C-Files

[Matt-M-McElroy]

I was thinking of running an X-Files inspired game in CoS. Basically one of the governements or other organizations discovers enough strange/supernatural activity to asign a small group of investigators to look into the mess. The PCs would be rookie agents in this group using the little bit of information that has been gathered and checking out "cases" throughout the land.

The advantage for the characters is the larger group to call on for information and/or support should it be needed. The disavantage is the oversight and other issues that may come up such as rivalry with other agents, corrupation within the bureaucracy or maybe even direct manipulation by the supernatural.

Thoughts? Comments?

Regards,

Matt M McElroy
"What Are You Afraid Of?"
http://www.flamesrising.com

[Keith Senkowski]

Matt,

What you are talking about is essentially a reverse conspiracy.  I would work with the players to create the organization (let's say it is the Orthodox Church's Inquisition) by using the conspiracy creation tool kit.  Then I would go through normal character and Cell creation with that shit in mind.  That way when they make their Triggers and their Assets and shit they have some sort of baseline to build from...

The one thing I would be very careful of is falling into the mission of the week sort of game.  That shit gets boring fast.  Make sure they are in the driver seat...

Keith

[Judd]

At the end of each game I'd go with the Group Kicker for the next session if you wanted to do a case style format.  Kickers might make that kind of play  more viable and player driven.

[MetalBard]

At the end of each game I'd go with the Group Kicker for the next session if you wanted to do a case style format.  Kickers might make that kind of play  more viable and player driven.

Heh, kinda like, "...and next week on the C-Files..."  Very cool.  This sounds like an idea that can be used really in any "episodic" type of campaign.  I see this working really well in a horror-themed Shelock Holmes game as well.

[MetalBard]

At the end of each game I'd go with the Group Kicker for the next session if you wanted to do a case style format.  Kickers might make that kind of play  more viable and player driven.

Heh, kinda like, "...and next week on the C-Files..."  Very cool.  This sounds like an idea that can be used really in any "episodic" type of campaign.  I see this working really well in a horror-themed Sherlock Holmes game as well.

[Keith Senkowski]

The more I think about this the more I think you need to build with more Asset points than you would normally get for a Cell.  That way you get all the resources available to a group who works for a larger group and you can fuck them Skinner in the early days style by using the Asset rules.

The episodic nature you mentioned Metalbard totally would work.  I wrote the game thinking of play sessions working like episodes of the X-Files and Millennium.  All the episode construction advice is built to support that idea.  You could even work in a commercial break mechanic I think.  Something along the lines of everyone at the table can call for a commercial break once per session (say 10, 15 minutes) and when you come back he/she gets to do that sort of rewind (the last few seconds of the show before the break) you get when you watch TV shows.  Cause we all know that before the break shit looks uglier than it does when we come back...

Keith