"Hello darkness my old friend"

Hello dreamers,

About a lifetime ago me and a friend walked into a local game store. For reasons I don't recall we both had a mind to pick up a new roleplaying. My experience of the hobby was more interest than practical experience. Sadly that remains the case: I own more product than I play. I'm willing to bet that isn't uncommon. Finding players is never easy, especially in the antediluvian age that was 1991. In the end my friend picked up something called Shadowrun while I picked up a weird green book called Vampire. 

No idea why those are the choices we made. If anything I should have been the one going for Shadowrun being a fan of Cyberpunk (at least). I've never really been into horror movies or stories, and, with few exceptions, that remains the case. But Vampire proved compelling. There was something about the urban sprawl that wasn't a million miles from cyberpunk. Plus you got to play an urban anti-hero (or so I thought) - after a fashion. A bit like the old, cult, TV show, Forever Knight. 

To be honest, the finer aspects of the game were never as much of a big draw for me as being a powerful figure in the urban night of modern day (insert city of choice). I liked the idea of power, even though as a neonate you were the least powerful. The Humanity aspect, although central, took a backseat. That's not to say it didn't matter or that I wanted players to just do whatever, consequence free. It's just the mystique of the culture and the hints at a greater cosmology where more compelling, and the vampires seemed like gatekeepers to this darkling world.

I would go on to buy every game, right up to but not including Changeling. I don't know why. Perhaps it was the CCG element. More likely I'd lost interest and moved on, for reasons I can't fathom. I never read Changeling the Dreaming until tody, having just purchased the 20th anniversary pdf. I am glad these games still exist and have started this blog as a serious attempt to get back into this strange, disturbing and ultimately empowering world. The World of Darkness has endured for 30 odd years. For a media property (Vampire spawned, briefly, a TV show, like an illegitimate childer), that's pretty impressive. More so for a shared world based around fiction created in roleplay. It's also got that special something that allows those of us on the inside to feel special; part of a secret club!

Of course the World - like the real world - has changed over the years. A new iteration has taken up residence while the original books have come back into fashion. They show their age somewhat, it'd be dishonest to say otherwise. But likewise, things should change. The world of the nineties is a difference place and the writers have developed and new concepts have been introduced. Whether they are popular with players is an individual matter, but there's room for all in my opinion. What remains is a compelling shared world populated by characters equal parts inspired and insane, damaged and yet powerful. Full of intriguing dramas and conflicts, liberally seasoned with the salt of the fantastic. The phantasmagorical.

So why am I telling you this? In these crazy times my interest returns to the World of Darkness. I am allowing myself, happily, to dive back into this world. To explore the different concepts. Not all of them, like you I have my preferences - Wraith is my limit. I bought the original, with the glow in the dark cover and the 'tumorous excrescence' quote on the back (nothing like a positive self image), but to be honest it was a bit too dark for me. Maybe that will change, I do have Geist the Sin Eater, which is an interesting take. As was Orpheus, back in the day(with a creepy short story).

Put simply, this is my record of exploring this world with fresh eyes and, hopefully, a bit more wisdom. Plus the ideas I have for running stuff. You are welcome to read those ideas, my Shadow agrees!