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<blockquote data-quote="Woas" data-source="post: 5041071" data-attributes="member: 16317"><p>Cool. I was just asking first to see if my advice would be warranted or totally left field an unhelpful. I'm thinking it's gonna be more the latter but I dunno I'll pitch it to you anyway.</p><p></p><p>Basically, why not let the players pick what goals the NPCs have, by letting them pick the plots based off character beliefs? Then the answers to the questions you originally asked all sort of fall in line.</p><p></p><p></p><p>What I mean is, instead of dry-planning a necromancer, lumber-baron and crotchety-town-elder NPC plot circle that was mentioned earlier a character's belief was "Stop Baron von Holzfaller from desecrating the ancestral burial grounds!" then as GM you could use that as motivation and start to explore the "sandbox" with it. You (and the player(s)) know the character (and player) wants to stop the lumber-baron... do they seek out an employ the help of a mysterious necromancer to invoke guardian spirits? Try to play politics with the zany old town elder to block trade rights?</p><p></p><p>Because now instead of you having to think of every possible action the players/character make and plotting potential threats and outcomes, the players do.</p><p></p><p>So like I said, probably out there as far as advice to what you originally asked but figured I'd try.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Woas, post: 5041071, member: 16317"] Cool. I was just asking first to see if my advice would be warranted or totally left field an unhelpful. I'm thinking it's gonna be more the latter but I dunno I'll pitch it to you anyway. Basically, why not let the players pick what goals the NPCs have, by letting them pick the plots based off character beliefs? Then the answers to the questions you originally asked all sort of fall in line. What I mean is, instead of dry-planning a necromancer, lumber-baron and crotchety-town-elder NPC plot circle that was mentioned earlier a character's belief was "Stop Baron von Holzfaller from desecrating the ancestral burial grounds!" then as GM you could use that as motivation and start to explore the "sandbox" with it. You (and the player(s)) know the character (and player) wants to stop the lumber-baron... do they seek out an employ the help of a mysterious necromancer to invoke guardian spirits? Try to play politics with the zany old town elder to block trade rights? Because now instead of you having to think of every possible action the players/character make and plotting potential threats and outcomes, the players do. So like I said, probably out there as far as advice to what you originally asked but figured I'd try. [/QUOTE]
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