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Sidmen
2012-02-22, 10:34 PM
Hello Playgrounders, though I've been lurking for a long while and have thrown out a few posts here and there, this is my first thread - so please be gentle :smalleek:. In the highly unlikely event that one of my players is reading - please stop (I'm Sidney, I doubt there are others with that name).

I've been running a game for the past few months (in the Dragon-Age system, with stupid levels of home-brewing) and have reached a point that I'm not too schooled on. So far we've gone dungeon-delving for lost relics, explored a haunted forest to recover some keys to a vault, and battled tons of ghosts who have been hopping out of nowhere to hassle the players. But now, I'm going to be running a Tourney being held by one of the players' noble houses (they literally bankrupted themselves to hold it), which will be drawing contestants from the entire region. Hes decided the tourney will host 4 major games, a Joust, a Grand Melee, a Marathon, and a Marksmanship contest.

The reason I'm making this thread is because I have precious little knowledge and inspiration on how to play something like this out. I could, of course, just run a couple mock battles, mounted combats, opposed running tests, and archery rolls - but I want it to be better than that. I'd like there to be some intrigue, some notable characters, and maybe even some cheating going on.

So far, my mind is blanking on all that - I know one notable character, the scion from a rival noble house (whom will likely end up at war with the players) is going to be impersonated, to push them even more into hating that rival house. But everything else is just... not coming to me.

I could really use some good hooks, ways of presenting the tourney, and even some characters. Anything and everything can happen in my game world (it is based largely around the Exalted Setting, which features powerful magics, mythic arms and armor, and even gods walking the earth) so if you can think of something - please share it.

I'd like to thank you all in advance for any help you can give, the game is being hosted Sunday so I know there won't be a ton of time to concoct stuff.

Hiro Protagonest
2012-02-22, 10:52 PM
Well, the gods that walk the earth are more like ghosts, dryads, and elementals than gods. The most powerful of the elementals are dragons.

Back to the topic. Do you want the melee to be to the death, like The Hunger Games, or do you want it to be nonlethal?

What level is the party?

Sidmen
2012-02-23, 02:51 PM
The players are Dragon-Blooded wielding ~10 charms and some Artifact-equivalent gear, I've divorced levels from my game (its essentially just exalted run on the core system of Dragon Age, character creation and advancement is near identical to exalted) but they should be around level 4 or 5 equivalent. One is pretty optimized as a swordsman, wielding a quality blade and wearing Gunzosha armor scavenged from a ruin. Another is generalized, but carries a personal-scale essence cannon and Ashigaru Skirmisher armor - he focuses mostly on herbalism and medicine charms with a few archery charms. The last is a potent Sorcerer, capable of throwing out 6d6+8 damage (the average mortal has ~20HP) when he really feels like it, though is severely lacking in any of the contests that will be going on.

The Melee will be a nonlethal game (they're in the hundred kingdoms, and the contest is merely to keep the nobility sharp) though it is possible there will be some deaths.

playswithfire
2012-02-25, 08:18 AM
I don't know the Dragon Age setting, so some of these might not apply:
The nobility is abuzz with news of the disappearance of one of the younger members (say the third son) of the royal family. It is presumed he's being held for ransom, or perhaps simply to offer offense. He is the most bookish of the royal children and was rarely in danger, so his security detail was less than that of his brothers. In reality, he has snuck off and entered the tournament under a false name.
-Option 1: He goes unrecognized and the party befriend him
-Option 2: He goes unrecognized and the party offends him, leading to some form of retribution down the line
-Option 3: He is nearly, or perhaps actually, killed in the melee competition. This is either because he was unrecognized and his opponent is overzealous or because he was recognized by one of the nobles who saw advantage in having him die "accidentally" and instructed his fighter to be overzealous

There would presumably be gambling going on during the tournament, whether it be official, with the noble house taking a cut of all wagers to help make the tournament profitable for them; completely unofficial, with maybe a thieves' guild or other criminal organization running things; or both, with maybe a merchants' guild running their own brand somewhere in the middle. In any case, gambling leads to the potential for someone, whether a noble or a criminal (not necessary mutually exclusive) to try and fix the competitions, paying competitors to take a dive or organizing "accidents" that incapacitate others. If there's less than official gambling, you have the opportunity to introduce some new organizations, criminal or commercial.

In a similar vein, any large gathering of people would also bring out the criminal element interested in either picking their pockets or getting them drunk and learning useful information.

Sidmen
2012-02-26, 12:09 AM
Thanks playswithfire, they all work just fine in the setting.

I'm particularly fond of the royal pup in the competition, thats exactly the kind of thing that could get my players more interested in national politics. I honestly didn't even consider gambling, and whether it would be official or unofficial, that is defiantly something I can work with.

playswithfire
2012-02-26, 01:51 AM
Glad I could help.

Just realized I forgot the time-honored tournament trope tradition of a jousting knight asking the favor, signified by a token like a handkerchief etc, of one of the noble ladies in attendance. I don't know how many members of the player's noble house (is only one a noble?) have been described in their backstory, but, if there are any sisters of marrying age, adding a few unsuitable suitors to the roster of the tournament could create new (probably minor) antagonists for the party. Or, you can have noble ladies of other houses who bestow their favor on one or more members of the party (I assume they're all competing) as part of some power play orchestrated either by their families for gain or by themselves for additional amusement while watching the tournament.
If they bite on either version of the hook, it could add to both drama and politics.

Aidan305
2012-02-26, 06:56 PM
Be aware that tournaments, while a fun idea, can be dangerous in a game because they can slow the progression down immensely. With each player fighting his own battles, if combat is slow I've known it to take several sessions to get through just a few "rounds" of the tournament. The players, meanwhile, find it dull because while others are fighting they have nothing to do and you'll find their attention wandering away from the game, slowing things down even more because then you have to work to bring their attention back to it.