Santiago Grandes: 2020-03-22

Saturday, March 28, 2020

The Lone Wolf

What can I say about Wolf that you haven't heard somewhere before? My relationship with Wolf has almost always been complicated. We grew up together and were friends when we were young. We spent most weekends and holidays together back then and we were practically inseparable. We spent so much time playing and talking about what kind of Pokémon we'd train when we grew up, it's crazy to think how far we'd ultimately drift apart. We were like brothers in those early days. The rift began to grow between us when we entered our teens.
It's safe to say I still don't completely understand what happened to this day. We just began to see things differently and move in different social circles. The kids around us were getting their first Pokémon and heading off on their Pokémon journeys, but not us. I didn't have the means to head out with a Pokémon when I was that young. Wolf, however, did have the means to leave on a Pokémon adventure. Wolf had the means to do whatever he wanted, but by that time he wasn't all that interested in Pokémon anymore. He was interested in money. We didn't see eye to eye, and as a result we really didn't see each other much at all for quite a few years. But over those years a bitterness grew between us.
As I followed those excited youngsters through the streets of Viridian City, there's no way I could have known I was about to see Wolf again. I would never have even imagined that he was in Kanto. The last I had heard about Wolf was that he was running a small but successful business back home. I believe it was a Pokémon Rental service for people wanting to experience Pokémon battles and training, but without the fuss of leaving home or frankly doing any of the work that comes along with it. When I found out, I was hurt that I hadn't been invited to help start it up. We grew up dreaming about working with Pokémon, and then he went and started without me. I felt so left behind by my childhood friend that I completely distanced myself from him. Speaking honestly, I may have always been a bit jealous that success came so easily to him and that he took his family's generous start up money for granted.

I found the mysterious newcomer to town quite near the open field where I caught Nibbles. From a distance I could see him gazing up at Indigo Plateau. I rushed across the field to challenge him. The two city kids were just behind me eager to see a Pokémon battle with their own eyes. When my footfalls came into earshot, the trainer turned around and when I saw the face of my former friend I was completely stunned. My feet faltered to a complete stop. The children behind me almost slammed into my backpack because I stopped so abruptly. The expression on Wolf's face was also one of surprise, but it quickly melted into a sneer.
"What are you doing here, Fox?" I remember him asking.
"I heard there was a trainer out here. I didn't know it was you." I felt my words coming out as a stutter. "I came out here to challenge you."
"Oh. No." His tone was sympathetic. "I mean, what are you doing in Kanto?" I felt stupid that I misunderstood him.
"I'm here to start the Sanctuary. You remember my idea, right? I want to start a Pokémon preservation park. I'm still working out the details, but Professor Oak agreed to help me get started."
"Right. Yeah. I remember." He laughed a little. "It's a cute idea, but I thought you'd have given up on that by now." I remember his tone felt so condescending at the time. I felt flush with anger. He either didn't notice or didn't care. Wolf turned to look back up into the mountains. "I'm here to challenge the champion of Indigo Plateau," he announced smugly.
"I thought you were running some company back home," I asked through clenched teeth. I didn't really want to talk about it, but I also didn't want Wolf to be here right now.
"Yeah. I am." He spoke without looking at me. "I hired some managers, which gives me a bit more free time. It practically runs itself. So instead I'm here to challenge the Kanto Pokémon League." He turned back to look me in the eye. I felt he was mocking me when he asked, "Did you say you wanted to challenge me?" He looked as though the thought was delightfully amusing. He looked as though fighting me was beneath him.
I had a newfound conviction in my voice when I answered. "Yeah. I do. Are you ready or do you need a minute to collect yourself?" I took Kiwi's ball from its holster on my backpack strap.
Wolf looked me straight in the eyes and laughed. "You're so serious, man. I'm ready. I'll fight you with the junkémon I just got." We both tossed out our Pokéballs and both our Pidgeys faced off against one another.

