All right, here goes:
Why not add a regular fiction feature to the Campaign Builder's Guide, involving central characters who travel across various CBG member worlds?
The central characters would be advancing a meta-plot which spans across multiple worlds-- meanwhile, in each installment, they will deal with challenges presented by the member worlds.
The project would be co-written by me, in collaboration with the world's creator. Each installment would spotlight a different world, and the challenges and tone of the individual installment would be determined by the worldbuilder. I would help keep track of meta-plot and characterization, and both of us would hammer out content and semantics (in varying degrees, depending on both of our writing styles).
So, the current interested worlds are:
Xiluh (sdragon)
Golia (Wix)
Orden's Mysteries (Turin)
Jade Stage (LC)
Shadowfell (Ishmayl)
Aelwyd (Golem)
Daerderak (Endless Helix)
Ifpherion (Realm Weaver)
And of course, some Red Valor goodness.
Potential future candidates also include:
Phaedoras (Raelifin)
Diis Manibus (beejazz)
Anyone else interested in working with me on this project, or anyone who has commentary on the premise, please comment below!
sounds like a great idea. anything worked up on said character?
Quote from: sdragon1984, ona'envalyasounds like a great idea. anything worked up on said character?
I've got some ideas, yeah-- nothing too concrete, as I want the character(s) to be flexible enough yet independent enough to make an interesting protagonist(s)
I'd like to see how we could incorporate the two (?) d20 Modern settings into this... :-p
I love it!
Could you see if we could book Elminster?
(//../../e107_files/public/1156996953_11_FT13437_fr_elminster.jpg)
Quote from: Baby-Eating WixI love it!
Could you see if we could book Elminster?
It seemed a good idea until you said that... :-p
I think Greenwood might object a little. ;)
[quote CYMRO]
[quote Baby-Eating Wix]Could you see if we could book Elminster?[/quote]
But if we book Elminster to go world-walking, then someone at the CBG could create a world specifically designed to defeat, slay, and permanently deadify him.
Hmmm... This idea deserves a smiley. :demon:
*tear* I think I feel bad as this guy probably does every night...
[spoiler=Do you really wanna know?]
(//../../e107_files/public/1157009674_11_FT13437_world_of_weirdcraft.jpg)[/spoiler]
Quote from: Baby-Eating Wix*tear* I think I feel bad as this guy probably does every night...
As well you should, writing the "E" word. What next? The "B" word? The "M" word?
Oh not not the M word!
If anyone has read Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle, they do a similar thinf. For those who haven't, Syaoran has to travel across many planes of existance (essentially worlds in our case) that vary from modern to fantasy and each has a unique theme. He has to find the shattered fragment sof his beloved Sakura's memory, an idea that neatly ties all of the worlds together and allows for much strangeness and diversion from reality. It would be essential for the fiction to have a link like this. Any ideas?
Quote from: So-KeherOh not not the M word!
If anyone has read Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle, they do a similar thinf. For those who haven't, Syaoran has to travel across many planes of existance (essentially worlds in our case) that vary from modern to fantasy and each has a unique theme. He has to find the shattered fragment sof his beloved Sakura's memory, an idea that neatly ties all of the worlds together and allows for much strangeness and diversion from reality. It would be essential for the fiction to have a link like this. Any ideas?
Yeah, I have some stuff in mind for meta-plotty goodness, the kinds of things that bind the stories together. I don't want to give too much "big picture" stuff away, in part because I want people to have a reason to read each installment and in part because I'm still developing it-- but yeah, that's along the track I was thinking. :)
sweet, cliffhangers are great i it when like book chapters end with one and then i HAVE to keep reading ;)
A very interesting idea. How do you plan on dealing with the differing magic systems and such? For example: The main character starts off in Tare. Then he is transported or transports himself to Phaedoras, a world were magic is bound to the spirit world. He finishes whatever it is he needs to do there and moves on to the Jade Stage, Three Worlds, or any of the other worlds here that have different mechanics.
maybe there is one overriding system that he uses, like a plug that is compatible in any socket
Quote from: So-Kehersweet, cliffhangers are great i it when like book chapters end with one and then i HAVE to keep reading ;)
Hee hee. When I read this and thinking about ElDo's Worldwalker Quantum Leap popped into my head. (The fact they ended each with the beginning of the next.)
