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Message: <blockquote data-quote="mmadsen" data-source="post: 141573" data-attributes="member: 1645">A fifth <a href="http://www.roleplayingtips.com/issue75.html" target="_blank">Plot Twist Tip</a>:Meta-Game twist: Switch Genres On The PCsBryan S. and David H. wrote in with this tip, and although it isn't suited for many groups and it technically isn't a plot twist, I thought you might find the concept interesting or inspiring. You might want to consider using this tip for a one-shot game, or for when some players don't show up and you need an alternate plan for the evening. What you do is start the session and have the players believe they are playing one kind of game, then have them find out later on that they're playing another one entirely. For example, a few years ago I started a new campaign by supplying the players with pre-made D&D characters. We played for a few hours until things became very dangerous for the PCs--it looked like they were dead for sure. Suddenly the PCs found themselves in a spaceship straight out of an H.R. Giger painting. I switched the players' D&D character sheets with some Cyberspace (Cyberpunk done I.C.E. style) character sheets. It turned out that the PCs were testing a top secret VR project on a space station. I won't bore you with the details, but the whole scene worked extremely well. In an upcoming campaign (I hope my players don't read this!) I plan on starting the PCs out in a modern campaign as FBI agents investigating some illegal mob activities. However, as the story unfolds things get more sinister and soon they're hot on the trail of an Old One--an ancient demonic horror. I'll be switching from modern day espionage to Delta Green (akin to the X-Files TV show), a Call of Cthulhu campaign. I think it would be extremely rewarding to play in a campaign where the whole rug of reality gets pulled out from under your feet--much more effective than if you knew from the start you were playing an esoteric game vs. a true modern day one. A couple of notes on this topic: <ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Universal game systems (GURPS, FUDGE, d20, Metaverse) are best because you can switch genres almost seamlessly (and not give away your plans). </li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Create custom character sheets. In my upcoming Delta Green campaign example, I will be creating generic character sheets that don't say "Delta Green" in large, block letters at the top. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /> </li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Make sure your players won't mind the switch. Some people are 100% loyal to a specific genre, and others have strong, negative feelings against certain types of genres.</li> </ul></blockquote>

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