Roleplaying Tips Weekly E-Zine Issue #383
Part II: Theme and Atmosphere
Contents:
This Week's Tips Summarized
Part II: Theme and Atmosphere
- Create GM Reference Tools - Environment And Atmosphere
- Cell Furnishings
- Convert Existing Maps To Prisons
- Craft A Theme
Readers' Tips Summarized
- Cavern Settings
- Classic Tip: XP For Player Journalizing
- RPG Files Backup
- NPC Essential Quick Reference Cards
1 on 1 Adventures #9: Legacy of Darkness Out in PDF!
1 on 1 Adventures #9: Legacy of Darkness is now available
in PDF at YourGamesNow.com, the publisher cooperative!
Designed for 1 GM and 1 player (Level 8-10 Wizard), this
adventure is a whirlwind of necromantic delight as the PC
uncovers what dark intent consumes a renowned retired
necromancer in his small home in a quite town.
Legacy of Darkness at Your Games Now
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A Brief Word From Johnn
Tips Request: GM Movies Inspiration List
A Reader's Tip in this issue discusses a good movie for GM
inspiration and why. The reader also suggests building a
list of movies for GMs to watch. Great idea!
So, if you can think of any movies you've watched that would
be helpful or inspiring to GMs, please drop me a note with
the following information:
- Name of movie
- Why it would be inspiring or useful, or what part is
inspiring or useful
Hopefully, there will be enough entries to post a list, and
the information you provide will help with categorization.
For example: combat description, plot inspiration, encounter
ideas, world building.
Starcraft Board Game Is Good
I played the Starcraft board game twice recently, and it's
pretty good. It's quite a bit like Twilight Imperium 3rd
Edition, if you've played that, though Starcraft only takes
2-3 hours. It's a picky game with lots of details and well-
crafted game pieces, and you can win a number of ways, so
it's not a pure, clobber-thine-enemies experience.
It might make a good Christmas gift, though it's expensive.
See the ad below for more details.
Volume 4: 5 Room Dungeons Ready For Download
The fourth volume of 5 Room Dungeons contest entries is now
ready for download. Featured in this volume:
- The Sanctuary of Sumuho
by Dozus
- Crossbones Island
by Chaosmark
- Swamp Music
by Nik Palmer
- The Windspire
by Nathan Meyer
- The Message
by Morgan Joeck
Download (Zipped PDF 1MB)
Get some gaming in this week!
Cheers,
Johnn Four,
johnn@roleplayingtips.com
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StarCraft: The Board Game
Three powerful alien races battle for control of the galaxy.
Whether you choose to lead the versatile Terran, mysterious
Protoss, or voracious Zerg, in StarCraft: The Board Game
you'll command an army like no other in the universe!
True to the StarCraft legacy, each of the three races
features a unique and distinctive play style, and the
inclusion of two distinct factions for each race allows up
to six players to compete for galactic dominance at a time.
Including a total of over 180 plastic figures and dozens of
unit types, StarCraft: The Board Game features an innovative
modular board consisting of planets of varying sizes, which
guarantees a new experience each and every game. An exciting
card-driven combat system allows players to modify and
upgrade their faction with a wealth of powerful
technologies. Players can unleash a Zergling rush, use
powerful Protoss shields to halt an enemy invasion, or even
send cloaked Ghosts out to guide nuclear missiles to their
target.
StarCraft: The Board Game at RPG Shop
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Part II: Theme and Atmosphere
By Johnn Four
In part one, we crafted a prison's design and general
purpose, and fleshed out a few details. This week, in part
two, we'll add environmental details to help make your
prison unique, fun to roleplay, and easy to GM.
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1. Create GM Reference Tools - Environment And Atmosphere
Drawing a full map and detailing the facilities is one
method for fleshing out the environment. However, you can
save time by brainstorming a couple of reference lists in
advance.
Keep the lists handy while you GM, and roll or choose items
as needed. This minimizes preparation time and gives you a
lot of flexibility at the game table where PCs are likely to
make unexpected moves.
Key lists to create would be:
- Room listing
Draw the map as you go and place rooms from your list
accordingly. This will help prevent missing obvious places
that could ruin the believability of the adventure, and it
takes pressure off having to think this stuff up while you
GM.
Drawing the map as you go saves prep time and gives you
flexibility to cater to current GMing needs. For example, if
you are wanting to wind things up soon, then you can add the
exit close to where the PCs currently are. Alternatively, to
increase the challenge, you place a guard checkpoint area
between the PCs and their next destination.
If you draw yourself into a corner, go up by adding a
storey, or down by adding a sub-level. These don't have to
be whole new levels with the same square footage as the main
level. If you forget the kitchen, for example, add it below
the cafeteria, with perhaps some side storage rooms, and
that's all - no entire new level to flesh out required.
Use the facilities list from the first part of this series
to create your room list, and add special rooms and areas
you need on GMing needs.
http://www.roleplayingtips.com/readissue.php?number=382#T2
- Cell Furnishings
Instead of detailing each cell, make a list of typical cell
contents. Divide your list into two sections: vacant and
occupied. Occupied cells will contain what a typical vacant
cell would, plus inmate possessions and customisations.
