Achievement unlocked- played all the Skins!

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SJE

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Achievement unlocked- played all the Skins!
« on: July 23, 2013, 03:00:05 PM »
So, my quixotic quest is now complete- I've played every skin currently published for Monsterhearts- all 14 over the best part of the last 17 months! I feel I should mark XP somehow.   It was a gaming goal I'd set myself when I first experienced the Monsterhearts Skins readthrough in the first game and thought that they all sounded impossibly cool and interesting and I really wanted to play them all to experience it all and not miss out on anything. And while I backed the Second Skins Kickstarter, I  no longer feel I need to prove anything more to myself, and can start repeating past skins as the mood takes me as I visit UK cons and Indie meetups.

And y'know what, nearly every single one was a great game with fantastic memories - certainly my fave game of 2012.  Looking over my compiled stats, Neil Gow has GM'd 4  of them (fuelled by  my bribes of Relentless) , Scott  Dorward and Richard Williamson thrice each, and honoured mention to Alex Gwilt-Cox who ran the first 2 games I played and got me hooked at the London Indie Meetup. Thanks also to Declan Feeney and Guy Milner for 2 very memorable games, and all the wonderful players whose ever disturbing/memorable/entertaining teenage characters  turned me on, lashed out, shut me downed, held steady, ran away and gazed into the Abyss with my PC's.

Some observations from the 20+ games (I also GM'd 8 or so over the same period to give back to the player base).

The Angel is broken. Mechanically, 3 stats is too few to balance across. And the only character who could get a Move roll result of 18!
For some reason people go "oooh, removable pelt" and their eyes light up whenever the Selkie is read out
The Mortal is the most co-dependent masochistic victim ever who will usually make you cringe
Vampires are rubbish in fights, whereas Chosen can be unstoppable carnage machines should they choose to be- a Buffy game would be doable, but needs some tweaks.
Failing is usually the most fun option- don't be afraid to voice ideas on how to screw over your characters
Hollows and Fae are tough to play, being dependent on external factors more than others
Ghouls, Witches and Mortals seem to be the most popular choices
Chosen, Infernals and Serpentines bring their own Big Bads with them, and tend to be the centre of events. Queens to a slightly lesser extent (though they dont show up as much).
Hollows, Angels and Ghosts tend to show up the least.
Monsterhearts games are better with a mix of genders amongst the players as they bring better insights into being a teenage boy/girl and a more interesting dynamic than an all male player game.

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SJE

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Re: Achievement unlocked- played all the Skins!
« Reply #1 on: July 23, 2013, 03:03:19 PM »
My play history:

Victor the Chosen- Captain of the Football team and a (Supernatural) style hunter like his parents before him. Team with Buck and the Werewolf. Dated the wonderfully manipulative mortal (Graham Walmsley). Fought the Infernal and Ghoul who were killing kids in the school boiler room. (Alex Gwilt Cox game @ Indie Meetup)

Anders the Fae- eco-enviromentalist loosely based on Jesse Grass from Simpsons. Walked through a ghost and used his level 5 vegans to restrain a Werewolf. Opposed the Infernal and his  logging-baron father. (Alex Gwilt-Cox game @ London Indie Meetup))

Lucius the Vampire - a youthful vamp haunting a New England preparatory school. Sexually teased the Mortal (Elina) and killed the Ghoul (Scott) and squabbled with other vamps. Wound up being staked by the mortal once the Witch (Cat) had cursed her with old age. (Neil Gow game @ Conpulsion 2012)

Serra the Angel - aloof and withdrawn, her lesbian tryst with the Werewolf cheerleader led her into taking a more active part in the world. She got up to 3 Forgiveness and then spent it all to divinely smite the demon behind the Infernal who the Mortal had turned against (Neil Gow game, Contunuum 2012)

Brad theWerewolf, bullying Captain of the Football team. Failed some key rolls and didn't quite develop, got injured out of the big game in the first round. (Richard Williams 'Big Game' scenario in Concrete Cow Sep 2012)

