Cliffhangers

Having just finished the first season of Clockwork Skies, I find myself musing on one of the most satisfyingly frustrating parts of LARP: the Cliffhanger. We've all experienced them-- you, the player, know that there are about fifteen minutes left within a game, and then 3 or more months until the next event. And, just as you're settling into a restful, end of session complacency, an NPC of Some Import struts, limps, swaggers, or sprints into town. Said NPC gives you just enough information-- or just enough of an emotional wallop-- to make you want answers and closure immediately. Just as you open your mouth, struggling to make a connection or offer a modicum of coherence, the game ends. You're left hungry for more, and wishing you could enter stasis mode (so that you wouldn't have to experience the 3 month wait before next session).

The cliffhanger is an art: it gets people to think wistfully on the upcoming session, and it engages people, over a break, in a narrative. With that being said, what have been some of your favorite "cliffhangers," either ending an event itself, or simply a plot arc? Why were they so good? Have they been resolved, or are you still waiting for resolution?

Villainy and Demise

Villains, as I have mentioned before, are important parts of many games: they motivate plot; they stir players' emotional investments; they provide adversity and strife; they allow game writers to explore the less savory corners of the game universe; they let NPCs sink their teeth into rich and unpredictable characters. Crafting the villain arc, however, can be difficult. How does a staff introduce a villain? How does that villain bubble and boil into an evil that is greater than simply problematic? How does that villain, once made into an arch nemesis, maintain intensity over a long-running plot? I have seen many plots where the villain-- due to over-exposure, over-writing, and poor timing-- becomes a comical, unbelievable mess of excess. However, I have also seen many brilliant plots where the villain is a living, breathing, seething creature who garners both hatred and empathy from PCs.

For these latter plots, a singularly important questions pops into my mind: how does one end a villain's narrative? What makes a satisfying end for a well-crafted villain? I think there are many answers to this question, and I'm curious to hear responses (one of my responses is below). How have your favorite villains been successfully ended? Why was it satisfying?

All Good Things Must Come to An End

This past year, at least in the New England LARP community, has seen the end of some long-running and/or much beloved games. As one of the games I staff is coming to an end, I keep returning to questions about narrative arcs, and how to best complete them. (To be clear, narrative arcs are not the same as the game narrative: they are "sub-plots," of varying magnitude, that exist within the larger game framework.) Arguably, for many LARPers, continuous, interconnected narratives are what keep them coming back to game: over time, they become invested in a given narrative, and committed to, in some way, seeing in through. However, when a narrative arc comes to a close, players can sometimes feel sad, unsatisfied, and/or without purpose. I have known a few people that, following the end of their favorite IG narrative, felt almost entirely disconnected from the game. With this in mind, I have a few questions...

- As a player or as a staffer, what are some successful ways you've seen story arcs ended? What hasn't worked as well?
- How do you make the ending of a narrative meaningful for invested players? Do you give them anything (such as in-game skills, objects, titles etc.)?
- How do you create an ending that is satisfying for players? For players, what sorts of things are you looking for in narrative completion?
- How do you deal with transitions between narratives? What are good ways to get players re-invested in new storylines?