Quote from: So-Kehermaybe there is one overriding system that he uses, like a plug that is compatible in any socket
Which detracts from the individual worlds...
It's an interesting idea. How do you intend to explain the presence of such a character in a world without an overlapping cosmology? For example, not all campaign settings posit alternate material planes from which a traveler could come.
Or sometimes campaign settings include a great deal of information on their planar layout, such that one preclude the existence of others.
A different suggestion just occured to me, that I'll throw out there, and you can use or discard as you choose.
Might it not be better to accept a piece of fiction for each setting with characters specific to that setting. Perhaps each interested author is allowed to submit, but you can't be chosen again from selections for at least a few issues (as with setting of the week). Then you select the most appropriate, best, or whatever from the submissions and add that one to the fiction column.
Are you thinking like each author writes a short story involving their world that highlights some of its finer points and such? cool idea
Quote from: PoseidotuneQuote from: So-Kehersweet, cliffhangers are great i it when like book chapters end with one and then i HAVE to keep reading ;)
Hee hee. When I read this and thinking about ElDo's Worldwalker Quantum Leap popped into my head. (The fact they ended each with the beginning of the next.)
i was thinking along the lines of Quantam Leap when the d20 modern comment showed up; that show really worked up on the point that 1860s virginia was truely a distinctly different setting then 1920s chicago (after typing that, i will admit that both were torn in mass conflict. the point still stands, however). why should it be any different to travel from the Jade Stage to Red Valor, then from Red Valor to d20 modern?
In response to the magic system issue, he could be a fighter. :P
Quote from: Natural 20In response to the magic system issue, he could be a fighter. :P
I thought of that, but he would then have to have some outside source controlling his world jumping (Quantum Leap springs to mind again). Either by some divine spirit (how do they keep their power in other worlds? What keeps it linked to the main character?) or some artifact that the main character is using to move from one world to another (How does it work? Does the main character need max ranks in UMD? (if yes he doesn't want to be a fighter :)) How does it maintain its ability to work in the different worlds?).
I've talked with ElDo a bit about this idea, and I am confident that it can work very well-- yes, even for low- or no-magic settings.
The means of transportation from one setting world to the next is pretty unimportant. It's a MacGuffin through and through (just like the Quantum Leap technology Poseidon mentions-- it's a simple means to an end.) It can be almost completely glossed over; I certainly do not worry about it detracting from any individual setting, or somehow compromising the integrity of a low-magic world.
At any rate, the actual nuts and bolts of
how the travel is accomplished, or how (and if!) the various worlds are connected in any way... none of that is particularly important to explain. (That's the great thing about a MacGuffin like this one.) Say the protagonist has some kind of gizmo that transports him to different places. We don't need to investigate why it works, because like all good story facilitators, it "travels at the speed of plot."
Ditto with the metaplot. To a large extent, any metaplot that could possibly be used would be simply an excuse to write an episodic story that spans several settings. Honestly, I think a lot of the naysaying is a result of overanalyzing the concept.
Remember the degree of involvement that each participating setting's author will have over the story. There will be a lot of oversight, and you'll find it easy to make sure that the part of the story that takes place on your "home turf" does a great job at staying true to the spirit of your setting (
and shows off some of your favorite aspects of your world.)
It can be fun. It can be lighthearted. Even those of us such as myself who have "serious" mooded settings don't have to be dour all the time.
Edit:
QuoteI thought of that, but he would then have to have some outside source controlling his world jumping (Quantum Leap springs to mind again). Either by some divine spirit (how do they keep their power in other worlds? What keeps it linked to the main character?) or some artifact that the main character is using to move from one world to another (How does it work? Does the main character need max ranks in UMD? (if yes he doesn't want to be a fighter ) How does it maintain its ability to work in the different worlds?).
does not matter.[/i]
We do not need to dissect the workings of a trans-world travel device. We do not even need to stat out the main character. We're writing a comkmunal story here, not a research paper. Trust me on this; it does not need to be over-thought.
