Revealing character background information

[Omegaxicor]

I want to start by saying the party are OK with this, I made their character backstories with them.

The party are all Human soldiers in a wasteland area, far from their home, but really are Shapeshifters that have come to believe they are Human, if anyone has played Prototype 1 then that sort of thing.

Everytime I come up with a way of revealing this to the players either it is too subtle and I know my players will miss it or I am telling them "yea, you're not Human", I think that having a "You're not Human" moment at the end, in case the other clues are missed, would be mandatory but I can't think of any good clues that aren't too subtle.

Any suggestions on how to handle this in a less bludgeoning way?

 

[Razjah]

Can your players separate PC and player knowledge? If they can, just tell them. Then everyone can work to make the reveal better.

If not, dreams?
Healing from wounds faster than normal?
Being pierced but having no failing organs (yay shapeshifting!)
Funny colored pee?
Uh....
When in a zone of high magic have one or 2 lose their weapons and their arms shift to become a weapon. Say a guy with a sword and one with a bow or mace.

 

[Omegaxicor]

err...yea that would be a no, and I do want to surprise them

I like the idea of them shapeshifting without meaning to but isn't that a little obvious?

I like the rapid healing/lack of death from an arrow to the chest (or continuing to adventure after an arrow to the knee ) I will work that in somehow.

 

[howandwhy99]

Define. Define. Define.
What is a shapeshifter?
How do they learn as children they have all these abilities which define being a shapeshifter?
Under what circumstances might they lose control of these abilities?
What history has led them to fall into the belief they are human?
What do they think "human" is?
What about the rest of the world? How do they determine who a shapeshifter is, or a human, or whatever?

 

[MarkB]

Present them with a situation in which it would be useful to disguise themselves, perhaps to gain access to a settlement. When they do so, have their disguises be totally effective regardless of their rolls, to the extent that if they lose sight of each other, they have trouble recognising each other when they meet again.

Give them dreams of their childhood, which are actually memories, but each time they dream, their parents' and siblings' faces are different.

 

[Omegaxicor]

ok, ok, ok

Shapeshifter is like the Doppleganger, can change it's form freely because it is made a liquid like material

I don't really know but I guess they are born as a liquid and are either taught to assume other forms or instinctively turn into other things until they age enough to control it

I guess it requires concentration to change, not to maintain though, so they lose their ability to shapeshift when they are unable to focus, when they are knocked unconscious or killed they revert to liquid (I don't know about unconscious though). Their wounds revert to a liquid state while they heal, if anyone has seen T2 then the T-1000 sort of thing.

They woke up surrounded by dead humans and with flashes of memory of being Human soldiers

I don't really understand the question but they think Human is Humanoid that speaks Common and has no real super powers except adaptability and courage

again I don't really understand the question but the Humans don't know shapeshifters exist, except Vampires and Lycanthropes (and other Were-creatures) but I guess that determining which is which is impossible except to see one shapeshift

@MarkB I see that being a lot of trouble at the table but I like the idea

 

[Ragmon]

Here are some of my ideas:

- Let the situations play out naturally: In situation where the shifter side would manifest describe it to the players, such as with the healing.
"Oh, I got wounded, hmm why am I not bleeding blood?"
Or "He got ran trough with a lance... wait, why did he turn into a puddle?

- Once the players get suspicious they are gonna want to know why, don't tell them out right why, but allow them to search for answers in-game.

- You are gonna have to accept the fact that the players are gonna catch on quickly that something is wrong, maybe even in the first session.

Just my thoughts on the matter.

 

[Omegaxicor]

I know the players will either catch on quickly or not at all, I think a natural approach would be fun though

 

[howandwhy99]

I don't really understand the question but they think Human is Humanoid that speaks Common and has no real super powers except adaptability and courage

again I don't really understand the question but the Humans don't know shapeshifters exist, except Vampires and Lycanthropes (and other Were-creatures) but I guess that determining which is which is impossible except to see one shapeshift

In all my experience I've only had human players. I ask what they think human is, so the differences between humans and Shapeshifters can be recognized once they start playing the game. That no humans have ever learned of shapeshifters before makes the game harder.

Vampires and werewolves are not like most humans. Garlic, crosses, crossing running water, even when pretending to be a live human a vampire can be sussed out. Werewolves and the touch of silver too. Not to mention a monthly full moon tends to leave consequences, even if the player character doesn't remember any of it and is told they wake up with no clothes, full of mud in a forest. They can suss it out.

That's what I think you're asking here. What makes a shapeshifter actually a shapeshifter even when in the shape of a human? How can they learn they are different from humans? How can they discover that they should concentrate or control these unusual abilities? What resources are there to learn about others who might have these abilities? Or at least others who have heard of shapeshifters.

 

[Omegaxicor]

hmmm, I hadn't thought of that, I will take the night to think it over and see what I come up with, but I was thinking that because they are Human they are programmed to eat and sleep despite not needing it, maybe starving them or having time pass without them realising it.

any ideas on the weaknesses of shapeshifter are welcome, I have found others on this board are far more creative than I

EDIT: I was already thinking they are vulnerable to magic/elemental damage (double damage)