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seedjar
2007-12-15, 02:05 AM
So, the group I DM for has been on this convoluted, tangental storyline since I was a player. We're kind of mired in a sidequest that focuses almost exclusively on one player, who also happens to be the player with the campaign's only artifact (before level 10, no less.) The last five or six sessions have pretty much been all about him. I can't return things to normalcy without introducing some serious inconsistencies, which we already have enough of.
I was thinking about introducing some very personal, individual events that will dig into the other players' characters and build on their histories. Does this sound too extreme? I want to get my players to focus on their personal motivations for a while. I'm hoping that if everyone takes their individual goals in mind, I'll be able to get them back on track with the campaign objectives as well.
As it stands, our sessions seem to begin with, "Why are we here again? What are we supposed to be doing?" In the past, we were kind of lead along by the DM; not in that he would explain the story to us, but rather tell us, vaguely, what to do next. I have a heavy workload and also full-time college classes, so I don't really have the wherewithal to start a genuinely new campaign at the moment. For the time being, I'm trying to 'repair' this one.
So, what do you all think; should I just pull some deus ex machina and put the party back at a starting point, or pitch to each player individually and work on characterization?
Thanks,
~Joe

kamikasei
2007-12-15, 05:13 AM
I think you're going to need to provide more detail if you want a meaningful response. A synopsis of the plot so far would be helpful.

Especially important is: do you, the current DM, know what the previous DM had in mind when he set you all down this road?

It sounds like the best thing to do would be to re-engage the other players (besides Player Alpha, Wielder of Artifacts) - not necessarily through huge mind-shattering personal attacks but just by introducing hooks from their backstory and incentives that play to their characters' motivations. Either wind down the uber-plot on which you're all engaged asap and get back to the main story, so everyone can participate, or work the other players' motivations/desires into the sideplot, so that they can share some of the spotlight Alpha's hogging.

Emperor Demonking
2007-12-15, 05:27 AM
It would help if we kenew where the characters are.

I'd reccomend going for the look at thier backstories and add hooks from them.

seedjar
2007-12-15, 03:57 PM
That was pretty much what I've had in mind. We've all got conflicting schedules for the next few weeks, so I was going to propose doing a brief bit of PbP or something to develop the other characters in a way that doesn't take a whole session away from the other players.
For example, one of my group plays a disruptive, evil character with absolutely no backstory. I don't want to be an alignment nazi, but I feel compelled to quantify his relationship with others of his alignment (since the rest of the party is neutral on the good-evil axis, with a vaguely good agenda.) I'd like the player to find a reason that this PC would have been holding his own out in the wilds where we found him, since even at level 10 he's fairly low on the evil-forces-food-chain, so far as his combat abilities go. My idea was to throw some Lovecraft-esque scenario his way and, depending on how he handles it, steer his character towards a clearer archetype (evil mastermind, puppet of an evil mastermind, fallen hero, Faustian scholar, übermensch, etc.)
After running some solo events (I'm thinking flashback-type stuff, at least for this evil PC above) I can scatter a few vaguely related hooks as the party travels back to their home-base of sorts. They're in a sort of no-man's-land, so I thought it might be novel to provide each PC with some personally significant contacts while there.
Kami: to answer your question, in many respects, I knew more about what was going on in the old DM's story than he did. He still comes down and plays minor characters when his schedule allows, so I get to bounce ideas off him occasionally. (He's more interested in the hack'n'slash stuff anyways, so it doesn't matter if he misses a session.) He's got very few details hammered down about the evil force we've been opposing since before I joined the game, but we talked a lot about it when it became clear that I'd be taking over. At the very least, I know how the artifact works and (vaguely) what the bad guys are doing. The rest is up to me to make up - I've decided to shift the focus away from this particular enemy for a while, and have them re-emerge later when the party is powerful enough to actually stand a chance against them.
~Joe

kamikasei
2007-12-15, 04:54 PM
I'm still gonna say we need more info. At least, that's if you want specific suggestions on how you might proceed. In general terms you've gotten the advice to hook them in to the story via backstory/personality issues. If you want ideas on what hooks might work, we'd basically need a breakdown of each character's history and motivation and the ongoing story, too. Not much in the way of middle ground, sorry!

You might be able to get away with describing the villain's goal/plan and maybe based on that garner suggestions on what kind of general hooks would fit with it...

valadil
2007-12-15, 06:55 PM
Personal events based on your other characters are a good idea. I always introduce plots designed for each player.

The trick to it though is to do it without making tonight's game into the one where Gulstaff is the main character and everyone knows it. It ends up being a let down for the other characters. I like to write normal plots, but tie the events into something that happened in someone else's backstory. Basically if a plot isn't interesting enough without a tie in to a background story, then it isn't interesting enough even with one.

Before I start a game I make it explicit to my players that the more backstory they give me the more hooks I have to work with, giving them more chances to be involved. Players who don't do backstories don't get plot. They still enjoy going along for the ride, but it's not personal.

seedjar
2007-12-16, 04:57 AM
Oh, I don't need hooks for my specific players. I have a good sense of how they've played their characters, so material isn't hard to come up with. I'm wondering more about your impressions on how groups respond to changes in focus, and if this approach is valid. If you want to provide examples of what you've done in your own games, that's also welcome.
~Joe