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<blockquote data-quote="MarkCsigs" data-source="post: 2109840" data-attributes="member: 29220">This is a great post!&nbsp; I could comment on every point you make, but I'm just going to pick a couple to reinforce ...&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;NPC preparation is even more important in 3e, I find.&nbsp; It was one thing to be able to throw out a random class (and/or kit) and then just focus on personality traits, but now I find my players want to see more; like what skills the NPC has, etc.&nbsp; Some people might be better winging names than I am.&nbsp; My players have learned not to giggle when I introduce the travelling merchant as 'Clumberflum' or something equally clumsy.&nbsp;The internet is a great source for names.&nbsp; Some of the links I use:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/" target="_blank">http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/</a>&nbsp;and &nbsp;<a href="http://www.kabalarians.com/cfm/surf-by.cfm" target="_blank">http://www.kabalarians.com/cfm/surf-by.cfm</a>&nbsp;Unfortunately the second one became a subscriber site, but you can still get access to a vast database of names to print out for much less than a new book from WotC.&nbsp;&nbsp;Absolutely.&nbsp; I found early on that I'd remember the 'important' NPCs but not the 'throwaway' ones.&nbsp; The players, on the other hand, wouldn't know who's supposed to be important or not and I'd suddenly find them wanting to question a certain merchant, or follow up on the background of the Duke's senechal and I wouldn't even remember who they were talking about.&nbsp; That's when I started keeping a database of every NPC the players meet, where and when they met them and if anything memorable event happened.&nbsp;And this works two ways ... I've dredged up NPCs they've met years ago and have them run across each other in the tavern, on the road or at the latest festival.&nbsp; Especially if they're also adventurers it's fun to be able to have a bit of a rivalry ... (oh, you're going after Grenlaar the Frost Giant?&nbsp; You can forget that, we dispatched him last month!&nbsp; Look at my new axe!)&nbsp; &nbsp;--Mark C'sigs</blockquote>

[QUOTE="MarkCsigs, post: 2109840, member: 29220"] This is a great post! I could comment on every point you make, but I'm just going to pick a couple to reinforce ... NPC preparation is even more important in 3e, I find. It was one thing to be able to throw out a random class (and/or kit) and then just focus on personality traits, but now I find my players want to see more; like what skills the NPC has, etc. Some people might be better winging names than I am. My players have learned not to giggle when I introduce the travelling merchant as 'Clumberflum' or something equally clumsy. The internet is a great source for names. Some of the links I use: [url="http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/"]http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/[/url] and [url="http://www.kabalarians.com/cfm/surf-by.cfm"]http://www.kabalarians.com/cfm/surf-by.cfm[/url] Unfortunately the second one became a subscriber site, but you can still get access to a vast database of names to print out for much less than a new book from WotC. Absolutely. I found early on that I'd remember the 'important' NPCs but not the 'throwaway' ones. The players, on the other hand, wouldn't know who's supposed to be important or not and I'd suddenly find them wanting to question a certain merchant, or follow up on the background of the Duke's senechal and I wouldn't even remember who they were talking about. That's when I started keeping a database of every NPC the players meet, where and when they met them and if anything memorable event happened. And this works two ways ... I've dredged up NPCs they've met years ago and have them run across each other in the tavern, on the road or at the latest festival. Especially if they're also adventurers it's fun to be able to have a bit of a rivalry ... (oh, you're going after Grenlaar the Frost Giant? You can forget that, we dispatched him last month! Look at my new axe!) --Mark C'sigs [/QUOTE]

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