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<blockquote data-quote="Enkhidu" data-source="post: 3051691" data-attributes="member: 351">Problems as I see it:1) Lack of party leadership. If your players are discussing the pros and cons of certain actions for hours and still not coming to a consensus, they have too many chiefs. Convoluted plots can require a &quot;tie breaker&quot; when the party is split on available choices, and that either means an outside force or an inside decision maker. You can nudge your players in this direction if they are willing by simply having NPCs begin treating one member of the party (usually the high CHA PC) as party leader.2) Lack of clear focus. This doesn't seem to be a problem for you in the big picture dept - you've got a BEBG that's &quot;known,&quot; and from the sound of things the PCs are already headed for a showdown with him. However, your sidetreks have some very personal connotations, and that may be playing havoc with the party. &quot;I need to find my sister,&quot; &quot;No I need to find my Dad,&quot; But my ex is now working for the badguy!&quot; All of these are &quot;must do it now&quot; missions. What could help is to place one of these PCs in more serious danger by upping the ante (perhaps the father is going to be executed instead of just imprisoned). This gives the PCs a more clear cut decision when it comes time to decide where to go next.3) Players/PC that don't &quot;get&quot; how much of a bad mofo a BEBG is can be a problem. You can handle this in a few ways:- The BEBG's lieutenant comes calling - a henchman comes to deliver a very violent message, or attempts to remove the PC thorn from the BEBG's side- The simulacrum - a play on the above, but the BEBG sends a simulacrum of himself. That should give the PC's pause, especially if the fight is very, very tough. It can provide and &quot;OMG he's easily twice as powerful as that&quot; moment.- Shake the pillars of heaven - Maybe the BEBG's evil plot has visible and far reaching effects (like,to draw on Krynn's literature, constellations turn up missing) that give the &quot;OMG I didn;t think he was that close to finishing!&quot; moment.As for new elements, assuming that they're more side-trek style plots I'd introduce them after tying up enough loose ends that the game is running more smoothly. Then reintroduce them to muddy the waters a bit.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Enkhidu, post: 3051691, member: 351"] Problems as I see it: 1) Lack of party leadership. If your players are discussing the pros and cons of certain actions for hours and still not coming to a consensus, they have too many chiefs. Convoluted plots can require a "tie breaker" when the party is split on available choices, and that either means an outside force or an inside decision maker. You can nudge your players in this direction if they are willing by simply having NPCs begin treating one member of the party (usually the high CHA PC) as party leader. 2) Lack of clear focus. This doesn't seem to be a problem for you in the big picture dept - you've got a BEBG that's "known," and from the sound of things the PCs are already headed for a showdown with him. However, your sidetreks have some very personal connotations, and that may be playing havoc with the party. "I need to find my sister," "No I need to find my Dad," But my ex is now working for the badguy!" All of these are "must do it now" missions. What could help is to place one of these PCs in more serious danger by upping the ante (perhaps the father is going to be executed instead of just imprisoned). This gives the PCs a more clear cut decision when it comes time to decide where to go next. 3) Players/PC that don't "get" how much of a bad mofo a BEBG is can be a problem. You can handle this in a few ways: - The BEBG's lieutenant comes calling - a henchman comes to deliver a very violent message, or attempts to remove the PC thorn from the BEBG's side - The simulacrum - a play on the above, but the BEBG sends a simulacrum of himself. That should give the PC's pause, especially if the fight is very, very tough. It can provide and "OMG he's easily twice as powerful as that" moment. - Shake the pillars of heaven - Maybe the BEBG's evil plot has visible and far reaching effects (like,to draw on Krynn's literature, constellations turn up missing) that give the "OMG I didn;t think he was that close to finishing!" moment. As for new elements, assuming that they're more side-trek style plots I'd introduce them after tying up enough loose ends that the game is running more smoothly. Then reintroduce them to muddy the waters a bit. [/QUOTE]

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