RukiTanuki
2008-12-11, 05:08 PM
With one month to go before I get my 4e steampunk campaign setting up and running, I realize I'm going to need a campaign as well as a setting.
I always find "You All Meet In An Inn (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/YouAllMeetInAnInn)" to be the most ridiculous and immersion-breaking part of a campaign. During the preceeding one-off adventure, I managed to dodge it by having the players be individuals brought together by a trading company magnate (who called in a few favors to hire them), in order to rescue the boss' nephew (the crux of the adventure). Conversely, I was pleased to see the second Pathfinder campaign hinge each PC's involvement on that person's personal beef with Gadren Lamm, providing several examples of vendettas they could use. I approached this campaign from the same angle: what sort of event would provide numerous reasons for PCs of various types to get involved? Better yet, could I find one that'd generate enough plot hooks for a full campaign? As an added bonus, can I get the PCs personally invested in the location they're saving?
One sprung to mind quickly given the flavor of the setting: rebuilding a ghost town. The idea instantly sparks several brainstorming questions:
* Why was the town abandoned?
* Did people flee or were they killed (or did they disappear)?
* Who's interested in rebuilding the town?
* What other organizations is that person going to bring in to help them?
* What organizations or individuals would prefer to stop them?
* Does any group have a separate claim or interest in that land?
* Are there any hard-to-acquire items necessary to rebuild, and how would they be obtained?
* How will people be encouraged to settle there?
* How will law be enforced?
I'm hoping to design this organically; I'll determine what happened to the settlement, set up the organizations and individuals attempting to move on the new project, and watch each of them unfold their Xanatos Gambits (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/XanatosGambit) on each other. The NPC actions should generate enough conflicts for the PCs to pick and choose.
So, if your players were working to investigate a ghost town, rebuild it, and help folks settle in, what would you place in their way?
I always find "You All Meet In An Inn (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/YouAllMeetInAnInn)" to be the most ridiculous and immersion-breaking part of a campaign. During the preceeding one-off adventure, I managed to dodge it by having the players be individuals brought together by a trading company magnate (who called in a few favors to hire them), in order to rescue the boss' nephew (the crux of the adventure). Conversely, I was pleased to see the second Pathfinder campaign hinge each PC's involvement on that person's personal beef with Gadren Lamm, providing several examples of vendettas they could use. I approached this campaign from the same angle: what sort of event would provide numerous reasons for PCs of various types to get involved? Better yet, could I find one that'd generate enough plot hooks for a full campaign? As an added bonus, can I get the PCs personally invested in the location they're saving?
One sprung to mind quickly given the flavor of the setting: rebuilding a ghost town. The idea instantly sparks several brainstorming questions:
* Why was the town abandoned?
* Did people flee or were they killed (or did they disappear)?
* Who's interested in rebuilding the town?
* What other organizations is that person going to bring in to help them?
* What organizations or individuals would prefer to stop them?
* Does any group have a separate claim or interest in that land?
* Are there any hard-to-acquire items necessary to rebuild, and how would they be obtained?
* How will people be encouraged to settle there?
* How will law be enforced?
I'm hoping to design this organically; I'll determine what happened to the settlement, set up the organizations and individuals attempting to move on the new project, and watch each of them unfold their Xanatos Gambits (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/XanatosGambit) on each other. The NPC actions should generate enough conflicts for the PCs to pick and choose.
So, if your players were working to investigate a ghost town, rebuild it, and help folks settle in, what would you place in their way?