players playing themselves?

[Brother in Arms]

Ok I know everyone has done this before with there own self....

but I need to start out a group that has never played an RPG before and aren't super excited about playing make believe or pretend.... none of the players know anything about RPGing... (so I am thinking of running a 2013 game) But they all love guns and militaria so I think this is the only game I can get them into.

So here is the Idea....I am having my 3 room mates play themselves as characters.....this way they can just be themselves and won't have to worry about pretending to be someone else. And That way they can concern themselves with combat and survival.

The reason I think it will work is because they are very unusual group of gents to be living together even here in the U.S.

here is what the party consists of:

PC's
1. 23 Year old Gunsmith (who own many firearms and huge quantity of Ammo, and concealed carries daily, grew up in Burlington Vermont.

1. 23 Year old head Security Guard (owns a few firearms and concealed carries daily, grew up in Burlington Vermont.

1. 24 year old Ex Marine Iraq War Veteran (owns a few firearms and concealed carries daily, Grew up in Burlington Vermont)

Those are basics about my roommates the third chap is the only one with military experience the rest are avid recreational shooters and former air soft players.

Then there is Me... I will be a (NPC) who is conveniently visiting Mum in Maine 3 hours away, so I won't be able to help them. At least not right away.
1.28 year old Gunsmith(own many firearms and huge quantities of ammunition concealed carries on occasion, Grew up in Western Maine)


So here is what I am thinking these guys all have guns and gear at there disposal so I am thinking that once they get there character (which I think I will make but let them tweak) I will explain to them they have 5 minutes to get all there gear and bring it to the living room. Blow a whistle and they are off to literally physically get all there kit!!!!

But I need to figure out why they would only have 5 minutes to do this in.

There will be at least 3 semi-auto M4 carbines but one is in pieces and not functioning, 1 Semi-auto M16A1. They could also ransack my Semi-auto AK, SKS and Saiga .308 out of my room. They also have a Springfield M1A, A PS90, Beretta storm, another SkS, Scoped Bolt action .308, a potentially a back pack full of hand guns....these are the sort of guys who literally keep dozens of loaded magazines lying around.... but don't have any food packed.

So I need them to leave quickly cant have them hole up in the Apartment too much stuff and guns.

What do you guys think and what is the tactical signifigance of Burlington Vermont in 2013? Im wondering if it would even be there or if it would be blown up due to Lake Champlain and Platsburgh naval base just on the other side of the lake. I have read that lake champlain was an actual target of nukes for the Russians to increase the mushroom cloud effect of nukes. But we are close to Canadian border so they could slip into the top of VT and make for the largest city in VT...thus Burlington and hopefully onward to the massive shootout, called the battle of Burlington!

Let me know what you think and please any help this is going to be a crazy undertaking...

Brother in Arms

[Legbreaker]

Could be an interesting way to get new players involved.....

I know of at least one member of this list who already plays characters based HEAVILY on themselves. Can't say they do it particularly well, but who am I to say really...

What's the reasoning behind the 5 minutes? Is that all the notice they get before something catastrophic?

Something you'll need to keep a firm grasp on is skills. Many people IRL think they're much better at things than the rules say they would be (a 23 yr old civilian isn't going to have a lot of points to allocate).

Stats are another issue. I believe somebody once worked out a method of converting to game stats, but I've no idea where to even begin looking for it.

[Fusilier]

Originally Posted by Legbreaker

I know of at least one member of this list who already plays characters based HEAVILY on themselves. Can't say they do it particularly well, but who am I to say really...

LOL. Nuff said.

[headquarters]

Originally Posted by Brother in Arms

Ok I know everyone has done this before with there own self....

but I need to start out a group that has never played an RPG before and aren't super excited about playing make believe or pretend.... none of the players know anything about RPGing... (so I am thinking of running a 2013 game) But they all love guns and militaria so I think this is the only game I can get them into.

So here is the Idea....I am having my 3 room mates play themselves as characters.....this way they can just be themselves and won't have to worry about pretending to be someone else. And That way they can concern themselves with combat and survival.

The reason I think it will work is because they are very unusual group of gents to be living together even here in the U.S.

here is what the party consists of:

PC's
1. 23 Year old Gunsmith (who own many firearms and huge quantity of Ammo, and concealed carries daily, grew up in Burlington Vermont.

1. 23 Year old head Security Guard (owns a few firearms and concealed carries daily, grew up in Burlington Vermont.

1. 24 year old Ex Marine Iraq War Veteran (owns a few firearms and concealed carries daily, Grew up in Burlington Vermont)

Those are basics about my roommates the third chap is the only one with military experience the rest are avid recreational shooters and former air soft players.

Then there is Me... I will be a (NPC) who is conveniently visiting Mum in Maine 3 hours away, so I won't be able to help them. At least not right away.
1.28 year old Gunsmith(own many firearms and huge quantities of ammunition concealed carries on occasion, Grew up in Western Maine)


So here is what I am thinking these guys all have guns and gear at there disposal so I am thinking that once they get there character (which I think I will make but let them tweak) I will explain to them they have 5 minutes to get all there gear and bring it to the living room. Blow a whistle and they are off to literally physically get all there kit!!!!

