CHALLENGE: Campaigns that NOBODY would want to play in

[Dannyalcatraz]

Minion: the Gathering

Players run minions, whose mission is to keep The Hero from defeating their Boss. Because they are minions, regardless of offensive capabilities, two hits from anything The Hero uses will kill them. The campaign manual suggests each player generates a few dozen PCs and runs them simultaneously.

 

[Lanefan]

Minion: the Gathering

Players run minions, whose mission is to keep The Hero from defeating their Boss. Because they are minions, regardless of offensive capabilities, two hits from anything The Hero uses will kill them. The campaign manual suggests each player generates a few dozen PCs and runs them simultaneously.

Sounds like the funnel method of char-gen, only endless and dialled to eleven.

 

[Maxperson]

This is why I avoid campaigns in the Forgotten Realms or Greyhawk, but especially the Realms. The party are the heroes who, if they survive will be among the most powerful beings on planet and are the protagonists who matter.

The Realms isn't like that, though. Not unless the DM goes out of his way to make it like that. Those high level NPCs are doing their own thing and the PCs are on their own with their adventure. Nobody is going to swoop in and save them, or do things for them if things get rough.

 

[Eltab]

Minion: the Gathering

Players run minions, whose mission is to keep The Hero from defeating their Boss. Because they are minions, regardless of offensive capabilities, two hits from anything The Hero uses will kill them. The campaign manual suggests each player generates a few dozen PCs and runs them simultaneously.

… but The Computer Is Your Friend and has generously allowed you to use some equipment, including this pretty-colored reflective shirt ...

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

… but The Computer Is Your Friend and has generously allowed you to use some equipment, including this pretty-colored reflective shirt ...

That’s only in the optional rules, which won’t be published unless the Kickstarter hits $1M...sorry...$100B.

 

[Imaculata]

How about a campaign where the player-characters simply run after the real heroes (controlled by the DM), and clean up the table scraps, while constantly seeing those npc heroes have all the real cool moments?

Oh wait, that also already exists.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

World of Dorkness: set in the world of today, players design PCs based on gamer/nerd/geek/introvert stereotypes or examples of extremely maladapted people of personal/anecdotal familiarity. Supplements flesh out rules for play in other time periods, even anachronistically, e.g. Goths in Renaissance Italy, absentminded polymaths in Viking communities, or Furries* in intergalactic space operas.







* Furrians?

 

[MarkB]

The Early Birds

Ever notice how dungeons come well stocked with useful magic items, and how everything in the dungeon still works even though there were stories of heroes who tried to get through it before? You are those guys, and it's your job to make sure everything's in place for when the real heroes come through.

You start out with loads of magic items and an entire apothecary store's worth of potions. However, consuming any expendable resource carries serious XP penatlies. You gain XP for:

• Bypassing traps without triggering or otherwise marking them, or for resetting them after you pass.
• Dropping or discarding magical items or potions, especially in obscure locations.
• Sneaking past groups of enemies without killing them.
• Having a party member die, and then leaving them in place without looting the corpse.

The end goal is to reach the final dungeon boss, confront them, and be slaughtered like chumps. Preferably as close to the entrance as possible so that your corpses are visible from outside the door.

 

[Eltab]

World of Dorkness: set in the world of today, players design PCs based on gamer/nerd/geek/introvert stereotypes or examples of extremely maladapted people of personal/anecdotal familiarity.

I have seen (but do not remember the title) a game where you are supposed to create yourself as a character and attempt to survive Ragnarok.
At least you get to decide ahead of time the manner of your death, so you can be THE Big Awesome Hero!

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I’ve had people stat themselves out for various campaign settings & genres. Sometimes it can be loads of fun.

Hmmm...

MetaQuest: a campaign in which you stat your Joe Normal self out as you are today. Then, in an effort to improve your humdrum life, you seek to emulate the origin stories of your favorite heroes-especially superheroes- thereby gaining their powers. So the players are trying to stat things like exposure to radioactive chemicals, home-made super soldier serums, radioactive spiders, lab chemicals + lightning, exploring ancient temple ruins, nuclear weapon detonations, cosmic rays, muggings, etc. In a sense, it’s like role-playing the original Traveller career path with a body count as high as a Paranoia or a CoC game. Maybe some Munchkin or Nuclear War thrown in.


Come to think of it, it probably would work as a beer & pretzels/family card or boardgame. Or boardgame with cards. Yeah! Winner is the first one to survive to Metahumanity!