Advice on running an amnesia storyline

[FoxWander]

I have a campaign idea that I've been wanting to run for awhile now that centers on the concept that all the players have effectively complete amnesia. Game-wise they start with the skills and abilities of 1st level characters and are able to speak thier racial language (if any) and common, but that's it. They know none of the who, what, when, where, why or how of anything to do with their current situation.

To get one issue out of the way right off- Yes, this is "cinematic amnesia" as opposed to any kind of real clinical condition. They will still have skills and abilities, and be able to communicate, but they won't know anything else. In fact they won't even know what abilities they have until they start doing things.

My plan at the moment is to give them a mostly blank character sheet that just has a good physical description. My opening scenario doesn't even start them with equipment, or even clothes, to give them any clues what they are. (Though these things will be readily available) They would slowly fill things in on the sheet as they discovered them. Stats would be fairly easy, skills would come when they find that doing 'this' is easy compared to 'that'. Basic class abilities would come when they "instinctively" act a certain way. When attacked the fighter will grab a weapon and notice how natural it feels, the weave of power will automatically form in the sorcerers mind, etc..

This seemed all well and good, in my own head, until I brought up the idea with my players. They immediately asked questions which made my approach of "I know what you are, you just have to figure it out" seem a little heavy-handed. In particular, one player commented that it'd be neat to make up your character as you went along and asked if they would just choose to be whatever they wanted. Now I'm wondering what would be the best way to run this.

On the one hand, there are some valid reasons to the "slowly fill in their character sheet to match mine" approach.
1) Their memories were drained from them. "Filling in the sheet" would simulate the recovery of those lost memories.
2) This way I can ensure they at least have the beginning tools (skills, abilities & classes) they'll need at the start.
However, I can see the validity of the "become what you want to become" approach as well. Since they are, almost literally, a 'clean slate', perhaps the most natural thing is for them to refill that slate with thier own ideas, rather than with what was written before.

And then there's the combined approach. They rediscover the core of what they are (ie- 1st level class abilities) but from 2nd level on it's up to them. I guess this is what I originally planned on anyway. I was certainly not going to railroad them along a pre-determined career path the whole way. Indeed part of the 'cool factor' of this whole idea is how different they will become (or not) to the NPC's they are clean slate copies of, and what the reaction will be if/when they meet "themselves".

So, does anyone have any advice for this kind of adventure? In particular, how would you run the rediscovering of certan class abilities? Fighter types are somewhat easily handled the way I mentioned above- as are spontaneous spellcasters. Both classes would instinctively react a certain way. Rogue characters would also have similar combat reactions, perhaps even instinctive "dirty moves" (sneak attacks) to make it more obvious. But what about outside of combat? It will come off as kinda awkward if the rogue "instinctively" wants to pick locks- or pockets! And then there's non-spontaneous casters. Obviously with amnesia they won't have any spells memorized, so no "surges of power" when a fight breaks out. Having the Wizard find a spellbook whose writings seem "strangely familiar" is easy enough, but I can't very well have the Cleric feel a "natural" urge to pray to a being she has absolutely no knowledge of. Any advice how to handle that one? And I'm sure there are several other areas and potential problems I haven't thought of. Any help, advice or thoughts would be much appreciated.

 

[Ryu]

Well, being a Cleric and all, why can't it simply be explained as their 'God/Goddess giving them a lil' nudge in the right direction'? Or maybe as a series of visions or such, during the downtime between resting at an inn, and waking up? (Treat it as an extremely tiny, solo-adventure thing for them)

 

[Roman]

I have a campaign idea that I've been wanting to run for awhile now that centers on the concept that all the players have effectively complete amnesia. Game-wise they start with the skills and abilities of 1st level characters and are able to speak thier racial language (if any) and common, but that's it. They know none of the who, what, when, where, why or how of anything to do with their current situation.

To get one issue out of the way right off- Yes, this is "cinematic amnesia" as opposed to any kind of real clinical condition. They will still have skills and abilities, and be able to communicate, but they won't know anything else. In fact they won't even know what abilities they have until they start doing things.

My plan at the moment is to give them a mostly blank character sheet that just has a good physical description. My opening scenario doesn't even start them with equipment, or even clothes, to give them any clues what they are. (Though these things will be readily available) They would slowly fill things in on the sheet as they discovered them. Stats would be fairly easy, skills would come when they find that doing 'this' is easy compared to 'that'. Basic class abilities would come when they "instinctively" act a certain way. When attacked the fighter will grab a weapon and notice how natural it feels, the weave of power will automatically form in the sorcerers mind, etc..