See the cell furnishings list in this issue to get you
started on your own list.
- Additional Furnishings
Keep a list handy of things you might find in a prison,
taking into account:
- Genre
- Game system
- World, region
- Prison theme and design
- Adventure
Rather than trying to list what each area or location might
have, draw from this general list as you GM. Perhaps
categorize items to make reference fast if your list is long
enough.
- Events
For random encounters, background details, and encounter
seeds, craft a list of potential events:
- Typical inmate activities
- Typical staff activities
- Unusual inmate and staff activities
- Internal event, situation, and encounter ideas
- External event, situation, and encounter ideas
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2. Cell Furnishings
Here's a short list of possible cell furnishings:
Vacant cells
- Straw, dirt, dry grass
- Books
- Newspaper
- Human waste, either as a protest, proof of insanity, or
because of failed/lack of plumbing
- Graffiti, art, escape map or plans, calendar carved into wall
- Pillow
- Blanket
- Pallet, mattress, cot
- Sink, bucket, basin, chamber pot
- Manacles
- Light source
- Replicators
- Educational touch screens
- Wall art from previous occupants
- Remains of previous occupants
- Chair
- Table
- Vermin, rats, bugs
- Other creatures from your favourite monster book
Occupied cells
- Spoiled food
- Empty food trays
- Soap
- Clothes
- Writing materials
- Remains of a game (i.e. dice, cards)
- Drugs/alcohol
- Improvised weapon
- Illicit books
- Money
- Tobacco
- Secret notes from other inmates
- Mirror
- The current occupants
Thanks to Garry Stahl, Telas, and Scot Newbury for ideas.
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3. Convert Existing Maps To Prisons
Another method for fast prison creation is to use a pre-
existing map. This is where your all your old books and
modules come in handy. :)
Prisons in your game don't need to be specially constructed
facilities. Your governments might not have the money or
desire to create dedicated structures. Instead, they might
take over ruins, unused structures, or avoided locations.
They would secure them, and then pile the inmates in.
If this is the case, you can use just about any interior map
from your library. Photocopy the map or slip it into a
transparent page sleeve so you can make changes without
ruining the original.
Here's a general plan to update any map to prison status:
- Seal off exits.
- Add outer perimeter defenses.
- Add alarms, patrols, or view points.
- Designate prisoner areas. Divide into sub-areas and cells
if desired.
- Designate staff areas.
- Mark supply, storage, and equipment areas.
- Designate visitor and public areas, if any.
You can also find great maps on the Internet. Check out
these free maps:
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4. Craft A Theme
Pick a theme to make prison adventures and encounters
entertaining, consistent, and atmospheric. Find ways to
integrate aspects of your theme into:
- Descriptions
- Design and layout
- Plots and encounters
- Names
- NPC, foe, and monster selection and design
Using theme to drive descriptions is one of my favourite
parts of GMing. It's a real-time creative exercise. A theme
gives me a hook to base my ideas and narrative on, a
tangible seed to work with.
Here's a quick way to develop a theme:
- Pick the basis, or hook, of your theme. It can be almost
anything: animal, vegetable, mineral; noun, verb, adjective,
adverb; person, place, thing.
Use the hook to direct your imagination on a specific vector
while designing and GMing.
- Pick a motif based on your theme hook. A motif is a
recurring form, shape, figure, idea, or feature.
Use the motif to guide the shape and form of such things as
architecture, furnishings and decoration, monster selection,
NPC personalities, and conflict seeds.
- Create a symbol, or series of derivative symbols, based
on theme and motif.
Use the symbol on signage, uniforms, prisoner tattoos,
player handouts, art and graffiti.
- Pick a mood that reflects the theme. Try to create this
mood at the game table while GMing, give NPCs this mood as a
starting point in encounters, craft descriptions and
encounters based on this mood.
- Pick a colour or colour palette that reflects theme and
mood. Make many things this colour.
- Create a short list of synonyms. Use a thesaurus to help
build your list, though try without one first as it's a fun
exercise that will flex your GMing muscles.
With these steps, done in any order you choose, you now have
a clear set of guidelines on how to theme elements of your
prison, game, and session.
Here are a few theme ideas to get you started:
- Mould and mildew
- Rock
- Torture
- Insanity
- Reptile
- Rapidly
- Fire
- Gold
- New age
- Werebeast
With theme in mind, here are a couple of design questions to
consider:
- Exterior appearance. How does the prison appear to the
outside world? i.e. Foreboding, intimidating, clean and
professional, secure, run-down. Use this to carve out a
presence for the prison in your game region, preferably
before the PCs are sent there.
- The outer face of the prison will determine:
- How NPCs regard it
- What society thinks about it
- Rumours, legends, gossip
- Events might skew this perception, such as frequent escapes
or news of violence. However, the exterior facade gives you
a good basis with which to communicate the prison's theme to
the PCs through roleplaying and description.
