Making cities feel alive?

[Kid Charlemagne]

In terms of setting the scene, I like to pick a couple of key things to identify the city, especially visually. For example, one major city in my campaign world was known for the white-washed, reminiscent of the Greek islands, complete with sandy beaches and noblemen and women at play in the fancy ballrooms. Another was a fortified island, with strong walls dominating the landscape and tudor-style framed houses. Try to have an encounter occur that sets teh tone for the kind of people you'll meet; the first impression will last. In a crime-ridden town, the PC's should have someone try to pickpocket them; in a town known for temples someone should try to convert them to their religion.

Once you've set the image in the PC's mind, they'll fill in the gaps based on the expectation you've placed in their heads.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

I think it’s important to figure out what makes each city different from the next.
When you think about the great cities of fantasy, there’s stately Minas Tirith, eclectic Ankh-Morpork, thief- and warlock-haunted Lankhmar. I try to give each city a short sentence description of what stands out about it, and then build out from that.

Also, simple things like cultural details – food, drink, the types of art they like, can all add vividness.

 

[Bawylie]

Smells.

 

[Tiles]

It may help to keep visual aids (portraits) of reoccurring NPCs.

 

[MostlyDm]

Lots of good advice.

I will just echo that giving attention to the little inconsequential stuff, especially sensory details, is huge.

Smells. Tastes of local/unique cuisine. Styles of dress and architecture. All of them are extremely important.

 

[Psikerlord#]

The broad details are filled in when you create the city.

You should note the system of government and the major factions.

You should note the main sources of conflict and at least what each group would like to accomplish.

You should note the important NPCs, and give each at least a blurb (preferably a seven sentence write up). You can't really go overboard here, especially if you are going to linger in the city for a whole campaign. Ideally, you'd have a 1000 NPC's with a brief write up for each, but that's impractical. Do what you can and keep making them up as you go. Consolidating a session by recording what you did and created as soon as possible after you did so is very important, preferably the next day.

You should note the important buildings, public areas, and sources of danger and very briefly describe each.

You should divide the city into important wards and briefly describe each.

You should invent secrets and things buried.

It sounds like you may have already done most of this. For the little details, nothing is better for the inspiration than a very well designed random encounter chart. The more you know about the city, the more detail and life you can put into the random encounter table. And the test is to roll encounters on the table, and see if you can work with the results in creative ways. The record your ideas so that you can use them later. Just because an encounter is random, doesn't mean you can't script it to contribute to existing plots.

An example table from my game:

Wandering Encounters in the City

Normal Encounters by Day (the streets are busy, always roll for two results)
01-04 Street Sweeps 1d4+1
05-07 Litter Bearers 1d3+3 + 1d2
08-11 Fiacre 1
12-14 Carriage 1
15-16 Caravan 1
17-19 Drover 1d6
20-22 Apprentice 1d6
23-24 Foreign Merchant 1
25 Feral Elf Pack 5d4
26-28 Urchins 5d6
29 Cats 3d6
30 Songbird Flock 1
31-33 Doves & Pigeons 5d100
34-36 Touts 1d6
37-41 Laborers 3d8
42-45 Porters 1d12
46-48 Teamsters 2d4
49 Mastadon 1
50 Orine Bravo 1
51-52 Rakes 1d4
53-54 Students 1d6
55-56 Acolytes 1d6
57 Knight 1d4
58-60 City Watch 2d4
61 Hurin’s Soldiers 1d10+10
62-64 Pilgrims 5d6
65 Idreth Youth 1
66 Prostitutes 1d6
67-68 Elf Party Goers 3d4
69-72 Craftsman 1d4
73-75 Street Performer 1d3
76-77 Shopkeeper 1
78 Tourist 1
79-81 Waif 1
82-83 Almsman 1
84 Tumesi Gypsies (Bodger, Tailor, Tinker, Fortune Teller, Entertainers (Minstrels, Plays, Puppet Shows)) 1d10
85-87 Masons 3d10
88 Funeral 1
89 Wedding 1
96-00 Special

Normal Encounters by Night
Dice Roll (d%) Encounter Number Appearing
01-06 Litter
07-13 Fiacre
14-21 Carriage
22-23 Feral Elf Pack
24 Youths
25-29 Cat Pack
30-34 Thugs
35-42 Merchant
43-50 Rakes
51-53 Sidhe Troop
54-59 Dissidents
60-67 Revelers
68-69 Cultists
70-76 City Watch
77-82 Prostitutes
82-87 Elf Party Goers
88 Assassin
89-90 Vagrants
91-95 Monster
96-00 Special

