Marching Band of Bards.

[Catman]

Imagine a traveling marching band of Bard NPCs. Probably Gnomes... No, definitely Gnomes. Wandering the world, and always showing up in the nick of time when the PCs are in over their heads.

Why not? Pros and cons of this. What are my options?

[GutterFace]

I anticipate a lot of lazy PC's

but this could be a decent idea for a party of new players. but it will never teach them the value of being cautious in a Kobold mine.

[Slipperychicken]

cons


Overpowered NPCs.
Risk of becoming Mary Sue.
Deus Ex Machina.
No risk for PCs if they're always bailed out.


This will be very easy to screw up (I don't recommend trying this unless you are a highly competent and experienced GM), and will present you with a temptation to send these guys in constantly to bail the PCs out. Remember that you need to let the PCs lose sometimes; otherwise they will grow complacent and bored since they lack a true challenge.

[Duke of Urrel]

Imagine a traveling marching band of Bard NPCs. Probably Gnomes... No, definitely Gnomes. Wandering the world, and always showing up in the nick of time when the PCs are in over their heads.

Why not? Pros and cons of this. What are my options?

As others have already said, the traveling bards mustn't always be there to bail out the PCs, because that would be bad structure. It would deprive the PCs of their role as lead protagonists.

However:

I like the idea of a traveling band of bards who do rescue work. I think they should play bagpipes and be obnoxiously loud. I would prefer them to be somewhat Chaotic and not at all reliable. Maybe the bards mean well, but their divination and teleportation devices are quirky and inaccurate. They should often arrive when they're not needed, or just a little too late – in time to heal some wounds and send messages for help, but no more punctual than that. They should also sometimes arrive at embarrassingly inappropriate times. I think this might be a terrific source of comic relief if done right.

EDIT: You might give the bards a tragi-comic twist and change them into an adventure hook. Suppose the PCs discover a magic item that summons a troupe of low-level Chaotic-Good bards who must use their Perform skill to inspire courage in the summoner's party. Then suppose that this magic item is one of a set of three items, two of which are still in the hands of Lawful-Evil creatures, which is not surprising, because Lawful-Evil Outsiders have made the bards the permanent slaves of these items. Usually, the bards must perform for sadistically Evil masters who compel them to act as cheerleaders for their Evil deeds. And the PCs eventually discover this – and their mission is to liberate the bards, who have truly suffered enough.

[Mjollnir075]

I think they should play bagpipes and be obnoxiously loud. I would prefer them to be somewhat Chaotic and not at all reliable. Maybe the bards mean well, but their divination and teleportation devices are quirky and inaccurate. They should often arrive when they're not needed, or just a little too late – in time to heal some wounds and send messages for help, but no more punctual than that. They should also sometimes arrive at embarrassingly inappropriate times. I think this might be a terrific source of comic relief if done right.


This is amazing. I love this idea. I can imagine the scenarios already.

- Bards hear about a big battle going down, and intend to arrive in the nick of time. Only one shows up where they intend, then others end up a few miles away.

- Bards showing up right before a big fight, almost foreshadow-ey, and take off when they don't see the trouble.

- Bards popping in during a sneaky jailbreak. Playing the bagpipes.

- Bards showing up DURING a big fight, but are banished immediately back to whence they came.

[karkus]

not at all reliable.

There you go. :smallbiggrin: Perfect NPCs right there.

[Krobar]

Does the drum line all get Drums of Panic?