Introducing Characters

[jatay3]

How does one go about starting a campaign? What happens when the GM spends a week crafting a masterpiece which begins with "would you be willing to do this bold adventure that no sensible person in his right mind would do?" What if they say know? Of course they won't because that would ruin the game, but having to say yes makes it cheesey.
One method is the "oops, sorry method". It starts something like,"Well to bad you ended up with the ring but now you gotta take it to Mount Doom, Frodo because you're the only one of us who is so wimpy that it won't matter if you go crazy and try to keep it for yourself. Have a nice time crawling miserably through the Dark Land while the Sackville-bagginses are partying at Bag-End."
This method makes the initial decision accademic.
Another method is to assume the decision has been made and start in the middle.
Another method is to "abduct" the players if they won't do what the GM wants.
Another is for the GM to keep a perpetual library of adventures and campaigns, ready for use in given situations.

 

[The Oz]

My usual technique was to let the PCs go and do whatever they decided they wanted and then slowly steer them towards whatever adventure I had in mind, if I could. Sometimes we never did get to the "adventure of the evening."

Oh, well. We had fun anyway.

 

[Andrew Boulton]

Which is the important thing.

There are many ways of starting a campaign - it depends on the players, characters, and type of game.

 

[Chuck Anumia]

I always just asked my players what they would want to do in this town/starport/world while they are on break from their last adventure and play up encounters thatsteer them towards the places I want them to go and the people I want them to meet.

This way they decide what they want to do and I decide if it works with what I have in mind or where I can insert my plan into meeting up with theirs. I keep a file of NPCs handy to draw from for all occasions (barroom brawals, gov. red tape, crime lords, punks, scientists, aliens and various travellers) for inserting into the players plans.

Having fun is the important thing.

 

[Pickles]

My players never have enough money to say no to a job. Failing that, they are also wanted for enough <cough> dubious <cough> activities to make coercion a viable alternative.

 

[flykiller]

How does one go about starting a campaign? What happens when the GM spends a week crafting a masterpiece which begins with "would you be willing to do this bold adventure that no sensible person in his right mind would do?"

easy.

follow the money. "hey, didn't fred say he found a gold vein back in the hills? haven't seen him for four months now."

follow the mystery. "hey, didn't bob say he found an archeological site back in the hills? got all excited, took a bunch of college kids with him to look it up? haven't seen him for four months now."

rescue/recovery/damsel in distress. "the local mafia has kidnapped your NPC engineer. you're stranded until you get him back or get a new one." "this guy rented a ship's boat and didn't bring it back. you bring it back intact, I'll pay you 10% of its value." "they took my children!"

assignment. "as employees of company x we direct you to ..." "oh, you're a scout. I'm reactivating you and sending you on mission x." (by far the simplest and most reliable)

debt. "remember when I helped you get through academy? you owe me, pal." "your ship's mortgage payment of 200kCr is due next tuesday."

cargo/passengers. have to be picked up from somewhere, and delivered somewhere. (by far the most versatile)

deputization/legal requirement. "ICS clueless, you are directed to render aid and assistance to a vessel in distress at coordinates ...." "I'm baron hardass of the imperial navy intelligence service and I'm commandeering your vessel."

spare parts. "we're fresh out of jump drive component xyz, but I have a friend in town who ...."

channelling. "hurricane at port x, you'll have to go to port y." "all the sub-orbital boat pilots are on strike, you'll have to take a train."

relatives. "son, you remember that little problem your mother and I ran into last summer?"

etc.

 

[jatay3]

I have two questions one theoretical the other practical

the practical one is:
I am thinking of running "100 Parsecs". I was wondering how to introduce a complete newbie, who knows almost nothing about Traveller as a whole, let alone the Sword Worlds.

the theoretical is:

I can imagine joining an organization like Astron. Unfortunatly I cannot imagine founding one. Therefore I am curious as to how people start making such things into a reality. What is the borderline between exchanging stories at Brubecks and carrying out such dreams? What type of person(s) actually do take such things beyond the stage of telling a yarn, then ordering another Lambic Red? Has anyone hear studied or taken part in such a thing?