Special Encounters
1 Guild Parade
2 Royal Procession
3 Ambassador
4 Esoteric Order Member
5 Cat Spirit
6 Songbird Spirit
7 Domestic Dispute – A domestic dispute is a public violent argument between two individuals who formally had friendly or at least cordial relations. This could be partners in a business, a husband and wife, young lovers, two rival street performers, a waif and her guardian, a prostitute and a client, or anything else of the sort.
8-9 Brawl (between rival thieves guilds, rival teamsters or porters, dissidents and royalists, elves and men, or two groups of rakes)
10 University Professor
11 Runaway Cart
12 Pegasi Cavalry

An example entry reads:
"Acolytes – Acolytes are students of one of the great temples, either being trained to serve in the laity or initiated into the priesthood. They occasionally are granted leave from their studies and liberty, and then act much like any of the other students of the city save that they are generally fiercer, more fanatical, and more purposeful in their zeal. All are 1st level; 40% are clerics, another 20% experts, and another 40% have a class appropriate to their particular deities’ purpose. They will be adherent to one of the following faiths: (1)Lado, (2)Showna, (3)Aretos, (4)Aynwyn, (5)Aymara, (6)Urian, (7)Shalimyr, (8)Jord, (9)Sesstra, (10)Tinel, (11)Justian, (12)Nuati, (13)Corwin, (14)Labelas, (15)Aerdrie, (16)Diancetta, (17)Raniclus, (18)Umdios, (19)Thellos, or (20)Pyrnetta. Ten percent of the time, there will be an additional group of acolytes from a compatible faith, since the churches encourage fostering intersect relations and the forging of future alliances between the priesthoods."

Of course, that's pretty meaningless without context. But the more you know about the life of the city - the more you know about an individual priesthood - the more you are likely to know about the life of this acolyte and what he might be about and how encountering him or her might draw the PC's into some element of the cities life.

Another thing that I've always found inspiring is to as often as possible never roll for a single encounter. 'Roll again twice' or simply 'Always roll twice' is often far more interesting than rolling single encounters, and often gives you a more usable hook. An encounter of a waif and laborers might imply a damsel in distress, or an urchin stealing something from the wrong group of toughs. The PC's of course don't have to intervene in any conflicts they come across, but many will have compelling reasons to do so or simple curiosity. The other thing to keep in mind is that if you bother to roll for an encounter, you are automatically suggesting that the encounter has at least some interest in the party - even if they have no interest in it. They may be seeking aid of some sort and consider the PC's likely helpers - even if they are only asking directions to something or inquiring if the PC's know of something or someone they wish to find. They may see the PC's as well suited to mediate some petty dispute, or see the PC's as a source of potential succor from danger. They may mistake the PC's for someone else. They may have taken some offense at the PC's for an unintentional insult, even just bumping into the PC's while they were looking the other way. They may have some demand to make of the PCs, as of a magistrate wishing to clear the street or seeking a suspect - the PC's might even find themselves deputized unwillingly. They may be interested in the PC's faith if the PC's openly display religious signs, or they may see the PC's are foreigners and ask them if they have news from some distant place, or they may recognize the PC's as compatriots of the same nation and seek to by them a drink out of feelings of homesickness. They may be related to someone to whom the PC's have done a favor and wish to offer thanks. They may beg alms or charity or implore the PC's to buy something. Or they may be unwisely trying to con or steal from the PC's, or lead them into an ambush. In short, while you can use such table to answer questions like, "What do I see in the street?", if you are initiating the action some sort of action should take place.

I think this is spot on. Random encounter tables give me the confidence to let PCs wander anywhere in a city and still generate interesting encounters on the fly. I never thought about the "always roll twice and pick the one you like best" idea - I think that's really great. I reinforces the concept that there is randomness involved, but the GM makes the final call based on what's most fun at the time.

Other tips (which some have already raised):

1. Have a cool city map, divide into regions (merchant, noble, barrens, etc), and don't be afraid to write all over it/change it/add to it
2. Use the paizo NPC face cards or similar as an aid
3. Give the city a theme. As a player, I prefer each city to have a distinct feel to differentiate them. I am personally not a fan as the "huge, cosmopolitan, everything plus the kitchen sink" city, unless there is going to be a lot of adventuring going on in the city itself/the city is the adventure.
4. Describe sights, sounds and smells
5. Check out the Vornheim book, it's terrific

 

[bedir than]

Have an idea of what races are present in what percentages.
Have an idea of what other cities/kingdoms are regular trade partners.
What are their main trade goods?
Have an idea of what faiths are present.
Is the city magic friendly, or do they try to prevent its practice?

