Characters have been made, and backstories are filling in. For the Prologue, the whole mob will be divided into individual groups, each with its starting point. During the telling of the Prologue, each group will find out how they got into this mess. Once all groups are together in the same spot, the Game Begins. This series in Role-Playing Games is Player Knowledge. Anything that happens to the Characters, anything the Characters would know is discussed here. There is also a GM section for those interested in the perspective of someone running the game, and notes on how the episode was intended to play out.
DB: Dragonsbane
Dragonsbane is a role-playing game campaign set in the world of Privateer Press’ Iron Kingdoms. The Iron Kingdoms are in a world of magic and steampunk, with much political intrigue and battle magics. And big, steam-powered robots. Gotta have the robots. The campaign has a sprawling story that intends to cover most of the Iron Kingdoms and surrounding lands.
Hotrod of Judgement (pt. 1)
In Warmachine, the Protectorate of Menoth’s armies include in interesting pieces called the Vessel of Justgement. It’s a massive block that is part mobile mausoleum and part pipe organ. A burly dude pulls it along by a pair of chains while a priest stands in front of it, praying. The model is nice, and is shown below. However, several people have been playing around with the pieces of the model to see what else if could be made into.
RPG: What’s in a name?
When it comes to characters, whether they are Player Characters or Non-Player Characters, much can hang on the name. Some people choose simple names. They are easy to remember and do not have to put much forth towards the actual Character themself. Other times, a name is chosen to really represent the personality behind the character. I enjoy coming up with a descriptive, yet plausible name for most of the characters I build.
RPG: Min-Maxing
Characters in Role-Playing games come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Some do indeed turn out to be more powerful than others. Players who play a lot get a lot of practice making these characters, and some Players can take this to extremes. One particular style of character generation has the term Min-Maxing. In short, this is using the minimum number of points to get the maximum effect.
RPG: Character Creation
I was asked by a Player about creating a character for a game. Their concern was that they didn’t want to spend the time creating a character that they wouldn’t have fun playing. First and foremost: don’t worry about it. Everyone has favorite and less-favorite characters. In some cases, a Neat Idea didn’t really resolve properly, as the ruleset might let you down, or you can’t quite nail down a way to work the idea into a list of skills and stats. Sometimes the character doesn’t really fit the campaign: a gung-ho combat character would be out of place in an Agatha Christie murder mystery. Sometimes the player just isn’t inspired by the campaign, so it can be hard to make a “good” character. And then there are the times when the Character just Clicks. Cherish those characters, as they are the most fun to pull out.
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GM: Three Clue Rule
One of the hardest game to try to build and run is the Mystery. A good mystery is easy to write, but very difficult to run, siply because you have no way of knowing what the Players will actually figure out. You don’t want the game to be too easy, or to push theplayers through a script. You also don’t want the mystery to be too difficult. The point of the game is to solve the mystery, so having unintelligble clues is not fun for anyone. One concept that can really help make an exciting yet solvable mystery game is the Three Clue Rule.
GM: Location- Tavern
Ah, the tavern. Whether its in a city or the countryside, in the distant past or far future, the Local Pub is a focal point for many stories. It’s easy to plant story hooks and plot devices in the saloon, and most adventuring parties end up in one, sooner or later. Some plot hooks are classics, and you can always throw in new twists to throw off the second-guessers.
GM: Urban Adventures
Many exciting adventures are held in the wilderness or in caverns. Hidden ruins and deep forests are common places for characters to find themselves. Adventuring means exploring to many people. Almost any genre moves away from civilization, so that forest might be on a distant planet, rather than a magical realm. However, whatever your genre you play, you eventually need to resupply. Towns and cities may be just places to sell loot and buy torches, but they can also be places for entire campaigns themselves. The Urban Wilderness can be just as challenging.