Jamie the Hollow - the all-American dream child of his parents, wished back to life, he tended to follow the lead of his older Infernal pal. Described as a man-child he was a real Gosh-Jeepers kinda kid who just wanted Cheeseburgers and a coke. Instead he killed a lot of demon possessed kids and jumped into a demonic pool of tentacles to defeat evil. (Guy Milner game @ Furnace 2012)

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SJE

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Re: Achievement unlocked- played all the Skins!
« Reply #2 on: July 23, 2013, 03:06:38 PM »
Mordiggan the Ghoul- Kingsport game in which she'd Consumed the Likness of the Preachers Daughter to leave the charnel tunnels behind and start a new life. Got interested with the Selkie but was mostly involved with family politics with her brother Lugh as the Kingsport Investigators dynamited the caverns. A vampire and Serpentine also politicked together in Miskatonichearts (Scott Dorward game @ Furnace 2012)

Damien Thorn the Infernal - I went for a straight lift of the Omen Damien the Antichrist, including accidents happening to those who threatened me- including a vampire PC who wound up being barbecued extra crispy while showing off at the drive thru in Santa Barbara. Lover of the Robin the Mortal again, had to choose between their survival or denying his role as Anitchrist. Wound up acceding to Satans influence (despite his earlier speeches about choosing a new way) and burning the world with hellfire to restart the Garden of Eden and repopulate the world. Mik as Fae got to stay with the Faery King till things got back to normal. (Richard Williams Game on Demand @ London Indie Meetup)

Dee the Warlock:   My 9th game of Monsterhearts as a player, and got to play the Witch (male Warlock, based of D'Angelo Barksdale called Dee). Helped fuel the sexual intrigues of the game with double-timing it with the Infernal and the lovesmitten Ghoul (who he saw as a sistah) and had a thing for collecting his lovers thongs as Sympathetic Tokens. (and make teenage bragging rights). Went Darkside and possibly Infernal as he cursed his hated upper class, preppy cousin, a male Queen. Thanks again to Paul F. (delusional Ghost), Declan, Robin (manipulative Queen), Ian C. (castrating sex-junkie Ghoul) and Rachel (Infernal fiddler who'd met the Devil at the crossroads at midnight)for a memorable game. (Declan Feeney game @ IndieCon 2012)


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SJE

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Re: Achievement unlocked- played all the Skins!
« Reply #3 on: July 23, 2013, 03:07:01 PM »
Rufus the Ghost who in a subliminally coincidental way had been drowned in a boarding school toilet hazing thing by Lynn's Queen. Starting off as friends with Paul Frs chaos-loving Ghoul, we initially hated the Queen, but as I was ignored and sidelined, the dynamics changed as violence and death spread around John's Serpentine school boy and his Head Master father. Rufus and Veronica the Queen bonded once more in a tense moment in the toilets (I had lured her there to kill, but wound up forgiving her and then getting intimate with her) and at my urging we decided to burn out the snakes from the Head Masters house. The game then turned into a blood opera as my Ghost turned vengeful and all the many dead came back as I my ghostly gang started hurling Serpentine Principals and selfish Ghouls back into the flames to die together. Our vengeance complete (and everyone dead, apart from the Ghoul quickly buying Resurrection), my ghost finally moved on to the afterlife. Really enjoyed it, some really fun moments and a great character arc from ignored, passive spirit to vengeful and destructive force of Judgement. (Scott Dorward game at Conception 2013)

Shamus O'Finlay the Serpentine gypsy with Penda (power obsessed Ghoul), Martin (Mortal) & Werewolf in Being Human style flat share. I was Shamus O'Finlay, gypsy (secretive and nomadic family) a sleazy and abusive Serpentine, dating Robin the Mortal (who advanced twice). Ate the werewolfs sister and the ghoul and werewolf died in cyanide cloud. Maintained an uneasy relationship with my family. (Scott Dorward game @ Concrete Cow 2013)

