I agreed to run a game of Blades in the Dark starting in Feb. I've not run or played it before, but I have plenty of GMing experience. The plan is to do a limited game, once or twice a month for about six months (so somewhere around nine to twelve sessions in total).
It seems like the most important thing will be getting as much of the lore in my head as I can between now and then so that I can respond to the evolving gameplay, rather than plan out any kind of storyline.
If anyone is interested in sharing their dos and don't, or other experience, my player will appreciate it.
Yeah, getting to grips with lore makes sense, but be aware that Blades has pretty amorphous lore. Stuff like how the spirit world, cults or spirit wardens work, is left extremely open to interpretion so that tables can decide. I think the most important thing is to get a sense of the vibe of the world (as you see it).
Beyond that, preparing some interesting but open ended antagonists/allies is the best call. If you've got some memorable characters, with some intresting motivations they can interact with characters, and each other, in intresting ways depending on how things progress. That makes the world feel alive and still responsive to their actions.
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