Another Night At The Movies.....

[-SIN-]

Hi, I'm thinking of starting another game, this one with a slight twist...

It's Friday. The weekend has officially begun, and like any other Friday, tonight is the night for socialising, and with a group of friends, decided to go and catch that new flick showin' on the big screen. Arriving shortly before eleven you purchase your tickets, then decide to head over to the bar next door to kill sometime...

Finally you join the queue, hand over your ticket, retrieve your 'stump', then proceed to make your way to the screen. The lights dim, the film starts rolling and all seems normal. Several minutes later however, strange things start to happen...

I'm proposing a D20 modern game with a difference. You will play yourselves, going on a mundane trip down to the cinema, with a group of friends: aka - the other PC's. Throughout the movie, there's a disturbance in one of the other screens. Upon investigation you find youselves dumbstruck - Russel Crowe, decked out in all his gladiator glory stands atop the stage on which the screen sits, "Are you not entertained?" He bellows with arms outstretched; Thick gore dripping off his bloody sword. "Is this not why you are here?" he challenges the freshly massacred audience, all the while the onscreen audience continues chanting "Spainard, Spainard, Spainard". It's then that he turn's his attention to you...

This is just the beginning. It's a 14 screen cinema complex, bar, bowling ally & arcade - and everything's going crazy! Can you survive the night at the cinema complex, battling anything from Godzilla to Darth Vader? Will you form an alliance with 'the fellowship of the ring', or will you be the next victim of the Texas Chainsaw Massacrer!?....

There's only one way to find out...

FEEDBACK PLEASE!

 

[Lord_Raven88]

Wow, this sounds like serious fun.

Believe it or not I think it could be quite differcult to play myself.

 

[Mista Collins]

I think it would be difficult to play myself also , but with 6 years of experience working at a movie theater, I would love to play a game like this.

 

[-SIN-]

Well, considering that we don't actually know eachother, playing 'you' would be pretty pointless, so let's scrap it. We'll just stick to making 'norms' - average peeps, 25 point buy, and an obvious ban on certain occupations - Military being one of them. I want THE most average people - store clerks, technicians, students etc. BUT bare in mind that you need to know eachother well enough to go to the cinema together.

 

[DrZombie]

count me in

 

[DrZombie]

very messy charsheet

[sblock]
John Verfailles
Human Male Fast Hero 1

Representing DrZombie


Strength 12 (+1)
Dexterity 14 (+2)
Constitution 12 (+1)
Intelligence 14 (+2)
Wisdom 11 (+0)
Charisma 10 (+0)
Size: Medium
Height: 6' 4"
Weight: 195 lb
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Blond
Skin: Pale

Talents:


Increased Speed


Total Hit Points: 9

Speed: 35 feet

Armor Class: 16 = 10 +1 [leather jacket] + 3 [class] +2 [dexterity]

Touch AC: 15
Flat-footed: 14
Initiative modifier: +2 = +2 [dexterity]
Fortitude save: +1 = 0 [base] +1 [constitution]
Reflex save: +3 = 1 [base] +2 [dexterity]
Will save: +0 = 0 [base]
Attack (handheld): +1 = 0 [base] +1 [strength]
Attack (missile): +2 = 0 [base] +2 [dexterity]
Grapple check: +1 = 0 [base] +1 [strength]
Reputation: +0 = 0 [base]



Action points: 5 (lifetime)


Light load:
Medium load:
Heavy load:
Lift over head:
Lift off ground:
Push or drag:
43 lb. or less
44-86 lb.
87-130 lb.
130 lb.
260 lb.
650 lb.



Leather jacket [light; +1 AC; max dex +8; check penalty 0; 4 lb.]


