NPCs Talking to each other

[Captain Kablam]

Hey, got basically a political summit happening in my campaign, problem is it'll more than likely involve a ton of NPC dialogue. Has anyone ever had an easy go with the whole "talking to yourself" thing?

[Geddy2112]

In addition to the whole "talking to yourself" the players have to sit there and watch, so this is best avoided. That said, NPC's talk to each other all the time, and in a large group of NPC's or two important ones, it might be important.

For these situations, I normally just tell the players the highlights of the conversation, NPC's of note, and their opinions/details/relevant nuances. If the party interjects and talks to the NPC's, then the NPC's go back to conversing with each other, I just do the same.

Example: Thorin the dwarf paladin and Ezren the elf wizard are discussing the recent demonic incursion in the northlands. Both seem to have some kind of pull in this community. Thorin has expressed fervent interest in launching an attack, while Ezren says that the city must shore up their defenses.
(Insert party interjections etc)
Thorin and Ezren resume talking to themselves, and debate the merits of sending the party north vs using the gold to defend the city. Eventually they agree that paying the party is better than sending their own forces, which can stay behind to defend the city. Ezren seems unusually reluctant to spend the coin required by adventurers, and Thorin is disappointed he won't be able to go fight himself, but the two who seem to agree on very little have compromised.

[Nifft]

Hey, got basically a political summit happening in my campaign, problem is it'll more than likely involve a ton of NPC dialogue. Has anyone ever had an easy go with the whole "talking to yourself" thing?

Is it a set-piece dialog that you can plan in advance?

If so, write the script and print out one copy per NPC.

Hand the scripts to the players, and tell them to voice the NPCs.

Play one yourself if you want, too.

[KillianHawkeye]

I don't normally have a problem with short conversations between NPCs, but a diplomatic summit with long-winded speeches and arguments and such? I think I would probably just narrate it, giving the general gist of each person's dialogue and making sure to mention any points the NPCs make that would be important for the players to know.

[Captain Kablam]

Well printed stuff is fine, but since these are basically negotiations that the players do have a stake in, and knowing them, it'd be more true if the had the chance to interject, bargain, threaten war and so on. I think what I may end up doing is grabbing another friend and have her control and voice a few people. Practice with her, bounce a few lines back and forth. Would that work?

[Nifft]

Well printed stuff is fine, but since these are basically negotiations that the players do have a stake in, and knowing them, it'd be more true if the had the chance to interject, bargain, threaten war and so on. I think what I may end up doing is grabbing another friend and have her control and voice a few people. Practice with her, bounce a few lines back and forth. Would that work?

1/ Set-piece dialog that introduces the NPCs and shows their positions & the conflicts between them.

2/ One-on-one dialog between PCs and one specific NPC or faction; repeat as necessary.

3/ NPCs then make BRIEF overtures to each other, indicating who will be making back-room deals with whom.

[TorsteinTheRed]

1/ Set-piece dialog that introduces the NPCs and shows their positions & the conflicts between them.

2/ One-on-one dialog between PCs and one specific NPC or faction; repeat as necessary.

3/ NPCs then make BRIEF overtures to each other, indicating who will be making back-room deals with whom.

Definitely this. Have the initial in-character dialogue be at most one sentence each, with summarization filling in the rest. If you're the type that likes to add mannerisms and/or voices to your NPCs, don't be afraid to use them for your summaries as well.

The worry is less looking weird by talking to yourself, and more ensuring that your players don't have to sit there listening to dialogue and exposition for a full minute or ten. Treat it the same way you'd treat them going into negotiations with a single person or group. The players aren't likely to care about the minutia that the Orcs and Elves are worried about, just like they wouldn't care for the minutia of what the group of Dwarves whispers to each other during a business deal, or what goes through the Dragon's head while they bargain for their lives. Summaries and end results about the things on your end are enough.

Also, If you rely on a script for your NPCs to talk through, you're making the assumption that the Players will be fine just listening to stuff without having the agency to even just interrupt someone. Very few players I've met would be okay with that.

[Nifft]

Also, If you rely on a script for your NPCs to talk through, you're making the assumption that the Players will be fine just listening to stuff without having the agency to even just interrupt someone. Very few players I've met would be okay with that.

Yes indeed.

It's much easier -- and more fun IMHO -- to hand them all a script, and let each player speak the part of an NPC.

They feel less need to interrupt when they know their own speaking part is coming up, and they don't feel an us-vs-him thing with all of them on one side vs. the DM.


It's a bit more tricky, but if the party splits to speak to multiple delegates simultaneously, you might even have the non-present players portray some of the delegates -- assuming they can be trusted to roleplay cooperatively with the DM. Give them a cheat-sheet with the NPC's goals and agenda, and see if the other PCs can pick up on it in time. (This does assume that the agendas will all become public eventually, so it's not a big deal if the cheat-notes get leaked AFTER the conversation & consequences are resolved.)

[Zaq]

Can you acquire a few hand puppets for the most relevant NPCs? That would have the twin benefits of making it very clear who's talking at any given point and of adding a bit of levity and/or drama to the scene.