But I need to figure out why they would only have 5 minutes to do this in.

There will be at least 3 semi-auto M4 carbines but one is in pieces and not functioning, 1 Semi-auto M16A1. They could also ransack my Semi-auto AK, SKS and Saiga .308 out of my room. They also have a Springfield M1A, A PS90, Beretta storm, another SkS, Scoped Bolt action .308, a potentially a back pack full of hand guns....these are the sort of guys who literally keep dozens of loaded magazines lying around.... but don't have any food packed.

So I need them to leave quickly cant have them hole up in the Apartment too much stuff and guns.

What do you guys think and what is the tactical signifigance of Burlington Vermont in 2013? Im wondering if it would even be there or if it would be blown up due to Lake Champlain and Platsburgh naval base just on the other side of the lake. I have read that lake champlain was an actual target of nukes for the Russians to increase the mushroom cloud effect of nukes. But we are close to Canadian border so they could slip into the top of VT and make for the largest city in VT...thus Burlington and hopefully onward to the massive shootout, called the battle of Burlington!

Let me know what you think and please any help this is going to be a crazy undertaking...

Brother in Arms

no game is a crazy undertaking imho - but it will be a challenge to translate scores and skills onto paper .Not to mention initiative.Also , killing them off might be an issue .

I would rather create the exact same characters ,change name and background slightly and just state that this is a 23 year old gunsmith living in VT with his friends so and so -and just run it like a semi parallell story to real life .But if they are set against the idea of make believe in a sense, stick with your guns so to say -run it as you planned.

Hope you recruit some more players and have fun .

[General Pain]

I usually frown upon player playing with themselves in FtF sessions.....


or did I just miss the question....? hehe

just kidding...

hmm

I wonder what HQ would say my character would be like if I was to play myself.

Slightly obese
low constitution
low agility
low education
average strenght
high charisma
INt should be above above average

skills....

djing
piano
gitar
computers,programming,assembly,repairs
swimming,diving
snowskiing,
some artistic skills
high persuation
speaks:norweigian,danish,swedish,english,german
dog handling

other traits:
high tolerance for alcohol
low tolerance for religious nuts
smoker
back-problems (car-accident) - regulary visit chiropr.
leg-problems (ran through a glass door 10yo,nerve damage etc)
stumach-problems (results of lifestyle in early 20s)
obscure facts on various subjects

[Fusilier]

I tended to stay away from those sort of games (create yourself), both FtF or online. Too often it dissolved into player dick measuring.

[headquarters]

Your English is not without fault and your German sounds like a low budget war movie from the 1980s.

You are dead on on the obesity though .

I am just kidding .

No-one around our table can stick a munchkin label on ( we all laugh hard when someom etries to ) .Thats why you created General Pain -to let the other side out for a few laughs from time to time .

Just goes to show that the world is lucky that you are in fact as you stated in your post.You have his mind but not his ability to turn situations the way he wants them by brutal ,thoughtless,vicious,reckless violence and foul language.

Originally Posted by General Pain

I usually frown upon player playing with themselves in FtF sessions.....


or did I just miss the question....? hehe

just kidding...

hmm

I wonder what HQ would say my character would be like if I was to play myself.

Slightly obese
low constitution
low agility
low education
average strenght
high charisma
INt should be above above average

skills....

djing
piano
gitar
computers,programming,assembly,repairs
swimming,diving
snowskiing,
some artistic skills
high persuation
speaks:norweigian,danish,swedish,english,german
dog handling

other traits:
high tolerance for alcohol
low tolerance for religious nuts
smoker
back-problems (car-accident) - regulary visit chiropr.
leg-problems (ran through a glass door 10yo,nerve damage etc)
stumach-problems (results of lifestyle in early 20s)
obscure facts on various subjects

[General Pain]

Like I don't know foul language....

here is a joke...

What happens when two homosexuals mix wallpaper paste with vazeline???




















see below....











the walpaper falls of the wall....hehe

[headquarters]

Remember when we used to read articles about people doing all sorts of bad stuff while under the influence of the horrible RPGs ?

The murders ,the arson etc .

Didnt they warn about this sort of thing -that instant ,homicidal rage and confusion was the next step if you dabbled with it ?

aahh..the good old days when the roleplaying games were considered the devils work by many -especially religious people ...

Anyways - ours would be a sorry group of PCs I fear .In bad shape,with low morale,poor training and few objectivs beyond keeping ourselves outsid ethe two way shooting range ,dry , warm ,fed and drunk .

Pretty much like any army then .

[boogiedowndonovan]

Originally Posted by Fusilier

I tended to stay away from those sort of games (create yourself), both FtF or online. Too often it dissolved into player dick measuring.

word!

but if you're interested in some rules about creating yourself as a T2k character, try these:

http://www.reocities.com/orrin_ladd/SELF.html

[pmulcahy11b]

Players shouldn't play themselves. They tend to overestimate or underestimate their abilities, not really know the parameters of their personalities, not really know what they would do in a given situation, and in short, players don't really know themselves well enough to play themselves. The best you end up with is a caricature of yourself.

