Tournaments & Battle Royal's

[Stormchild14]

Hey I was wondering if anyone had done anything like team tournament or Battle Royal that lasted multiple session. What I had in mind is that the group would be competing in this worlds equivalent of the Olympic games that closed out with a team based tournament or battle royal, the question is how to hook players into it without enticing them with money (they have a lot and don't need anymore).

[BWR]

Try enticing them with things that can hardly be bought for money.
Fame! if it's a big famous match, if they win they will be very popular for a short while. Fancy parties, hob-nobbing with the nobles, etc

The right to represent a powerful person in another important task, e.g. fighting a dragon or something similarly clichéed. Possibilities for social advancement, perhaps knighthoods or similar.

[Xintas]

Absolutely. Intangibles are the best. Make it something they can't get any other way.

You could even imply that being that famous and essentially worshiped by so many people would be enough to get them a divine rank 0 (if they are of high level with loads of money and you want to move onto bigger and badder encounters).

[Red Fel]

If you really want to entice them, let it come with other things. Winners get use of the Winners' Palace. They get groupies, too. There's a neat little hook there - it can be the start of a probational Leadership feat. Get the groupies for free now. Treat them poorly and they vanish. Treat them well and gain Leadership as a free feat, and one of your groupies will become a Cohort.

But yes. Intangibles are potent. Name recognition opens doors. "Oh, Sir Loin! I saw your performance at the Battalion! Your execution of the Scapelli Maneuver was quite impressive - as was your execution of that dragon, ha ha! Come, join me at my chateau - it would be my privilege!"

EDIT: As a side note, name recognition can also become a great plot hook. Champions earn rivals, or become political pawns. People may seek them out to prove their strength. Others may seek them out to use their skills. World leaders wanting to use them to win wars. Cults wanting to sacrifice them to their dark god. It's a great way to get the players involved in large, continent- or world-spanning conflicts.

[Flavel]

Winners get knighted!

...and if the PCs don't think this through they will end up swearing fealty. :)

Alternatively, perhaps a number of entrants were inducted by way of the city dungeon (reduced sentences for volunteering in the games).

[HC Rainbow]

Hey I was wondering if anyone had done anything like team tournament or Battle Royal that lasted multiple session. What I had in mind is that the group would be competing in this worlds equivalent of the Olympic games that closed out with a team based tournament or battle royal, the question is how to hook players into it without enticing them with money (they have a lot and don't need anymore).

I actually ran an arena quest where the players would select a partner amongst themselves and would fight in an arena against another team.

I enticed my players with a select item that each of the players would want.

The wizard I knew really wanted a strong blaster spell, The barbarian wanted a shiny new powerful hammer, rogue wanted some cool crossbows, the monk wanted a better class (lol), Things like that.

At the end I told them they could have double the prize if they killed their partner, They... did not like that, and tried killing everyone.

Long story short, it was fun but frustrating, players would get mad at eachother and things like that.

[Phaederkiel]

double if they kill their partner...?

i very much doubt this could be taken well by any group. either players hate each other, or, little paladins they are, kill the guy who made that offer.



i had an arena quest where they started to bet on their own victory. and they bet all they had. more or less bankrupted the local economy.

[ben-zayb]

Absolutely. Intangibles are the best. Make it something they can't get any other way.Does winning their kidnapped loved ones' freedom count?

[Xintas]

Does winning their kidnapped loved ones' freedom count?

Ayup. I'd certainly say so. My players have done a lot more for a lot less of an intangible than that, but my players care about the fluff more than the crunch anyway.