Very lighthearted. But still serious when it pertains to the worlds.
That's the key.
There will be a fair share of humor and seriousness, rest assured-- and trust me, I've already taken a lot of your concerns and ideas into consideration. Without revealing too much, I'll say there is a multi-world threat and a small group of heroes with the knowledge and ability to travel between the worlds-- that's all I'm going to say at the moment.
I'll be introducing you guys to the characters I have in mind fairly soon, and I hope they'll be both exciting and adaptable.
Until then, I'd like to start compiling a list of people who'd like to be featured in the project. I'm not sure how the featured setting will be chosen, whether by dice roll or selection by myself (equally as random, with my zaniness :P).
So, if you want to co-author an installment, either tell me below or PM me.
:) I thought that was the answer I was going to get for my last comment. (Macguffins lead to the dark side :P)
My original comment was more about the effect on the story, if the protangonist is a magic user that is. Would he still be able to use the magic he could from his original setting or do you plan on staying true to the magic system on the setting he is in currently? If he kept his magic, he would wow the people of a low/no magic setting and be laughed at (or maybe not) in a high magic setting, assuming the main character starts in a mid magic setting. Yes I understand this could be avoided by making the protagonist a non magic using class, but it would be interesting to see how the people of Phaedoras would react to healing magic.
Quote from: Elven DoritosThere will be a fair share of humor and seriousness, rest assured-- and trust me, I've already taken a lot of your concerns and ideas into consideration. Without revealing too much, I'll say there is a multi-world threat and a small group of heroes with the knowledge and ability to travel between the worlds-- that's all I'm going to say at the moment.
Snakes on the Planes!!!
Quote from: Poseidotune:) I thought that was the answer I was going to get for my last comment. (Macguffins lead to the dark side :P)
My original comment was more about the effect on the story, if the protangonist is a magic user that is. Would he still be able to use the magic he could from his original setting or do you plan on staying true to the magic system on the setting he is in currently? If he kept his magic, he would wow the people of a low/no magic setting and be laughed at (or maybe not) in a high magic setting, assuming the main character starts in a mid magic setting. Yes I understand this could be avoided by making the protagonist a non magic using class, but it would be interesting to see how the people of Phaedoras would react to healing magic.
I'd like to clear something up: Worldwalker
s.
The best way to shade characters and build on the strengths is to have more than one primary character featured, that way we can both have the party dynamic *and* be able to explore multiple aspects of the setting.
There will be a warrior-type, a mage-type, and a rakish/swashbuckler type, most likely. Two of those aren't going to have a problem going from world to world, but the mage
is going to have to have some secondary skills, one of which is an intuitive ability to adapt his magic to the world. In worlds with no magic, the co-author and I will come up with a clever use for the character, but the mage *will* abide to the magic laws of the setting.
Quote from: Natural 20Quote from: Elven DoritosI'd like to clear something up: Worldwalkers.
The best way to shade characters and build on the strengths is to have more than one primary character featured, that way we can both have the party dynamic *and* be able to explore multiple aspects of the setting.
There will be a warrior-type, a mage-type, and a rakish/swashbuckler type, most likely. Two of those aren't going to have a problem going from world to world, but the mage is going to have to have some secondary skills, one of which is an intuitive ability to adapt his magic to the world. In worlds with no magic, the co-author and I will come up with a clever use for the character, but the mage *will* abide to the magic laws of the setting.
Okie dokie then. :)
Quote from: Natural 20Quote from: Elven DoritosThere will be a fair share of humor and seriousness, rest assured-- and trust me, I've already taken a lot of your concerns and ideas into consideration. Without revealing too much, I'll say there is a multi-world threat and a small group of heroes with the knowledge and ability to travel between the worlds-- that's all I'm going to say at the moment.
