Please help me write DREAD questions!

[Zephrin the Lost]

Hey all,

I'm planning a DREAD scenario (that awesome jenga-using horror game that [MENTION=2]Piratecat[/MENTION] sums up brilliantly in his 'Jenga beat up my dice' thread) and I always get brain lock when it comes time for preparing the questionairres that help the players define their character. I know I can repeat some questions from player to player but I'd like to have as many fresh ones as possible.

Here's the scenario: The year is 1985. The players are all followers of a doomsday cult, occupying the Tule Lake Japanese Interment Camp National Historical Site in California, as this is where their leader said the angels from outer space will appear. The compound is surrounded by ATF forces.

Assuming 5 players, the characters are;

Cult 2nd in command (leader is NPC)
Cult member/scientist (who is smarter than leader)
Kidnapped Relative of cult member scientist here to be indoctrinated
Undercover Journalist who infiltrated cult and is now trapped
ATF Negotiator cult is holding hostage

It's up to the players playing cultists to say how committed they are to the cult, and I expect for folk's faith to waver as the situation deterioraites. Also, the space angels are not as advertised.

So what sort of questions can folks suggest?

Thank you!

--Z

Oh hey D20monkey is doing a DREAD arc right now, and posted this excellent system summery: http://www.d20monkey.com/2012/09/14/dread/

 

[Nytmare]

Before I'd jump into questionaire, I'd try get more of a handle on not only who the people are, but who they are to each other.

As the person running the game, these would be the kinds of questions I'd be asking myself as the game is piecing itself together. Please forgive any gender biasing.

Why is the second in command the second in command? Are they a true believer? What are they to the cult leader? A friend? A sibling? Someone that the cult leader needed, or someone that the cult needed? What kind of authority figure do the other members of the cult see the second in command as?

Why is it important that the scientist is smarter than the cult leader? Is there some kind of jealousy, or coup in the works, or is it just to create tension between the second in command once the cult leader is gone? What's the "scientist" deal all about, is that their job in the cult? Is it what they were before they became a cult member? Whose idea was it to kidnap his/her relative?

Where in the brainwashing process is the kidnapped relative? How old are they? Have they been trying to escape, or have they been buying into it? What kind of trust have they earned from the other cult members? Who does the kidnapped relative have on the outside that they think about most?

Who is the journalist supposed to be? What kind of facade are they hiding behind? Does anyone know that someone might have infiltrated their ranks? What would happen to him if the cult discovered who they really were? Do the ATF agents know that the journalist is on the inside?

What went wrong with the negotiations? What does the negotiator know about the cult? What was the fight about that the negotiator had with his wife that morning? Even though he's been taken hostage, is he still able to talk? Is he locked in a room away from people, or is he out where everyone can hear and see him?

 

[Janx]

I'm a big fan of open, but leading questions. Since the players don't get a choice on what kind of character to make like in D&D where they decide, class, race, motivation, etc, you want your questions to assign the character to the player, but let the player invent why it's awesome to be that character.

For the Cult's 2nd in Command:
What is your special destiny that led the cult to invite you to join?

Why does the leader have such trust in you, since you took the position as 2nd in command?

Those 2 questions set the stage for the character. They phrase things that imply the person is a willing participant to the cult, rather than somebody who's going to bolt at first chance (which is what the player might do in reaction to a cult). So you help the player get into the mindset of a person who wants to be in the cult and wants to be 2nd in command by letting him invent the reasons why.

For the scientist:
what information about the Space Angels have you held back from the rest of the cult, and how will it advance your position in the group?

What is the basic nature of the scientific research that you've done on the Space Angels and why is the government blocking its publication?

Once again, give the player a chance to invent some background material about the space angels. maybe he worked on an alien autopsy? And of course the part about the government sets him up as a consipiracy theorist who will react negatively to the government agents outside the compound.


Kidnapped Inductee

What relative of yours left to join this Space Angel cult and how long has he been gone?

What did you see that people will think you are crazy, when you saw the bright light on Highway 6 and when you woke up in Arizona, 6 days had passed?

Since the cult is about aliens, making the kidnapped person a victim of alien abduction flags them as a candidate member. it also makes the Alien thing real for the player, so they can be on the fence about joining the cult (as they are the only ones who would believe the story).

Undercover Journalist

Why have you spent much of your career documenting UFOs and other unexplained phenomenon?

How will publishing the story of this cult and the events occuring now improve your reptutation and career?

The kind of person who can infiltrate a group has to have some deep knowledge of the culture. A guy who writes articles on alien abductions, etc will know more of the lingo and experiences. He can easily tell someone else's story as his own experience to get him past the initial interviews. We also want to set this guy up as somebody who is motivated to stick around and get the whole story, at the risk of his life, rather than cut and run.

Captured ATF Negotiator
Why are you so good at relating to others and finding common ground to work calm people down and defuse situations?

Why have you felt this weight for the last few days, as if something large and impending was about to happen?

We need to differentiate an ATF negotiator as being a diplomat, rather than ATF Agent with guns ready to escape and shoot. The negotiator may be trained in weapons, should the game shift to that (they are a field agent after all), but as a negotiator, they have training and skills to talk hostile people into surrendering. I also want to give the player some room to invent a sci-fi explanation. Perhaps this person has Empath or precognitive abilities. Something that might tie back in with the Space Angels.

 

[Quickleaf]

Cult 2nd in command: Have you spiked the Koolaid yet?

Cult member/scientist: Is the harmonic frequency of the Koolaid in tune with the space angels?

Kidnapped Relative of cult member scientist: Have you tried the Koolaid? It's delicious!

Undercover Journalist who infiltrated cult and is now trapped: Are the corporate makers of Koolaid secretly backing the cult?

ATF Negotiator: What about that warehouse of Koolaid the agency is trying to keep quiet?

"Space Angels": All your Koolaid is belong to us!!

 

[Sialia]

One of my favorite questions Piratecat ever used for this purpose was simply "Where DID you get those shoes?" It was open ended enough to allow the players a lot of character building leeway (and some of the responses he got were really impressive), and didn't commit anyone to any specific relationships/actions in the future. It also put something into their toolkit for later, depending on what kind of shoes/boots/sneakers etc. they picked. Jenga is all about letting the characters tell the story, so it's really important for them to know where they come from and who they are. Your personality is the main "tool" you've got for taking on the adventure

In that spirit, here are my questions:

What did you find in your mother's jewelry box?

Where did you hide the body?

What happened to your beloved stuffed animal on your fifth birthday?

That time when you held up the whole line arguing with the security guard about whether or not you were allowed to bring a can of Lysol on the airplane, what were you thinking?

In that recurring dream that you have that you are wandering down the hallway of your childhood home and find a door you've never opened before, what do you usually find on the other side of that door?

What's in your wallet?

What was the best thing you ever put in your mouth?

Did you really mean to hit your sister with it, or was it all just a mistake?

How bad was that first date?