I've noticed that the order in which a town is presented to the Dogs can have a big effect on how they react to it  Often, the first person that gets the Dogs ear seems to be perceived more favorably than other NPCs that have to explain their side of the story later on.

How do some of you handle it?

Do the Dogs ALWAYS speak to the Steward first?  Then the Steward explains the town's problem from HIS point of view, and then the Dogs choose who they wish to speak to next?

Or sometimes is there an NPC riding out to meet the Dogs as they arrive, wanting to tell his side of things first?  Should I randomly determine which NPC the Dogs meet first?  Should I go ahead and choose a particular NPC to get "first say" because I think the town will play out better that way?  I don't really think I should CHOOSE to favor a particular NPC, because I want the town to play out "naturally."

I guess being an old school RPGer I'm hung up on the fact that there isn't a map of the town, so I can't say "Well, you rode in from the north, so you pass the Blacksmith shop first, and he hurries out to talk to you..."

How do you figure out who the Dogs meet, and when, and who gets to speak first?

Maybe you should create a town where the first person to talk to the Dogs is the sorceror who's been killing babies.

If it makes you happy, make a map. No reason not to.

Or roll for it if you like. Or go by whim, which is what I do. I never really noticed or cared whether my players tend to favor the first person they meet; if they do, that's their right.

-Vincent

I often start with scene that shows the problem in town rather than anyone talking to or explaining it to the PCs.  Some examples:

PCs walk into town and see a young teenanger hanging from a scalfold with a sign that says, "Spare The Rod, Spoil The Child."  PC reactions can vary from, "We go to the Steward" to "We grab a passer by and ask who the kid is" and sometimes this followed by "asking what he did."  So the opening "perspective" can be The Steward, The Hanging Kid's Parents or The Average Joe On The Street.

PCs walk into town to find a man sprawled out on the well cover skewerd with a calvery sword.
PCs walk into town to find two men arguing with the Steward.  It's revealed that the two men's wives have recently given birth but the children resemble identicle twins.
PCs walk into town to discover the streets strewn with the bodies of the sick from a plague.

So you can see that each of these situations present multile options as to who the PCs start questioning.  It let's the player's decide.

Jesse

Jesse's answer is better than mine!

-Vincent

Transit wrote: How do you figure out who the Dogs meet, and when, and who gets to speak first?

Never had this problem. If there's no Bang awaiting PCs, they ususally start with the Steward, but almost never trust him, on the base that if there's something wrong is because the stewart couldn't handle that properly, so his is not the best POW. Sorta "why this bastard liar is lying to me?" BBC journalists attitude toward politicians. :D

Hmmm....

I guess somewhere I got hung up on the idea of remaining neutral and letting the town "happen" rather than leading players in a certain direction.  Guess I'll just learn not to worry about it.

Thanks, everyone.

Oh but hey seriously, there's no reason in the world not to make a map if you want one, and use it as your guide.

-Vincent