BAD CRIT!!!! No soup for you!
so[/i] like soup.
Quote from: Elven DoritosThere will be a fair share of humor and seriousness, rest assured-- and trust me, I've already taken a lot of your concerns and ideas into consideration. Without revealing too much, I'll say there is a multi-world threat and a small group of heroes with the knowledge and ability to travel between the worlds-- that's all I'm going to say at the moment.
I'll be introducing you guys to the characters I have in mind fairly soon, and I hope they'll be both exciting and adaptable.
Until then, I'd like to start compiling a list of people who'd like to be featured in the project. I'm not sure how the featured setting will be chosen, whether by dice roll or selection by myself (equally as random, with my zaniness :P).
So, if you want to co-author an installment, either tell me below or PM me.
First off, that adventure is
exactly like the PbP I was setting up (weird...).
Secondly, Golia would love to be in your article.
Thirdly, with the mages adapting magic, would they have a system of determining how to adapt their magic and how to classify it?
Haha... I can just imagine a mage who had just learnt Fireball discovering that it was completely useless in Mahi or Aelwyd...
Quote from: Wixtor the Mighty!Quote from: Elven DoritosThere will be a fair share of humor and seriousness, rest assured-- and trust me, I've already taken a lot of your concerns and ideas into consideration. Without revealing too much, I'll say there is a multi-world threat and a small group of heroes with the knowledge and ability to travel between the worlds-- that's all I'm going to say at the moment.
I'll be introducing you guys to the characters I have in mind fairly soon, and I hope they'll be both exciting and adaptable.
Until then, I'd like to start compiling a list of people who'd like to be featured in the project. I'm not sure how the featured setting will be chosen, whether by dice roll or selection by myself (equally as random, with my zaniness :P).
So, if you want to co-author an installment, either tell me below or PM me.
First off, that adventure is exactly like the PbP I was setting up (weird...).
Secondly, Golia would love to be in your article.
Thirdly, with the mages adapting magic, would they have a system of determining how to adapt their magic and how to classify it?
The mage will most likely be more sorcerer-like, relying more on intuition than scientific observation. More on that later.
i, for one, would love to see Xiluh thrown into this mix.
'course, last time there were the "strangers from a strange land" there, it didnt go too well....
This idea is very cool. Orden's Mysteries is totally in.
As for the mage: as in most stories it will be sensible not to stat out the characters, or give any very detailed information of how powerful they are. The adaption from world to world could be very easy this way. You probably alreday thought of this, but I'm pointing it out nonetheless. That's what you get for not giving us info! :P
Túrin
Quote from: TúrinThis idea is very cool. Orden's Mysteries is totally in.
As for the mage: as in most stories it will be sensible not to stat out the characters, or give any very detailed information of how powerful they are. The adaption from world to world could be very easy this way. You probably alreday thought of this, but I'm pointing it out nonetheless. That's what you get for not giving us info! :P
Túrin
Trust me, when co-authors are selected, information will be plentiful. Until then, I'm going to be a clam.
And the characters will all have 10 levels in "plot device", with appropriate skills and abilities.
You should make this very "Quantumn-Leap"-ish. At the end of every episode, he (the protagonist) gets transferred to the next setting, where he just has enough time to look around and observe his surroundings, before something ker-RAZY happens! Or you could do something much cooler :)
(Sorry to derail. Sounds like a great idea, ElDo).
Quote from: PoseidotuneQuote from: So-Kehersweet, cliffhangers are great i it when like book chapters end with one and then i HAVE to keep reading ;)
Hee hee. When I read this and thinking about ElDo's Worldwalker Quantum Leap popped into my head. (The fact they ended each with the beginning of the next.)
Dammit, you guys beat me to it :(
Quote from: IshmaylYou should make this very "Quantumn-Leap"-ish. At the end of every episode, he (the protagonist) gets transferred to the next setting, where he just has enough time to look around and observe his surroundings, before something ker-RAZY happens! Or you could do something much cooler :)
(Sorry to derail. Sounds like a great idea, ElDo).
