Darths & Droids

Episode 373: With Friends Like These, Who Needs A Nemesis?

Tue, 9 Feb 2010 10:10:02 +0000

The thing about running a game with a grand plot that plays into the hands of epic literary tropes is that you don't control what the players or the dice do. If you're writing a novel or directing a film, you can make the story follow the mythic arcs, because nobody will be doing bizarre things of their own free will within your story and no random events will suddenly change things without you being able to do anything about them (without being accused of cheating).

So although you may set up something to generate a brilliant piece of storytelling, always be prepared to have it dashed in a single moment of unavoidable action by a player.

This is not a tragedy though. For when you do get one of these setups to work, it will be all the more memorable for both you and your players. The interactive, group-created fiction of a game can be a pale imitation of the best single-author fiction. Or it can tower over it. You just have to give it the opportunities.

Lots of them.

Episode 372: Aggressive Negotiations

Sun, 7 Feb 2010 10:10:02 +0000

Mass combat is a special case that is often handled differently from the normal combat rules in many roleplaying games. If you tried to run a fight involving a hundred or more combatants using the detailed one-on-one hand-to-hand rules designed for small encounters, you could be rolling dice until the cows come home. What you need is a way to give the players something to do while not requiring a bazillion dice rolls to figure out how many of the vast cast of supporting extras are being incapacitated in the background.

Since mass combats don't actually happen that often, the change of rules can be a little disorienting. At times like these you need a rules expert on hand.

This goes for both the GM and the players.

Episode 371: Dire Hire, Robes on Fire

Thu, 4 Feb 2010 10:22:22 +0000

When all hell breaks loose in a game and you're not sure what to do, you can always fall back on your real life instincts. What would you do if an honest-to-goodness fight suddenly broke out and you were in real danger of being attacked?

Some people are better equipped to deal with such situations than others, but we all have instincts that can give you a good starting point. Even if it doesn't really help your character much, it'll be entertaining.

Bonus: Rejected script idea for this strip:

Episode 370: Second Windu

Thu, 4 Feb 2010 10:55:40 +0000

The player who remembers your adventure plot and actually does sensible things to try to get the job done is a valuable resource. Make sure you nurture this player and do everything in your power to hang on to them. In your entire GMing career you might be lucky to see one or two such players. Although you can bet they will come with little quirks of their own.

As a bonus today, here is an early script idea for this strip. We couldn't use this after we decided Sally needed to be playing Mace Windu in this strip.

Episode 369: The Regal Has Landed

Sun, 31 Jan 2010 10:10:02 +0000

There's always treasure around somewhere. Detecting where it's hidden is a vital skill. Don't let your GM ever convince you that there's no treasure in a particular place.

If it comes right down to it, you can unscrew the doors and take them away to sell them. Those things can be expensive - especially if the GM has tried to make them fancy and difficult to get through. Remember that: The harder a place is to get into, the more valuable the security fittings are.