 

[jatay3]

i am an ignorant CT fanatic...what is '100 Parsecs' and what era is it in?
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Gurps Sword Worlds-just after the 5th frontier war.

A band of Swordies, worried that their culture is dying, decide to form an organization, called the Astron Project with the goal of going far into unsettled space("100 parsecs")to found a new Sword Worlds far from the encroachments of the Imperium.
It starts with aquiring starships to carry the colonists and protect them. Then they go on to the difficulty of arming the escort without Someone finding out and objecting. Then they voyage through the stars negotiating with this that and the other power for passage(and presumably having any extra adventure along the way that the GM wants to slip in). Then they arrive and begin building their new colony. As a bonus they find out that one of their sponsors has an idea to use their courage for some sinister motive of his/her/their own(to be decided by GM.
It is I think the best campaign in Gurps and could easily be made into a splendid movie or novel.

 

[jatay3]

the theoretical is:

I can imagine joining an organization like Astron. Unfortunatly I cannot imagine founding one. Therefore I am curious as to how people start making such things into a reality. What is the borderline between exchanging stories at Brubecks and carrying out such dreams? What type of person(s) actually do take such things beyond the stage of telling a yarn, then ordering another Lambic Red? Has anyone hear studied or taken part in such a thing?
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obviously not many have actually taken part in something of the scale of Astron Project. What I was wondering was whether anyone was present at the founding of a commercial, political, charitable, recreational, etc organization who might know what "turning the dream into reality" actually was like.

 

[Spinward Scout]

Just one piece of advice: Evil doesn't have to make sense. But it helps if it does. Everyone has motivations - even that Dark Baron that's after your crew. And the more realistic motivations your characters have, the more realistic the game will be. It's hard to run a game when your PCs only motivation is "because I said so." Now if their motivation becomes "because the Dark Baron is after us since we beat his son at durajino chess and the poor boy is a spoiled brat," that makes a lot more sense. Every person I've ever gamed with likes to make backgrounds and I've used Prior History to complement that.

Ok, so, that was more than one piece of advice,

Dameon

 

[jatay3]

2) the technology allowing them to leave the realm they are currently in and get beyond easy punishment range.

3) a charismatic leader who can keep things together long enough for them to escape.
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Of course that would apply if it is in fact an escape

As I understand Sword Worlds Confederation is reliativly friendly, or at least indifferent to the venture, though Border Worlds is not. Indifferent is probably a better description for the opening phase won't work if SWC is assisting with more than well-wishes(because than they would have the power of an intersteller state behind them).
The Astron Project is not so much the project of malcontants, so much as of people fearing the collapse of Sword Worlds society. Sword Worlds has suffered a terrible disaster in the Fifth Frontier War and many are fearing that that blow was mortal. "malcontants" don't really apply. They are not criminals or dissidents; more like idealists and adventuers(though a few crimanals will slip in of course). So well a lot of this applies some doesn't. For instance they can openly recruit in Sworld Worlds Confederation territory, like any other organization. The chief difficulty will be such things as have to be done that might attract suspicion from the Imperium or the Border Worlds Authority(vassal state made from conquered Sword Worlds).
They do however need available technology(which they have or can obtain)and a charismatic leader or leaders which they presumably have.
My curiousity is what is it like when they stop saying "the Sword Worlds are doomed boo-hoo" and start raiseing money and recruits for their venture.