[copeab]

Originally Posted by Brother in Arms

but I need to start out a group that has never played an RPG before and aren't super excited about playing make believe or pretend.... none of the players know anything about RPGing...

Never? Really?

As kids, they never played cowboys and Indians? Cops and robbers? Even a first person shooter is roleplaying of a crude sort ("I'm the last Space Marine and I have to stop an alien invasion of earth.").

If they aren't geeked for "playing pretend" I don't think any approach you take is going to work.

[Slappy]

I'd say it could work as a one shot, but unlikely as a campaign. I'd drop the live action 5 minute drill and just role play that. What if you had nearly no real rule system (new players often bog down in mechanics and die rolling and it removed the need for a lot of skill assignment) and just focus on the story and actions. Set the thing in present day. Come up with a story that could happen jumping off from where you are (i.e. you are arrested for a crime you didn't commit and your friend PCs have to clear your name by uncovoring a previously unknown drug ring or cult in Burlington). That let's them get engaged as themselves and try roleplaying. If they like it, talk them into a campaign of some kind. If not, it's just one evening wasted.

[kcdusk]

For better or worse, i think its a good idea.

At least you'd have a lot more player buy in, i think. It may make them more regular posters. Or even make normally "gung-ho" players think twice and self preservation might become more common (and be more realistic in my view).

[Brother in Arms]

I had forgotten about this post and saddly it never happened I could never get everyone together at the same time and my ex-marine moved back in with his gf. It also seems so long ago now that I have lived in Tennesee for over a year...anyway in re reading this thread I missed Copeabs qoute.


"Anyways - ours would be a sorry group of PCs I fear .In bad shape,with low morale,poor training and few objectivs beyond keeping ourselves outsid ethe two way shooting range ,dry , warm ,fed and drunk ."

I am still laughing my ass off over this!

[James Langham]

Originally Posted by Brother in Arms

I had forgotten about this post and saddly it never happened I could never get everyone together at the same time and my ex-marine moved back in with his gf. It also seems so long ago now that I have lived in Tennesee for over a year...anyway in re reading this thread I missed Copeabs qoute.


"Anyways - ours would be a sorry group of PCs I fear .In bad shape,with low morale,poor training and few objectivs beyond keeping ourselves outsid ethe two way shooting range ,dry , warm ,fed and drunk ."

I am still laughing my ass off over this!

I love the concept. Someone once worked me out for Cthulhu Now but said I broke almost every character generation rule in the book...my favourite comment "how can a librarian have so many combat skills!?!"

[Tombot]

That could be a funny way to start... makes me think of
"Shaun of the...Food-Riots" !

As long as the group can agree on NOT taking the "realism" of their character-stats to serious (and their eventual death!).
Maybe you know your group well enough, that you can give each of them some exaggerated flaws (to cope with their - maybe - exaggerated skills), or spice the scenario up with a little extra-"mission"/goal for each of them, based on their real lifes. Off course that would be like a caricature - but Yeah, why not?!

An example for a personal sidemission from "Shaun" would be; "SAVE your mother - no matter what! AND your (ex-) girlfriend..."
Could be neat not to have an M16A2 from the beginning, too.

AND...use a map of your hometown, where you prepared some secret encounters with some people/places from the neighbourhood ("Find the perfect hideout - go to the Winchester-Pub!")...
Good luck & let us know how it worked out!

[Cpl. Kalkwarf]

Originally Posted by Brother in Arms

I had forgotten about this post and saddly it never happened I could never get everyone together at the same time and my ex-marine moved back in with his gf. It also seems so long ago now that I have lived in Tennesee for over a year...anyway in re reading this thread I missed Copeabs qoute.


"Anyways - ours would be a sorry group of PCs I fear .In bad shape,with low morale,poor training and few objectivs beyond keeping ourselves outsid ethe two way shooting range ,dry , warm ,fed and drunk ."

I am still laughing my ass off over this!

Its Marine Veteran, "Once a Marine Always a Marine".

[Cpl. Kalkwarf]

None of my Players have the Balls to play them selves.

I have done it before, and even used alternate reality versions. Kind of what ifs. As in what if I had stayed in the Marines till the day the balloon went up, etc. I have even given the players when I ref the opportunity to do that with there character of self.

Still no one took the chance.

[StainlessSteelCynic]

Originally Posted by boogiedowndonovan

word!

but if you're interested in some rules about creating yourself as a T2k character, try these:

http://www.reocities.com/orrin_ladd/SELF.html

That link doesn't seem to be working and besides a dead AOL link the only working link to Orrin's material I've found is this one
http://web.archive.org/web/200703201...add/index.html

P.S. After some trawling, I believe I've got the link
http://www.geocities.ws/orrin_ladd/ Home page
http://www.geocities.ws/orrin_ladd/SELF.html Rules to create your self