I'm going to be GMing a game in April with five players who've never played SR before; heck, two have never played an RPG before period. I have this idea for an overreaching storyline involving all sorts of crazy stuff.
I've got maybe 10-11 weeks to run my campaign. I'm thinking of starting the PCs off with a few introductory runs and then having them get picked up by CATco and become embroiled in a power struggle between the Seraphim and everyone else. Appearances by the Unseen (pun intended) may be on the horizon, plus blood magic and references to Twist's second ghost dance. Having never read the novels, can someone fill me in on the whole spider-totem-gets-lose-mini-ghost-dance-ensues bit? Yes, I've read Ancient History's stuff, but I really need to know more about Twist and where the mini GGD took place.
On a related note: the great ghost dance created a big ol' mana spike in the astral...did the location of the spike correspond to any particular place where the GGD was being performed?
Finally, all you experienced GMs out there: is it even worthwhile to even come up with a campaign plot ahead of time? I've got some great ideas for individual runs which I'm sure will entertain the players, but what are the odds that some prefabricated plot will hold their interests?
Full Version: What to expect when you're expected to run a game.
Adapt. Improvise. Overcome.
While I've found it's handy to at least sketch out the basic premise for a plot ahead of time, it's best to not go into too much detail, because players will ALWAYS do what you don't expect them to do.
While I've found it's handy to at least sketch out the basic premise for a plot ahead of time, it's best to not go into too much detail, because players will ALWAYS do what you don't expect them to do.
My players usually are the ones that provide me with a campaign plot, not the other way around.
Pay attention, keep an eye out for loose ends you can use for future runs, and it'll take care of itself.
Pay attention, keep an eye out for loose ends you can use for future runs, and it'll take care of itself.
Astral spikes are located at actual physical locations. The former spike from the GGD was found at the site where the ritual was enacted.
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| Astral spikes are located at actual physical locations. The former spike from the GGD was found at the site where the ritual was enacted. |
Okay, now question part two: where was this for Twist's ghost dance?
Remember the cardinal principle of anything plot:
No matter how many 'hints' (AKA, giant flashing neon signs and fireworks) you give the PCs, they will always go the one direction with none.
Attempting to utilize this principle constructively has a 50/50 chance of success.
Basically, if you put the big flashing signs one place that you want, and no hint at all for the other place that works, about half the time, they'll still go where you don't want them too.
No matter how many 'hints' (AKA, giant flashing neon signs and fireworks) you give the PCs, they will always go the one direction with none.
Attempting to utilize this principle constructively has a 50/50 chance of success.
Basically, if you put the big flashing signs one place that you want, and no hint at all for the other place that works, about half the time, they'll still go where you don't want them too.
Listen carefully to their plans.
The chances are they'll say something along the lines of 'We could use a refrigerated truck, but then monkeys might fly out of the Johnson's butt and then we'll be screwed'.
If monkeys flying out of the Johnson's butt is cooler than what you had planned, pick it up and run with it, just be careful not to be a git and completely foil their plans all the time like this, always give them some way of succeeding (unless they're always damned stupid, or if it's in your main plot that they stuff up big time).
The chances are they'll say something along the lines of 'We could use a refrigerated truck, but then monkeys might fly out of the Johnson's butt and then we'll be screwed'.
If monkeys flying out of the Johnson's butt is cooler than what you had planned, pick it up and run with it, just be careful not to be a git and completely foil their plans all the time like this, always give them some way of succeeding (unless they're always damned stupid, or if it's in your main plot that they stuff up big time).
You didn't say much about how much time you'd acatually have to devote to gaming.
Assuming your group is generally available every week, that gives you ~ 10 games...
The first game should probably be the intro to the game world, a simple run, food fight, somthing like that.
It sounds like you are probably going to be pressed for time, esepcailly with some complete newbies in tow. Making an 'in game' newspaper, so that you can introduce elements of the story without having 'big flaming clues' show up in the sotry might be helpful. This way, you can insert some of the early plot materail in the 'newspaper' with a mission reward (simpler mission goal, something like that) if any of the pcs pick up on it. This also lets you highlight parts of the world that could be important 'ie, an anneversary of the GGD newspaper issue'. So that when you describe the GGD when it actually comes up, you will hopefully not have to take the time out to explain it...
Assuming your group is generally available every week, that gives you ~ 10 games...
The first game should probably be the intro to the game world, a simple run, food fight, somthing like that.
It sounds like you are probably going to be pressed for time, esepcailly with some complete newbies in tow. Making an 'in game' newspaper, so that you can introduce elements of the story without having 'big flaming clues' show up in the sotry might be helpful. This way, you can insert some of the early plot materail in the 'newspaper' with a mission reward (simpler mission goal, something like that) if any of the pcs pick up on it. This also lets you highlight parts of the world that could be important 'ie, an anneversary of the GGD newspaper issue'. So that when you describe the GGD when it actually comes up, you will hopefully not have to take the time out to explain it...
How much time do you have to prepare, and how well versed are you in the rules? If you have 20 hours a week to prepare for the game, then you can do a lot of character development on key NPCs and locations that the run will move towards. And you can debug the previous weeks session and integrate changes obver the course of the next week.
