If you were going to build a Studio Ghibli/Zelda-flavored campaign, what elements would you include?

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Yes, it seems like every day there's another one of these coming to Kickstarter, but if you were going to start said campaign before September, and thus couldn't wait on any of the campaigns to be fulfilled, how would you do it?

What elements would make a roleplaying game feel like Zelda or Studio Ghibli? A lot of it is about tone, obviously, but when adding/subtracting things from a typical fantasy game, how would you get it closer to what fans of the two franchises (I know, not the exact right noun here) would be looking for?

(I may have just volunteered to run a campaign for a bunch of coworkers. It's probably 5E, but maybe not, hence this being in TTRPG General.)

 

[Parmandur]

Yes, it seems like every day there's another one of these coming to Kickstarter, but if you were going to start said campaign before September, and thus couldn't wait on any of the campaigns to be fulfilled, how would you do it?

What elements would make a roleplaying game feel like Zelda or Studio Ghibli? A lot of it is about tone, obviously, but when adding/subtracting things from a typical fantasy game, how would you get it closer to what fans of the two franchises (I know, not the exact right noun here) would be looking for?

(I may have just volunteered to run a campaign for a bunch of coworkers. It's probably 5E, but maybe not, hence this being in TTRPG General.)

First thought, I'd start with B1 Into the Unknown and emphasize the quirky stuff like the mushroom chamber, throw in some puzzles, create a base town with quirky NPCs. Goodman Games B1/B2 combo might be good for this, really, creates a little sandbox region with points of interest and Dungeons.

 

[Parmandur]

Also, thinking about this made me realize that I have no experience with D&D that isn't informed by Zelda and Ghibli...

 

[Undrave]

Hmm…

I’d see such a campaign as being about wide open spaces. This is a campaign about crossing a large and wild world, with only the occasional dungeoneering. It’s not about city and very little night time action. When you go into a village, the place must feel cozy and lived in, with warm houses with lots of knick knacks with few but memorable characters. I think a Mystical Forest inhabited by tiny little magical guys is a must, as well as some subtle environmentalist themes.

If we’re talking Ghibli then FOOD is important. Good food with good friends, with salivating descriptions to make up for the lack of visuals.

If we’re talking Zelda then set collection is important. Your heroes must have a clear goal of collecting a set of Important Things. They can come in sets of 3, 4 or 8.

Unique monsters are important. Gotta give them a little twist, even if it’s just the visuals. Give them weaknesses that can be exploited, and big bosses who need to be made vulnerable before you can inflict extra damage to them is a must.

Magic should be a thing you pick up (or learn) along the way and not an inherent part of your character. Nobody’s a full-on Wizard, even if they might know a spell or two or own magic items.

Shinto influences would be good, but I think any Animist tradition would be good to mine for ideas.

 

[Undrave]

Another theme I just thought of is the celebration of the mundane way we interact with nature. That is to say, the way we pluck food from our garden, the way we catch bugs or go fishing with our little tools, or the way you can take a bindle and go picnic on a grassy hill…



Think of the mundane items that Zelda often involve, like how empty bottles are so rare and precious, or how many of those games have a fishing minigames, or how BOTW Link cooks mushrooms and other wild food. Or how Link’s Awakening has a SHOVEL as a key item. Think of the mundane equipment your players might encounter and collect and think up some clever ways they could use them in their travels.

 

[Jolly Ruby]

I said it elsewhere, but I think B2 and Mononoke Hime have both a very similar "setup". Maybe you can use it as a basis.

Also, a important choice you have to make between "Ghibli" and "Zelda" is that while in Zelda games monsters are simply goofy or scary beings that usually are just living obstacles, in Ghibli movies every "monster" is a being with personality and goals and even most evil characters deserve empathy (Eboshi, Yubaba, the Witch of the Waste etc).

This article can help you too:

On romantic fantasy and OSR D&D

When most people think of the older editions of D&D, 'romantic fantasy' is not the first genre that comes to mind. OSR D&D tends to get used...

udan-adan.blogspot.com

 

[Deset Gled]

What elements would make a roleplaying game feel like Zelda or Studio Ghibli?

I don't know if I'm out of touch or what, but it took me a minute here to realize you were talking about Breath of the Wild and Princess Mononoke. Obviously, those two have a lot of similarities (and yes, there's other things to mention about other games and movies, but surely those are the closest two). But that's not the first Zelda game or Ghibli movie I think of when you mention those franchises.

When I think Zelda, I go to NES and SNES first. And the gameplay leads directly to old school D&D. For me, that will be Red Box era. Lots of attention on resource management (e.g. healing, arrows, etc) and a heavy focus on dungeon delving with traps, puzzles, and boss monsters. Definitely low magic, with limited spell selection and only specific magic items available to the players. And death. Lots and lots of death.

When I think Miyazaki, I picture a much more friendly and low-risk setting, probably on the rules-light side. I think of movies like Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Ponyo. Spirited Away would be the high magic end, and Laputa is basically magi-tech. But all of those, even Lupin III, have practically no death. In D&D it would have to be 5e, easy access to magic (and items), easier death saves, infinite cantrips, etc. Outside of D&D, I would be tempted to start with Tales of Equestria.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I don't know if I'm out of touch or what, but it took me a minute here to realize you were talking about Breath of the Wild and Princess Mononoke.

I wasn't thinking of Mononoke specifically. Nearly all the Ghibli movies would count as fantasy films and have a vibe distinct from traditional D&D.

 

[Parmandur]

I don't know if I'm out of touch or what, but it took me a minute here to realize you were talking about Breath of the Wild and Princess Mononoke. Obviously, those two have a lot of similarities (and yes, there's other things to mention about other games and movies, but surely those are the closest two). But that's not the first Zelda game or Ghibli movie I think of when you mention those franchises.

When I think Zelda, I go to NES and SNES first. And the gameplay leads directly to old school D&D. For me, that will be Red Box era. Lots of attention on resource management (e.g. healing, arrows, etc) and a heavy focus on dungeon delving with traps, puzzles, and boss monsters. Definitely low magic, with limited spell selection and only specific magic items available to the players. And death. Lots and lots of death.

When I think Miyazaki, I picture a much more friendly and low-risk setting, probably on the rules-light side. I think of movies like Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Ponyo. Spirited Away would be the high magic end, and Laputa is basically magi-tech. But all of those, even Lupin III, have practically no death. In D&D it would have to be 5e, easy access to magic (and items), easier death saves, infinite cantrips, etc. Outside of D&D, I would be tempted to start with Tales of Equestria.

Yeah, I think of Ocarina of Time or.Brearh of the Wild and Nausica of the Valley of the Wind or Castle in the Sky. So, standard 70's/80's D&D or DCC kind of juat fit for me...but my experience of TTRPGs are clouded by those video game and anime influences, so some recursion is to be expected.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Also, a important choice you have to make between "Ghibli" and "Zelda" is that while in Zelda games monsters are simply goofy or scary beings that usually are just living obstacles, in Ghibli movies every "monster" is a being with personality and goals and even most evil characters deserve empathy (Eboshi, Yubaba, the Witch of the Waste etc).

That's a really good point. At the very least "boss" and "miniboss" monsters will need to be treated much differently than in 5E or in Zelda.