Hi!! Do you have any advice for a brand new storyteller trying to plan a game of werewolf for the first time? Like what kind of information is good to have prepped for a game? Are there any methods or worksheets that can help organize things better? I see a lot of people say to do research on a particular location youre gonna use and use the history/news to build a story/setting around, and I get what they are saying but how does someone go about it I guess (i’ve tried this but get more bogged down than inspired it seems)? Would playing a solo game of werewolf be a good practice scenario before running a game with others?
Forgive me if this is all over the place. I’ve never run a WoD game or any ttrpg before. Any advice would be helpful. Thank you so much and I love the work you’re doing.
I'll do my best to respond to your questions individually:
What kind of information is good to have prepped for a game?
Flexible information. A rough outline of your goals for the game session will help you keep track of the things you intend to go over. You want enough information for you to know what that is, but you want it open-ended enough that you can improvise on the fly if your players do something unexpected. In general, try to keep your session goals no more detailed than about a paragraph in length per concept. If its much more elaborate than that, chances are good you'll have to railroad your players to accomplish it. When it comes to running stories, I'll usually write an open-ended problem about 100-250 words long for each point of interest in the region I'm setting a game, so if players happen to randomly decide to go somewhere unexpected I have an understanding of what the place looks like, what people are typically there, and what interest (if any) it holds to particular NPCs. Again though, keep it simple. A modular setting and chronicle means that you can change story happenings to different locations if the plot point is open-ended enough to allow it.
Are there any methods or worksheets that can help organize things better?
Yes! My general experience finds that it takes around four hours to plan a session that feels complete, so plan to dedicate an evening of undivided attention on exactly that.
It would also help to build out a Storytellers Screen. Most STs will just use a couple manilla folders and paperclips to hold it together. The thing that makes you an effective ST isn't necessarily memorizing stats but being able to quickly reference them on the fly. Each edition has their own specifics, so I'll just give examples. On the inside, its enormously helpful to have the following tables printed or written down:
Notes on stat ratings and what they mean if you need to improvise rolls i.e. 0=abysmal 1=poor 2=average 3=good et al.
Difficulty notes ie 3=easy 4=routine 5=straightforward 6=standard et al
Gauntlet Ratings, if your edition uses them
Combat Summary chart with enough info on what each stage of combat entails, at least enough for you to remember the step of each round ie initiatice, attack, and resolution details, complications like splitting dice pools, being stunned, dodging etc
Spirit combat rules. I struggled with this when I started off and its annoying for players to wait while you scramble through a book to find them
Difficulty ratings for Rage Rolls and corresponding moon phases
Brawling chart, melee weapons tables, armor types and firefight complications
Firearms chart and a list of the common game firearms.
Delirium chart and their effects
Feats of Strength, to make sure your players (or NPCs) aren't punching too far above their weight class
Falling Damage. Lol.
Rites type and difficulties rolling table
Form Bonuses
When it comes to realia, index cards are any ST's best friend in the world. You can write down rites, gifts, monster stats, talisman information et al for quick reference so you don't have to go book diving.
When you do need to go book diving, stickynotes are great for bookmarking pages with critical information like moots, renown, banes, spirit types, chargen info like backgrounds, attributes and abilities etc, having a page tabbed with one is another massive time-saver.
Funny enough writing this reminds me that I miss in-person games. I should remedy that.
Lastly, regardless of which edition you run, I highly HIGHLY recommend getting your hands on the 2nd edition Werewolf Storytellers Handbook. You can get print copies on STV new for cheaper than you might think, and it is utterly indispensable for building and running chronicles across all editions. It sells pathos in spades.
I see a lot of people say to do research on a particular location youre gonna use and use the history/news to build a story/setting around, and I get what they are saying but how does someone go about it I guess (i’ve tried this but get more bogged down than inspired it seems)?
So, there are three main ways I tend to conduct my research on a locale, and most of the best research happens at street level.
Talk to actual people. If you're having a story set in, say, a vets office, call a vet and let them know you're a writer and wanna learn to tell better stories at vet offices. More often than not they'll be happy to have you come by and ask questions. Also weirdly enough, people are happy to tell you freakier trivia if you're upfront and say its for horror. I managed to have an extensive chat with an engineer at a synthesizer factory who gave me a list of some of the silliest ways a person can become injured at a synth factory (falling into a solder hopper is the silliest fyi)
Visit local museums. Even the smallest towns nearly always have museums about local industry or town lore, usually ran by some local elder who is all too happy to tell you interesting information about the place you live.
Go hiking. Seriously. Especially if its a Werewolf game. Get out to where the wolves are. Memorize the smell of the local plants, the coldness of the water, the sting of local insects, the humidity, and feel what its like to replenish your Gnosis with Gaia. You'd be amazed the ideas that can come just by grounding yourself in the world in that way. I'm disabled and even local flat parks can be enormously beneficial.
The most useful though is talking to people so you're not just sitting in your head with your ideas. When people know you're a writer the stories tend to come to you, because everyone has their own experiences. Scary, I know, but also, meeting people is great fodder for NPCs too. Change names, occupations, keep the mannerisms and drive.
Would playing a solo game of werewolf be a good practice scenario before running a game with others?
To an extent. Playing any solo game is decent to understand how mechanics work, but past a certain point offers diminishing returns when it comes to planning to run for a group. If anything, joining tables as a player is just as useful if not moreso. Stress testing rolls with player sheets versus monsters though is never a bad idea.
Let me know how it goes! Good luck!
