I've just finished a lite demo version of Sweet Dreams, Love and Dodgeball. It's basically the combat system with the Powers removed. I hope it will make a good 15 minute demo. I'd appreciate any comments on it.

I realize that this document will be a lot more useful with sample characters attached. I was planning on using the 11 archetypal sample characters from the Players' Book (many of whom will suck at Dodgeball). Would it be better to have fewer choices, and only characters who will be good at Dodgeball?

It depends on what you mean by "suck." Do you mean inexperienced, or do you mean that they just can't play right. Inexperienced characters is almost always a good idea for these lite "demo" versions of RPG's. Remeber that if you give them really good characters to start out with or to demo with, they'll start to expect it all the time and will soon get frustrated when it doesn't happen.

-Mister Poppet-

The link seems to be inop right now Allan.

-Eric

Why do my links never work? Try this:

http://www.acwpd.com/SDdrop/Love%20and%20Dodgeball.pdf

All of the sample charactes are inexperienced, but only a few of them are combat specialists, and Dodgeball is combat. The others are either non-combatant investigative types, or rely on Powers (which are disabled in this demo version).

(tiny jellybean people? this I gotta see)

A demo should focus on what makes your game awesome and should contain only what makes your game awesome? Is combat in your game awesome? I mean, like, really cool. Like, would I buy your game just for the combat system?

I'm thinking not. I think what makes your game awesome is Magical High School.

So don't demo combat. Pick a scenario that's good for 2-3 players and showcases the magical high school nature of the game's setting.

yrs--
--Ben

Brilliant, thanks Ben.  The Dodgeball game will still be useful as a combat primer, but I need something else to demo with.  Something like this:

So, 2-3 characters. 
Alicia, Human Princess non-believer, Crush on the mysterious stranger (NPC)
Zack, Human Geek believer, Crushes on Alicia and Firefly
Firefly, Faery Rebel believer, Likes Zack, friends with Alicia, keeping her true Nature secret. 

The characters are in a boring class and the humans start daydreaming.  They see the School, and their classmate Firefly, in their fantastic Chimerical Aspects.  The mysterious stranger  appears, and starts flirting with Alicia, making Zack jealous.  Zack and Firefly know that the guy is an imaginary monster and probably up to no good, but Alicia won't believe them. 

Characters get a few actions to make Social Skill rolls to influence each other or the NPC, or to interact with the Daydream mechanics, try to snap out of it, etc.  Firefly gets to use her hallucination power to alter the Daydream.  After a few actions, or before the time limit, the bell rings, and the humans snap out of it. 

That should showcase the romance, daydreaming and belief aspects of the system, which are what makes the game awesome.  It's also really open to player choice, but is it too open for a demo?  Should the characters have more linear goals?