The Town Guard

[Stormlance]

I hope this is the right forum to post this.

So I'm going to be running a series of short, one hour or less games for a group of friends during our lunch break at work. We sat down and tossed around some ideas for the game and the one that kind of stuck was that instead of playing a group of adventurers going on quests, they want to play a more light hearted game as the town guard that has to deal with the antics of a group of adventurers who use the town as a base.

This seems like it could be a lot of fun as they will have to deal with the fallout of the adventurer's actions. Things like cleaning up the bodies after a bar fight.

I was hoping the DMs here might be able to help me brainstorm up some other things the town guard would have to deal with having a group of adventurers coming and going all the time. Keep in mind each session will be short, no more than an hour, and the group is not overly interested in any big over arching story. We are looking to play this more as single vignette type adventures, and we want to keep the game fairly lighthearted.

[Beleriphon]

I hope this is the right forum to post this.

So I'm going to be running a series of short, one hour or less games for a group of friends during our lunch break at work. We sat down and tossed around some ideas for the game and the one that kind of stuck was that instead of playing a group of adventurers going on quests, they want to play a more light hearted game as the town guard that has to deal with the antics of a group of adventurers who use the town as a base.

That's funny, I'd personally go for that and stuff like chasing thieves and such. I'd steal liberally from things like police procedurals for the "adventures" the guards go on. It also sets you up by stealing from cop shows with the episodic formate you seem to want. Most are bit on the modern side, but hey whatever magic.

I sort of did this once where my players had the adventurers, but at one point I attacked the town with a bunch of orcs so they asked if they could train the local to help. They did, and I tossed a few names at them and they got attached so they started to play the commoner and warrior classes from 3E.

This seems like it could be a lot of fun as they will have to deal with the fallout of the adventurer's actions. Things like cleaning up the bodies after a bar fight.

I was hoping the DMs here might be able to help me brainstorm up some other things the town guard would have to deal with having a group of adventurers coming and going all the time. Keep in mind each session will be short, no more than an hour, and the group is not overly interested in any big over arching story. We are looking to play this more as single vignette type adventures, and we want to keep the game fairly lighthearted.

Fallout is always fun. So if the adventurers kill the local crime lord there should be major fallout including a massive turf war as the different gangs and such fight for who takes over. I'd very much going to suggest stealing plots from shows like Law & Order or NYPD Blue since they tend to have a good focus on the procedural aspect of being "guards" while still having a bit of action to them. You can also make them a bit goofy by adding weird magic into the mix. If you're looking for other ideas you might want to read Guards! Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett, which deals with exactly what you're wanting: city guards in a fantasy world full or weird creatures all living together.

What system were you thinking of running?

Edit: Though what if the guards need to capture a "dangerous" magic that the adventurers bring back? Maybe a particularly loud and mobile singing sword. Its not hurting anybody, but it just wont shut up, and moves on its own.

[Red Fel]

Go for some good old-fashioned gumshoe work.

Guy burglarizing the houses of some middle-class types. Catch him in the act and bludgeon his face a bit.

Rich fancy-pants patron of the Town Guard has lost his precious kitty. Said kitty is in fact a young Tiger. Best recapture it, nonlethally, before it discovers how tasty the merchants can be.

Town drunk is convinced there's a conspiracy of cultists down by the docks. Won't shut up about it. Go down there, have a look around, and prove he's full of ale. Alternatively, bludgeon some cultists' faces a bit.

A brawl broke out at the local tavern last night. Someone killed someone else with a broken beer bottle, and escaped. Seven different people saw something that night, more than half were drunk, at least two were involved in the brawl. Get information from each, then track down the killer before he sobers up. Maybe bludgeon his face a bit.

[Maglubiyet]

What a great idea!

• Dealing with summoned creatures that wander loose when their caster is incapacitated or doesn't bother to dismiss them. Durations are usually pretty short so maybe they'll only have to deal with the aftermath. Of course, there's always the potential for more permanent monsters on the loose, via escaped Planar Bindings.
• Spellcasting battles within the city create Living Spells that wander randomly, preying on citizens.
• Permanent area effects created by a Wand/Rod of Wonder.
• Cursed items the adventurers inadvertently (intentionally?) sell to local merchants.
• Prized treasures of monstrous races pawned locally draw a steady stream of non-humans trying to reclaim the items (Golden Sphere of the Myconids, Axe of the Dwarven Khans, Tiamat's Crystal Goblet)

[Studoku]

Establish the following ground rule:

"Any player whose character used to be an adventurer until they took an arrow to the knee will be forced to eat their character sheet."

[draken50]

Terry Pratchets Discworld books may be of help, especially the guards series starting with Guards Guards!

I would look at the consequences of the actions in your urban adventures and having the guards stuck cleaning that kind of thing up.

Arresting people after brawls.
Evacuating people and helping put out fires.
Dealing with the irate citizenry after yet another encounter.

[Keltest]

Perhaps the guard could be dealing with the leftover dungeon monsters that come after the adventuring party for revenge. Especially amusing could be the groups that the party deliberately ignored because they were too weak to be worth killing.

[BayardSPSR]

Roll a d6.

1. Pay cut! You have to figure out how to maintain your standard of living, possibly without taking bribes.
2. No one understands how tough your job is! Explain or prove it.
3. Infiltrated by a goblin informant! Figure out who they are and deal with them appropriately.
4. The local bandits are hiding just outside your jurisdiction! Figure out how to bring 'em in.
5. The shop that used to give you sweet buns and stimulating beverages for free has closed down! Find another way to keep yourselves nourished and awake on the job.
6. Overworked! Roll twice, combine, and save your relationship while Never Being There.

[Jay R]

Go watch any TV Western. It's about the local sheriff dealing with gangs of criminals, raids from the wilderness, etc.

[Zyzzyva]

The Swords of Pelor and the White Company are having a tavern brawl! Get the townsfolk out of the tavern and surrounding buildings before the adventurers level the block.

Time for the town's monthly infusion of cash: Tukulti-apil-Esharra, kobold merchant, is in town to restock on poisons, spikes, and flammable oil for the surrounding dungeons. The townsfolk will be unhappy if they lose their best customer: make sure nobody with a PC class level sees him.

[comicshorse]

The bitter rival of your Lord is visiting for peace talks. There will obviously be no assassination attempts to foil, riots from the local citizens about having their enemies in the city or arrogant foreigners to keep out of trouble. Nothing like that, it'll be a breeze

[LadyFoxfire]

Two local wizards are engaged in a passive-aggressive feud, and it's starting to spill over to affect the townsfolk. One of them cast Web on the other while he was out shopping, for instance, and now the marketplace is full of spiderwebs.

The town is being plagued by annoying but not particularly dangerous monsters. Mischievous pixies, maybe.

[Maglubiyet]

Go watch any TV Western. It's about the local sheriff dealing with gangs of criminals, raids from the wilderness, etc.

Not the Rifleman. Every plot there is about how a man needs his gun. Any attempt to take it away is either misguided or plain evil.

Sometimes they got a creative and they made it about how a man isn't a true man if he won't use a gun or has a bad day and misses a target. Truly fresh approaches to the question of manhood with regards to firearms possession.