I believe admins are invulnerable to derailing. It's in the stat block. ;)
Quote from: IshmaylYou should make this very "Quantumn-Leap"-ish. At the end of every episode, he (the protagonist) gets transferred to the next setting, where he just has enough time to look around and observe his surroundings, before something ker-RAZY happens! Or you could do something much cooler :)
And then, at the end of the thread...
Luminous Crayon posted something!*dramatic music!*Tune in next week!
Quote from: Elven DoritosQuote from: IshmaylYou should make this very "Quantumn-Leap"-ish. At the end of every episode, he (the protagonist) gets transferred to the next setting, where he just has enough time to look around and observe his surroundings, before something ker-RAZY happens! Or you could do something much cooler :)
(Sorry to derail. Sounds like a great idea, ElDo).
I believe admins are invulnerable to derailing. It's in the stat block. ;)
Yes... Yes, I believe you may be correct, sir.
Quote from: Phoenix KnightIt's an interesting idea. How do you intend to explain the presence of such a character in a world without an overlapping cosmology? For example, not all campaign settings posit alternate material planes from which a traveler could come.
Or sometimes campaign settings include a great deal of information on their planar layout, such that one preclude the existence of others.[/quote]
A different suggestion just occured to me, that I'll throw out there, and you can use or discard as you choose.
Might it not be better to accept a piece of fiction for each setting with characters specific to that setting. Perhaps each interested author is allowed to submit, but you can't be chosen again from selections for at least a few issues (as with setting of the week). Then you select the most appropriate, best, or whatever from the submissions and add that one to the fiction column.
[/quote]
I think it would be better if more people posted this sort of fiction in the Crossroads. It's a solid idea, and we could use it for interrim moments when a Worldwalkers is in development or on hiatus-- it'll be filed among the "awesome ideas that we may use later."
Quote from: IshmaylQuote from: PoseidotuneQuote from: So-Kehersweet, cliffhangers are great i it when like book chapters end with one and then i HAVE to keep reading ;)
Hee hee. When I read this and thinking about ElDo's Worldwalker Quantum Leap popped into my head. (The fact they ended each with the beginning of the next.)
Dammit, you guys beat me to it :(
Of course I did, because I'm just that cool. ( I realize you could just delete all the threads where I mention Quantum Leap, but I am still that cool :P)
Hmmm.... not too bad of an idea there, Poseidon. Not bad atall....
So, the current interested worlds are:
Xiluh (sdragon)
Golia (Wix)
Orden's Mysteries (Turin)
Jade Stage (LC)
Shadowfell (Ishmayl)
Aelwyd (Golem)
Daerderak (Endless Helix)
Ifpherion (Realm Weaver)
And of course, some Red Valor goodness.
Did I miss anyone who wants to, or add anyone who wasn't interested?
I would love to be in on this as well, but unfortunately I have a lot of work before I can even consider what I have a setting.
Quote from: PoseidotuneI would love to be in on this as well, but unfortunately I have a lot of work before I can even consider what I have a setting.
You best get cracking then! :P
Aelwyd's in! Or Mahi, once I start working on flavour again.
This sounds very, very cool. I am an aspiring writer myself (aren't we all?), and this is inspiring me to write some fiction for my setting.
If you can, add my setting Ifpherion (http://www.thecbg.org/settings/134/index.html) to the list. Sorry for listing only the site, but I haven't made a full forum post of it yet (probably will on Labor Day...).
Wait a second! LC said he was already collaborating with you about this. He started the snakes in the planes thread. PLEASE tell me that isn't the crisis that is plaguing the CBG worlds.
:P
Quote from: PoseidotuneWait a second! LC said he was already collaborating with you about this. He started the snakes in the planes thread. PLEASE tell me that isn't the crisis that is plaguing the CBG worlds.
:P
If I told you the answer, I'd have to send a snake after you.
Quote from: PoseidotuneWait a second! LC said he was already collaborating with you about this. He started the snakes in the planes thread. PLEASE tell me that isn't the crisis that is plaguing the CBG worlds.