I suggest only rough outlines of any specific plot points (i.e. location and descriptions, maps, NPCs to interact with violently or otherwise, etc) and let the PCs figure out how to get from A to B to C.
I also suggest only allowing SR3 to start so that everyone gets a feel for the core rules before you branch out into the supplements.
Let us know how it goes.
I suggest only rough outlines of any specific plot points (i.e. location and descriptions, maps, NPCs to interact with violently or otherwise, etc) and let the PCs figure out how to get from A to B to C.
I also suggest only allowing SR3 to start so that everyone gets a feel for the core rules before you branch out into the supplements.
Let us know how it goes.
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| You didn't say much about how much time you'd acatually have to devote to gaming. Assuming your group is generally available every week, that gives you ~ 10 games... The first game should probably be the intro to the game world, a simple run, food fight, somthing like that. |
Egads, you're right, I made no mention of that. We're going to be meeting for four hour sessions which in my experience is enough to complete a single run. As for the first run, I was planning on having the runners perform a street-level extraction: they're rescuing a girl from a bunraku parlor. The run is straight forward, has multiple ways of being approached, and so long as they don't accidentally kill the girl there's little threat. I do plan on running a "food fight"-esque combat introduction before starting the campaign proper.
| QUOTE |
| How much time do you have to prepare, and how well versed are you in the rules? If you have 20 hours a week to prepare for the game, then you can do a lot of character development on key NPCs and locations that the run will move towards. And you can debug the previous weeks session and integrate changes obver the course of the next week. |
Well, I have til April to prepare, so plenty of time. Between sessions is another matter: I hardly can devote 20 hours a week. I've been playing SR3 for a couple years so I know the rules fairly well, with the exception of rigging. Mercifully, none of the players wanted to play a rigger.
| QUOTE |
| I also suggest only allowing SR3 to start so that everyone gets a feel for the core rules before you branch out into the supplements. |
Well, um, whoops. Actually, I thought about it, and decided to use the "core supplements" (mits, mm, cc, matrix, et al). I'm actually not too worried about my player's learning the ropes.
Of the two players playing magicians, one's a hardcore player of that other game with ridiculous memorization skills, so I expect him to be able to keep up. The other magician player is a complete first time RPer, but her character is pretty much a complete pacifist without any real combat spells (save mass agony). This is a double edged sword I think: the character is screwed in a fight, but she won't be casting many spells in a situation where I won't have time to remind her of the rules/answer her questions.
The other player experienced with that other game is playing a troll meatshield. He's got the combat rules down so I'm not worried. The fourth player has no traditional pen-and-paper experience, but has LARPed of all things, and he's good at RP so I'm sure he'll be just fine. He's playing a dwarf gunman/enforcer type with a lot of bioware. Since these two characters will be referring to the main combat rules and implant rules the most, they shouldn't have too much trouble.
The player/character I am the most concerned about is the decker/tech wiz. She's never RPed before, so I plan to take it nice and slow on matrix runs until she gets comfortable. I do, however, trust her instincts, as she did create a pretty survivable character without much input from me.
If you've got a set amount of game days to run the campaign, you can map the whole story arc from start to finish, a luxury most GM's don't have. If you end up with a run that is going to be combat heavy, or has a few plot twists/change of scenery, spread the run out over a couple of sessions. Our sessions run about 4 - 5 hours and it rarely takes just one to complete a job. If it get's ran through too quickly, you leave less time for getting into character. Plus, your players (especially the noobs) are going to want to know what they can and can not do with some certainty less they get gacked for doing something foolish. That can drag the game a bit longer as well. I would recommend keeping the runs pretty simple, with a lot of prep work being done by the Johnson. Pay should be light in those cases, but as the story progresses, Johnsons can substitute nuyen with items/favors etc. Just my 2 
worth.
worth.
My plan as GM is always have a end result.
Have some big "thing" that you want to get accomplished with the game. Some goal that can get accomplished within a few sessions, but also have that one big goal that the game will accomplish with many game sessions.
The cardinal rule I use is . . . No matter what I have planned, or what I think the players will do, they always do the exact oposite
. Therefore, I generally have a few planned encounters. The obvious is the Johnson, and the antagonist group / person they will have to deal with/kill/appropriate for Johnson. Everything else is open to what the players themselves want to do. I have general ideas of where everything is supposed to happen. (i.e. they go into a building and run into some security guards / NPC runners) If they don't do that and by-pass that building all together and get in another way, just move that group to another location and roll with it.
That's the only hard thing about any RPG is being able to adjust things on the run so the players don't feel like they are being dragged into something they did not initiate.
Have some big "thing" that you want to get accomplished with the game. Some goal that can get accomplished within a few sessions, but also have that one big goal that the game will accomplish with many game sessions.
The cardinal rule I use is . . . No matter what I have planned, or what I think the players will do, they always do the exact oposite
. Therefore, I generally have a few planned encounters. The obvious is the Johnson, and the antagonist group / person they will have to deal with/kill/appropriate for Johnson. Everything else is open to what the players themselves want to do. I have general ideas of where everything is supposed to happen. (i.e. they go into a building and run into some security guards / NPC runners) If they don't do that and by-pass that building all together and get in another way, just move that group to another location and roll with it.That's the only hard thing about any RPG is being able to adjust things on the run so the players don't feel like they are being dragged into something they did not initiate.
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