This seemed all well and good, in my own head, until I brought up the idea with my players. They immediately asked questions which made my approach of "I know what you are, you just have to figure it out" seem a little heavy-handed. In particular, one player commented that it'd be neat to make up your character as you went along and asked if they would just choose to be whatever they wanted. Now I'm wondering what would be the best way to run this.

On the one hand, there are some valid reasons to the "slowly fill in their character sheet to match mine" approach.
1) Their memories were drained from them. "Filling in the sheet" would simulate the recovery of those lost memories.
2) This way I can ensure they at least have the beginning tools (skills, abilities & classes) they'll need at the start.
However, I can see the validity of the "become what you want to become" approach as well. Since they are, almost literally, a 'clean slate', perhaps the most natural thing is for them to refill that slate with thier own ideas, rather than with what was written before.

And then there's the combined approach. They rediscover the core of what they are (ie- 1st level class abilities) but from 2nd level on it's up to them. I guess this is what I originally planned on anyway. I was certainly not going to railroad them along a pre-determined career path the whole way. Indeed part of the 'cool factor' of this whole idea is how different they will become (or not) to the NPC's they are clean slate copies of, and what the reaction will be if/when they meet "themselves".

I must say I like it. I would enjoy playing that kind of campaign, but I guess it does depend on the player. I would actually probably enjoy it more to rediscover the old abilities whatever they turned out to be than choosing my new ones in this situation. Ultimately, I think a combined approach is best. How about something like this:

1st level - they simply regain memories of their old abilities
2nd level and above - the characters can advance faster in the class they used to be because somewhere in the back of their mind the requisite knowledge already exists, but they can advance in whatever class they want

Or this:

1st level - they simply regain memories of their old abilities
2nd level and above - the characters advance in whatever class they want, but still remember and thus acquire the occassional ability from their old class

Of course, the above two systems can be combined.

Alternatively, you could get 'creative' with their ancestry and decide that they were not human before and as they advance they begin to remember and perhaps regain their heritage.

The possibilities with amnesia are many - I think it would make for a good game. Than again, I do not speak from experience, since I have never actually played in an amnesia game. A pity - it certainly sounds interesting. Someday I am sure someone will run an amnesia game online.

So, does anyone have any advice for this kind of adventure? In particular, how would you run the rediscovering of certan class abilities? Fighter types are somewhat easily handled the way I mentioned above- as are spontaneous spellcasters. Both classes would instinctively react a certain way. Rogue characters would also have similar combat reactions, perhaps even instinctive "dirty moves" (sneak attacks) to make it more obvious. But what about outside of combat? It will come off as kinda awkward if the rogue "instinctively" wants to pick locks- or pockets! And then there's non-spontaneous casters. Obviously with amnesia they won't have any spells memorized, so no "surges of power" when a fight breaks out. Having the Wizard find a spellbook whose writings seem "strangely familiar" is easy enough, but I can't very well have the Cleric feel a "natural" urge to pray to a being she has absolutely no knowledge of. Any advice how to handle that one? And I'm sure there are several other areas and potential problems I haven't thought of. Any help, advice or thoughts would be much appreciated.

Well, with the cleric, you could simply have him/her feel a wave of contentment and satisfaction when he/she sees the relevant holy symbol. All you need to do is to induce the character to pray and it is easy from then on. In fact, I would say cleric is the easiest, because of possiblity of guidance (at the level of and directness of your choosing, of course) from the diety.

 

[J_A_Garlock]

Someday I am sure someone will run an amnesia game online.

You know, that might be a very good way to run this kind of campaign.

 

[shilsen]

I would say a big part of the success of this approach depends on the group. I know for a fact that in my group having me pick their first level for them would not work well for many of them.

As for how they rediscover their powers, since you're pushing the boundaries on the rules anyway, I think it would be perfectly fine to have the cleric suddenly realize that he can cast one or more divine spells. Perhaps the memory comes to him when he finds the requisite holy symbol. As you say, the rogue can be in combat and as someone fortuitously flanks an enemy with him, he realizes that he can strike the distracted enemy more effectively. Out of combat the rogue can suddenly realize that something about that door they came to does not look quite right (spontaneous Search check for traps) or that twitching the handle while sticking a twig in the lock in just that way (Open Lock) may open it.

 

[Roman]

You know, that might be a very good way to run this kind of campaign.

You are probably correct - in fact, an amnesia-type online game could conceivably work better in some respects than a typical online game.

 

[Steverooo]

I have run this adventure, before...

Yep! I ran the very same thing... I even have a version of it (for the 2300AD Sci-Fi RPG) on my web site, in the "Adventures" Section... See "The Mind-Wipe Facility"!