The fight was absolutely nerve wracking. Not only was this my first competitive battle ever, but it was against someone I couldn't bear to lose against. It was an understatement to say I was determined to win. Not to mention, I simply couldn't afford to fail. I needed that money I'd get from a victory over Wolf to support myself in the future. Meanwhile, the look on Wolf's face appeared as if he couldn't care less.
Kiwi and his Pidgey circled each other overhead sizing each other up. Kiwi dove down into the grass and buffeted some dirt and soil up into his opponents face. I stifled a small smile that some of the dirt and grass found its way into Wolf's face as well. The attack was a complete success, for both of Wolf's Pidgey's next couple attacks missed Kiwi outright. Although Kiwi had the advantage, Kiwi only managed to lightly wound his opponent before it landed a very lucky strike on Kiwi knocking him from the sky and into the grass.
I remember my heart leapt into my throat seeing Kiwi hit so hard. I immediately withdrew him and tossed out Rascal. Wolf's Pidgey was significantly weakened now and still couldn't see clearly. Rascal had done most of his training against other Pidgey, so I was confident he would win. He did not disappoint me. Landing a decisive quick attack on Wolf's Pidgey put the bird completely out of commission. I watched as it fell defeated into the grass and I was flooded with a mixture of emotions. I was elated that I was now winning against my former friend, but I was sad that his Pokémon had gotten so badly hurt in the process. This battle marked the beginning of many conflicting feelings about caring for Pokémon and also battling with them.
Wolf withdrew his fainted Pidgey and tossed out the only other Pokémon he had with him. I was surprised to see him with such a rare Pokémon as Squirtle - one that Professor Oak had promised he would track down for me if I could help him test the Pokédex. Then I remembered Wolf came from a wealthy family. It probably was not that big of a deal to him to have this fairly uncommon Pokémon rounding out his team. Wolf made me so angry, so frustrated. He made it all look so easy. I think Rascal could feel how heated I was, because he was also worked up into a frenzy. After distracting the Squirtle with a series of mesmerizing tail whips, he devastated it with a well placed tackle to its exposed head. Wolf was utterly defeated, but I was still angry.
Wolf laughed as he withdrew his Pokémon. He laughed!
"You're really worked up over this, huh?" he asked me.
I denied it even though he could see right through me.
"Well, good match. I'll transfer you the winning credits." He shrugged. "It was good to see you, Fox. Keep training. Maybe we can have a rematch some time."
"Don't you even care?" I demanded as he turned to walk away from me. "You lost! Your Pokémon are completely knocked out." I honestly have no idea what I wanted from him. I don't know what he could have said to make me feel better. Even in defeat his arrogance and his self-entitlement defeated my spirit. My grand victory over my rival felt like a complete failure, in part because he didn't even care.
"Fainting is part of the training process, Fox." He said nonchalantly. "I can afford to help them heal and get back into the fight. It's no big deal. Next time I see you, we'll do it all again." With that our first encounter in Kanto was over as he casually strolled back into Viridian City. The children rushed up to me to congratulate me. Their happy, smiling faces beaming with pride at their new friend's victory made me feel just a bit better. But my eyes kept drifting to Wolf's back as it slowly disappeared into the city.

Current Team:
No Change from Episode 2

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Storium Theory: Only Natural

I've spent quite a lot of time on this blog on Strength cards, Weakness cards, and Subplot cards. I haven't spent all that much time, though...if any...on the other card type that players pick out at character creation: Nature.

So, let's talk Natures. Specifically, I want to focus on writing your own Nature card during character creation. What is a Nature card all about? What should you do if you're creating your own for your own character?

A Nature card is your "at a glance" statement of just what, exactly, the character is. It's the broad strokes of the character, the central concept that defines them. In many ways, it is the single most important card you hold. You never, ever play it in the game, but it should guide every single thing that you do.

If you're familiar with tabletop roleplaying, a Nature card is similar to your class in some regards. It defines what people should expect from your character overall. Now, Storium Natures are nowhere near as defined and spelled out as classes in some tabletop RPGs, but the purpose, in terms of expectations, is similar: They tell the narrator and other players what sorts of things they should probably expect your character to be doing over the course of the game.

