Balder
Initiate Douchebag
Posts: 27
Preferred Game Systems: Pathfinder, Earthdawn, Traveller, D&D 5th, Dresden Fate
Currently Playing: Dungeons and Dragon 5E; Call of Cthulhu
Currently Running: Savage Worlds
Favorite Species of Monkey: Japanese Macaque
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Post by Balder on Mar 14, 2017 7:59:39 GMT -8
I'm running a couple one shots to introduce players to the Weird War I setting at a local con and at my local FLGS and have run into a conundrum. By Shane's own admission in the book the setting makes running female characters a little more challenging given the holdover Victorian ideals from that timeframe. I specifically would like a couple plausible female characters for a front line adventure however I'm running into a figurative wall. I've thought of the Red Cross worker, but why would they go with the party into a potential battle situation and furthermore I really don't want to fall into that particular trope.
i have considered a spy with MI 6 or MI13 that is just as competent on or off the battle field as the male characters but that is a far as I have conceived so far. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I am looking for two more ideas so I have a least a 50/50 mix.
I want ant the one shots on the line as this would demonstrate much of the setting trappings. Thanks for any/all insight provided.
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Post by Houndin on Mar 14, 2017 8:02:53 GMT -8
Women served in combat roles for Finland, the Ottoman Empire, and Russia. I guess it would depend on whether you have characters from non-US/GB countries.
Edit: Serbia too!
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Balder
Initiate Douchebag
Posts: 27
Preferred Game Systems: Pathfinder, Earthdawn, Traveller, D&D 5th, Dresden Fate
Currently Playing: Dungeons and Dragon 5E; Call of Cthulhu
Currently Running: Savage Worlds
Favorite Species of Monkey: Japanese Macaque
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Post by Balder on Mar 14, 2017 8:52:02 GMT -8
The current one shot is for France/Great Britain front in 1916, however I may need to change that.
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Post by uncommonman on Mar 14, 2017 8:59:52 GMT -8
Isn't part of the point of playing with WWI as the setting that it should be historically correct? If that is the case there won't be any female soldiers (with the exceptions above), this doesn't mean that there weren't any females fighting. Find people like the French resistance during WWII and you'll have both historical correctness and female characters. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women_in_World_War_I
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Post by Houndin on Mar 14, 2017 9:45:13 GMT -8
Don't forget that Mata Hari was the original Black Widow super-spy, during World War 1
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Mar 14, 2017 10:26:31 GMT -8
Isn't part of the point of playing with WWI as the setting that it should be historically correct? No, I wouldn't say it has to be, especially if the game then includes other aspects that aren't. The opening post mentions running it as an intro to the Weird War I setting so if that's acceptable then having other anachronisms should be ok. You could have a female volunteer brigade or heiress rich enough to afford her own biplane and she just keeps flying into combat. My personal preference is just to give each character male and female names then let the players choose and explain how they came to be there.
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Balder
Initiate Douchebag
Posts: 27
Preferred Game Systems: Pathfinder, Earthdawn, Traveller, D&D 5th, Dresden Fate
Currently Playing: Dungeons and Dragon 5E; Call of Cthulhu
Currently Running: Savage Worlds
Favorite Species of Monkey: Japanese Macaque
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Post by Balder on Mar 14, 2017 11:58:58 GMT -8
Don't forget that Mata Hari was the original Black Widow super-spy, during World War 1 She was actually the inspiration of spy character I had considered.
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Post by uncommonman on Mar 14, 2017 12:26:16 GMT -8
Isn't part of the point of playing with WWI as the setting that it should be historically correct? No, I wouldn't say it has to be, especially if the game then includes other aspects that aren't. The opening post mentions running it as an intro to the Weird War I setting so if that's acceptable then having other anachronisms should be ok. You could have a female volunteer brigade or heiress rich enough to afford her own biplane and she just keeps flying into combat. My personal preference is just to give each character male and female names then let the players choose and explain how they came to be there. "By Shane's own admission in the book the setting makes running female characters a little more challenging given the holdover Victorian ideals from that timeframe." This implies that the historic settimg is important. And if you look in the Wikipedia link there is examples of female soliders etc. All I want to say is that if I played a game set during WWI I would expect rasicim and sexism appropriate for the time.
