RPGnet Columns
02-11-2005, 02:22 PM
Post originally by Karro at 2005-02-11 13:22:21
Converted from Phorums BB System
I have to say I've learned to agree with the main thrust of your article here. And I learned it the hard way. In the last campaign I ran, operating under the assumption that true heroes don't just up and die in books and movies, I offered my players the concession that I wouldn't ever outright kill their characters. While this in itself did not destroy the campaign, it did let the players think that they could pretty much get away with anything (this is not to say they couldn't lose, but they knew they wouldn't die doing it anyway)... sometimes with disastrous results, and sometimes very amusing results, to my planned story. While looking back the blatant disregard for the rules of reality and overt power-gaming that resulted are kind of funny, and perhaps even comic-worthy, it did not produce the desired results.
So, as I write this, I have two different thoughts. The first is, what are your thoughts on ~planning~ for the characters to fail as a means of progressing the plot--for instance throwing them against a "Boss" or some villain that they can't possibly defeat, and when the inevitable failure comes (or when some other pre-planned threshold is met), have a story-producing consequence occur. While this failure need not necessarily include in character death, any number of other things could occur. I am thinking about this a lot in considering how to rewrite my campaign and rerun it (with a new group). I think it could provide adequate impetus to draw truly heroic but still smart behaviour from the players.
I am also thinking alot about a mechanic that would allow players either to survive indefinitely (until the end of the story), or die a glorious and valiant death. The mechanic would put the power in the player's hands, in conjunction with the GM, in order to plan truly great role-playing and story-focused moments that will be memorable. Now, I'm not talking, though, about "narativist" game structures where character's don't have real stats or kewl powerz or whatnot--I'm envisioning a game with all the gamist trappings that might hearken back to a D&D-style experience but which inverts the goal-oriented experience to be about using these characters to tell a great story. The idea is to encourage players to do cool things that would make a memorable story out of their adventures, including sacrificing themselves for the greater good (and let's face it, that's the only way heroes ever die in the stories--when they make a noble and valiant last stand to draw the attention of some uber-powerful villain away from the far weaker characters, or something like that). I'm still thinking about how I might include in-game rewards for such actions, or what the contingency would be if a player made such a sacrifice but wanted to continue to play.
Converted from Phorums BB System
I have to say I've learned to agree with the main thrust of your article here. And I learned it the hard way. In the last campaign I ran, operating under the assumption that true heroes don't just up and die in books and movies, I offered my players the concession that I wouldn't ever outright kill their characters. While this in itself did not destroy the campaign, it did let the players think that they could pretty much get away with anything (this is not to say they couldn't lose, but they knew they wouldn't die doing it anyway)... sometimes with disastrous results, and sometimes very amusing results, to my planned story. While looking back the blatant disregard for the rules of reality and overt power-gaming that resulted are kind of funny, and perhaps even comic-worthy, it did not produce the desired results.
So, as I write this, I have two different thoughts. The first is, what are your thoughts on ~planning~ for the characters to fail as a means of progressing the plot--for instance throwing them against a "Boss" or some villain that they can't possibly defeat, and when the inevitable failure comes (or when some other pre-planned threshold is met), have a story-producing consequence occur. While this failure need not necessarily include in character death, any number of other things could occur. I am thinking about this a lot in considering how to rewrite my campaign and rerun it (with a new group). I think it could provide adequate impetus to draw truly heroic but still smart behaviour from the players.
I am also thinking alot about a mechanic that would allow players either to survive indefinitely (until the end of the story), or die a glorious and valiant death. The mechanic would put the power in the player's hands, in conjunction with the GM, in order to plan truly great role-playing and story-focused moments that will be memorable. Now, I'm not talking, though, about "narativist" game structures where character's don't have real stats or kewl powerz or whatnot--I'm envisioning a game with all the gamist trappings that might hearken back to a D&D-style experience but which inverts the goal-oriented experience to be about using these characters to tell a great story. The idea is to encourage players to do cool things that would make a memorable story out of their adventures, including sacrificing themselves for the greater good (and let's face it, that's the only way heroes ever die in the stories--when they make a noble and valiant last stand to draw the attention of some uber-powerful villain away from the far weaker characters, or something like that). I'm still thinking about how I might include in-game rewards for such actions, or what the contingency would be if a player made such a sacrifice but wanted to continue to play.