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I'm a DM in the zone! Are you there now or have you been in the past?
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barsoomcore
Unattainable Ideal
Barsoom: Season Two. That portion of the campaign ran itself -- the players were freaking out every game, getting completely wrapped up in stuff, desperate to learn what was going on and so thrilled when they did.
It comes and goes. Season Three was rough, mainly I think because my work life kind of exploded and spewed crap all over all parts of my life. That seems to be under control for now, so I'm looking forward to a great summer.
It comes and goes. Season Three was rough, mainly I think because my work life kind of exploded and spewed crap all over all parts of my life. That seems to be under control for now, so I'm looking forward to a great summer.
Feeling very good-zone-y right now. Just had my first session of a new campaign. I came up with a much more open-ended adventure idea, did a ton of setting work beforehand so that many good skill checks are there in place (frex, I know what Gather Information DC will get the PCs what level of information, and I've got multiple information levels). It's a d20 Modern murder mystery (part of an action thriller campaign), and people seemed to really enjoy it.
Best part (since multiple people are doing modern) was the combat. 2 (well, 3, but one was not involved at all) 6th-level PCs against 4 Tgh1/Fst1 college students. The PCs were FBI-like investigators, although much less respected (a law enforcement arm of the Bureau of Indian Affairs), and the college students were angry that the PCs were trying to stop them from cleaning out their dead friend's apartment, since they'd already answered questions. It ended up as a melee fight... in a 5' wide hallway.
I used the D&D 3.5 rules for fighting in a cramped space, and it was just AWESOME. The PCs, all of whom had guns, were trying to do the right thing by not shooting the college kids, and the college kids were throwing tons of ineffectual punches. People were lined up shoulder-to-shoulder, everyone was awkward and off-balance -- at one point, one square had three people in it -- two college kids, and the prone PC who'd tried to break through their lines with an Overrun and gotten tripped for his trouble. Due to PC conflict, the fight ended with one PC grappling another PC and hollering for him to calm the heck down (he'd just done lethal damage with CMA to one of them, in the form of a nasty uppercut), while the college kids, who had delivered all of 8 points of nonlethal damage across 3 hits, ran off and called the cops.
Awkward, non-cinematic, and completely the way a real-life fight involving lots of people in a narrow hallway should go. After a long time of "open door, see something hostile to me, kill it", the idea of NOT drawing their handguns was a breath of fresh air. I'm going to make sure that they get something to shoot, so that they don't feel unhappy about taking those gun feats, but it was a great way to start the campaign.
Best part (since multiple people are doing modern) was the combat. 2 (well, 3, but one was not involved at all) 6th-level PCs against 4 Tgh1/Fst1 college students. The PCs were FBI-like investigators, although much less respected (a law enforcement arm of the Bureau of Indian Affairs), and the college students were angry that the PCs were trying to stop them from cleaning out their dead friend's apartment, since they'd already answered questions. It ended up as a melee fight... in a 5' wide hallway.
I used the D&D 3.5 rules for fighting in a cramped space, and it was just AWESOME. The PCs, all of whom had guns, were trying to do the right thing by not shooting the college kids, and the college kids were throwing tons of ineffectual punches. People were lined up shoulder-to-shoulder, everyone was awkward and off-balance -- at one point, one square had three people in it -- two college kids, and the prone PC who'd tried to break through their lines with an Overrun and gotten tripped for his trouble. Due to PC conflict, the fight ended with one PC grappling another PC and hollering for him to calm the heck down (he'd just done lethal damage with CMA to one of them, in the form of a nasty uppercut), while the college kids, who had delivered all of 8 points of nonlethal damage across 3 hits, ran off and called the cops.
Awkward, non-cinematic, and completely the way a real-life fight involving lots of people in a narrow hallway should go. After a long time of "open door, see something hostile to me, kill it", the idea of NOT drawing their handguns was a breath of fresh air. I'm going to make sure that they get something to shoot, so that they don't feel unhappy about taking those gun feats, but it was a great way to start the campaign.
reveal
Adventurer
takyris said:
It's funny you say that because that's exactly how I see d20 Modern. In regular D&D, it's very easy to get caught up in the view that a lot of people seem to have of what medieval life was like. Now, I know D&D is not a true representation of what medieval life was like, but a lot of people take their inspiration for the games from that time period.
But I digress. They seem to be under the mindset that, in D&D, it's ok to attack and kill because "that's the way life was." In d20 Modern, I have actually seen players have to sit back and re-think how they "normally" would handle a situation because they can relate better to a Modern setting since they are actually living in it right now. It can make for some great roleplay and some great gaming moments.
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Mystery Man
First Post
Yes as a matter of fact this time around my campaign is going very well. had to boot a player and now everyone is having a great time. I'm going totally module free this time around, mostly doing things on the fly or taking from bits and peices here and there. It's working out great.
See link in sig....
See link in sig....
der_kluge
Adventurer
I've been told that I'm in the zone when I run Al-Qadim games.
Right now, it's hard to say. I think my players are enjoying it, but I'm not sure my performance as a DM has been stellar all the time. I'm trying hard to keep it from being repetitious, so that's my struggle. For us, the most fun is just playing the high level characters (12th right now), which none of us have ever really done. This game is also very complex, with lots of underlying NPCs with their own plans and motivations, so every time my players go somewhere I don't anticipate, I have to stop and ponder how all these NPCs behind the scenes are reacting, and that's hard for me to do.
Right now, it's hard to say. I think my players are enjoying it, but I'm not sure my performance as a DM has been stellar all the time. I'm trying hard to keep it from being repetitious, so that's my struggle. For us, the most fun is just playing the high level characters (12th right now), which none of us have ever really done. This game is also very complex, with lots of underlying NPCs with their own plans and motivations, so every time my players go somewhere I don't anticipate, I have to stop and ponder how all these NPCs behind the scenes are reacting, and that's hard for me to do.
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