"Out of the Frying Pan"- Book IV - Into the Fire [STORY HOUR COMPLETED - 12/25/06]

[BlackCat]

Gunthar, Logan, and now Bastian all have aspects that may rub the rest of the party the wrong way as far as moral decisions and standards. It brings a nice tension to the group, in the same way that the faithfulness of Kazrack vs Roland brings tension. It makes for a good story.

I really like Bastian specifically as well. I can't wait to see what his promise to Kazrack may bring.

~hf

Bastian sorta has this thing where he and direct answers are only vaguely familiar. It was really very trying at first but after a while we kinda got used to it. So it was very different in that Gunthar was a giver as far as saying really wrong things was concerned.

Logan on the other hand had a little mystery about him but was, for the most part, up front.

As for their moral fiber...well, Gunthar is a lech but other than that a relatively decent guy. Logan came off as very self-centered and he was certainly not Good in the strictest sense (hence the damage from Roland's Holy Smite spell) but was also relatively decent...until now. Bastian...well, he's kind of complicated.

 

[Richard Rawen]

Really enjoying the story as the possibilities start to narrow toward a conclusion. One thing that has always entertained/boggled me about this campaign is how many threads you have "loose" all over the place (so it seems).

 

[el-remmen]

One thing that has always entertained/boggled me about this campaign is how many threads you have "loose" all over the place (so it seems).

Well, not all of them get tied off before the end. . . But I think the end is still satisfying.

 

[Manzanita]

I'm surprised you had Gunther return. He's one more NPC to deal with, and it seems the KOG already have a number of allies. Certainly looking forward to seeing how it turns out.

 

[el-remmen]

I'm surprised you had Gunther return.

There had to be at least a chance Gunthar would be with the party when/ they succeed in the Maze (i.e. he survives) for dramatic purposes and a Rat Bastard twist near the end involving the life of a PC.

Plus he is just a fighter. Easy to run and I can hand him over to other players to run. While I would not have been able to do that with any of Richard's company, and there is a lot more to those guys (i.e. spells and class abilties) than there is to a simple fighter.

I liked playing Gunthar. He brought moments of levity into an otherwise often dour and very focused game and allowed me to give the PCs a method to blow off some steam and get involved in a little ripartee.

 

[mmu1]

As for their moral fiber...well, Gunthar is a lech but other than that a relatively decent guy. Logan came off as very self-centered and he was certainly not Good in the strictest sense (hence the damage from Roland's Holy Smite spell) but was also relatively decent...until now. Bastian...well, he's kind of complicated.

Logan, self-centered? As opposed to, say, Roland?

I actually consider Logan to be something of a failure as a character, in most ways, since he just didn't accomplish anything I had initially in mind for him. (I'm glad a few people found him interesting, at least)

He was supposed to have a dark-ish past, but the idea was to make him happier as the time went by. Then, he ended up on a forced march through a horrible wilderness with Gunthar as one of the companions, and... well, things just went downhill from there.

As for him being a bad guy... Remember that, a) He hasn't had all the experiences with Richard that the others did, and b) What he knew of Richard's supposed crimes was largely based on Kazrack's and Ratchis' points of view, which - as he found out during the trek - hardly ever matched his own.

 

[el-remmen]

Just a note to say: I edited the last installment to correct a chronal distortion that made me think things were about to happen a day earlier than they did. It is right at the end (when they wake up to find Richard & Co. gone), so go back and check it out.

I also added a note about the XP awards and the character levels to the DM commentary.

 

[Piratecat]

As much as I love the story, I find the DM commentary really fascinating. Reading this stuff makes me a better DM.

Thanks for doing it!

 

[el-remmen]

I actually consider Logan to be something of a failure as a character, in most ways, since he just didn't accomplish anything I had initially in mind for him. (I'm glad a few people found him interesting, at least)

He was supposed to have a dark-ish past, but the idea was to make him happier as the time went by. Then, he ended up on a forced march through a horrible wilderness with Gunthar as one of the companions, and... well, things just went downhill from there.

As for him being a bad guy... Remember that, a) He hasn't had all the experiences with Richard that the others did, and b) What he knew of Richard's supposed crimes was largely based on Kazrack's and Ratchis' points of view, which - as he found out during the trek - hardly ever matched his own.

Sorry Gunthar made it that hard for you to play your character the way you envisioned. It was certainly not my intention to have that effect.

In the end, I think Logan's character does work for the campaign - and I kind of see him as the kind of guy who wanted to be a better person but was embittered by the fact that he always disappointed his father, but was at times so impulsive that he was divided between wanting to live up to some standard of behavior and wanting to find something that lined up a bit more with the way he saw the world.

I think the moral ambiguity of Richard & Co. fit him well.

 

[el-remmen]

As much as I love the story, I find the DM commentary really fascinating. Reading this stuff makes me a better DM.

Thanks for doing it!

Thank you.

It really makes me a better DM, too. At least I hope it will.

It has really challenged me to put a critical eye to my own style and way of handling situations and players - and while I am applying some of this to my current M&M game - I am eager for my next Aquerra game so I can apply it all.