darkdiamond
Initiate Douchebag
Posts: 36
Preferred Game Systems: any
Currently Playing: Song of fire and ice
Currently Running: Trying to create a Wild talents one shot
Favorite Species of Monkey: Gorrilla
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Post by darkdiamond on Jan 13, 2014 21:12:24 GMT -8
Hello so a little while ago, i picked up the red box for 4E, and i started DMing for my gf, her sister and our 2 friends. this is my first actual RPG, besides video games. we completed the red box just before christmas, and i also got my hands on the Core books (PHB1, DMG1, and MM1) i have also listened to the critical hit Pod cast over the course of the red box game. but now it's my turn to actually create a story (i have an idea of how i want to play the game, more skill challenges and actual role playing then what was present in the box) i ahve struggling with attempting to make a focus on a single story, or a single idea... my players are actually making background stories now. and i am hoping to use those as possible hooks. i ended the red box with malareth the necromancer escaping on a giant necrotic dragon and killing off two of the player characters (they wanted to role something from the PHB1 instead of the really dull stuff they offered us in the red box.
Any ways my question is, how can i manage to create a long lasting story arc that could last all of the heroic tier? and keeping the players engaged. It has been a long time since i was in a creative writing class, so please any help would be greatly appreciated.
Dark Diamond
PS, i love all the Douche bags and bagettes on the show. just got to season 2, i have a lot to catch up on!
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maxinstuff
Supporter
Posts: 1,939
Preferred Game Systems: DCC RPG, Shadowrun 5e, Savage Worlds, GURPS 4e, HERO 6e, Mongoose Traveller
Favorite Species of Monkey: Proboscis
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Post by maxinstuff on Jan 13, 2014 21:45:30 GMT -8
I can't really help with getting the game to last throughout the heroic tier as I haven't run 4e, but......
I can say that when you are coming up with plots, let the characters drive it. You are on the right track working PC backgrounds in, now you need to understand the NPC's. Especially the villain. What does he want? What is he prepared to do to get it? How will he react to interference by the PC's? What resources does he have at his disposal? What other interests are at play? If you understand your characters well, their devious plans formulate themselves. It also helps immensely when he players take a left turn and you have to improvise.
Hope that helps - and welcome to happyjacks land douchebag! Good luck with that backlog.
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darkdiamond
Initiate Douchebag
Posts: 36
Preferred Game Systems: any
Currently Playing: Song of fire and ice
Currently Running: Trying to create a Wild talents one shot
Favorite Species of Monkey: Gorrilla
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Post by darkdiamond on Jan 14, 2014 19:44:29 GMT -8
So what I believe Malareth to want is to raise an army of the undead, (but the undead only follow him, because they still hold on to a little bit of their old lives from when they were living, so i hope to have some questionable encounters where the PC's might confront an undead NPC) but his true goal is to unleash Lord Orkus. but obviously i want to some how trick the PC's into getting everything that will actually get everything Malreth needs to either summon Orkus or to send them into another realm, like the Feywild, or shadowfell, to eventually the astral sea, and finally to elemental chaos and the abyss finally to defeat lord orkus, because eventually orkus gains more control into getting in the planes as the campaign goes on.
I just want to a big bad douchebage!
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Post by stork on Jan 14, 2014 20:36:53 GMT -8
OK that's it your done.
Hold onto that over all arcing theme, and TRY to integrate it into what ever shenanigans the players do. They aren't going to follow your story...they are going to go off and tell their own.
But whenever you can, drop your plot points into what ever mayhem they have caused. The random beggar they insulted is now a spy for the Orcus cult. The dungeon they just cleaned out turns out to be an Orcus cult base, what ever it takes.
You can involve their back stories. A relative dies and a messenger comes with an amulet, or part of one, that happens to help with the quest. One of their relatives has been abducted/indoctrinated into the cult.
One word of advise, keep the long view. They may want to take on Orkus at level 5...but that's a bad idea....you need to level them, keep them engaged, and prime them so by the time they are 30+ they not only have the skills to take on a minor god, but have the desire. IT will make for an epic game, but you have to "pay it forward" Level them and build to that climax!
heh I said Climax
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darkdiamond
Initiate Douchebag
Posts: 36
Preferred Game Systems: any
Currently Playing: Song of fire and ice
Currently Running: Trying to create a Wild talents one shot
Favorite Species of Monkey: Gorrilla
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Post by darkdiamond on Jan 15, 2014 8:13:18 GMT -8
Climax lol that's very fitting seems my entire party are four females! Lol, anyways how much lore is there about lord Orcus? I have killed 3 players characters for story wise a halfling rogue as a blood sacrifice and then a second rogue and wizard because they wanted to re roll characters. So will be running a dragonborn paladin, eladrin wizard, dwarf cleric and elf ranger, will have conflict between dragon born and dwarf die to the dwarves hunted drahons
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Post by rickno7 on Jan 15, 2014 12:28:23 GMT -8
I feel you may be planning too much before your players have input. That long list of things you want to do, doesn't mean anything if the first thing isn't done. So pick that first thing. Get your players going on a loose plot, and steer them into acocmplishing that first thing. Once that's done, you take ALL the story YOUR PLAYERS and you have come up with during that first part, and add that into the 2nd part.
If you plan 6 steps ahead, that 6th step is not going to have anything that happened on steps 1-5 along the way, its just planning too far ahead. "I have to have the players do this and do that" is the bane of campaigns. Your players are not that well controlled, they have their own wants, desires, and curve balls to throw. What if they capture the bad guy "well I'll just make the bad guy fight to the death", well that's the easy way, but who really fights to the death anyway? I can tell you that trying to keep this guy prisoner and get him to the authorities has more complication and story potential than him fighting to the death.
Just take it one step at a time, and that'll leave room for you to be flexible as it goes. Like Stork said, keep the over-arching story in your mind, that's good, but take and do each step as it comes.
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darkdiamond
Initiate Douchebag
Posts: 36
Preferred Game Systems: any
Currently Playing: Song of fire and ice
Currently Running: Trying to create a Wild talents one shot
Favorite Species of Monkey: Gorrilla
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Post by darkdiamond on Jan 15, 2014 13:23:45 GMT -8
hmmmmm thank you Rickno7,
well my current setting is that two of the pc's will awaken in an inn in fallcrest, they were saved by another pcs(at the time it was just story for an introduction to the character) and so they will meet up with her, and i still need to introduce another new character in the next session as well, and i am hoping to have a skill challenge after some guards attempt to capture the paladin (because she worships the ravenqueen, and they associate her with the undead blight currently surrounding their town which is actually Malareths' doing. hopefully they will either succeed in getting away or talking their way out of it. if they fail then they will be captured and be forced to speak with the duke of fallcrest.
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