game starters

SDragon · December 21, 2006, 02:43:26 PM

what sort of scenes do you like to use to start out your campaigns? i'm sure everybody is very familiar with the cliche tavern scene, but what else do you like to use?

if there's enough different scenes posted, i may decide them all in this post, but i'm not sure yet....

Raelifin · December 21, 2006, 04:35:42 PM

I like a slow intro. Get one character (usually the planned "party leader"), work a little with them. Have them encounter another character, then another then another.

In my experience, the more universally applicable a scene is, the less effective it is in storytelling. Archetypes are fine, but specific scenes aren't.

snakefing · December 21, 2006, 04:51:52 PM

I haven't run a game in a long time, but I generally like something like Raelifin's approach, especially if you can arrange some brief one-on-one sessions over IM or email. This gets the players a little more invested in the opening scenes. Then either the various characters can encounter each other (one by one, or in smaller groups), or they may find themselves all thrown together (e.g., different reasons why they all find themselves passengers on the same ship, or something similar).

In the old days, before email, you usually had to get people together as a group to do campaign intro and character generation, just to ensure a reasonably coherent group of characters. Slow intro doesn't work quite as well, because by the end of the evening people are kind of ready for some actual action. But there are still ways to kind of make it work.

beejazz · December 21, 2006, 06:29:16 PM

My most recent one started with a teavern scene. Only... it took all of five seconds for the mafia and a bunch of horrible horrible things (living zombies... only I didn't tell my players that, instead showing them this friggin' EEEVIL pic) to get involved. And the barkeep with his shotgun. Not sure why, but my players got a kick out of the veteran barkeep.

Stargate525 · December 21, 2006, 07:11:33 PM

I started my most recent one with the two characters walking through the gate into the city. Them being roleplayed as rurals with ambitions of urban life, they took to it quite well, and it allowed me to very quickly insert the first plot hook (having one of their items confiscated for 'inspection')

Sarandosil · January 05, 2007, 08:30:11 PM

I usually leave that up to the players, actually. I always seem to have bad luck with party cohesion, so I've gotten into the habit of having the players introduce their characters to each other before the game starts, and then having them work out how how they meet and why they work together. Then we usually start the game with what they decide.

It works like a charm, too. Haven't had issues with players killing each other since I implemented this system. Otherwise, since I run open-ended persistent world campaigns, I start them off with a small inconsequential adventure that I use to introduce them to a town or two and a little bit about the world.

Endless_Helix · January 06, 2007, 07:28:01 PM

I find burning buildings to be undeniably effective. Particularly when they are full of evil monstrosities...

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game starters

SDragon

Raelifin

snakefing

beejazz

Stargate525

Sarandosil

Endless_Helix