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KnotKnormal
2014-10-07, 08:32 AM
What does everyone think about written prologs and epilogues.

This weekend I'm running a one shot game, for new players, in the world I've built for many story arches. I was writing the Prolog and it dawned on me that his is going to be a one day thing, do i really need one? I've written almost 3 pages (first draft, will be cut down) of back story for players that have no idea what has happened in the world so far, but will more then likely not visit the world again. so is it worth it?

Thanks everyone

The_Werebear
2014-10-07, 09:12 AM
For a one shot, I would just hit all relevant elements.


I.E. The Good King went off to fight in a distant land for glory and honor, and while he was away his evil brother and his scheming Sheriff cheated many people from their land. Now, you, and a few others, fight a secret war against their forces to win the support of the people and depose the Prince, Sheriff, and their conspirators.

Even in a longer game, Three pages is probably overkill unless you have an incredibly complex backstory with many small, relevant details. I would leave most things to be described in game. Rather than outright saying "The kingdom has a good king," let people cheerfully toast his health in the taverns.

DM Nate
2014-10-07, 09:27 AM
For me, one-shots are always the prologues themselves. If the players really like the one-shot, and if I feel like DMing a new campaign, I use the one-shot as a springboard into a full-length campaign. (I've done this twice so far.)

KnotKnormal
2014-10-07, 10:00 AM
that's kind of what I'm doing here. However one story arch was already completed in the world, and this is kind of the prolog o the next arch. the problem I'm facing is that there are alot of relevant details. Like a whole new pantheon for instance. (took the existing gods, renamed and re-fluffed)

Red Fel
2014-10-07, 10:03 AM
For me, one-shots are always the prologues themselves. If the players really like the one-shot, and if I feel like DMing a new campaign, I use the one-shot as a springboard into a full-length campaign. (I've done this twice so far.)

This is an excellent point. Consider how many great movies began in media res. A one-shot doesn't need as much scene-setting, and if you use it as a springboard, it is the scene-setting.

The purpose of a prologue is to establish the setting. If you're using an established or well-known setting, there's not as much need. Similarly, if your PCs are of humble origins or would have no reason to know the history of the world, a lot of a prologue's thrust is wasted. There are times when a prologue is appropriate, of course. In a new or unfamiliar setting, or to set the tone of proper epic heroism (or comedic action), it can be quite potent. But generally, the purpose is to provide a reader, viewer, or (in this case) player with the suspension of disbelief and functional knowledge needed to operate in the world.

For example, a prologue detailing centuries of political strife won't make much difference to the farmboy who just received the call to adventure. The movements of gods in their heavens won't be known to people outside of the clergy unless these gods have an active hand in the affairs of the world. The actions of a foreign nation in preparing for war won't be relevant to the average citizen unless the foreign power somehow advertizes. A prologue should be examined for its value in contributing vital setting information and establishing a mood; if it can't do the former, the only mood it will set is "bored now."

I consider prologues, in general, to be optional. I consider epilogues to be almost mandatory. Here's why. The prologue can set the stage for the adventure, sure, but the epilogue ties all the loose ends up. It reminds the players that the characters were important, vibrant beings who left an impact, and went on to live happily ever after (or not, depending on the campaign). Giving the players closure is one of the best ways to ensure fond memories of the campaign, and any long-running campaign deserves a suitably epic capstone.

The best epilogues don't just say that the world was saved and the people were grateful, of course. The observant DM, in crafting an epilogue, will recognize what each PC has wanted, what he has striven to achieve, and what he deserves. The epilogue delivers it. The farmboy called to adventure returns home to his loved ones and his simple life. The scientist seeking recognition perfects his life's work, and becomes dean of the Academy. The sorcerer intent on demonic power breaches the wall between worlds, and vanishes, cackling about his future conquests. The swordsman vanishes into the mists, becoming the stuff of legends, a story handed down from one generation to the next, about a phantom knight who watches over the kingdom in its hour of need. A great epilogue rewards the player.

I would like to clarify one thing, however: you say "written prologues and epilogues." Does that mean you (the DM) write them in advance, or that you give them to the players in writing? The former is great, because it allows you to prepare something suitably epic. The latter is horrible, because unless you give them particularly good reason, your players probably aren't going to read a three-page prologue or a short-story epilogue.

KnotKnormal
2014-10-07, 10:18 AM
I would like to clarify one thing, however: you say "written prologues and epilogues." Does that mean you (the DM) write them in advance, or that you give them to the players in writing? The former is great, because it allows you to prepare something suitably epic. The latter is horrible, because unless you give them particularly good reason, your players probably aren't going to read a three-page prologue or a short-story epilogue.

I physically write a Prolog well in advance of a campaign arch, and give copies to my players so that they can tie their backgrounds stories into current events (I also reward for written background stories that fit the setting well. The epilogue, usually stays in flux until just before the final session (free will and all) and i usually read it or just tell them the important details of each character.

