Mysteries...
Posted 25th September 2008 at 10:22 PM by The_Warlock
Updated 26th September 2008 at 02:43 AM by The_Warlock
Updated 26th September 2008 at 02:43 AM by The_Warlock
Does everything you present in a campaign actually have to be the current adventure or side quest?
Does it need an answer?
Recently I was reading Creepy... and some of the storyhours I keep up with, as well as several old Forgotten Realms "Ask the designers..." threads over at Candlekeep.
One of the things that struck me was "unsolved mysteries."
Many game systems, especially contemporary ones, try to make the rules clear, and cover a wide variety of possibilities
That understanding and awareness of the rules can often take away from the mystique, otherness, and tension a campaign setting/rpg world can provide.
Dropping strange, unexplained, weird, creepy and odd occurences into the lives of the characters can enhance the players' interest in the world, driving them to investigate and seek answers, but also to be wary.
More importantly, it keeps the players from getting blasé about encounters, and allows the Gamemaster to be creative and add color to his world.
On that note, I think for my next campaign I am going to drop at least one strange, disturbing, or simply unexplained event/occurence per session.
I will keep track of them, and if the PCs show interest, I will develop them in some way. Some may remain unexplainable, but may lead PCs in certain directions, while others may lead to confrontations or encounters of a more meaty nature.
Even if the PCs don't show interest, if I find the imagery particularly appealing, I may bring it back occasionally to tempt or frighten the PCs.
Even the Gamemaster, who plays the whole world, has to have things in the world that even he doesn't know the answer to.
Does it need an answer?
Recently I was reading Creepy... and some of the storyhours I keep up with, as well as several old Forgotten Realms "Ask the designers..." threads over at Candlekeep.
One of the things that struck me was "unsolved mysteries."
Many game systems, especially contemporary ones, try to make the rules clear, and cover a wide variety of possibilities
That understanding and awareness of the rules can often take away from the mystique, otherness, and tension a campaign setting/rpg world can provide.
Dropping strange, unexplained, weird, creepy and odd occurences into the lives of the characters can enhance the players' interest in the world, driving them to investigate and seek answers, but also to be wary.
More importantly, it keeps the players from getting blasé about encounters, and allows the Gamemaster to be creative and add color to his world.
On that note, I think for my next campaign I am going to drop at least one strange, disturbing, or simply unexplained event/occurence per session.
I will keep track of them, and if the PCs show interest, I will develop them in some way. Some may remain unexplainable, but may lead PCs in certain directions, while others may lead to confrontations or encounters of a more meaty nature.
Even if the PCs don't show interest, if I find the imagery particularly appealing, I may bring it back occasionally to tempt or frighten the PCs.
Even the Gamemaster, who plays the whole world, has to have things in the world that even he doesn't know the answer to.
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Comments
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I run rather sandbox, and I generate twice or more as many plots, side plots, etc as I expect to need. So there are always things happening about the characters - makes the world feel organic and rich, not as if the PCs are real and everything else is cardboard.
For example, last campaign there was a fairly high level robbery attempt against one character in a coach in the capital city by halflings. It was a fun encounter, and they moved on. If they had wanted to investigate, it was in part spawning from the halfling vs. human unrest, and the PC in the coach (a human) had hired a halfling dressmakers (used to be the style) and flashed a lot of expensive jewelery about. There was a whole sub-plot I could have easily expanded if they took interest, and it furthered the whole growing unrest of the halflings with the humans.
It's more work, but it keeps things alive.Posted 26th September 2008 at 03:33 PM by Blue
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Agreed, and it's something I want to do more of.
While that happened more in the early stages of my 13 year campaign, the latter half had focused into a save the world epic, and the little things got left behind.
Next time, I intend to keep the plot hooks and mysterious happenings popping up even if the PCs find a direction and latch on.Posted 26th September 2008 at 04:21 PM by The_Warlock
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