Month: December 2016

Posted in General Writing

Set Piece: Revelry

Posted on by crimsonphotog

Introduction:

It’s the time of year that we gather with our friends and family and have great merriment.   Do your characters’ ever do that in a game?  Beat the Big Bad and save the town, the kingdom, the planet, the galaxy.  Do they stop and have a celebration, a party, get medals?(ala a New Hope)  Sure some of these events mark the end of a campaign, and rightly so, but other smaller victories should be rewarded, and offer the chance for the PCs to cut loose and develop.

Scene:

It’s time for a party.  Maybe it’s a holiday in your campaign, or the PCs are being honored or rewarded.  This should be more of a fluff session then an action scene, but it should also be ripe with roleplaying.  It also can be the setup for more things to come. A scene like this can end an act of your campaign or start a new one.

Mood:

Joyous.  It is time for celebration.   It is ok to have a few moments of somberness and reflection.  Most victories come with some loss or some collateral damage, this shouldn’t be forgotten like a cheesy 80’s action film, but don’t let reflection bring the whole session down…  Unless of course it is driven by the PCs and not the NPCs.  Lighten things up a bit, have people having a good time. Continue reading “Set Piece: Revelry” →

Posted in God of the Fall, Role-playing Sessions

The Works of Polodious – The Fallen Shard of Elanehtar – Part 1

Posted on by crimsonphotog

The following journal describes the first session of a Monthly Gods of the Fall game run my Marc Plourde. You can find his session notes and GM prep for this session on his blog HERE it is a great read.    The players and characters for this game are as follows:

Dave Hanlon plays Demodamas an Abrasive destroyer who delved too deeply.

Jim Baltzell-Gauthier plays Utar a Taran Champion who grows to Towering Heights

Andrew Lyon plays Iztal a Mysterious Shaper who walks in the Night

and I play Polodius an Inquisitive Savior who explores Dark Places

Now without further adieu…

23rd of Zenowa, 42AF – The Festival of the Fallen Gods

Quite a few interesting things happened this night of festivities.  I could look at this night and say it changed the course of history for me and my companions.  Some Scholar might argue the future of the Afterworld itself changed that night.  I, however, cannot speculate.  I am too close to the events to gauge their true impact.  I will say that night started all that is about to transpire. Continue reading “The Works of Polodious – The Fallen Shard of Elanehtar – Part 1” →

Posted in Gaming Advice, Set Piece

Set Piece: Captured

Posted on by crimsonphotog

Introduction:

Heroes being captured is something that happens a lot in adventure stories with villains, but less frequently in RPGs.  (Unless you’re Leenik Geelo and your go-to plan is to be captured on purpose) Most gamers refuse to accept defeat and will fight to the death instead of being taken prisoner. Many GMs, however, balk at killing a character or railroading their players by forcing a capture.   My advice is to do the former not the later.  If your players outsmart the antagonist and find a way out of the ambush and avoid capture, good for them!  However, if the Antagonist has them dead to rights and your players refuse to surrender, killing, maiming, or knocking unconscious a PC may be in order.  Though you should probably appeal to the player.  Ask them what their character would really do in this situation.  In the heat of the action, some players forget they are playing characters and do what they think is right or would ‘win’ instead.  However, fighting to their dying breath is the right character decision for many player characters.  So make sure you are aware of that and plan accordingly.    With that said I am going to talk about how to run a “players are captured” set piece.  This is different from a ‘players are imprisoned’ set piece I’ll get to one of those later.

Scene:

The PC have been captured and are being held in a temporary or makeshift cell, something not designed for long term holding.  This could be in something like a prison wagon, (Dragonlance, Way of Kings, Game of Thrones) a cage, a holding cell in a police station, locked in the basement, or simply confined to their quarters. Continue reading “Set Piece: Captured” →