 

[Celebrim]

I think this is spot on. Random encounter tables give me the confidence to let PCs wander anywhere in a city and still generate interesting encounters on the fly. I never thought about the "always roll twice and pick the one you like best" idea - I think that's really great. I reinforces the concept that there is randomness involved, but the GM makes the final call based on what's most fun at the time.

While it's certainly true that I often roll two or more times before settling on something that I like, that's not actually the intention of the rules above. The intention of the rules above is that while the party may pass many people on the street, it's only rather unusual events that are brought to their attention. You roll twice, and assume both encounters are present. You then try to think of a scene that involves one or more of those parties either interacting in a way that will draw the PC's attentions, or directly interacting with the PC's. Thus, if you roll a flock of pigeons and a street waif, you don't choose which one you like - you perhaps are inspired to create a waif who is selling stale bread to tourists to feed to Talernga's famous pigeons, and who promises that doing so brings good luck and favor of the goddess. You might leave it at that, and make no more of it than color, or you may decide that in this case the girl's words are literally true and if the PC's feed the pigeons it will draw the attention of a bird spirit that wishes to communicate with the PC's. Or you may decide that it's more interesting if the girl is a pickpocket or working with one (some of that is in the waif and pigeon entries so you can randomly choose if you like).

Just as an exercise I rolled on the table, simulating a trip across down and I rolled '3' and '98', which is Street Sweepers and (in this case) Runaway Cart. Now I have some decisions to make. What sort of vehicle is running away on the streets, and why? The first thing that comes to my mind in this case is that it is a pair of students illegally racing fiacres on the city streets, and that in addition to nearly running down the PC's and several other bystanders, they plow over one of the street sweepers.

Now what I know about the street sweepers that you may not is that in Talernga, the sweepers are how the city employs the homeless, the indigent, and the petty criminals. They are not of very high station. Some are disabled, mentally or physically. Sweeper duty is somewhere halfway between a social program (in that they are paid and fed and housed) and a prisoner work gang. The sweepers are run jointly by the Temples of Umdios and Pyrnetta. They have a rather uneasy sometimes down right antagonist relationship, and the contradictions in the sweeper service reflect that. Both believe that they are essentially running the whole operation by themselves, and that the other partner is useless. Umdious is the god of cleanliness, self-discipline, resolution, and salt. Pyrnetta, not to be to blunt, is the patron of fools, the laughingstock of the gods, and the world's most famous cuckold - being married to the goddess of adultery.

So it would work for me if I had these two students careening through the streets, stirring up a mob, knocking over the carts of greenmongers, and nearly trampling the PC's actually trample and mortally wound a street sweeper - say one that was deaf. Then, I could have one of the lay brothers of either Umdios or Pyrnetta - seeing the PC's having horses and bearing standards indicating knightly rank - charge the PC's with stopping those fools before they killed someone. And then I could run a chase scene, which might lead to other scenes and other encounters.

The point is to find inspiration and to do scenes you might not have thought of on your own based out of elements in the life of the city.

 

[Curmudjinn]

Mechanics or population aside, I believe the best way to make a city feel alive is to have its goings-on perpetually moving and changing, like an actual creature. The PCs should know that this place is bigger than them and will keep going at a fast pace regardless of their presence.
Keep track of daily things when in town, and larger instances while they are away. Writing lists of happenings and rumors is a good start.

Regardless of the PCs, the city is a living, breathing thing with all manner of quirks and parasites.

 

[flamewizo]

There are some fantastic suggestions here I need to read through more however...
The way I am currently building a campaign citys is literally by playing it. Have started of with a basic quest in which options where available I write a couple of quests ahead of the gameplay in which key characters *NPC's* are introduced I then place them in other areas of the campaign to allow a regular appearance, this also is setting out the basis of all my hamlets, town's and cities. I am essentially playing with the group and it allows for a really flexible story line. I build a PC sheet with background. Class and features for all my main characters allowing me to better understand who I'm creating. Allowing me to consider the place they came from. For example I have built a pirate town based around the first npc my players met.
It allows such a vast creation that I am learning my world while I am running the campaign.