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<blockquote data-quote="Dannyalcatraz" data-source="post: 1683070" data-attributes="member: 19675">Some stuff I have used in the past:1)&nbsp; Like Rel suggested, have the PCs be criminals, but instead of getting them together first, have them start the campaign as inmates.&nbsp; They don't have to be EVIL, but incarcerated in a large institution like the Black Hole of Calcutta or the Bastille- some may be evil, but most are there for petty crimes or political reasons, etc.&nbsp; That lets you do things like exercise extreme control over the campaign, run prison riot scenarios, and so forth.&nbsp; Several adventures down the road, they can win their freedom either via a jailbreak, having served their terms, or by doing a mission for the gov't (like the Dirty Dozen) or a patron who bails them out.&nbsp; Their survival battles armed only with improvised weapons and limited spellcasting resources should be both exciting and unusual, and the party will group together quite nicely.2)&nbsp; Start the campaign on a ship that is attacked by pirates.&nbsp; The last time I tried this, the pirates were interdimensionally based, so much of the susequent campaign has focused on getting home...without a map.&nbsp; Think Michael Moorcock meets Sliders meets Lost In Space.&nbsp; The PCs band together because they must if they wish to survive.3)&nbsp; The &quot;Conan&quot; start-&nbsp; All of the PCs are living in a small village which is attacked by a powerful band of bandits.&nbsp; Each survives the raid, but the village is razed.&nbsp; This not only gives you a different kind of starting point from the typical tavern, it lets you introduce a recurring BBEG to torment the PCs on a regular basis.4)&nbsp; The Caravan- the PCs are all part of a huge caravan headed for a particular destination, either as permanent nomads or temporary travellers along the same path.&nbsp; This form has a lot of benefits.&nbsp; They meet because they are eating at the same campfire when &quot;Event X&quot; happens, or standing in line to recieve their guard pay, or because the Caravan Master needs volunteers to hunt down the bandits who have been striking the rear of the caravan or...&nbsp; If some of your players have trouble making game night due to job shift changes or tough class schedule, those characters are &quot;off looking for water&quot; or &quot;scouting.&quot;&nbsp; Basically, virtually ANY adventure type can be run branching off from a caravan based campaign.&nbsp; The first caravan based campaign I ran, the PCs were guarding a woman who was going to her arranged marriage that would end a war.&nbsp; Unfortunately, someone didn't want the war to end just yet, so attacked the caravan.&nbsp; They took shelter in an abandoned keep, which the opposing force put under siege.&nbsp; The PCs found a secret way out through the Underdark, but encountered undead and other subterranean opponents, as well as an assassin within the members of the caravan.5)&nbsp; The &quot;Close Encounters&quot; start- the PCs are kidnapped by powerful beings (you choose their origins- other dimensions, higher planes, or even other planets), placing them in an artificial environment for education and entertainment.&nbsp; In other words, the PCs are pets in a terrarium.&nbsp; This kind of thing has been used primarily in Sci-Fi, but there's no reason it couldn't happen in a fantasy world.&nbsp; Big advantage- it already has the built in implication of randomness and caprice.&nbsp; &quot;Why is there a Tyrannosaurus in this underground dungeon?&quot;&nbsp; &quot;Because the Overbeings put it here to test us.&quot;&nbsp; Think Star Trek, Close Encounters, and Dark City.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Dannyalcatraz, post: 1683070, member: 19675"] Some stuff I have used in the past: 1) Like Rel suggested, have the PCs be criminals, but instead of getting them together first, have them start the campaign as inmates. They don't have to be EVIL, but incarcerated in a large institution like the Black Hole of Calcutta or the Bastille- some may be evil, but most are there for petty crimes or political reasons, etc. That lets you do things like exercise extreme control over the campaign, run prison riot scenarios, and so forth. Several adventures down the road, they can win their freedom either via a jailbreak, having served their terms, or by doing a mission for the gov't (like the Dirty Dozen) or a patron who bails them out. Their survival battles armed only with improvised weapons and limited spellcasting resources should be both exciting and unusual, and the party will group together quite nicely. 2) Start the campaign on a ship that is attacked by pirates. The last time I tried this, the pirates were interdimensionally based, so much of the susequent campaign has focused on getting home...without a map. Think Michael Moorcock meets Sliders meets Lost In Space. The PCs band together because they must if they wish to survive. 3) The "Conan" start- All of the PCs are living in a small village which is attacked by a powerful band of bandits. Each survives the raid, but the village is razed. This not only gives you a different kind of starting point from the typical tavern, it lets you introduce a recurring BBEG to torment the PCs on a regular basis. 4) The Caravan- the PCs are all part of a huge caravan headed for a particular destination, either as permanent nomads or temporary travellers along the same path. This form has a lot of benefits. They meet because they are eating at the same campfire when "Event X" happens, or standing in line to recieve their guard pay, or because the Caravan Master needs volunteers to hunt down the bandits who have been striking the rear of the caravan or... If some of your players have trouble making game night due to job shift changes or tough class schedule, those characters are "off looking for water" or "scouting." Basically, virtually ANY adventure type can be run branching off from a caravan based campaign. The first caravan based campaign I ran, the PCs were guarding a woman who was going to her arranged marriage that would end a war. Unfortunately, someone didn't want the war to end just yet, so attacked the caravan. They took shelter in an abandoned keep, which the opposing force put under siege. The PCs found a secret way out through the Underdark, but encountered undead and other subterranean opponents, as well as an assassin within the members of the caravan. 5) The "Close Encounters" start- the PCs are kidnapped by powerful beings (you choose their origins- other dimensions, higher planes, or even other planets), placing them in an artificial environment for education and entertainment. In other words, the PCs are pets in a terrarium. This kind of thing has been used primarily in Sci-Fi, but there's no reason it couldn't happen in a fantasy world. Big advantage- it already has the built in implication of randomness and caprice. "Why is there a Tyrannosaurus in this underground dungeon?" "Because the Overbeings put it here to test us." Think Star Trek, Close Encounters, and Dark City. [/QUOTE]

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