baby birds leave the nest.

Maybe somebody will ask Odette. ;) (Boons happen when a Kindred either offers one, or is prompted to agree to one; until they are acknowledged formally, do they really exist?)

@@JasonCarl She gave them both markers in the form of bullets in front of Drew, so there's that. ;)

Me too. Where else in Seattle can one get a giant omelette at 3 AM? :(

And the other players. And trying to play their characters for them.

Yeah, that's actually one of the reasons I stopped watching pennyarcade

Solomon I can't say I agree, I think his little additions and jokes add flavour. Most times his comments add more comedy to an already funny joke, to make it even better.

@@VillainousMuse We'll have to agree to differ then, but as long as Jason Carl is OK with it then it's fine -- and he's demonstrably capable of chilling things down when he needs to. For me personally, at my table I'd be concerned about a player seeking to dominate the table so much, and perhaps have a friendly word behind the scenes.

VerticalBlank he's a joke writer, I don't see it as him dominating the table. I see it as: he takes the jokes and ideas that people give him as they play, then refines it in his mind in to something he thinks is even funnier and shares it. Also I'm not detecting him talking over J. Carl, if anything Jason quiets down when the players speak as good GM/STs should. It is the job of that person to listen more than talk.

Tends to be a small problem occasionally with some players who have DMed for a long time. I've noticed similar occurrences in other tabletop series from ppl who normally dm a lot. Sometimes its hard to turn it off I guess.

Sinclair O I hate to say it, but Jerry is the only thing about this chronicle I’m not enjoying. He not only talks too much, tried to ST, and interrupts others, he has his character do stupid stuff as well. Like last episode where he just pulls the stake from the torpored kindred and then throws him in with the other torped kindred expecting him to eat him. Like ???. How did he expect him to eat him. 🤦‍♂️

Wholly agreed. It's beyond rude how often he interrupts everyone, and frustrating to watch. I'm trying to get invested in a scene set up and suddenly Jerry has something to say, regardless of if someone else is currently speaking.

I have to say I completely agree. He interrupts everyone, he tries to be the ST, and he tries to play the others' characters for them.

I really like Jerry and his style! It takes some getting used to, but he's very much a "yes, and..." player, probably much due to the dynamic he has with Mike, where they constantly build on each other's ideas when they write comics and so on. I quite love it.

The constant interrupting of the dm for bits has driven me insane lol

@clarissa35f He's the same with D&D. It's just his character but I find it so annoying. I feel he spoiling most of the RP games he's involved with.