Currently listening to: Coil, “The Anal Staircase.” Currently reading: The instruction manual for a VCR from 1998. It’s the most terrifying horror story I own. [End of Blog Post. Comments are disabled because last time someone tried to argue about “quantum ogres” and Yensy turned their argument into a living spell that now haunts a Denny’s in Ohio.]
Posted by Yensy – No date, but the air smells like ozone and old paper. On the Nature of Play Without Ropes We have to stop lying to each other. The dice are not in charge. The GM is not a god. The character sheet is not a cage, but lately, it’s been feeling like one. yensyfrp blogspot
When a fight broke out, I asked: “What do you do that makes the swordsman hesitate?” The player didn’t roll to hit. They described the way their character spat a mouthful of rust onto the floor and smiled with crooked teeth. The swordsman hesitated. Combat resolved. Currently listening to: Coil, “The Anal Staircase
Every character must have a flaw that actively hurts them in play. Not a cute quirk. Not “clumsy.” A real flaw: “I believe everyone is lying to me, even when they aren’t.” That’s a mirror with a crack in it. The crack is where the story pours out. Comments are disabled because last time someone tried
“The child picks it up. It turns into a real key. Silver. Hot. The swamp drains fifty feet in every direction. You’ve just opened the drain of the world. Well done. You’ve made it worse.” Why You’re Scared of This You think it will devolve into arguing. “I hit him!” “No you didn’t!” That’s not a Freeform problem. That’s a trust problem. If you can’t trust your table to share narrative authority, dice won’t save you—they’ll just give you a mathematical excuse to be a jerk.