Student (starting occupation)


Computer Use
Knowledge (history)
Research


Feats:
Archaic Weapons Proficiency
Dodge
Simple Weapon Proficiency [free]

Mutations:


Skill Name Key
Ability Skill
Modifier Ability
Modifier Ranks Misc.
Modifier
Balance Dex* 4 = +2 +2
Bluff Cha 0 = +0
Climb Str* 1 = +1
Computer Use Int 6 = +2 +4
Concentration Con 1 = +1
Craft (Structural) Int 2 = +2
Craft (Visual Art) Int 2 = +2
Craft (Writing) Int 2 = +2
Diplomacy Cha 0 = +0
Disguise Cha 0 = +0
Drive Dex* 4 = +2 +2
Escape Artist Dex* 2 = +2
Forgery Int 2 = +2
Gamble Wis 0 = +0
Gather Information Cha 0 = +0
Hide Dex* 4 = +2 +2
Intimidate Cha 0 = +0
Jump Str* 3 = +1 +2 [speed 35]
Knowledge (history) Int 4 = +2 +2
Knowledge (popular culture) Int 4 = +2 +2
Knowledge (streetwise) Int 4 = +2 +2
Listen Wis 0 = +0
Move Silently Dex* 4 = +2 +2
Navigate Int 2 = +2
Perform (Act) Cha 0 = +0
Perform (Dance) Cha 0 = +0
Perform (Keyboards) Cha 0 = +0
Perform (Percussion) Cha 0 = +0
Perform (Sing) Cha 0 = +0
Perform (Standup) Cha 0 = +0
Perform (String Inst.) Cha 0 = +0
Perform (Wind Inst.) Cha 0 = +0
Research Int 4 = +2 +2
Ride Dex 2 = +2
Search Int 2 = +2
Sense Motive Wis 0 = +0
Sleight of Hand Dex* 4 = +2 +2
Spot Wis 0 = +0
Survival Wis 0 = +0
Swim Str** 1 = +1
Treat Injury Wis 0 = +0
Tumble Dex* 4 = +2 +2


* = check penalty for wearing armor

This character also has 2 ranks in Speak Languages.
This character also has 2 ranks in Read/Write Languages.



Human


Extra feat at first level (already included)
Four extra skill points at first level (already included)
One extra skill point at each additional level (already included)


Class HP rolled
Level 1: Fast Hero 8



John Verfailles's Equipment:




John Verfailles's Languages:
English, French, Italian
[/sblock]


John is a fairly popular uni student, fascinated by all things ancient. He's a history student, and competes for the university fencing team. He loves to travel, and speaks and reads French and Italian. He's inbetween girlfriends at the moment, and relishes the time he can now spend with his friends,

 

[Insight]

This sounds awesome! Count me in!

Concept: Milton Griggs is a construction worker by day, spoken word performer by night. Despite his outward appearance, Griggs is well-read and educated, but became disillusioned by the academic system and is currently attending the "school of hard knocks".

[sblock=Milton Griggs]
MILTON GRIGGS
Tough Hero 1 (Occ: Academic)

ABILITY SCORES
STR 14 (+2) (6pts)
DEX 10 (0) (2pts)
CON 14 (+2) (6pts)
INT 12 (+1) (4pts)
WIS 13 (+1) (5pts)
CHA 10 (+0) (2pts)

BAB: +0
Def: +1
HP: 12
Fort: +3
Ref: +0
Will]: +1
Action Pts: 5
Wealth - Base 7 Wealth (2d4+3=6), +1 from Profession
Wealth: - Current 5
Rep: +0

Academic Occupation gives the following: Wealth Bonus +3 and the following as permanent Class Skills: Craft (writing), Knowledge (pop culture) (+1), and Knowledge (theology & philosophy).

SKILLS
Skill Points = 16.
Climb (1) +3, Craft (structural) (2) +3, Craft (writing) (4) +7, Drive (1) +1, Knowledge (pop culture) (4) +6, Knowledge (theology & philosophy) (2) +3, Perform (sing) (0) +2, Profession (construction worker) (2) +3.

