In YOUR setting, how can/could the PCs change the world?

Thanuir · June 18, 2007, 05:59:29 AM

So, you have this huge, well-developed setting of heroic adventure, old men in taverns, and noble savage/bloodthirsty bestial orcs (pick one).

How can the players and the player characters impact it all? Maybe they can join a war, but does it matter? Perhaps assasinate a king, but will the empire crumble?

Or is the setting a mere backdrop for the adventures of the PCs?

Tybalt · June 18, 2007, 06:16:26 AM

For my campaign it depends on them but...I'd say that while the world marches on regardless of what the pcs do that they can have a great deal of impact. Thus far they've influenced the building of alliances, prevented assassinations, reduced an invasion plan and captured the phylactery of a lich.

beejazz · June 18, 2007, 02:22:37 PM

If the PCs don't act the world will probably change for the worst. They gots to contain the horde epidemic. They gots to do something about the anti-goblin sentiment surrounding the refugee camps. They gots to do something or everything goes to hell in a handbag.

If they do really well, they might end the crises altogether. And of course, there are also consequences for the means of their actions. Like when they try to topple the empire and the jealous union tries to take advantage of the empire's moment of weakness to take some of its constituent nations.

Elven Doritos · June 18, 2007, 02:49:29 PM

I have an interesting approach to this. Since I set my story in different time periods, sometimes my players feel beholden to certain events-- they know they're not supposed to kill Kolann Deovus, since he shows up later.

My response? "Do whatever works for your characters and the story, don't worry about the metaplot." I've been known to incorporate events and characters, with considerable modification most of the time, from my players' campaigns into the setting canon, so we still have the former PC cameos while maintaining a sense of freedom and independence.

Best of both worlds really.

LordVreeg · June 18, 2007, 03:51:29 PM

QuoteSo, you have this huge, well-developed setting of heroic adventure, old men in taverns, and noble savage/bloodthirsty bestial orcs (pick one).

Hmm.
I have answers all over the place with this one.

My Mileau turned 25 years old (real-world) in February. So there have been a lot of players. But I do have a VERY slow development/skewed power-level system.

I have old characters, from the first few years, that are now powerful politcal figures. They do not rank up there with the most powrful NPC's, but are on the level below that. They include a few powerful nobles of the Grey Lords of Tralm, as well as refounding an entire religion in the largest city of the world.
Another one of them is secretly finding the words to the god Amerer's release from Daemonic entrapment, half a millenia before.
Poitically, my second major group from this campaign became entwined in the border City of Igbar's turbulence, when the King Trabler Aptor dissapeared. While trying to buttress the army, stabilze the policial systems, fight off a rival thieves guild from infiltrating, and trying to bring in allies, they were struggling to figure out who the good guys and bad guys were.
Over a year of playing, they discovered that one of their biggest patrons, who they had been supporting to take over the House of the Unicorn, was actually the shadowy figure who was actually directing the Blackstripe enemy thieve's guild, and at the last minute, they were able to trap him, and place Julian Lerianolies as the Unicorn Steward. Since this City was the lynchpin of the southern theater of a multinational war, they greatly affected the whole course of the war.

Today, my groups are newer, but I still like to put them in the thick of situations where they might affect the direction the 10 millenia history of Celtricia. the latest group playing Igbar is dealing with regional level troubles, but my 12 year old Mistonian crew almost let out an old Servant of Evil from the Age of Heroes, one that cost an entire nation it's future to put in bondage. It is not released, but the bonds are weakenning, and it has stretched forth it's influence to other, ancient allies. Now they need to find the missing lock, key or Totem that might seal it back away, but if they fail, the fate of the entire north of the Grey MArch may be to become an undead wasteland.

Lynchpin stuations. 99% of the things PC's do affect nothing in thje larger scale. But even in a slower developemnt world, nothing is more satisfying when the players are really engrossed in the thoughts that they have to come through.

Xathan · June 18, 2007, 04:45:41 PM

This is actually something I've been struggling with in building superhero worlds. With alot of old and established teams, the heros are less able to influence things, but without the older teams, it looses some of the feel I'm going for.

In any setting, its a real balancing act. I try to make sure my players can have a large influence, but not beyond their powers - first level characters will be changing things on a local scale, not a national or global or planar scale.

Jürgen Hubert · June 19, 2007, 05:15:13 PM

For Urbis?

They can change it as much as they want and are able to.

The world is instable and going through rapid changes. The PCs can be at the forefront of that change, and push it into just the right direction.

Of course, they have to be smart about it. Just killing some ruler won't work, most notably because he will simply be raised again. But with some effort, they can change the whole political system of the nation - and possibly end up in charge themselves.

Tangential · June 21, 2007, 10:37:52 PM

To be perfectly honest, most of the adventures I run (especially these day) result in the PCs changing the world in some way or another. I personally feel that one of the primary goals for a campaign is to have your world advance, because of it. Now, this doesn't mean to me that every campaign must be an epic clash that forges an age or rewrites the borders (though those can be fun from if used sparingly and with good sense :P).

If a PC so much as retires to become mayor of the village he was born in, I feel that the world has changed, for the better. It is not uncommon for (my) PCs to later show up as villains to cause their PCs consternation. The double-doppleganger sideways reverse is also true with player's characters later threatening the free world in some manner. Or acting a bastion against these threats. Or owning the farm down the road. Maybe the world has changed because the princess married your PC instead of the young princess father had engaged her to. Or become the gods of the setting (ala Kalos Mer's Tasilothis and my Karras). Or maybe they discovered a new island or culture.

The possibilities are endless, but (to me) your and their duty is the same: change the world. Everyone matters.

Cliff Notes version: I'm with ElDo.

MittenNinja · June 21, 2007, 10:46:47 PM

Actually, my current homebrew setting that I'm working on is shaping somewhat directly from my players. Right now I'm running my RL group through a campaign set in Karis pre Abyssal Wars. Some of their actions already have determined things in the current setting. For example, a few of the ten pillar cities still exist solely because of them.

Higgs Boson · June 22, 2007, 11:04:52 PM

My players would do this: http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=734636 . One actually did that once, just to mess with me on my first time DM'ing.

Stargate525 · June 23, 2007, 01:07:00 AM

My players have definite impact on their environment. If you kill someone, people will notice. They've actually gone so far as to completely change the entire flavor of the setting, simply because one discovered the power of heat metal and a decanter of endless water.

The Campaign Builder's Guild

News:

In YOUR setting, how can/could the PCs change the world?

Thanuir

Tybalt

beejazz

Elven Doritos

LordVreeg

Xathan

Jürgen Hubert

Tangential

MittenNinja

Higgs Boson

Stargate525