How many NPCs can players keep track of at a time?

[RangerWickett]

Imagine you run a game where the PCs have to interact with the UN. How would you present the 100+ diplomats to a group of players?

 

[Stormonu]

In small batches of 2-3 individuals at a time - 5 at the uppermost if your willing to let some of the NPCs be minions or sycophants to more important/powerful NPCs; preferably in groups where the NPCs are vastly different. For example, the PCs might be dragged into an argument between an arrogant blueblood noble and a self-made merchant lord. By highlighting the contrasts between the two, it becomes easier to remember the NPCs - if they're all kind of the same, they get muddled together.

I think Game of Thrones is an excellent model for showing how a fairly large number of distinct NPCs can introduced and managed, allowing the viewers time to acclimate themselves before tossing in new NPCs.

 

[billd91]

I think you'd have to provide a motivation for the players to interact with distinct diplomats, perhaps they need to build some kind of coalition to achieve some important goal, but I have a hard time imagining you'd be able to do it with all of the 100+ diplomats. Maybe 20-30 or so. After that, they'd be having a hard time keeping them straight. I'd definitely hand out some kind of player aid to facilitate the players keeping all of that straight. At the very least, a list of the diplomats, whom they represent, and some other personal information would be necessary. And as GM, I'd expect to have to do that myself because I want the players to be able to keep track of them in a meaningful way and even then I'd probably expect at least 25% of the table to gloss over most of it and let the interested individual players take the lead.

 

[LostSoul]

Cut it down to the Security Council and any other topically important members/outsiders - Arafat comes to mind.

 

[Gilladian]

Any more than 3 in front of them at a time is going to be a blur. And anything above about 7 that they have to track and remember as individuals is a lost cause, in my experience.

 

[Nytmare]

I've always found that flash cards with a picture and name, with notes on the back, were the easiest way to help my players keep track of a bunch of new NPCs.

 

[billd91]

I've always found that flash cards with a picture and name, with notes on the back, were the easiest way to help my players keep track of a bunch of new NPCs.

I did that for a Call of Cthulhu game. It helps that some of the CoC stuff have little pictures of many of the NPCs suitable for index carding.

 

[frankthedm]

How would you present the 100+ diplomats to a group of players?

Certainly not by having them fit in a AoE spell.

 

[delericho]

How many NPCs can players keep track of at a time?

Seven active ones, plus or minus two. About a dozen in a full session. And about 30 in a campaign.

And that's assuming those characters are reasonably well differentiated. When they're essentially "guy with black hair and beard", as with, say, Jon Snow, Robb Stark, and Theon Greyjoy, you're in trouble.

 

[JamesonCourage]

In my 3.5 games years ago, I easily had around 50 regular NPCs that the players were very familiar with, and I had over 100 total that were doing stuff and that the players recognized either somewhat or with a tiny reminder. This wasn't counting a lot of other minor characters along the way (inn stays, etc.). I also ran a council of 10 people (9 NPCs, 1 PC) fairly easily at times, with each one speaking up during multiple conversations. The players had no problem following what was going on.

It just depends on your group, honestly. Some groups might want to deal with only 2-3 at a time, and others can handle a lot more. I'd just make an educated guess, and go with that.