Really Creative Adventure Starters

[Sir Mathodius Black]

Hey all,
This is just a post for people to post any really creative/interesting/original ways theyve started their adventures in games.  Although im not at a complee loss for good, creative beginnings, my supply is running dangerously low and if anyone has any cool ideas theyde like to post that would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Sir Mathodius Black

[Ron Edwards]

Hi there,

Nice to see you up here in these forums.

You know, what's needed to post in this one though is a real game to talk about. No "what would you" or "how about" threads.

So let's beef this one up a bit, if you'd like, by you telling about what game system you're using, how many people are playing, how long you've played it so far, and all that stuff. It'll make a real discussion out of the thread instead of a bunch of disconnected entries.

Best,
Ron

[Ben Morgan]

In the Cyberpunk game I'm running now, I implemented Kickers, and one of my players wrote his Kicker as "I just killed someone."

So I started him off running... literally. We jumped right in with NO idea of what happened or why, just: "You're running, pulse pounding in your ears. You're almost out of breath."

I started feeding little bits of information as he tried to put things together. "You risk a brief moment to look down and assess your situation. You're covered in blood. Nothing hurts, nothing seems missing, so you're pretty sure it's not yours. You're holding on to something in your right hand, but you're not sure what it is. After rounding a corner, you afford yourself another glance downward. It's a gun. But you don't own a gun. So where did it come from?"

The inspiration for the scene was from Memento, where Leonard is running through a trailer park, and he's trying to work out why. "Okay, what am I doing? I'm chasing that guy. BLAM! "Nope, he's chasing me."

The meat of the game, for this PC at least, then became about figuring out who he killed and why, and all the time he's adamant it was self defense, when all the facts are saying it wasn't (he shot the guy eight time, two of which were in the face, after he was already dead). Can't wait to see where it ends.

I just have to say that it is so amzingly liberating as a GM when you don't have to worry about some big overarching plot other than reacting to what your individual PCs are trying to accomplish.

Did I mention that this isn't your father's Cyberpunk?

-- Ben

[Sir Mathodius Black]

i really like that Ben, thats a good way to get that movie feel where you are just put right into the action.  as for my group, here goes:  We are playing The Riddle of Steel, with me as GM and three other players.  We have been playing together for YEARS with different systems but have been playing ROS since it came out.  This will be our 5th "campaign" of sorts.

             One character is i fighter-ish guy who is, at present, torn between staying with the woman he loves and accepting the call for a dangerous mission to rescue some of his old military friends who have been captured.  The next character is his best friend, a dwarf who left his mountain kingdom to find a cure for a mysterious disease plaguing his people.  the third character is a roguish character who was orphaned as a child (when our first fighter character's military company burned his villaige to the ground) and is now honing his skills as a thief and mercenary for hire.  

THats our group...

[Alan]

Hi Mathodius,

The Riddle of Steel!  

I think that a good TROS opening isn't the same as a good opening in, say, D&D3e.  A good TROS opening lays out some elements which play to the players' Spiritual Attributes.  It doesn't have to be spectacular, or set the players on some sort of quest.or even bring all the players together in one purpose.

For example, your fighter-ish guy might start in a domestic scene with his love, only to be interrupted by a wounded old buddy.  The rogue, in the middle of some theivery, might spot the banner of the company that burned his village.  

I'd just cycle between the players, letting them go and do what they like in the environment.  

The trick is to create a sandbox for the characters to play in, with NPCs with agendas that conflict with or play to the PC's SAs, history and place that do the same.  You might connect the various things they will probably be seeking at some deeper level.

[Ben Morgan]

One character is i fighter-ish guy who is, at present, torn between staying with the woman he loves and accepting the call for a dangerous mission to rescue some of his old military friends who have been captured. The next character is his best friend, a dwarf who left his mountain kingdom to find a cure for a mysterious disease plaguing his people. the third character is a roguish character who was orphaned as a child (when our first fighter character's military company burned his villaige to the ground) and is now honing his skills as a thief and mercenary for hire.

Well, you've already got a link between the fighter and the rogue. That's good. Mainly, you need to figure out how the fighter's company (or possibly the woman that he loves) fits in with the cure for the plague, and you've got a group that's most certainly going to interact in one way or another.

I'm also quickly becoming a big fan (as you can see by my previous post) of in media res, which I'm only now realizing is just a fancy way of saying "scene framing" in Latin.

-- Ben

[Ron Edwards]

Hi there,

I agree with Ben and Alan - you don't need "adventure starters" in this game. You have as many adventure-starters as you have player-characters, based on your description of them.

Your job as GM, in my view, given this game and these characters, is to provide as much raw meat and emotional weight to the NPCs as possible. The players' decisions and actions will do the job from there, as long as you don't get all invested in some "story" that you want to tell.

Best,
Ron

[Mike Holmes]

Let's look at each SA in detail.

Passion - this is the most obvious one. The person associated with the passion is in trouble, and needs the character's help. Or they're about to go on a date with the wrong person. Or, worse, marry them. Or they come right out and tell the PC that they wouldn't be interested in the character if they were to slay the Giant Chicken of Stonehold (thous making that a perfunctory challenge). Or they need somthing, and come to the character to do it for them. Like I said, too easy.

Conscience - character sees a friend stealing something. Or is otherwise put in some situation where they're forced to chose between either going with their conscience and doing something that they'd hate to do so, or ignoring their conscience with all that entails. If you can work it so that it's the Passion that needs narking on, then all the better. Whenever possible, put SAs in conflict with each other.

Destiny - some event occurs that puts the character on the road to their destiny. The Count dies without an heir, and a tourney is being held to appoint a successor.

Drive - if the character is driven to protect something, see Passion, and threaten it. Make it a Sorcerer if you want them to really have to think about it. If the character is driven to obtain honor, then the Tourney is in again. If they're driven to see that justice is done, then some injustice happens. If they're driven to succeed, then some obstacle comes into their path. Make it a villain who can't simply be killed without repercussion (it's the Duke), and who can recur to thwart the PC  again and again, making the challenges about going around the obstacle (until the ineveitable climax in which the Duke does somethign provably heinous, and gets to be killed).

Faith - religious officials need the PC to do something in the name of the particular Faith. A religous institution is under attack of some sort. The character sees something that conflicts with his Faith.


As I said, the best ones are ones which put two SAs in conflict, or otherwise force some decision to be made on the part of the character. Make sure that the decision can go more than one way and that it's the player's decision entirely as to what to do.

Mike