I want to strongly second all of this, especially putting a divider between yourself and your character. I try really hard to, for example, when sending PMs to other players, double-check that I'm not using "you" to refer to their character, because the accumulation of all those little things makes a difference. For myself, I even do silly little things like, right before clicking the button to roll dice, saying to myself, "Come on, [character name]." Because there's no "I" can do this. I am a person with an electronic device and great imagination. My character is the one who has to do whatever it is that we're rolling for.Kitsu Moshumaru wrote: ↑Wed Aug 25, 2021 4:57 pmThere are two big ways I can think of to reduce stress levels in a game:
A) First is to think of your character as "the NPC I'm playing", as opposed to one's personal character.
B) Set out some kind of story goal which doesn't require dice before you play.
With A), this kind of detachment makes it easier to get along and enjoy the game despite losses. This is because in this mindset it is not you losing because of a bad roll, it's (in my case) Kitsu Moshumaru suffering because he couldn't bring himself to succeed. By making this distinction, it's also easier to let yourself not worry about things such as filling every time slot,
With B), it means you can almost guarantee some kind of forward momentum, even if the dice don't work out. If your character has a goal of telling people about their home town, for example, then they can advance that goal win or lose.
I also 1,000% agree about talking to other players directly, OOC via PMs, to address questions or concerns. Or just bond with them, because we're all part of the same big production here and can make life better for everyone by communicating honestly and openly. If you want your character to do something really impressive but improbable, you can probably find a player who can help make it happen. Don't spring big stuff on people in threads without warning them first that it's at least possible. I would suggest that the more PMs showing up in your mailbox over the course of a game, probably the better, because you're talking more and to more people and you're probably, even if getting tired, still feeling happier about it because you know what people are trying to do.
And it's often nice to end with a self-effacing comment, for your mental health as well as others. So, since I know y'all have heard more than enough from Ishi and me, we out.