Well, my campaign's kaput! {update: not so kaput anymore}

Kichwas · Feb 15, 2004

Take a break from that game, start a new one with the players, and then in a few months time if you all start to get ideas for the old game revisit it.

BSF · Feb 15, 2004

One problem is too much turnover. The new PC's are not invested in the group. Even if it is the same player, the character has no investment. Personally, I would have either wrapped it up when Leska was taken care of, or I would have already been putting a new story in place before that occurred.

So, how do you rectify the problem? Well, you just want to play and have some fun right? So, play something fun.

Convert something like Tomb of Horrors, or White Plume Mountain, or something equally extravagent lethal. But, don't do it as a mega-adventure. Give the players the setup and allow them to choose to use their existing characters, or to create a new high-level PC to deal with the problem and retire the existing PC. If a player retires the long-term PC, wrap up a few things on what the PC will be doing in retirement. Then, cut them loose in a lethal dungeon environment.

Alternatively, if the group is willing to retire the PC's and start again, then start a new campaign. But, start it off at level 3-5 so they aren't too fragile.

Finally, maybe somebody else is willing to run a game and you can join in as a player.

It sounds like you are kind of looking to keep playing through the semester, but you don't want to leave it completely open-ended in case you move after graduation. So, a long-term, involved storyline is not a good option.

RangerWickett · Feb 15, 2004

Well, one of my players just called me and said that he'd noticed I'd seemed frustrated last night during the game. Admittedly, part of it was that I was frikkin' sick with a sore throat only being compounded by talking for six hours (and being single on Valentine's Day despite having a crush on one of the players in my game; but that's another thread). But yeah, I was a little frustrated that some of the players didn't seem to have a connection with the adventure, and one player in particular gave me a great plot hook to work him in, and then turned it into an excuse to betray the party in the same session he showed up.

So I was stressed, but my player offered me catharsis. And now I'm ready to get back to the game. There's still a villain to deal with, and several plots I want to wrap up.

I did have several plots running in the background while the party dealt with Leska, so I had material for a third season. It's just that a lot of people died at once. I'll just need to talk with one of the players, encourage him to play something that will work with the party, and I should be set.

Blue_Kryptonite · Feb 15, 2004

D+1 said:
I am unfamiliar with that definition. [...] Happy Days jumped the shark when Fonzie did the motorcycle jump.

Just a quick clarification: Happy Days originated the term when Fonzie literally waterski-jumped over a shark. In his leather jacket.

As for Wickett... Its good that you found the light side again, but when in doubt... Bring everyone who was held in check by Leska out of the woodwork, in order, at war with each other, and make it personal. They'll stop betraying each other as survival mechanism, and when the surviving bad guys finally join forces, your party will be a team again.

Dark Jezter · Feb 15, 2004

Dr. Anomalous said:
Just a quick clarification: Happy Days originated the term when Fonzie literally waterski-jumped over a shark. In his leather jacket.

That one episode of Happy Days spawned the phrase, which has since been used to describe the moment at which a show begins to go downhill. The Brady Bunch jumped the shark when Cousin Oliver moved in, MASH jumped the shark when Alan Alda took control of the series and made it all depressing and preachy, Cheers jumped the shark when Rebecca replaced Diane, Seinfeld jumped the shark when Larry David left the show, Who's the Boss jumped the shark when Tony and Angela became a couple, the Drew Carey Show jumped the shark when Drew and Kate got engaged, et cetera, et cetera.

Generally, most of the time when a show jumps the shark, it can be traced back to one or more of the following events:

Somebody has a baby.
Two of the main characters become romantically involved (or just have sex).
A cute little kid joins the cast.
Somebody gets married.
The cast goes on a vacation to Hawaii (or some other popular vacation spot).
The character remains, but the actor changes.
Ted McGinley joins the cast.
High School or College graduation.
A popular character leaves the show entirely (usually because the actor playing said character wants to persue a movie career).
Nearly every episode has a "special guest star."

Of course, there are people out there who will scream "It jumped the shark! It jumped the shark!" every time a TV show has a bad episode. But the opinions of those people are mostly irrelevent, because naysaying and tearing things down is what they love to do best.

Sorry for the threadjack.

Gez · Feb 15, 2004

D&D3 jumped the shark with Sword & Fist!

And again with the ELH! And again again with the BOVD! And again again again with 3.5!

Gundark · Feb 15, 2004

RangerWickett said:
I know now that the game should have ended back when they killed Leska. Now, I don't want to just call the game quits before the long-term players get a chance to finish up some of their desires, but that's just character-specific desires. I would have involved them in upcoming sessions, balancing character-driven stuff with group-driven stuff, but there's no group left, so I see no reason to keep the game together.
.

Well I have XP in this area, in my game the PCs killed off the BBG that was giving them grief and what the campaign was revolving around. I tried to let it continue by intoducing new BBGs that the group had to fight. It just wasn't the same, and we ended in a wimper. I think the reason was that the group focused so intently into defeating the first BBG (those were some great sessions) that when he was defeated it seemed pointless to continue with the same characters. You say you're about to graduate? well then it depends if you are moving after you get your degree/diploma. If not then I would say start a new game, new goal, new focus.