How do I play a schizophrenic Malkavian correctly?
I'm both fascinated and terrified by the concept of schizophrenia, but I have no real idea of what its victims actually go through. Other Malk players in the game I'm attending aren't helpful; they're almost entirely MPD Malks or women playing creepy children in grown up bodies.
>How do I play a ... Malkavian correctly?
You don't.
>I have no real idea of what its victims actually go through.
I can tell you that having one for a relative is a big old fucking pain. Always thinks people are out to get her, convinced that I'm stealing from her, even simple shit like "take your goddamn medication so you can be sane to go outside" is a chore because she's convinced it makes her hair fall out.
RTFM
http://www.guilford.com/books/Clinical-Handbook-of-Psychological-Disorders/David-Barlow/9781462513260/reviews
>>43611997
>How do I play a schizophrenic Malkavian correctly?
Recognize that the appropriate question to ask is not "how do I play a schizophrenic Malkavian believably," it is "how do I play a schizophrenic Malkavian in an entertaining way at the table."
>>43612435
Okay.
How do I play a schizophrenic Malkavian in a way that makes the condition a hindrance and horror to him, but doesn't grind the whole game to a halt?
>>43612992
Terror is the passion of revelation, so he's gotta be justifiably paranoid but not just like, meta knowledge of the campaign that you min/max. Know how in Bloodlines if you play a Malkavian you know the cabbie is Caine but can't do shit about it but scream and whimper? That's your schizophrenia. You know the awful stuff that no one else does, but you can't do a thing about it.
>>43612992
That's really the difficult part. The most accurate way, to my understanding, is to have two or three other people whisper everything that could possibly go wrong in your ear, all the fucking time.
That isn't very entertaining. Nor does it contribute to game play.
The first question that needs answering is this: What is the general play style at your table?
If people are fond of rolling, then a random table of "shadings" might be appropriate - where whatever comes up is how you feel about the situation, whatever it might be. Any detail might be relevant - a stray pizza box might be a murder attempt, a random hobo might be telling the truth about you (and how does he know?), the trusted party member might have gone too far (but you trust him, right? You can let that happen, right? Right?).
The most important aspect is that you are not in control of where your thoughts go. The thoughts of what might be are loud and controlling, and while you can ignore them, you don't always notice they aren't you.
>>43611997
Hit people with fish and yell "spoon!" a lot.
>>43612992
Take the flaws Dark Secret and Enemy (5). They're coming to get you. They want to take away everything you have first, just so you suffer. Can you tell when people have been digging too deep, or when they are working for them?
Oh, also, let the party know before you do this.
>>43612992
That's a tall order man... Schizophrenia isn't just horrifying, it's really, really debilitating, and trying to accurately portray it WILL grind your game to a halt.
I honestly can't think of any way to make it fun... I guess you could just abstract everything, and require Will and Perception checks (or whatever, drawing a blank on that system's stats right now) to accurately see or hear things going on around you. Make a table of a hundred or so hallucinations to use when you fail, and on a crit fail go into near-catatonic state of terror or berserk anger...
No man, sorry, it's going to wind up being awful.
Consider just splitting it off into just paranoia instead of full blown schizo.
There is no real way to play schizophrenia, as it has a variety of symptons. It can be hallucinations, it can be paranoia, etc. No disease is truly equal to another.
Some people manage to overcome it and have a regular life, but they are never cured; they just adapted to their situation and learned to ignore the symptoms.
>>43611997
Step 1: think of some paranoid delusions. Something needs to be able to get you, and it needs to be stupid enough to not be real but plausible enough to be scary.
Step 2: other people will be in on it, and you know they know you know, so you need to make sure to talk about it while not talking about it, and they know what you're taking about (but they don't, and they can't tell you that they do)
> schizophrenia
Everyone talk in "colours", when people talk you can see ballons floating above they're heads. You think your life is a game and you're trapped in it. Basically what your character thing it's normal it isn't for the other players you can even have a werewolf problem and think that every villan is a potential lycan, or even ask why everyone is wearing furry costumes, all those who are vampires have bloodstained costumes having a animal represent they're personality, and humans are just humans.
Best malkavian I knew was completely metagame. Would talk about rolls, doing good, predicting cliches... and still behaving as if he knew none of it... no one listened to him because he was crazy, but at the same time, he was occasionally right.
After thinking what your paranoia delusion will be think in what can or will trigger it, be it a situation, a word or a object.
>>43611997
Have you tried playing that neighbor that seems a little off?
>>43611997
Act like he's done LSD in the past and is perpetually having a mild, but bad, trip.
I think being schizo is easy to understand but I'm autistic so that makes sense
Schizophrenia depression adhd bipolar are all the same thing, only difference is the cut of meat, ask your physiatrist
Have been watching a terrible show lately, iZombie.
In short, its vampire zombies. If they eat brain on a regular basis they stay human in appearance, but are exceptionally strong when threatened.
However they take on personality traits from the person whose brain they are eating and get their memories.
My point is this, could you play a Malkavian that takes on 2 to 3 traits like paranoia, overjoyful cheering, gambling, whatever from the last person you drank blood from?
what exactly do you want to know about schizophrenia? i'm in a house with like ten folks who've got it to some extent.
>>43617787
Your question was kind of vague, I guess im looking for specifics. Do you want mannerisms, speech? Disorganized, paranoid, catatonic symptoms?
As an overview, you basically just have to think that the sun shines out your asshole. Everything is about you and the goddamm world needs to happen on your time. If you're doing modern nights, cigarettes and coffee are a must for your character, you can't function without them. Also any food needs to be heavily seasoned/your character would be fat if you're playing that you're on meds.