 

[jatay3]

How does one make the feel of beginning such a campaign look real? It would be analogical to making a software company in your basement except that the builders don't have to intend from the get-go to become a replacment for Microsoft wheras the builders of a would-be nation have to be thinking Big Thoughts from the start. Perhaps the founder would be a noble or famous general-thus he wouldn't have to be an utter meglomaniac because he was already trained to think on that level(I would want my Astrons to be "good guys"-except the Mysterious Sponsor).
Or some soldier-of-fortune(s) could have seen a bunch of idealistic but impractical people trying to organize this thing, been inspired and found his-meaning-in-life and gave them his skill.
You know that would be a good way to introduce the characters.
Is there anyway to introduce Newbies, except as Someone-Too-Low-To-Make-Decisions, though.

 

[Chuck Anumia]

I would perhaps include them as "Aides" to those who are making descisions.
This way they are in a position to give advice and see how things are run.
As they get more comfortable with giving advice and making descisions they can get promoted (asst. to under secratery, under secratery, secratery, secratery general, etc.)

 

[Jame]

My question would be "how do you introduce new players and characters into a pre-existing campaign?"

 

[Andrew Boulton]

It can be tricky. Depends on who the other characters are and what they're doing.

Getting new characters into a Cthulhu campaign is the worst:

"So let me get this straight - you've just killed the Chief of Police because he's an evil cultist, you've got his brain in a bag, and you need my help to find a portal to an alien dimension so you can stop an ancient god from destroying the world?"

 

[jatay3]

I would perhaps include them as "Aides" to those who are making descisions.
This way they are in a position to give advice and see how things are run.
As they get more comfortable with giving advice and making descisions they can get promoted (asst. to under secratery, under secratery, secratery, secratery general, etc.)
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Actually thats a great idea-make the PC a gofer. e a valet, or some form of servant. That way the PC can be worked into it reliativly easily.
thank you

 

[Chuck Anumia]

Originally posted by jatay3:
I would perhaps include them as "Aides" to those who are making descisions.
This way they are in a position to give advice and see how things are run.
As they get more comfortable with giving advice and making descisions they can get promoted (asst. to under secratery, under secratery, secratery, secratery general, etc.)
----------------------------------
Actually thats a great idea-make the PC a gofer. e a valet, or some form of servant. That way the PC can be worked into it reliativly easily.
thank you

Your welcome Jatay3

This idea has worked for me very well in campaigns over the past 29 years.

 

[The Oz]

Originally posted by Jame:
My question would be "how do you introduce new players and characters into a pre-existing campaign?"

What I have usually done is to look at the prior service histories of the characters (either a new group just setting up, or replacement characters joining an existing group) and find any potential overlaps (like a naval character on a "Strike" assignment at the same time as a Marine serving in "Police Action") and use those to explain why the characters are friends and able to work together.

Failing that you can invent connections (being related somehow) or you can make the new character important to the group in some way (he's got a ship to replace the one just shot out from under the PC's, or he has money, or she knows the right people in the place the PCs want/need to go next, etc). This gets the new character into the group and after a shared adventure or two (or shared illegal activity or two) there's a bond between them.

 

[BetterThanLife]

For the initial adventure, the Scout that rolled up the Scout Ship, is the easy one to get them steered into a good campaign.

Scout Base Commander: Well John, you are going on Detached Duty. Excellent. It says here in your papers from Sector HQ, that I am to place at your disposal a surplus Type-S. No Problem.

Lets see, I have the "Bad Penny" available, it is only 120 years old and shold be finished with the annual maintenance in a couple of weeks... Oh I also happen to have this Prototype TL 13 Type S+ that we tested for the service and they decided not to buy it, so it was declared surplus.. But I was thinking I should save that one for someone that is willing to look into _____ for me. Unofficially, of course...

 

[BetterThanLife]

Adding Characters to an existing campaign isn't all that hard in Traveller. A Scout going on Detached Duty looking for something to do, when the Players are refueling their Scoutship at a Scout Base.

A Merchant needing to replace an NPC Crewmember who just jumped ship, or left to find more lucrative work. (Works for most ships other than Scout Ships.) A Mercenary Unit that needs to recruit to replace losses. The messenger from a Patron is also a good idea, though can get over used.

I have found that Traveller lends itself to adding PCs easily enough.