FEATS
Brawl (Level 1)
Creative (Level 1): +2 to Craft (writing) and Perform (sing)
Simple Weapons Proficiency (Tough Hero 1)

TALENTS
Second Wind (Tough Hero 1)

GEAR
Daypack (PDC 5), Tool Belt (PDC 9), Bolt Cutter (PDC 6), Duct Tape (PDC 3), Guitar (PDC 13), Battery Flood Flashlight (PDC 6), Penlight (PDC 3), 105ft Rope (PDC 5), Survival Knife (PDC 7), Baseball Bat (PDC 4).
Wealth Bonus Reductions: Base 7, -1 for Guitar, -1 for Tool Belt, Current 5.
[/sblock]

Ties to Other Characters: Milton probably went to school with John (DrZombie), so they could be friends.

 

[-SIN-]

So far we've got:

Lord Raven88
Mista Collins
Dr Zombie
Insight
(Possibly) Caidian

Character creation guidelines:

Campaign: Another Night At The Movies
Source Books: D20 Modern Core
Ability Scores: 25 point-buy
Setting: Modern (present)
Starting Level: 1st
HP: Max HP at first
Alignment: Any
Occupations: Any 'Mundane'
Wealth: Normal
Equipment: Any 'Mundane' - Remember, you're going out to the Cinema for the evening, so shotguns should be left at home!

If you have any particular requests - movie wise - list them as well and I'll see about working them in/statting them.

Don't worry too much about equipment. EVERYTHING you list will be hidden within the Cinema somewhere...

Mista Collins:
[sblock] Any chance you could fill me in with a few facts on Cinema? Preferably stuff like No. of seats per screen, and what 'back office' areas exist in a cinema. I don't want to drop in a 'film storeroom' only to be told there's no such thing, by someone who's worked in one for 6 years! lol Thanks [/sblock]

Doc Zombie:
[sblock]John looks good (in between girlfriends, eh.... Lucky guy!....) Can't see anything wrong with him. Apart from using the pathguy character gen - you're right, it's bloody messy!! lol. Just need your equipment.[/sblock]

Insight:
[sblock]Looks great. Consider yourself good to go, unless you've any changes you wish to make.[/sblock]

 

[Mista Collins]

[sblock=SIN]Well, the cinema you described will be larger than the one I worked at. By the sounds of it, you are probably looking at a 20+ screen cinema.

Number of Seats per Screen - varies per screen. Each theater will have auditoriums that have a smaller amount of seats (for movies late in their runs) and some with larger amounts of seats (for opening releases and/or big blockbusters). The smallest I've seen in a theater the size you are probably looking at is 140-160 seats. At the most you are probably looking at 500 seats per screen. The average is around 250-300.

Back Office - I haven't been in the back of a movie theater that has had more than 12 screens, but I can tell you a few things I am sure that are uniform among most, if not all cinemas. In the immediate back you will general find a few doors. One or two leading into a concession stand (or more if there are multiple concession stands). One door into the manager's office (which sometimes has a door into the lobby). The back room will have your soda fountain machine, along with the extra tanks of Carbon Dioxide and syrup. You will have your bags of popcorn seed not too far from the concession door. There will be sinks for sanitary purposes (along for washing concession stand dishes like the butter dispensers and popcorn scoops). Add in a few ice machines so that employees can fill up the ice bins in the concession stand. The ushers will keep brooms, mops, and other cleaning supplies back here also. In the backroom, there will be a set of stairs leading up to the projection room.

Projection Room - Depending on how the theater is laid out, the lay out of this room will vary. But in general is usually one giant open room (or a U-shaped room). You will have one projector for each screen. Nowadays most theaters are switching to digital projectors and you aren't seeing as many projectors using film. In the projection room of every theater I've worked at (all for the same company), you will find storage closets. This is where they will keep any holiday promotion/decoration stuff. They will store movie posters for upcoming films in these closets. And there will probably be one or two closets dedicated for concession stock (big boxes of candy, boxes or cups and popcorn buckets/bags). In the actual room are the projectors obviously, random tools for fixing the projectors and or maintenance at the theater.

