Reply to thread

Message

<blockquote data-quote="Bayonet_Chris" data-source="post: 4142807" data-attributes="member: 34405">Encouraging roleplayingAnd now for my two cents. The key, from my perspective, is to get the players invested in the story. To do that there has to be a few things:1. A clear goal - what is the specific thing they are trying to accomplish?2. Clear stakes - what happens if they fail and how does it impact them?3. Conflict - what is trying to stop them from achieving their goal?Once you establish that, everything else will fall into place. I've played in many games where you show up and the first thing you ask is &quot;What were we doing again? Why are we here?&quot;1. We need to storm the Keep and stop the cleric before he opens the gate to Shadowfell?2. If we don't, shadow creatures will overrun Winterhaven and destroy everything and everyone the characters know and love.3. In their way is an evil cleric and his minions who will do everything to stop them.Your hook then, based on that, is some link to Winterhaven that matters. Family and friends are the best hooks for that, because they are not something easily abandoned. If you want to increase the tension, attach a timeline to this (he will open it at the stroke of midnight after the third day, or something).As for reasons to distrust the warlock, it's always been my policy to show and not tell. Instead of pulling them aside, have NPCs react poorly to the warlock and perhaps seek the paladin and cleric out for advice about warding off the evil eye. Maybe have a peer in the church question their judgement by consorting with such a foul practitioner of dark magic. Peasant superstitions (not making eye contact, making the sign of the evil eye, getting out of the warlock's path) will also keep it fresh in their mind.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Bayonet_Chris, post: 4142807, member: 34405"] [b]Encouraging roleplaying[/b] And now for my two cents. The key, from my perspective, is to get the players invested in the story. To do that there has to be a few things: 1. A clear goal - what is the specific thing they are trying to accomplish? 2. Clear stakes - what happens if they fail and how does it impact them? 3. Conflict - what is trying to stop them from achieving their goal? Once you establish that, everything else will fall into place. I've played in many games where you show up and the first thing you ask is "What were we doing again? Why are we here?" 1. We need to storm the Keep and stop the cleric before he opens the gate to Shadowfell? 2. If we don't, shadow creatures will overrun Winterhaven and destroy everything and everyone the characters know and love. 3. In their way is an evil cleric and his minions who will do everything to stop them. Your hook then, based on that, is some link to Winterhaven that matters. Family and friends are the best hooks for that, because they are not something easily abandoned. If you want to increase the tension, attach a timeline to this (he will open it at the stroke of midnight after the third day, or something). As for reasons to distrust the warlock, it's always been my policy to show and not tell. Instead of pulling them aside, have NPCs react poorly to the warlock and perhaps seek the paladin and cleric out for advice about warding off the evil eye. Maybe have a peer in the church question their judgement by consorting with such a foul practitioner of dark magic. Peasant superstitions (not making eye contact, making the sign of the evil eye, getting out of the warlock's path) will also keep it fresh in their mind. [/QUOTE]

Verification