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nanoboy
Journeyman Douchebag
Posts: 142
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Post by nanoboy on Mar 14, 2017 12:45:59 GMT -8
In a lot of historically accurate war settings, plausible female characters are going to be either non-existent or seem really special in ways that the male characters won't. (That's just a restatement of what folks were already saying, but it's true.) I would start with whatever story you intend to set up. If it's about French soldiers fighting on the front line, then it likely won't make sense to have a female character, but that doesn't mean that women cannot play; any female players would have to be content playing male characters. I think it's plausible for the opposite to be true, as one could easily have a setting in which male player characters would simply not make sense, and male players should be content to play female characters in that setting.
I know, I know, male privilege and all that, but if historical realism and accuracy is what you're going for, then inclusion of unrealistically placed female characters might feel really off. That said, you can have women who sneaked in, the civilian woman who got stuck with the rest of the characters, the nurse, or the woman fighting with one of the few nations that allowed women to fight.
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Post by OFTHEHILLPEOPLE on Mar 14, 2017 13:06:20 GMT -8
Just because you're fighting in the war doesn't mean you're military. If it's in the French/Great Britain area she could be a French Resistance fighter working with the good guys. It would a great chance to have contacts the players aren't familiar with show up and help out.
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nanoboy
Journeyman Douchebag
Posts: 142
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Post by nanoboy on Mar 14, 2017 18:38:57 GMT -8
Just because you're fighting in the war doesn't mean you're military. If it's in the French/Great Britain area she could be a French Resistance fighter working with the good guys. It would a great chance to have contacts the players aren't familiar with show up and help out. The thing is that it's WWI, and while women did fight on rare occasions, there was no French Resistance, since most of France was unconquered. Come to think of it, though, a great WWI opportunity for female characters would be the Russian Revolution. It would be morally complex, since the bad guys (the monarchists) lost to other bad guys (the Bolsheviks.) There were some decent liberals and social democratic factions who where not blatantly bad, but Lenin ROFL-stomped them. Still, there's a lot of cloak and dagger stuff, street fights, and the like. If you want supernatural stuff, Rasputin is right there, too.
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Post by OFTHEHILLPEOPLE on Mar 15, 2017 5:32:23 GMT -8
That's the great thing about making your own game setting, you can fudge history a little bit!
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Balder
Initiate Douchebag
Posts: 27
Preferred Game Systems: Pathfinder, Earthdawn, Traveller, D&D 5th, Dresden Fate
Currently Playing: Dungeons and Dragon 5E; Call of Cthulhu
Currently Running: Savage Worlds
Favorite Species of Monkey: Japanese Macaque
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Post by Balder on Mar 15, 2017 8:51:14 GMT -8
Just because you're fighting in the war doesn't mean you're military. If it's in the French/Great Britain area she could be a French Resistance fighter working with the good guys. It would a great chance to have contacts the players aren't familiar with show up and help out. The thing is that it's WWI, and while women did fight on rare occasions, there was no French Resistance, since most of France was unconquered. Come to think of it, though, a great WWI opportunity for female characters would be the Russian Revolution. It would be morally complex, since the bad guys (the monarchists) lost to other bad guys (the Bolsheviks.) There were some decent liberals and social democratic factions who where not blatantly bad, but Lenin ROFL-stomped them. Still, there's a lot of cloak and dagger stuff, street fights, and the like. If you want supernatural stuff, Rasputin is right there, too. The eastern front idea could definitely work. On the Western Front while the Central Powers didn't completely conquer France, they did take over about 1/3 and had a significant amount of the natural resources. As this is not World War I, but an alternate reality I can bend a few things. Women in the military is not one I am willing to do, but the idea of a French spy acting as guide or leading them to some unknown site of power may work. All the suggestions have helped break through the wall I had previously encountered. I am definitely interested in any other ideas however and appreciate the insight all of you have already given.
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fredrix
Master Douchebag
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Post by fredrix on Mar 15, 2017 11:54:26 GMT -8
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