I think you'll find that you HAVE to use pre-generated characters, as otherwise, the GM won't know what the PCs can remember, how many skill points they have, etc. Not even what their saves are... Just pre-gen one of each PC Class, and go from there. The better you know your players and their preferences, the easier that'll be...

Then, ask the players what they want to play, and pass them the character sheets with just "Fighter", "Ranger", "Wizard", etc., on them. You have all the rest of the info handy.

What I did was to start everyone off naked, strapped down to a table, with a needle in their arm, and described what little they could see (you'll need three descriptions, for this: Normal, Low-Light Vision, and Darkvision). After the description is read, I ask what they want to do. From there, everything else is a task.

Most want to get free. I ask them what they do. Breaking the straps is DC:20 STR, one-shot, only. rocking the tables doesn't work, as they're part of the structure. Slipping free is DC:Whatever, DEX, and can be retried.

As PCs try to do various things, "The hands remember what the hands have done, Weedhopper!" They get a Memory Task (let's say DC:20 INT) to recall whatever ability they're using. Success on the Memory Task when trying to break the straps gives them their Strength score and modifier, and success in the MT when trying to slip free reveals DEX.

Once free, PCs will search the room, find little, and start looking for a way out. Some will want to know what they were drugged with... You can make tasks for all these skills. Any ATTEMPTED task (whether successful or not) allows a MT for the skill used.

Once the PCs (or ONE PC) gets out into the hall, they can free the rest, and compare notes. From there, they go looking for answers, and stuff (usually clothed in bed sheets, and unarmed).

In my scenario, opening doors to rooms could lead to other Mind-Wiped NPCs, my 2300 version of a Succubus, or one other conscious NPC of no import. Also on this level was a guard station with two guards, and a storage room where all the PCs' stuff was...

Seeing their gear also allowed the PCs to make MTs. A Ranger with Heal skill could roll to remember upon seeing a Healer's Kit, for example, while a Rogue might remember trapping upon seeing a roll of Snare Wire. Since a lot of NPCs have been Mind-Wiped, down here, there were over 300 boxes of gear, in my game... Plenty of tools also usable as weapons, as well as all the PCs' stuff!

Sooner or later, though, the PCs would either wander into (or be wandered into by) the two guards on this level. These two Warrior types were armed with non-lethal weapons, and would simply lock the PCs back up... Since the PCs outnumbered them, however, as long as they were quiet, the two guards were no problem. Other than that, they could bungle around on this level for as long as they needed to, in order to get equipped, and learn something about their combat abilities...

Once the guards were done for, the PCs remaining conscious could try to open the doors to the shaft leading up (which required tools), then climb a smooth wall, using a corner (which only one PC was likely to be able to do). Then he would have to climb around the elevator car in the shaft, get on top, open the trapdoor, and find a way to get the other PCs up there... Then they could explore level two, encounter more guards, and perhaps learn more about what was going on...

The "Succubus" was my safety valve, as she had a host of powers, and immunity to Toxins, so the Mind-Wipe had had no effect on her. She was also there to hassle any male PCs who were hassling any female PCs, during the first part of the adventure. If the combat was too tough, she could also help out, but otherwise just hung out and followed along, until she could escape. (in 3.xe, don't use a real Succubus... Maybe a Sorceress, instead).

Anyway, even though the version online isn't 3.xe, you can get some ideas from it. Just figure out who's doing what to cause the amnesia, why, leave clues, and then make sure the PCs have the skills required to escape, get the clues, and figure out who did what.

I made the first level of my facility almost impossible to get killed in. By the time the PCs had opened the doors, they would have HAD to recovered their gear, and would be ready for the tougher challenges of level two, where REAL combat could occur. You could do something similar, if you wanted to...

 

[Steverooo]

Someday I am sure someone will run an amnesia game online.

Been there, done that (more than once), wore out the T-shirt, and have seen other people do it, too!

 

[Ryu]

Could lead very nicely into a Resident Evil d20 game... ^_^

 

[Dog Moon]

I like the idea of amnesia and did it in a campaign once, but I didn't have their levels amnesiaed away. People with amnesia can still learn new things. What I think is cool is that while adventuring, I not only learn new things (gain a level, for example), but as we do what we do, we find parts of our past. Maybe they each have a hidden bloodline (like in Unearthed Arcana) and as they level, some powers reveal themselves. That brings up a new issue as to how I have these extra strange abilities. Or maybe they remember things and gain bonuses to skills they've been learning.

I don't know. Just a thought. But the people like to have some modem of control over their characters...