What we learned, part 2

The second set of lessons is more about campaign design. I learned that much as I like the idea of the players exploring a strange new world, I chafe at not having NPCs around to give me a voice (however subordinate) in discussions. That’s something I can work on both as a GM and as something to consider if I run a similar campaign in the future.

 

Running parallel to that, I think that next go around I need to have a stronger relationship web between the characters. If the characters are going to be the whole of the civilized world – as they were in New Dawn – they need stronger reasons to be connected and to be in moderate conflict. Since I don’t have NPCs to offer moral/social conflicts or subplots the player characters have to provide those for themselves.

 

To do, rather than have the PCs essentially be strangers at the start of play (which was a planning failure on my part) each PC would have relations with at least 2 other PCs – someone who is a friend or they have worked with and someone who they have a mildly negative relationship (perhaps one PC witnessed another fail at something, or there’s a family rivalry, or a philosophical rivalry, or they share a dark secret). This makes sure everyone has some allies and some potential conflict points that can be explored in play. This should tie everyone together a little more, giving the players more things to talk about in character, and things that might clarify their worldview for dealing with issues.

 

We had this in only one area in New Dawn: Razor and Silver were brother and sister, with some mutual over protectiveness and affection. This played a little bit for Voi’s ogling or Silver, but I think it would have worked much better if we had intimated to those relationships in advance, and extended the web a little bit.

 

Have other people worked with this in other games? How close is this to the R-Map process that Vincent Baker discusses on Forge? Is there somewhere I should go to look for more discussion of these issues?

 

And amongst the players in New Dawn, does this make sense to you? Do you think it would have helped?

Books 59-60

59) Lisa's Story - the Other Shoe: This is a compelation of Tom Batuik's Funky Winkerbean strips, specifically those dealing with the appearance, remission, re-emergence and untilate fatility of breast cancer in Lisa Moore, one of the trip's central characters. it's incredibly moving and well done, but not an easy read towards the end given how well Batuik manages to instill his characters with real humanity. Funkey Winkerbean really is hands down the best continuity strip in syndication these days.

60) Web of Angels (reread): John M. Forts proto-Cyberpunk space opera tarot card book, it's very well done but so densly packed that I'm sure I'm still missing things. Still, it's not as good as Growing Up Weightless or Princes of the Air, so read those first if you can get them. I am impressed by how much this 1980 book predicted later aspects of the cyberpunk genre, but all SF is a genre in conversation with itself. Ford just happened to be a little ahead of the curve of conversation on this one.

Anbd this took me through the 28 weeks from Christmas to my birthday. I hope to get another 40 books read before 12/25. Squirrel loaned me a copy of Steven King's "IT", I got the new Iain Pears book from my brother (as well as a loan of Gilead, which is supposed to be excellent) and I'm sure there is yet more in my future. it's been a good reading year so far.