We didn't have enough time at town hall to cover it, so I'm making a thread to talk about it! Using spoofs and regular ol' emotes, you can employ narration to fill a room around you with npcs and elaborate on the scene as pre-described by the room.
Have you ever seen the movie Hook? Some of our younger users might not have, so I'm going to link you to this scene. Please take a gander (condensed, thankfully):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPCzjHPS--U
Peter comes to the table and he's famished. He's ready to consume what the table has to offer. But when the pan tops are lifted, he sees nothing. He expresses frustration: what's the deal, yo? Any bakalaka can see there ain't nothin' here!
That sounds a lot like what someone might think when they first walk the streets of Sindome, right? "There's no one here." Ah, but there are people there! You have to use your imagination to see them. And as soon as you do--boom! They appear. They will seem more real in your perception and your writing style will change to accommodate your new POV.
How can you take up this practice to immerse yourself more in the world? How can your writing not only accommodate the invisible NPCs, but make room for them in your writing for flavor? Here's some easy tips to get started!
- When you first get to the room, check out what kind of crowds the room tells you are there. Grunen's has smokers and corpies taking a load off from the work day. The Drome has every type of Mixer imaginable crowding the bar for a drink and searching for information. The room's description will clue you in on your narration starting point.
- Narrate a little of your character interacting with those crowds. They could be squeezing in to get a seat, or waving smoke out of their face while taking a seat next to a PR consultant.
- In between major actions between players, spoof what the room is doing ever so often. If you are in a diner, there's servers rushing around and customers rolling in and out of there. You can just imagine the sights, sounds, and smells you'd get from a scene like that. What do you hear? What's the cook doing in the kitchen? Tell a micro-story that's one post long with him. Then, you can go back to your character's own narration.
- Don't forget the cyberpunk flavor! An upscale bar is an upscale bar no matter what game you're in. But in Sindome's upscale bar, there's high-stakes dealings in the corners. Do you see those two suits over there? The way they're whispering probably means they're up to no good. Oh look, there's a Mixer in the corner trying to blend in by dressing up--and here comes a Judge to fine them for impersonation. On the streets of Red, you can see a bag lady wandering up and down with an empty, broken stroller that's filled with trash that she's going to try and dump into a chute for SIC cred. All those things make the city what it is, one spoof at a time.
What are the benefits of spoofing?
- It shows other players you aren't just your character. You can think outside the box and play anyone.
- Players will react to your spoofing and help enhance roleplay in the room.
- People might actually seek you out to play with you more!
- You're giving more life to the dome which is always good.
Best Practices
- Don't spoof an NPC to fight a PC, it isn't fair to do that and it violates ToS.
- Spoofed microstories have a short half-life. When an NPC's time is done, let them go back into the crowds of Withmore again. Don't hold on to them for too long.
- If you aren't sure you should spoof a specific thing, it's best not to do it.
- If someone else narrates something, don't write narration that negates what they've said. Go with the flow and let your writing work together.
That's all the tips I have, but if you have questions, please feel free to ask me! Also other player tips are totally welcome, come add yours!
