Paladin - Inquisitor Setup

[Zak Arntson]

I'm not sure if this belongs in Anvilwerks or Actual Play, since it's setting up for Actual Play.

I figured I'd pull out Sorcerer & Soul, since I want to provide a Relationship Map. However, S&Soul suggests that the entire Relationship Map is a springboard, and there is no "X happens, then Y happens" type scenario setup. This'll be the first time I've tried this out, so I'm a little nervous.

As I've said before (http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3053), Inquisitor is a cross between Star Wars and Warhammer 40k. All the Dark/Light side mechanics in a gothic stone & metal architected world with monolithic computers, big guns and scary demons.

Here's the map so far (very loosely based on Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco)

Dumas, Marie and Francis are all sibilings
Isiah is Marie's lover and Peter's father (unknown to Peter)
Salvatore and Dumas both have used Rebekah for sex.

Dumas is the abbot of the monastery
Marie is an ex-Inquisitor, who's abandoned her faith for Isiah.
Francis is an idiot psychic
Isiah is a Heresiarch, an ex-monk who now misreads the Scripture
Peter is the newly-appointed Inquisitor of the monastery
Salvatore is a monk who smuggles Rebekah into the monastery for Dumas
Rebekah is a beautiful (but poor) peasant girl

So, here's the history (in short):
Dumas rose to the position of abbot, Marie rose to Inquisitor. The pair realized how powerful their idiot brother's psychic ability was so they maneuvered to have him confined inside the monastery.

Isiah was a high-ranking brother. Marie and Isiah fell in love, Isiah was tempted by Sin and re-interpreted the Scripture to allow it. Now they revoked their Vows of Chastity and have escaped the monastery with a good quarter of the brothers (and some peasants). Isiah is slowly turning his flock towards a more lustful worship.

Before Marie left, Dumas discovered her Sins and threatened to expose her, but she learned of his secret: Brother Salvatore has been smuggling a peasant onto the grounds at night for Dumas' carnal pleasure. Rebekah receives gifts of food and her family's preferential treatment.

With Marie gone, Peter has risen to the position of Inquisitor at the prophetic advice of idiot Brother Francis. Unknown to Dumas, Peter is Isiah's illegitimate son.

---

The game begins with the Inquisitors (PCs) arriving at the monastery at the behest of Dumas. They will be working with Peter to stop the heresy that threatens to destroy the monastery.

I'm uncomfortable with not laying out key scenes beforehand, so I'm wondering what to expect from this sort of play? What would I do if things slow down or flounder? I'm thinking of creating a few key scenes and events to throw in during a slow part (murders, demon attacks, etc), but does this go against the philosophy of a Relationship Map?

[edited for minor typos]

[Ron Edwards]

Hi Zak,

Bangs! You need a bandolier o'Bangs. Check out the dialogue between Tor and me in the back of The Sorcerer's Soul.

Nothing about relationship-map based play says that the GM can't have things happen.

Best,
Ron

[Matt Gwinn]

That reminds me a lot of "The Name of the Rose," which you should really watch for inspiration if you haven' already.

It sounds like a great setup, but Ron is right, it needs more bangs.  Something big should happen right before the inquisitor's arrive that stirs the whole place up: a murder, a sign from God, a fire...  Let the PCs walk into chaos, so they can take charge of the situation and establish their authority.

I'm looking forward to hearing more about this.

,Matt G.

[Zak Arntson]

Ron,
D'oh! I can't believe I missed that example when I was rereading S&Soul. After reading that, and going back to S&Sword, I can see the Bang-driven play without reliance on kickers. In my mind I had Bangs intimately tied to kickers for some reason. With my current group I want to minimize pre-game setup and leave kickers out of the picture. I'm thinking of compromising with an "Inquisitors receive their psychic powers through some traumatic, unresolved event pre, during or post-birth. What was yours?"

Now it's up to me to come up with some Bangs. What's funny is that Chthonian (subconsciously or otherwise) scenario design is like Bang-driven play. Each scenario basically consists of stages set up as a series of combat/discovery Bangs culminating in a mini-boss fight (a specific sort of Bang). My pregenerated scenario is a list of stages with gripping scenes to insert (rather than a flowchart of A->B->C or enforced metaplot) throughout.

I'll post my list of Bangs as soon as I come up with 'em.

---

Matt,
I did mention the book Name of the Rose in my above post. I'm still reading it and it is amazing. Can't wait to rent the film. I also found some college course's annotations, which I'm waiting to read until I finish the thing.

And yes, there will definitely be something big at the beginning of the game. Not big enough to outshadow the rest of play, but something to get the Players emotionally invested. I like your "establish authority" suggestion. I will definitely make sure they have the chance to show me they're Inquisitors rather than adventurers.

I do hope to make Inquisitor a Paladin supplement. And since I firmly believe in designers as players, you'll definitely be hearing more from me about Inquisitor some form or another.