Bryce the Mortal - Conpulsion 2013-  I was the Mortal- Bryce, a Hawaiian new boy in Virtue, Lousianna. With the 2 pretty people - Amanda the 800 year old Vamp (Newt), her BFF and my girlfriend Sabrina the Teenage Voudoo Witch (she'd love potioned me) (Lynn) and my ex,the back from the dead Ghoul Goth Georgia (John) and her hunger for flesh.
As the girls schemed to be Prom Queen, I enviegled Sabrina to permit me to have a threesome with Amanda at a party in order to get to know more about her (since I knew she was a vamp and had been reading Anne Rice). This ended generally badly as Amanda remained Queen bee and fed off me while directing Sabrina and I. Outside Georgia ate the heart of a vomit-strewn Jock and then was nearly arrested by a cop until I bashed him on the head with a shovel and she ate his face. I fled across the swamp and met another ghoul zombie- Bethany and was nearly eaten before I ran away again.
Georgia and Sabrina discovered they were both empowered by Madame Maries voodoo magic, but that the old voodoo women by the swamp was already dead from Bethany. Then there was going to be a boat trip out to the islands in the lagoon. Politiking became murderous as a darkside Sabrina offered to let a Mean Girl have me, if she got rid of Georgia. (and Amanda conspired with Georgia). I got cursed so I couldnt talk to any other girls by a jealous Sabrina and it all ended up badly when Georgia and Sabrina confronted each other and an aging -death curse against me (Sabrinas "If I cant have Bryce, no one can!") aged everyone on the island 100 years and left Amanda as the only one standing. (Neil Gow game @ Conpulsion 2013)

Jason the Selkie - July Indie Meetup 2013- GMless game facilitated by Richard W (Athena the Chosen), Eunice (Bessa the Fae, who I had a swim thing for) Carol-Ann (Tara the lesbian Witch), and Anita (Alana the sex-addict Ghoul who had my pelt). Jason was one of the Chosens scoobies, but the coolest cat in school. He was a manslut, sleeping with Alana, minutes after she'd drained her bullying NPC boyfriend Chad. The clairvoyant witch with a crush on Alana, then saw through Alanas eyes and say me as she had a very confused Harry Met Sally moment. Later Jason hooked up with Bessa in the forest pool, promising the Fae they would run away to somewhere near the sea when they graduated. The town was threatened by a Slenderman and Alana's abusive father (who'd killed her) - both got their hash settled in fiery apocalypses. (GM'less version of Monsterhearts facilitated by Richard Williamson @ London Indie Meetup)

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SJE

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Re: Achievement unlocked- played all the Skins!
« Reply #4 on: July 23, 2013, 03:09:26 PM »
Eva the Queen a teenage domi-natricx with her posse of Monique (collared slave), Lucifer (Latino driver) and lunatic girl next door- Anita. As the most dangerous person around she used sex like a weapon (Queen's sex moves are closer to infections/pandemics), bending others to her will from the School priest, to her enemies for prom queen. Teamed up with the Werewolf basketball Captain and passed the Mortal between them like a party favour to take down the vampire. Possibly my most unpleasant character played. (Neil Gow game @ Furnace 2012)

Re: Achievement unlocked- played all the Skins!
« Reply #5 on: July 24, 2013, 11:46:01 AM »
You cruel, heartless bastard! You serve me up this many ideas for cool games and I can't get to play again for MONTHS!!!!
Curse this damned summer holiday!!!!

Re: Achievement unlocked- played all the Skins!
« Reply #6 on: August 08, 2013, 06:19:32 PM »
Good for you, SJE; and thanks for the insights!

Re: Achievement unlocked- played all the Skins!
« Reply #7 on: September 12, 2013, 08:31:36 PM »
I have also recently unlocked this achievement. :D

Some very interesting observations, SJE!

Re: Achievement unlocked- played all the Skins!
« Reply #8 on: September 12, 2013, 09:58:20 PM »
It'd be really nice to see everyone's observations about the Skins in this manner. Even more, there should be another level of achievement when you play five more fan-made skins or something!