more 2MG drafting

content/posts/too-many-games-2024/index.md

@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ series: []
 author: "Nick Dumas"
 cover: ""
 tags: ["tabletop", "travel"]
-summary: "In which I drive to Philadelphia and play a bunch of games."
+summary: "In which I drive to Philadelphia and try to play a bunch of games."
 ---
 
 ## Driving there
@@ -26,35 +26,22 @@ The convention center didn't open until mid-afternoon so I took the time to do s
 My schedule for the first day is pretty light, mostly because the convention opens at 2PM on a Friday. My priorities were board game play/testing, filling in gaps spectating on tournaments.
 
 #### Friday
-The tabletop offerings didn't really line up with my schedule, I wanted to spend th evening mostly with my friends while we had the time
+The tabletop offerings didn't really line up with my schedule, I wanted to spend the evening mostly with my friends while we had the time. We rocked around the merch hall, I grabbed a few gifts, and we killed a little time before the one Friday panel that caught my eye.
-
+##### Character Study, Writing, and Creation
-##### Character Study, Writing, and Creation - Rachel and Guinevere
+This panel was hosted by panelists who introduced themselves as Rachel and Guinevere. I wasn't fast enough to catch all of their social media details but you can find Guinevere [here](https://www.instagram.com/nightsongcosplay/).
-- What Drives a character?
+
-  - goals
+
-  - allies, who qualifies?
+The panel was really solid. Rachel and Guinevere were enthusiastic and knowledgeable and made a point of treating writing and narrative-building as an exercise in fun that anyone can engage in, which I found refreshing. A full reproduction of their presentation would probably not be in good taste, but here's the short version.
-  - background/upbringing
+
-  - who is in their life? friend? family? lovers?
+The core thesis ended up being very straightforward: learn your character. The most important detail is motivation: what do they what, why, what are they willing to do to get it? Only marginally less important, and now in no particular order:
-  - personality
+- Who are their allies? What (dis)qualifies someone for this status?
-- What is their motivation?
+- Background/upbringing.
-
+- Who is in their life? Friends? Family? Lovers?
-- Character analysis
+- What kind of world do they inhabit?
-  - Astarion
+
-  - Trilla something from Jedi stuff
+Guinevere led a practical demonstration by analyzing two characters to identify these attributes in Astarion of Baldur's Gate 3 and Trilla Suduri from some Star Wars games I never bothered paying any attention to. Quick breakdowns of their motivations and important relationships and a contrast between the two: Astarion's need for freedom remains steady throughout his arc while Trilla eventually sets aside her vengeance and reaches some sort of peace.
-
+
-- Character creation
+They closed out the panel with a short discussion on ways to get in tune with your character, including but not limited to:
-  - who are they?
-  - what kind of world do they inhabit?
-  - who is in their life? friend? family? lovers?
-  - personality?
-
-- How does analysis help with creating a character?
-  - character goals?
-  - how did they get here?
-  - why do they want what they want?
-  - How do their interactions with other characters affect the story
-  - Why do they act the way they do?
-
-- Ways to get in tune with your character
 - pinterest board
 - playlist
 - collage
@@ -64,16 +51,14 @@ The tabletop offerings didn't really line up with my schedule, I wanted to spend
 - likes and dislikes
 - draw, make a paper doll, visualize the character
 
+The Q&A was funny, two of the three questions I heard were just monologues about personal experiences with bad roleplay which does legitimately suck but also isn't really a question. All in all, excellent panel.
+
 #### Saturday
+woke up at 7am. saw a white tail buck grazing near the stream.
+
+
 I only signed up for a Saturday game of Ten Candles.
 
-- [ ] 1100: Convention Opens
-- [ ] 1100: THPS2 High Score Competition
-- [ ] 1100: Board game freeplay
-- [ ] 1100: Board game playtesting
-- [ ] 1130: MtG Draft Pods
-- [ ] 1200: Burnout 3: Takedown tournament - hall C
-- [ ] 1200: Twilight Imperium ( game )
 - [ ] 1300: Gaming through Generations - Emerald stage
 - [ ] 1300: Warhammer 40k
 - [ ] 1400: Wandering Towers Demo ( game )