Should PCs from different RPGs be allowed to meet?

[GMMichael]

I'm running two games with different RPGs and had a thought: I can increase my prep efficiency if I have only one setting to develop instead of two. This can extend to PCs in one game becoming NPCs in the other. But what if one set of PCs gets really involved with the PCs of the other game? What if they want to adventure together? Will it cause a fissure in fantasy spacetime? Can they meet and just socialize? Fight each other? Hunt monsters together? The Rule of Cool says yes. What do you say?

 

[uzirath]

Yes! I’ve done it many times myself.

If the two systems are wildly different and you really need precise mechanics (e.g., characters from different games get in a fight), you can always convert a character from one system to another.

 

[Reynard]

Yes, but... do you really want to run a gamevfor a double sized group? Because that's where you are heading. Maybe not permanently, but occasionally at least.

 

[Umbran]

If they are using the same ruleset, this is mostly a scheduling question.

If you are using different rules for the two games... well, do what you want, but satisfying rules-crossovers are difficult.

 

[Tonguez]

Trying to run 2 groups in parralel can become a nightmare (I once tried to have one group do a heist and another group being the cops trying to stop/catch them - it didnt work out, the cop group got abandoned)

but I often have characters from past games show up in later ones. My old character Orbril the gnome has existed in a few different systems in various NPC cameo roles

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

In such situations, I basically translate all characters into a single system as best I can.

Tangentially, I was once in a group in which everyone was expected to prep at least one campaign, and everyone had to have a PC for each active campaign. Each session, 2 people were “on call” to run a campaign: a primary and a backup. If somehow neither person could run their game, our host had an impressive library of board games.

This got me in the habit of creating PCs in a wide variety of systems. Indeed, not only did ChaGen become a way for me to get a grasp on a given system, I even had one I developed as a PC concept I could run some version of in any system I had access to. Sort of my own take on a Moorcockian an “Eternal Champion”.

 

[Ulfgeir]

Depends imo. Are you talking about 2 groups of players joining into one large group? Well If you can handle it.

Is it the same players, and you want them to play both sets of characters at the same time? Can be fun, but will put some pressure on the players.

Or are you taking the characters in one campaign and making them NPCs in the other? Go for it. Might be an intetsting nod, and adds flavour.

 

[GMMichael]

Yes, but... do you really want to run a gamevfor a double sized group? Because that's where you are heading. Maybe not permanently, but occasionally at least.

Double group: socialize only. Although some games lend themselves better to mass combat than others.

Is it the same players, and you want them to play both sets of characters at the same time? Can be fun, but will put some pressure on the players.

Different players, but two characters per player sounds like a doubling of analysis paralysis.

Or are you taking the characters in one campaign and making them NPCs in the other? Go for it. Might be an intetsting nod, and adds flavour.

This would be one of the prep cheats. Making NPCs is less work if the players do it for you!

I'm leaning Yes But right now - as in Yes, but one set of players will need converted characters. But in a monster hunt game, could one put the burden on the GM to have two sheets per NPC/monster, and the players use their regular characters? Then the GM could declare monster death when one sheet says it's dead, or when both sheets suggest 100% health is lost. Since turn-based combat is pretty common, it would be easy enough to shuffle both sets of players into the same round...

 

[Divine2021]

Yea. I’ve pulled it off. Can be kinda tricky, but did cut down on prep time pretty extensively.

 

[aramis erak]

While I've done it, I never do it with CURRENT PCs in game A being NPCs in game B...

In my assorted SFU based RPG campaigns, Lt/LtCdr/Cdr/Captain Komar (Vulcan throwback, not unlike the later appearing canonical Sybok), Col Serves with Humans (Kzinti, exchange officer in Starfleet Marines).

In Traveller, I've almost never allowed them to meet, but they have seen Deneb Information/News articles on other PCs... sometimes even those played by current players. Captain DP Quint (DP = Dread Pirate), Duke William Hamford, Scouts Xen Xanfried, a few others...

Never done it in any form in D&D.