What a sssilly idea. :cool:
Quote from: Elven DoritosSo, the current interested worlds are:
Xiluh (sdragon)
Golia (Wix)
Orden's Mysteries (Turin)
Jade Stage (LC)
Aelwyd (Golem)
Ifpherion (Realm Weaver)
And of course, some Red Valor goodness.
Did I miss anyone who wants to, or add anyone who wasn't interested?
I think Shadowfell could be an option, though it'll be just a few more weeks until I'm satisfied with some changes and updates I'm making.
Quote from: Elven DoritosSo, the current interested worlds are:
Xiluh (sdragon)
Golia (Wix)
Orden's Mysteries (Turin)
Jade Stage (LC)
Shadowfell (Ishmayl)
Aelwyd (Golem)
Ifpherion (Realm Weaver)
And of course, some Red Valor goodness.
Did I miss anyone who wants to, or add anyone who wasn't interested?
out of curiosity, are these in any particular order?
Not really. :)
Incidentally, LC and I will be collaborating on the first installment, but after that it's up in the air.
This look like a pretty snazzy idea. Daerderak would be interested, if I ever get off my glutonous maximus and work a bit more flavor into it.
The list was also added to the first post.
Well, it looks like I've stirred up a lot of interest! I hope that the execution and the first installment live up to your expectations, because it's shaping up to be pretty neat to me.
Phaedoras is interested, just not as an early one unless you run out fast. The bizarrity of Phaedoras will be most excellent, but I'd need to see a few iterations before figuring out how anything might work.
Mmmm... Diis Manibus hesitates until it's gotten its own shiz together. After that, maybe.
[ic=Worldwalkers snippet]
Leaning against a statue, a man with a short coif of raven-black hair and a matching goatee chuckled lightly. Garbed in a scarlet coat and matching trousers, the young man picked up a stray head of cabbage that had rolled from one of the toppled carts with a black-gloved hand. With an ever-widening grin, the handsome scoundrel muttered, â,¬Å"As if I, the famed swashbuckler Duncan Masters, would ever soil my new boots by going into the sewers,â,¬Â before taking a deep bite into the vegetable.
[/ic]
The first installment of Worldwalkers will introduce readers to Duncan Masters, the main character of the saga, as well as some of the lingering long-term questions of the story arcs. Most of the actual exposition and thematic elements will come during the second installment, which will hopefully be ready for the November issue.
I'm also going to be selecting the next collaborater sometime after issue 2 emerges.
Wait? Next collaborator? Duncan is from Red Valor, right? And then he visits Jade Stage? So would the next collaborator be the setting after JS?
Quote from: RaelifinWait? Next collaborator? Duncan is from Red Valor, right? And then he visits Jade Stage? So would the next collaborator be the setting after JS?
Yes. The first entry isn't very detailed for a "Red Valor" one and leaves many questions unanswered, but "next collaborater" refers to the setting creator who will be collaborating after the Jade Stage one.
What'd everyone think of the primer, in the back of CBGuide 2?
I liked what I saw. Being a primer, it was quite short. And I think the scene setup could have been more clearly communicated, but otherwise it was a fun read.
I wrote up a multi-world campaign that crossed both time and space barriers. A child had developed the ability to follow dimesional streams and worm his way around the barriers. He had to do it at places that had weak dimensional integrity called Power Lodes. These areas existed naturally in each world, but were frought with complications. It becomes a constant battle to remember who you are as the dimensional shift begins to warp your mind and alter your perception. Technology and magical technique were all but forgotten, with characters keeping their core personalities and memories, but names, technology etc. were completely forgotten. The distinction was in the "physical" and "Emotional" memory. Characters began to struggle with their memories melding and changing and old memories and ideas leaking through. Rather than remember the death of their father in a pistol duel, the character would remember a sword fight or psionic battle. just some ideas to consider when thinking about how these characters can prevent technological and conceptual leakage across worlds.
If Worldwalkers is still happening by the time Verth (working title) starts to take any kind of form at all I would LOVE to get in on this.