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Message: <blockquote data-quote="steenan" data-source="post: 5385371" data-attributes="member: 23240">What I would do is giving the PCs an opportunity to form attachments - that is what really drives character developement. Don't force them into it, but encourage to care about people and about what happens in town. To do it, one needs three components:- a few NPCs that are distinct enough to be easily identified and either sympathetic or unsympathetic enough to evoke an emotional response- a situation that gives a reason to interact with them- enough screen-time for the NPCs that players may get to know themIt's good to create interesting situations that require players to choose and take sides in something that is not black-and-white. Not challenges that one can win or lose, where tactics and rolls are necessary, but situations where the choice itself is what matters.I would also, although it sounds unintuitive, reduce the amount of purely "color", "flavor" scenes (tavern games etc.). A few are necessary to help players imagine the town, but too much may be boring, and they do nothing to really encourage RP. It's better when what happens has real consequences. This way you'll let them know that it's not only combat and loot that matters - and create plot hooks to be used in the future.A few examples of what I'd use:1. The wizard's father wants to marry a woman that came to the town a few months ago. They love each other, but she seems to be hiding something about her past.If PCs investigate a little, they'll find out that she was a thief before, worked for a guild for some time and then betrayed them. It's all years in the past now and she'd rather forget about that - but one cannot be sure if it will come to haunt her again some day, putting her husband in danger.What will the wizard (and the rest of the PCs) do? Will he tell the father? Will he oppose the marriage? Will he dig deeper in the whole guild business in future adventures?2. Fighter's brother's girlfriend becomes interested in the fighter ("Your brother is such a nice boy, but you're a real hero now!"). How will he handle this? Return girl's affection and risk alienating his brother? Persuade the girl that he's not interested? Use her and forget? Will he tell the brother what's happening or try to solve the problem without him knowing?3. A boy asks the eldarin to help him recover money that the inn owner owes him. The boy worked at the inn for month or two and then was fired. The innkeeper feels within his right in what he did - he saw the boy drinking during work. The boy agrees that it was the case, but it was only one time, and even if he's fired, he should get the money for the time he worked before that.We are talking about sums that are laughably small for a 4th level adventurers - but meaningful for the innkeeper and really big for the boy. Who, in eldarin's eyes, is right here?4. Town leaders want to borrow a big part of PC's money for some very important investments. They, of course, won't do anything that could antagonize the heroes, but will approach them with many persuasion attempts and may be a little irritating in that. Will the PCs help their town (they can expect getting the money back, with interest, but in few years' time - and that's a lot for adventurers), or keep the money to themselves?</blockquote>

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