Film Storage -Film is usually not kept on location at the theater. The only film you will find at a theater is the film for the movies they are currently playing. Here is how the process for the company I was employed with. On Thursday afternoons (on occasion Wednesday nights), the film for new releases would be delivered in large metal can(s) that had individual reels in them. It would be the projectionists duty to take these reels and splice them together into one giant reel on a platter near the projector. Thursday night, the projectionist would also be responsible for taking down any movies that will no longer be playing. He would put it back in the proper metal film can(s) and they would be picked up one the next drop off of new releases occur. We usually left these near the projectionists desk until then. So you wouldn't see much film stored at the theater.

Links for some Info
Wikipedia - Movie Prjector So you know what most projectors look like. The single reel system (tower) is probably the most commonly used today.

Wikipedia - Movie Theater Just a good spot for info on the history of theaters and some facts.

Film Can - Ebay Just wanted you to get an understanding of what I mean by Film Can.

[sblock=SIN (again)]Feel free to use this info however you like. Create the theater how you want it. If it doesn't make sense to me, I won't say anything. I'm not that nit picky [/sblock][/sblock]

 

[Lord_Raven88]

Here is my Smart hero for this game.

[sblock=Zavier Masters]
Zavier Masters (aka 'Z', Macgyver, Mac, or Tech)
Smart Hero 1 (Occ: Entrepreneur)

ABILITY SCORES
STR 10 (+0) (2pts)
DEX 12 (+1) (4pts)
CON 12 (+1) (4pts)
INT 16 (+1) (8pts)
WIS 10 (+0) (2pts)
CHA 11 (+0) (3pts)

BAB: +0
Def: +0
HP: 7
Fort: +1
Ref: +1
Will]: +1
Action Pts: 5
Wealth - Base 10 Wealth (2d4+4=9), +1 from Profession
Wealth: - Current 8
Rep: +2

Entrepreneur Occupation gives the following: Wealth Bonus +4 and the following as permanent Class Skills: Knowledge(Business) and Knowledge(Technology).

SKILLS
Skill Points = 48.
Computer Use (4) +10, Craft[Chemical] (4) +9, Craft[Electronic] (4) +9, Craft[Mechanical] (4) +7, Demolitions (4) +7, Disable Device (4) +7, Knowledge[Business] (4) +8, Knowledge[Current Events] (1) +4, Knowledge[Earth & Life Sciences] (2) +5, Knowledge[Physical Sciences] (2) +5, Knowledge[Pop culture] (1) +4, Knowledge[Technology] (4) +8, Profession (4) +4, Repair (4) +9, Research (2) +5.

FEATS
Builder(+2 on Craft[Chemical] & Craft[Electronics] checks)
Gearhead (+2 bonus on Computer Use and Repair checks)
Simple Weapons Proficiency (Smart Hero 1)

TALENTS
Savant: Computer Use

GEAR
Casual Clothing (PDC 8) 2lb, Coat (PDC 8) 2lb, Cell Phone (PDC 9), Day Pack (PDC 5) 2lb, Digital Camera (PDC 14) 0.5lb, Multipurpose Tool (PDC 9) 0.5lb, Modem(Wireless Broadband) 1lb, Notebook (PDC 23) 5lb, Penlight (PDC 3) 0.5lb
Weight: 13.5lb
Wealth Bonus Reductions: Base 10, -1 for Notebook, -1 for Digital Camer, Current 8.

BACKGROUND
I imagine Zavier to be either in his late teens or early twenties. He finished college/university early and then proceeded to setup his company Zavier Industries which is currently working out of his parents basement.

Zavier is a big tech head (obviously) and has designed and patented numerous handy gadgets as well as some cutting edge software applications. His business is doing well enough that he could afford his own place and workshop, but Zavier prefers to stay with his parents for the time being.

Zavier doesn't get out much but has managed to keep in touch with his high school buddies despite finishing well ahead of them.
[/sblock]

Ties to Other Characters: Zavier probably went to school with the others, so they could be friends.[/QUOTE]