Character Creation: Visigoths vs. Mall Goths

THE FIFTH GAME OF XMAS, TWENTY-TWENTY-TWO,
IS VISIGOTHS VS. MALL GOTHS!
PIRATES OF PUGMIRE,
THE TROUBLESHOOTERS,
THEN STAR-CROSSED,
AND THE FIRST GAME WAS THE ONE RING 2ND ED!

The Game: Visigoths vs. Mall Goths
The Publisher: Lucian Kahn
Degree of Familiarity: I mean, I went to the mall a lot in the 90s
Books Required: Just the one

This is one of those hyper-specific games that's really far in execution and concept from the RPGs I grew up playing. That's not a bad thing, of course - I'm on record as not being fond of the fact that a lot (I'd even say "most"?) RPGs have a disproportionate emphasis on combat, even when it's not appropriate or beneficial, and here's this game where you're either playing a time-displaced Visigoth or a Mall Goth and the two camps are in a constant sitcom-esque state of rivalry. The game is unabashedly queer and silly, and embraces the Mall Goth aesthetic of the mid-90s. 

I was never really a goth, but that was more because of my family and my school (I went to a Catholic high school and if I'd gone fully into the aesthetic the way my older son has, I'd never have heard the end of it from my mother). I was almost out of college when this game is set (1996), and like, I lived in Toledo, which had more of a goth/queer scene than you'd think but it still wasn't LA. But with all of that said, I have warm nostalgia feels for wandering around malls with friends when I was younger, and going to the movies at the life-support remains of Great Northern Mall nowadays just kinda makes me sad.

Well, moving on, let's make a goth of some flavor. First thing is to choose whether I'm a Visigoth or a Mall Goth. I think I'll be a Visigoth, if for no other reason than I used to wear a t-shirt that said "If You're Really a Goth Where Were You When We Sacked Rome?" There are three options: Conqueror, Charlatan, and Runecaster. I'm going with Conqueror because their special power is that once per day you can convince people that a modern invention was originally created by the Visigoths and I feel like that'd be fun to play. 

Choose a name or come up with my own. Well, there's only one name on the list, and I don't love it, so I guess I'm coming up with my own! I feel like my young Visigoth decided a new name was needed for this new world. The first thing he heard when he appeared in 1996 was a radio playing "Ridiculous Thoughts" (yes, No Need to Argue came out in 1994, but the Cranberries album that came out in 1996 was To the Faithful Departed and I'm not as fond of that one), and so took on the name "Twister." (It just occurred to me that the movie Twister came out in 1996, so I'm sure that would figure in to any game that this character would be involved in.) He/him pronouns, just to keep things simple.

Are you still glowing from the time travel? Choices are yes, no, and maybe a little, which is what I'll go with.

Goth style! I want a bone & sinew hoodie, thanks very much. 

Religion: Heretical Christian, I guess. It'd be fun to occasionally take that way too seriously. Like getting mad at the Easter Bunny and starting a war for the eggs.

I get a +2 to Spears, Theft, and Control Animals, but I up one of those to +3. I think I'll lean in to my Conqueror nature and make it Spears.

Last thing is an Embarrassing Trait. Normally another player would give me one and I could either accept it or reject it and pick two of my own, but since it's just me I shall roll for one and if I don't like that, I'll pick two.

The roll gives me "follows a modern-day religion." Uh, sure, I can roll with that. Let's see. Oh, wait, perfect - Dragonheart came out in 1996! My guy follows the Old Code. In times of stress he's prone to reciting it, a la Dennis Quaid. 

Movie trivia follows me, man. I picture this guy standing up in the food court after fighting off some Metalhead yelling "HIS WRATH UNDOES THE WICKED!" He's got his bone and sinew hoodie, leather britches, boots, and his lucky spear. He used to have a helmet but he doesn't wear it much anymore; it does weird things to his hair.