- How does the prison seem to staff? Use working conditions,
uniforms, equipment, architecture and interior layout, and
prisoner reaction to theme to determine base disposition for
staff members. For example, picture how the staff might
roleplay if they worked in The Pit of Despair versus St.
Gwen's Home of Rehabilitation & Enlightenment.
- Daily life. How does theme affect daily life, so that
inmates from one prison would roleplay differently than
another?
- Water
- Food - quality, menu
- Clothes - type, condition, labels/identification
- Exercise
- Hygiene
- Entertainment - bored prisoners are dangerous
- Labour, work
- Training and advancement opportunities
- Treatment by guards
- Treatment by administration
- Treatment of each other
- Access to creative tools, such as writing materials, art supplies, crafting supplies
* * *
Next week, in part three of the Jail Break series, we delve
into prison NPCs. Stay tuned.
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Game Specials and Overstock Sale
Check out the board games and RPGs on sale for potential
Christmas gifting, or to add to your own collection:
Sale items include:
- World of Warcraft Board Game
- Ticket to Ride
- Settlers of Catan series
- Babylon 5 RPG books
- Conan RPG books
- Slaine and Lone Wolf RPGs
- ...and more!
Readers' Tips Of The Week:
Have some GM advice you'd like to share? E-mail it to johnn@roleplayingtips.com - thanks!
1. Cavern Settings
From: Joel Weight
Johnn,
I watched "The Descent" last night, and I thought about role
playing settings a lot while watching the movie. How many
times has my party been into a cave with 5' wide halls and
8' tall ceilings, with square rooms and perfect entrances
and exits? The movie gives a sense of claustrophobia and the
varying settings within a cave.
I thought it could be in whatever list of movies you have
for game master inspiration. The terrain itself would be
considered many of the encounters for the party, and adding
monsters into the intense situations in the cavern only made
it more interesting. And to top it all off, the movie wasn't
all that bad either!
[Thanks Joel. A listing of movies to inspire GMs, you say?
What a great idea. Readers, I've made a request to this
effect in this issue's Brief Word section at the top. Let me
know what movies inspire you and for what aspect of GMing,
and I'll publish the list in a future issue.]
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2. Classic Tip: XP For Player Journalizing
From: Jason R., Tampa Florida
Here's something I instituted this year that has worked out
well for me: Journal XP.
In my latest game, I started giving XP bonuses for writing
an online journal. By giving players 100xp*lvl for each
journal entry (1 per game session) I have found it motivates
them to actually start writing one.
That XP under d20 rules is 10% of what is needed to gain
another level, and as I run a once-a-week campaign, I find
it only marginally affects progression - approximately 1
every 10 game sessions the players get a level out of it (2
1/2 months).
The benefits of writing journals are well worth the small
increase in advancement.
- Players spend time when not playing thinking about how
their PCs would interpret the game, further leading to the
all important bond with their characters.
- I have not once had to recap anything that happened in a
previous game session. Going over and writing things down
helps keep memories fresh for everyone.
- It makes a great resource for the GM to pull information
from. More than once I liked the players' concept of what
was going on, and incorporated it into my game.
- The story from 5 different points of view makes pretty
good reading.
- In sessions where there was not a lot of XP given, this
gives the PCs a chance to earn a little more.
I have one person who never writes from his own point of
view. Some examples:
- Onlooker - someone who does not have any stake in what is
happening, maybe being told as a story to a friend. "Guess
what happened when I went to the temple today."
- Armorsmith - trying to figure out exactly where and how
the tremendous gouges got into that suit of plate mail.
- Someone arriving after the fact, trying to determine
exactly what the heck happened here, and how the burning
corpse of an orc came to be hanging from the hall's great
Chandelier.
- From another party member's view point. Specifically,
what they saw the writer's character doing.
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3. RPG Files Backup
From: Jonny T.
I had some computer problems about 6 months ago that
convinced me to start using a backup. I highly recommend
Carbonite. For $50 a year they automatically backup whatever
files you choose (by default your Documents and Settings).
The choice to backup or not is integrated simply into
explorer. It keeps track of all the files you change, and
while your machine is idle it sends the backups to the
offsite server.
The initial backup takes a while, but after that it only
sends the changes, so it doesn't hog your bandwidth. And,
it's way less hassle than any kind of manual backup plan.
For only $50 a _year_ it's absolutely worth it. I know that,
should my machine fry or be stolen, all my files are safe
and sound on the Carbonite server.
www.carbonite.com
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4. NPC Essential Quick Reference Cards
From: Mike Downey
Hi Johnn,
I've really enjoyed your NPC Essentials book, and have
learned quite a bit from it. I came up with an idea for a
deck cards that acts as an extension of NPCE. The reason for
this was that I kept needing to create NPCs at the table,
during a game session. As you well know, players will go
where you least expect them, talking to NPCs that didn't
exist a moment ago.
The first page of the PDF gives a little more explanation,
while the remainder of the pages are the deck itself. All of
the information on the cards is taken from the tables in
your book. I had to cull the list of quirks to keep to a
100 card limit on the deck.
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