"If this problem is so bad, why aren't YOU doing it, NPC?"

[Saeviomagy]

I thought the reason that Gandalf couldn't get directly involved was because it wasn't written into the song, and if he defied the song, he'd lose his immortality. He had to do things the right way, or he'd wind up dead like Sauron and Saruman both did.

 

[Nifft]

The PCs have been used as scouts in some of my games: the big, strong NPC can sure solve the problem, but the problem is hiding, and the big NPC only has a few clues, and time is short, etc. So the PCs are among the scouts that get sent out.

If they solve the problem themselves? Great! Less work for big NPC.
If they merely locate the problem? Great! Call in a big NPC airstrike.

Locating the enemy's HQ and escaping with their lives is plenty tough.

Cheers, -- N

 

[Lord Xtheth]

Well, I think its because all the higher level NPCs are bound to their place in the world, completely unable to move or even so much as talk unless you poke them. They get you to poke them by activating the only power they have...

!

Now, go kill 10 wolves...

 

[Psion]

While writing an adventure, one detail I normally gloss over or flat-out ignore is why higher level NPCs don't join the epic struggle that the PCs are involved in. For kick down the door style of play it's less of a problem, but the question still stands as to why higher level adventurers haven't already scoured the place for every last monster and every bit of treasure.

One wonders what your day job is like.

I don't know what yours is like, but in my job, even if I do a fantastic job and achieve my goals, there is always more to be done.

I don't suppose that any world worth adventuring in would be any more ideal in this way.

 

[green slime]

No one has even mentioned the fact, that the "good" NPC's probably do not have exactly the same agenda as the PCs anyway. This means, they (the MPCs) will be trying to impose their own world view, politics, solutions, to the problem, which may (but most likely not) be similarly aligned to the PC's needs, wants, desires, and goals.

Even good people can have conflict of interest, and disagree on how to best resolve a situation.

Obviously, demonic hordes are pretty evil and need to be put down. How about human hordes (so called "civilisation") encroaching on the habitat of the fey and elves of the forests and wilderness areas? When certain elements of the fey/elves start to retaliate by destroying crops, thieving livestock, etc.

 

[Quantarum]

As one of the most powerful NPCs in my old campaign said when the players asked for his direct help: "I can't scratch my ass without it sending shock waves from here to the far corners of the world." Power having a price was one of the key themes of the campaign and I tried to make it clear that there were vast struggles going on just beyond the senses of the common folk.
I managed to illustrate this with a special encounter, when the party was around 13th level they encountered a group of 4th and 5th level adventures in danger of being crushed by a more powerful group of foes. The player vanquished the monsters with ease and raised the partie's cleric from the dead, leading to the NPC leader begging them for assistance in their quest, something they had no time for. "These guys will never get over being so pathetic if we follow them around carrying their diaper bags." one player commented. They ended up sending the NPC party on it's way with some spare magic items. I think the whole experiance gave them a view of the sort of problems their patrons and masters had to deal with. -Q.

 

[LostSoul]

There is another solution:

Make the campaign goals personal.

I want to find and kill the six-fingered man.
I want to rule my own kingdom.
I want to leave my icy home behind and head to civilization.
I want to break into the Tower of the Elephant.

 

[Theo R Cwithin]

I managed to illustrate this with a special encounter, when the party was around 13th level they encountered a group of 4th and 5th level adventures in danger of being crushed by a more powerful group of foes. The player vanquished the monsters with ease and raised the partie's cleric from the dead, leading to the NPC leader begging them for assistance in their quest, something they had no time for. "These guys will never get over being so pathetic if we follow them around carrying their diaper bags." one player commented. They ended up sending the NPC party on it's way with some spare magic items. I think the whole experiance gave them a view of the sort of problems their patrons and masters had to deal with. -Q.

Pure awesome

 

[pawsplay]

The PCs have been used as scouts in some of my games: the big, strong NPC can sure solve the problem, but the problem is hiding, and the big NPC only has a few clues, and time is short, etc. So the PCs are among the scouts that get sent out.

If they solve the problem themselves? Great! Less work for big NPC.
If they merely locate the problem? Great! Call in a big NPC airstrike.

Locating the enemy's HQ and escaping with their lives is plenty tough.

Cheers, -- N

That's so true. "Hm, that last batch of adventurers perished horribly, so the dragon must be in that area. Let's hire 200 archers, then take the royal scouts and the court wizard's apprentcie with some scrolls of protection from acid and flush that rascal out. Too bad about the paladin and bard, they seemed like such nice fellows."

 

[Janx]

I haven't seen it mentioned here in quite this way, so I'll give yet another reason.

If you leave your leadership position for too long, to go on a quest, you create a vacuum. Your internal and external rivals will take advantage of it. Things will collapse because you aren't there to manage it. Or things won't collapse (a sign of choosing good underlings) which only indicates that YOU aren't needed.

this is yet another reason why managers avoid taking LONG vacations. If you're gone too long, the organization will prove it can survive without you AND somebody else will step up to take your place.

So there is already a reluctance for a leader (high level NPC) to get into long quests that aren't directly within their domain. Giving the PCs some assistance makes you lookk good, but doesn't put you at risk.

Add to that resource constraints. if the town sheriff takes all his men to root out a goblin cave, the town is left unsecured. Whereas, he can convince the adventurers to do it, AND he can claim success at helping that effort AND securing the town.

Couple in the fact that at each budget meeting, he's trying to get more money and men. If he just does the quest AND nothing bad happens in town, he's blown his justification. If something bad did happen, he's fired for not doing his job. His safest bet is to encourage adventurers to do it and then use the argument of "if these adventurers hadn't stepped in, we'd still be threatened by that goblin cave"

Its not about evil politics even. A good leader has these same issues in a good environment. If he isn't careful, he will lose his position, and not be able to solve the problems he's been hired to solve. It's a catch-22.

The real point is, a NPC leader is hired to do a job. Solving problems for the PCs may NOT be in his domain of work.

As for problems that ARE in his job description, you'll have to work with reasons that justify him needing the PCs help. if the PCs discover a murder victim and they take it to the NPC murder investigation unit, if you want the PCs involved, you need to make the unit NEED the PCs help. The reason will likely be custom to your campaign and situation.