It's pretty understandable in that regard, right? If you're a Warrior, people expect you to fight. If you're a Thief, people expect you to sneak around and steal. Combined with your starting Strength, Weakness, and Subplot, a person can get a quick at-a-glance look at what makes your character tick.

But that's not all a Nature card can be. The default natures are often by necessity pretty broad, right? You get things like Warrior, or Paladin, or Wizard. They're broad, easily applied to a variety of characters. They suggest a little about what the character is, but really defining the specifics are left to the description and the other cards.

And that's fine, for the Nature cards built into a world or game to begin with. But again, that's not all a Nature can be.

When you're writing a custom Nature card during character creation, go deeper. More specific. Make your character's Nature.

When you're creating your own Nature card while you're creating a character, you aren't making something anyone else is going to have to use. You're not making something that has to be applicable to lots of different characters. You're making something that applies to your character, and your character alone.

Your custom Nature card, then, can be more openly about your specific character. It can say things that only apply to your character. It can spell out more details about their specific variant on an overall concept, or tell how they're entirely unique among the characters.

And in doing so, it can give a much, much stronger "at-a-glance" understanding of the character.

Here's some examples:

You might explain more of a character's story or highlight the most important element of it:

A character isn't just the Chosen of a Time God, he's the Displaced Chosen of a Time God, highlighting the fact that his personal tale is all about being displaced in time.
A character isn't just a Sorcerer, he's a Cursed Sorcerer, and the card text even notes that he was cursed for arrogantly challenging a person he shouldn't have.

You might establish that you're something different or unique, and explain the concept in more detail:

You're an Experimental Computer, and because that concept is not exactly a normal one for the world, you take the time to spell out a basic form of your origin and what sort of things you might be expected to do.
You're a Commune Kid, and you take some time to spell out that that means you've been raised with great freedom, but a general lack of restraint.

You might highlight something about your abilities that makes you a more focused or unusual variant on something expected:

You're not a Wizard, you're a Wizard of the Flame, focused entirely on fire and heat magics.
You're not a Warrior, you're a Bladedancer, an agile and graceful fighter for whom battle and blades are sacred and beautiful.

If you're writing a custom Nature, take a little time with it to make it something different. There's a reason you haven't picked one of the existing nature cards - so take the time here to make your custom Nature something particularly interesting, or to tie it directly to what makes your character unique or separate from others that are of a similar type. Or, heck, make up something entirely new (appropriate to the game, of course)!

For names...use more than one word, or at least an unusual and evocative single word. Give your nature a name that immediately calls to mind some traits or a mental picture of what this sort of character could be. Your Nature card's name should immediately give a feel for what your character is about.

For the text on the card, take a little time to spell things out in a bit more detail than the regular nature cards do. The regular nature cards are intended to be fairly generic in most cases, so they don't need to go into heavy amounts of detail. People understand what a Wizard is, or what a Warrior is, or what a Thief is. In the more unusual genres, there may be some more detail and thematic content, but overall, an included Nature card is pretty basic.

Don't be basic.

You don't need to spell out every detail of your character here, obviously. You don't need to go into much detail. But explain what the Nature is. What makes it interesting? What ties it in to the story and world? What sort of things is it expected to do? What sort of things might be expected to give it trouble?

Again, don't list everything...but give a general understanding. When you define a custom Nature well, you give a narrator a great, quick picture of how you're going to interact with the story...and you also make it much, much easier to use the Nature yourself for later inspiration! Believe me, six months in to a Storium game, it can be a little tough to remember just what you were getting at when you made the character half a year before...it helps to have taken the time to spell it out a bit.

Custom Natures are more art than science, but they are loads of fun if you take a little time on them. They're some of my favorite things to create when making my character in a game. Sometimes I'll start with one, sometimes I'll come back to it once the character is done, but it's fun just thinking of a way to "sum up" what a character is about, and it continues to help me as I go through the game and think about what, exactly, my character should be doing or how they should be doing it. So take some time, have some fun with it, and get creative - you'll find you have a fuller-feeling character, one that feels vibrant and interesting, and one that you can play more easily as you go through the game.