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D&D 5E I Am SO Over The "Rootless Vagabond" Archetype
- Thread starter I'm A Banana
- Start date
CM
Adventurer
I like organizations, too. All the players in my Neverwinter campaign are tied to the various factions.
My PC (for those times I get to play) is an avenger of Oghma, a secret member of this group:
My PC (for those times I get to play) is an avenger of Oghma, a secret member of this group:
The Curators
With the demise of Helm, Mystra, and Tyr and the scattering of their respective flocks, corruption and depravity has run rampant in Faerûn. This is especially evident in the tremendous spread of groups such as the Red Wizards of Thay, the cult of Asmodeus, and the long-reaching tendrils of the Empire of Netheril. In desperation a new, secretive, radical order was formed within northern Faerûn’s church of Oghma: The Curators.
The Curators judge new discoveries (and ancient, recovered magics) on their merits and ability to benefit society, and decide whether such information should be allowed to spread. Curators are charged with undertaking extended, clandestine missions to investigate rumors of new magic, and return evidence and examples of their results to a conclave of senior clergy for examination. Should the discovery be deemed taboo, they are given a sacred order to capture, punish, (or even kill, in the case of particularly egregious violations) practitioners of these dark magics, and confiscate or destroy their spellbooks, research, and creations.
As Oghma is a neutral god and presumably above such mortal affairs, the Curators are seen as a heretical organization by his followers in eastern and southern Faerûn. Rumors of a second schism such as the faith underwent during the Time of Troubles are so far just that.
With the demise of Helm, Mystra, and Tyr and the scattering of their respective flocks, corruption and depravity has run rampant in Faerûn. This is especially evident in the tremendous spread of groups such as the Red Wizards of Thay, the cult of Asmodeus, and the long-reaching tendrils of the Empire of Netheril. In desperation a new, secretive, radical order was formed within northern Faerûn’s church of Oghma: The Curators.
The Curators judge new discoveries (and ancient, recovered magics) on their merits and ability to benefit society, and decide whether such information should be allowed to spread. Curators are charged with undertaking extended, clandestine missions to investigate rumors of new magic, and return evidence and examples of their results to a conclave of senior clergy for examination. Should the discovery be deemed taboo, they are given a sacred order to capture, punish, (or even kill, in the case of particularly egregious violations) practitioners of these dark magics, and confiscate or destroy their spellbooks, research, and creations.
As Oghma is a neutral god and presumably above such mortal affairs, the Curators are seen as a heretical organization by his followers in eastern and southern Faerûn. Rumors of a second schism such as the faith underwent during the Time of Troubles are so far just that.
Henrix
Explorer
These days I start my campaigns by sitting down with the players and make a relationship map.
We put down their characters and a few NPCs and organisations/places that will be important on a large sheet of paper, with lots of empty spaces.
The we start talking and filling in the blanks and draw lines all over the place.
Everybody is allowed to invent NPCs, and I encourage all to invent at least one or two that are important to their charactes.
If there already is a minor NPC in my head that kind of fits I'll put that in instead of a newly created one, but some should be new.
Together we build a social background and web. Drawing lines between them all that fit.
A wizard PC has a master called Koriakin the Dull. Another player thinks her character needs an inspiring relative who has filled her ears with tales of adventure, and suddenly we find that the same Koriakin is her uncle.
Perfect: we have an interesting NPC, and two characters connected to him and so each other.
I want every PC to have at least one connection to another PC, at least one to another important NPC, and at least one more. A minimum of three connections.
Often it is hard to not make too many. There should not be more than is easy to keep track of.
I've always found it very easy, and that as soon as the players get what's going on it will be done with gusto and glee.
I usually have it lying on the table at the start of every session so that everybody sees it regularly.
And when things happen we add to it.
Suddenly the PCs have a social network. People they know. People the players are involved in, because those NPCs are theirs, they created them.
We put down their characters and a few NPCs and organisations/places that will be important on a large sheet of paper, with lots of empty spaces.
The we start talking and filling in the blanks and draw lines all over the place.
Everybody is allowed to invent NPCs, and I encourage all to invent at least one or two that are important to their charactes.
If there already is a minor NPC in my head that kind of fits I'll put that in instead of a newly created one, but some should be new.
Together we build a social background and web. Drawing lines between them all that fit.
A wizard PC has a master called Koriakin the Dull. Another player thinks her character needs an inspiring relative who has filled her ears with tales of adventure, and suddenly we find that the same Koriakin is her uncle.
Perfect: we have an interesting NPC, and two characters connected to him and so each other.
I want every PC to have at least one connection to another PC, at least one to another important NPC, and at least one more. A minimum of three connections.
Often it is hard to not make too many. There should not be more than is easy to keep track of.
I've always found it very easy, and that as soon as the players get what's going on it will be done with gusto and glee.
I usually have it lying on the table at the start of every session so that everybody sees it regularly.
And when things happen we add to it.
Suddenly the PCs have a social network. People they know. People the players are involved in, because those NPCs are theirs, they created them.
Piratecat
Sesquipedalian
And written by at least two EN Worlders, too!I take it you will be watching the Librarians on TNT when it debuts then.
Henrix
Explorer
It is a dirty hippie indie game schtick.
The best application of the relationship map is in Burning Empires*, by Luke Crane.
The first session is spent creating ("burning") the planet the campaign takes place on. One of the final stages is going around the table asking each player to make sure that everybody has some parts they feel are their own contribution, something that they feel attached to.
But all in all bringing all the players** in on creating stuff is a very good lesson from about any indie style game. There are half a dozen creative brains around my table - why should only one be used?
* Burning Wheel in spaaace! With mind control slugs!
** Including the DM.
Not to be confused with murderhobbit.
Flexor the Mighty!
18/100 Strength!
We are kind of beer and pretzels gamers so writing out long detailed pasts with all that isn't something we are interested in, and the loner leaving his crappy mud hole to find glory and riches in some dank forgotten temple is pretty much the par. Plus you spend all the time making up a rich background only to get mauled by a boar or killed by a pit trap in the first session...
Plane Sailing
Astral Admin - Mwahahaha!
I've never liked rootless vagabonds, and pretty much never saw them in games from OD&D onwards - we were always running and playing in campaigns, and getting involved in the society was always one of the objectives. I don't really remember anyone wanting to play 'the man with no name', everybody wanted to build their castle/tower/temple, and rise in status in the society.
I think that OD&D and AD&D definitely supported and encouraged this kind of play - it was right there in the name level benefits after all!
It would be interesting to find out whether many people who really got into D&D in the 3e+ era had a greater or lesser tendency to murderhoboism/being rootless vagabonds. I wouldn't be surprised if there was a greater tendency because the 3e rules onwards expressly didn't really support anything other than continually finding bigger badder dungeons. Of course, people have run all kinds of campaigns within 3e onwards, no doubting that they can. But perhaps the lack of explicit pointers to that worldbuilding side of characters may have failed to encourage people to get involved?
Cheers
I think that OD&D and AD&D definitely supported and encouraged this kind of play - it was right there in the name level benefits after all!
It would be interesting to find out whether many people who really got into D&D in the 3e+ era had a greater or lesser tendency to murderhoboism/being rootless vagabonds. I wouldn't be surprised if there was a greater tendency because the 3e rules onwards expressly didn't really support anything other than continually finding bigger badder dungeons. Of course, people have run all kinds of campaigns within 3e onwards, no doubting that they can. But perhaps the lack of explicit pointers to that worldbuilding side of characters may have failed to encourage people to get involved?
Cheers
