Geek-Out Girls

Geist: The Sin-Eaters edition

Soooo, Geist: The Sin-Eaters. Firstly, it’s not Wraith. Now I’m saying this only being about 1/3 of the way through the book but I believe I speak with some authority as I’m a major World of Darkness Geek. While it contains many of the same themes as oWOD Wraith did, it more accurately mirrors the lesser known Mummy: The Resurrection from the final years of White Wolf’s former moneymaker. Resurrection, the interaction with the dead, the binding one’s self to a foreign entity are all very similar to Resurrection’s themes. There are a smattering of similarities with Demon: The Fallen as well, mostly the fact that the one that you are binding with doesn’t necessarily have your best interest at heart.

At the end of the day however, this is a new game and one deserving of its own attention. We, as Geeks, have a habit of frequently needing to pigeon hole something into an established and understood framework. While this is only normal it’s also a shitty way to go through life. It’s difficult to give due consideration to something when it is constantly being compared to something else. This rings true greatly for Geist. White Wolf has done wonders with creating games that were unlike anything that came before them. Their much maligned Promethean line is one of the most beautifully constructed concepts, but it just never did it for people (I love the damn thing, and have never played or run a game of it). With Sin-Eaters they have created a game based around facing death and stepping back from it without fear. The culture that they have created for the game’s protagonists is, in my opinion, one of the strongest areas of the game. It is unique, customizable and just different enough from your expectations to make you give out a little “ooo” when you read it. Voodoo, ancient Hindi death magic, Christian Mysticism, baseball terminology, Carnivales anything that you want can be incorporated into your Krewe’s (that’s their version of Cabal, Pack, Coterie, etc.) shared culture.

The other thing I like is that you build your Krewe as more than a group of people shoved together. They have a theme, and there is mechanic that backs it. I’ll most likely be writing about more of this in RPGA this week, (that’s tomorrow for you new folk), but I want all of you that have the chance to take a look at this thing as if it were something entirely new. Don’t let issues that you’ve had with old games taint any of your expectations of this one.