NWO Grand Tribunal

[scarylady]

My only real regret about NWO is that, having never played Ars Magica prior to attending, I feel it took me 3 of the 5 games to understand the colour and richness of the different Houses, and to see all the levers and buttons that drive the Hermetic World.

I wish I could go back and play it again with what I now know - not about the plot - but about the Order.

Playing a Harco redcap for Rome and Grand was a revelation. Most Houses take from the Order, a few give and take, and one or two give of themselves wholeheartedly, and Mercere is one of the latter. But they are repaid many times over with the strength of their Family, and Harco have the closest family of all. Despite the hardships of her world I envy Lyssa.

There one major thing about her that I found it hard to play: she is meant to be the Fury of Harco and by god she had good reason to be furious. At Grand Tribunal, where battles are fought with words rather than spells or swords there were 2 or 3 times when she wanted to haul off and punch someone, or haul them up a wall by their throat or in one memorable moment (Cadamon) throw them downstairs, and this is where I came unstuck.

ellistarinforms me that most boys instinctively know who they can roughhouse with, who wears (as Morgan put it) the extreme combat armband. 
I had not the faintest idea who was fair game, or indeed how to initiate such a thing. What I know is what (I think) most girls know; who they can hug, kiss or cry with in the interests of great roleplay. 
How to grapple without having to break the mood by stopping to check? No clues on that one.

So I apologise to the writers if they were hoping to see the Fury of Harco let rip. Because I couldn't find a larp-safe way to let the fury out so I channeled it into positive action instead.

"Don't talk about it. Talk about it, and you'll warn your enemies and let your allies steal your thunder. Talk is cheap and wastes time and lives. Do it. Talk about it afterwards. 'You should not have…' is music to my ears compared to 'should I…'      I have no time for ditherers." Livy Catullus Mercurius

Comments

[delvy.livejournal.com]

You could have thrown me downstairs and I would have been happy to play along. But the fury was in your eyes and several times the fear you saw in mine was due to the fury in yours. It was your "Balls" that Cadamon ended up borrowing when he needed a set and hopefully on sunday he had moments with your fury reflected in yours. When he handed over the scales he was sure it was going to kill him....

[delvy.livejournal.com]

So yes, there are some of us who were the extreme combat armband :-)

And Cadamon did see it with the but and push his words out as quickly as possible. Hopefully he proved himself worthy as Archmage to you eventually. Certainly it was Lyssa that meant he realised that he needed to not be out on his own anymore and seek out the Graf.

[jfs.livejournal.com]

Boys grow up with that sort of rough-housing - that's the difference, I think. Add to that the fact that for many of us, PE was about football, basketball and rugby, and you start to get an instinct for who's going to cope with a heavy tackle, and who isn't.

[coallump.livejournal.com]

I would love to play again with knowledge I have gained in playing just one, although I'm sure there is still an awful lot I could learn abut the order.

[binidj.livejournal.com]

"I wish I could go back and play it again with what I now know - not about the plot - but about the Order."

You and me both ... though I'm still learning (to say the very least).