ElenionAncalima
2014-10-07, 10:41 AM
that's kind of what I'm doing here. However one story arch was already completed in the world, and this is kind of the prolog o the next arch. the problem I'm facing is that there are alot of relevant details. Like a whole new pantheon for instance. (took the existing gods, renamed and re-fluffed)

Sometimes I think you have to sit back and figure out what the players really need to know. If you hit them with an over-abundance of information, the majority of it is going to be forgotten. I tend to find players ask for the information when they need it. For instance, do the characters need to know all about the new pantheon or do they just need a warning during character creation that the new pantheon exists, so that they run any idea by you?

I am also a big fan of giving setting details to the players that they are relevant to. For example, in my current campaign there is a lot of social and politcal issue surrounding how wizards are trained. Instead of including that information in my prologue, I just talked with the wizard about it before the campaign started. Now when those issues come up, she is able to explain it to the group and it feels very organic. Perhaps, some of your extra info could be distributed this way. Instead of bogging down the prologue, give any divine characters a handout about the new pantheon before the game.

Red Fel
2014-10-07, 10:56 AM
I physically write a Prolog well in advance of a campaign arch, and give copies to my players so that they can tie their backgrounds stories into current events (I also reward for written background stories that fit the setting well. The epilogue, usually stays in flux until just before the final session (free will and all) and i usually read it or just tell them the important details of each character.

First off, in my experience, only the truly devoted players (aren't they just adorable?) will actually parse through an extensive written history of the setting. So for most, I'll just have a quick sit-down and hash out the relevant details.

With regard to a one-shot campaign, however, I think you might be putting in too much legwork. (Is there such a thing as too much?) Here's why: It's a one-shot. A microcosm. If they're never playing in this universe again, all that world-building you've done was for the sole purpose of a single session. I'm not saying it's wasted, but that its use has been sorely limited. And if you do decide to bring back this particular setting, they've already had the prologue - as Nate pointed out, the one-shot was the prologue.

Did you ever watch a movie where you had to sit through about forty-five minutes to an hour of exposition and buildup before you got to the fifteen-to-twenty minutes of actual action and plot resolution? Did that plot resolution make up for all the dragging-out that came before? Consider that. You're putting a lot of work into this backstory. You're creating a long and elaborate buildup. With buildup comes anticipation. In a long campaign, it's possible to satisfy that anticipation in some really awesome ways. In a one-shot, it's much more difficult, and if you fail to do so, you fail hard.

Short version: I'd discourage a prologue to this one-shot unless there's some truly vital setting-specific info the players need. In that case, I'd make it in the form of a spoken prologue, to help set the tone. Make it concise and to the point, perhaps something along the lines of a Star Wars intro - what's been going on, what's going on now, and where we meet our heroes. Three paragraphs, not three pages.

DM Nate
2014-10-07, 11:06 AM
Make it concise and to the point, perhaps something along the lines of a Star Wars intro

And we all remember how important understanding the trade embargo was...

KnotKnormal
2014-10-07, 12:16 PM
Ok, I've been listening to you guys and managed to take out about half of the filler crap, does anyone have anything wrong with me post it on here when i finish simplifying it... ill probably end up printing it out just so i don't have to repeat the back story for jump ins.

Thank for your help so far.

kieza
2014-10-07, 12:48 PM
I once had a group that was brand-new to fourth edition...so I ran a prologue to the campaign where they used simplified characters to get used to the system.

And at the very end, the prologue turned into survival horror as the premades were hunted down one-by-one and killed.

Then the real campaign started, with the real party investigating a site where a bunch of soldiers had been hunted down and killed...

KnotKnormal
2014-10-07, 12:58 PM
I once had a group that was brand-new to fourth edition...so I ran a prologue to the campaign where they used simplified characters to get used to the system.

And at the very end, the prologue turned into survival horror as the premades were hunted down one-by-one and killed.

Then the real campaign started, with the real party investigating a site where a bunch of soldiers had been hunted down and killed...

Funny you should say that actually... I'm running this in 5e and everyone is new to it, including me, so any tips for running a system you just learned?

kieza
2014-10-07, 09:00 PM
Funny you should say that actually... I'm running this in 5e and everyone is new to it, including me, so any tips for running a system you just learned?

My first suggestion is to start out with very easy encounters. The first two or three shouldn't be remotely challenging--they're just there to let the players experiment and see what works.

Once they have a chance to settle into the new system, ramp up the difficulty so that they get a feeling for what "these guys are a challenge, but we're winning," "these guys are a challenge and we're losing," and "these guys are killing us, let's run" look like.

The idea is to let the players--and yourself--see the system in practice. I'm not switching to fifth edition, so I don't know what you might run into, but with fourth edition what I saw is that the players had to get used to the higher number of hit points. They panicked when a monster took more than one or two hits to kill, and they also didn't realize how limited their own healing was at first.